Baseball Mania

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2006-07-13T16:51:00.000-07:00

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Make it Ten Years in a Row!

2006-07-12T06:59:00.000-07:00

Game date- 7/11/06

American League- 3, National League- 2

ALL STAR GAME!

W- Ryan (1-0)
L- Hoffman (0-1)
S- Rivera (1)

American League Batters:

RF- Suzuki, 0-3
RF- Dye, 0-1
SS- Jeter, 0-3
SS- Tejada, 0-1
1B- Ortiz, 0-2
1B- Konerko, 2-2 (1B, 1B)
PR- Lopez (R)
3B- Rodriguez, 0-2
1B- Glaus, 1-2 (2B, R)
LF- Guerrero, 1-2 ( solo HR, R, RBI)
2B- Young, 1-2 ( GW-3B, 2 RBI)
C- Rodriguez, 0-2
C- Mauer, 0-2
CF- Wells, 1-2 (1B)
LF- Matthews, JR- 1-1 (1B)
2B-Loretta, 0-2
PH- Thome, 0-1
PH- Ordonez, 0-1
RF- Sizemore, 0-2

American League Pitchers:

Rogers- 3H, R, ER, K, 2IP
Halladay- 3H, R, ER, K, 2IP
Zito- IP
Kazmir- IP
Santana- BB, K, IP
Ryan- K, IP
Rivera- IP

Notes:

For the tenth year in a row, the American League found a way to beat the NL, and secure home field advantage in the World Series. This time it was Michael Young's final at-bat: 2-1 ( National League led). There were two outs, and Young faced an 0-2 pitch from Hall of Fame closer, Trevor Hoffman. Young got an 84 mph outside fastball, which he smacked to the right-center field wall for a two-run triple. Because of his heroics, Young won the MVP award ( second Texas Ranger to do so in the past three years). Paul Konerko of the Chicago White Sox was the only AL player with more then one hit. He singled with two outs in the ninth, and was followed by Troy Glaus who hit a ground-rule double, setting up a dramatic comeback. American League pitching was good- Zito, Kazmir, Santana, Ryan, and Rivera all pitched a scoreless inning. The starter, Kenny Rogers gave up one run (a solo homer to David Wright) in his two innings of work. Roy Halliday gave up a run on a wild pitch in the third inning.

Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez of the Yankees went a combined 0 for 5. Robincon Cano did not play. Mariano Rivera picked up his 3rd All Star game save, tying Dennis Eckersley for the most all time.

Century 21: Home Run Derby 2006

2006-07-11T07:08:00.000-07:00

I love the Home Run Derby, and watch it faithfully every year. But for the second straight season, no Yankee has participated. Hideki Matsui was asked in '05, but declined- the same thing happened this year with Alex Rodriguez. And there is no Manny, Thome, or Pujols either...

Derek Jeter (here with Notre Dame head coach), Robinson Cano, and several other Yankees hung out to watch the Home Run derby.

Fortunately, several top sluggers DID show up at the event. Ortiz, who leads the American League in home runs (31), and Howard, who leads the National League in home runs (28) participated. Astro slugger, Lance Berkman and Toronto's third baseman, Troy Glaus were also in attendance.

Rules of the Game:

-Each batter has ten outs.

-Anything, that is not a homer ( foul ball, single, pop up, etc...) is an out.

-Home runs carry over from round 1 to round 2, but no further.

-The top four home-run hitters in round 1 advance to round 2. The top two home-run hitters in round 2, advance to the final round. Batter with the most home runs in the final, wins.

ROUND 1

8. Troy Glaus: 1 HR
7. Miguel Tejeda: 3 HR
6. Lance Berkman: 3 HR
5. Jermaine Dye: 7 HR
4. Ryan Howard: 8 HR
3. Miguel Cabrera: 9 HR
2. David Ortiz: 10 HR
1. David Wright 16 HR

For Glaus, this was his second Home Run Derby. Last time he had no home runs, so I guess, this was an improvement. Tejeda and Berkman never really found a rhythm, swinging at almost every pitch. If not for Howard's rally ( he was the last batter of round 1 ), Jermaine Dye would have advanced. Ryan Howard was down to his final out when he hit 4 consecutive home runs, launching him into round 2. At first, Howard swung like he was taking batting practice, smacking line drives and ground balls up the middle, but he soon changed his approach and started crushing the baseballs. Cabrera ( my pick to win) did an excellent job with his smooth, powerful swing. Ortiz, the crowd favorite, put on a show, sending several balls into the nearby Alleghany River. David Wright, though, was the star of round 1. Before Wright started, ESPN broadcasters asked Wright's teammate, Tom Glavine, if David had any chance of winning. Glavine responded, saying that Wright hit too many line drives to win a home run competition. The Met's thirdbaseman proved him wrong. Wright's 16 homers were the third most home-runs ever hit in one round- Abreu (24 in 2005) and Ortiz (17 in 2005)

Anyway, the top four (the ones I highlighted ) advanced.

Unlike the previous Derbys, contestants DO carry their home run totals of round 1 over to round 2.

ROUND 2

David Ortiz: 3 HR ( Total: 13 HR)
Miguel Cabrera: 6 HR ( Total: 15 HR)
David Wright: 2 HR (Total 18 HR)
Ryan Howard: 10 HR (Total: 18 HR)

If not for the new rule, Wright would have been eliminated and Cabrera would have moved on.

The younger batters had the advantage here, keeping up the strength needed to continue hitting balls 400+ feet. David Wright only hit two homers, but because of his incredible performance in round 1, he advanced to the final. Ryan Howard was on a roll with his ten home runs. Teammates in the minors, David Wright and Ryan Howard were facing off in the Home Run Derby finals.

Final Round

David Wright: 4 HR
Ryan Howard 5 HR

Ryan Howard celebrates with his bullpen coach, Ramon Henderson after winning the competition.

The slate was wiped clean, and the batters started all over again. An exhausted Wright led off with only four home runs. Ryan Howards stepped up, and before recording his 6th out, he blasted five home runs into the Pennsylvania night. His "walkoff" home run (number 5), hit a big "Hit It Here" MasterCard sign in right field. Of the 87 home runs hit on the night, the last one hit the sign. Quite dramatic. Philadelphia's Ryan Howard won the trophy, and his first Home Run Derby contest.

Now the players gear up for tomorrow's All Star Game!

Yankees Welcome the All-Star Break

2006-07-10T07:19:00.000-07:00

Game date- 7/09/06

Devil Rays- 7, Yankees- 6

W- Corcoran (4-0)
L- Proctor (2-2)
S- Meadows (5)

Yankee starter, Kris Wilson, failed to pitch more then three innings on Sunday.

Yankees Starting Lineup:

LF- Cabrera, 1-4 (1B, BB, R)
SS- Jeter, 2-4 (1B, 1B, HBP, R)
DH- Giambi, 1-4 ( BB, R, 4 RBI, grand slam HR [27] )
3B- Rodriguez, 0-4
CF- Williams, 2-4 ( 1B, 2B, R)
1B- Phillips, 1-4 (1B)
2B- Cairo, 1-3 (1B)
RF- Thompson, 0-4
C- Stinnet, 0-2 (BB, R)

Other Yankee Batters:

CF- Damon, 0-1 (SB)
C- Posada, 0-1

Yankee Pitchers:

Wilson- 5H, 3R, 3ER, 2BB, 4K, 2.2IP
Villone- 3H, 2R, 2ER, BB, 3K, 3IP
Myers- .1IP
Proctor- 2H, R, ER, BB, 3K, IP
Farnsworth- H, IP

Notes:

Today was not a good day for the NY pitchers. Wilson couldn't make it out of the third, Villone was tagged for two runs, and Proctor blew the lead, picking up his second loss of the season. The Yankees gladly welcome the All Star break which will give their over-used pitchers a chance to rest. But New York still has to decide what to do with the number 5 spot, Chacon doesn't work and Wilson is just as bad. The Yanks will probably try to go out and get someone ( Pineiro? Vargas? Hernandez?) during this four-day off period.

Jason Giambi's grand slam seemed to seal the victory for the Yankees but their pitching just couldn't hold up. Bernie Williams and Derek Jeter each had two hits.

Yankees Win Fourth Straight

2006-07-10T07:06:00.000-07:00

Game date- 7/08/06

Yankees- 5, Devil Rays- 1

W- Wang (9-4)
L- Kazmir (10-6)

Johnny Damon smacks a two-run triple to left field in the seventh inning of Saturday's ballgame.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

LF- Cabrera, 3-5 (1B, 1B, 2B, R, RBI)
SS- Jeter, 1-4 (1B, BB, R, RBI)
DH- Giambi, 0-3
3B- Rodriguez, 0-3 (2BB)
C- Posada, 1-4 (1B, BB, RBI)
CF- Williams, 1-2 (1B, 2BB)
1B- Phillips, 1-5 (1B, R)
2B- Cairo, 1-5 (1B, R)
RF- Thompson, 2-3 (1B, 1B, SB, sac bunt)

Other Yankee Batters:

DH- Damon, 1-2 (3B, 2 RBI, R)
CF- Crosby, 0-1

Yankee Pitchers:

Wang- 6H, R, ER, 2BB, 2K, 8.1IP
Farnsworth- K, .2IP

Notes:

Chien Ming Wang was excellent tonight, pitching into the ninth inning and surrendering only one run. His sinker was working wonderfully, as he recorded 14 groundball outs.

Melky Cabrera, Derek Jeter, and Jorge Posada each hit RBI singles, but Johnny Damon's two-run triple opened up the ballgame. Cabrera had three hits, and right-fielder, Kevin Thompson had two.

Wright Pitches a Masterpiece in Tampa Bay

2006-07-08T15:55:00.000-07:00

Game date- 7/08/06

Yankees- 1, Devil Rays- 0

W- Wright (5-5)
L- Seo (2-6)
S- Rivera (19)

Yankee pitcher, Jaret Wright, struck out ten Tampa Bay batters, Friday night.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

LF- Cabrera, 0-3 (BB)
SS- Jeter, 0-4
DH- Giambi, 1-4 (1B)
3B- Rodriguez, 0-4
C- Posada, 0-4
RF- Williams, 2-3 (1B, 2B, RBI)
1B- Phillips, 0-3
2B- Cairo, 0-3
CF- Crosby, 0-3

Yankee Pitchers:

Wright- 4H, 0R, 10K, 6IP
Proctor- 2K, IP
Farnsworth- IP
Rivera- 2K, IP

Notes:

Jaret Wright pitched one incredible ballgame tonight. Probably his best as a Yankee. He didn't allow a run or a walk in his six innings of work. He also struck out a season-high, ten batters. Proctor, Farnsworth, and Rivera were equally effective in their three innings of work, striking out a combined four batters.

The Yankee bats were very quiet tonight against Tampa Bay's Jae Soe. Bernie Williams had the only RBI ( plus a single and a double).

Randy Johnson Scalps Indians

2006-07-07T07:27:00.000-07:00

Game date- 7/06/06

Yankees- 10, Indians- 4

W- Johnson (10-7)
L- Lee ( 8-6)

Derek Jeter hits an RBI single to center field, scoring Miguel Cairo.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

LF- Cabrera, 1-4 ( 1B, BB, 2R, RBI)
SS- Jeter, 3-4 ( 1B, 1B, 2B, sac fly, R, 3 RBI)
DH- Giambi, 1-4 ( sac fly, R, 3 RBI, 2-run HR [26] )
3B- Rodriguez, 2-4 ( 1B, 1B, BB)
C- Posada, 0-5
CF- Williams, 1-4 (1B)
1B- Phillips, 1-5 (1B, R)
RF- Guiel, 1-3 ( BB, 1B, 3R)
2B- Cairo, 3-4 ( 1B, 1B, 1B, 2R, RBI)

Yankee Pitchers:

Johnson- 7H, 4R, 3ER, 5K, 7.2IP
Beam- K, 1.1IP

Notes:

Randy Johnson stepped up big tonight, pitvhing into the eighth inning. Not only did he shut down the Cleveland bats, but he gave the Yankee pen a chance to rest. The Big Unit struck out 5 and walk no one.

Jason Giambi's two-run homer in the 4th inning jump-started the Yankee offense. Derek Jeter went 3 for 4, driving in 3 runs. Melky Cabrera and Miguel Cairo each drove in one run. Aaron Gueil made his Yankee debut, one day after New York claimed him off waivers from Kansas City. He went 1 for 3 with 3 runs scored. Johnny Damon had the night off, but is expected to return to the lineup soon.

Melky Slams Aside the Indians

2006-07-06T07:46:00.000-07:00

Game date- 7/05/06

Yankees- 11, Indians- 3

W- Mussina (10-3)
L- Byrd (6-6)

Melky Cabrera watches his first career grand slam homer sail over the left-field fence in Cleveland.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 0-1
SS- Jeter, 2-4 (1B, 1B, sac fly, R, 2 SB, RBI)
DH- Giambi, 0-5
3B- Rodriguez, 1-5 (1B, R, SB, RBI)
C- Posada, 2-5 ( 1B, 2B, R, 2 RBI)
RF- Williams, 1-5 (2B, R)
1B- Phillips, 1-4 ( 1B, SB, 2R)
LF- Cabrera, 3-5 ( 1B, 2B, 2R, 5 RBI, grand slam HR [3] )
2B- Cairo, 2-4 ( 1B, 3B, 2 SB, 2R, RBI)

Other Yankee Batters:

CF- Crsoby, 1-4 ( 1B, R, RBI)

Yankee Pitchers:

Mussina- 6H, 3R, BB, 4K, 6IP
Wilson- K, 2IP
Rivera- H, IP

Notes:

Mike Mussina delivered a much-needed quality start for the New York Yankees, pitching 6 strong innings. The Yankee bullpen has been very overworked in the past several days, so this start really helped the Yankees. With his tenth win, Mike Mussina becomes the first American League pitcher in history to win at least 10 games for 15 straight years. Kris Wilson, who the Yankees had just called up from Triple-A Columbus, pitched two perfect innings, and may be headed to an official start on Sunday ( instead of Chacon). Because he hadn't pitched in four days, Mariano Rivera closed the ninth inning.

Melky Cabrera had a huge offensive night, driving in a career-high 5 runs. It took Derek Jeter over 10 years to hit his first career grand slam, but Melky Cabrera got that problem out of the way tonight. Cabrera also singled home a runner, and scored two runs himself. Jorge Posada had a two-run double, Rodriguez had an RBI-single, and Cairo had an RBI-triple. Derek Jeter extended his season-high hitting streak to 11 games.

Johnny Damon left the game due to some soreness in his right oblique muscle, but is not expected to miss tomorrow's game.

Indians Set Off Fireworks

2006-07-05T08:35:00.000-07:00

Game date- 7/04/06

Yankees- 1, Indians- 19

W- Westbrook (7-4)
L- Chacon (4-3)

Joe Torre makes one of many visits to the pitching mound, Tuesday night.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 0-3 ( R)
SS- Jeter, 1-3 (1B)
DH- Giambi, 0-3 (BB)
3B- Rodriguez, 3-4 (1B, 1B, 2B)
C- Posada, 1-2 (1B)
1B- Phillips, 0-4
LF- Cabrera, 1-4 (1B)
RF- Reese, 1-3 (1B, BB, SB)
2B- Green, 0-3 (BB)

Other Yankee Batters:

2B- Cairo, 1-2 (1B)
C- Stinnet, 1-2 (1B)
CF- Crosby, 0-2

Yankee Pitchers:

Chacon- 6H, 7R, 3BB, 2K, 1.1IP
Villone- 2H, 2K, 2.2IP
Beam- 6H, 6R, K, .2IP
Myers- 3H, 3R, 2BB, .1IP
Proctor- 4H, 3R, BB, K, 2IP
Farnsworth- K, IP

Notes:

What an ugly game. The second worse loss in Yankee history ( 18 run difference).

It is now very clear that the Yankees have to start searching for a new stater. Chacon has just been dismal this year, and he keeps getting worse. The Yankee farm system doesn't look too hopeful, so the Yanks would be better off going out and getting someone. Maybe Zito? Smoltz?

The Yankee bullpen did pretty badly as well, giving up 12 earned runs. I just hang my head in shame.

After an Offensive Outpour Sunday Night, Yanks Struggle to Score against Indians

2006-07-05T08:23:00.000-07:00

Game date- 7/03/06

Yankees- 2, Indians- 5

W- Sowers (1-1)
L- Wang (8-4)
S- Wickman (13)

Chien Ming Wang delivers a pitch during the first inning of Monday's game in Cleveland.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 2-4 (1B, 2B, SB, R)
SS- Jeter, 2-4 (1B, 1B, SB)
DH- Giambi, 1-4 ( R, 2RBI, 2-run HR [25] )
3B- Rodriguez, 1-3 ( 1B, BB)
RF- Williams, 1-4 (1B)
1B- Phillips, 0-4
LF- Cabrera, 0-3 (BB)
C- Stinnet, 0-3
2B- Green, 1-3 (1B)

Other Yankee Batters:

PH- Posada, 0-1
PH- Reese, 0-1

Yankee Pitchers:

Wang- 11H, 5R, 2BB, 2K, 5.1IP
Myers- K, .2IP
Smith- 2BB, 2K, 2IP

Notes:

Chien Ming Wang was not very good tonight; his sinker did not sink far enough. He left many pitches out over the plate, therefore allowing was too many fly balls. He gave up 11 hits and two walks in just 5 and a third innings pitched.

Jason Giambi's two-run homer in the first was all the offense for the Yanks. After Giambi's 25th blast, the Yankee bats were silenced by Jeremy Sowers.

Alex Rodriguez Beats Down Mets

2006-07-03T07:39:00.000-07:00

Game date: 7/02/06

Mets- 7, Yankees- 16

W- Villone (3-1)
L- Soler (2-3)

Alex Rodriguez claps his hands after hitting a three run home run in the fifth inning of Sunday's game. Rodriguez had seven RBIs on the night.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 0-3 ( BB, R)
SS- Jeter, 3-5 ( 1B, 1B, 1B, RBI, 2R)
DH- Giambi, 2-3 ( 2 BB, 1B, 1B, 2R)
3B- Rodriguez, 3-5 ( 1B, 3R, 7 RBI, grand slam HR [18], 3-run HR [19] )
C- Posada, 2-3 ( 2 BB, 2B, 2R, RBI, solo HR [11] )
RF- Williams, 0-4 ( 2R)
1B- Phillips, 0-5 ( R)
LF- Cabrera, 2-5 ( 2B, 2B, R, 3 RBI)
2B- Green, 1-3 ( 2 BB, 2R, SB, 2 RBI, 2-run HR [1] )

Other Yankee Batters:

RF- Reese, 1-1 (1B)
CF- Crosby, 0-1

Yankee Pitchers:

Wright- 7H, 4R, BB, K, 1.2IP
Villone- 3H, R, 2BB, 3K, 3IP
Beam- 2H, R, K, 1.1Ip
Myers- K, 2IP
Proctor- 2H, R, 2K, IP

Notes:

Jaret Wright was miserable; he couldn't even get out of the second inning! The Mets pounded 4 runs on seven hits off the Yankee pitcher, but due to some excellent bullpen-managing by Joe Torre, the Yanks hung on and came back from the four-run deficit. Villone pitched very well, and really gave the Yanks the opportunity to score some runs off of Soler. Villone picked up his third win of the week, most in the majors.

Alex Rodriguez seems to have found his groove. Three days ago he walked off with a two-run homer, yesterday he flicked a two-run homer to right field, and today he crushed two bombs out of the ballpark! Rodriguez hit a huge grand slam to right field, and a monstrous three-run shot to center. Posada and Nick Green also homered in the ballgame. For Green, it was his first hit as a Yankee. Derek Jeter picked up three hits to extend his hitting streak to eight games.

Mets Pound Big Unit

2006-07-03T07:28:00.000-07:00

Game date- 7/01/06

Mets- 8, Yankees- 3

W- Traschel (7-4)
L- Johnson (9-7)

Randy Johnson reacts during the fourth inning in which he allowed five earned runs.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 2-4 ( 1B, 1B, BB, R)
SS- Jeter, 2-5 ( 1B, 1B, R)
DH- Giambi, 0-2 (2 BB)
3B- Rodriguez, 2-3 ( 1B, R, BB, 2 RBI, 2-run HR [17] )
C- Posada, 0-4
1B- Phillips, 0-3 (BB)
LF- Cabrera, 2-4 ( 1B, 1B)
RF- Crosby, 0-3
2B- Cairo, 1-4 ( 1B, SB)

Yankee Pitchers:

Johnson- 8H, 8R, 3BB, 7K, 6IP
Beam- H, IP
Smith- H, K, 2IP

Notes:

Randy Johnson was just awful, giving up 8 runs over six innings of work! The Mets pounded all his pitches, and he looked old and tired out on the mound. Alex Rodriguez did hit a two-run homer, but it wasn't enought to boost the Yanks past the Mets.

Yanks' Pitchers Blank the Mets

2006-07-03T07:16:00.000-07:00

Game date- 6/30/06

Mets- 0, Yankees- 2

W- Villone (2-1)
L- Hernandez (4-8)
S- Rivera ( 18)

Yankee pitcher Mike Mussina was brilliant before the 63-minute rain delay.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 0-3 ( BB)
SS- Jeter, 2-4 (1B, 2B)
DH- Giambi, 1-4 ( R, RBI, solo HR [24] )
3B- Rodriguez, 0-4
C- Posada, 1-3 (2B, BB)
RF- Williams, 2-3 (1B, 1B, SB, R)
1B- Phillips, 1-3 ( 1B, RBI)
LF- Cabrera, 1-3 (1B)
2B- Cairo, 0-3

Yankee Pitchers:

Mussina- 4K, 4IP
Villone- H, BB, 2K, 2IP
Proctor- K, IP
Farnsworth- IP
Rivera- K, IP

Notes:

Mike Mussina pitched four perfect innings to start out the ballgame, but did not return after a 63-minute rain delay. Villone, Proctor, Farnsworth, and Rivera blanked the Mets through the next five innings, giving up only one hit.

Jason Giambi's solo homer in the first inning was all the offense needed in the game.

A-Rod Finally Comes Through in the Clutch!

2006-07-03T06:58:00.000-07:00

Game date- 6/28/06

( Ten innings) Braves- 3, Yankees- 4

W- Villone (1-1)
L- Sosa (2-10)

Alex Rodriguez is congratulated at home plate by his teammates after hitting a walkoff, two-run home run in the tenth inning.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 0-5 (BB)
LF- Cabrera, 1-5 (2B, SB, BB, R)
SS- Jeter, 1-5 (1B, BB)
DH- Giambi, 2-4 (1B, 2 BB, R, RBI, solo HR [23] )
3B- Rodriguez, 2-5 ( 1B, BB, R, 3 RBI, walk-off, 2-run HR [16] )
RF- Williams, 0-3 ( 2BB)
1B- Phillips, 1-5 ( 3B)
2B- Cairo, 1-5 (1B)
C- Stinnet, 0-2

Other Yankee Batters:

C- Posada, 0-3
PR- Reese, 0-0 (R)

Yankee Pitchers:

Wang- 7H, 2R, BB, 2K, 8IP
Rivera- H, BB, 2K, IP
Farnsworth- H, .2IP
Myers- HB, 0IP
Proctor- 2H, R, BB, 1IP
Villone- BB, .1IP

Notes:

Hidden behind the drama of A-Rod's clutch home run is Chien-Ming Wang's stellar performance. Wang pitched 8 innings, giving up only two runs ( 91 pitches). Rivera also did an excellent job out of the pen.

But in the botom of the tenth, with a runner on first ( one out and the Yanks down by one run) Alex Rodriguez hit a much-needed, walk-off home run into the left field bleachers. Rodriguez tossed his bat, flipped his helmet, and dove into his teammates awaiting him at home plate!

Yankees Struggle Against Ramirez

2006-07-03T06:39:00.000-07:00

Game date: 6/27/06

Braves- 5, Yankees- 2

W- Ramirez (3-2)
L- Wright (4-5)

Atlanta's Pete Orr is caught stealing second base during Tuesday's game in the Bronx.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-3 (1B, BB)
SS- Jeter, 1-4 (1B)
DH- Giambi, 0-4
3B- Rodriguez, 0-4
C- Posada, 2-4 (1B, 2B, R)
RF- Williams, 0-4
LF- Cabrera, 2-4 (1B, R, RBI, solo HR [2] )
2B- Cairo, 1-4 (1B)

Yankee Pitchers:

Wright- 5H, R, 2BB, 4K, 6IP
Villone- 2H, 2R, 1.1IP
Beam- H, BB, K, .1IP
Myers- K, .1IP
Farnsworth- 3H, 2R, K, .2IP
Smith- 2BB, K, .1IP

Notes:

Through the first six innings of this ballgame, we were witnessing a pitcher's duel. But after Jarett Wright was pulled in the seventh, the New York bullpen unravelled- Farnsworth and Villone both allowing two runs on a combined five hits. Meanwhile, Horacio Ramirez did his job, holding down the Yankees. Ramirez allowed only one unearned run through the first seven innings. Melky Cabrera hit a solo home run in the ninth to bring the Yankees to within three.

Randy Johnson Blows Down Braves

2006-07-02T14:32:00.000-07:00

Game date: 6/26/06

Braves- 2, Yankees- 5

W- Johnson (9-6)
L- Hudson (6-7)
S- Rivera (16)

Randy Johnson struck out 9 batters over 7 innings of work.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-4 (2B, R, BB)
2B- Cairo, 0-4 ( sac bunt)
SS- Jeter, 1-4 (1B, BB, 2R)
DH- Giambi, 2-4 ( 2R, 5 RBI, 2-run HR [21], 3-run HR [22] )
3B- Rodriguez, 1-3 (1B, SB, BB)
C- Posada, 0-3 (HBP)
1B- Phillips, 3-3 (BB, 1B, 2B, 3B)
RF- Crosby, 0-3 (BB)
LF- Cabrera, 1-4 (1B)

Yankee Pitchers:

Johnson- 4H, 9K, 7IP
Proctor- 3H, 2R, K, 1.1IP
Rivera- BB, 2K, .2IP

Notes:

Robinson Cano missed today's lineup because of an injury obtained yesterday; he may be headed to the DL. Jason Giambi had two impressive home runs, knocking in 5 RBIs! Andy Phillips had three hits, a homer away from the cycle.

Randu Johnson looked great today, fanning nine Braves and walking no one!! He held Atlanta scoreless through 7 innings.

Yanks Shut Down by Marlin Rookie in Game 2 of Double-Header

2006-07-02T14:15:00.000-07:00

Game date- 6/25/06

Marlins- 5, Yankees- 0

W- Sanchez (1-0)
L- Chacon (4-2)

Yankee secondbaseman, Robinson Cano, leaves the game after getting injured in the sixth.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-3 (1B, BB, 2 SB)
SS- Jeter, 2-4 (1B, 1B, SB)
1B- Giambi, 1-4 (1B)
3B- Rodriguez, 0-4
2B- Cano, 1-3 (2B)
RF- Williams, 0-4
LF- Cabrera, 1-4 (1B)
CF- Crosby, 1-4 (1B)
C- Stinnet, 0-3

Other Yankee Batters:

2B- Cairo, 0-0 (BB)
PH- Posada, 0-1

Yankee Pitchers:

Chacon- 5H, 3R (one unearned), BB, 5IP
Villone- H, 2R ( both unearned), 3K, 1.1IP
Beam- H, K, 1.2IP
Smith- 2K, IP

Notes:

Once again, Shawn Chacon could only pitch five disappointing innings as he allowed the Marlins to score 3 runs. Yankee defense didn't help matters much, making three errors (which led to three unearned runs)! The Yankee bats were silent today; Jeter was the only Yankee with more then one hit.

Damon's Homer Decides Key Pitching Duel

2006-07-02T14:00:00.000-07:00

Game date: 6/25/06

Marlins- 1, Yankees- 2

W- Mussina (9-3)
L- Willis (4-7)
S- Rivera (16)

Yankee catcher Jorge Posada tags out Florida firstbaseman, Mike Jacobs, at home plate.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-3 ( R, 2 RBI, sac fly, solo HR [11])
1B- Cairo, 0-3 ( HBP, SB)
SS- Jeter, 1-3 (1B, BB)
3B- Rodriguez, 0-3 (BB)
C- Posada, 0-4
RF- Williams, 2-3 (1B, 1B)
DH- Phillips, 1-3 (1B, BB, R)
2B- Cano, 1-3 (1B)
LF- Cabrera, 1-3 (1B)

Yankee Pitchers:

Mussina- 5H, R, 2BB, 6K, 7IP
Farnsworth- 2H, BB, 2K, IP
Rivera- IP

Notes:

Mike Mussina was brilliant through 7 innings of work, holding the Marlins to one earned run. Farnsworth and Rivera each pitched one shutout inning in relief.

Damon's sac fly and solo home run were all the runs the Yanks would need today. Bernie Williams singled twice to raise his season batting average to .290.

Sloppy Defense from Fish Helps Yankees Pick up Win

2006-07-01T18:09:00.000-07:00

Game date- 6/23/06

Marlins- 5, Yankees- 6

W- Wang (8-3)
L- Moehler (5-6)
S- Rivera (15)

Yankee closer, Mariano Rivera, shuts the Marlins down in the ninth.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-3 ( 2B, 2BB, 2R)
SS- Jeter, 0-5 (R)
DH- Giambi, 1-4 (1B, BB, 2R, RBI)
3B- Rodriguez, 3-5 ( 1B, 1B, 2B, BB, RBI)
C- Posada, 3-5 (1B, 1B, 1B, 3 RBI)
2B- Cano, 1-3 (1B, 2BB, SB)
RF- Williams, 0-3 ( sac fly, RBI)
1B- Phillips, 3-4 ( 1B, 1B, 3B)
LF- Cabrera, 0-4

Other Yankee Batters:

RF- Crosby, 0-1

Yankee Pitchers:

Wang- 9H, 4R, 2K, 7IP
Farnsworth- 3H, R, 2K, IP
Rivera- K, IP

Notes:

Due to three Marlin errors and several more sloppy plays, the Yankees eeked out a one-run victory. Chien Ming Wang pitched fairly decently over seven innings, and Rivera shut the door in the ninth.

Andy Phillips hit his first major league triple, and Jorge Posada drove in three runs for New York.

Off to Virginia!

2006-06-24T09:55:00.000-07:00

I'll be back in on July 1st/2nd.

Quick wrap of the upcoming week:

Yanks host the Marlins for three games, then the Braves, and then the Mets. Hopefully, the Bombers can catch up with the Sox over the next few series.

Go Yankees!!!! God bless!

Yanks Head for an Off Day on a High Note

2006-06-22T06:30:00.000-07:00

Game date- 6/21/06

Yankees- 5, Phillies- 0

W- Wright (4-4)
L- Hammels (1-3)

Derek Jeter smacks an RBI single up the middle, Wednesday night against the Phillies.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 3-3 ( 1B, 1B, 1B, 2BB, RBI)
SS- Jeter, 2-5 ( 1B, 1B, RBI)
1B- Giambi, 0-4
3B- Rodriguez, 0-2 ( 2BB, HBP, SB, R)
C- Posada, 0-5
RF- Williams, 0-4
LF- Cabrera, 2-4 ( 1B, 2B, R, RBI)
2B- Cairo, 2-3 ( 1B, 3B, sac bunt, 2R, RBI)
P- Wright, 0-1 ( RBI, sac fly)

Other Yankee Batters:

2B- Cano, 1-1 (1B)
PH- Phillips, 0-1 ( R)
RF- Crosby, 1-1 (1B)

Yankee Pitchers:

Wright- 3H, 4BB, 6K, 5IP
Villone- BB, 2K, IP
Proctor- HB, K, IP
Farnsworth- K, IP
Rivera- K, IP

Notes:

The only disappointing fact taken away from tonight's game was that Jaret Wright, once again, only pitched five innings. Fortunately, they were 5 scoreless innings, in which he struck out 6 batters. Wright has struggled terribly in the sixth inning, so Torre decided not to mess around and to pull him before he could do any damage. The New York bullpen pitched four scoreless innings, not even allowing one hit or walk. Farnsworth, who was out with back spasms for almost a week, pitched very, very well in the eighth.

After a triple by Miguel Cairo, Jaret Wright brought him home with a deep sac fly to left field in the fifth inning. Derek Jeter had an RBI single in the seventh, and the Yanks expanded their lead in the eighth with RBI singles by Melky Cabrera, Miguel Cairo, and Johnny Damon.

Yanks Come Back Three Times, Finally Beat Phillies

2006-06-21T06:29:00.000-07:00

Game date- 6/20/06

Yankees- 9, Phillies- 7

W- Beam (1-0)
L- Rhodes (0-2)
S- Rivera (14)

Bernie Williams doubles in the sixth inning of Tuesday's game versus the Phillies, Williams had five hits on the night.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 2-5 ( 1B, 3B, 2R, 2 RBI)
SS-Jeter, 1-3 ( 1B, BB, HBP, RBI )
1B- Giambi, 1-4 ( BB, R, RBI, solo HR [20] )
3B- Rodriguez, 1-5 ( 1B, RBI)
C- Posada, 2-5 ( 1B, 2R, RBI, solo HR [10] )
2B- Cano, 1-4 ( 2B, R)
RF- Williams, 5-5 ( 1B, 1B, 1B, 2B, 2B, R, RBI)
LF- Reese, 1-2 ( 1B, RBI)
P- Mussina, 0-2

Other Yankee Batters:

PH- Phillips, 0-1
2B- Cairo, 0-1 ( BB, R)
LF- Cabrera, 1-2 ( 1B, R, RBI)
P- Rivera, 0-1

Yankee Pitchers:

Mussina- 7H, 5R, 3BB, 4K, 5IP
Villone- R, K, 1.2IP
Proctor- R, BB, 0IP
Myers- H, 0IP
Beam- .1IP
Rivera- 2H, 2K, 2IP

Notes:

Tonight was the battle between the New York Yankees and Phillies' firstbaseman Ryan Howard. Howard drove in all seven runs for the Phillies- a 3-run homer and 2-run homer off of Mike Mussina to give the Phils an early lead. Then he tripled and drove in a couple more runs off of the Yankee's bullpen. Mussina only went 5 innings, giving up 5 runs. Mariano Rivera had to come in to the game in the eighth and pick up a two-inning save for his team. T. J. Beam earned his first major league win.

Yankee bats were on fire tonight, each starting player (besides the pitcher) had at least one hit. Bernie Williams singled in the first run for New York ( a two out single in the second, scoring Robinson Cano) , Jason Giambi hit a solo homer in the fourth, and Kevin Reese tied the ballgame with an RBI single in the same inning. After the Phillies re-took the lead, Jorge Posada homered and Alex Rodriguez came through with an RBI-single to tie the game up again. The Phils re-took the lead 7-5 in the seventh inning. Melky singled to make it 7 to 6. Damon had a huge two-run triple in the top of the eighth inning to give back the lead to the Yankees. Jeter then singled him in as an insurance run.

Yankee Slide Continues in the City of Brotherly Love

2006-06-20T07:05:00.000-07:00

Game date- 6/19/06

Yankees- 2, Phillies- 4

W- Myers ( 5-3)
L- Johnson (8-6)
S- Gordon (20)

Alex Rodriguez tries to dodge an inside fastball by Brett Myers in the first inning of Monday's game.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-5 ( 1B, SB, R)
LF- Cabrera, 0-5
SS- Jeter, 1-4 ( 1B, BB)
1B- Giambi, 3-4 ( 1B, 1B, BB, R, RBI, solo HR [19] )
3B- Rodriguez, 1-2 (2B, BB)
C- Posada, 1-3 ( BB, RBI, 1B)
2B- Cano, 0-3 ( BB)
RF- Crosby, 0-3
P- Johnson, 0-3

Other Yankee Batters:

RF- Williams, 0-1
1B- Phillips, 0-1

Yankee Pitchers:

Johnson- 5H, 3R, 2BB, 7K, 7IP
Farnsworth- 2BB, K, R, IP

Notes:

Randy Johnson pitched very well today, but was haunted by some sloppy defense- an error by Cano led to two Phillidelphia runs. Johnson pitched 7 innings, and struck out 7, walking only 2.

The Yankee offense continues to struggle, tonight's problems were due to the fact that they were facing crafty pitcher, Brett Myers. The Yankees as a team left 13 men on base- Cano left five (striking out and grounding out with runners on), Posada left 3 ( popping up with the bases loaded), and Rodriguez left two ( striking out with two runners in scoring position). Jason Giambi hit a monstrous home run to the upper deck in left field; Giambi also singled twice.

Yankees Suffer a Second Straight Devastating Loss

2006-06-18T13:13:00.000-07:00

Game date- 6/18/06

Yankees- 2, Nationals- 3

W- Majewski (3-2)
L- Wang (7-3)

Yankee manager, Joe Torre, watches the ballgame.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 0-5
LF- Cabrera, 0-3 ( BB, R)
SS- Jeter, 2-4 ( 1B, 2B, SB, R)
1B- Giambi, 0-4
3B- Rodriguez, 2-2 ( 1B, 2B, 2 BB, RBI)
C- Posada, 0-1 ( 2 BB, sac fly, RBI)
2B- Cano, 0-4
RF- Williams, 1-4 (1B)
P- Wang, 0-4

Yankee Pitchers:

Wang- 6H, 3R, 2BB, 2K, 8.1IP

Notes:

Chien-Ming Wang pitched masterfully today over 8 innings, but gave up the walk-off two-run homer to National's Ryan Zimmerman in the bottom of the ninth. He was two outs away from picking up a complete game victory, but came up just short. Fortunately, none of the Yankee bullpen was used today, so everyone should be rested for tomorrow's game aginst the Phillies.

The Yankees only had five hits- two for A-Rod ( a single and an RBI double) and two for Jeter ( a single and a double). Robinson Cano snapped his 15-game hitting streak, going 0 for 4.

"...as bad as it can get..."

2006-06-18T12:51:00.000-07:00

Game date- 6/17/06

Yankees- 9, Nationals- 11

W- Rouch (2-1)
L- Rivera (4-4)
S- Cordero (13)

Yankee closer, Mariano Rivera, looks back at home plate after giving up a single to Washington Nationals' Ryan Zimmerman.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 4-6 ( 1B, 2B, 2B, 2R, 5 RBI, grand slam [10] )
RF- Williams, 0-5
SS- Jeter, 3-5 ( 1B, 1B, 2B, R, RBI)
1B- Giambi, 0-3 ( BB, HBP)
3B- Rodriguez, 2-5 ( 1B, R, 2 RBI, 2-run HR [15] )
C- Posada, 2-5 ( 1B, R, RBI, solo HR [9] )
2B- Cano, 3-4 ( 1B, 1B, 2B, BB, R)
LF- Cabrera, 0-5 ( R)
P- Chacon, 0-2 ( BB, R)

Other Yankee Batters:

P- Beam, 0-1
PH- Cairo, 1-1 ( 1B)

Yankee Pitchers:

Chacon- 6H, 6R, 3BB, 3K, 4.1IP
Smith- H, .2IP
Beam- 3H, 2R, K, 1.2IP
Myers- .1IP
Proctor- H, R, 2BB, K, .2IP
Rivera- 2H, 2R, BB, .2IP

Notes:

Through the first four and a half innings of this ballgame, the Yankees were cruising. Shawn Chacon had allowed only two runs on 3 hits. Alex Rodriguez and Jorge Posada hit back-to-back homers. Johnny Damon had four hits, two doubles and a grand slam! The Yanks were up 9 to 2.

The Yanks lost 11 to 9. Chacon gave up four runs in the bottom of the fifth and was pulled for Matt Smith. Beam, Proctor, and Mariano Rivera gave up a combined five earned runs and the lead. The Yankee bats were silent. After the game, manager Joe Torre said: "That's as bad as it can get...."

Robinson Cano did manage to extend his hitting streak to 15 straight games.

Bernie Williams Delivers Some Capital Punishment to the Nats

2006-06-17T07:21:00.000-07:00

Game date- 6/17/06

Yankees- 7, Nationals- 5

W- Rivera (4-3)
L- Cordero (2-2)

Bernie Williams is congratulated at home plate by Jorge Posada after hitting a tie-breaking solo home run in the ninth inning.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-5 ( 1B, sac fly, RBI)
LF- Cabrera, 1-5 ( 1B, HBP, 2 RBI)
SS- Jeter, 1-3 ( 1B, 2 BB, SB, R, RBI)
DH- Giambi, 2-5 ( 2B, 2B, RBI)
3B- Rodriguez, 1-5 ( 1B)
2B- Cano, 1-5 ( 1B, R)
RF- Williams, 4-5 ( 1B, 1B, 2B, 3R, 2RBI, solo HR [6] )
C- Stinnet, 2-2 ( 1B, 1B, BB)
P- Wright, 0-2 ( BB)

Other Yankee Batters:

C- Posada, 2-2 ( 1B, 2B, 2R)
1B- Phillips, 1-2 ( 1B)

Yankee Pitchers:

Wright- 5H, 5R, 2BB, 2K, 5IP
Proctor- H, 2K, 2IP
Farnsworth- .1IP
Rivera- K, 1.2IP

Notes:

Jaret Wright, once again, only pitched five innings. He continued to struggle during later innings and had to be relieved. Wright pitched five inings, giving up five runs on five hits and two walks. But Proctor, Farnsworth, and Rivera pitched four shutout innings over Washington. Kyle Farnsworth had to leave the game in the eighth due to back spasms and is now listed as "day-to-day."

The Yankees pounded out 16 hits, every New York batter ( besides the pitcher) had at least one hit. But the Yankees had a lot of trouble scoring runs- leaving 13 men on base. Bernie Williams, though, had a huge night with 2 singles, a double, a home run in the ninth to break a tie game, 3 runs scored, and two runs driven in.

Once again, Alex Rodriguez failed to come through in the clutch- in the seventh inning with runners on second and third ( only one out), he struck out looking; and, in the eighth inning with bases loaded ( and two outs), he struck out swinging. Rodriguez left a total of five men on base ( four in scoring position) and struck out three times.

Joe Torre did not manage the team today; he was serving a one game suspension by MLB for Randy Johnson's actions against Eduardo Perez on Wednesday. ( Johnson was suspended five games. ) Lee Mazzilli, the Yankees' pitching coach, filled in for Torre.

Cleveland Bats Come Alive, Beat Up on Mussina

2006-06-15T18:12:00.000-07:00

Game date- 6/15/06

Indians- 8, Yankees- 4

W- Lee (5-5)
L- Mussina (8-3)

Yankee starter Mike Mussina leaves the mound in the sixth inning after serving up a three-run home run to Cleveland's Todd Hollandsworth.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 0-3
LF- Cabrera, 1-3 ( BB, R, RBI, solo HR [1] )
SS- Jeter, 0-3 ( HBP)
DH- Giambi, 0-4 ( RBI groundout)
3B- Rodriguez, 1-4 ( R, RBI, solo HR [14] )
C- Posada, 0-4
2B- Cano, 1-4 ( 2B)
RF- Williams, 2-3 ( 2B, BB, R, RBI, solo HR [5] )
1B- Phillips, 1-4 ( 1B)

Other Yankee Batters:

DH- Cairo, 0-0 ( SB)
CF- Crosby, 1-2 ( 2B, R)

Yankee Pitchers:

Mussina- 9H, 6R, BB, 5K, 5.2IP
Myers- .1IP
Smith- 2BB, IP
Small- 2H, 2R, BB, 1.1IP
Villone- H, BB, K, .2IP

Notes:

Mike Mussina had, by far, his worst outing of the year. The Yankee starter was taken out of the game in the sixth inning after giving up a three-run homer to Todd Hollandsworth. Mussina allowed 9 hits and a walk. Reliever, Aaron Small, also continued his struggles, giving up two more runs and raising his season ERA to a whopping 8.46.

Melky Cabrera hit his first career home run today, a solo blast of Cleveland's starter Cliff Lee. Alex Rodriguez and Bernie Williams homered in the seventh to bring the Yanks within three runs. In the bottom of the eighth, the Yankees had the bases loaded and nobody out ( double by Crosby, walk by Cabrera, and Jeter's hit by pitch). Jason Giambi grounded into a force out ( one run scored), but Alex Rodriguez and Jorge Posada struck out swinging to end the inning and crush the rally. Said A-Rod after the strikeout: "I don't have any answers. I could have gotten a base hit that would have probably won it. So you can write the worst articles, say the worst things, and you're probably right right now. So go right ahead."

Robinson Cano extended his hitting streak to 13 games with a double in the 9th inning. Bubba Crosby returned from the DL and came into the game in the eighth inning after Johnny Damon felt a slight "twinge" in his hamstring.

Round two of interleague play begins tomorrow, as the Yankees visit the Washington Nationals.

Tempers Flare, Johnson Ejected, Yanks Win Ballgame

2006-06-15T06:36:00.000-07:00

Game date- 6/14/06

Indians- 1, Yankees- 6

W- Johnson (8-5)
L- Johnson (3-7)

Benches clear in Yankee Stadium, after Randy Johnson threw a pitch inside to Eduardo Perez. Johnson and Torre were both ejected from the game.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 2-4 ( RBI, R, 2B, solo HR [9] )
LF- Cabrera, 1-4 (1B)
SS- Jeter, 2-3 (1B, 1B, BB, SB, R)
DH- Giambi, 1-4 ( 2B, R)
3B- Rodriguez, 1-4 ( 1B, R, RBI)
C- Posada, 1-2 ( 1B, BB)
2B- Cano, 3-4 ( 1B, 1B, 1B, RBI)
RF- Williams, 1-4 ( 2B, R, RBI)
1B- Phillips, 1-4 ( R, 2RBI, 2-run HR [5] )

Other Yankee Batters:

C- Stinnet, 0-1

Yankee Pitchers:

Johnson- 4H, R, 6K, 6.1IP
Proctor- K, 1.2IP
Villone- H, IP

Notes:

Randy Johnson really pitched well tonight, allowing only four hits and walking no one. Johnson was ejected in the seventh inning after throwing at Eduardo Perez in retaliation for Jason Johnson's throwing at Derek Jeter and Jorge Posada ( who was hit in the back). It was great to see Johnson backing up his teammates, especially Jorge Posada who he has had some conflicts with. The Yankee bullpen did its job, shutting down the Tribe for the following innings.

Johnny Damon hit his 8th home run of the year, and Andy Phillips hit his fifth, a two-run shot in the sixth. Robinson Cano had three hits and an RBI, and the captain had two hits and a run scored. Every Yankee starter had at least one hit in the game.

Wang, Cano Get the Yankees Back on Track

2006-06-14T07:04:00.000-07:00

Game date- 6/13/06

Indians- 0, Yankees- 1

W- Wang (7-2)
L- Byrd (5-5)
S- Rivera (13)

Robinson Cano celebrates with teammate, Derek Jeter, after hitting a solo home run in the sixth inning of Tuesday's game.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 0-3 ( BB)
LF- Cabrera, 1-3 (1B, BB)
SS- Jeter, 2-4 (1B, 1B, SB)
3B- Rodriguez, 0-4
C- Posada, 0-3 ( BB)
2B- Cano, 1-4 ( R, RBI, solo HR [4] )
DH- Williams, 2-3 ( 1B, 2B)
1B- Phillips, 0-3
RF- Thompson, 0-3

Yankee Pitchers:

Wang- 5H, BB, 3K, 7.1IP
Myers- .1IP
Farnsworth- .1IP
Rivera- 2K, IP

Notes:

Chien-Ming Wang delivered his second consecutive solid start, pitching 7+ shutout innings. Wang allowed only 5 hits and a walk, while striking out three. Myers, Farnsworth, and Rivera all did excellent jobs in relief, Rivera picking up his 13th season save.

Derek Jeter played short for the first time in over a week, and went two for four with a pair of singles. Bernie Williams also had two hits, but Robinson Cano's solo home run provided all the necessary offense.

Meanwhile, Alex Rodriguez continues his awful slide, going 0 for 4 with three strikeouts.

Yankees Suffer First 3-Game Sweep of the Season

2006-06-11T20:01:00.000-07:00

Game date- 6/11/06

Athletics- 6, Yankees- 5

W- Zito (7-3)
L- Farnsworth (2-4)
S- Street (14)

Catcher Jorge Posada tries to tag out Oakland's Nick Swisher at home plate in the third inning. Swisher was called safe, scoring on an inside-the-park home run.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 0-2 ( 3BB, SB, 2R)
SS- Jeter, 1-5 ( 2B, R, RBI)
3B- Rodriguez, 0-3 ( BB, R)
C- Posada, 1-3 ( BB, R, 2RBI, 2-run HR [8] )
RF- Williams, 0-3 ( sac fly, RBI)
2B- Cano, 3-4 ( 1B, 1B, 1B, SB, RBI)
1B- Phillips, 0-4
LF- Cabrera, 0-3 ( BB)
SS- Cairo, 0-3 ( BB)

Yankee Pitchers:

Chacon- 6H, 5R ( two unearned), 3BB, 2K
Myers- K, .1IP
Proctor- .2IP
Smith- BB, K, .1IP
Farnsworth- 2H, BB, R, 2K, IP
Rivera- 2K, 1.2IP

Notes:

Shawn Chacon returned from the disabled list today and pitched five shaky innings. He threw only 84 pitches but surrendered 5 runs on 6 hits and three walks. Kyle Farnsworth gave up the go-ahead home run in the top of the eighth, picking up his 4th loss of the season.

Jorge Posada and Robinson Cano were the offense for the Yankees- Cano had three hits and an RBI while Posada hit a two-run homer in the 5th inning. The Yankees have lost four games in a row, but will receive a much-needed off day tomorrow.

Poor Pitching, Sloppy Defense, and Slumping Bats Seal Yankees Third Straight Loss

2006-06-10T17:32:00.000-07:00

Game date- 6/10/06

Athletics- 5, Yankees- 2

W- Saarloos (3-4)
L- Mussina (8-2)
S- Street (13)

Kevin Thompson celebrates with Johnny Damon after hitting his first career, major-league home run off of Kirk Saarloos in the fifth inning of Saturday's game.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 0-5
DH- Jeter, 0-5
1B- Giambi, 1-2 ( R, RBI, BB, HBP, solo HR [18] )
3B- Rodriguez, 1-3 (1B, SB, BB)
C- Posada, 1-3 (1B, BB)
2B- Cano, 1-4 (1B )
LF- Cabrera, 1-3 (1B, BB)
RF- Thompson, 1-3 ( BB, R, RBI, solo HR [1] )
SS- Cairo, 0-2

Other Yankee Batters:

PH- Williams, 0-1
PH- Phillips, 0-1

Yankee Pitchers:

Mussina- 5H, 4R ( one unearned), BB, 7K, 7IP
Villone- R ( unearned), 2BB, K, .2IP
Proctor- 2H, .1IP
Myers- IP

Notes:

Mike Mussina picked up his first loss in almost two months. He pitched very well- 7 inning pitched, 7 strikeouts, and three earned runs. But the Yankee offense did not pick him up.

Jason Giambi hit his 18th home run in the fourth inning, and Kevin Thompson hit his first career home run in the fifth inning.

Unit Struggles............Again

2006-06-10T17:02:00.000-07:00

Game date- 6/09/06

Athletics- 6, Yankees- 5

W- Haren (5-5)
L- Johnson (7-5)
S- Street (12)

Yankee secondbaseman, Robinson Cano, turns a double play during the third inning of Friday's game.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-5 (1B, R)
DH- Jeter, 0-3 ( BB, HBP, R)
1B- Giambi, 1-5 ( R, 3RBI, 3-run HR [17] )
3B- Rodriguez, 2-4 (1B, 1B, HBP, R, RBI)
C- Posada, 1-3 (1B, BB, R)
2B- Cano, 2-4 (1B, 3B, RBI)
RF- Williams, 1-4 (1B)
SS- Cairo, 0-4
LF- Cabrera, 1-3 (1B, R, BB)

Yankee Pitchers:

Johnson- 6H, 6R (one unearned), 5BB, 2K, 4IP
Small- H, BB, 2K, 3IP
Farnsworth- H, IP
Rivera- H, K, IP

Notes:

Randy Johnson was most awful in tonight's game- he only lasted through four innings and gave up three home runs. Two of the home runs were given up to batters who hadn't homered once yet this season! All in all, Johnson gave up 6 runs on 6 hits and 5 walks. The relief pitching for the Yankees was very good- Small went three scoreless innings, Farnsworth pitched the eighth, and Rivera shut out the A's in the ninth.

New York was down by four in the bottom of the seventh inning, but after an hour-long rain delay, the Yanks climbed back with a three-run homer by Giambi and an RBI triple by Cano.

Derek Jeter returned to the Yankee lineup as the designated hitter. He is expected to return to the shortstop position in a couple days.

Sox Avoid Sweep, Beat Up on Yankee Bullpen

2006-06-09T06:48:00.000-07:00

Game date- 6/08/06

Red Sox- 9, Yankees- 3

W- Schilling (9-2)
L- Wright (3-4)

Alex Rodriguez shows his frustration after striking out to end the game. Rodriguez went 0 for 4 on the night.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 2-4 (1B, R, RBI, solo HR [8] )
LF- Cabrera, 0-3 (BB)
1B- Giambi, 0-4
3B- Rodriguez, 0-4
DH- Posada, 0-3
2B- Cano, 1-3 ( R, RBI, solo HR [3] )
RF- Williams, 1-3 ( R, RBI, solo HR [4] )
SS- Cairo, 0-3
C- Stinnet, 0-3

Yankee Pitchers:

Wright- 8H, 4R, 2BB, K, 5IP
Proctor- 3H, 3R, BB, 1.1IP
Erickson- 2H, 2R ( one unearned ), .2IP
Smith- 2H, IP
Small- K, IP

Notes:

Jaret Wright pitched very decently through his first five innings of work. In fact, he went into the sixth with a 3 to 1 lead. But there, things just fell apart. Wright walked Ramirez and gave up hits to Nixon and Varitek. Then he hit a batter to load the bases with nobody out. Proctor came in and made things worse. Proctor allowed two runs to score on a sac fly and an error by Rodriguez. In the next inning, Proctor served up a three-run homer to Jason Varitek, and Scott Erickson gave up a two-run single to Alex Gonzalez.

The Yankees scored their three runs all on solo home runs. Johnny Damon ( leading off the game), Robinson Cano, and Bernie Williams all went yard. But the Yankees only picked up 4 hits and a walk, so they didn't have the opportunity to drive in many runs of Schilling.

Rain Washes Away Game 3 of Yanks/Sox Series

2006-06-08T07:00:00.000-07:00

Game date- 6/08/06

-Rained out-

The rain came down hard in New York City, all day today, so the game was postponed. I think it will be rescheduled for sometime in September. Tonight, Schilling and Wright will take the mound and (hopefully) we'll get a game in. The Weather Channel gives a "50% chance of rain" with "showers off and on"....

Chien-Ming Wang Wins Unexpected Pitcher's Duel

2006-06-06T19:04:00.000-07:00

Game date- 6/06/06

Red Sox- 1, Yankees- 2

W- Wang (6-2)
L- Pauley (0-1)
S- Rivera (12)

Yankee starter, Chien-Ming Wang, delivers a pitch during Tuesday's game against the Red Sox.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 2-4 (1B, 1B)
LF- Cabrera, 0-3 ( BB)
DH- Giambi, 0-3 ( BB, RBI)
3B- Rodriguez, 0-4
C- Posada, 2-3 (1B, 2B, BB)
2B- Cano, 2-4 (1B, 1B, SB)
1B- Phillips, 0-4
RF- Williams, 1-4 ( R, RBI, solo HR [3] )
SS- Cairo, 2-3 (1B, 1B, R)

Yankee Pitchers:

Wang- 8H, R, 2BB, 2K, 7IP
Farnsworth- K, IP
Rivera- IP

Notes:

In a game expected to be a slug-fest, the pitchers came out on top. Pauley was impressive for the Sox, but ended up getting the loss. Chien-Ming Wang pitched seven strong innings ( which is awesome compared to his last start), giving up only one run ( a solo home run to David Ortiz). Farnsworth and Rivera shut down the BoSox through the next two innings. ( This thanks to a great play by Melky Cabrera who robbed Manny Ramirez of a game-tying home run. Cabrera reached over the left field wall and hauled in the ball. )

The Yanks had only 9 hits ( first time in 12 days that they had fewer then 10 hits) and 3 walks. Bernie Williams had a game-tying solo home run in the 5th inning, and Jason Giambi walked with the bases loaded, forcing the go-ahead run to score in the seventh inning. Derek Jeter missed a second straight game after being hit with a pitch on Sunday.

Yankee outfielder, Terrence Long was designated for assignment today, and the Yankees called up infielder Nick Green from AAA Columbus.

Beckett Recieves Knock-Out Blow from Bombers

2006-06-06T06:42:00.000-07:00

Game date- 6/05/06

Red Sox- 5, Yankees- 13

W- Mussina (8-1)
L- Beckett (7-3)

Jason Giambi crushes a three-run home run off of Boston starter Josh Beckett.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-2 (1B, 3BB, R, RBI)
LF- Cabrera, 1-5 ( 2B, 3R, 2 RBI)
DH- Giambi, 1-2 ( 3BB, 2R, 3 RBI, 3-run HR [16] )
3B- Rodriguez, 1-3 ( 1B, SB, 2BB, R)
C- Posada, 1-3 (1B, BB, HBP, RBI, R)
2B- Cano, 2-5 (1B, 2B, R, 2RBI)
1B- Phillips, 2-5 (1B, R, 3RBI, 3-run HR [4] )
RF- Williams, 1-4 (1B, BB, 2RBI)
SS- Cairo, 1-5 (1B, R)

Yankee Pitchers:

Mussina- 8H, 5R ( one unearned), 2BB, 8K, 6IP
Proctor- IP
Villone- H, BB, K, IP
Rivera- H, IP

Notes:

In the top of the first inning, Coco Crisp led off the game with a double for Boston- then Mike Mussina struck out Loretta, Ortiz, and Ramirez in order to retire the side. Mussina pitched very well, although he did give up a season-high 4 earned runs over six inning of work. But Mussina leads the league in wins (with 8) and holds the second best ERA (2.67).

In the bottom of the first, Melky Cabrera reached first base on a force-out ( Damon out at second), but when Varitez let a ball get passed him, Cabrera stole second. Varitek, trying to throw Melky out, threw the ball into left-centerfield. Cabrera then went to third, noticed that no one was covering home plate, and came all the way home to score. It was excellent base-running by the young Yankee. In the second inning, the Bombers really got to Beckett- scoring seven runs on seven hits. Andy Phillips hit a fastball into the right-field stands for a three-run home run (his third in the last four games). Damon hit an RBI single, and then Giambi hit a pitch into the upper deck in left field for a three-run home run. The Yanks would add five more runs off Boston relief pitching.

Baltimore's Power Show Stuns Yankees

2006-06-04T15:06:00.000-07:00

Game date- 6/04/06

Yankees -4, Orioles- 11

W- Lopez (4-7)
L- Small (0-3)

Yankee captain, Derek Jeter, grimaces with pain after being hit by a pitch on the right hand. Jeter would leave the game in the 6th inning.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 2-3 (1B, 2B)
LF- Cabrera, 1-4 (1B, BB, R)
SS- Jeter, 0-2 (HBP)
DH- Rodriguez, 0-3 (BB)
C- Posada, 1-4 (1B)
2B- Cano, 1-3 (1B, HBP, R)
1B- Phillips, 2-4 (1B, 1B, R)
RF- Long, 0-3
3B- Cairo, 1-4 (1B, R, RBI, BB)

Other Yankee Batters:

C- Stinnet, 1-2 (1B)
RF- Thompson, 1-1 ( BB, 1B, 3RBI)
CF- Williams, 0-1

Yankee Pitchers:

Small- 9H, 7R, BB, 2.2IP
Smith- BB, K, 1.1IP
Erickson- 5H, 4R, K, 3IP
Villone- BB, IP

Notes:

Aaron Small was terrible, giving up seven runs ( three homers) in just 2 and 2 thirds innings pitched! Erickson gave up 4 more runs.

Damon and Phillips continue their hot-hitting streak, each with two hits. Kevin Thompson ( who took over for Long in right field) hit a bases-clearing double in the seventh inning; the RBIs were the first of his career. Derek Jeter was hit with a pitch on his right wrist and left the game. X-rays were negative, but Jeter is labelled as "day-to-day". A-Rod has finally overcome his stomach virus, and Giambi is expected back Monday or Tuesday.

Damon's 10th Inning Homer Powers Yanks Over Orioles

2006-06-04T12:59:00.000-07:00

Game date- 6/03/06

( 10 innings ) Yankees- 6, Orioles- 5

W- Proctor (2-1)
L- Ray (1-2)
S- Wang (1)

Johnny Damon crosses home plate after hitting the game-winning solo home run in the tenth inning off of Baltimore closer, Chris Ray.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 3-5 (1B, 1B, SB, BB, 2R, RBI, solo HR [7] )
LF- Cabrera, 1-6 (1B, 2R)
SS- Jeter, 2-5 (1B, 1B, SB, BB, RBI, R)
C- Posada, 0-4 (BB, HBP)
DH- Williams, 1-4 ( 1B, sac fly, 3RBI )
1B- Phillips, 1-5 ( R, RBI, solo HR [3] )
2B- Cano, 2-5 (1B, 1B)
3B- Cairo, 2-4 (1B, SB, 1B, BB)
RF- Thompson, 1-4 (1B, BB)

Yankee Pitchers:

Johnson- 3H, 4R, 3BB, 8K, 7.1IP
Proctor- 3H, R, 3K, 1.2IP
Myers- .1IP
Wang- 2H, IP

Notes:

Randy Johnson got off to a rough start, giving up 3 runs (including a homer) to the O's in the first inning. But he settled down and pitched well throughout the next 6+ innings. Proctor gave up the game-tying run in the eighth inning, blowing a save opportunity, but Chien Ming Wang picked up the save after the Yanks went ahead in the tenth inning.

Johnny Damon had a huge night, with three hits including the game-winning solo homer in the tenth off of Chris Ray. Andy Phillips hit another home run, his third of the year.

Yanks Win Seesaw Game Against O's

2006-06-04T12:31:00.000-07:00

Game date- 6/02/06

Yankees- 6, Orioles -5

W- Farnsworth (2-3)
L- Ray (1-1)

Designated hitter, Jason Giambi, is congratulated by Derek Jeter after hitting a two-run homer in the sixth inning of Friday's game.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, ( 1B, 1B, 2R)
LF- Cabrera, 1-3 (1B, 2BB, R)
SS- Jeter, 3-4 (1B, 1B, 1B, BB, 2RBI, R)
DH- Giambi, 2-5 ( 1B, R, 2RBI, 2-run HR [15] )
RF- Williams, 1-4 (1B)
2B- Cano, 1-4 (1B)
1B- Phillips, 2-4 (1B, R, SB, RBI, solo HR [2] )
3B- Cairo, 0-3
C- Stinnet, 0-3

Other Yankee Batters:

C- Posada, 0-1

Yankee Pitchers:

Wright- 9H, 3R (one unearned), 2K, 6IP
Villone- 3H, R, K, 1.1IP
Erickson- H, R, BB, 0IP
Farnsworth- BB, 1.2IP

Notes:

Wright pitched 6 innings, giving up only 3 runs on 9 hits (no walks). He did not get a decision in this game.

Andy Phillips hit his second home run of the year off Baltimore's Kris Benson; Jason Giambi hit his 15th homer in the 6th inning. Derek Jeter had three hits in the game, including the game-winning, two-out, RBI single in the top of the ninth inning. Alex Rodriguez did not play today because of a stomach illness, he is expected to miss two or three more games.

Farnsworth Surrenders Lead in the Ninth

2006-06-01T21:00:00.000-07:00

Game date- 6/01/06

Yankees- 6, Tigers- 7

W- Rodney (4-1)
L- Farnsworth (1-3)

Kyle Farnsworth recorded just one out in the ninth inning, but surrendered the tying and winning runs to the Detroit Tigers.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-5 (2B, R)
LF- Cabrera, 1-4 (1B, BB, R)
DH- Giambi, 2-5 ( 1B, RBI, R, solo HR [14] )
3B- Rodriguez, 0-3 (2BB, R)
C- Posada, 1-3 (2B, 2BB, R, 3RBI)
2B- Cano, 4-5 (1B, 1B, 1B, 2B, R)
1B- Phillips, 3-4 (1B, 1B, 2B, sac, fly, RBI)
RF- Long, 0-5
SS- Cairo, 0-4

Yankee Pitchers:

Wang- 8H, 5R, 3BB, 2K, 4IP
Rasner- H, K, 1.2IP
Myers- H, 0IP
Proctor- BB, 4K, 2.1IP
Farnsworth- 3H, 2R, BB, .1IP

Notes:

Chien Ming Wang pitched a very rough four innings, giving up 5 runs on 8 hits and 3 walks. Rasner and Proctor were brilliant in relief, striking out a total of five batters. But Kyle Farnsworth could not hold the Tigers down in the ninth. Rivera could not pitch because of a back spasm, so Farnsworth was the temporary closer.

Jason Giambi hit his 14th homer of the season, a solo homer that gave the Yanks a three run lead in the 5th. Cano had four hits- three singles and a double- and Phillips had three hits, driving in two.

Mussina's Complete Game Shuts Down Tigers

2006-06-01T06:39:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/31/06

Yankees- 6, Tigers- 1

W- Mussina (7-1)
L- Robertson (5-3)

New York's Mike Mussina delivers a pitch against the Detroit Tigers in the third inning of Wednesday's game.

Yankee Starting Pitching:

LF- Cabrera, 1-5 (1B, SB, R)
SS- Cairo, 1-5 (1B, R, RBI)
DH- Giambi, 3-4 (1B, 2B, 2B, HBP, 2R, RBI)
3B- Rodriguez, 3-4 ( 1B, 1B, BB, 3B, R, 2RBI)
C- Posada, 1-5 (1B, RBI)
2B- Cano, 0-4 ( RBI)
CF- Williams, 0-4
1B- Phillips, 2-3 (1B, 1B, R, BB)
RF- Long, 0-3 ( BB)

Yankee Pitchers:

Mussina- 6H, R (unearned), BB, 5K, 9IP

Notes:

Mike Mussina was incredible tonight; he kept the Tigers scoreless through the first 8 innings, but gave up an unearned run on an error by Alex Rodriguez. Mussina struck out 5 batters, walked only 1, and lowered his ERA to 2.42, second best in the league.

Jason Giambi and Alex Rodriguez really stepped up at the plate. Giambi doubled twice, scored two runs, and drove in another; Rodriguez tripled, singled twice, and drove in two runs.

Tomorrow, the Yanks go for the four-game sweep of the Detroit Tigers, something they haven't accomplished in over 80 years.

Rookies Lead the Charge Against the Tigers

2006-05-31T06:39:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/30/06

( 11 innings ) Yankees- 11, Tigers- 6

W- Rivera (3-3)
L- Jones (0-2)

Yankee firstbaseman, Andy Phillips, smacks an RBI single to left field off of Detroit's starter, Roman Colon.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

LF- Cabrera, 4-6 ( 1B, 1B, 2B, 3B, BB, 2RBI)
SS- Jeter, 0-5 ( BB, HBP, RBI)
DH- Giambi, 1-6 ( R, RBI, solo HR [13] )
3B- Rodriguez, 2-5 ( 1B, 2B, BB, 2R)
C- Posada, 1-4 ( BB, 1B, R)
2B- Cano, 1-6 (1B, R)
CF- Williams, 3-5 (1B, 1B, 1B, 2R, BB, 2RBI )
RF- Long, 2-5 ( 1B, 2B, BB, 2R)
1B- Phillips, 2-5 ( 1B, 1B, R, sac fly, 4RBI )

Other Yankee Batters:

C- Stinnet, 1-1 (1B )

Yankee Pitchers:

Small- 7H, 4R ( one unearned), 2BB, 4K, 5IP
Erickson- 2H, R, IP
Proctor- IP
Farnsworth- H, R, 2BB, 2K, IP
Rivera- H, 3K, 3IP

Notes:

Aaron Small pitched decently over his five inings of work, but was haunted by poor Yankee defense (Derek Jeter made a crucial error which led to three runs). Erickson and Farnsworth could not hold the lead, but Rivera absolutely shut down the Tigers over a season-high, 3 innings of work.

Melky Cabrera hit from the leadoff spot for only the second time in his career and he hit his first major league triple, his second double, and two singles, driving in two runs. Jason Giambi was 0 for 5 with 3 strikeouts going into the 11th inning, but he sent a 1-2 pitch into the left-field stands to give the Yanks the lead. Bernie Williams had three hits including an RBI single in the 11th inning off of Detroit's closer, and Andy Phillips drove in a career-high 4 runs.

Yankees Win Possible Playoff Preview

2006-05-30T06:04:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/29/06

Yankees- 4, Tigers- 0

W- Johnson (7-4)
L- Bonderman (5-4)

Yankee rightfielder, Gary Sheffield, makes a leaping catch during Monday's game against the Detroit Tigers.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-5 ( 1B, R)
SS- Jeter, 0-3 ( RBI- ground out)
RF- Sheffield, 1-4 (1B, R, BB)
1B- Giambi, 0-3 ( BB, R)
3B- Rodriguez, 1-4 (1B, RBI)
C- Posada, 2-4 (1B, 1B, RBI)
2B- Cano, 3-4 (1B, 1B, 2B)
DH- Long, 0-3 ( BB, R)
LF- Cabrera, 1-4 (1B, R)

Other Yankee Batters:

1B- Phillips, 0-1
SS- Cairo, 1-2 (2B)

Yankee Pitchers:

Johnson- 2H, 3BB, 4K, 6IP
Villone- K, 2IP
Farnsworth- K, IP

Notes:

Randy Johnson finally stepped up and pitched like a dominant ace. He gave up only two hits and 3 walks over six brilliant innings of work. The New York bullpen was just a dominant, shutting the Tigers down through the final three innings.

Jorge Posada was back in the lineup, after spending a few days recovering from a leg injury. He went 2 for 4, driving in a run. Robinson Cano had a season-high, three hits today, while Gary Sheffield made his first start in right field since the first week of May.

Yanks Take Early Lead, Rivera Shuts the Door

2006-05-28T14:07:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/28/06

Royals- 5, Yankees- 6

W- Wright (3-3)
L- Hernandez (1-4)
S- Rivera (11)

Johnny Damon rounds the bases after hitting a solo home run to lead off the bottom of the first inning.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 2-4 ( 1B, R, RBI, solo HR [6] )
SS- Jeter, 2-4 ( 1B, 1B, 2R)
DH- Sheffield, 2-4 (1B, 1B, R)
1B- Giambi, 1-3 (2B, RBI, R)
3B- Rodriguez, 1-3 ( 1B, BB, 2 RBI)
2B- Cano, 0-3 (sac fly, RBI)
LF- Cabrera, 0-3 (BB, R)
RF- Long, 1-3 (1B, RBI)
C- Stinnet, 1-3 (1B)

Other Yankee Batters:

1B- Phillips, 0-1

Yankee Pitchers:

Wright- 9H, 3R, BB, 2K, 5.1IP
Proctor- 2H, 2R, 2K, 1.1IP
Myers- BB, 0IP
Farnsworth- H, K, 1.1IP
Rivera- IP

Notes:

Yankees broke out of the door with 5 runs in the first inning, thanks to a solo home run by Damon to lead off, an RBI double by Giambi, a two-run single by Rodriguez, and an RBI single by Terrence Long. The Yanks added their sixth run in the second ining.

Wright pitched well, and evened his record at 3-3. The Yankee bullpen wasn't great (Proctor gave up two runs and Myers walked the only batter he faced) , but Rivera shut the door in the ninth.

Yanks Crush Royals in Hit Parade

2006-05-27T16:41:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/27/06

Royals- 4, Yankees- 15

W- Wang (5-2)
L- Affeldt (2-5)

Miguel Cairo smacks an RBI single to right field in the second inning of Saturday's game against the Kansas City Royals.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 0-5
SS- Jeter, 1-5 (1B, RBI, R)
DH- Sheffield, 1-5 (1B, R)
1B- Giambi, 1-3 (1B, BB, R)
3B- Rodriguez, 2-3 ( 2BB, 4R, 3RBI, 2-run HR [12], solo HR [13] )
RF- Williams, 1-3 (1B, BB, 2R)
2B- Cairo, 4-5 ( 1B, 1B, 1B, 2B, 2R, 3RBI)
LF- Cabrera, 2-4 (1B, 2B, R, 3RBI)
C- Stinnet, 3-4 ( 1B, 2B, 2R, 4RBI, 3-run HR [1] )

Other Yankee Batters:

RF- Long, 0-1
1B- Phillips, 1-1 (2B, R)

Yankee Pitchers:

Wang- 7H, 4R, 3K, 7IP
Villone- BB, 2K, IP
Erickson- H, IP

Notes:

The Yankee #5-9 batters each had a huge game- Rodriguez homered twice, walked twice, scored 4 runs, and drove in 3 runs; Williams singled and scored two runs; Cairo singled three times, doubled, scored two runs, and drove in three runs; Cabrera singled, doubled, scored a run, and drove in 3 runs; and Stinnet singled, doubled, and hit a three-run homer. The Yanks combined for 15 runs and 16 hits.

Jeter's 2,000th Career Hit Not Enough to Defeat Kansas City

2006-05-27T16:18:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/26/06

Royals- 8, Yankees- 7

W- Elarton (1-5)
L- Farnsworth (1-2)
S- Sisco (1)

Derek Jeter tips his cap to the stadium crowd after recording his 2,000th career hit.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 2-5 ( 1B, 1B, R)
SS- Jeter, 2-3 ( 1B, 1B, SB, 2BB, 2R)
DH- Sheffield, 1-5 (1B, RBI)
1B- Giambi, 2-5 (1B, 2B, 2R, 2RBI)
3B- Rodriguez, 3-4 ( 1B, 1B, 2B, RBI)
2B- Cano, 1-4 (2B)
RF- Williams, 0-4 ( RBI)
LF- Cabrera, 0-4
C- Stinnet, 0-3

Other Yankee Batters:

PH- Long, 1-1 ( 1B, R)

Yankee Pitchers:

Mussina- 4H, 3R, 2BB, 6K, 6IP
Proctor- 2H, R, .1IP
Myers- H, .2IP
Farnsworth- 3H, 3R, BB, K, IP
Villone- BB, K, IP

Notes:

The Yankees recieved another solid outing by their ace, Mike Mussina, who went 6 innings and gave up only three runs ( in the third inning). Mussina left the game with the lead, but the New York bullpen could not hold on. Proctor gave up a game-tying run, and Kyle Farnsworth served up a three-run home run to Angel Berroa in the eighth inning.

Derek Jeter's infield single in the fourth inning was the 2,000th hit of his career. He became the youngest Yankee ever to record 2,000 hits ( beating Lou Gehrig by a couple of days). Alex Rodriguez went 3 for 4 with two singles, a double, and a run batted in.

Melky Chips In Big, Yanks Take 2 of 3 From Sox

2006-05-25T07:35:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/24/06

Yankees- 8, Red Sox- 6

W- Johnson (6-4)
L- Clement (4-4)
S- Rivera (10)

Yankee pitcher Kyle Farnsworth celebrates after striking out David Ortiz with the bases loaded and two outs in the eighth inning.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

RF- Cabrera, 2-4 (1B, 1B, BB, 4 RBI)
SS- Jeter, 1-5 (2B, RBI)
DH- Sheffield, 1-4 (1B, BB)
1B- Giambi, 2-5 ( 1B, 1B)
3B- Rodriguez, 1-5 (1B, R)
2B- Cano, 1-4 (1B, BB, 2R)
CF- Williams, 3-5 (1B, 1B, 1B, 2R, RBI)
LF- Long, 2-4 ( BB, 1B, 1B, 2R, RBI)
C- Stinnet, 0-3 ( HBP, RBI, R)

Yankee Pitchers:

Johnson- 9H, 5R, 2BB, 8K, 5IP
Erickson- H, IP
Myers- K, .1IP
Proctor- H, R, .2IP
Farnsworth- H, BB, 2K, IP
Rivera- IP

Notes:

Once again, Randy Johnson did not pitch well, giving up 5 runs on 9 hits ( two home runs). He did strike out a season high 8 batters and pick up his sixth win of the year. The rest of the Yankee bullpen was pretty effective ( besides Proctor who gave up a solo home run to Ramirez). Farnsworth struck out David Ortiz with the bases loaded and two outs in the eighth inning. Rivera came in and pitched a one-two-three inning to pick up his 10th save of the year.

Melky Cabrera batted in a career-high 4 runs, and Terrence Long picked up his first two Yankee hits including a two-run single. Every Yankee batters (besides Stinnet) had at least one hit.

Yankees Doing Something Wright

2006-05-24T14:28:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/23/06

Yankees- 7, Red Sox- 5

W- Wright (2-3)
L- Wakefield (3-6)
S- Rivera (9)

Alex Rodriguez watches his three-run home run sail over the green monster in Fenway Park.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 2-5 ( 2B, 2R, RBI, solo HR [5] )
SS- Jeter, 2-4 (1B, 1B, SB, BB, R, 2 RBI)
DH- Sheffield, 0-3 ( 2BB, SB, R)
3B- Rodriguez, 1-4 ( 2R, 3RBI, 3-run HR [11] )
C- Posada, 1-3 (2B, BB)
2B- Cano, 0-4
LF- Williams, 0-4
RF- Long, 0-4
1B- Phillips, 1-3 ( 1B, BB, R)

Yankee Pitchers:

Wright- 5H, 2BB, 3K, 5IP
Proctor- 4H, 4R, 2BB, 1.1IP
Myers- BB, 0IP
Farnsworth- R, 3BB, 2K, IP
Rivera- 2H, K, 1.2IP

Notes:

Johnny Damon led off the game with a solo home run to right field; he also doubled and scored again later in the 3rd. Jeter had two hits and drove in two runs. Rodriguez hit a three-run home run off of Tim Wakefield in the 7th inning.

Jaret Wright pitched very well through 5 innings, but the New York bullpen did not fare so well. Proctor and Farnsworth gave up a total of five runs through two innings of work... Rivera had to come in to get the final five outs and pick up his 9th save.

Schilling Shuts Down Yankees

2006-05-24T14:06:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/22/06

Yankees- 5, Red Sox- 9

W- Schilling ( 7-2)
L- Wang (4-2)

Alex Rodriguez crushes a two-run home run off of Keith Foulke in the top of the ninth inning in Fenway Park.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

DH- Damon, 1-4 ( 1B, RBI)
SS- Jeter, 1-4 (1B)
1B- Giambi, 0-3
3B- Rodriguez, 2-4 ( 1B, R, 2 RBI, 2-run HR [10] )
C- Posada, 1-4 ( R, RBI, solo HR [7] )
2B- Cano, 1-4 (2B, R)
CF- Williams, 2-4 (1B, 2B, RBI)
LF- Long, 0-4
RF- Cabrera, 1-4 (2B, R)

Other Yankee Batters:

DH- Reese, 1-1 (1B, R)
1B- Phillips, 0-1

Yankee Pitchers:

Wang- 9H, 7R, BB, K, 6IP
Villone- H, IP
Bean- 2H, 2R, BB, IP

Notes:

Chien Ming Wang did not pitch well today, giving up 7 runs on 9 hits ( including one home run). In contrast, Boston starter, Curt Schilling, was excellent- the Yanks scored only one run off of him.

Down by 8 in the ninth, Rodriguez and Posada homered off of Keith Foulke to make the game a bit closer. Terrence Long was called up from AAA to replaced the injured Bubba Crosby; Sheffield is expected to be taken off the DL tomorrow.

Mets Bomb Small, Yanks Lose Chacon to Injury

2006-05-24T13:49:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/21/06

Yankees- 3, Mets- 4

W- Glavine (7-2)
L- Small (0-2)

Yankee Aaron Small delivers a pitch against the New York Mets, Sunday night.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 3-4 ( 1B, 1B, 1B, HBP, SB)
SS- Jeter, 3-5 (1B, 1B, 1B, 2 RBI)
1B- Giambi, 1-3 (1B, BB, sac fly, RBI)
3B- Rodriguez, 0-4 (BB)
2B- Cano, 1-5 (1B)
LF- Williams, 3-3 ( 1B, 2B, 2B, 2 BB, R)
RF- Cabrera, 1-4 (1B, BB)
C- Stinnet, 0-4 ( BB, R)
P- Small, 0-1 ( sac bunt)

Other Yankee Batters:

3B- Cairo, 0-1 (BB, R)
PH- Reese, 0-0 ( HBP)

Yankee Pitchers:

Small- 7H, 4R, BB, 2K, 4.1IP
Myers- K, .2IP
Bean- BB, K, IP
Villone- K, IP
Erickson- K, IP

Notes:

Derek Jeter, Bernie Williams, and Johnny Damon all had three hits each- Jeter singled three times and drove in two runs; Damon singled three times and stole a base; and Williams singled, doubled twice, and scored a run.

Small struggled through his fourth and a third innings pitched, giving up four runs on two home runs. The Yankees bullpen, though, pitched brilliantly, holding the Mets hitless throughout the rest of the game.

The Yankee placed pitcher Shawn Chacon ( leg injury) on the DL; his spot on the roster was filled by pitcher Colter Bean.

Pedro is Dominant, But Yanks Eek Out Win Against Mets' Bullpen

2006-05-20T20:43:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/20/06

( 11 innings ) Yankees- 5, Mets- 4

W- Rivera (2-3)
L- Julio (1-2)

Yankee closer Mariano Rivera pitched two scoreless innings, striking out 4 of the 7 batters he faced.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 0-5 (BB, SB, RBI)
SS- Jeter, 1-5 (1B)
1B- Giambi, 1-4 (1B, R, BB)
3B- Rodriguez, 2-4 (1B, 1B, BB, R)
2B- Cano, 1-5 (1B, R, RBI)
LF- Cairo, 0-4 (BB, 2 SB, R)
RF- Cabrera, 1-4 (1B, BB, SB, R)
C- Stinnet, 0-4 (BB, RBI)
P- Mussina, 0-2

Other Yankee Batters:

PH- Williams, 0-0 (HBP, RBI)
PH- Reese, 1-1
1B- Phillips, 1-1 ( GW 1B, RBI)

Yankee Pitchers:

Mussina- 5H, 4R (2 unearned runs), 7K, 7IP
Villone- 2BB, K, IP
Proctor- 2K, IP
Rivera- H, 4K, 2IP

Notes:

The Yankees played very sloppily in the field today- two errors in the first inning led to two unearned runs for the Mets. All in all, the Yanks committed four errors ( by Rodriguez, Stinnet, Giambi, and Villone).

Mike Mussina pitched very well, giving up only 5 hits and 2 earned runs. He struck out 7 and allowed no walks over 7 innings of work. Villone, Proctor, and Rivera pitched the last four innings keeping the Mets scoreless. Kevin Reese smacked a pinch-hit single in the eighth inning, his first major league hit.

In the top of the ninth inning, the Mets were up to 4 to 0. Giambi led off the inning with a single, and Alex Rodriguez followed with a walk. Cano hit an RBI single to drive in the Yanks' first run. Two batters later, Cabrera walked to load the bases. Stinnet walked on four pitches, driving in a run; Williams was hit by a slider, driving in the Yanks' third run of the inning. Billy Wagner was pulled out of the game at that point, but the Yanks scored the tying run on a Johnny Damon RBI ground out. In the top of the eleventh inning, Andy Phillips hit the game-winning RBI single to right field off of Mets' reliever, Jorge Julio.

Johnson Struggles, Yankees Off to a Rough Start in Interleague Play

2006-05-20T20:13:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/19/06

Yankees- 6, Mets- 7

W- Wagner ( 3-0)
L- Rivera (1-3)

Bernie Williams strokes an RBI double to left field in the first inning of Friday's game.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-5 (2B, R)
SS- Jeter, 2-5 (1B, 2B, SB, 2R, RBI)
DH- Giambi, 0-3 (BB, HBP, R)
3B- Rodriguez, ( 1B, RBI, R, BB)
2B- Cano, 1-3 (2B, R, sac fly, 2RBI)
C- Posada, 0-1
LF- Williams, 2-4 (1B, 2B, RBI)
RF- Cabrera, 1-3 ( 1B, BB)
P- Johnson, 1-3 (1B)

Other Yankee Batters:

RF- Reese, 0-1
C- Stinnet, 2-4 (1B, 1B, RBI)

Yankee Pitchers:

Johnson- 8H, 6R, BB, 5K, 5IP
Proctor- BB, K, 2IP
Farnsworth- IP
Rivera- K, 2H, R, BB, 2/3 IP

Notes:

The Yankees got off to a great start in the first inning against the Mets starter, Gonzalez. Damon led the game off with a double, Jeter singled him in. Then Giambi walked and A-Rod singled ( though he was thrown out at second base). Cano and Williams then hit back to back doubles driving in two more runs. The Yanks had a 4 to 0 lead. Later in the game, the Yanks scored runs off of Stinnet's RBI single and Cano's RBI sac fly. Jorge Posada left the game in the third inning with back pains.

Randy Johnson was just horrible, surrendering 6 runs on 8 hits ( two home runs) and a walk. The Yanks kept the score tied throughout the six, seventh ( Proctor pitching), and eighth inning (Farnsworth pitching). But Mariano Rivera surrendered the game-winning hit to David Wright, a ground-rule double over the center-field wall which scored Paul Lo Duca.

Yankees Lose a Frustrating Game to the Rangers

2006-05-18T14:18:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/18/06

Rangers- 6, Yankees- 2

W- Padilla (4-3)
L- Wright (1-3)

Jaret Wright pitched well, but received no run support from his team.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

DH- Damon, 1-5 ( 1B, 2RBI)
SS- Jeter, 0-3 (BB)
1B- Giambi, 0-2 (HBP)
3B- Rodriguez, 0-4
2B- Cano, 2-4 ( 1B, 1B, R)
CF- Williams, 0-4
RF- Cabrera, 1-3 (1B, R, BB)
LF- Crosby, 1-1 ( 1B, sac bunt)
C- Stinnet, 0-2

Other Yankee Batters:

LF- Reese, 0-2
C- Posada, 0-1 (BB)

Yankee Pitchers:

Wright- 6H, 3R, 2K, 6IP
Erickson- H, 3R (one unearned), 4BB, 2IP
Villone- 3BB, IP

Notes:

Jaret Wright was brilliant through his first six innings of work, but in the seventh he gave up a big two-run homer to Brad Wilkerson and left the game with a runner on base. All in all, Wright gave a solid performance striking out two and giving up no walks. But in spite of his great effort, the Yankee bats failed to support him.

Derek Jeter, Jason Giambi, and Alex Rodriguez went a combined 0 for 9 with 6 strikeouts! The Yankees left 17 men on base.

New York's bullpen also faltered as Erickson and Villone walked a total of 7 batters in just two innings of work!!! A sloppy play by Robinson Cano led to two more Ranger runs (one unearned).

Bubba Crosby left the game after injuring his left leg in the fifth inning while running the bases.

Yankees Retake the Lead in American League East Division Race

2006-05-18T14:01:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/17/06

Rangers- 3, Yankees- 4

W- Wang (4-1)
L- Loe (2-4)
S- Rivera (8)

Jorge Posada hits an RBI single to right field against Texas starter Kameron Loe.

Yankee Startng Lineup:

CF- Damon, 0-5
SS- Jeter, 2-4 ( 1B, 1B, R)
DH- Giambi, 1-3 (2B, R)
3B- Rodriguez, 2-4 ( 1B, 1B, R)
C- Posada, 2-2 ( 1B, 1B, BB, HBP, 2RBI, R)
2B- Cano, 1-4 (1B, RBI)
RF- Williams, 1-4 ( 1B, RBI)
1B- Phillips, 1-4 (1B)
LF- Crosby, 0-3 ( sac bunt)

Yankee Pitchers:

Wang- 6H, 3R ( one unearned), BB, 3K, 8IP
Rivera- K, IP

Notes:

Chien Ming Wang made another excellent start, going 8 strong innings and picking up his 4th win. The bullpen had a much needed night off.

Jorge Posada continued his hot hitting, going 2 for 2 with a walk, 2 RBIs, and a run scored.

Yankees Win a Thriller in the Bronx!

2006-05-16T20:28:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/16/06

Rangers- 13, Yankees- 14

W- Rivera (1-2)
L- Otsuka (0-1)

New York's Jorge Posada is congratulated by teammates after hitting a walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 2-5 ( 1B, 1B, BB, 4R)
SS- Jeter, 4-5 ( 1B, 1B, 2B, SB, BB, 3R, 4RBI, 3-run HR [5] )
3B- Rodriguez, 1-5 ( BB, 2B, R)
C- Posada, 2-3 (1B, BB, 2R, 5RBI, 2 sac, walkoff 2-run HR [6])
2B- Cano, 0-3 ( BB, HBP, RBI)
RF- Williams, 1-4 ( 2B, BB, 2R, RBI)
DH- Phillips, 2-5 (2B, 2B)
1B- Cairo, 2-5 ( 1B, 1B, 3RBI)
LF- Cabrera, 2-4 ( 1B, 1B, R)

Yankee Pitching:

Chacon- 6H, 8R ( one unearned), 2BB, 1.1IP
Small- 6H, 2R, BB, 2K, 4.1IP
Villone- H, 1.1IP
Proctor- 2H, 2R, BB, K, IP
Farnsworth- 2K, IP
Rivera- 2H, R, BB, IP

Notes:

Shawn Chacon was miserable, giving up 8 runs in just and inning and a thirds pitched! Aaron Small came in in relief and gave up a 3-run home run to Texas' Hank Blalock. The Yankees, by the end of the second inning, were down 9 to 0.

But the Yankees chipped away with an RBI single by Cairo, RBI double by Jeter, RBI groundout by Cano, RBI sac fly by Posada, and another unearned run. The score was then 10 to 5, Rangers leading.

When Small left the game, Ron Villone came in and served up a double to Blalock. But Cabrera cut the ball off in right field, threw to Jeter who in turn relayed to home plate, and Posada tagged out Teixeira.

In the sixth inning, Derek Jeter hit a three-run home run, Bernie Williams hit an RBI double, and Miguel Cairo smacked a two-run single to left field as the Yanks took an 11 to 10 lead. New York had staged the biggest comeback (they had done it four other times) in the history of the franchise.

Joe Torre again went to the bullpen and brought in Scott Proctor who gave up a two-run homer to Brad Wilkerson. The Rangers led 12 to 11. But in the bottom of the seventh, Jorge Posada brought in Johnny Damon on his second sac fly of the night, and the game was once again tied.

12 to 12.

Mariano Rivera entered the game in the ninth inning, but blew the tie by giving up a RBI double to Rod Barajas. The Yankees had one inning left to stage yet another comeback.

13 to 12, Rangers lead.

Johnny Damon lead the inning off with a sharp single passed the first basemen. The Texas closer, Otsuku, then retired Jeter ( who moved Damon to second) and A-Rod. Jorge Posada came to the plate with two outs and representing the last hope for the Yankees.

Ball one.

Ball two.

Ball three.

Strike one.

On a 3-1 pitch, Posada hit his second career walk-off home run and the Yankees celebrated at home plate. The game (almost four hours long) will definitely be remembered as a great Yankee classic.

Another Great Performance by Mussina Spoiled by Yankees' Lack of Offense

2006-05-15T21:13:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/15/06

Rangers- 4, Yankees- 2

W- Millwood (4-3)
L- Farnsworth (1-1)
S- Otsuka (5)

Yankee right fielder, Bubba Crosby, make a spectacular catch in the fifth inning, keeping at least two Texas runners from scoring.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 0-4
SS- Jeter, 1-4 (1B)
1B- Giambi, 1-3 (1B)
3B- Rodriguez, 1-4 ( 2B, R)
2B- Cano, 2-4 (1B, 1B, RBI, R)
C- Posada, 0-4
DH- Williams, 0-3
RF- Crosby, 1-3 (1B, RBI)
LF- Cabrera, 0-3

Yankee Pitchers:

Mussina- 6H, 2R, BB, 5K, 7IP
Farnsworth- 3H, 2R, BB, K, IP
Proctor- H, K, IP

Notes:

Mike Mussina had a very solid outing for the Yankees, pitching seven complete innings. But the Yankees failed to score more then two runs against Kevin Millwood.

Robinson Cano had two hits and batted in a run; Bubba Crosby also had an RBI hit and made a spectacular catch in right field (above). But the Yankees have really struggled scoring runs without Sheffield and Matsui; the team has scored only 2.3 runs per game over their last four games.

Dan Haren Silences Yankee Bats

2006-05-14T14:09:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/14/06

Athletics- 6, Yankees- 1

W- Haren (3-3)
L- Johnson (5-4)

Yankee starter, Randy Johnson, reacts after giving up a two-run home run to Oakland's Mark Kotsay in the first inning of Sunday's game.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

DH- Damon, 1-4 (1B)
SS- Jeter, 1-4 (1B)
1B- Giambi, 0-4
3B- Rodriguez, 1-4 (1B)
2B- Cano, 1-4 (1B)
C- Posada, 1-3 ( R, RBI, solo HR [5] )
RF- Williams, 0-3
CF- Crosby, 1-3 (1B)
LF- Cabrera, 0-3

Yankee Pitchers:

Johnson- 8H, 4R, BB, 4K, 6IP
Erickson- 2BB, R, 1.2IP
Villone- BB, .1IP
Small- H, R (unearned), BB, IP

Notes:

Randy Johnson struggled through the first two innings giving up three runs, but settled down through the next four innings pitched. Johnson gave up two home runs ( Kotsay, Payton) and picked up his fourth loss of the season. Scott Erickson made his Yankee-debut today, pitching an inning and two thirds (giving up one run). Erickson was called up when Tanyon Sturtze went on the disabled list yesterday.

The only offense for the Yankees today was Jorge Posada's solo home run in the second inning.

Jaret Wright Picks Up his First Win of the Season

2006-05-13T15:10:00.000-07:00

Game date-5/13/06

Athletics- 3, Yankees- 4

W- Wright (1-2)
L- Halsey (1-2)
S- Farnsworth (1)

Alex Rodriguez watches his three-run home run land near the left field bullpen in Yankee Stadium.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 2-3 ( 1B, 1B, BB, R)
SS- Jeter, 1-4 ( R, RBI, solo HR [4] )
DH- Giambi, 0-3 (BB, R)
3B- Rodriguez, 2-3 ( BB, 1B, R, 3RBI, 3-run HR [9] )
RF- Williams, 0-4
2B- Cano, 1-3 (1B, BB)
1B- Phillips, 0-3
C- Stinnet, 0-4
LF- Cabrera, 1-3 (1B)

Yankee Pitchers:

Wright- 5H, 2R, 3BB, 5K, 5.1IP
Sturtze- 2H, .1IP
Proctor- H, BB, 2K, 2.1IP
Farnsworth- H, R (unearned), BB, K, IP

Notes:

Jaret Wright pitched well today, going 5 and a third innings and giving up only 2 runs on 5 hits. Wright picked up his first win this season (and his first win in his last seven starts).

Alex Rodriguez hit a three-run home run in the first inning of today's game. It's his ninth of the season and third in the last four games. Rodriguez leads the league in go-ahead RBIs.

Mariano Rivera had the day off ( after pitching yesterday and feeling sick today), so Farnsworth had to pitch the ninth inning.

Wang Pitches a Gem, Yankees Beat A's

2006-05-12T18:59:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/12/06

Athletics- 0, Yankees- 2

W- Wang (3-1)
L- Zito (2-3)
S- Rivera (7)

Alex Rodriguez hits a solo home run to left center field against Oakland starter, Barry Zito.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-3 ( 1B, BB)
SS- Jeter, 0-3 (BB)
DH- Giambi, 0-3 ( BB, SB)
3B- Rodriguez, 1-4 ( R, RBI, solo HR [8] )
RF- Williams, 1-4 ( R, RBI, solo HR [2] )
C- Posada, 2-3 (1B, 2B, BB)
2B- Cano, 1-4 (1B)
1B- Phillips, 1-3 (1B)
LF- Cabrera, 1-2 (1B, sac bunt)

Yankee Pitchers:

Wang- 3H, 0R, 2BB, 8IP
Rivera- H, BB, IP

Notes:

Chien Ming Wang pitched an incredible ball game, going 8 strong innings and giving up no runs. He got many ground ball outs and induced several double plays.

Alex Rodriguez belted a tie-breaking solo home run off of Barry Zito in the sixth inning. Bernie Williams also hit a solo home run (later in the eighth inning).

The Yankee defense was great, Robinson Cano and Andy Phillips both making spectacular plays. The Yankees infield turned 5 double plays during the game.

Yankees Lose the Game, the Series, and their Left Fielder

2006-05-12T06:25:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/11/06

Red Sox- 5, Yankees- 3

W- Wakefield (3-4)
L- Villone (0-1)
S- Papelbon (13)

Yankee left fielder, Hideki Matsui, grimaces after fracturing his wrist in the first inning of Thursday's game against the Boston Red Sox.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 0-5
SS- Jeter, 3-4 ( 1B, 1B, 1B, BB, R, RBI, 3 SB)
DH- Giambi, 0-5
3B- Rodriguez, 1-3 ( 1B, BB, R, SB)
LF- Matsui, 0-0 ( left game in the 1st inning)
RF- Williams, 1-3 (BB, 2B)
C- Posada, 1-3 (1B, BB, 2RBI)
2B- Cano, 0-4
1B- Cairo, 0-1

Other Yankee Batters:

LF- Crosby, 2-4 ( 1B, 3B, SB, R)

Yankee Pitchers:

Chacon- 5H, R, 5BB, K, 4.2IP
Proctor- 3H, R, .1IP
Myers- .1IP
Sturze- BB, 0IP
Villone- 2H, 2R, K, IP
Farnsworth- H, 3K, 1.2IP
Rivera- 2H, R, IP

Notes:

In the top of the first inning, Mark Loretta hit a shallow fly ball to left field. Matsui came in and slid awkwardly, trying to make the grab, but ended up hurting his wrist. He left the game, ending his 518 consecutive major league games played streak. Later, tests came back showing that Matsui had indeed fractured his left wrist, and will be out of the lineup for at least three months. This is a terrible blow to the Yankee lineup, since Matsui has driven in over 100 RBIs every year, and is one of the Yankees best ( and most reliable) clutch hitters. Yankee general manager says that Matsui may be out for an entire season, depending on how quickly his wrist heals. Hideki Matsui will have surgery on his wrist later today.

Yankee pitching wasn't great, allowing 13 hits and 6 walks. Ron Villone gave up the go-ahead run to the Red Sox in the seventh inning, after Bernie Williams failed to catch a fly ball. Chacon, Proctor, and Rivera also gave up one run each to the Boston Red Sox.

Derek Jeter and Bubba Crosby had impressive nights- Jeter going 3 for 4 with 3 singles, a walk, a run scored, a run batted in, and 3 stolen bases. Crosby went 2 for 3 with a triple, single, stolen base, and a run scored. Damon and Crosby both made incredible catches in the outfield. Crosby reached over the left field wall to take a home run away from Mike Lowell. Damon stole an extra base hit away from Doug Mirabelli by reaching up, catching the ball, and slamming into the center field wall.

Yankee Bats Come Alive Against Curt Schilling and the Red Sox

2006-05-10T19:49:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/10/06

Red Sox- 3, Yankees- 7

W- Mussina (6-1)
L- Schilling (5-2)

New York's Jorge Posada hits an upper-deck, two-run home run in the fifth inning against Boston starter Curt Schilling.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-4 (1B, RBI)
SS- Jeter, 1-4 (1B, R)
1B- Giambi, 2-4 ( 1B, R, 2RBI, 2-run HR [12] )
3B- Rodriguez, 2-4 (1B, R, RBI, solo HR [7] )
LF- Matsui, 0-3 (BB, R)
C- Posada, 2-4 ( 2B, 2R, 2RBI, 2-run HR [4] )
2B- Cano, 2-4 (1B, 1B)
DH- Williams, 1-3 ( 2B, sac fly, R, RBI)
RF- Cabrera, 0-1 (BB, sac bunt)

Yankee Pitchers:

Mussina- 7H, 3R, BB, 5K, 6.2IP
Myers- H, 0IP
Proctor- K, 1.1IP
Rivera- IP

Notes:

Mike Mussina had a rough first two innings (giving up home runs to Ortiz and Lowell), but settled down and pitched very well. Mussina picked up his league-best 6th win of the season after pitching an inning and a third.

The Yankees were down 3 to 0 in the third inning, but Bernie Williams' sac fly in the third and Jason Giambi's 2-run home run in the fourth inning tied the game. Alex Rodriguez hit a go-ahead solo home run in the fifth inning ( followed by Jorge Posada's two-run blast).

In the seventh inning with runners on first and third with two outs, Scott Proctor was brought into the game. He struck out Manny Ramirez to end the inning and stifle a Red Sox' rally. He pitched a scoreless eighth to improve his ERA to 1.25.

New York's Sloppy Defense Blows Game Against the Red Sox

2006-05-10T06:44:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/09/06

Red Sox- 14, Yankees- 3

W- Beckett (4-1)
L- Johnson (5-3)

Yankee starter, Randy Johson, leaves the game in the fourth inning after giving up seven runs to the Boston Red Sox.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 0-3
SS- Jeter, 1-4 (1B, R)
1B- Giambi, 2-4 ( 1B, R, 2RBI, 2-run HR [11] )
3B- Rodriguez, 0-3
LF- Matsui, 0-4
C- Posada, 0-3 (1B)
2B- Cano, 1-4 (2B, R)
DH- Williams, 0-3
RF- Cabrera, 2-3 ( 1B, 1B, RBI)

Other Yankee Batters:

CF- Crosby, 0-0 (HBP)
3B- Cairo, 0-1
C- Stinnet, 0-1

Yankee Pitchers:

Johnson- 5H, 7R ( 5 were unearned), 5BB, 3K, 3.2IP
Small- 4H, 4R ( 1 was unearned), BB, K, 2.1IP
Villone- 2H, 2BB, 2K, 2IP
Sturze- 5H, 3R, IP

Notes:

Randy Johnson was just deplorable Tuesday night, giving up 7 runs on 5 hits and 5 walks. He left the game in the fourth inning after throwing 92 pitches. Aaron Small and Tanyon Sturze were equally bad ( giving up 7 more runs). Ron Villone was the only Yankee pitcher who did not allow a run to score.

The Yankee defense was terrible- Alex Rodriguez failed to come up with a ball cleanly which led to three unearned runs in the fourth inning, Melky Cabrera ( called up to replace the injured Sheffield) dropped a fly ball which led to two more unearned runs in the fourth, and A-Rod made another fielding error in the fifth inning which led to one more unearned run.

The Yankees placed Gary Sheffield on the disabled list due to a wrist injury. Melky Cabrera was called up from AAA to replace him in right field.

Bernie Williams was ejected from the game after arguing with the home plat umpire over a called strike-three. Williams' struck out three times in the game.

The one bright spot was Jason Giambi's 11th home run of the year, off of Josh Beckett in the first inning. Melky Cabrera added an RBI single later in the 5th inning.

Yankees Sweep the Texas Rangers

2006-05-07T17:04:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/07/06

Yankees- 8, Rangers- 5

W- Wang (2-1)
L- Tejeda (1-1)

Hideki Matsui watches his three-run home run land in the left field stands.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-5 ( 1B, SB, RBI)
SS- Jeter, 0-5
1B- Giambi, 0-3 ( 2BB, R)
3B- Rodriguez, 2-5 (1B, 1B, 2R)
DH- Matsui, 2-2 ( 1B, 3BB, 2R, 3RBI, 3-run HR [5] )
2B- Cano, 2-5 (1B, 1B, R)
RF- Williams, 2-5 ( 1B, 1B, R, 2RBI)
LF- Crosby, 1-3 ( 1B, HBP, R)
C- Stinnet, 2-4 ( 1B, 2B, 2RBI)

Yankee Pitchers:

Wang- 7H, 3R, 2K, 6IP
Sturze- 2BB, R
Proctor- K, IP
Farnsworth- K, BB, IP
Rivera- 2H, R (unearned), IP

Notes:

Hideki Matsui had a big day, going 2 for 2 with three walks, a single, and a three-run home run ( his fifth of the year). Kelly Stinnet had two RBIs ( on a bases-loaded single), his first two as a Yankee.

Chien Ming Wang was very effective over his six innings of work, giving up only 3 runs. Tanyon Sturze came on in relief, but loaded the bases (without recording an out). Scott Proctor was called in and did an incredible job shutting down the Rangers ( allowing only one of the three base-runners score).

This victory marked Joe Torre's 1,000th victory as Yankee manager.

The Yankees have an off-day tomorrow, but will host the Red Sox in a three-game set Tuesday through Thursday.

Giambi, Rodriguez Power Yanks to Fourth Straight Victory

2006-05-06T20:22:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/06/06

Yankees- 6, Rangers- 1

W- Chacon (4-1)
L- Loe (1-3)

New York's Jason Giambi hits a solo home run in the first inning of Saturday's game with Texas.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-5 ( 1B, SB, R)
SS- Jeter, 1-5 ( 1B, R, RBI)
1B- Giambi, 1-2 ( 2BB, 2R, RBI, solo HR [10] )
3B- Rodriguez, 1-4 ( R, 3RBI, 3-run HR [6] )
LF- Matsui, 0-4
C- Posada, 2-3 ( 1B, 1B, BB, R)
2B- Cano, 2-4 ( 1B, 1B)
DH-Williams, 1-4 (1B)
RF- Crosby, 1-4 ( 1B, RBI)

Other Yankee Batters:

1B- Phillips, 0-1

Yankee Pitchers:

Chacon- 5H, R, 4BB, 6K, 6.1IP
Sturze- BB, .2IP
Proctor- 2H, K, 2IP

Notes:

Shawn Chacon had another solid outing for the Yanks, improving his record to 4 and 1. Chacon struck out 6 in 6 and a third innings pitched.

Jason Giambi and Alex Rodriguez supplied the power for the Yankees, each homering in the game. Rodriguez's 3-run home run was his sixth of the season; Giambi's solo home run was his tenth of the season.

Rangers Rally in the Eighth, But the Yankees Hold On

2006-05-05T20:34:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/05/06

Yankees- 8, Rangers- 7

W- Mussina (5-1)
L- Padilla (3-2)
S- Rivera (6)

Yankee captain, Derek Jeter, singles in the first inning against Texas starter, Vicente Padilla.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 2-4 ( 1B, 1B, BB, 2R, RBI)
SS- Jeter, 2-5 ( 1B, 1B, 2R, 2RBI)
RF- Sheffield, 0-5
1B- Giambi, 0-3 (2BB, RBI)
3B- Rodriguez, 2-4 ( 1B, 2B, BB, 3RBI)
LF- Matsui, 1-3 ( 2B, 2BB, 2R)
C- Posada, 0-4 (BB, RBI)
2B- Cano, 1-5 (1B, R)
DH- Williams, 1-4 ( 1B, BB, 2R)

Yankee Pitchers:

Mussina- 3H, 2R, 5K, 7IP
Small- 3H, 3R, .1IP
Farnsworth- H, 2R, BB, K, .1IP
Rivera- 3H, 1.1IP

Notes:

Mike Mussina had another strong start for New York, pitching 7 innings and giving up only two runs on three hits ( no walks).

Alex Rodriguez had a good day, going 2 for 4 with a single, double and 3 runs batted in. Derek Jeter also had two hits; he batted in 2 runs and scored 2 runs.

In the eighth inning ( Yankees up 8 to 1), Mussina gave up a lead-off single, and was pulled from the game. Aaron Small came in in relief, but gave up three runs on 3 hits. He was pulled from the game for Kyle Farnsworth who gave up a couple more hits. Rivera came in and gave up three hits ( the two runners who did score were charged to Farnsworth), but finally shut the door and nailed down his sixth save of the season.

Yankees Slam through Tampa Bay, Complete the Sweep

2006-05-05T07:14:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/04/06

Yankees- 10, Devil Rays- 5

W- Johnson (5-2)
L- Orvella (1-2)

New York's Johnny Damon is congratulated by teammates after hitting a grand slam in the eighth inning of Thursday's game against the Devil Rays.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

DH- Damon, 2-5 ( 1B, 2R, 4RBI, grand slam [4] )
SS- Jeter, 0-4 (BB)
1B- Giambi, 1-4 ( 1B, RBI, BB)
3B- Rodriguez, 0-4 ( HBP, RBI)
LF- Matsui, 3-5 ( 1B, 2B, 2R, RBI, solo HR [4] )
C- Posada, 0-2 ( 3BB, 2R)
2B- Cano, 1-5 (2B, 2R, RBI)
RF- Williams, 2-4 ( 1B, 1B, 2RBI, sac bunt)
CF- Crosby, 0-2

Other Yankee Batters:

RF- Sheffield, 1-2 ( 1B, BB, 2R)

Yankee Pitchers:

Johnson- 7H, 5R, 2BB, 4K, 6.2IP
Sturze- .1IP
Proctor- H, BB, K, .2IP
Myers- H, BB, K, 1.1IP

Notes:

Randy Johnson struggled for his third consecutive start, giving up 5 runs on seven hits ( including a go-ahead home run to Ty Wigginton). He did pitch into the seventh inning, and picked up his league best 5th win ( tied with Jose Contreras of the White Sox).

The Yankee bullpen was dominate once again, with good performances by Sturze, Myers , and Proctor. The Yankee bullpen really has been splendid so far this year, check out these ERAs:

Kyle Farnsworth: 2.53 ERA
Ron Villone: 1.80 ERA
Mike Myers: 1.08 ERA
Scott Proctor: 1.56 ERA

Hideki Matsui had his second consecutive multi-hit game; he went three for five, only a triple short of the cycle.

Johnny Damon opened the game up in the eighth with a grand slam to left field ( after the D'Rays had opted to intentionally walk Sheffield to get to him).

Rodriguez and Matsui Lead Yankees to Victory in the Tenth

2006-05-03T19:34:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/03/06

Yankees- 4, Devil Rays- 2

W- Farnsworth (1-0)
L- Walker (0-3)
S- Rivera (5)

New York's Jaret Wright delivers a pitch in the first inning of Wednesday's game against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-4 ( 2B, BB, R)
SS- Jeter, 0-4 (BB, R)
DH- Giambi, 0-2 (2BB, HBP)
3B- Rodriguez, 1-4 ( RBI, BB, GW 1B)
LF- Matsui, 2-5 ( 1B, 1B, R)
RF- Williams, 3-5 ( 1B, 1B, 1B, R)
2B- Cano, 1-3 (2B, R)
1B- Phillips, 0-2
C- Stinnet, 0-2

Other Yankee Batters:

C- Posada, 1-2 ( 1B, RBI)
1B- Cairo, 0-2 ( RBI ground-out)

Yankee Pitchers:

Wright- 3H, 2R, 2BB, 3K, 6IP
Villone- IP
Myers- H, .2IP
Farnsworth- 2K, 1.1IP
Rivera- K, IP

Notes:

Jaret Wright was splendid in his third start of the season, pitching six, very effective innings. He only made one mistake ( a fast ball that was hit out of the park by Perez), but otherwise he was very solid. It was just what the Yankees needed from their number 5 starter.

The Yankees bullpen was excellent in four innings of work- Villone pitched a 1-2-3 inning and Myers got two outs in the eighth before giving up a single. Farnsworth came in and pitched 1 and a third innings of scoreless baseball. Rivera was lights out, recording his fifth save of the season.

Jorge Posada's pinch-hit RBI single and Miguel Cairo's pinch-hit RBI ground out tied the game in the seventh inning. In the tenth, Damon lead off with a ground-rule double; Jeter followed with a walk. Giambi moved both runners over with a soft ground ball to the Tampa Bay secondbaseman. Alex Rodriguez and Hideki Matsui hit back-to-back RBI singles giving the Yanks the lead.

Jason Giambi won the American League Player of the Month award, yesterday, for his stellar performance this April. Giambi batted .344 with 9 home runs and 27 RBIs.

Rain Washes Out Final Game in Yankees/Red Sox Series

2006-05-03T07:31:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/02/06

POSTPONED DUE TO RAIN

A tarp covers the field to protect it from the oncoming rain.

The rain came down hard in Boston, and showed no signs of easing up. The game was rescheduled for August 18th as part of a day-night doubleheader. Shawn Chacon who was scheduled to pitch for the Yankees will have the next few days off instead. The Yankees are skipping his spot in the rotation until next week. Jaret Wright will pitch Wednesday against the Devil Rays.

Papi Burns the Yanks, Sox Take Game One

2006-05-01T19:37:00.000-07:00

Game date- 5/01/06

Yankees- 3, Red Sox- 7

W- Timlin (3-0)
L- Small (0-1)

Johnny Damon returns to the Yankee dugout after popping up to third base in the fifth inning.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 0-4
SS- Jeter, 1-3 ( 1B, BB, R)
DH- Giambi, 0-3 ( BB, R)
3B- Rodriguez, 0-2 ( 2BB, R)
LF- Matsui, 0-4 (RBI)
C- Posada, 0-4
2B- Cano, 2-3 ( 1B, 1B, 2RBI)
1B- Cairo, 0-3
RF- Crosby, 1-3 (1B)

Yankee Pitching:

Wang- 6H, 3R, 4BB, 5IP
Small- 2H, 2R, 3BB, 2.1IP
Sturze- H, R, 0IP
Myers- H, R, 0IP
Proctor- K, .2IP

Notes:

Chien-Ming Wang labored through his five innings of work, getting out of some big jams with ground-ball-outs and double plays. Small pitched fairly well in his season debut, but left the game in the 8th with two runners on. Sturze and Myers could not get the final two outs and gave up some big RBI hits ( Myers gave up Ortiz's 3-run homer).

Johnny Damon went 0 for 4 in his return to Boston, this time as a Yankee. He was "welcomed" back to Fenway Park with resounding boos.

Robinson Cano was the only offense against Tim Wakefield (the Boston starter). He had a big two-out, two-run single in the 4th inning to give the Yankees a short lead. Cano bats higher then .400 against Boston over his first two big league seasons.

Top Yankee Players of April 2006

2006-04-30T15:26:00.000-07:00

The following are the top four New York Yankee players of April 2006 (according to me).

1. Derek Jeter

3 home runs
35 hits
20 runs batted in
19 runs scored
9 doubles
3 stolen bases
20 walks
.398 batting average
.505 on-base percentage
.648 slugging percentage
.988 fielding percentage

2. Jason Giambi

9 home runs
21 hits
27 runs batted in
17 runs scored
4 doubles
26 walks
.345 batting average
.554 on-base percentage
.852 slugging percentage

3. Mike Mussina

4 wins
6 games
39 innings pitched
2.38 earned run average
37 strikeouts

4. Johnny Damon

3 home runs
29 hits
9 doubles
13 runs batted in
22 runs scored
7 stolen bases
15 walks
.312 batting average
.400 on-base percentage
.505 slugging percentage
1.000 fielding percentage

Any thoughts?

Top Yankee Stats for April

2006-04-30T15:08:00.000-07:00

-Jason Giambi has 27 RBIs, which leads the American League (Derek Jeter is also in the top ten with 20 RBIs).

-Jason Giambi also leads the league with a .554 on-base percentage; Derek Jeter is second with a .505 OBP.

-Jason Giambi leads the American League with an .852 slugging percentage.

- Jason Giambi leads the league with 26 walks ( Jeter is fourth with 20 walks).

-Jason Giambi has 9 home runs, the fifth most in the American League ( two home runs behind the league-leader).

-Johnny Damon leads the league with 7 stolen bases (tied with three other players).

-Johnny Damon and Alex Rodriguez are third in the league with 22 runs scored each ( Derek Jeter is also among the league-leaders with 19 runs scored.)

-Derek Jeter batted .398 over the month of April, the second best batting average in the majors. ( Giambi and Sheffield were also in the top 15 with batting averages of .345 and .341 respectively.)

-Derek Jeter and Johnny Damon both have 9 doubles this month, tied for third most in the league.

-Randy Johnson and Mike Mussina top the league with four wins each ( tie with 5 other pitchers).

-Mike Mussina has the third lowest ERA in the American League ( 2.31 ERA).

-Mike Mussina is second in the league with 37 strikeouts.

-Mariano Rivera is fourth in the league with 4 saves over the month of April.

-Yankee's Record: 13 wins- 10 losses, 1st place in the American League East

Last year's record: 10 wins, 14 losses, 4th place in the American League East ( 7 games behind)

Yankees Win Third Straight Series, Ending Homestand

2006-04-30T14:11:00.000-07:00

Game date- 4/30/06

Blue Jays- 1, Yankees- 4

W- Mussina (4-1)
L- Chacin (4-1)
S- Rivera (4)

Yankee manager, Joe Torre, argues with home plate umpire, Adam Dowdy, after he was ejected in the fifth inning.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 3-4 ( 1B, 1B, 2B, SB, R)
SS- Jeter, 2-3 ( 1B, 2B, BB, R)
DH- Giambi, 1-3 ( R, BB, 2RBI, 2-run HR [9] )
3B- Rodriguez, 0-3 ( RBI, R, BB)
LF- Matsui, 1-4 (2B)
C- Posada, 1-3 (1B, BB)
RF- Williams, 0-3
1B- Phillips, 1-4 ( R, RBI, solo HR [1] )
2B- Cairo, 0-3

Yankee Pitchers:

Mussina- 7H, R, 2BB, 7K, 6IP
Farnsworth- 2H, 3K, 1.2IP
Rivera- 1.1IP

Notes:

Mussina pitched his fifth straight solid start, going seven innings and giving up only one run. He did give up seven hits and two walks ( which placed him in a lot of jams) , but he just pitched around them. Farnsworth was very impressive, striking out three batters and lowering his ERA to .289. Mariano Rivera recorded his second save in two consecutive games.

Andy Phillips hit his first home run of the season (third of his career) to tie the game in the fifth. Jason Giambi hit a two-out, two-run home run to left field in the seventh inning.

Yankee manager, Joe Torre, and Blue Jay manager, John Gibbons, were ejected after arguing balls and strikes with the home plate umpire.

Yankees Tear through Toronto's Pitching Staff

2006-04-29T18:29:00.000-07:00

Game date- 4/29/06

Blue Jays- 6, Yankees- 17

W- Johnson ( 4-2)
L- Towers (0-5)

New York's Johnny Damon waves to the crowd at Yankee Stadium after hitting his second home run of the game.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 3-5 ( 1B, BB, SB, 5R, 3RBI, 2-run HR, solo HR [3])
SS- Jeter, 0-4 (BB, RBI)
RF- Sheffield, 3-3 ( 1B, 1B, 1B, BB, SB, 2R, 2RBI)
3B- Rodriguez, 0-4 ( 2BB, 3R, RBI)
1B- Giambi, 2-3 ( 1B, 2BB, R, 4RBI, 3-run HR [8] )
LF- Matsui, 1-5 ( 2B, RBI)
C- Posada, 2-4 ( 1B, BB, 2R, 2RBI, solo HR [3] )
2B- Cano, 1-5 (2B, RBI)
DH- Williams, 1-4 ( 1B, BB, 2R)

Other Yankee Batters:

SS- Cairo, 1-1 (1B, RBI)
RF- Crosby, 1-2 (2B, R)
1B- Phillips, 0-1 (R)

Yankee Pitching:

Johnson- 6H, 6R, 4BB, 2K, 5IP
Sturze- K, 1.2IP
Villone- K, 1.1IP
Smith- K, IP

Notes:

Randy Johnson was very, very shaky through his five innings of work. Every time it looked like he was steadying himself, he'd throw a bad pitch. He walked a season high four batters and gave up 6 runs. Johnson's ERA has climbed to 4.71.

The rest of the Yankee pitching ( Sturze, Villone, and Smith) were perfect, pitching four scoreless innings.

Johnny Damon had a brilliant day with two home runs, three RBIs, a walk, a stolen base, and a season-high five runs scored!

Gary Sheffield also had a great day, but had to leave in the fifth inning after colliding with Toronto's firstbaseman, Shea Hillenbrand. The incident happened when the Yanks had the bases loaded and Sheffield hit a slow-rolling ball to Toronto's secondbaseman. Trying to get an infield hit, Sheffield flew down the line and crashed into Hillenbrand who was attempting to catch the ball. Sheffield has bruises on his wrist and knee, but he is expected to play tomorrow.

Yankees Strand 18 Men on Base, Fall to Toronto

2006-04-28T19:31:00.000-07:00

Game date- 4/28/06

Blue Jays- 7, Yankees- 2

W- Halladay (3-1)
L- Wright ( 0-2)

New York's Jaret Wright pitches five decent innings against the Toronto Blue Jays.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-4 ( 1B, BB)
SS- Jeter, 2-5 ( 1B, 1B)
DH- Sheffield, 1-4 (1B)
3B- Rodriguez, 1-4 (1B)
1B- Giambi, 1-3 (1B, BB)
LF- Matsui, 1-2 (1B, 2BB)
RF- Williams, 1-4 ( R, 2RBI, 2-run HR [1] )
2B- Cano, 0-4
C- Stinnet, 1-2 (1B)

Other Yankee Batters:

C- Posada, 1-2 (1B)

Yankee Pitchers:

Wright- 6H, 4R, 4BB, 5IP
Proctor- H, R, 2K, 3IP
Sturze- 3H, 2R, IP

Notes:

Jaret Wright did not pitch that poorly; he managed to keep the Yankees in the game for the first five innings. Scott Proctor gave up a three-run home run in relief; Sturze also gave up a home run.

The Yankees had ten hits and four walks but failed to cash in on them. The Yankees scored their only runs on Bernie Williams' two-run home run in the sixth inning.

Aaron Small will return from to the team tomorrow, supporting either the bullpen or the back end of the starting rotation.

New York's Strong Pitching Moves them to Second Place in the American League East Division

2006-04-28T07:18:00.000-07:00

Game date- 4/27/06

Devil Rays- 1, Yankees- 4

W- Chacon (3-1)
L- Hendrickson (1-1)
S- Rivera (3)

New York's Johnny Damon slides safely into home plate, scoring on a double by Derek Jeter.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

DH- Damon, 0-3 (BB, R)
SS- Jeter, ( 1B, 1B, 2B, BB, RBI, R)
RF- Sheffield, 0-4 (R)
3B- Rodriguez, 1-3 (2B, R, BB)
1B- Giambi, 0-2 (HBP, RBI)
LF- Matsui, 1-4 ( 1B, 2RBI)
C- Posada, 0-3
2B- Cano, 0-3
CF- Williams, 0-3

Other Yankee Batters:

1B- Phillips, 0-1

Yankee Pitchers:

Chacon- 4H, R, 2BB, 3K, 6.1IP
Myers- H, K, IP
Farnsworth- H, K, .2IP
Sturze- H, 0IP
Rivera- IP

Notes:

Shawn Chacon pitched another great game, allowing only one run on four hits over 6 and a third innings pitched. Mariano Rivera picked up his third save of the season after getting a loss during last night's game. The Yankee's pitching staff has allowed fewer runs, home runs, and walks than any other pitching staff this season!

Derek Jeter went 3 for 3, driving in a run with an RBI double in the 7th. Jeter is now batting .408, the second best batting average in the majors ( after Miguel Tejeda).

Hideki Matsui broke his 4 for 38 slump with a two-run, tie-breaking single in the sixth inning.

Yankees Fall to the D'Rays after Ten Innings

2006-04-27T08:43:00.000-07:00

Game date- 4/26/06

(10 innings) Devil Rays- 4, Yankees- 2

W- Orvella (1-1)
L- Rivera (0-2)
S- Camp (2)

New York's Chien Ming Wang pitches seven strong innings in a Yankee loss to Tampa Bay.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

DH- Damon, 1-3 ( 1B, 2BB, sac bunt, R, 3 SB)
SS- Jeter, 1-4 (1B, 2BB)
RF- Sheffield, 1-5 ( 2RBI, R, BB, 2-run HR [4] )
3B- Rodriguez, 0-4 (BB, SB)
1B- Giambi, 0-1 (4BB)
LF- Matsui, 0-4 (BB)
C- Posada, 0-4 (BB)
2B- Cano, 2-4 (1B, 1B, BB)
CF- Crosby, 1-2 ( 1B, SB, sac bunt, BB)

Other Yankee Batters:

PH- Williams, 0-1

Yankee Pitchers:

Wang- 3H, 2R, 3BB, 3K, 7IP
Farnsworth- 2K, IP
Rivera- 4H, 2R, 2BB, 2K, 2IP

Notes:

Chien Ming Wang pitched very well through the first seven innings of the game.

The Yankees gathered 14 walks but failed to score more than 2 runs in the game.

The Captain Leads His Team to Victory over the D'Rays

2006-04-25T19:48:00.000-07:00

Game date- 4/25/06

Devil Rays- 1, Yankees- 9

W- Mussina (3-1)
L- Kazmir (2-2)

Yankee captain, Derek Jeter celebrates with third base coach, Larry Bowa, after hitting a two-run home run in the first inning against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-2 ( 2B, 2BB, RBI, sac fly, 2R)
SS- Jeter, 3-5 ( 1B, 2B, 3R, 3RBI, 2-run HR [3] )
RF- Sheffield, 1-5 ( 1B, RBI, R)
3B- Rodriguez, 2-4 (1B, 1B, BB)
DH- Giambi, 2-3 ( 1B, 2B, BB, sac fly, R, 3RBI)
LF- Matsui, 1-5 (1B)
C- Posada, 0-3 (BB)
1B- Phillips, 1-4 (1B, R)
2B- Cairo, 2-3 ( 2B, 2B, BB, R)

Yankee Pitchers:

Mussina- 4H, R, 7K, 6IP
Sturze- IP
Villone- K, H, IP
Proctor- 2K, IP

Notes:

Derek Jeter lead the Yankee offense tonight, going 3 for 5 with a two-run home run to right field. Jeter is now batting an astounding .391, which is the second highest batting average in the major leagues.

Mike Mussina pitched very well for the fifth time in a row, going six strong innings.

The Yankees had 13 hits tonight; Jorge Posada was the only Yankee batter without a hit.

Randy Johnson is Dominate, Yankees Win Series against Baltimore

2006-04-23T14:32:00.000-07:00

Game date- 4/23/06

Orioles- 1, Yankees- 7

W- Johnson (3-2)
L- Chen (0-3)

New York's designated hitter, Jason Giambi hits his second home run of the game.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-4 (1B, R)
SS- Jeter, 3-4 ( 1B, 1B, 2B, R)
RF- Sheffield, 2-3 ( 1B, 1B, BB)
3B- Rodriguez, 0-2 ( BB, 2R, sac fly, RBI)
DH- Giambi, 3-4 ( 2B, 2R, 5 RBI, solo HR [6], 2-run HR [7] )
LF- Matsui, 0-4
C- Posada, 1-3 (1B, BB, R)
2B- Cano, 2-4 ( 1B, 1B)
1B- Phillips, 1-4 ( 1B, RBI)

Other Yankee Batters:

CF- Crosby, 0-1

Yankee Pitchers:

Johnson- 3H, R, BB, 5K, 8IP
Rivera- H, K, IP

Notes:

Coming off of a terrible start against the Blue Jays, Randy Johnson looked great. He pitched 8 solid innings, giving up only one run on three hits ( all hits by Miguel Tejeda).

Jason Giambi had a great afternoon, hitting two home runs and batting in 5 runs.

The Yankees' pitching is the second best in the majors so far this season; New York has only given up 71 runs.

Shawn Chacon is Fabulous, Yankees Beat Baltimore

2006-04-22T13:25:00.000-07:00

Game date- 4/22/06

Orioles- 1, Yankees- 6

W- Chacon (2-1)
L- Cabrera (1-2)

New York's Shawn Chacon pitches seven strong innings against the Baltimore Orioles.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-5 (1B, RBI)
SS- Jeter, 1-3 ( 1B, BB, 2RBI)
DH- Sheffield, 1-3 (1B, BB, R)
3B- Rodriguez, 2-4 (1B, 1B, 2R)
1B- Giambi, 0-0 ( 3BB)
LF- Matsui, 1-4 (2B, R, 2RBI)
RF- Williams, 0-2 ( sac fly, RBI)
2B- Cano, 1-2 (1B, 2BB, R)
C- Stinnet, 0-3 (sac bunt)

Other Yankee Batters-

RF- Crosby, 0-1 ( R)
1B- Phillips, 0-1

Yankee Pitching:

Chacon- 4H, R, 3BB, 3K, 7IP
Farnsworth- 2H, 2K, IP
Villone- K, IP

Notes:

Shawn Chacon was awesome today, giving up only one run on four hits in seven innings pitched.

Hideki Matsui had a big 2 run-double in the sixth inning. Jeter also had two RBIs; he now leads the Yankees with 15 RBIs on the season.

Yanks Come Close, But Fall Just Short of Victory

2006-04-21T19:49:00.000-07:00

Game date- 4/21/06

Orioles- 6, Yankees- 5

W- Benson (2-2)
L- Wang (1-1)
S- Ray (6)

Alex Rodriguez reacts after striking out with runners on in the third inning.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-5 ( 1B, R)
SS- Jeter, 2-3 ( 1B, 3B, 2BB, R)
RF- Sheffield, 3-5 (1B, 1B, 1B, RBI)
3B- Rodriguez, 1-5 ( 1B, RBI)
DH- Giambi, 0-4 (BB)
LF- Matsui, 2-3 ( 1B, 2B, 2R, 2BB)
C- Posada, 2-4 (1B, 2B, RBI)
2B- Cano, 1-4 ( R, 2RBI, 2-run HR [2] )
1B- Phillips, 0-2

Other Yankee Batters:

PH- Williams, 0-0 (BB)
1B- Cairo, 0-1

Yankee Pitching:

Wang- 8H, 6R, 2BB, K, 5.1IP
Proctor- 2H, 2BB, K, 2.1IP
Myers- .1IP
Sturze- 2K, IP

Notes:

The Yankees pounded out 12 hits ( four for extra bases), but fell just short of a win. Sheffield continued his hot hitting with three hits; he is now batting .344. Jorge Posada, Derek Jeter, and Hideki Matsui all had two hits each.

Chien Ming Wang struggled, giving up all six runs in just 5 and a third innings pitched; Wang picked up his first loss of the season.

In the bottom of the ninth, two runners were on (Jeter walked and Sheffield singled) with just one out. Alex Rodriguez struck out swinging for the second time in the game (he also hit into a double play). Jason Giambi then drew a four-pitch walk to load the bases. Hideki Matsui got up and worked the count full, but struck out looking at a pitch on the outside corner of the plate.

Mussina Shines, Yankees Split Series with Toronto

2006-04-19T13:20:00.000-07:00

Game date- 4/19/06

Yankees- 3, Blue Jays- 1

W- Mussina (2-1)
L- Lilly (1-1)
S- Rivera (2)

New York's Mike Mussina strikes out 7 batters in his victory against the Blue Jays.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 0-3 (2BB)
SS- Jeter, 0-4 (BB, SB)
RF- Sheffield, 2-4 (1B, 1B, HBP, SB)
3B- Rodriguez, 1-2 ( 2R, RBI, 3BB, solo HR [5] )
DH- Giambi, 0-3 (HBP)
LF-Matsui, 1-5 ( 1B, R)
C- Posada, 2-5 ( 1B, 1B, RBI)
2B- Cano, 2-4 (1B, 1B)
1B- Phillips, 1-3 (BB, 1B)

Other Yankee Batters:

DH- Williams, 0-1

Yankee Pitchers:

Mussina- 7H, R, 7K, 7.1IP
Farnsworth- .2IP
Rivera- K, IP

Notes:

Mike Mussina was awesome today, pitching into th 7 and a third strong innings. He gave up only one run on 7 hits and no walks. Mussina also struck out a season-high 7 batters.

Alex Rodriguez hit his fifth homer today; Rodriguez has now homered in his last three games.

Robinson Cano extended his hitting streak to 9 games, going 2 for 4 this afternoon.

Randy Johnson is Rocked by Toronto

2006-04-18T19:11:00.000-07:00

Game date- 4/18/06

Yankees- 5, Blue Jays- 10

W- Chacin (3-0)
L- Johnson (2-2)

Randy Johnson leaves the game in the fourth inning, after giving up 7 earned runs.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 0-5
SS- Jeter, 2-3 ( 2B, 3B, R, BB, RBI)
RF- Sheffield, 2-3 ( 1B, 1B, R, RBI, BB)
3B- Rodriguez, 1-4 ( R, 2RBI, 2-run HR [4] )
1B- Giambi, 1-3 ( BB, R, RBI, solo HR [5] )
DH- Matsui, 0-4
LF- Williams, 1-4 (1B)
2B- Cano, 1-4 (1B, R)
C- Stinnet, 1-2 (2B)

Other Yankee Batters:

C- Posada, 1-2 (1B)

Yankee Pitchers:

Johnson- 9H, 7R, 2BB, 2K, 3.1IP
Proctor- H, R, 2BB, 3K, 2.2IP
Chacon- 2H, 2R (one unearned), K, IP
Smith- IP

Notes:

Randy Johnson was beaten up by the Blue Jays, allowing 7 earned runs on 9 hits! Johnson had a 4-0 lead going into the bottom of the first, but could not hold on.

Alex Rodriguez had his fourth homer of the year (a two-run shot), and Jason Giambi had his fifth homer (a solo shot).

Johnny Damon was magnificent in center field tonight, making some incredible catches. Twice, he robbed Vernon Wells of an extra-base hit by slamming into the outfield wall to make the catch.

This game was one of the worst Yankee games I have ever watched. The pitching was horrendous- the Yanks giving up a total of 10 runs. The offense sagged- the Yankees left 10 runners on base and hit into 2 rally-crushing double plays. Even the defense wasn't great- Giambi making a terrible throw which enabled a runner to score and Sheffield dropping a fly ball (the runner eventually came around to score).

Wang's Career Performance Leads Yanks Over Twins

2006-04-16T16:40:00.001-07:00

Game date- 4/16/06

Yankees- 9, Twins- 3

W- Wang (1-0)
L- Radke (2-1)

New York's Jason Giambi hits his first of two home runs off of Minnesota pitching.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

DH- Damon, 3-5 (1B, 1B, 1B, R)
SS- Jeter, 2-5 (1B, 2B, 2R)
RF- Sheffield, 3-4 (1B, 1B, 2B, 2RBI)
3B- Rodriguez, 3-5 ( 1B, 2B, 2R, 2RBI, 2-run HR [3] )
1B- Giambi, 3-4 ( 1B, 2R, 3RBI, 2-run HR [3], solo HR [4] )
LF- Matsui, 1-3 ( 2B, R, BB)
C- Posada, 0-4
2B- Cano, 2-5 ( 1B, R, 2RBI, solo HR [1] )
CF- Williams, 0-4

Other Yankee Batters:

1B- Phillips, 0-0 (BB)
LF- Crosby, 0-1

Yankee Pitchers:

Wang- 7H, 2R ( one unearned), 8K, 7IP
Chacon- 2H, R, BB, K, .2IP
Myers- H, K, .1IP
Villone- H, BB, IP

Notes:

Chien-Ming Wang pitched brilliantly through seven innings, with a career-high 8 strikeouts. Wang gave up only one earned run on 7 hits.

The Yankees batters were on fire this afternoon, driving in 9 runs on 17 hits!

Jason Giambi had two monster home runs; he now leads the Yankees with four home runs total. Alex Rodriguez and Robinson Cano also went yard.

Mariano Rivera Blows the Game in the Ninth

2006-04-15T19:49:00.000-07:00

Game date- 4/15/06

Twins- 6, Yankees- 5

W- Rincon (1-0)
L- Rivera (0-1)

Derek Jeter slides in to second base safely, with a fifth-inning double.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-4 (2B, R, RBI, BB, SB)
SS- Jeter, 3-3 ( 1B, 1B, 2B, R, 3RBI, BB, sac bunt)
RF- Sheffield, 2-5 (1B, 1B, SB)
3B- Rodriguez, 1-4 (1B, RBI, SB, BB)
LF- Matsui, 0-4
C- Posada, 1-4 (2B)
DH- Phillips, 0-4
2B- Cano, 2-4 (1B, 1B, 2R)
1B- Cairo, 1-4 ( 2B, R)

Yankee Pitching:

Wright- 8H, 4R ( one unearned), BB, K, 3IP
Proctor- 2H, 2BB, 2K, 3.1IP
Myers- .1IP
Farnsworth- BB, K, .2IP
Rivera- 3H, 2R, 2K, 1.1IP

Notes:

Jaret Wright was pretty miserable through his three innings of work, giving up 8 hits and four runs. He threw 70-80 pitches and was pulled in the fourth inning.

The Yankees down 4 to 0, Scott Proctor replaced Wright and pitched 3 and a third masterful innings, giving the Yanks a chance to come back.

Derek Jeter had three hits tonight, one was a two-run single which gave the Yanks a 5 to 4 lead.

Mariano Rivera blew his first save of the season, giving up two runs in the bottom of the ninth. With runners on second and third (two outs), he gave up a two-run, game-winning single.

The Yankees did manage to get 11 hits off Johann Santana and the Twins bullpen.

Mussina's Strong Effort Spoiled by New York's Lack of Offense

2006-04-15T11:49:00.000-07:00

Game date- 4/14/06

Yankees- 1, Twins- 5

W- Baker (1-1)
L- Mussina (1-1)

Jorge Posada disagrees with the umpire after being called out at home plate. Replays later showed that Posada was indeed safe.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-4 (2B)
SS- Jeter, 0-4 ( RBI ground-out)
DH- Sheffield, 0-4
3B- Rodriguez, 0-4
1B- Giambi, 0-2 (BB)
LF- Matsui, 0-3
C- Posada, 1-2 ( 1B, BB)
2B- Cano, 2-3 ( 1B, 1B, R)
RF- Williams, 0-3

Yankee Pitching:

Mussina- 6H, 3R, 2BB, 5K, 6.2IP
Sturze- BB, .1IP
Smith- .1IP
Farnsworth- 3H, 2R, BB, .2IP

Notes:

Mussina pitched well, but got no offensive support. The Yankees only threatened once- runners on first and second with no outs- but Bernie Williams hit into a double-play and Johnny Damon grounded out.

Derek Jeter and Hideki Matsui snapped their hitting streaks going a combined 0-7 for the night.

Pitcher Matt Smith was called up from Oklahoma to be a relief pitcher for New York. He made his major league debut, facing only one batter ( successfully recording the out).

Damon Hits His First Yankee Homer as New York Sweeps Kansas City

2006-04-13T14:14:00.000-07:00

Game date- 4/13/06

Royals- 3, Yankees- 9

W- Johnson (2-1)
L- Bautista (0-1)

New Yankee, Johnny Damon, watches his eighth inning, three-run home run travel to the upper deck in Yankee Stadium.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-4 ( R, 4RBI, sac fly, 3-run HR [1] )
SS- Jeter, 1-5 (1B)
RF- Sheffield, 1-5 (R, RBI, solo HR [3] )
3B- Rodriguez, 1-3 (2BB, 2B, 2R, 2RBI )
1B- Giambi, 2-3 (1B, HBP, 2R, 2RBI, 2-run HR [2] )
LF- Matsui, 1-3 (1B, BB, R)
DH- Williams, 3-4 (1B, 1B, 1B, 2R, RBI )
2B- Cano, 1-4 (1B, RBI)
C- Stinnet, 1-2 (1B, BB, R, sac bunt)

Yankee Pitching:

Johnson- 4H, R, 5K, 5IP
Proctor- 2H, 1.1IP
Myers- H, K, .2IP
Sturze- H, R, K, IP
Villone- 2H, R, BB, IP

Notes:

Randy Johnson pitched masterfully for the third time this season, striking out five batters and allowing no walks.

Sheffield hit a solo home run in the first inning to give the Yankees a lead they would not lose.

Matsui extended his hitting streak to 16 games ( 7 games last year, 9 this year), and Jeter extended his streak to 11 games ( 2 last year, 9 this year).

The Yankees sweep the Kansas City Royals and move over the .500 mark with a 5-4 record.

Yankees Walk All Over Royals

2006-04-13T13:58:00.000-07:00

Game date- 4/12/06

Royals- 5, Yankees- 12

W- Chacon (1-1)
L- Affeldt (0-1)

Yankee Shawn Chacon pitches six innings and picks up his first win of the season.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 2-4 ( 1B, 1B, BB, RBI, 2R)
SS- Jeter, 1-3 ( 1B, 2BB, 3R, RBI)
DH- Sheffield, 3-5 ( 1B, 1B, 2R, 4RBI, 3-run HR [2] )
3B- Rodriguez, 1-4 ( 1B, SB, BB, 2R)
1B- Giambi, 2-4 ( BB, 2B, 2B, 2RBI)
LF- Matsui, 1-4 (1B, BB, R)
C- Posada, 2-4 ( 1B, 1B, BB, R, RBI )
RF- Williams, 1-5 (1B)
2B- Cairo, 2-4 ( 1B, 1B, SB, BB, RBI, R)

Yankee Pitching:

Chacon- 7H, 5R, 2BB, 5K, 6IP
Myers- IP
Farnsworth- BB, IP
Villone- K, IP

Notes:

Every Yankee had at least one hit- Sheffield had three hits; Damon, Giambi, Posada, and Cairo had two hits each. The Yankees gathered a total of 15 hits.

Gary Sheffield broke out of a slump, crushing a three-run home run in the first inning ( Sheffield had a total of four RBIs).

Shawn Chacon pitched six shaky innings ( giving up five runs ), but still earned the win.

Jeter's Blast Leads New York over Kansas City

2006-04-13T13:43:00.000-07:00

Game date- 4/11/06

Royals- 7, Yankees- 9

W- Proctor (1-1)
L- Sisco (0-1)
S- Rivera (1)

Yankee captain, Derek Jeter, hits a game-winning 3-run homer off of Kansas City's Andrew Sisco.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-3 (2B, BB, 2R)
SS- Jeter, 1-4 ( R, 3RBI, BB, GW 3-run HR [2] )
RF- Sheffield, 0-5
3B- Rodriguez, 0-2 ( 2BB, R)
1B- Giambi, 1-1 ( 2R, 3RBI, 3BB, 3-run HR [1] )
LF- Matsui, 1-3 (1B, BB, R, RBI)
C- Posada, 1-3 (1B, BB)
2B- Cano, 1-4 (1B, R, RBI)
DH- Damon, 2-4 ( 1B, 1B, RBI, R)

Yankee Pitching:

Wang- 8H, 5R, 2BB, K, 6IP
Sturze- 3H, 2R, K, .1IP
Myers- K, .2IP
Proctor- BB, K, IP
Rivera- H, K, IP

Notes:

Jason Giambi hit a three-run home run in the first inning off of Joe Mays; it was Giambi's first home run of the season.

With the Yankees down by one run in the bottom of the eighth (with two outs), Derek Jeter hit a game-winning 3-run home run to left field.

Mariano Rivera pitched a scoreless inning, picking up his first save of the season.

Yankees Pound Out 15 Hits and Finally Beat the Angels

2006-04-13T13:29:00.000-07:00

Game date- 4/09/06

Yankees- 10, Angels- 1

W- Mussina (1-0)
L- Colon (0-1)

Jorge Posada is congratulated by a teammate after hitting a three-run home run off of Bartolo Colon.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-4 ( 1B, SB, BB)
SS- Jeter, 1-5 ( 2B, RBI)
RF- Sheffield, 0-4
3B- Rodriguez, 3-5 ( 1B, 1B, RBI, 2R, soloHR [2] )
DH- Giambi, 1-2 ( 1B, 2R, 3BB)
LF- Matsui, 2-5 ( 1B, 1B, 2R, RBI)
C- Posada, 3-4 ( 1B, 2B, 3R, BB, 5RBI, 3-run HR [1], solo HR [2] )
2B- Cano, 3-5 ( 1B, 1B, 2B, R, RBI )
1B- Cairo, 0-4

Other Yankee Batters:

RF- Williams, 1-1 (2B)
1B- Phillips, 0-1
CF- Crosby, 0-1

Yankee Pitching:

Mussina- 5H, R, 2BB, 5K, 6IP
Farnsworth- 2K, IP
Proctor- K, IP
Rivera- H, IP

Notes:

Mussina was fabulous, striking out five batters over six innings of work.

The Yankee's offense returned as Posada belted two home runs and A-Rod hit a solo blast.

Yankees Continue to Struggle Offensively

2006-04-13T06:53:00.000-07:00

Game date- 4/08/06

Yankees- 3, Angels- 4

W- Santana (1-0)
L- Johnson (0-1)

Derek Jeter rounds the bases in the first inning, after belting a solo home run off of Ervin Santana.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 0-4
SS- Jeter, 1-3 ( R, RBI, BB, solo-HR [1] )
RF- Sheffield, 2-4 (1B, 2B)
3B- Rodriguez, 0-3 (BB)
1B- Giambi, 0-3 (BB)
LF- Matsui, 1-4 (R, RBI, solo-HR [3] )
DH- Posada, 0-4
2B- Cano, 1-4 (1B)
C- Stinnet, 0-3

Yankee Pitching:

Johnson- 7H, 3R, 8K, 8IP

Notes:

Randy Johnson pitched very well, but received very little offensive support.

Derek Jeter belted his first home run of the season, and Matsui hit his third.

Yankee Bats Slump, Fall to the Angels

2006-04-13T06:44:00.000-07:00

Game date- 4/07/06

Yankees- 1, Angels- 4

W- Escobar (1-0)
L- Chacon (0-1)

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-3 (2B, BB, RBI, R)
SS- Jeter, 2-3 (1B, 1B, SB)
RF- Sheffield, 0-4
3B- Rodriguez, 0-4
1B- Giambi, 0-4
LF- Matsui, 1-4 (1B)
C- Posada, 1-4 (1B)
2B- Cano, 0-4
DH- Williams, 1-3 (1B, BB, R)

Yankee Pitching:

Chacon- 8H, 4R, 2BB, 4K, 4.2IP
Villone- K, 1.1IP
Sturze- BB, .2IP
Myers- 1.1IP

Notes:

Chacon struggled, but the Yankee bullpen did very well. Unfortunately, the Yankee's bats were miserable throughout the game.

Vacation!

2006-04-07T10:43:00.000-07:00

I'm gonna be on vacation for a couple of days, so I won't be able to update Baseball Mania for a little while. But I shall return.... :)

Go Yankees!

Defense is Miserable, Yanks Lose Series to Oakland

2006-04-06T11:40:00.000-07:00

Game date- 4/05/06

Yankees- 4, Athletics- 9

W- Kennedy (1-0)
L- Wright (0-1)

Yankees' right-fielder, Gary Sheffield, connects for a three-run home run in the third inning.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-4 ( 1B, R)
SS- Jeter, 1-4 ( 1B)
RF- Sheffield, 2-4 ( 1B, R, SB, 3RBI, 3run-HR [1] )
3B- Rodriguez, 0-3 (HBP)
1B- Giambi, 1-4 (1B)
LF- Matsui, 1-4 ( RBI, R, solo-HR [2] )
C- Posada, 1-4 (1B)
DH- Williams, 0-4
2B- Cano, 1-3 ( 2B, R)

Yankee Pitchers:

Wang- 7H, 4R ( 2 were unearned), 3BB, 3K, 4.2IP
Sturze- .1IP
Wright- 3H, 4R ( 3 were unearned), BB, 2K
Myers- .1IP, K
Farnsworth- H, BB, R, .1IP
Villone- .1IP

Notes:

In the fourth inning, Derek Jeter made a very costly error on a ball that should have been an inning-ending double play. Instead, no outs were recorded and the A's scored 2 unearned runs.
Later in the eighth inning, Robinson Cano committed an error which led to three more unearned runs.

The Yankee pitching wasn't that bad, giving up only four earned runs ( same as the Oakland pitching staff).

Matsui continued his hot hitting with a second inning solo-home run. Gary Sheffield belted a three-run home run in the third inning to give the Yanks an early 4-0 lead.

The Athletics win the series, two games to one. The Yanks did out-score the A's, 22 to 15.

Scott Proctor Loses Game in the Ninth

2006-04-05T07:06:00.000-07:00

Game date- 4/04/06

Yankees- 3, Athletics- 4

W- Street
L- Proctor

Mussina pitches seven strong innings against the Oakland Athletics Tuesday night.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 2-4 ( 1B, 2B, BB)
SS- Jeter, 1-2 ( 2B, sac bunt, 2 BB, R)
RF- Sheffield, 1-4 ( 2B, RBI, BB)
3B- Rodriguez, 2-5 ( 1B, 1B, R)
1B- Giambi, 0-2 ( 2 BB, R)
LF- Matsui, 1-4 ( 2B)
C- Posada, 1-4 ( 1B, 2RBI)
DH- Williams, 1-4 (1B)
2B- Cano, 0-4

Yankee Pitching:

Mussina- 5H, 3R, 2BB, 6K, 7IP
Myers- K, BB, .1IP
Farnsworth- .2IP
Proctor- H, R, 2BB, .1IP

Notes:

Mussina was very solid in his seven innings of work, striking out six batters but giving up two home runs ( Chavez, Swisher).

The game was tied going into the ninth, Mariano Rivera and Scott Proctor warming in the bullpen. Joe Torre went with Proctor, end of story.

Yankees Open In Grand Style

2006-04-04T07:24:00.000-07:00

Game date- 4/03/06

Yankees- 15, Athletics- 2

W- R. Johnson (1-0)
L- Zito (0-1)

Alex Rodriguez connects for a grand slam in his second at bat of the game.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 3-7 ( 1B, 2B, 2B, 2R, RBI)
SS- Jeter, 2-6 (1B, 1B, 2R, 2RBI, BB)
RF- Sheffield, 1-4 ( 2B, 2R, BB)
3B- Rodriguez, 3-5 ( 1B, 1B, 2R, 5RBI, BB, grand slam [1] )
1B- Giambi, 1-3 (1B, HBP, 2R, RBI, BB)
LF- Matsui, 4-4 ( 1B, 1B, 1B, 4R, 2BB, 4RBI, 3run HR [1] )
C- Posada, 0-3 ( 2HBP, BB, R)
DH- Williams, 1-5 ( 1B, R, 2RBI, BB)
2B- Cano, 2-5 ( 1B, 2B, R)

Other Yankee Batters:

1B- Phillips, 0-1
RF- Crosby, 0-1

Yankee Pitching:

R. Johnson- 7IP, 5H, R, 3K
Sturze- H, K, IP
Villone- 2H, R, K, IP

Notes:

Holy cow, what a game! Yankees bring in FIFTEEN RUNS on SEVENTEEN HITS!!!!! Alex Rodriguez crushes a grand slam in the second ining off Barry Zito, the Athletics' ace. The Yankees knocked him out after only an inning and a third of work!

Matsui tied his career high with four hits, including a three-run home run.

Every Yankee scored at least one run, and each Yankee in the starting lineup (except for Posada) had at least one hit.

New York Yankees 25-Man Roster

2006-04-02T13:50:00.000-07:00

The 2006 Opening Day 25-Man Roster for the New York Yankees:

-See my 2006 MLB predictions-

Derek Jeter
Position: Shortstop
Born: 06/26/1974
Birthplace: Pequannock, NJ
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
This Spring: 11 hits, 4 runs, 4 RBI, .314 BA

Robinson Cano
Position: Second Baseman
Born: 10/22/1982
Birthplace: Dominican Republic
Bats: Left
Throws: Right
This Spring: 29 hits, 10 runs, 2HR, 9 RBI, .337 BA

Jason Giambi
Position: First Baseman
Born: 01/08/1971
Birthplace: West Covina, CA
Bats: Left
Throws: Right
This Spring: 2 runs, 4 doubles, 8 walks

Alex Rodriguez
Position: Third Baseman
Born: 07/27/1975
Birthplace: New York, NY
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
This Spring: 4 runs, 3 HR, 6RBI

Andy Phillips
Position: First Baseman, Designated Hitter
Born: 04/06/1977
Birthplace: Tuscaloosa, AL
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
This Spring: 10 runs, 21 hits, 1 HR, 8RBI, .323 BA

Miguel Cairo
Position: Utility Infielder
Born: 05/04/1974
Birthplace: Anaco, Venezuela
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
This Spring: 10 runs, 5 doubles, 2 HR, 3 stolen bases

Jorge Posada
Position: Catcher
Born: 08/17/1971
Birthplace: Santurce, Puerto Rico
Bats: Switch
Throws: Right
This Spring: 3 doubles, 2 HR, 9 RBI, .314 BA

Kelly Stinnet
Position: Catcher
Born: 02/04/1970
Birthplace: Lawton, OK
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
This Spring: 3 doubles, 1 HR, 3 runs

Wil Nieves *
Position: Catcher
Born: 09/25/1977
Birthplace: San Juan, Puerto Rico
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
This Spring: 6 runs, 1 HR, 9 walks

Johnny Damon
Position: Centerfielder
Born: 11/05/1973
Birthplace: Fort Riley, KS
Bats: Left
Throws: Left
This Spring: 7 runs, 3 stoled bases, .395 BA

Hideki Matsui
Position: Leftfielder
Born: 06/12/1974
Birthplace: Kanazawa, Japan
Bats: Left
Throws: Right
This Spring: 11 runs, 3 doubles, 3 HR, 7 RBI, 9 walks

Gary Sheffield
Position: Rightfielder
Born: 11/18/1968
Birthplace: Tampa, FL
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
This Spring: 3 doubles, 1 HR, 11 RBI

Bernie Williams
Position: Centerfielder, Designated Hitter
Born: 09/13/1968
Birthplace: San Juan, Puerto Rico
Bats: Switch
Throws: Right
This Spring: 2 doubles, 1 HR, 5 runs

Bubba Crosby *
Position: Utility Outfielder
Born: 08/11/1976
Birthplace: Bellaire, TX
Bats: Left
Throws: Left
This Spring: 3 HR, 1 double

Shawn Chacon
Position: Starting Pitcher
Born: 12/23/1977
Birthplace: Anchorage, AK
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
This Spring: 1 win, 1 loss, 3.67 ERA, 7 games, 13 strikeouts

Randy Johnson
Position: Starting Pitcher
Born: 09/10/1963
Birthplace: Walnut Creek, CA
Bats: Right
Throws: Left
This Spring: 1 win, 2 losses, 2.96 ERA, 5 games, 24 strikeouts

Mike Mussina
Position: Starting Pitcher
Born: 12/08/1968
Birthplace: Williamsport, PA
Bats: Left
Throws: Right
This Spring: 1 win, 1 loss, 7.32 ERA, 5 games, 13 strikeouts

Chien-Ming Wang
Position: Starting Pitcher
Born: 03/31/1980
Birthplace: Tainan, Taiwan
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
This Spring: 1 win, 4.70 ERA, 5 games, 10 strikeouts

Jaret Wright
Position: Starting Pitcher
Born: 12/29/1975
Birthplace: Anaheim, CA
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
This Spring: 1 win, 1 loss, 9.26 ERA, 4 games, 6 strikeouts

Kyle Farnsworth
Position: Setup Pitcher
Born: 04/14/1976
Birthplace: Wichita, KS
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
This Spring: 3.00 ERA, 12 games, 11 strikeouts

Mike Myers
Position: Relief Pitcher
Born: 06/26/1969
Birthplace: Arlington Heights, IL
Bats: Left
Throws: Left
This Spring: 1 win, 1 loss, 3.07 ERA, 16 games, 8 strikeouts

Scott Proctor *
Position: Relief Pitcher
Born: 01/02/1977
Birthplace: Stuart, FL
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
This Spring: 1 win, 1 loss, 1.06 ERA, 6 games, 14 strikeouts

Mariano Rivera
Position: Closer
Born: 11/29/1969
Birthplace: Panama City, Panama
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
This Spring: 1.00 ERA, 9 games, 12 strikeouts

Tanyon Sturze
Position: Relief Pitcher
Born: 10/12/1970
Birthplace: Worcester, MA
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
This Spring: 2 losses, 8.31 ERA, 9 games, 7 strikeouts

Ron Villone
Position: Relief Pitcher
Born: 01/16/1970
Birthplace: Englewood, NJ
Bats: Left
Throws: Left
This Spring: 4.61 ERA, 14 games, 6 strikeouts

* Will be replaced by Aaron Small, Octavio Dotel, and Carl Pavano who are currently on the 15-day disabled list.

2006: A Preview of the Coming Season

2006-04-02T13:47:00.000-07:00

Well, this is the time for your baseball predictions. The regular season starts today, so place your bets now! :)

This is going to be a fun year. Last season's great teams- White Sox, Cardinals, Yankees, Red Sox- will be dominate once again. But I think that many other teams will make an impact on this years pennant races. This off-season has brought some surprising trades and troublesome injuries, but the teams are finally taking shape.

Last year, my World Series picks were the Atlanta Braves and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Both made the playoffs, but neither made it to the world championship games.

Anyway.... here goes....

------------------------------------------------------------
AL East-

New York Yankees: I think the Yankees will have the best offense in baseball. With the tremendous power they had last year, plus the new leadoff hitter, Johnny Damon, this team will be nigh invincible. The bullpen will be fine with Sturze, Proctor, Dotel, and Small for the fifth and sixth innings ( if necessary), Villone for the seventh, Farnsworth for the eighth, and Rivera for the ninth. The Yankees' starting pitching is the only question. Will the starters remain healthy during the season? That remains to be seen, but the Yankees do enter this season with seven starting pitchers as opposed to last year's five. So the team is prepared for injuries.

My Prediction: Yankees win the American League East division with 100-105 wins.

Boston Red Sox: The Red Sox looked very shaky during December and January. The team was unsure if Manny, Epstein, or Wells would return. Then they lost Johnny Damon, Kevin Millar, and Renteria. But fortunately for the Sox, Epstein was re-hired, and he went straight to work. The Sox the signed Coco Crisp, Willy Mo Pena, J. T. Snow, Mark Loretta, Alex Gonzalez, and Hee Sop Choi to fill in their offensive (and defensive) gaps. The Red Sox strengthened their pitching by signing Beckett. The bullpen was patched up, and a healthy Foulke and Timlin returned to their duties. I think the Sox have a great chance at winning the AL East title, my only worry being their middle relief section which is a bit weak. Otherwise, this is a very sound team.

My Prediction: Red Sox end up second in the American League east, but win the AL wildcard.

Toronto Blue Jays: The Blue Jays were a good team last year, but will attempt to make themselves a great team this year. Toronto added A. J. Burnett to bolster a starting rotation that already contains Holliday, Lilly, and Chacin. B. J. Ryan, Spier, League, and Frasor are some great arms down in the bullpen. But in my opinion, the Jays still lack the offense to defeat Boston and New York. Glaus and Wells are the only real threats in the lineup... the rest of the lineup is composed of mediocre ball players.

My Prediction: Not good enough to win a division, but is still a solid team...

Baltimore Orioles: Well, there isn't a whole lot to say about the O's this year. The team has somewhat of a decent offense with Millar, Mora, Tejeda, Roberts, and Lopez. But the Orioles lack any kind of pitching! The starting rotation is miserable, and the bullpen (after being stripped by other AL teams) is even worse!

My Prediction: Orioles end up last in the American League East with just over 60 wins.

Tampa Bay Devil Rays: I love watching this team. The D'Rays are so tiny compared to the New York and Boston monsters that patrol the top of the AL East. There is a lot of talent on this team- Cantu, Crawford, Huff, Lugo- but not enough experience or pitching needed to win a title.

My Prediction: Does better then last year, but remains a rookie team.

AL Central-

Chicago White Sox: Last year's world champions, will be just as good this season if not better then they were last season. Chicago's pitching is brilliant, with the addition of Javier Vazquez. White Sox offense has just been made better with the addition of Thome and the re-signing of Konerko and Pierzynski. This team will be absolutely dominate once again.

My Prediction: White Sox win the American League Central, with 100-115 wins.

Cleveland Indians: The Indians did NOT have a good offseason this year. They lost their ace, Kevin Millwood and their center-fielder, Coco Crisp. Cliff Lee will be the new ace of the club, leading a very young pitching staff.

My Prediction: Indians end up in third place in their division.

Minnesota Twins: The Twins have had a very good offseason, signing some much needed offensive players. Luis Castillo and Rondell White are among the major acquisitions. White, a veteran will help to coach some of the younger players on this team. Minnesota's pitching staff will once again be great with Santana, Silva, Radke, and Lohse leading the charge.

My Prediction: Twins come in second in their division, and may make a run for the wildcard playoff spot.

Detroit Tigers: The Tigers have had a great spring training, all of their bats really lighting up. Young, Granderson, Logan, Infante, and Guillen will be the big bats in this hard-hitting lineup. The Detroit starting rotation is good, not great. Kenny Rogers and Jeremy Bonderman will have strong years, but the rest of the rotation may struggle. The bullpen is also weak and may be susceptible to other powerful American League lineups.

My Prediction: Tigers grab fourth place in the American League Central. But this team may surprise us and be really good ( like the White Sox in '05). The Tigers are somewhat of a dark horse this year; they have talent, but is it enough?

Kansas City Royals: No hope.... :) This team is incomplete in every way.... Tony Graffanino was a good pickup, but this organization lacks everything.

My Prediction: Royals are the worst team in baseball.

AL West-

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim: Hopefully for the Angels, Guerrero will be healthy this year and put up some MVP-like numbers. Garett Anderson also needs to do some mega-producing. The Anaheim pitching is fabulous, so they should find no trouble in that department. The Angels didn't really make a big splash during the trading season, so they won't be much different from last year.

My Prediction: Angels win the American League West division ( 90-100 wins).

Oakland Athletics: The Athletics picked up Milton Bradley this offseason, a slugger who will help the team score runs. But I still don't think that this team will have enough power to win the division. Zito, the staff's ace, has struggled mightily this March, and may have a rough season.

My Prediction: Athletics end up in third place in the American League West division this year.

Texas Rangers: This year's surprise team is the Texas Rangers. This team has the offense- Teixeira, Young, Mench, Dellucci, and Barajas- and the pitching- Millwood, Eaton, Loe, Cordero, and Shouse- needed to make a good, solid team. Landing Millwood was the best offseason signing for the Rangers. He will balance out the rotation, give the staff some leadership, and win some games!

My Prediction: Rangers come in second in the American League West division, but may have a shot at the wildcard.

Seattle Mariners: This team lacks SO much.... The pitching staff is pretty miserable, as is the bullpen. The offense is led by Ichiro and a ( hopefully) healthy Jeremy Reed. But this team will go nowhere this year.

My Prediction: Mariners are the second worst team in baseball.

NL East-

Atlanta Braves: The Braves resigned Edgar Renteria, a solid shortstop who will aid the Atlanta teams offensively and defensively. The Jones and Francour will provide plenty of offense for this team. But the pitching is shaky- Sosa, Smoltz, and Hudson the only solid starters on the team. The bullpen is also questionable, since the Braves lost their closer, Kyle Farnsworth, to the Yankees.

My Prediction: Braves come in second in the National League East division, but win the NL wild card.

Philadelphia Phillies: This will be a team to watch this season. Ryan Howard will have a break-out year. He is incredibly powerful and skilled at the plate. He has been tremendous this spring, and should be lots of fun to watch during the regular season. As for the Phillies.... the loss of Billy Wagner is really going to hit them hard. The starting rotation is ok, but the bullpen really needs help.

My Prediction: Phillies end up fourth in the National League East division, after a disappointing year.

New York Mets: Omar Minaya is a genius. Last year the Mets struggled in the offensive and relief pitching categories. So the organization went out and signed Delgado, Nady, and Lo Duca for the offensive gaps. Billy Wagner and Jorge Julio were brought in to help with the pen. If the starting rotation stays healthy, this is the team to beat in the National League.

My Prediction: Mets win the National League East division ( 90-100 wins)

Florida Marlins: Well, ask yourself this... do the Marlins even want to win? They got rid of all their great players except for Cabrera and Willis. A group of minor leaguer have been brought in to play. This team lacks the experience and true major league talent to go anywhere this year.

My Prediction: Marlins end up last in the National League East division, which results in the loss of even more fans.

Washington Nationals: After adding Soriano to the starting lineup, the Nats have a respectable offense. But the pitching staff is still weak. If Cordero is healthy, he may be able to keep the bullpen in shape. But the starting pitching is really weak; Livan Hernandez being the only formidable starter in the group.

My Prediction: Nationals end up third in the National League East division.

NL Central-

St. Loius Cardinals: The Cardinals are virtually the same team they were last year. Same mega superstars. They did lose Matt Morris ( replaced by the undependable Sidney Ponson) which will in the long run, hurt the team. Junior Spivey, the secondbaseman, is the only other notable addition to this club.

My Prediction: Cardinals win the National League Central division( 90-95 win)

Houston Astros: Unfortunately for the Astros, they did not improve their terrible offense. I was really surprised when they didn't try to go out and get a big bat for the middle of their lineup. Because of this, the Astros will not do well this year. Houston also lost Roger Clemens ( for at least the first couple of months) so the back end of their starting rotation is very, very shaky.

My Prediction: Astros come in second in the National League Central division and, for the first time in two years, have no playoff spot.

Milwaukee Brewers: Another team that looked good, but failed to get any needed players during the trading season! The starting pitching is incomplete, the bullpen is weak, and the offense is mediocre. It's a shame, but this team will go nowhere this year.

My Prediction: Brewers are third in the National League Central division.

Chicago Cubs: If all the pitchers in this club were healthy, the Cubs might have a shot at the NL wildcard. But the team begins the season with their top two starting pitchers on the disabled list! Besides that, the Chicago bullpen is disgraceful, and the offense is lacking. Derek Lee can not be expected to carry this whole team to a division title!

My Prediction: The Chicago Cubs end up in last place in the National League Central division.

Cincinnati Reds: This team has the offense to win the division, but completely lacks the pitching. It'll be fun to watch what kind of a season Ken Griffey Jr, Adam Dunn, and Austin Kearns have.

My Prediction: Reds end up fifth in the National League Central division.

Pittsburg Pirates: A team of young talent. Maybe too young. The Pirates pitching ( especially the bullpen) is questionable. Oliver Perez, Duke, and Wells are not All-Star pitchers. The defense is spectacular, but the offense isn't all there. In a couple of years, this will be a contending team.

My Prediction: Pirates come in fourth in the National League Central division.

NL West-

San Diego Padres: The Padres have a good pitching staff (just good, not great) led by WBC participant, Jake Peavy. But unfortunately, the Padres' offense is barely existent. Even Mike Piazza will not make that big of a difference, playing in the gigantic Petco Stadium.

My Prediction: Padres come in fourth in the National League West division.

Arizona Diamondbacks: If this team had any form of pitching, they might have a shot at the division title. Actually, the NL West is so terrible, they still might have a chance at winning it. The Arizona offense isn't that bad ( Gonzalez, Tracy, Hudson), but the bullpen especially needs some help.

My Prediction: The Diamondbacks come in third place in the National League West.

San Francisco Giants: Will the return of Barry Bonds have a significant impact on this lineup? Maybe.... The San Francisco pitching isn't that bad (with Schmidt and Morris), but Barry Bonds is the only great hitter on the team. So I think, if NL pitchers just walk Bonds they shouldn't find much trouble shutting down the rest of this lineup.

My Prediction: The Giants end up second in the National League West division.

Los Angeles Dodgers: If the Dodgers' pitching staff remains healthy, this will be a very good team. Jeff Kent, J, D, Drew, and Garciaparra will help bolster the LA offense.

My Prediction: The Dodgers win the National League West division.

Colorado Rockies: Terrible team.... The pitching is very, very poor ( Fuentes should just leave), and the offense isn't much better. This team needs a major make-over if it expects to go anywhere in the next couple of years.

My Prediction: The Rockies end up last in the National League West division.

-------------------------------------------------------

So, to wrap it all up....

American League East: New York Yankees
American League Central: Chicago White Sox
American League West: Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
American League Wild Card: Boston Red Sox

National League East: New York Mets
National League Central: St. Louis Cardinals
National League West: Los Angeles Dodgers
National League Wild Card: Atlanta Braves

ALCS: Yankees v. White Sox

NLCS: Mets v. Dodgers

World Series: Yankees v. Mets

Well, let the season begin!

Yankee's Final Spring Training Game Ends in a Tie

2006-04-01T15:46:00.000-08:00

Game date- 4/1/06

Yankees- 3, Diamondbacks- 3

Alex Rodriguez attempts to beat Arizona's Orlando Hudson to the bag.

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Williams, 0-2 (BB, RBI)
SS- Jeter, 0-2
3B- Rodriguez, 0-4
RF- Sheffield, 1-2 (1B)
1B- Giambi, 0-2
LF- Matsui, 0-3
C- Posada, 0-1 (BB, R)
2B- Cano, 1-3 (1B)
P- Chacon, 0-1 ( sac bunt)

Other Yankee Batters:

RF- Garcia, 0-1
SS- Escalona, 0-1 (1B, R)
CF- Crosby, 0-1 ( sac bunt, RBI)
1B- Phillips, 0-2
LF- Reese, 1-1 (1B)
C- Stinnet, 1-1
3B- Johnson, 0-1
2B- Cairo, 1-2 (R, RBI, soloHR)

Yankee Pitching:

Chacon- 5H, 2R, 3BB, 2K, 5IP
Rivera- H, K, IP
Veras- BB, K, .2IP
Myers- K, .1IP
Villone- H, R, K, IP
Mendoza- H, K, .2IP
Smith- .1IP

Notes:

Yankees wrap up their spring training with a record of 15 wins, 16 losses, and 1 tie. All in all, it was a very successful spring training with only a few injuries ( Pavano, Small). The Yankees pack up and head out to Oakland for their first regular season game on Monday.

Yankees 2006 Spring Training Record: 15 wins, 16 losses, 1 tie

Stinnet's Ninth Inning Homer, Lifts Yanks Over D'Backs

2006-04-01T07:28:00.000-08:00

Game date- 3/31/06

Yankees- 6, Diamondbacks- 5

W- Childers ( 2-0)
L- Valverde (0-1)

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-3 (1B)
SS- Jeter, 1-3 ( 1B, SB, RBI)
LF- Matsui, 1-4 (1B)
DH- Sheffield, 0-2 (BB, R)
3B- Rodriguez, 1-3 (1B)
1B- Giambi, 1-3 (2B)
C- Posada, 0-2
RF- Williams, 1-3 (1B, R)
2B- Cano, 2-3 (2 1B)

Other Yankee Batters:

CF- Crosby, 1-2 ( 2R, RBI, soloHR)
SS- Cairo, 0-0 (BB, R)
RF- Garcia, 0-1 (RBI)
3B- Johnson, 0-1
1B- Phillips, 0-1
C- Stinnet, 1-2 ( R, RBI, soloHR)
RF- Reese, o-1
SS- Escalona, 0-1

Yankee Pitching:

Wang- 7H, 3R, BB, 2K, 4IP
Farnsworth- 3H, 2R, BB, IP
Mendoza- H, K, IP
Myers- H, K, IP
Childers- H, 2BB, 2IP

Notes:

Stinnet and Crosby homered in late innings to help the Yankees comeback and win.

The game was played in Arizona at Chase Fields, as will the game today.

Yankee Record: 15 wins, 16 losses

Sheffield Homers, But the Yanks Fall to Tampa Bay

2006-03-30T13:45:00.000-08:00

Game date- 3/30/06

Devil Rays- 6, Yankees- 4

W- Colome (1-1)
L- Smith (0-1)
S- Childers (4)

Yankee Starting Lineup:

CF- Damon, 1-4 (1B, 2 SB, R)
SS- Jeter, 1-4 (1B, SB)
RF- Sheffield, 1-3 ( R, RBI, soloHR)
3B- Rodriguez, 0-3
LF- Matsui, 0-3
1B- Giambi, 0-0 (BB)
C- Posada, 1-2 ( 2B, RBI, BB)
DH- Williams, 0-4
2B- Cano, 0-3

Other Yankee Batters:

CF- Crosby, 0-1
LF- Garcia, 0-0 ( sacfly, RBI)
1B- Cairo, 2-2 (2 1B, R, BB)
C- Nieves, 0-1
1B- Phillips, 0-1
RF- Reese, 0-0 ( HBP, SB, R)

Yankee Pitching:

Mussina- 4H, 2R, 2BB, 4IP
Sturze- 2H, 2K, IP
Myers- 2H, R, K
Villone- IP
Mendoza- H, K, IP
Smith- 4H, 3R, K, IP

Notes:

Mussina was very shaky in his four innings of work, throwing way too many balls.

Posada was behind the plate today for the first time since his practice accident.

The Yanks leave Florida and go to Arizona to battle the Diamondbacks for their final two spring training games.

Yankee Spring Training Record: 14 wins, 16 losses