MVN: Most Valuable Network

The Yankees haven't trailed in a ballgame since the sixth inning of last Wednesday's contest against the Braves.  That's a span of 58 innings and Andy Pettitte made sure that streak would continue until at least Thursday.

The lefty gave up just two runs on six hits and one walk through seven innings to earn his team-leading eighth victory of the season, as the Yanks beat Seattle 4-2 for their seventh consecutive win.

And of course Pettitte got the decision Wednesday night.  He's now pitched to a decision in all 21 of his career starts against the Mariners (10-11). 

What's somewhat surprising is that the decision was a W because the Seattle roster entered the game with a .339 average against Pettitte.  But Andy threw first pitch strikes to 17 of the 26 batters he faced and was able to dictate the at bats from there.

Here are the grades from New York's win at the Stadium.

 

Joe Girardi, Manager: (A-) I questioned taking out Pettitte to start the eighth when he retired the side in the seventh, had only thrown 98 pitches and had three guys coming up that were 0-8 against him.

I also didn't understand bringing in Alfredo Aceves instead of Phil Hughes, but I guess it made sense because Girardi wanted to bring in Phil Coke to face the two lefties, Ichiro Suzuki and Russell Branyan.  But if he wanted a lefty to face those guys, why not just leave in Pettitte, who was cruising?

In the end, it worked out and at least he didn't bring in Brian Bruney.

 

Derek Jeter, SS: (A-) The captain was 1-3 and was hit by a pitch on the right foot.  He stayed in the game and hopefuly won't suffer any lingering effects on Thursday.  I was surprised to learn that was only the third time he's been hit this year.

 

Johnny Damon, LF: (A) Damon homered off of Jarrod Washburn in the third to get the scoring started.  He also walked and struck out.

 

Mark Teixeira, 1B: (A) Tex was 2-4 win a run scored.

 

Alex Rodriguez, DH: (A+) A-Rod's two-run blast in the sixth was his fourth in seven games and the 566th of his career.  He has really turned things around since those couple of days off in Florida two weekends ago, and I'm happy Girardi isn't taking his hot bat out of the lineup to get him some more rest.

 

Jorge Posada, C: (D) Posada was moved up a spot in the lineup against the lefty but the change didn't do him any favors as he went 0-4 with two Ks.  I'll give him some credit, though, for catching a good game and picking up one of the easiest caught stealings of his career when he gunned down Franklin Gutierrez after the baserunner lost track of the count.

 

Robinson Cano, 2B: (A-) Cano went 1-3 and saw only four pitches, but I can't blame him because he's a lifetime .365 hitter when making contact with the first pitch.

 

Nick Swisher, RF: (A-) Swisher singled in three at bats.

 

Melky Cabrera, CF-RF: (A) I was surprised Cabrera got the start being that he was 0-13 against Washburn, but the switch hitter broke out of that slump in grand fashion with a towering solo homer over the left field foul pole that was upheld on review.

I don't understand why all four umpires need to descend into the bowels of a stadium to review a controversial home run call.  I'm all for instant replay, but can't there be a fifth umpire up in the press box who can take a look at the play from there like in college football.  It would save us all a lot of time.

 

Cody Ransom, 3B: (F) Ransom got the start at third and went 0-3 with a strikeout. 

I get the need to give A-Rod a half-day off once in a while, but I thought it was peculiar to do it with Pettitte, a ground ball pitcher, on the mound.  It almost cost the Yankees in the second inning when Gutierrez reached on a chopper to third that should've been fielded by Ransom.  Luckily, Pettitte was able to escape the two on, nobody out jam.

 

Brett Gardner, CF: (INC) I didn't even realize Gardner came in as a defensive replacement in the ninth until I just read the box score.

 

Andy Pettitte, SP: (A) Pettitte entered the game with a 5.77 ERA at home, but he kept the ball down and struck out five to improve to 8-3 on the year.

 

Alfredo Aceves, RP: (A) Aceves retired the only batter he faced in the eighth and has now gone seven straight scoreless innings.

 

Phil Coke, RP: (A) Coke did his job and retired both lefties he faced.  Another scoreless eighth without Joba Chamberlain.

 

Mariano Rivera, RP: (A) Mo pitched a perfect ninth.

 

Yankees Overall Grade: (A) It'll be about 190 straight hours without trailing in a game by the time CC Sabathia throws the first pitch Thursday night.

 

Follow me on Twitter at JordanHarrison.

When Nick Swisher struck out with runners at the corners and nobody out in the second, it became Melky Cabrera's responsibility to drive in the Yankees' second run with an out. He did just that with a sacrifice fly to center. When Swisher popped out to short with the bases loaded and no one out in the fourth, it once again was up to Cabrera to tack on an important insurance run with an out. He came through again with an RBI fielder's choice to first base. But with runners on first and third and nobody out in a tie ballgame in the eighth, Cabrera wanted to do more than just drive in a run with an out, and so he hit a go-ahead RBI double to deep center that put the Yankees up 6-5 and they would go on to beat the Seattle Mariners by a score of 8-5. The late-inning extra-base hit will get all the play on the highlight shows, but if not for the pair of run-scoring outs Cabrera produced earlier in the game, he would not have been in position for the heroics in the eighth. Here are the grades from Tuesday night's sixth straight victory.... Read more

With Johnny Damon up with two on and one out in the ninth, I called my friend, Brad. "He better get on or they're gonna walk Jeter and then Rivera will have to bat," I told my fellow Yankee fanatic. Inexplicably, Manager Joe Girardi failed to use a double switch when Mariano Rivera entered the game in the eighth inning, meaning he would have to bat during a crucial situation in a one-run game with the New York Mets. Girardi should have inserted Rivera into Robinson Cano's No. 5 spot in the order, because Cano made the last out in the seventh, and then replaced Cano at second base with Ramiro Pena or Cody Ransom, both of which were available on the bench. Instead, Girardi simply replaced Brian Bruney with Rivera in the No. 2 spot in the lineup, meaning Mo was due up sixth in the eighth inning, with the Yanks needing an insurance run to feel better about their chances. More amazing, though, was what Mets Manager Jerry Manuel did when Derek Jeter stepped to the plate with two on and two out and Rivera on deck.  He actually had Francisco Rodriguez throw three pitches, one for a strike,... Read more

Who needs home runs? The Yankees failed to go yard at home for the first time since May 6, but played nearly flawless small ball to beat the Washington Nationals, 5-3, on Tuesday. New York was 3-4 in moving runners over to third with less than two outs and a perfect 3-3 in scoring those runners. With two on and nobody out in the second, Hideki Matsui did his job by grounding out to first to advance the runners.  Robinson Cano, who had four hits in the game, then scored on a sac fly by Melky Cabrera. In the next inning, Johnny Damon led off by reaching second on an error.  He was then advanced to third by Mark Teixeira's grounder to the right side and scored on Cano's infield single. Finally, in the eighth, the Yanks added an insurance run when Brett Gardner, pinch running for Matsui who drew a leadoff walk, stole second, was moved to third by Nick Swisher's grounder and scored on Ramiro Pena's base hit. That's fundamental baseball, something the Yankees need to do if they want to beat the Red Sox this year. Here are the grades from CC Sabathia's victory over the Nats.  ... Read more

Last night, the Yankees lost their seventh straight game to the Red Sox this season. This game was a lot closer than Tuesday's contest, as the Yankees lost 6-5 as opposed to 7-0. While the Yankees and their fans are shaking their heads at another loss at the hands of Red Sox nation, the more puzzling thing is if Chien-Ming Wang will ever regain his form. Wang started for the second time since being moved out of the bullpen and only lasted two and two-thirds innings. He surrendered four runs on six hits, walked three, and managed to lower his ERA from 14.46 to 14.34. Not exactly encouraging numbers. Phil Hughes came in with two outs in the third to relieve Wang, and despite one bad pitch to Kevin Youkalis for a two-run homer, he gave a good performance. The numbers are the numbers, so the question facing Joe Girardi and the Yankees is what to do next? Wang did keep most of his pitches down against the Red Sox, a sign that his sinker ball is doing what it's supposed to. However, his command is still way off. He doesn't look comfortable, and the look in his eyes... Read more

That's right, I said it.  In fact, this might be the biggest start for him, period.  In the playoffs, the fate of the team hung in the balance; in this start, both the team's fate and Wang's own personal fate hang in the balance.  The Yankees are 0-6 vs. The Sawks this season.  This is the first series against Boston since early 2006 in which first place is up for grabs.  Chien-Ming Wang's career numbers at Fenway Park are an ERA of 5.11 and a WHIP of 1.52, his second-worst numbers at any park (min. 10 IP).  And that was the good Chien-Ming Wang.  The Chien-Ming Wang who won 19 games in back-to-back seasons with ERA's of 3.63 and 3.70, not the Wang who has an ERA up over 14 in 18.2 innings.  Wang was just put back into the rotation riding the coattails of his resume, Girardi's confidence, and one very good 3 inning performance out of the bullpen.  The normally taciturn Wang voiced immense displeasure through his agent two weeks ago because of his use out of the bullpen.  This greatly angered Cashman, who responded by saying that Wang's contract reads "Pitcher", not "Starting Pitcher". Wang's only beef... Read more

How many times does he have to prove you wrong? For about the 13th time in his short career, Joba Chamberlain proved to all the detractors that he belongs in the Yankee rotation.  And he did it in possibly the most convincing fashion yet, with eight strong innings against the Cleveland Indians during which he surrendered just six base runners and two runs, while striking out five. With Chien-Ming Wang set to return and Phil Hughes improving, the pressure was on Joba to pitch well because someone's going to be left out of the five man rotation.  But who should it be?  Let's take a look at how the five starters after ace CC Sabathia have pitched over their past 22 starts (Chamberlain's career total). Joba Chamberlain     6-2     3.19 ERA A.J. Burnett            10-3    3.75 ERA Andy Pettitte          8-8      5.01 ERA Phil Hughes             6-8      5.30 ERA Chien-Ming Wang     10-6    5.47 ERA   And yet, in a poll I posted in one of my articles a week ago, 53.8% of respondents said Joba should be moved to the bullpen, while only 23.1% said Hughes or Wang should go. I wonder what those totals will be this time. Here are the grades from New... Read more

The Yankees turned in one of their most complete performances of the season on Memorial Day as they destroyed the first place Texas Rangers by a score of 11-1. With Chien-Ming Wang's return on the horizon, Phil Hughes made a strong case to remain the rotation by shutting out the hot-hitting Rangers through eight innings, while Alex Rodriguez led the offensive explosion with a five-hit day. Here are the grades from Sunday's victory in Arlington.   Joe Girardi, Manager: (A) This was an easy one for the skipper, who just sat back and watched his lineup pound out 19 hits, while his starter surrendered just five base runners. I would've let Hughes pitch the ninth to try to get the shutout and give the bullpen a full day off, but I guess it's not a huge deal being that they were up 11 runs.   Derek Jeter, SS: (C+) The Captain got a day off in the field but he still produced at the plate, extending his hitting streak to nine games by going 1-5 with a double, two runs and a walk.   Johnny Damon, LF: (A) Damon continues his hot hitting.  He was 2-4 with a double, a walk... Read more

Between 1996 and 2006, it seemed like the Yankees were in first all the time.  But over the past two-and-a-third seasons, New York has been the top team in the American League East for just five total days. After running off 10 wins in 11 games, the Bombers missed a perfect opportunity to take the lead in the standings for the first time since April 2, 2008, when they fell 4-3 in 11 innings to the Philadelphia Phillies. Here are the grades from Sunday's frustrating loss at Yankee Stadium.   Joe Girardi, Manager: (D) When I returned from a 10-day trip to Israel on Thursday, friends and family told me that the Yankees had transformed while I was away.  The new Pinstripes were a team that bunted, came up with clutch hits and won games in dramatic fashion.  Well, I didn't see that on Sunday. After tying the game in the ninth, the Yankees had a runner at first with no one out.  Instead of having Hideki Matsui attempt to sacrifice Melky Cabrera into scoring position, Girardi had Godzilla, who's 6 for his last 42, swing away.  He struck out. The manager then pinch hit for Francisco Cervelli, who was 1-3 and... Read more

For the past couple of months, I've listened to other people's accounts of their visits to the new Yankee Stadium. I've looked at pictures, watched on TV, but hadn't experienced it for myself. When the game I was supposed to go to on April 20 was rained out I wasn't sure when I'd get to the stadium. Two weeks ago, I found some good tickets and was going to take my cousin to the game as his college graduation gift. One day after I purchased the tickets he informed me that he forgot that he had to attend a dinner at his girlfriend's school. I was looking at the possibility of not being able to go again, and I had to figure something out fast. My dad happened to be sitting next to me when I got the word that my cousin couldn't go, and he offered to step in. It's a rare occasion when my dad and I get to go to a game just us. I've been watching games with my dad for as long as I can remember. No one else is requiring his attention, and for a few hours it's all about baseball. Tuesday night... Read more

For the past couple of months, I've listened to other people's accounts of their visits to the new Yankee Stadium. I've looked at pictures, watched on TV, but hadn't experienced it for myself. When the game I was supposed to go to on April 20 was rained out I wasn't sure when I'd get to the stadium. Two weeks ago, I found some good tickets and was going to take my cousin to the game as his college graduation gift. One day after I purchased the tickets he informed me that he forgot that he had to attend a dinner at his girlfriend's school. I was looking at the possibility of not being able to go again, and I had to figure something out fast. My dad happened to be sitting next to me when I got the word that my cousin couldn't go, and he offered to step in. It's a rare occasion when my dad and I get to go to a game just us. I've been watching games with my dad for as long as I can remember. No one else is requiring his attention, and for a few hours it's all about baseball. Tuesday night... Read more