The LoHud Yankees Blog

2:00 p.m. Press Gate opens.
5:00 p.m. Gates Open to the Public
5:20 p.m.-6:30 p.m. Yankees Hit
6:30 p.m.-7:10 p.m. Angels Hit
7:42 p.m. Presentation of Colors: Yonkers Fire Department Color Guard
7:43 p.m. Moment of Silence: Yonkers Fire Fighter Patrick Joyce from Rescue 1
7:44 p.m. National Anthem: Chuck Mangione
7:48 p.m. Ceremonial First Pitch
7:52 p.m. Umpires and Managers to Home Plate
7:55 p.m. Yankees Take the Field
7:57 p.m. First Pitch

After a long flight through the night, the Yankees are taking to the field this afternoon at the Stadium for a light workout. Since Chad and I have been crossing time zones most of the day, Josh will be on the scene and giving you all the news and notes. So be sure to check back for plenty of updates and audio.

Also, Mike Scioscia addressed an interesting issue at his press briefing this morning (the Angels worked out in Cali, then flew to New York afterward). When asked about the possibility of a rainout this weekend, Scioscia said the Angels are considering using John Lackey on three days rest in Game 7 if that game is pushed back from Sunday to Monday. Obviously, that would be last on the Yankees’ list of potential scenarios (the first, obviously, being that Game 7 doesn’t need to be played).

Speaking of weather, here’s the most recent forecast I could find for the Bronx. Not good. But then again, last weekend’s was probably worse, right?

I have received all types of emails about potential lineup changes for the Yankees to consider, most of which fall into the “this is borderline spam” category (the guy who wants to start Hairston over Cano, for instance).

One concept worth considering, though, is this: Should Nick Swisher stay in the lineup?

Swisher has three hits in 29 at-bats. He has 10 strikeouts. He also has one big missed opportunity to make it all better, that coming in the ninth inning yesterday against Brian Fuentes.

The two main arguments against moving Swisher out of the lineup seem to be:

1. There is no one better. Brett Gardner (91 OPS+) or Jerry Hairston (94) certainly don’t get anyone fired up, and the truth is that Swisher is a better player than both. Which leads us to …

2. You don’t want to make a rash move based on a small sample size.

This one I have less trouble ignoring. The playoffs are the ultimate small sample size. Yes, certain players have done enough in their careers to earn undying faith no matter their present slump – for example, if Mariano blew three saves in a row, I’d still bring him out for the fourth chance.

Swisher, though, doesn’t fall into that category. He looks bad right now. Small sample size or not, it might be time to see if someone else could do better.

Life is different in the bullpen. Phil Hughes knows that all too well.

A.J. Burnett had a bad first inning on Thursday, then had five-plus innings to make up for it. He’ll have the better part of a week to fix any mistakes that might have cost him. Hughes had one bad inning, and one especially bad pitch to Vladimir Guerrero, and then he was out of the game. He may very well have to pitch in another big spot on Saturday.

“You certainly feel like everything is kind of resting on your shoulders when you don’t come through,” Hughes said. “I didn’t do my job and nobody feels worse about it than I do. It’s a situation I’ve been in a lot of times this year and tonight I just wasn’t able to execute pitches and it cost me.”

This is part of the conversion from starter to reliever. Joba Chamberlain went through it. Phil Coke has gone through it. Alfredo Aceves has gone through it. Even Mariano Rivera, once upon a time, went through it.

“I was used to being able to out there and if I had a rough inning, I could at least go out there and try to throw up a zero (the next inning),” Coke said. “But when you’re in the bullpen, your job’s a lot shorter as far as what you have to do… That’s the nature of the beast in the bullpen You have to have a short memory and be able to wipe the slate clean and go out there and get them tomorrow. You can’t hold on to it. That’s something that I had to learn.”

The Yankees will need Hughes to be his old self the rest of these playoffs. That means wiping the slate clean, forgetting and moving on.

Given their first chance to clinch the American League pennant, the Yankees blew a seventh-inning lead and lost to the Angels last night. The Yankees had one of their usual rallies, coming back from a 4-0 deficit, but the Angels and their Rally Monkey have been known to come from behind themselves from time to time. I had the game story in today’s paper.

Nothing is over for the Yankees, Sam wrote. No matter how many times Joe Girardi and the old guard have been asked whether this team compares to 1998, these Yankees have to keep winning to belong in the same sentence as those Yankees teams of the 90s.

He didn’t get the win or take the loss, but A.J. Burnett had another solid start that began and ended badly. The notebook also has bits about Jorge Posada coming off the bench, Robinson Cano moving up in the lineup and Joe Girardi refusing to look ahead to the Phillies.

Phil Hughes was one of the first players to his locker after tonight’s disappointing loss in Anaheim. He took a breath, turned around and started answering all of the inevitable questions.

“Very disappointing,” he said. “We did a great job tonight, fighting back and getting in the game. I just had one out to get and I couldn’t do it. Marte did a good job coming in and getting the first two. I’ve been in that situation so many times this year. It’s disappointing for us to get back in that game and pretty much to blow it on my shoulders.”

Hughes walked Torii Hunter, but when he was facing Vladimir Guerrero, he threw a terrific curveball to go ahead 1-2. At the time, Sam and I started talking about what to throw next. We agreed on either another curveball down or a fastball up. Way up. Jorge Posada practically stood when he gave Hughes a fastball target, but the pitch was belt high, down the middle.

“Trying to be a little too fine to Hunter,” Hughes said. “Then got ahead of Guerrero and tried to come up and in on him and left the ball pretty much in the middle. He didn’t get it good, but he got it just enough and in the right spot.”

Some of this one falls on A.J. Burnett as well, and if you talk to Burnett, he seems to think all of it falls on him. Those four runs in the first inning came on 12 pitches, then he was terrific through the next 20 hitters before allowing back-to-back singles to start the seventh.

Was he surprised the Angels came out swinging so early in the count, early in the game?

“The whole game surprised me a little bit,” Burnett said.

Sorry for the abrupt ending to the game post but a tight game + tighter deadlines = lots of writing on the fly. We just got back up from the clubhouse, where A.J. Burnett said, “I feel like I let the team down.”

Even with that, the Yankees had a chance to book a spot in the World Series but Phil Hughes couldn’t hold a two-run lead. When Joe Girardi was asked if he was concerned about Hughes, he said, “He’s still making pitches. … He missed his spot (to Guerrero). This is the time of year that everything gets a little bit tougher but we like his stuff and we believe he’ll get it done.”

The Yankees know that comparisons to 2004 will immediately arise, and Johnny Damon – who was on the other side of that collapse as a member of the Red Sox – said, “Anything can happen in baseball. We know that. Nothing is set in stone until that fourth game is won. … What we have to have on our minds is to win one more game.”

More from the clubhouse in a bit.

UPDATE, 12:37 a.m.: Here’s some audio. First, Joe Girardi:

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Then Derek Jeter.

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And finally Johnny Damon.

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UPDATE, 10:28 p.m.: A fresh thread for what should be the final few innings. Have at it.

UPDATE, 10:34 p.m.: The Rally Monkey and Damaso Marte are now in the game.

UPDATE, 10:35 p.m.: Marte does about as well as you could want. Gets two outs, one on a grounder that scores a run. Now it’s Hughes coming in to get out of this inning and get the ball to Rivera.

UPDATE, 10:44 p.m.: After getting Guerrero to swing badly at the curveball in the dirt, Hughes tried to get a fastball by him and it wasn’t nearly up high enough. Vlad goes up the middle and it’s tied, 6-6.

UPDATE, 10:48 p.m.: Phil Hughes grew up about five minutes from Angel Stadium. This has got to be brutal for him.

UPDATE, 9:03 p.m.: It’s the top of the fourth and we’re into thread No. 2. There’s a long way to go yet.

UPDATE, 9:19 p.m.: Jorge Posada out to pinch-hit for Molina. Truthfully, I was expecting this in the third inning. Yankees are down and Posada has a better chance to send one out than Molina. No one warming in the Yankees pen, either, so it would appear that – gasp! – Posada is going to catch Burnett.

UPDATE, 9:26 p.m.: Lackey is dealing. His fastball is locating perfectly (got Posada looking) and his curveball is biting off the outside corner. Jeter swung and missed, then waved his bat in frustration as Lackey stalked off the mound. As for the Yankees pitching, Posada, Burnett and Dave Eiland had a quick huddle in the dugout before the inning ended. It’s been awhile since they worked together (Sept. 1, to be exact).

UPDATE, 9:36 p.m.: Well that was easy enough. Posada and Burnett had no problems that inning and you have to give Burnett credit for coming back after that disaster start. He’s now thrown five shutout innings but the Yankee hitters are absolutely helpless against Lackey. Don’t forget that in addition to keeping his team alive, Lackey is also pitching for a contract; he’s a free agent this offseason and is earning some serious bucks with his performance tonight.

UPDATE, 9:42 p.m.: A-Rod went down to get that ball, a 92 mph fastball, and crushed it off the center-field wall. His power the other way is what separates him from other sluggers. Rodriguez now has a 10-game postseason hitting streak.

UPDATE, 9:47 p.m.: Robinson Cano continues to be brutal with RISP. He hit .204 with RISP and two outs in the regular season and just stranded two more there. That was the best chance the Yankees have had off Lackey since the first inning.

UPDATE, 9:55 p.m.: And now there’s some dude in a red shirt climbing on the rocks in center field. As everyone looked, he fell in one of the waterfalls they have out there. Good to know beer sales at Angel Stadium aren’t suffering in this difficult economic time.

UPDATE, 10:05 p.m.: If the Yankees are going to get back in this game, it’s got to be now. Lackey is rattled after he didn’t get the call on what he thought was strike three to Posada. If this was a regular season game, he’d have been thrown out for showing up the ump but Culbreth showed restraint. Either way, two on, one out and Lackey upset as Jeter comes to the plate.

UPDATE, 10:07 p.m.: Four straight balls that weren’t close to Jeter. Now it’s Damon, who is a .333 career hitter off Lackey. Jepsen and Oliver warming in the pen for the Angels.

UPDATE, 10:09 p.m.: Damon’s fly to left doesn’t go deep enough to score Melky but it succeeds in ending Lackey’s night. He gets a huge ovation from the crowd, who must know they could be seeing Lackey for the last time as an Angel. Oliver coming in and the Yankees have seven outs to try and come back off the shaky Angels bullpen. This game isn’t over yet.

UPDATE, 10:12 p.m.: Teixeira was 2-for-3 lifetime against Oliver and it took one pitch to see why – he roped a double to left-center that cleared the bases and suddenly it’s 4-3. Now they’re walking A-Rod to get to Matsui.

UPDATE, 10:14 p.m.: That was Tex’s first three RBI of the series and his first since the walkoff homer in Game 2 of the ALDS.

UPDATE, 10:15 p.m.: Great point from Chad: If Cano does something here, A.J. Burnett could actually get the win.

UPDATE, 10:18 p.m.: Looks like Jered Weaver warming for the Angels.

UPDATE, 10:27 p.m.: Anyone who wanted action on Burnett being in the game in the seventh inning about three hours ago could have made a lot of money. Pretty amazing.

YANKEES
Derek Jeter SS
Johnny Damon LF
Mark Teixeira 1B
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Hideki Matsui DH
Robinson Cano 2B
Nick Swisher RF
Melky Cabrera CF
Jose Molina C

Pitching: RHP A.J. Burnett (0-0, 2.19 ERA in postseason)

ANGELS
Chone Figgins 3B
Bobby Abreu RF
Torii Hunter CF
Vladimir Guerrero DH
Kendry Morales 1B
Maicer Izturis 2B
Juan Rivera LF
Jeff Mathis C
Erick Aybar SS

Pitching: RHP John Lackey (1-1, 1.38 ERA in postseason)

TIME/TV: 7:57 p.m., FOX

WEATHER: More of the same – clear skies, temps in the 60s and 70s and plenty of sun. Check out the full forecast here.

STATE OF THE STRIPES: The Yankees are on the verge of their 40th AL pennant and first World Series berth since 2003. No one needs to be reminded what happened the last time the Yankees were this close (hello, 2004) but the odds are certainly in their favor: 58 of 69 teams that have taken a 3-1 lead in a best-of-seven series have gone on to win it.

BATTER VS. PITCHER: Here’s the Yankees vs. Lackey. And here’s the Angels vs. Burnett.

A.J. WANTS A ‘W’: Burnett pitched decently in his first start of the postseason and very well in his second, but hasn’t earned a win in either one. He pitched into the seventh inning of Game 2 and allowed just two runs and three hits, but got a no-decision when the game went 13 innings and 310 minutes. Burnett did come back out to deliver a walkoff pie to Jerry Hairston, who scored the winning run.

HOT ROD: Alex Rodriguez had a single, double and homer in Game 4, continuing what has been an insane postseason for him. A-Rod has driven in a run in every Yankees playoff game (and eight straight dating back to 2007), and has 11 total RBI. If he continues to hit this well, he’ll shatter the franchise record of 15, held by Scott Brosius (1998) and Bernie Williams (1996).

MELKY WAY: Melky Cabrera had a critical RBI single in the fourth inning of Game 4, and that hit snapped a personal 0-for-7 slide with runners in scoring position, as well as a team-wide 0-for-28 with RISP. As a team, the Yankees are 7-for-45(.156) with RISP during the ALCS.

SENIOR MOMENTS: Game 3 was the first time that four teammates – in this case, Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, Jorge Posada and Johnny Damon – aged 34 or older homered in any game, postseason or otherwise.

BENCH THREAT: Joe Girardi wouldn’t commit one way or another during the off day, but he’ll have a decision to make at DH if Jose Molina is catching. Jorge Posada, who has been on the bench this postseason when Molina catches, is hitting .333 this postseason (8-for-24) with two homers and three RBI and is 12-for-29 lifetime against Lackey. Hideki Matsui is at .261 (6-for-23) during the postseason and is coming off an ugly 0-for-5 in Game 4.

NO LACK OF CONFIDENCE: The Angels have their ace, Lackey, going in the elimination game tonight and Lackey gave up only two earned runs in 5 2/3 innings of Game 1. If you’re looking for a weird prop bet on the game tonight, see if someone will give you action on how long Lackey will stay in the game; in each of his three postseason starts against the Yankees, he’s lasted exactly 5 2/3 innings each time.

RANDOM QUESTION OF THE DAY: Why do we celebrate things with Champagne as opposed to Chardonnay or, say, chocolate milkshakes (which I happen to like better than both)?

IF THERE WERE WALK-TO-THE-PLATE MUSIC IN REAL LIFE, TODAY’S WOULD BE: Don’t Sweat the Technique by Eric B. & Rakim

Back with much, much more later.

UPDATE, 5:15 p.m.: Lineups for both teams are out: Matsui DH, Molina catching, Swisher still in right. I know he’s done it all year, but I’m a little surprised that Izturis is in the lineup. I thought if Scioscia made any changes, he might keep hot-swinging Howie Kendrick in there. Back with more from Girardi shortly.

UPDATE, 5:44 p.m.: The Angels are on the field taking BP and CC Sabathia is out in the bullpen throwing his side. He played long-toss before with Andy Pettitte.

UPDATE, 5:49 p.m.: Here’s the audio from Girardi. His first answer is in response to a question about whether he ever considered a situation where A-Rod would have been out for much of the season following his hip surgery.

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UPDATE, 6:29 p.m.: Yankees are on the field stretching and getting loose. Kurt Russell is on-hand, sitting in the field box seats. He’s wearing a Yankees hat.

UPDATE, 7 p.m.: Interesting story here that says that MLB has decided to break with its usual custom and use only experienced umpires in the World Series because of the rash of missed calls so far in the playoffs.

UPDATE, 7:10 p.m.: Not much news from Joe Girardi’s session with the beat writers.

• Girardi did not rule out the idea of using Mariano Rivera for four outs, or even six outs.

• CC Sabathia “feels good” after pitching on short rest two days ago.

• The decision to keep Jorge Posada on the bench despite great numbers against Lackey (.414/.469/.586) had to do with Posada’s relative lack of experience as a DH. But, Girardi said it’s possible Posada could pinch hit for Jose Molina even if A.J. Burnett is still in the game.

• Johnny Damon is “staying in his legs a little bit more,” not lunging at the ball.

• Girardi watched the Phillies clinch the National League pennant last night. “Until you knock them off, they’re the champs,” he said.

UPDATE, 7:57 p.m.: And we’re off. It’s 78 degrees at first pitch and Derek Jeter has already singled to right, continuing his nine-game postseason hitting streak. Enjoy the game.

UPDATE, 8:06 p.m.: The Thundersticks rise as one, and Lackey gets out of it – nice pitch (albeit just off the plate) to Tex, a foul-out for A-Rod and groundout for Matsui. You can bet the Yankees would have liked to give Burnett a lead to take to the mound. Now we’ll see which A.J. showed up tonight.

UPDATE, 8:10 p.m.: Just how the Yankees drew it up: Fail to cash in on a two-on, none out in the top half and then have Figgins leadoff the bottom with a walk. Burnett now has to go right to work with runners on. Look for Figgins to be on the move.

UPDATE, 8:13 p.m.: This is exactly what the Yankees didn’t want – the walk to Figgins started it, and Abreu and Hunter smoked line drives to make it 2-0 before Burnett has even recorded an out. Now Guerrero just crushed one to the left-center field wall and it’s 3-0.

UPDATE, 8:17 p.m.: This is nightmare stuff for Burnett. Four straight hits, all of them crushed, and it’s 4-0. Still no one moving in the Yankees pen. Don’t you have to get Gaudin up?

UPDATE, 8:22 p.m.: Juan Rivera ends the madness with a 5-4-3 double play and Burnett walks off down 4-0. Lackey was hittable in the first inning but you have to figure his confidence increases after being handed a big lead.

UPDATE, 8:29 p.m.: Not exactly an inning to make Lackey work there. That took all of nine pitches and Burnett is back out on the mound. A 4-0 deficit is hardly insurmountable but Burnett needs to keep the score right here and hope the bats wake up with runners in scoring position.

UPDATE, 8:37 p.m.: After a leadoff single from Mathis, Jeter came in for a quiet word with Burnett. Whatever he said worked, as Burnett then got a double play and fly out for a quick inning.

UPDATE, 8:41 p.m.: For a moment I thought Damon was going to spike his helmet there after being called out at first. Girardi gave a short argument but then returned to the dugout. Replays looked like Damon barely beat the throw, but it was very, very close.

UPDATE, 8:45 p.m.: If you’re looking for good signs from Burnett, that curveball to Abreu had the nasty bite he had in Game 2.

UPDATE, 8:49 p.m.: And if you’re looking for bad signs, letting Torii Hunter steal second base without even really noticing would certainly qualify.

UPDATE, 8:51 p.m.: Score that 6-2-5-1-6 on the rundown play. Guerrero went all the way to second.

UPDATE, 8:58 p.m.: It was just announced that, should Game 6 be necessary, the broadcast will begin at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday with first pitch at 7:57 p.m.

UPDATE, 9:02 p.m.: A-Rod was looking for something else there. He just watched a 91 mph fastball go by for strike three. Now it’s up to Matsui.

UPDATE, 9:05 p.m.: New thread up as we play the fourth. Come on over.