The Yankee brought their bats this series, banging out 47 hits overall. They slapped the Ranger pitchers for 15 tonight, as every Yankee but Johnny Damon was invited to the party (to quote Yankee announcer Kenny Singleton). Hideki Matsui hit 2 HRs with 3 RBIs. With his 2 hits yesterday, hopefully, he's ready to go on one of those streaky runs he's known for. Mark Teixeira and Robinson Cano also added HRs. Tex's 2-run shot in the 1st put the Yankees on the board right away. He leads MLB with 12 HRs in the month of May.
The shutout was ruined by Jose Veras, who just continues to struggle in relief. He served up a 2-run shot to Ian Kinsler in the 7th. To compound matters, he walked the next batter with a 6-run lead, prompting Joe Girardi to pull him immediately. Veras' slider is all over the place except homeplate. David Robertson finished up the inning, but it was Chien-Ming Wang's performance that must have heartened the Yankee staff. He came out for the 8th inning and retired all 6 batters he faced, including 2 Ks. His sinker appeared to be working and he worked ahead of the hitters.
I still think Wang could be an intriguing option for Girardi in the bullpen, if he overcome his early season struggles. With Bruney DL'd again and no word about Damaso Marte who's been on the DL for quite awhile, the Yanks are in desperate need for another arm in the pen. And Wang could give them 2-3 innings, sparing the workload of the bullpen some nights. Will it happen? I personally doubt. I'm sure the Yankees would prefer the 2 time 19-game winner to return to the rotation. I'm sure Joba to the bullpen talk will soon ensue, although I prefer to see Joba continue to grow as a starter.
Other notes: What has happened to Tampa's pitching? I know they've been hit by the injury bug, losing their middle infielders in the same week, but their vaunted pitching staff from last year are in shambles. Scott Kazmir went on the DL, but before he did, he was dreadful. Andy Sonnanstine got lit up by Cleveland tonight and his ERA is over 7.50. And besides JP Howell, their bullpen is a frightening horror show. They blew a 10-0 lead to Cleveland 2 nights ago, losing 11-10. That had to be a devastating loss. Cleveland went on to sweep them tonight, winning 12-7. Their pitching isn't the only thing struggling - BJ Upton is hitting .191. How much longer can Joe Maddon keep him in the leadoff spot?
Boston's Big Sloppy - 0-4 tonight and now hitting .193. Manager Terry Francona finally dropped the Slop to the 6th spot in the order. It could be a matter of time when the media starts asking him when Boston will find a cozy spot on the bench for the big fella. I wouldn't be surprised if the Sox did replace Ortiz in the lineup. I admire Theo Epstein's ability not to be sentimental with his aging stars and continuing to infuse youth into his ballclub. The Dart Thrower, Matsuzaka, continued his old ways, throwing 102 pitches in 5 innings. He's already matched last season's loss total, as he fell to 0-3. Will Matsuzaka go the way of other Japanese hurlers - early success the first couple of years followed by average-to below average once the league catches up to the junk and gyrations they throw up there?
Toronto blew an 8-2 lead for Roy Halladay and lost 12-10 to Balitmore in extra innings. They've now lost 9 in a row. It was just a matter of time before they came back crashing to earth.
Yankees Record: 27-20, tied for first with Boston.
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