The LoHud Yankees Blog

Let’s start with the positive. This was a nice win for the Yankees. It was a terrific night for the bullpen, a strong showing for the lineup and there were even brief glimmers of hope for Phil Hughes. They disappeared quickly, but they were there.

If this were September, or even the middle of a long summer, this would feel like a huge, momentum-building win. This early in the year, it’s a nice win.

“That’s how good teams play,” Russell Martin said.

Jorge Posada’s game-tying home run had to be the biggest hit of the night, but he passed the credit to the guy who pitched three scoreless innings of long relief. “Bartolo’s the key there,” Posada said.

Bartolo Colon’s three scoreless innings gave the Yankees a chance. The Orioles had been feasting on Hughes diminished fastball for 4.1 inings, and Colon shut them down with well placed four-seamers and two-seamers. His sinker — as Martin keeps reminding us — has become a very real weapon against left-handers.

“He threw the ball extremely well again for us,” Girardi said. “We thought he could do a good job in that role because he’s a guy that throws so many strikes in that situation and gives your club a chance to come back.”

That’s exactly what Colon did tonight. Joba Chamberlain followed with some terrific bullpen work of his own — including a run-saving play at the plate — and Mariano Rivera did what he does. The bullpen kept the Orioles from building on their five-run lead while the Yankees offense kept chipping away leading to Posada’s game-tying home run and Nick Swisher’s game-winning sacrifice fly.

Now the negative. Hughes wasn’t much better than in his first two starts. Martin said he was noticeably better in the bullpen before the game, he threw more strikes, and he showed a little bit of improved velocity in his first two innings. Then it went away.

“We actually saw some 91s and some 92s today,” Girardi said. “But he’s still not right. And it’s our job to get him right.”

Hughes said he could feel it when his velocity dipped in the second inning. It hadn’t been all the way back to last year, but it was a little better, and Hughes thought it would be enough to get through the night. “It just disappeared,” he said.

“Same old story I guess,” Hughes said. “I don’t really even know what to say at this point. It is what it is. I’m hoping it will turn. I’m fairly confident it will turn. It’s just a matter of building my arm up and hopefully it turns around soon.”

Hughes said he felt different in the later innings, but it wasn’t pain or anything like that. It was “just the feeling of not really having much behind it.” That showed as the Orioles went to work, and only leaping catches by Swisher and Curtis Granderson kept things from getting further out of hand. Martin said it was “definitely a step forward,” but Hughes seemed just as frustrated as ever.

With two off days next week, the Yankees could skip Hughes in an attempt to give him some extra rest, but Girardi said no decisions have been made.

“He’s got to pitch to get things right,” Girardi said. “You can’t just go on a sabbatical or something. We have off days coming up. We have a lot of things that we need to discuss, but we need to get this kid right.”

Here’s Hughes.

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• It gets lost a little bit in the shadow of Colon’s three innings, but Chamberlain was terrific and he made the biggest play of the night when he blocked the plate after a pitch that got past Martin. Replays showed that Felix Pie never touched the plate. Chamberlain blocked him perfectly. “I kind of peeked and saw his foot coming,” Chamberlain said. “I was going to do everything I could to try to get that out and save that lead.”

• Martin’s hilarious take on the play at the plate: “That was a 180-pounder against a 250-pounder or whatever Joba is. Joba’s going to win that every time.”

• Speaking of Martin, here’s his take on Hughes: “His bullpen was better coming out of the gate today, and then it looked like he might have gotten a little fatigued or something was off, but early on it looked like he was back. And then he just kind of lost a little of his velocity, but I thought he pitched better. He made more pitches today. He had better command of his stuff, a little bit. It was definitely a step forward for him, I think.”

• Posada tied the game on Kevin Gregg’s first pitch of the night, a leadoff homer in the ninth inning. “It’s a good pitch to hit,” Posada said. “It was right down the middle.”

• This was the Yankees third come-from-behind win of the season and their largest comeback since August 11 of last year. According to the team, it was their largest comeback at home since May 1, 2009 against the Angels.

• The sac fly was Swisher’s sixth career walk-off. He has four with the Yankees, two of them against Baltimore.

• Derek Jeter passed Barry Bonds for sole possession of 32nd place on baseball’s all-time hits list. He has 2,936.

• Mariano Rivera got the win after his scoreless 10th inning. He’s now won or saved every one of the Yankees home victories this season.

• Here’s Brian Cashman’s pregame comment about the possibility of trading for a new left-handed reliever: “Historically, you can’t get anything done until after the draft, anything of quality. Somebody’s headache might become your good fortune because it can turn around when you change scenery. Somebody’s bad contract can play up in a new environment. Some of those things might be available right now, but those are things you don’t want to run to either. Yeah, I’ll look, but I’m not going to find too easily.”

• Here’s what Cashman said about the possibility of calling up Andy Sisco: “We saw him in winter ball and he was throwing up to 95. With spring training for us he was at 89. He’s up to 91 now, so it’s going in the right direction… His lines are better than what he’s throwing. Even though he’s throwing better, we still want to give him more time to get to where he needs to get to. He might become a choice at some point for us, but he’s not right now.”

• The Yankees are now in sole possession of first place. Not that it matters much on April 14, but it’s better than the alternative.

Associated Press photos

Phil Hughes showed no significant improvement in his third start of the season, but this time the Yankees offense was able to make up for it. Saddled with a five-run deficit, the Yankees chipped away until Jorge Posada led off the ninth inning with game-tying home run and Nick Swisher won it with a sac fly in the 10th to beat the Orioles 6-5. Hughes was once again working with an 88-90 mph fastball and gave up five runs through 4.1 innings. Bartolo Colon and Joba Chamberlain kept the Orioles from pulling away, giving the Yankees a chance to rally.

Associated Press photo

YANKEES (6-4)
Brett Gardner LF
Derek Jeter SS
Mark Teixeira 1B
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Robinson Cano 2B
Nick Swisher RF
Jorge Posada DH
Curtis Granderson CF
Russell Martin C

RHP Phil Hughes (0-1, 16.50)
Hughes vs. Orioles

ORIOLES (6-4)
Brian Roberts 2B
Nick Markakis RF
Derrek Lee 1B
Vladimir Guerrero DH
Luke Scott LF
Adam Jones CF
Mark Reynolds 3B
Matt Wieters C
Cesar Izturis SS

RHP Jake Arrieta (1-1, 8.68)
Arrieta vs. Yankees

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

WEATHER: Finally, a nice night at Yankee Stadium. It was actually a terrific day here in New York. Only slightly chilly at game time. Not too bad. I’ll take it, for sure.

UMPIRES: HP Dana DeMuth, 1B Kerwin Danley, 2B Paul Nauert, 3B Doug Eddings

CELEBRATING JACKIE: Tomorrow is Jackie Robinson Day. All MLB players, coaches and umpires will wear No. 42. The Yankees will have an on-field ceremony that will include Rachel Robinson — Jackie’s wife — along with their daughter Sharon, two scholars from the Jackson Robinson Foundation and members of the Tuskegee Airmen.

STILL CATCHING, STILL SITTING: According to the Elias Sport Bureau, Russell Martin is the only Major Leaguer to play every one of his team’s innings behind the plate this season. Gustavo Molina is the only MLB player who has been active since Opening Day and has yet to get in a game.

ON TO THE NEXT ONE: Alex Rodriguez needs five RBI to tie Carl Yastrzemski for 10th place on baseball’s all-time RBI list. Yesterday he tied All Simmons and Ted Williams for 11th place.

UPDATE, 7:09 p.m.: Didn’t catch the velocity on Hughes’ first pitch, but I saw all 90-mph fastballs, then a 91, then a 92. The fly ball by Markakis was 90 on the stadium gun.

UPDATE, 7:35 p.m.: A fan right in front of the press box just reacted to a routine pop to second base as if it were a home run. He clearly thought it was gone off the bat. The ball didn’t leave the infield. Meanwhile, Hughes has been 90-91 with his fastball. A few have been 89, but I feel like I’ve seen more 90 and 91. Either way, it’s pretty much the same as before. Nothing drastic one way or the other.

UPDATE, 7:40 p.m.: Nick Markakis hit an 86-mph cutter for a two-run homer.

UPDATE, 7:55 p.m.: Now it’s looking like more 89 than 90 out of Hughes, pretty much exactly what we’ve seen in the first two starts. He just allowed another run on a deep sacrifice fly in the fourth. It’s 3-0 Orioles.

UPDATE, 8:16 p.m.: Hughes is finished after 4.1 innings. He was pulled after an RBI double that put the Orioles in front 4-0. It’s actually been his best start of the year, but his fastball velocity was right back where it’s been, 89-90 and touching 92. Bartolo Colon is in out of the bullpen.

UPDATE, 8:53 p.m.: The Yankees are chipping away, one run in the fifth inning and now a run on Mark Teixeira’s RBI double in the sixth. It’s 5-2 with two on and the heart of the order up.

UPDATE, 8:55 p.m.: Make that 5-3 on Alex Rodriguez’s sacrifice fly.

UPDATE, 9:31 p.m.: After the Yankees pulled within one in the seventh, they now need Joba Chamberlain to keep it there. He’s out of the pen with runners at the corners and one out in the eighth. Nice work by Bartolo Colon to give the Yankees a shot. I still can’t believe how well that signing has worked out so far. Even if this is all the Yankees get out of Colon, he’s been a good low-money gamble by Brian Cashman. Kind of the opposite of the Pedro Feliciano deal.

UPDATE, 9:34 p.m.: Seeing it live, I thought Pie touched the plate. Seeing the replay, I think he was out. See, that extra weight on Joba came in handy. It’s hard to move him.

UPDATE, 9:48 p.m.: Had a chance to tie there in the eighth, but Swisher grounded to second with two on and two outs. It’s still 5-4 heading into the top of the ninth.

UPDATE, 10:04 p.m.: The Yankees have officially overcome the Phil Hughes deficit. Jorge Posada’s leadoff homer in the ninth has sent us into extra innings. Curtis Granderson followed the home run with a double, but Martin, Gardner and Jeter left him stranded. Here’s Rivera in the top of the 10th, tied at 5.

Pedro Feliciano had an MRI this winter before he signed with the Yankees. It showed no problems. When he got to spring training, he pitched with no pain and no cause for concern. In his fourth spring outing, he allowed one hit and struck out the other three batters he faced. It seemed to be another good sign, but that’s the day Feliciano first felt something in his shoulder.

“That day that I pitched, I remember I threw long toss with Soriano and I was fine,” he said. “I did my short toss and everything, then in the bullpen I was fine. After I got my first out, I got a single bloop to the righty and then I got my two strikeouts. I got the last two outs, but it wasn’t me. That inning was weird. I’ve never had that, so I thought it would go away. That’s why I kept pitching, but the next day was bad.”

Initially, Feliciano thought it was just unexpected soreness. When it lingered, he initially labeled it a triceps issue. Gradually, the diagnosis shifted closer to the shoulder, and yesterday he found out that there’s a small tear in his shoulder capsule. Feliciano believes it’s a new injury, one that happened that day in Florida, not over time at Citi Field. He wonders if it’s connected to all the weight lifting he did this spring.

Bottom line, Feliciano will see Dr. Andrews on Monday for a second opinion, but he’s expecting to have surgery. The Yankees are expecting the same. Brian Cashman called it a “very obvious” diagnosis, and surgery will keep him out all year.

Even if Andrews says surgery is not necessary, Feliciano will still be out several more weeks leaving the Yankees without their primary left-handed reliever, the guy they gave two year, $8 million this winter. The Yankees were well aware of Feliciano’s workload with the Mets, but they thought this was a risk worth taking.

“He was definitely abused over there,” Cashman said. “But we knew that.”

Here’s Cashman. It’s worth a listen. He talked for about 20 minutes about the Yankees own history of overusing pitchers. Cashman said he spoke to Joe Torre about it several times, asking that he not go to the same guys over and over again, and he seems happy that it’s no longer an issue with Joe Girardi.

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• For now, the Yankees are going to stick with Boone Logan as their only left-handed reliever. There’s no one in the system they’re considering calling up at the moment, and Girardi said he doesn’t expect to find a lefty on the market right now.

• The most obvious left-handed addition might be Andy Sisco, but Cashman said Sisco’s fastball in Scranton hasn’t been what it was when the Yankees saw him this winter. Sisco might be an option down the road, but Cashman said he’s not an option right now.

• Here’s Joe Girardi on the bullpen without Feliciano: “The bullpen is what it is. We believe that we have right-handers that are capable of getting left-handers out. At this point, Pedro has to make a decision on what he’s going to do. It’s disappointing. We were counting on him to be a big left-hander out of our bullpen. Boone Logan stepped up for us last year, and he’s going to have to do it again.”

• The Associated Press reports that Major League Baseball is leaning toward expanded use of instant replay next season.

• Both Dellin Betances and Manny Banuelos have been placed on the Double-A disabled list because of blisters. Cashman said he believe it’s because the seams are smaller — not as raised — on minor league baseballs, which might have been an issue for Betances and Banuelos shifting from big league spring training to the minor league season.

• In other minor league injury news, Josh Norris reports that Gary Sanchez is headed for the disabled list in Charleston. Not sure why.

• Obviously today is a pretty big start for Phil Hughes, as big as a third start of the season can be anyway. Both Girardi and Cashman said Hughes has generally been slow to generate velocity, that it usually doesn’t come until a little later in the season. Last year was an exception to the rule. Girardi said he still considers the velocity a secondary issue. “I wasn’t getting so caught up in it,” he said. “It comes down to locating the ball and changing speeds.”

ORIOLES
Brian Roberts 2B
Nick Markakis RF
Derrek Lee 1B
Vladimir Guerrero DH
Luke Scott LF
Adam Jones CF
Mark Reynolds 3B
Matt Wieters C
Cesar Izturis SS

Associated Press photo of Feliciano

Pedro Feliciano has a torn shoulder capsule. He’s going for a second opinion on Monday, but right now it seems season-ending surgery is likely. He’s been told that if he has surgery now, he’ll be ready for spring training in 2012. I’ll have more when I’m out of the clubhouse.

Brett Gardner LF
Derek Jeter SS
Mark Teixeira 1B
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Robinson Cano 2B
Nick Swisher RF
Jorge Posada DH
Curtis Granderson CF
Russell Martin C

Last season, Phil Hughes’ velocity dipped in the first week of April. No one cared because he was in extended spring training. He didn’t make his first big league start until April 15, and at that point, the arm strength showed up and so did the velocity.

“It wasn’t something I felt in the bullpen,” Hughes said. “It was just there for my first start. Whether it was adrenaline-based or whether it took that much time for my arm to get in shape, I don’t know what it was. That was something in the back of my head that I was hanging on to, thinking that I didn’t make my first start until the 15th, so maybe my arm takes longer to get going and it will be there tomorrow. I can hope for that, but it’s not something I’m necessarily 100 percent banking on.”

Hughes is a realist about what’s happening with his velocity. That is to say, he has no trouble admitting that he’s not entirely sure what’s causing it. And he’s not entirely sure when it will be fixed.

Hughes said he feels fine, and he would get no peace of mind from seeing a doctor. He feels certain it’s not a medical issue. Video has shown that Hughes’ mechanics are sound. He might have been using his lower half a little bit more last season — he’s worked on that in the bullpen — but everything else looks right.

In the past five days, Hughes done a little more long toss than usual, and he’s been more aggressive in his bullpens, but he said he won’t really learn anything until he gets on the mound tonight.

“I don’t necessarily think it will feel different,” he said. “It just comes out of my hand better. There’s really no explanation, and there’s nothing that necessarily feels different. It’s just my arm being at its peak possible shape. I know I have more than what I’ve been showing, and that’s the frustrating part of going out and trying to pitch with stuff that isn’t you. I’m hoping it turns around quick, but if not, I have to try and find a way.”

The Yankees need him to find it sooner rather than later.

“I’m not concerned about it because I think this kid is talented, and it’s only two starts,” Joe Girardi said. “I believe it’s going to change.”

Here’s Hughes speaking on Tuesday, before the rainout that pushed his start to today.

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Associated Press photo

This news got buried a little bit during last night’s game. Just in case you missed it, here’s the announcement from the Yankees.

Recognizing (Wednesday’s) inclement weather conditions, the New York Yankees announced that they are rewarding all fans with tickets for tonight’s game against the Baltimore Orioles with a free ticket offer.

Fans may redeem their valid April 13, 2011, tickets — regardless of whether they were used to attend tonight’s game — for a free Grandstand Level or Terrace Level ticket at Yankee Stadium for another game this season, subject to availability.

Alternatively, fans may choose to use today’s valid tickets as a coupon for 50 percent off the purchase price of a ticket in any other non-Suite seating location to another game this season, subject to availability.

This free ticket and coupon offer does not include remaining premium games (the Old-Timers’ Day game and all home games played against the Boston Red Sox and New York Mets).

Please note that the Yankees can only accept tickets with valid bar codes for the April 13, 2011, game.

Tickets can be redeemed or presented as a coupon at Yankee Stadium Ticket Windows only starting tomorrow, April 14, 2011, at 10:00 a.m. (open Monday through Saturday from 9:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m., Sunday from 10:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m., and until two (2) hours after the scheduled start time of any regularly scheduled home game).

Just for fun, that’s a picture of Kemba Walker’s first pitch last night

Last night, A.J. Burnett told this short story: When he was in Toronto, Burnett played with catcher Gregg Zaun, and Zaun had a name for show-me pitches that weren’t effective. He called them NCPs, non-competitive pitches.

To some extent, Burnett’s changeup has always been an NCP. He never used it very often and it seemed to be little more than an offspeed pitch he wanted to keep in hitters’ minds but not actual use during hitters’ at-bats. This season, he’s actually used it, and it’s been pretty good. He’s learning to trust it.

“We threw 16 of them (Wednesday), so I guess so,” Burnett said. “As long as he keeps throwing them down there, I’ll keep throwing them.”

In this case, “he” is Burnett’s new catcher, Russell Martin, who’s been calling for the changeup since spring training.

“It took me 12 years to throw a changeup,” Burnett said. “He believes in it, and I’m starting to more and more.”

What helped Burnett after the first two innings last night?
“I thought his changeup was outstanding tonight,” Joe Girardi said. “He got a lot of swings and misses. He got some swings and misses on his curveball, but I thought his changeup was really good.”

What’s making a difference for Burnett this season?
“I think strike one, throwing the ball with a lot of conviction,” Alex Rodriguez said. “The power changeup is a pitch that’s devastating. He hasn’t had that in the past. He’s mixing it in, and I think it neutralizes lefties (and) it speeds up his fastball.”

What happens if the changeup is not so effective one night? Will he bail on it?
“I don’t want to think about that,” Russell Martin said. “When it happens we’ll see what happens. If there’s a day it’s not doing what it’s supposed to, we’ll figure it out, but right now I don’t see any sign of that (effectiveness) changing.”

Associated Press photo

A.J. Burnett couldn’t figure it out. It was the second inning. He’d allowed a single and thrown a wild pitch in the first inning, and now he’d given up a double and a walk. He kept landing on his heel, and he had no idea why. Larry Rothschild went to the mound, the two talked, and Burnett retired 14 of the next 16.

Brilliant work by Rothschild? Maybe, but it wasn’t even his decision to go out there.

“It was actually probably the first time in my career I actually called a pitching coach out,” Burnett said. “I was landing on my heel constantly, couldn’t correct it. I called him out and just basically said, ‘I’m landing on my heel. What’s going on?’ He was like, ‘Forget about that. Next pitch, just let it go. You’re fine.’ And it worked.”

That seems to be Rothschild’s approach with Burnett. We’ve been hearing for years that Burnett has some of the best stuff in baseball, now Rothschild is telling him to go out and use it. Stop thinking so much.

“With Larry, it’s all confidence, and that’s what it should be at this level,” Burnett said. “You’ve been pitching long enough where you should go out and feel confident that your stuff is good enough. A lot of the times when we talk, that’s all it is. I’ll ask him certain things, and he’s like, ‘Don’t think about that, just let it go.’”

Tonight was one of those nights that might have gotten out of hand last season. Burnett was in enough trouble early that the game could have gone either way. Having a lead helped, Burnett said. It let him relax through those rocky first two innings, and when he got his mechanics straightened out, Burnett was terrific and efficient.

He’s now won his first three starts for the first time in his career. His 4.67 ERA proves he hasn’t been perfect, but he hasn’t had a truly bad start yet. Why is this April different from last April?

“I don’t know if it is,” Burnett said.

“I think you’re seeing the work is paying off,” Joe Girardi said. “We know it’s a long season, but it sure beats the alternative.”

Here’s Burnett speaking after the game.

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• Sixteen changeups for Burnett, and they were good changeups. That’s actually becoming a go-to pitch for him this season.

• Granted, the start wasn’t all roses for Burnett. He made two bad mistakes in the seventh inning and gave up two home runs, putting a significant blemish on an otherwise strong outing. “I’m going to think about that a little bit,” Burnett said. “I didn’t execute anything that inning. You learn from that, and that’s when you have to learn how to really get it done.”

• Could his pitch count — he was right around 100 at that point — have hurt Burnett in the seventh? “I don’t necessarily think so,” Girardi said. “At some point, all of these guys have to get to where they can go 115 pitches.” Girardi did admit that he might have pulled Burnett after the first home run if this had been a closer game.

• Random Burnett story: As you’re well aware, he has a tendency to get pretty intense. Apparently Ivan Nova constantly tells him to stop getting so mad. Nova told Burnett he was going to start following him around to make sure he didn’t get upset with himself.

• It’s worth noting that Burnett was once again singing the praises of Russell Martin, who wore bright orange finger nail polish with a white stripe down the middle to make his signs easier to read. “He’s taken a lot of time, you can tell, to really get to know us and figure us out,” Burnett said.

• As for the offense, the Yankees had nine hits in the first two innings. They had two hits in the past three days (granted, while playing only one game). “Maybe those couple of days (off) helped.”,” Girardi said.

• Alex Rodriguez’s first inning home run moved him into a tie with Al Simmons and Ted Williams for 11th place on baseball’s all-time RBI list. “Any time you hear those names it’s extremely flattering and humbling at the same time,” Rodriguez said.

• Derek Jeter’s two hits gave him 2,935 for his career, tying Barry Bonds for 32nd place on baseball’s list. I wonder if that’s flattering and humbling for Jeter.

• According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Martin is the only catcher in the majors to have caught all of his team’s innings this season.

• When Jorge Posada went deep in the fifth inning, his past four hits this season had all been home runs. He later singled to break the streak.

• Mark Teixeira went 2-for-3 with a walk and snapped an 0-for-18 slide.

• Mariano Rivera has saved all five of the Yankees home wins this season. The guy is quite good.

• The Yankees and Orioles are now tied for first place in the American League East.

Associated Press photos, including one of Kemba Walker’s first pitch nevermind, forgot I took that one out

Joe Girardi was cryptic in announcing that Pedro Feliciano’s MRI did not come back clean. It sounds like Feliciano has a serious shoulder injury, but Girardi would not go into detail.

“He’s got a damaged shoulder,” Girardi said. “In fairness to you, I’m going to give you that. The MRI did not come back good. He has a damaged shoulder. He has a shoulder injury. In fairness to the player, he needs to talk about it with our doctors and the agents and decide what the next course of action is.”

That sounds like surgery, but again, Girardi wouldn’t go into specifics. Pressed on the issue, Girardi once again said Feliciano needs to talk things over with his agent and the team doctors — and his family, Girardi added — before deciding what’s next.

“He was throwing the ball in spring training and didn’t have any problems, and after the one day he had a problem,” Girardi said. “I can’t tell you exactly when it happened.”