Don't Sleep On Clay Rapada

(Raise your hand if you thought this guy would be on the roster all season.  Courtesy of Getty Images)

Enough time has passed for me to get over Loone Bogan's 7th-inning bed shitting incident the other night.  In the end, it didn't cost the Yankees any ground in the division race and they still left the Twin Cities with a series victory.  What is still a serious problem is Logan's workload and the negative impact it now seems to be taking on his effectiveness.  Logan is the no-doubt #1 lefty in Joe's trusty bullpen binder, but he's been used so much that I almost have to question bringing Logan into big lefty-on-lefty situations with how out of gas he appears to be.  While Logan has been run into the ground over the course of the season, Clay Rapada has quietly continued to go about his business, and go about it quite well, as the designated #2 LOOGY.  In an attempt to get Logan some much needed rest, and to not risk blowing leads in tight games in the season's final week, it might be time to go to Rapada.

Teix Starts Running

Via Mike Axisa:

"... the first baseman has resumed running as he works his way back from his left calf strain."

Fuck yeah!  That's good news.  The calf must be feeling good.  Maybe there's a chance Teix can make it back by the end of the season.  Hit the music!

Game 155 Wrap-Up: NYY 8 MIN 2

(A million dollars says Joe wanted to bring in Logan there.  Courtesy of the AP)

Alright now I know the Twins are just trolling me.  Comic book character Hendriks, fine.  Spanish-language TV soap opera star Vasquez, OK.  But then they rolled out some schmuck named Sam Deduno yesterday afternoon to face CC Sabathia in the series finale and that's where I draw the line.  3 guys in a row that I've never heard of?  That's next to impossible, and my good friends who know how fanatical I am about sports would back me up on that.  The deck was stacked against old Sammy yesterday against a resurgent CC, and that was before he started having problems with his eyes.  This one was over early, folks.  Just the kind of win the Yankees need to close a series.

Game Notes:

- Deduno didn't make it out of the 2nd, but the Yankee offense had nothing to do with it.  He worked a 1-2-3 1st, and then left after walking 2 batters in the 2nd with "eye irritation."  That's a new one, and the lefty-heavy Yankee lineup suddenly had Brian Duensing to deal with.

- They didn't waste much time dealing with him, throwing a 6-spot on the scoreboard in the top of the 3rd.  Chris Dickerson got things started with a 2-strike single and the next 7 batters after him all reached base.  The big hits belonged to Robinson Cano (2-run double) and Curtis Granderson (2-run triple), which was nice to see given the way they've scuffled lately.

- CC gave up 1 cheap run in the 2nd on a couple of singles, and then allowed just 1 more hit through 6 innings after getting staked to the big lead in the 3rd.  Like he did in his last start, CC started with his fastball in the low 90s and worked up to the mid and had an absolutely killer slider.

- Funny/stupid moment in the 5th when Eric Chavez forgot how many outs there were and started jogging off the field after making the second out at third base.  No harm done, although CC did have to throw 4 more pitches.

- A 5-run lead was plenty for CC with the way he was pitching, but Dickerson decided to add a 2-run HR for good measure in the 6th.  Dude is making the most of his limited ABs since getting called up, and could be doing himself a favor with the OF situation in question next year.

- Sabathia allowed another cheap run in the bottom of the 7th after giving up 3 straight 2-out singles, the last one deflecting off his leg and into right field, but he was absolutely stellar in his 8 innings of work.

- Stat of the game- Joe Mauer saw 10 pitches against Sabathia.  He struck out on the first 9 and then grounded out on the 10th.  That's pure ownership.