The LoHud Yankees Blog

1. Granderson CF
2. Cano 2B
3. Wells LF
4. Hafner DH
5. Overbay 1B
6. Nix 3B
7. Suzuki RF
8. Brignac SS
9. Romine C
Sabathia P

Joe Girardi issued the above quote about David Phelps, who was strong throughout a career-long seven innings in today’s 7-2 win over the Blue Jays. Of course, it applies to Robinson Cano, too. Consider that as much of a no-doubter as Cano’s second two-run shot today, which carried through the bullpen to the bleachers in right-center.

Phelps and Cano powered the Yankees to their eighth victory in nine tries this season against the Blue Jays, who were thought to be preseason contenders in the AL East but now trail by 10 games. They’ve also dropped nine straight here at Yankee Stadium, including all six this season, and matched the franchise’s longest losing streak in the Bronx. The Yankees also won nine straight here against the Jays from June 21, 1979 to Sept. 17, 1980.

• For Phelps, the outing started slowly. He walked two in the first and fell behind 3-1 to Adam Lind. Phelps — with an assist from Jayson Nix — saved himself, escaping when Nix ducked behind Jose Bautista and snared Phelps’ pick-off throw. His tag ended the inning and escaped a jam that saw Phelps struggle with his control less than a week after walking five against Cleveland.

“It got me out of a jam right there,” Phelps said. “I think it was 3-1 on Lind right there. That could be the game with a big first inning, but I was able to put up a zero.”

• Phelps went on to throw a career-best seven innings and allow just one run on six hits and three walks. He struck out eight against the free-swinging Jays. The right-hander pumped his fist when he retired Melky Cabrera to end the seventh on pitch No. 113.

Phelps isn’t overpowering, but his slider was sharp today. He has now struck out 15 in his last two starts and has lasted at least six innings while allowing no more than two earned runs in his last three.

“I’m really encouraged,” Girardi said. “He’s giving us distance. He’s doing a lot of really good things.”

• Girardi wasn’t prepared to insert Phelps permanently into Ivan Nova’s vacated rotation spot, but Phelps’ ability to juggle relief and rotation roles has impressed the manager.

“It’s not easy to do,” Girardi said. “You see clubs that struggle with that. He’s done a good job the last two years doing that for us and he continues to make strides. He’s very important to us.”

• Here’s more from Phelps:

• Cano’s two-homer game was the 12th of his career and his second of the season. He’s never gone deep three times in a game and he struck out given the opportunity to do just that in the eighth against veteran lefty Darren Oliver.

• Cano took the AL lead in home runs briefly, although Toronto’s Edwin Encarnacion and Cleveland’s Mark Reynolds tied him when they hit No. 12 as well. Cano didn’t hit his 12th homer until June 17 last season.

• Cano took advantage of the short porch on his first homer. He was a little fooled, but said he kept his hands back and got enough to muscle the two-out changeup into the right-field seats off Brandon Morrow. Cano caught a better piece in the fifth when he sent another two-out pitch over the bullpen in right-center.

That time, Cano struck again with two outs and staked Phelps to a 5-1 lead. He also yet again underscored his importance to a lineup that continued to play without three of its four starting infielders and its starting catcher.

• Here’s more from Cano:

• Amid constant lineup shuffling, Cano has been the one, well, constant.

“I’m glad that’s not a moving part,” Girardi joked. “That’s been really nice.”

• Cano, who will be a free agent at season’s end, was asked if he tried to put on a show for Hal Steinbrenner, who was at the park for Photo Day.

“No,” Cano said, “I just go out there to win games.”

• Travis Hafner (shoulder) looked fit playing his first game since May 13. He went 1 for 4 with a home run. He also yanked another ball foul that traveled home run distance and made a hard out up the middle.

Hafner’s seventh home run came in just his 100th at-bat. He now has five home runs in 54 at-bats at Yankee Stadium.

“I think you could see there’s a difference,” Girardi said. “The last couple weeks he’s been playing with a little bit of a soreness and there didn’t seem to be the same whip. But it’s back.”

• Curtis Granderson went 0 for 4 making his first career start in right.

• The Yankees are now 18-0 when scoring first. They are not only the only team in baseball yet to lose when doing so, their 18-game streak is an American League record to start a season (per Elias). It’s their longest stretch at any point of the year since 2002, when they won 19 straight times when scoring first.

• If and when Reid Brignac plays, expect him to play shortstop for Jayson Nix and David Adams to remain in the lineup at third. Girardi basically said as much after the game.

“I envision moving him around,” Girardi said. “We envision him more as a shortstop than anything else, but he has the ability to play other places.”

Photo by Getty Images

Robinson Cano hit two home runs and David Phelps was solid again as the Yankees beat the hapless Blue Jays, 7-2, in front of 45,577 at Yankee Stadium. The first-place Yankees have now won eight of nine against last-place Toronto and lead the Jays by 10 games in the AL East. They got there thanks, in part, to Cano, who had a multi-homer game for the second time this season and the 12th time in his career.

Cano’s pair of two-run home runs helped stake Phelps to a 5-1 lead. He did the rest, shaking off early control troubles to strike out eight. Phelps, in the longest outing of his career, pitched seven strong, allowing just one run on six hits and three walks. Curtis Granderson went hitless in his first career start in right field. Travis Hafner hit his seventh homer of the season in just his 100th at-bat. That includes five in 54 at-bats at Yankee Stadium.

Getty Images photo

UPDATE, 3:18 p.m.: Here’s audio of Hal Steinbrenner’s chat with reporters:

* * *

Now here’s my post from earlier:

In the building for Photo Day, Hal Steinbrenner lauded the first-place start by the Yankees. You could tell from his voice that the success of young call-ups from Scranton have invigorated ownership.

“I can say it’s a good thing. There’s no doubt it’s a good thing,” Steinbrenner said. “I’m excited about it. I’m excited last night with Adams and Romine getting those hits. It’s a great thing to see. A lot of these kids you wouldn’t have seen this year, chances are. They would’ve played in Scranton all year long if the marquee players were all healthy.”

With the cavalcade of stars sent to the DL so far, Steinbrenner admitted he was pleased with the club’s results. The Yankees are in first in the division, and opened today 10 games over .500.

“Pleasantly surprised. I’m not shocked. I didn’t buy into the doomsday scenario that many people did,” Steinbrenner said. “I knew we had some good kids at Triple-A. More importantly, I knew that the guys we got in the offseason were veterans. Whether people thought they were worth getting or not, I felt they were veterans and this is what you expect veterans to do.”

It’s no secret attendance at the Stadium and ratings on the YES Network are both down. Steinbrenner met with MLB officials today and said attendance had dipped across the sport.

He hopes the new faces will pique the interest of fans now that the weather has improved.

“The good stories that we’ve all known about on this club are going to be more well-known to the fan base,” he said. “I think people are going to be excited to come out and see the Adamses, the Romines, the Hafners and the players we got in the offseason.”

Steinbrenner also said the organization will not negotiate with Joe Girardi during the season, but he praised the work of the manager and Brian Cashman, framing it in the obvious.

“Both have done a great job,” he said. “There have been a lot of ups and downs to Triple-A and back, shuffling around players. They’ve done a great job, and Cash did a great job with the players we got in the offseason.”

Steinbrenner did not want to delve into the future for Robinson Cano, but said he has met a couple times with Cano’s new agent, Brodie Van Wagenen of CAA Sports, a partner of Roc Nation, the company founded by Jay-Z. Steinbrenner deemed those meetings “procedural.”

Although the Yankees have been burned by long-term deals in excess of $100 million in recent years, Steinbrenner said the market will dictate how long the club would be willing to go on a contract. He didn’t say it, but that’s clearly in consideration for Cano, who will turn 31 in October.

“Anybody would get a little nervous if you get into a seven or eight-year deal,” Steinbrenner said. “It depends on the age of the player, too, I guess. Give an eight-year contract to a 34-year old — you probably wouldn’t do that, right? Twenty-five, 26?”

Here are the rest of today’s notes:

• Brian Cashman on if the slow progress of Kevin Youkilis was something to fear: “I hope not. He took batting practice again today. Obviously, he’s moving along slowly, but he’s moving along.”

• For more on the acquisition of Reid Brignac, click here. It includes Cashman’s thoughts on Ben Francisco and why fans need to pipe down.

• Girardi does not expect Travis Hafner (shoulder) to have any limitations.

• Here’s Girardi on Chris Stewart: “He’s just doing treatment. He’s better. My hope is that we don’t need him today again and then we’ll talk about it tomorrow.”

• As I said earlier, this is the 1,046th start of Curtis Granderson’s career, but his first ever in right field. Girardi talked to Granderson about playing right and said Granderson was fine with it.

As you know, Granderson worked in right and left during his rehab stint. He played twice in left since returning on Tuesday.

“Curtis is just here to play and wants to win,” Girardi said. “He’s the type of guy who would do anything you ask him to do. It was an easy conversation. Sometimes you don’t know how those conversations are going to go, but it was very easy.”

• The club will benefit from not just Granderson’s flexibility, but that of Vernon Wells, Brett Gardner and Ichiro Suzuki. He does not want to rotate players just to rotate them, but a tight schedule over the next month will require all four to rest at times.

He said Ichiro’s rest today was not a reflection of his recent struggles at the plate.

• Vidal Nuno will be in the bullpen today. Girardi said he will probably pitch when Andy Pettitte’s spot pops up next week but that it will depend on if they need Nuno before then.

YANKEES (26-16)
Brett Gardner CF
Robinson Cano 2B
Vernon Wells LF
Travis Hafner DH
Lyle Overbay 1B
Curtis Granderson RF
Jayson Nix SS
David Adams 3B
Austin Romine C

RHP David Phelps
Phelps vs. Blue Jays

BLUE JAYS (17-25)
Melky Cabrera LF
Jose Bautista RF
Edwin Encarnacion DH
J.P Arencibia C
Adam Lind 1B
Brett Lawrie 3B
Colby Rasmus CF
Maicer Izturis SS
Emilio Bonifacio 2B

RHP Brandon Morrow
Morrow vs. Yankees

TIME/TV: 1:05 p.m., YES Network

WEATHER: Temperatures are in the mid to high 60s. It’s cloudy, but there’s only a 10 percent chance of rain.

UMPIRES: HP Rob Drake, 1B Sam Holbrook, 2B Joe West, 3B Andy Fletcher

PECKING ORDER IN TACT VS. JAYS: The Blue Jays were expected to contend in the AL East this year, but the Yankees have won seven of the last eight between the teams this year.

NO EXTRAS, THANK YOU: The Yankees will play one short today unless Reid Brignac arrives in time, but that isn’t expected. They acquired Brignac last night and DFA’d Alberto Gonzalez, but Brignac is still in transit. For their sake, they don’t want to go into extra innings tonight, that’s for sure.

THEY HAVE HIS BACK: Yankee relievers have pitched 7 2/3 scoreless innings in support of Phelps during his three starts.

I’ll have pregame notes in a bit. They were delayed because Hal Steinbrenner and Brian Cashman were available prior to today’s game. Check back for more from Steinbrenner in a few minutes. In the meantime, I’ll post some updates here and on Twitter @LoHudYankees, which I will man today in Chad’s stead.

UPDATE, 2:44 p.m.: Cano ripped two home runs so far today, moving him into the AL lead with 12 homers. He’s the only Yankee to have a multi-homer game this season (also did it Apr. 8 at Cleveland) and now has 12 such games in his career.

Surprisingly, Cano has never hit three in one game. He certainly still has time.

UPDATE, 3:05 p.m.: Phelps is probably done after seven strong and 113 pitches. He was wild early, but finished strong, striking out eight free-swinging Jays while allowing six hits, three walks and just the one run. Another solid start.

UPDATE, 3:36 p.m.: Hafner now has seven home runs in exactly 100 at-bats as a Yankees. Not surprisingly, he’s been his best at home. He now has five homers in just 54 ABs at Yankee Stadium.

In unrelated news, the Blue Jays are an embarrassment.

CBS’ Jon Heyman reporting the Yankees have acquired utility infielder Reid Brignac from the Rockies. Brignac was designated for assignment by the Rockies earlier this week. He was let go by the Rays earlier this spring.

No word yet on what the Yankees sent to Colorado in return. I’ll have more on the Brignac move in a bit, as well as some thoughts from Hal Steinbrenner, who is on the field with the rest of the team this morning for Photo Day. Brian Cashman is also at the park today.

UPDATE, 12:42 p.m.: Heyman reported the Yankees send $75,000 to the Rockies for Brignac. Or, as Cashman just put it, “Cash — not me.”

Cashman said the club designated Alberto Gonzalez for assignment to add Brignac, who is in transit but not expected in time for the game. That means the Yankees will play today a player short. They acquired Brignac last night and originally thought he was home in Tampa. The clubs had trouble getting in touch with Brignac, who was still in Colorado.

It appears Cashman acquired Brignac as a left-handed alternative to Jayson Nix and David Adams on the left side of the infield. Both are right-handed bats.

“He’s a fly ball hitter, so we’ll see if we can take advantage with a left-handed bat of Yankee Stadium,” Cashman said. “It will give us a little bit better platoon situation.”

Cashman said he did not consider cutting Ben Francisco, but it was clear he understands fans are frustrated with Francisco’s play.

“In terms of you fan comments’ section, just tell everyone I’m holding on to him to piss everybody off,” he joked.

But the Brignac move is an indication of how Cashman will aggressively search to upgrade the roster, even at the bottom. He thought Brignac was a better fit than Gonzalez, and hinted that if he could find a better right-handed option in the outfield and at DH, he would act swiftly.

“Like anything else, we upgrade every which way possible,” Cashman said.

Josh Thomson here for Chad today.

Curtis Granderson will make his 1,046th career start today but his first in right. He worked there during his rehab this spring.

Joe Girardi said he had a conversation with Granderson, who had no issue with the move. More on that later.

Travis Hafner (shoulder) will return to the lineup and bat cleanup today as well.

Brett Gardner CF
Robinson Cano 2B
Vernon Wells LF
Travis Hafner DH
Lyle Overbay 1B
Curtis Granderson RF
Jayson Nix SS
David Adams 3B
Austin Romine C

RHP David Phelps

On the same day that Andy Pettitte was placed on the 15-day DL, Hiroki Kuroda reminded Yankee fans that injuries are no big deal in the Bronx these days. Pettitte isn’t expected to miss significant time, but if there was any concern that the mounting injuries might soon become too much to handle, Kuroda didn’t allow it to last long.

“He’s been so good for us,” Joe Girardi said. “Just the innings that he’s given us, the bullpen a lot of times gets the night off to where you can use them in the other games, the quality starts that he’s given us – he’s been outstanding. The way he left us last year, he’s just picked right up and continued to impress us.”

The 38-year-old right-hander has gone at least seven innings without allowing more than two runs in four consecutive starts, and this may have been the best of the bunch. Kuroda pitched eight brilliant innings, allowing just two hits and one walk while striking out five in a 5-0 win over the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday night. Simply put, he was in complete control.

“All of my pitches were pretty good today, and that led to a good outing,” Kuroda said. “I felt good all along, but especially in the first inning when I struck out (Jose) Bautista and (Edwin) Encarnacion.”

• Kuroda gave up leadoff double to Melky Cabrera to begin the game, but as he said, he struck out the two most dangerous hitters in the Blue Jays’ back-to-back following that. From there, he was in cruise control. “Every once in awhile, you can feel it out there when a pitcher goes out there, and no matter what you put down, it’s going to be a good pitch,” catcher Austin Romine said. “It made my life a lot easier. He pitched to the glove all night, and we were on the same page. It was smooth out there.”

• I was talking with a few writers, and although CC Sabathia is considered the “ace” of the staff, it’s hard to deny that it’s Kuroda who has been the Yankees’ most consistent starter. Just look at the numbers. He is the stopper for this team, and he prevented the Yankees from losing three in a row for the first time this season. No pitcher on the team has been as consistent. “I think he takes each start individually and expects to do very well. He expects to really give us an opportunity to win,” Girardi said. “He’s pitched well every start, so tonight’s not a whole lot different from what we’ve seen.”

• Everything seemed to be working for Kuroda tonight, but according to Romine, it all started with the sinker. “He wanted to throw that sinker, and the slider was clutch tonight,” he said. “It kept guys off of the fastball. He got some funky swings all night… He can throw a slider anytime. He threw heavy doses to Bautista, but his splitter was there, too.”

• Romine was asked about the language barrier with Kuroda, and whether it makes it more difficult to catch him. “It wasn’t tonight at all,” he said. “Even with the guys that speak Spanish and different languages, there’s like a baseball language and it’s very easy for them to get across what they want to do. When he had something, he was able to tell me what he wanted pretty easily.”

• It’s hard to read too much into Kuroda because everything that he says goes through a translator, but he comes across as a real low-maintenance guy. He never gets emotional, and he’s usually all business. But Girardi said that he’s learned that Kuroda does enjoy himself and what he does. “I think the one thing that you learn about players is their personality, and he’s pretty calm,” Girardi said. “He does smile a lot, and he does laugh a lot, and that’s the one thing that you really don’t know about a player, is his personality. I can do all of the preparation that I do and understand what a guy’s got. I have not been surprised by his stuff, because we looked at him and when we played against him, I was prepared with what he had. His personality is easy to be around, and that’s the one thing that I really didn’t know.”

• Kuroda was asked if he felt any extra pressure due to the news of Pettitte going on the DL: “You may want to think about that, but that’s not easy to do.”

• Kuroda was also asked if, at 38, he sees himself pitching for a few more years after successful outings such as this one. “I don’t really have the luxury to think ahead,” he said. “I treat the next outing as if it’s my last. That’s my mentality.”

• Jays’ starter Mark Buehrle hung with Kuroda through the first six innings, but the Yankees got him in the seventh. David Adams sparked the rally with a ground-rule double to leadoff the inning, and Romine came through two batters later with an RBI double. Both guys had two hits apiece tonight, and Adams now has a hit in each of his first three Major League starts. “That’s what you want these kids to do when you think about the runs we got,” Girardi said. “It was kind of between seven and one (in the lineup) that did a lot of the damage, and (Jayson Nix) had the two sac flies. Those guys provided a lot of support for Hiro tonight.”

• Romine hasn’t hit much since joining the big league club, but he finally got a couple tonight. If he shows that he can contribute offensively, he has an opportunity to earn playing time even when Chris Stewart returns. “I felt real comfortable at the plate tonight,” he said. “I tweaked a little something before the game to get more rhythm. I was dead at the plate – my upper half was dead. I wasn’t generating anything. My hands were still, so I tried to create more rhythm, and it felt good. I took some swings that I haven’t been taking in awhile.”

• Romine also seemed to feel more comfortable now that he knows he’s going to play for at least a few days in a row. “It definitely does,” he said. “You know what to expect. You know when you come to the field, you can get your mind right, rather than wondering if you’re playing or not. I can go home early and study now, and just have that mental mindset when I come to the field that I know I’m in there.”

• While the story early in the season was grizzled vets such as Vernon Wells and Travis Hafner turning back the clocks, we’re now seeing some of the young guys mix in nicely. Adams looks like he has the ability to stick in the big leagues, and doesn’t seem overwhelmed at the plate. He’s one of the better offensive infield prospects that we’re seen from the Yankees since Robinson Cano came up. According to Romine, this should be no surprise. “Not at all,” he said. “I’ve played with him for five years, and he eats, sleeps and breathes baseball. When he comes to the field, nothing gets to him. Even his first start, I looked at him and was like, ‘Are you excited?’ And he was like, ‘Yeah, it’s just baseball.’ I was like, ‘Wow.’ You know, some guys say that, but when he says it, he means it. He’s comfortable. He’s a big leaguer.”

• Girardi was asked if he’s made it clear to Adams and Romine that this a chance to prove themselves. “Not necessarily,” he said. “We talk about the game with them. After the game, I told David Adams, ‘Tremendous job.’ I told Austin Romine, ‘Tremendous job. You’re catching tomorrow.’ That was the extent of it. I think they understand what’s in front of them, and I don’t want to make too much of it. I tell them, ‘Just go out and play, and be who you are.’ I don’t want them to think that it’s going to be their only opportunity. I think they’re pretty talented kids, and they’re going to get plenty of opportunities.”

• Don’t look now, but Brett Gardner seems to be heating up in the leadoff spot. He’s hit safely in six of his last seven games, and he’s been more aggressive on the base paths with four steals in that span. He was responsible for the Yankees’ first run after leading off the game with a triple.

• I’ll give the final word to Girardi, who devoted most of his press conference to Kuroda. “You don’t really have to worry a whole lot about him. When I think about Hiroki, the one thing that we do pay attention to is some of his pitch counts because he’s not 25, either. But he goes out there and sometimes acts like he is, so we have to make sure that we don’t get confused and forget how old he is, and that we take care of him and make sure that he can bounce back every start, because that’s what you want.”

Associated Press photos

On the same day Andy Pettitte was placed on the 15-day disabled list, Hiroki Kuroda gave the Yankees the kind of performance that has enabled them to withstand devastating injuries all season.

For the fourth consecutive start, Kuroda went at least seven innings and allowed two earned runs or less. In fact, the veteran right-hander didn’t allow a single run on Friday night, surrendering just two hits over eight innings to lead to the Yankees to a 5-0 win in their series opener against the Toronto Blue Jays.

Jays starter Mark Buehrle pitched nearly as well through the first six innings – allowing just two runs on three runs – but the Yankees got to him in the seventh.

Rookie David Adams led off the inning with a ground rule double, which was followed by a bunt single from Ichiro. Austin Romine doubled down the left field line to extend the lead to 3-0, knocking Buehrle out of the game. He was replaced by Aaron Loup, who promptly gave up a sac fly to Jayson Nix and an RBI single to Brett Gardner to extend the Yankees’ lead to 5-0.

Associated Press photo

YANKEES (25-16)
Brett Gardner CF
Jayson Nix SS
Robinson Cano 2B
Vernon Wells LF
Ben Francisco DH
Lyle Overbay 1B
David Adams 3B
Ichiro Suzuki RF
Austin Romine C

RHP Hiroki Kuroda (5-2, 2.31)
Kuroda vs. Blue Jays

BLUE JAYS (17-24)
Melky Cabrera LF
Jose Bautista RF
Edwin Encarnacion 1B
J.P. Arencibia C
Adam Lind DH
Brett Lawrie 3B
Colby Rasmus CF
Emilio Bonifacio 2B
Munenori Kawasaki SS

LHP Mark Buehrle (1-2, 6.19)
Buehrle vs. Yankees

TIME/TV: 7:05 p.m., MY9

WEATHER: They just announced that it’s 69 degrees. Another great night for baseball

UMPIRES: HP David Rackley, 1B Rob Drake, 2B Sam Holbrook, 3B Joe West

PETTITTE TO THE DL: About an hour before first-pitch, GM Brian Cashman made the announcement that Andy Pettitte is being placed on the 15-day DL with a strained trap. Pettitte left his start early last night with back spasms, and now the Yankees are taking the cautious approach by DLing him.

MAKING THEM BLUE: The Yankees have won seven straight home games vs. Toronto, and 18 of their last 21.

NO MORE THAN TWO: The Yankees are one of only two teams this season that have yet to lose more than two straight games (also Texas).

(I’ll be updating what’s going on in the game here every so often, but I’ll be much more active on Twitter. Follow me @vzmercogliano to join in the conversation!)

UPDATE, 8:33 p.m.: The Yankees tack on a second run in the fifth on a sac fly from Nix. They also scored in the first after Gardner led off with a triple and came home on a Cano groundball to the right side. Meanwhile, Kuroda is cruising on the mound. He’s allowed one hit all game — a leadoff double to Cabrera in the first.