The LoHud Yankees Blog

YANKEES (23-17)
Derek Jeter SS
Robinson Cano 2B
Mark Teixeira 1B
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Hideki Matsui DH
Nick Swisher RF
Melky Cabrera LF
Francisco Cervelli C
Brett Gardner CF

Pitching: Joba Chamberlain (2-1, 3.76 ERA)

Orioles (16-24)

Lineup TBA

Pitching: Adam Eaton (2-4, 7.93).

TIME/TV: 7:05 p.m., MY9.

THE PUMP: Leading the “silly storylines” section today is the steel-cage match scheduled between Joba and Aubrey Huff. While some folks are caught up in fist-pump-gate, give credit to both guys for giving it an appropriate blow-off: “It really doesn’t matter to me,” Joba said. “I would certainly hope it’s put to bed,” Huff said.

POWER PLAYS: Alex Rodriguez is clearly struggling – he didn’t homer last night for the first time in five games. Nick Swisher, Robinson Cano and Melky Cabrera did manage to hit three in a row though, giving the Yankees 16 homers during their eight-game winning streak.

PARTY LIKE 2007: The Yankees are going for nine wins in a row tonight and their second straight series sweep. The last time they won nine in a row was June 5-14, 2007.

FIRST & 10?: During a preseason stadium tour, COO Lonn Trost mentioned that the Yankees could be interested in having non-baseball sporting events at the Stadium. Now comes a story in the New York Times about Notre Dame potentially playing a game there. Not a bad idea at all, I’d say.

UPDATE, 4:02 p.m.: Thanks to Josh Thomson, who is on the scene tonight and called in the lineup. I’ll be out of action for most of the evening, but Josh will report back with comments from Girardi about Wang/Hughes, today’s lineup (definitely a few questions there) and everything else after the manager speaks to the media. I’ll try to get a post up late-night if I can, and don’t forget to check back tomorrow for the final holiday celebration and the mini-mailbag (questions still being accepted at sborden@lohud.com). Enjoy the game everyone.

UPDATE, 4:40: Josh reports that Phil Hughes will get another start. Hughes will start Monday in Texas. Chien-Ming Wang will pitch a for Scranton tomorrow against the Pawtucket Red Sox.

“We just want to see him have the stuff he had in the bullpen,” Girardi said.

Johnny Damon wrenched his neck jumping for Adam Jones home run yesterday. He is sore but Girardi hopes its only one day. “He’s a little sore.”

Also, Girardi said Cano was out in the second spot to break up the lefties in the lineup and because he makes good contact and can handle the bat.

Meanwhile down on the farm, Double-A Trenton was victimized by a perfect game by Cleveland prospect Jeanmar Gomez. It was an 11:05 a.m. start, so maybe the Thunder bats were still asleep.

UPDATE, 5 p.m.: It takes a lot of people to fill in for Pete. Journal News news-side reporter Jorge Fitz-Gibbon checked in to say the Yankees were well represented today when the city unveiled the new Metro-North Commuter Railroad station at the new Stadium. Jorge Posada and Brian Cashman, as well as David Cone and Lee Mazzilli, were on hand when New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and MTA officials held a press conference at the new station at E. 153rd Street.

In fact, when it came time to life the curtain to unveil the signs that will sit on the platform, Bloomberg and Posada shared the duties.

In a humorous note, Jorge also reported that the mayor and others kept referring to the “station” as the “Stadium.”

UPDATE, 7:23 In case you missed it, Joba Chamberlain was hit with a line drive from Adam Jones on a 1-1 pitch. Jones was the second batter of the game. Joba lifted his right knee to protect himself as the line drive buzzed toward him and the ball hit him right on it. He threw Jones out at first. He then was in obvious pain.

Girardi and the trainer came out to see him. He threw two warmups and continued, only to be pulled after he allowed singles to the next two batters. Alfredo Aceves is now in. We’ll have an update on his condition as soon as possible.

UPDATE, 7:45: The Yankees might be distracted by Joba, but the Orioles pitching is so weak it doesn’t matter. With the ballpark and the money the franchise has, it speaks volumes to Peter Angelos’ incompetence and meddling that the Orioles are well on their way to their 13th straight sub-.500 season.

UPDATE, 9:15 X-rays negative, Joba’s injury is just a bruise. So now Yankees fans can start thinking about the weekend series with the Phillies.

UPDATE: 10:27: Updates from Josh from the clubhouse:

Girardi saw Joba walking around the clubhouse. He said the bruising wasn’t that bad as of tonight and said he was “hopeful” Joba will make his next scheduled start.

Damon didn’t take BP today. Girardi said he is day to day also. They’ll make a determination about whether or not he plays tomorrow afternoon before the game.

Also, Coke was only available in an emergency tonight but Girardi wanted to stay away from him. He expects him to be available tomorrow vs. The Phils.

Debating whether the new Yankee Stadium is a “bandbox” or “playing too small” or “Coors Field East” seems to be a pereptually hot topic, but to those who are breathlessly discussing whether the Yankees now play in a launching pad, my question is this:

Who cares?

Two months is way too soon to be labeling anything, in my opinion, but even if there was some Pythagorean theorem that could prove, once and for all, that the new Stadium is a hitter’s paradise and always will be, what’s so wrong with that?

The New York Yankees play baseball. Home runs are a part of baseball. What’s the problem with home runs being hit during New York Yankees home games?

One of the Yankees’ goals with the new stadium was to give it a historical feel and incorporate numerous elements of the franchise’s past. To me, they (mostly) did a good job in that regard – the pictures, the frieze, the museum, etc. They also kept the field dimensions the same, which is a nice nod to continuity.

So does a plethora of home runs change that? Some people seem to believe that lots of homers and high scores somehow cheapens the new stadium or makes it lesser, and I can’t really understand why. Are home runs somehow a bad thing? Did a ball that flies into the seats not actually travel a great distance to get there? No one is hitting homers at Citi Field, so does that make it a better park than Yankee Stadium?

It’s still too early to say for sure how this park will play – I’d say give it a full season, at least, before you draw any real conclusions. But even if it does turn out to be a hitter’s haven, there’s nothing wrong with that. It’s just the way it is.

It’s interesting to see how managers react to different game situations on a night-to-night basis, particularly when certain trends become evident. Even if you don’t necessarily agree with their decisions, consistency from a manager shows that, at minimum, he has a strong belief in the thinking behind his choices.

Last night, though, Joe Girardi made what I’d call an inconsistent decision. After bringing Mariano Rivera into the game in the eighth inning and the score 5-3, Girardi opted to leave his closer in for the ninth despite the Yankees turning the game into a rout with a six-run bottom of the inning. One night earlier, in an almost identical situation – this time the Yanks were up one and CC Sabathia was ready to go back out, only to see the Yankees score seven runs in the bottom of the seventh – Girardi pulled his ace.

So, the question begs: If he did it with his best starter, why not with his best reliever? Especially one who may or may not be 100 % healthy?

To be fair, Girardi did ask Rivera how he felt and even though Mariano would never say he didn’t want to pitch, there are times when he intimates that. For example, a few days ago when Andy Pettitte was starting, Girardi went up to Rivera before the game and asked if he was available that night; Rivera, who had pitched three innings in the previous two games, didn’t say no but he did say, “Andy’s starting,” as if Pettitte was going to pitch so well Rivera wouldn’t be needed. That non-answer was enough for Girardi to know he was going to use someone else to finish the game that night and he did (getting Phil Coke his first save).

All the same, I still think sending Rivera out last night for the ninth was the wrong choice. Was it a disastrous decision? Hardly. Is it a huge deal? Not particularly. But pitchers can be thrown off by the slightest of events, and the long layoff while the Yankees were at-bat isn’t something Rivera is used to sitting through before pitching. Remember what Brian Bruney said earlier this week? That something as small as the lengthy replay review of Jorge Posada’s home run may have played a role in his injury. Back on April 19, the umps took 8 1/2 minutes to figure out whether Posada’s seventh-inning homer should stand, meaning Bruney kept warming up the entire time. Looking back now, Bruney thinks all those extra pitches – plus the standing around – may have been part of what sent him to the DL.

I’m not saying that’s going to happen to Rivera. Fourteen pitches, which is what he ended up throwing in the game, isn’t a ton. But once the Yankees had the game in hand, there wasn’t much use in having Rivera return to the mound after a long cooling-off period. It’s not something he’s used to and, given his age and health situation, the best thing for him is to keep his work confined to familiar situtations as much as possible.

First, let me start with this: I wasn’t at the game last night, which means I missed a wonderful gesture by MLB and the Yankees in having Polly Tompkins, a lifelong fan who is battling cancer, serve as honorary bat girl. The YES Network’s Kim Jones has a terrific post about Polly and the Yankees up on her blog. As mentioned in TJN’s notebook by Ernie Palladino today, Nick Swisher – who hit a home run last night – said he was inspired by Polly.

Those of you who remember my walk between both New York stadiums last year know that I’m a big advocate for cancer research, so if you want to donate to Susan G. Komen For the Cure or the American Cancer Society, click the links.

—–

Now, on to baseball. With National Waiter/Waitress Day as our holiday du jour, I thought it might be a good time to talk about the concept of service and the Yankees. No, I don’t mean those little paddles Stadium employees all hold now that ask “how can I help you?” – though they’re a nice touch – but rather the larger philosophical debate that seems to rise up often among Yankees fans that their team doesn’t do enough of the “little things” to win games.

Think about it: The best waiters and waitresses are the ones who do the little things for you. Extra napkins. An always-full water glass. A bread basket that’s hot from the oven. The closest I’ve ever come to being a waiter is the one afternoon I spent helping out a family friend who ran a catering business, and just passing appetizers on a hot afternoon made me realize what a tough job it is; the ones who do it well are the ones who are always there, always sacrificing themselves to make the customer happy. It’s certainly not for everyone.

In terms of the Yankees, I get e-mails from readers all the time screaming about how the Yankees need to do more of that. More sacrificing, more “moving the runner”, etc. Teams like the Angels do it, the readers say, and that’s what winning teams do.

I’m not so sure though. As stated several times in the past, I’m hardly a stats guy but I do understand (and agree with) the sentiment that giving up outs is generally a bad thing. You only get so many in a game, so it’s rarely a good idea to willingly give one away. When I see Derek Jeter squaring to bunt, 99.9 % of the time I’m sure it’s a bad play.

What do you guys think? Would you like to see the Yankees do more of that style play? You’re already seeing more of it this season, as Francisco Cervelli and Brett Gardner have three sacrifices apiece and the Yankees as a team have 13 – fifth-highest in the AL. The teams ahead of them include the Angels (no surprise), who – like the Yankees – have spent most of the early part of the season missing their top power hitter (Vlad Guerrero).

One thing I did notice is that it’s pretty clear you don’t need to play that kind of ball to win. The team that’s dead-last among AL teams in sacrifices? Boston. They’ve got zero.

Let’s hear your thoughts. And, since it’s a holiday, let’s hear some good waiter/waitress stories, please. I know everyone has at least one or two (bonus points if you actually work as one and can give us something funny from the inside).

—–

Great job on the mailbag response so far. I’ll probably post it tomorrow, so feel free to keep the questions coming in to sborden@lohud.com.

The Yankees are on the kind of run teams dream about: They’re winning close games and blowouts, coming back when they need it and playing from in front the rest of the time. Suddenly, everything seems to be working. Tonight’s win is their eighth in a row and with Boston beating Toronto again, the top of the AL East is getting awfully bunched.

It was good to see Phil Hughes have a strong outing, if only because he’ll go back to the minors with a better taste in his mouth. I’m not entirely convinced he won’t have one more start in the bigs before Chien-Ming Wang returns, but it sounds like Joe Girardi will make some sort of decision on Wang tomorrow.

The offense? Hard to complain about anything at this point. Three homers in a row is impressive (especially off Guthrie, who is about as good a pitcher as the Orioles have) and the power numbers are getting overwhelming. Hitting like this makes inconsistent pitching a non-issue.

I know there are fans out there who always see the downside or potential for disaster, and I’d be the first to admit there are still some legitimate questions about this team that need to be answered before I’d label them a World Series lock. That doesn’t mean this kind of run isn’t something to be wholly enjoyed. There’ll be plenty of time to worry about the bullpen or injuries or whether Joba belongs in the pen or the rotation. For now, take a break and breathe in a big winning streak. They’re something special.

——

Condolences to the Yankee family tonight on the loss of Max Margulis, a World War II veteran who ran “Max’s Cafe” inside Steinbrenner Field in Tampa.

Max’s was the place where everyone — Yankee staffers, scouts, executives and the media — had lunch during spring training, and Margulis was always waiting at the door when you came in. The Yankees said he passed away Tuesday after suffering a heart attack. He was a very, very nice man, and he’ll be missed. Spring training won’t be the same without him.

YANKEES (22-17)
Derek Jeter SS
Johnny Damon LF
Mark Teixeira 1B
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Hideki Matsui DH
Nick Swisher RF
Robinson Cano 2B
Melky Cabrera CF
Kevin Cash C

Pitching: Phil Hughes (1-2, 7.56).

TIME/TV: 7:05 p.m., YES.

STREAKING: It’s seven in a row for the Yankees now, who are finally getting the production they’d been expecting from their hitters. During the winning streak they’re averaging 5.9 runs per game.

BIG START FOR PJH: In some ways tonight is important for Hughes and in others it’s meaningless; regardless of how well he pitches, it’s still likely that he’ll be the one giving way when Chien-Ming Wang is ready to return to the rotation. At the same time, Hughes hasn’t been the young stud everyone anticipates he’ll be, so he could use a confidence boost. Unfortunately, his history with the Orioles isn’t great – he got roughed up for eight runs in just 1.2 innings against Baltimore on May 9.

POWER PLAYS: Mark Teixeira has officially broken out of whatever early-season slump he was in. He’s 14 of 37 in his last 10 games with six homers (three in the last two days) and 15 RBI. Alex Rodriguez hasn’t hit consistently since coming off the DL – he’s batting .194 – but his production has been amazing when he does make contact: 5 HR, 10 RBI in 11 games.

HONORING THEIR SERVICE:Tonight through Sunday, the Yankees will commemorate Fleet Week. Members of the armed forces will take part in on-field pregame ceremonies. In addition, for each game through Sunday the club has donated tickets in the Legends Suite area to members of the U.S. Navy, Marines and Coast Guard, among other branches of the Armed Forces.

With all the controversy over the Legends Suites this year, it’s nice to see the Yankees opening them to people who truly deserve the best seats in the house.

I’m not covering the game tonight – that duty falls to the excellent Ernie Palladino, who provided the lineups. I’ll try to post at some point later on or postgame. Enjoy the chase for eight, everyone.

UPDATE, 7:53: Back-to-back-to-back and belly-to-belly-to-belly. That’s the 11th time in franchise history that has happened. The last time came on June 21, 2005, when Gary Sheffield, Alex Rodriguez, and Hideki Matsui did it in Tampa Bay.

The competition has hardly been great, but everything is going right for the Yankees.

All the e-mails and comments about the corresponding roster move the Yankees had to make to activate Brian Bruney made me think about just how different things have turned out in the bullpen as compared to the Yanks’ original plan.

Remember when Edwar Ramirez, Jose Veras, Damaso Marte and Bruney were supposed to form the cliche “bridge” to Mariano Rivera? So far the only one that’s actually been good is Bruney, and he’s now coming back from a injury-forced layoff.

Marte? He’s gone and almost forgotten. Someone asked Joe Girardi yesterday if he had an update on Marte’s progress and Girardi paused for a second, then said, “No.” Good thing Marte is only signed for another two years.

Veras? He’s given up 12 earned runs in 16 1/3 innings and gives off the safety and security of lighter fluid.

Ramirez? He’s back in Scranton after walking 15 in 17 1/3.

I know some critics believe this is the year that Rivera will finally falter but for me, the bigger problem is – and probably will always be – just getting him the ball.

—–

FYI: I’ve gotten a lot of emails from readers with a variety of questions and am thinking about doing a mini-mailbag post at some point tomorrow or Friday. If there’s anything you want to know – about me, the Yankees, holidays, etc. – feel free to write to sborden@lohud.com. As you guys have probably already guessed, I’m all about the off-beat stuff, so don’t be afraid to come with something weird.

Despite his less-than-stellar recent haircut — for those who need a reminder, look here — Nick Swisher remains a very good guy and he’s teaming up with the good folks at Foley’s NY Pub & Restaurant in Manhattan.

Today at noon, Swisher and Foley’s owner Shaun Clancy will announce the launch of a new item at the restaurant: The Swish & Chips (also known as battered fish and fries).

From now until the end of the season, Foley’s will donate $1 from every sale of the dish to Swisher’s charity, Swish’s Wishes, which benefits kids around the country. While I haven’t personally sampled the Swish & Chips yet, I can say with authority that battered fish, Foley’s and helping kids are, in my experience, all positive things.

… in Zaire.

Now, it wasn’t a tough choice for me to pass over such holidays as Independence Day (in East Timor), St. Ferdinand Day (in Spain) or National Day (in Cameroon) because Party Day is just so fitting, even if I’m pretty sure the folks in Zaire are talking about political parties as opposed to, say, toga parties.

All the same, Party Day it is and to begin my celebration, I want to wish my lovely wife — some of you from the old Daily News blog may remember her as “The Girlfriend” — an incredibly happy birthday today. We met on the first day of college, the only two freshman in an upper-level English class, and even though we didn’t begin dating right away, we could always inspire emotion in each other. We argued over “The Great Gatsby” back then – the class was called “The Short Novel” and was one of my favorites – but we made each other laugh and smile all the time; I just loved being around her. Today, it’s still the same. Writers might be supposed to use flowery and descriptive words, but I can’t think of any other way to say it than this: She’s the best. We just fit.

To me, that’s what “chemistry” is. It’s a subject that’s gotten a lot of attention with the Yankees lately and rightfully so; the new pie-in-the-face routine that A.J. Burnett brought over is one particularly public element, but there are others: The WWE championship wrestling belt that is bestowed nightly on the star of the game. The loud music. The laughing.

Yesterday there was a sign on the clubhouse door, available for all to see, reminding players that the “Kangaroo Court” will convene today at 3:15 p.m. All latecomers will take a $100 fine and, according to always-excellent Mark Feinsand, Mariano Rivera will be presiding (presumably not wearing a powdered wig – though that would be excellent if he did).

Kangaroo Courts, where guys can put each other on trial for alleged violations of protocol (like wearing an ugly suit on the road), are a staple of pro teams in all sports but the public nature of this year’s Yankee version is emblematic of its different feel. Joe Girardi said he believes chemistry is important because of the ups-and-downs of a long baseball season; it sounds simple, but players actually liking each other makes it easy to come up from the low points. “This clubhouse has come together really quickly,” Girardi said. “The guys like each other and they’re not afraid to get on each other.”

Johnny Damon, who started the WWE belt trend, was supposed to help “change the rigid Yankee culture” when he arrived in 2005, but that’s tough for one guy to do by himself. This year, the Yankees have several new players and that’s how the vibe of a team changes, Damon said. “We’ve got a lot of new guys here,” he said. “A lot of guys didn’t know what it was like here before, so they bring their own flair and so far it’s working.”

My feeling on chemistry is that it’s absolutely real and absolutely matters. Does it matter as much in baseball as it does in sports where players perform in conjunction with one another constantly (like basketball, hockey or soccer)? No, probably not. But baseball does have the longest season and I do think a good feeling among the players is probably worth a win or two along the way. A comeback after a tough loss that doesn’t fester or the ability to perk up after a late-night flight and early first pitch. Those are the days when being happy to be around your teammates can matter. And this year, one or two wins could make the difference in a tight AL East.

So go out there today, find someone you love spending time with, and celebrate Party Day the right way. You know the Yankees certainly will.

No surprise that the fake WWE championship belt was in CC Sabathia’s locker tonight – even though the final was 9-1, most of the game was a tight pitcher’s duel and Sabathia delivered the goods. He came off the mound following the seventh planning to go back out for the eighth, but the 27-minute bottom of the inning (and the game turning into a rout) gave the Yankees a chance to rest him and get Brian Bruney back into action.

Afterward, Sabathia said was told his night was over after Johnny Damon’s RBI single. Could he have finished the game? “Absolutely,” he said. “It definitely felt good not to have to, though.”

A-Rod also received plenty of postgame kudos for his fourth homer in as many days. Although Rodriguez doesn’t have a lot of hits since coming off the DL, the power is certainly there: Five of his seven hits since being activated have been homers.

“I think he’s having fun,” Joe Girardi said. “Most of the credit goes to his work ethic.”

Girardi then was asked if he thinks A-Rod is 100 % healthy yet. His answer was telling. “Is he going to get better?” Girardi said. “I think so. I really do.”

After dealing with stories about steroids, his marriage and everything else, Rodriguez is just appreciating being able to talk about just playing well. “When you’re winning games,” he said, “there’s a lot of good stories to write.”

Great job by everyone in the comments tonight. I’m headed home. Check back tomorrow for another morning holiday celebration as the Yankees try to make it eight straight.