Game 83 Wrap-Up: NYY 7 MIN 3

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An already short and terrible bench got even shorter before last night's game when Joe announced that Jayson Nix was out with a tight hamstring and could miss a couple days.  The last thing the Yankees needed was to lose another position player, what with the amount of available reserves at a premium.  And maybe that was the reason they decided to not make a roster move to call somebody up before the game and only went with a 2-man bench.  Because that decision didn't really make a whole lot of sense to me, especially with Ivan Nova still unavailable after throwing that long relief session over the weekend.  But out they went, and win they did.

Game Notes:

- Strong start for Phil Hughes.  He gave up a run on a Joe Mauer single in the 3rd and looked primed for the big inning in the 4th after putting runners on second and third with nobody out.  But he got 2 straight strikeouts and a groundball out to escape without any further damage.

- He got picked up by his offense in the top of the 5th as a reward.  Alberto Gonzalez came up with runners on the corners and drove them both home with a double down the right field line, and Ichiro tacked one on with an infield single to make it 3-1.

- The Yanks really opened it up in the 7th.  A David Adams 1-out double and another Gonzalez hit scored 1 run, and a few batters later Robinson Cano put the game out of reach with a 2-out, 3-run HR.

- Hughes was solid after his 4th inning Houdini act.  He gave up just 1 hit and 1 walk in his final 3 innings of work and didn't allow a runner to reach second base.  Second straight really good outing for Phil.

- Bit of a rough go for Preston Claiborne in the 9th.  He got touched up for 2 runs and had to have Mariano Rivera come clean up his mess.  Worth it to give the regulars a night off though.

- 4 hits, 4 R scored, and 3 RBI from the 8-9 hitters, a 5th straight game of 2+ hits for Cano, and a second straight Yankee victory.  I'll take all that.


F*ck Yeahs:

- Hughes: 7 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 3 K.  Don't know if he's feeling the heat from Pineda and Nova; don't care.  The Yankees need Phil to be more consistent and pitch more games like this.  Wasn't dominant, and pitched like he was smart enough to realize he didn't have to be.

- Gonzalez: 2-4, 1 2B, 2 R, 3 RBI.  Have a day, Berto!

- Cano: 2-4, 1 HR, 1 R, 3 RBI, 1 LOB.  12 hit in his last 5 games, 4th HR in his last 3.  The guy is fully locked in again and not a moment too son.

Oh Nos:

- Brett Gardner: 0-5, 1 K, 2 LOB.  They can't all be winners.  And if the team can still knock out 10 hits and 7 runs without Gardner's help, that's not a bad thing.

Next Up:

Third game of this series takes place tonight and it's an initial battle as CC Sabathia takes on P.J. Walters.