Uhhhhh...

(Photo courtesy of The AP)

Can somebody please explain to me what the fuck A.J. Burnett was doing out there last night?  Dude gets the first 2 outs, things are looking pretty good and then all of a sudden it was a goddamn home run derby!  Fastballs over the heart of the plate, flat curveballs over the heart of the plate.  He might as well have put it on a fucking tee!  Then the sad face and frustrated conversations with Jorge start on the mound and it was all over but the crying after that.

Final line for A.J. last night: 4 IP, 9 H, 7 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 3 HR.  In his last four starts he is 0-4 with a 10.35 ERA and a 2.00 WHIP thanks to 29 hits and 11 walks allowed in just 20 innings.  And to top of that shit sundae, 9 of those 29 hits have been home runs.  So basically A.J. is getting hit and he's getting hit hard right now.

But even more disconcerting than those numbers are some of the comments by A.J. and Jorge after the game last night, such as:

“I don’t feel like myself.  I’m not having fun right now. Who would during a stretch like this? The game’s supposed to be fun, and to come out and take the air out of your team right away for a handful of starts, it’s quite frustrating.” - A.J.

“Missed location.  What I’m seeing, I can’t see if it’s delivery or anything, I’m just seeing the location of the pitches is not where it’s supposed to be.” - Posada.

“I think by now I know how to correct it and I think earlier in the year I was correcting it.  I was slowing the game up, and I was able to get out of jams. Whether I’m trying too hard or everything is speeding up, it comes down to just remembering what it feels like to succeed and keep the positive thoughts rolling and eventually it will turn around.” - A.J.

Basically what that tells me is that neither of these 2 fucks has a clue what's wrong with A.J. right now.  All they know is that he isn't happy, he's missing his spots, and he should know how to correct the problem.  Other than that there is no helpful information or theories or suggestions coming from these guys or from anybody else on the team for that matter.  Without Dave Eiland around to coddle him, A.J. is like a little kid lost in the mall right now, just wandering around scared and alone, hoping his mommy comes to save him.

I can relate to A.J. not having fun out there on the hill because quite frankly it's not very fun as a Yankee fan to watch him pitch right now.  But spare me all the "keep the positive thoughts rolling and eventually it will turn around" crap.  It has nothing to do with positive thoughts, you asshole.  And even if it did, you just admitted that you don't have any positive thoughts because you're sad and mopey and not having fun.  So instead of waiting for some positive karma to change your fortunes, why don't you get in the clubhouse early, watch some game film, figure out where your mechanical issues are right now that are causing everything to tail over the plate, and fucking work the issues out!  Be a man, be a professional, and fix your shit.  It's that simple.

But I suppose a few positive thoughts here and there wouldn't hurt.