The LoHud Yankees Blog

YANKEES (93-52)
Jeter SS
Damon LF
Teixeira 1B
Rodriguez 3B
Matsui DH
Posada C
Cano 2B
Swisher RF
Gardner CF

Pitching: RHP Sergio Mitre (3-2, 7.02).

BLUE JAYS (65-79)
Scutaro SS
Hill 2B
Lind DH
Wells CF
Overbay 1B
Encarnacion 3B
Barajas C
Bautista RF
Snider LF

Pitching: RHP Roy Halladay (14-9, 3.03).

STATE OF THE STRIPES: The Yankees start the day with a 7.5 game lead on Boston in the AL East and a six-game lead for best record in the American League, which brings with it home field advantage. The magic number is 12. The Angels play at Fenway park tonight.

NO HALLADAY: THE Yankees faced Roy Halladay in Toronto on Sept. 4. He threw a one-hit shutout with three walks and nine strikeouts. The lone hit was a double by Ramiro Pena in the sixth inning.

SURGE OF RUNS FOR SERGE: Mitre face the Jays on Sept. 6 and allowed 11 runs (nine earned) on 11 hits in 4.1 innings. He was victimized by some poor defense.

This note directly from the Yankees:

GO SPEEDRACER, GO: Brett Gardner has stolen 21 bases in 26 attempts this season. Over the last 50 years (since 1960), only three other Yankees rookies have stolen at least 21 bases in a season – Alfonso Soriano (43 in 2001), Willie Randolph (37in 1976) and Jerry Kenney (25 in 1969). Gardner has been successful in 34 of his first 40 career attempts.

ON THE iPOD RIGHT NOW: Most Likely You Go Your Way (And I’ll Go Mine) by Bob Dylan from Blonde on Blonde.

Back with more later on. Not much new in the way of notes lately.

UPDATE, 4:05 p.m.: Pettitte being skipped until Monday because of shoulder fatigue. Gaudin starts tomorrow.

UPDATE, 4:15 p.m.: Girardi said it’s not serious. They believe this extended rest will “knock it out.”

UPDATE, 5:07 p.m.: Here is Pettitte discussing his shoulder:

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Pettitte said the ache in his shoulder contributed to his poor start on Friday when he lasted only five innings and walked three. But he threw a bullpen yesterday and it felt fine.

He will not throw again until Friday. So he’ll have nine days between starts and two days completely off. That should help.

UPDATE, 7:09 p.m.: We are underway. Another terrific night for baseball. … And before I can finish the sentence, Mitre gives up a hit. You get the feeling this could be a long night for the pinstripes?

UPDATE, 7:24 p.m.: Mitre works out of the first inning and looked good doing so. Now the Yankees have something cooking on Halladay.

UPDATE, 7:38 p.m.: Mitre motors through the second. But the Yankees wasted a chance in the first inning against Halladay.

UPDATE, 7:50 p.m.: Gritty! Gutty! 1-0 Yankees. Brett Gardner doing his thing. Yankees need to maximize this inning now. One is not remotely enough.

UPDATE, 7:54 p.m.: Not bad. But the Yankees could have milked another run or two out of that opportunity. Still, that’s two more runs than they had against Halladay the last time.

UPDATE, 8:02 p.m.: So much for that as Mitre walks Bautista and gives up a majestic blast to Snider. All tied up at 2-2.

UPDATE, 8:06 p.m.: Still think there is no problem with right field? Because that is an out in 29 other ballparks. Jays lead 3-2.

UPDATE, 8:15 p.m.: Yankees try it again with Halladay.

UPDATE, 8:20 p.m.: Alex has been much more spry in the field in recent weeks. But he still isn’t running nearly as well as he did before the surgery. That appears to be the last thing that will come back, assuming it does.

Good send by Thomson. You need to push the issue against a pitcher like Halladay.

UPDATE, 8:27 p.m.: Bombs Away Mitre does it again as Encarnacion goes deep. Three homers for the Jays in four innings and a 4-2 lead. It’ll be tough for Girardi to claim that old Serge threw the ball well this time.

UPDATE, 8:29 p.m.: I detect a trend as Snider goes deep again. It’s souvenir ball night here at the ballpark.

Brett Tomko is having a good chuckle.

UPDATE, 9:06 p.m.: The Yankees have 10 hits and a walk against Roy Halladay in five innings and trail 4-2. Be interesting to see Roy twirl the complete game 17-hitter.

Meanwhile, Mitre continues to give up runs as the Jays lead 6-2. The crowd is letting him have it, too.

UPDATE, 9:08 p.m.: Edwar Ramirez in as Girardi goes to the white flag bullpen guys.

UPDATE, 9:57 p.m.: Ramirez, Melancon and Dunn are basically the no-chance bullpen at this point. They only pitch in games that are way out of hand either way. This has become a rather tedious game as the Yankees trail 8-2. Back later with any postgame news.

UPDATE, 10:07 p.m.: A jagged piece of Matsui’s bat just flew into the seats behind the dugout. It looked like a spear. Thankfully nobody was injured. … Now Carlson just threw behind Posada in retaliation for Melancon hitting Aaron Hill in the back.

UPDATE, 10:19 p.m.: We have a brawl as Sonny Corleone Posada threw an elbow at Carlson after he scored and was ejected. Then the brawl started. Shelley Duncan, a good man to have on your side in such affairs, was right in the middle of it. Of course.

UPDATE, 10:2e p.m.: Posada is flat-out wrong there. You can’t throw an elbow like that and expect to get away with it. Carlson threw behind him after Melancon hit Hill, Toronto’s star player. That’s how it works in baseball.

You can expect Posada to get suspended for a few games.

UPDATE, 10:29 p.m.: Posada and Carlson were ejected.

UPDATE, 10:48 p.m.: Baseball is great. Tex didn’t have a triple for two years and now he has two in as many nights. Go figure.

The Yankees would open up in Boston
according to the tentative schedule released by MLB.

Why do two cold-weather teams play each other in the first week of the season? The Yankees also close with the Red Sox.

I’m sure this will be interpreted as some sort of conspiracy against the Yankees orchestrated by ESPN, John Henry and Peter Gammons. But in the end, schedules usually balance out one way or another.

Unless you know for sure how how good or bad every team will be in 2010, there is not much sense complaining about it.

Worry about next year when it comes. Enjoy 2009, it’s pretty special.

And think about this: You the Red Sox are thrilled to open and close with the Yankees? I’m guessing not. Location with those teams usually doesn’t much matter.

Our pals at The Big Lead have a post up about the romantic life of Nick Swisher.

The Swish dish is Joanna Garcia, who is on Gossip Girl. From what I am told, Nick is very happy. That’s not good news for you ladies out there who like bad haircuts and a high on-base percentage.

Meanwhile Wilson Betemit just asked out a waitress at a truck stop in Charlotte and she threw his tip back at him.

Swisher is 16th in OPS in the American League. 16th! Whoever told Brian Cashman to try and trade for Nick should get free dinners at NYY Steak for life.

Have you noticed what Brett Tomko is doing in Oakland? He blanked the Rangers last night, throwing nine scoreless innings and allowing five hits without a walk. Tomko is 4-1 with a 2.95 ERA in six starts for Oakland.

Yes, 4-1 with a 2.95 ERA. I’m not making that up.

The Yankees never quite got on the same page as Tomko. He was lights out in spring training as a starter then they sent him to Scranton as a short reliever. He was terrific in that role then they brought him to the majors as a long man and rarely used him.

In the big picture, it doesn’t really matter much. The Yankees are going to the playoffs anyway. But it does seem they acted a bit rashly with Tomko.

Meanwhile, the Yankees will send out Sergio Mitre and his 7.02 ERA to the mound tonight to face Roy Halladay. Joe Girardi loves him some “Serge” and he has had some decent moments as a Yankee. But maybe Tomko would have been a wiser choice.

Three Yankees — Joba Chamberlain, Phil Hughes and Andy Pettitte — will be visiting Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center’s Department of Pediatrics at noon today. Kudos to those guys for taking the time to visit with the kids.

The visit is part of the Yankees Universe project. Go to this site to learn more.

The Minnesota Twins, now 72-72, learned yesterday that first baseman Justin Morneau will miss the remainder of the season with a stress fracture in his lower back. Third baseman Joe Crede is finished with a bad back.

The Twins have 18 games left, 10 of them on the road. They have to play the Tigers seven more times and the White Sox three times.

Let’s say the Twins finish 81-81 and in third place, nine game out. Could that impact how voters view Joe Mauer’s Most Valuable Player candidacy? What if they finish 79-83? Or worse?

A few things to keep in mind:

• There is no clear definition of “most valuable” on the ballot. It’s up to every individual voter to decide that. Some people may not considering being a great player on a third-place worthy of the award. Others may exclude any player on a losing team.

• Mauer is leading the league in batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage. But he will not lead the league in home runs or RBI or runs scored and some old-school batters like seeing those sort of numbers for whatever reason.

• Baseball has a lifetime achievement award, it’s called the Hall of Fame. But there will be voters out there who will consider Jeter for the MVP simply because he hasn’t won it before.

• Jeter passing Lou Gehrig for the franchise hits record received an inordinate amount of media attention.

• The Yankees are on pace to win 103 games and score 932 runs. Jeter is generally seen as the spark plug for this fearsome offense. I also think most voters will put him ahead of Mark Teixeira on their ballots.

Again, I’m not predicting this will happen or saying this is how I personally plan to vote. I’m just saying these are factors that will play in the minds of some voters, especially those less inclined to look at advanced statistics. If over the next three weeks, the Yankees keep rolling and Mauer slips a bit, don’t be surprised if Jeter edges him out.

I have one of the 28 votes and I’ve compiled a list of 15 players and will narrow it down to 10 in the next 10 days. Then I’ll work on ordering those 10.

It’s hard figuring where the Tampa Bay players fit in and who is their most valuable player. You can make a case for Ben Zobrist or Jason Bartlett.

Tonight: RHP Sergio Mitre (3-2, 7.02) vs. RHP Roy Halladay (14-9, 3.03), 7:05, MY9

Wednesday: TBA vs. LHP Brian Tallet (7-9, 5.26) 7:05, YES

Brett Gardner and the Yankees stole a win last night.

Freddy Guzman has a chance to play for the Yankees come October. This notebook also has updates on Joba Chamberlain, Derek Jeter and David Robertson.

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If you use Safari as your browser, you’ll probably have trouble clicking to the second page of the stories.An easy work-around is to click “print this story” and you get the whole version.

I’ve alerted the paper’s tech people about this, thus far to no avail.

Let me tell you, it took a long to find a shot of Andy Phillips’ back.

The Yankees (93-52) now lead the Angels (86-57) by six games in the quest for home-field advantage. Tonight had the feel of a playoff game, didn’t it?

Three things that struck me about this game:

• Mark Teixeira looks ready for postseason pressure. He was 3 for 4 with two RBI and several nice plays in the field. His presence really changes the balance of power.

• That play by Derek Jeter in the seventh inning was perhaps the best play he has made over the middle in several years.

• Brett Gardner is a serious weapon off the bench. And Joe Girardi is already talking about Freddy Guzman like he’ll be there for the first round.

Here’s where facilities make a difference: Gardner told us that starting around the sixth inning, he was looking at video clips of the Angels relievers and how they held runners, whether they had pickoff moves, etc. He was literally watching tape of Darren Oliver a few minutes before he took the field.

The new Stadium has a state-of-the-art video room that is literally two steps from the dugout entrance. After a while, little things like that add up.

YANKEES (92-52)
Jeter SS
Damon LF
Teixeira 1B
Rodriguez 3B
Matsui DH
Posada C
Cano 2B
Swisher RF
Cabrera CF

Pitching: RHP Joba Chamberlain (8-5, 4.45).

ANGELS (86-56)
Figgins 3B
Izturis 2B
Abreu RF
Guerrero DH
Hunter CF
Morales 1B
Rivera LF
Aybar SS
Mathis C

TIME/TV: 7:05, YES.

STATE OF THE ‘STRIPES: The Yankees start the day with a seven-game lead on Boston in the East and a five-game lead (four in the loss column) on the Angels for best record in the league and home field. The Yankees have lost two of their last three but have won 14 of 19 overall.

THEY’RE NO ANGELS: The Yankees are 2-4 against Los Angeles this season, 5-11 over the last two and 18-32 over the last five counting the postseason.

JOBAMANIA NOT RUNNING SO WILD: Young Master Chamberlain is 1-3 with a 7.76 ERA in his last seven games, allowing 40 hits and 18 walks over 29 innings. Opponents have hit .323 against him.

JOBAMANIA AGAINST THE RALLY MONKEY: Joba’s only career appearance against the Angels came on July 10. He allowed five runs (four earned) on nine hits over 4.1 innings.

ONE MORE TO GO: Johnny Damon needs one homer to reach his career high of 25.

TWO MORE TO GO: Mariano Rivera — who hasn’t pitched since Tuesday — is two strikeouts shy of 1,000.

A-ROD FEVER: Alex Rodriguez is 18 of 42 this month with six runs scored, 14 RBI and five extra-base hits.

ON THE iPOD RIGHT NOW: I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For by U2.

Back with more later on.

UPDATE, 4:05 p.m.: Girardi said it could be possible to have Gardner and Guzman on the same postseason roster.

UPDATE, 4:28 p.m.: If you have Gardner and Guzman, it allows you to pinch run for Posada and Matsui late in games. Or if Gardner starts, you can pinch hit for him than run for the pinch hitter.

If the Yankees select the longer division series, they’ll need three starters. That bumps Joba to the bullpen and knocks somebody else (Brian Bruney?) out. That creates room for Guzman.

UPDATE, 4:45 p.m.: Here is the audio of Joe Girardi’s pre-game press conference:

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UPDATE, 5:20 p.m.: Hey, check it out, even Curt Schilling loves Derek Jeter.

UPDATE, 6:01 p.m.: Spoke to Dave Robertson. He’ll play catch on Wednesday as he starts his return from elbow issues. Gives him plenty of time to come back before the postseason.

UPDATE, 7:08 p.m.: We are underway on a perfect evening for baseball in the Bronx. Lots of empty seats for the makeup game, but that is expected. Joba against Weaver in a good matchup of teams that could meet again back here in October.

UPDATE, 7:26 p.m.: Vladdy Guerrero just took Joba way deep to left field. Angels 1-0. Joba has allowed five homers in his last 30 innings.

UPDATE, 7:48 p.m.: Joba looks pretty good outside of that one pitch to Guerrero. Yanks trail 1-0.

UPDATE, 7:50 p.m.: Now it’s 1-1 as Swisher goes to left.

UPDATE, 8:10 p.m.: Joba through four: 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2K. Much better.

UPDATE, 8:19 p.m.: It’s really staggering what a lousy hitter Cano is with runners in scoring position. … That’s it for Joba, Alfredo Aceves out of the bullpen.

UPDATE, 8:20 p.m.: They’re playing “Match Game” on the scoreboard and the guy had to find Edwar Ramirez. How is anybody supposed to know what Edwar Ramirez looks like?

UPDATE, 8:23 p.m.: Joba’s last two starts: 7 7 3 3 1 5. That’s tangible progress.

UPDATE, 8:37 p.m.: Yankees down 2-1 but have runners on first and second for Jeter with no outs. Look for the franchise’s all-time hits leader to foolish give away an out and bunt rather than — say — single in a run.

UPDATE, 8:38 p.m.: I don’t care if they score, that’s a dumb play. The Yankees are paying Jeter $20 million to get hits, not give himself up.

UPDATE, 8:41 p.m.: Melky called out for obstruction. Now there are two outs. Good thing Jeter wasn’t allowed to hit. It’s not like he has hit a lot of home runs to right field here.

UPDATE, 8:43 p.m.: Wow, extra-base hits are good for offense. Who knew? It’s 3-2 Yankees as Tex triples off the wall in center.

UPDATE, 8:50 p.m.: Mark my words, the Yankees will lose a game in the postseason because of a bunt that takes them out of a potentially big inning. Brian Cashman needs to have one of his analysts explain to Joe Girardi that the odds of a team scoring a few runs goes down — not up — when you have one out instead of no outs. And it doesn’t matter where the runners are.

Second and third and one out is not an advantage over first and second and one out. Outs are more valuable than 90 feet. Especially not in the fifth inning of a one-run game at home in a ballpark that is the easiest in the majors to hit a home run in and you have an MVP candidate at the plate.

It’s not being unselfish. It’s being inefficient.

UPDATE, 9:14 p.m.: Big spot here for Phil Coke. Angels have first and second and one out. If the Yankees can escape here, they can throw Hughes and Mo at Los Angeles.

UPDATE, 9:22 p.m.: What a play by Jeter. Up the middle, spins and gets the speedy Izturis. Take that, UPenn geeks. Izturis should have run through the bag.

UPDATE, 9:36 p.m.: Trouble for Hughes as Abreu and Guerrero single to start the eighth inning.

UPDATE, 9:37 p.m.: Golly, why isn’t Hunter bunting?

UPDATE, 9:40 p.m.: Hughes walked Hunter to load the bases. Kendry Morales up. It’ll be some sort of miracle if they escape this with the lead.

UPDATE, 9:44 p.m.: That was about as good as you could expect. It’s 3-3.

UPDATE, 9:52 p.m.: Yankees in business with runners on first and second and one out. Angels bring in Darren Oliver.

UPDATE, 9:57 p.m.: That’s beating the Angels at their own game right there. Gritty, Gutty Brett Gardner stole third and scored on an error. Great game. Yankees now lead 4-3.

UPDATE, 10:01 p.m.: Cano finally comes through with RISP. Yankees up 5-3. Huge run there.

UPDATE, 10:17 p.m.: Huge win for the Yankees for a lot of reasons. Back later with reaction.