No Jeter Today, But Maybe Tomorrow

Derek Jeter is eligible to come off the DL today, but won't do so.  Joe informed the media of that decision after last night's game, even though Jeter told reporters Friday that he felt ready to play and reported no problems with his quad (or ankle) after running the bases on Friday.

Instead, the plan, according to Jon Heyman, is for Jeter to play in a simulated game somewhere today and then be activated for tomorrow's game if he comes through the sim game healthy.  That would be a pretty big plus for Jeter and the Yankees after a slow start to his comeback from the quad strain.  Initially the July 27th date didn't even look close to the time he'd be ready to go again.  To only miss by 1 day would be a pleasant surprise, assuming Jeter can stay on the field for more than 1 game this time.

Game 103 Wrap-Up: TB 10 NYY 6

(Courtesy of the AP)

The excitement over Alfonso Soriano's return to New York last night, misplaced as it may have been, didn't last very long.  In fact, by the time he came up for his first at-bat to lead off the top of the 2nd inning, the game was already over thanks to CC Sabathia.  It was another miserable night on the mound for CC, whose lack of command led to 6 runs in the top of the 2nd and a cushion of more than enough runs for Tampa to coast to the finish line.

Game Notes:

- The strangest part about the 2nd inning meltdown was that it came after a sharp 1-2-3 1st for Sabathia, including strikeouts of Evan Longoria and Wil Myers.

- Once the 2nd started, however, it was a completely different story.  Just a constant barrage of fastballs and sliders left up in the zone and then deposited to various parts of the outfield.  3 doubles, 3 singles, a walk for good measure, and 6 runs.  The only reason the inning ended when it did was because Myers got greedy trying to stretch a single.

- The Yanks got a single run in 3rd on an Austin Romine RBI single.  They actually put 4 guys on base in the inning, but couldn't push any more across playing station-to-station baseball.

- CC gave up another run in the 5th and left with 7 earned on his scoring line.  Adam Warren came in to handle the mop-up duty and reserve the rest of the 'pen and gave up 3 runs (all on a 3-run HR in the 7th) in 4 innings of work.

- Give the Yankees credit for trying to make it respectable.  They tacked on 2 in the 8th and 3 in the 9th after Tampa starter Jeremy Hellickson left.  David Adams had an RBI single in each inning.

- If you're wondering about Soriano, he went 0-5 with a R scored and an RBI on a groundout in the 9th.  He left 6 men on base hitting from the cleanup spot, so clearly he's already got right back into doing things the Yankee Way.

Friday Afternoon Linkapalooza: 7/26/13

Well it's official, gang.  Operation "Finally Get Brad's Sorry Ass to the New Yankee Stadium" is underway.  The series has been settled on (Friday 9/6 through Sunday 9/8 vs. the Sawx; couldn't do the full 4 games), the flight has been booked, and 2 of the 3 games' tickets have been purchased.  Not sure how or if I'm even going to attempt to work that weekend into the blog, but I'll try to think of something that doesn't have at least a 75% chance of me standing over a beer-soaked laptop cursing at myself.  The important thing is I'll finally get to see it, I'll never have to say I've never been again, and if I'm lucky I'll get to see Mo pitch live one more time.  Good stuff.  Now onto the links!

- On Monday, el duque of It Is High... threw in the towel on the season and started musing on some interesting seller trade possibilities.

- William Juliano of The Captain's Blog looked at the historically bad drop-off in power for this year's team, if you wanted to know just how bad it really is.

- Derek Albin of Pinstripe Pundits made a very compelling case for a player I don't think I've seen mentioned as a trade target anywhere else.

On Wednesday, Mike Axisa of RAB discussed Robinson Cano's new contract in the context of Dustin Pedroia's extension and showed how there's little to be determined there.

- Martin Riggs of NoMaas pointed out the recent struggles of the rotation and how that's not exactly helping the weak lineup's cause right now.  The starting pitching has been much better since this post.

- Alex Pugliese of Yanks Go Yard explained why it's time to start worrying about CC Sabathia.  If the big fella doesn't turn it around tonight, I might have to agree.

- On Thursday, Jesse Schindler of Pinstriped Bible asked if Travis Hafner could be down to his last days as a Yankee.  With the way he's hitting, I wouldn't mind at all if he was.

- Michael Eder of IIATMS/TYA argued that the idea of a "rebuilding year" for the Yankees is not something they'll likely consider.

- On Friday, Chad Jennings of LoHud had the latest updates and video of Derek Jeter's rehab situation.  Sounds like Saturday could be a possibility for him.

- Daniel Burch of The Greedy Pinstripes, fresh from the Yanks officially adding Soriano, looked ahead to his next trade target.

- SG of RLYW, also fresh from the Soriano addition, looked back at the move and the big picture to explain why he hates the trade.

This Friday's jam is "Bagboy," the new song from The Pixies and the first new song they've released in almost forever.  New stuff from The Pixies is never a bad time.



Enjoy your weekends, everybody.

Signs Of Life From Romine

(Originally published at IIATMS/TYA)

To say Austin Romine was the surprise offensive star of the game yesterday would be more than appropriate.  He's swung the bat horribly since being called up and even after yesterday's big game his season batting line still stands at just .193/.212/.277 (.215 wOBA).  Yet there he was, getting his second start behind the plate in 3 days and going 3-4 with a pair of doubles and a run scored.  Add in his 1-3 day with another double, run scored, and RBI on Tuesday and it was a nice little series for Romine, who's quietly putting up a very good month in July in incredibly limited playing time.  He's still at just 87 total PA for the season, but a quick peak at Romine's monthly splits shows that he might be putting some things together.

Soriano Watch 2013 (Updated)

(Courtesy of US Presswire)

You'd think the Yankees were getting Alfonso Soriano in his prime the way it's getting covered right now.  That's how bad this offense is.  It's kinda funny actually.

The talks heated back up yesterday and Soriano was scratched from the Chicago lineup last night.  Manager Dale Sveum confirmed to the local media that a trade to New York was nearly complete, and according to Paul Sullivan, Soriano flew back to New York late last night, presumably to be in town for tonight's home game.  The hold up over the past few days was probably about money, and this morning Joel Sherman reported that the Yanks will pick up between 8-12 and the $25 million owed to Soriano.

As for the return trade piece, Buster Olney said yesterday that it was going to be a low-level pitching prospect.  There's no official confirmation of who that player is, but Sherman threw Corey Black's name out there.  Expect this deal to be announced sometime today with the missing bits of information filled in.

** UPDATE 8:32 AM- ESPN NY reporting that Soriano has officially waived his no-trade clause and the trade is official.  Cubs picking up $17.7 mil of the remaining money and the Yanks the other $6.8, $5 mil of which they will pay next year. **

** UPDATE 10:20 AM- Sherman now confirming that Corey Black will be the return trade chip.  Bit of a bummer to lose him.  He's got plus stuff and was pitching well this year.  Long-term he probably projects as a middle reliever for the Yankees though, so no major loss. **

Game 102 Wrap-Up: NYY 2 TEX 0

(Courtesy of the AP)

It hasn't been a strong stretch to the most important 10-game stretch of the year so far.  The Yankees entered today's series finale in Arlington 2-4 in their first 6 games and losing a third to the Rangers would have put them in a really bad spot heading home to face the red hot Rays.  Naturally, Joe went with quite possibly the worst lineup of the season to date, featuring no Brett Gardner, Brent Lillibridge hitting second, a 4-5-6 of Wells, Nunez, and Adams, and Austin Romine catching.  Needless to say, Hiroki Kuroda needed to be the man today.  He wasn't the man in the traditional sense of dominating the Rangers, but he did what he's done since he got here and won another huge game with a big pitching performance.

Game Notes:

- The leadoff man got on in each of the first 3 innings for the Yanks, and they never came close to doing anything with any of those chances against Texas starter Derek Holland, no slouch in his own right.

- A couple of loud outs early and a 2 on/1 out situation in the bottom of the 3rd for Hirok that he worked out of with a strikeout of Ian Kinsler and a groundout by Elvis Andrus.  At that point, Kuroda seemed to find his command.

- The Yanks wasted another leadoff runner in the 5th and looked ready to strand Romine after he started the 6th with a double.  Ichiro executed a good sac bunt to move Romine, and Lillibridge came through with a ribbie double to give Hirok the only run he would need.

- Kuroda walked a tightrope in the 6th, working around single, single, walk to the first 3 batters of the inning without allowing a run.  He finished up by dispatching the bottom half of the 7th with 3 grounders on 8 pitches.

- Big insurance run in the top of the 8th.  Robinson Cano hit a 1-out double and smallballed his way around to score on a single and a groundout.

- Joe didn't fool around and went with D-Rob and Mo for the 8th and 9th.  They rewarded him with 2 clean innings and rewarded Hiroki with a much-deserved victory.

Next Time On "As The Quads Strain"...

(Previously, tensions rose in Yankeeland.  Courtesy of USA Today)

Brian reveals Alex's betrayal to the agreement:

"Contrary to the Basic Agreement, Mr. Rodriguez did not notify us at any time that he was seeking a second opinion from any doctor with regard to his quad strain."

While Alex tries to smooth things over with his once supportive organization:

“I think the Yankees and I crossed signals. I don’t want any more mixups. I’m excited and ready to play and help this team win a championship I feel great and I’m ready and want to be in the lineup Fri night. Enough doctors, let’s play."

Does anybody mean what they say?  Are they just looking to stab each other in the back again?  Will the threat of a lifetime ban force Alex to make a deal with the devil?  And just what the hell is going on with Derek's legs?  Tune in next time to "As The Quads Strain."

The Price Of Lost Production

52 G, 216 PA, 6 HR, 23 R, 22 RBI, -0.6 fWAR

That's the combined offensive output of Derek Jeter, Curtis Granderson, Alex Rodriguez, Mark Teixeira, and Kevin Youkilis this season.  The Yankees are paying those 5 guys a combined $95.855 million in 2013, or a cool $443,773.15 per plate appearance, $4.168 million per run scored, or $15.976 million per home run.  It's a horse that's been beaten to death 10 times over, but that's a lot of production to lose for any team and a lot of money being paid to players who aren't helping the team.

Game 101 Wrap-Up: TEX 3 NYY 1

(Courtesy of the AP)

The A-Rod stuff off the field reached soap opera levels of ridiculousness yesterday afternoon, but the Yankees still had a job to do on the field.  Last night that job was against a former familiar face in Matt Garza, the Rangers big deadline pickup.  The opposing lineup looked a lot different, and easier to navigate, to him than he probably remembered, and the Yanks really could have used a bounce back night from Robinson Cano to take the pressure off the rest of the batting order.  Typically they've pounded Garza in the past.  With the lineups they continue to roll out, what's typical means nothing.

Game Notes:

- Tale of the Yankee season in the 1st.  Got the first 2 runners on, had 'em on the corners with 1 out, scored 0 runs in the top half.  Andy Pettitte puts 2 on and gives up a 2-out RBI single to a lefty hitter to make it 1-0 Rangers in the bottom half.

- Wasn't much doing for the Yankee offense after the 1st.  Garza retired 12 of the next 13 batters he faced through the 5th, the only blemish a Cano single to lead off the 4th.

- Garza was his own worst enemy in the 6th, throwing a ball away on a Brett Gardner single that allowed Gardner to get the third base.  Another Cano single got the Yanks on the board and tied the game.

- Andy settled down and put up zeros himself to give the Yankees the chance to tie, then left a slider up to A.J. Pierzynski - the same guy who singled in the run in the 1st - with 2 outs in the bottom of 6th that Pierzynski hit for the go-ahead HR.  Just a crushing blow.

- Pettitte was out after putting 2 on to start the 7th and Shawn Kelley allowed an insurance run on a solo HR in the 8th.  A quiet offensive finish put a bow on another punchless loss.

Did Joe Hurt Hughes' Trade Value Last Night?

(Courtesy of Getty Images)

(Originally published at IIATMS/TYA)

The main talking point from last night's game, besides the obvious one of how awesome a win it was, was Joe's decision to go to the hook quickly with Phil Hughes in the 6th inning.  With 2 outs, a runner on 1st, a 1-run lead, and Hughes at only 80 pitches, Joe had seen enough and went to Boone Logan to face lefty-hitting Mitch Moreland.  Moreland hit the second pitch he saw from Logan for a 2-run homer to deep center and the lead was blown, setting up the eventual 9th inning dramatics.

Personally, I think Joe made a bad call yanking Hughes and going to Logan when he did.  To me it was a classic case of the matchup binder winning out over what was happening on the field, and I thought the situation on the field gave Hughes (and Joe) enough wiggle room to allow him to face Moreland and take one more shot at ending an inning that should have already been over.  At the same time, I can understand why Joe made the move.  Hughes had given up 2 consecutive hits on balls up in the zone, he hadn't been all that sharp, and if Hughes gives up one more hit to blow the lead everybody is going to be killing Joe today for not going to the 'pen.  It was a lose-lose situation for him either way and unfortunately the decision he made turned out to be the wrong one.

Yanks Taking The "Innings Management" Approach With Michael Pineda. Why Didn't I See This Coming?

A small scare went up last night after Michael Pineda was removed from his latest Triple-A start after just 3 innings.  They were 3 solid innings, with no runs allowed, 3 hits, and 3 strikeouts, and his pitch count was only at 39.  After stating that they wanted to give him more time to stretch out his pitch count, Pineda was done after not even half of that count.  Not a good look.  Any possibility of an injury was quickly shot down by Brian Cashman's explanation that "innings management" was the reason for the early exit.

Of course.  After saying for over a month that I expected Pineda to come back (when he was fully ready) and be immediately inserted into the rotation, I never once considered the possibility of the Yankees actually taking the cautious approach I suggested way back in September of last year.  It's become the new flavor of the month branch-off of the modern "limiting the workload of young pitchers" school of thought, and looking at Pineda and his situation with the Yankees from 30,000 feet, it actually makes a lot of sense.

Jeter Resumes Baseball Activities

On Monday, we were told that Derek Jeter had been standing in a batter's box tracking pitches while guys threw their bullpen sessions.  Not exactly a strong indicator that he was going to be ready to come off the DL on Saturday when he's eligible or that he was even close to returning.  However, yesterday's pregame activities brought much better news as Jeter reportedly hit, took ground balls, and ran in the field during team batting practice.

From not moving and not even swinging a bat to basically full baseball activities in just a few days?  Sounds like it could be another push to get Jeter back on the field as quickly as possible.  You'd think the Yankees would have learned their lesson on that approach by now, but I guess at this point there's really nothing to lose.  It's 100 games into the season and I'm a firm believer that Jeter is going to be bothered by nagging little injuries like this quad strain from here on out.

The team has been getting some contributions from Nunez and Lillibridge lately but they could still use an upgrade.  Jeter can be that upgrade whenever he's cleared to play again so they might as well play him.  If he gets hurt again, at least they've got better backups available than what was there while Nunez was hurt.

Game 100 Wrap-Up: NYY 5 TEX 4

(Phil be bummin'.  Courtesy of the AP)

Blowing leads sucks.  Always has, always will.  It sucks even more when it happens this season because the Yankee offense is so weak it really can't be counted on to make a comeback.  Comeback wins are awesome, especially when they're on the road and in the 9th inning.  The Yankees haven't gotten to experience too many of those games this season due to the aforementioned offensive weakness.  Well Yankee fans got a little taste of both last night, in one of those games that makes you want to fold the tent on the season and one of those wins that leave you with just a little bit of hope that somehow this group can turn it around and make one more run.

Game Notes:

- Nice little 2-run inning for the Yankees in the top of the 3rd, started by Melky Mesa and Austin Romine's back-to-back doubles to lead off the inning.  Ichiro chipped in with an RBI single for the other run.

- They tacked on another in the 4th with some of the smallest smallball you can play.  Leadoff double by Vernon Wells, moved to 3rd on a sac fly, scores on a fielder's choice.  Yankee baseball, ladies and gentlemen!

- Phil Hughes avoided early trouble with a pair of inning-ending double plays and was generally OK through 5 innings.  He put a few guys on here and there but made pitches to get out of trouble.  That's usually a good sign with him.

- Whatever was working for him through 5 fell apart in the bottom of the 6th.  After a Brent Lillibridge error, Hughes gave up an RBI double to Adrian Beltre and an RBI single to Elvis Andrus on pitches left up in the zone, and then just like that his night was over.

- Hughes was only at 80 pitches, but Joe didn't like what he saw and went to Boone  Logan to face Mitch Moreland.  Nobody liked what they saw after Moreland hit the second pitch he saw from Logan for a 2-run homer to give the Rangers the lead.  Really no explanation or justification for Joe's decision there.  He blew it.

- Somehow, someway, after being retired 15 batters straight since the 4th, the Yankee offense managed to come back in the top of the 9th.  Wells got it started with a walk, moved to second on a Joe Nathan wild pitch, and scored on an Eduardo Nunez RBI triple to tie it.  Lillibridge followed up with a single and it was Mo time.

- Strikeout, strikeout, groundout.  12 pitches, 8 strikes.  Day at the office.

Waiting For The Other (Horse)Shoe To Drop

(Courtesy of Steve Nesius)

I've made a point to keep the Alex Rodriguez steroid talk to an absolute minimum on AB4AR.  I think it's boring and I don't think it serves any purpose other than to give the irrational A-Rod haters reason to blab, but in light of what went down yesterday with Ryan Braun and what the implications now are for A-Rod, I think it's appropriate to talk about it now.

Yanks Closing In On Soriano

It's not a blockbuster move by any means, but it's more than the small, replacement-level moves the Yankees have been making all year, so that's something.  According to George King of The Post, the Yankees are close to finalizing a deal with the Chicago Cubs for outfielder and former Yankee Alfonso Soriano.  The Cubs are reported to be paying almost all of Soriano's remaining salary through next season so as not to affect the Yankees' 2014 payroll plans and New York is expected to send back a mid-level prospect in return.

I wrote about Soriano way back in December and touched on him again in February and nothing has really changed since then.  He's hitting .256/.286/.471 (.323 wOBA) with 17 HR this season and has been really hot in the month of July.  He still registers as an above-average corner outfielder and he hits left-handed pitching (.346 wOBA/116 wRC+ in 118 PA against LHP this season).  With the Yankees still starving for righty power, this is a move that makes sense.  It's also one that does little to elicit any real emotion.

On the one hand, the Yankees sound like they're close to addressing a major need and I look like I'm going to be right with at least one of my predictions from last week.  On the other, they'll be adding another 30-something guy on a multi-year deal who's basically a glorified platoon player.  That sheds a little light on what their strategy might be heading towards the deadline and it's not exactly an inspiring move.

Game 99: TEX 3 NYY 0

(Courtesy of the AP)

If you were too distracted by the Ryan Braun stuff and the conspiracy theory wheels turning about what it means for A-Rod, you didn't miss much.  The Yankees pretty much no-showed against a returning Yu Darvish and the Texas Rangers in the opening game of this 4-game series.  The fade is really starting to set in with this crew.  If no serious moves are made in the next 9 days, you can put a bow on the season.

Game Notes:

- Tough start for Ivan Nova.  In more ways than 1.  He gave up an RBI single in the bottom of the 1st after a clearly blown safe call on an Ian Kinsler stolen base.  It would be the only run Texas needed.

- Darvish didn't look to be missing anything after his DL trip, or maybe the Yankee lineup just sucks that bad.  The only baserunner he allowed through the first 4 innings was Brett Gardner on a leadoff HBP.

- Actually not a bad outing for Nova.  He was in and out of trouble all night but managed to keep the deficit at just 1 through 5 innings.  If he could have thrown a few more early strikes it could have been a different night for him.

- Nova seemed to tire in the 6th, giving up a second run on a walk and a double, and then came out and surrendered the insurance in the bottom of the 7th when he left a fastball up to Nelson Cruz that Cruz creamed for a HR to center.

- The Yanks put 2 on in the 5th against Darvish, but that was all.  He was out after 6 and they didn't generate anything against the Texas bullpen.  9 innings, 28 at-bats, 3 hits.  All of them were singles.   Pathetic.

Yankees Need More From CC Sabathia

(Looks like a man searching for answers.  Courtesy of the AP)

Stop me if you've heard this one before.  CC Sabathia walks onto a pitching mound, struggles to command his fastball, and gets knocked around for a bunch of hits and runs.  It's been a common theme for CC from his first start this season to last night's stinker and it's starting to become a major problem for the rotation and the team.  His diminished velocity is old news at this point, and whether his command problems are due to natural age-related regression, a change in mechanics, an undisclosed injury, or a combination of the 3 is irrelevant.  What matters is that CC is 21 starts into the season and showing no signs of improving his game as he adjust to life without the plus heater.  In fact, he's gotten worse as the season has gone on.

As The Quads Strain...

(Originally published at IIATMS/TYA)

The Yankees lost an absolute heartbreaker in Boston last night, a game in which their offense surprisingly picked itself up off the mat and climbed back into a game that they probably had no business being in.  If there was a tougher way to send the team off to Texas to possibly watch their postseason lights get turned out, I'd hate to see it.  Look around the locker room after the game and there would have been plenty of worthy candidates for the finger of blame, including the guy in the manager's office, and after a loss like that what is everybody in Yankeeland going to be talking about today?  A couple of old guys with strained quads.

MiL Rehab Roundup: 7/22/13

Another day, another batch of injury updates.  Not even sure if it's fair to call this a "MiL" rehab post since nobody in it is officially participating in any MiL games but whatever.

Derek Jeter- Reportedly stood in the batter's box and tracked pitches against Andy and Phil the other day.  Not exactly strong "baseball-related activities."  No timetable for this return yet.

Alex Rodriguez- Same story.  Official diagnosis is a Grade I quad strain.  All we know at this point is that he's not coming back for the Texas or Tampa series.

Curtis Granderson- Has been taking real BP for at least a few days.  Next step is sim games.

Francisco Cervelli- Has been doing throwing drills for about a week and started taking dry swings with a bat last week.  Still a while away, but no more reported issues with his hand or elbow.

David Phelps- Been throwing bullpen sessions in Tampa without issue.  The plan is for him to make a rehab appearance on Tuesday.

Jayson Nix- Played in a sim game yesterday according to Joe.  Seems like the closest to returning.  Yaaaayyyyyy...

Game 98 Wrap-Up: BOS 8 NYY 7

(Courtesy of the AP)

With the Jeter and A-Rod injury winds howling in Yankeeland, the best thing they could have done was get a win to get out of Boston with a series victory.  They had CC Sabathia on the mound coming off an extended rest over the break, they had the very hittable Ryan Dempster starting for the Sawx, and they had the same lineup that started to get some things going on Saturday out there again.  The talk about what's going on off the field has overtaken the talk about the on-the-field issues over the last few days, which may not be a bad thing for this group.  After last night's results, I think that's probably going to change.

Game Notes:

- It was a quick start for the Yankee offense, thanks to more bad D by the Sawx.  Dempster and Jarrod Saltalamacchia each threw balls away in the top of the 1st that led to 2 runs, but as is usually the case nowadays the rally died in the middle of the batting order.

- CC worked around baserunners in the first 2 innings.  He couldn't work around a Jacoby Ellsbury leadoff double in the 3rd.  Dustin Pedroia singled him in to get Boston on the board and help drive up CC's pitch count.

- His slider was diving off the table, but CC's command of both his fastballs was off and it started to get worse in the 3rd.  He was leaving balls over the plate and up in the zone and it really bit him on a 3-run home run by Mike Napoli to give the Sawx a 4-3 lead.

- While CC continued to get knocked around for 3 more runs through the 5th, the offense disappeared against Dempster.  After needing 50 pitches to get through the first 2 innings, he only needed a handful over 30 to get through the next 3.

- The lineup finally knocked Dempster out in the 6th and pulled within 2 on a bunch of singles.  But for every positive offensive action there is an equal and opposite reaction these days and in the 6th it was a Lyle Overbay first-pitch swinging, inning-ending double play.

- After tying it up in the 7th, the Yankees looked poised to take the game in the late innings.  They left at least one runner on base in each of the final 3 frames, including another Overbay GIDP.

- Bullpen did all they could through 10.  Major props to Shawn Kelley for his work, but it made no sense that he was in before Mo.  It made even less sense that Adam Warren got the ball in the 11th and he gave up the walk-off loser to Napoli.

Trade Deadline Prep Week Recap

The trade deadline is just 10 days.  The Yankees are starting to carve out their position in the market and for once it's not a strictly buyer position.  The immediate and short-term futures of this organization can be changed in the next week plus and there are a lot of things that could play out, some outcomes more realistic than others.  If you missed any of the prep posts from this past week at AB4AR, here they are again:

Monday- The Needs

Tuesday- The Targets

Wednesday- The Rumors

Thursday- The Pipe Dreams

Friday- The Predictions

Problem With A-Rod? (Updated)

As first reported by almost the entire beat writer contingent and just confirmed by the RailRiders themselves, Alex Rodriguez will not be in the lineup today on what was supposed to be the final day of his rehab assignment before being activated off the Major League DL tomorrow.  This comes after A-Rod was forced to DH yesterday instead of playing third base due to tightness in his left quad.  Rodriguez went 0-4 with 3 strikeouts in that game and now it appears that this quad could be more problematic than first thought.

It's too early to tell right now, but all signs are pointing towards A-Rod not being activated for tomorrow's game in Texas.  The Yankees are already going through a tricky quad injury with Derek Jeter and they were quick to put him on the DL on Friday morning when they had the opportunity.  They'd look pretty foolish trying the same thing with A-Rod and having him wind up back on the DL too.  I'm sure we'll get more from the team about this as the day goes on.  I don't expect it will be good news.

** UPDATE 11:58 AM- Via Joel Sherman, A-Rod is going back to NY today to get an MRI on the quad.  Not a good sign. **

** UPDATE 6:55 PM- Directly from the team itself, A-Rod has been officially diagnosed with a Grade I quad strain and will not be traveling to Texas to join the team tomorrow.  He will instead go back to Tampa for rest and treatment, and with his 20-day rehab window expired the Yanks may have to get creative to get him back ready to play. **

Game 97 Wrap-Up: NYY 5 BOS 2

(Yankee defensive play of the game.  Maybe of the year.  Courtesy of the AP)

It was an ugly start to the Yankees' second half on Friday night.  Their starting pitching wasn't great, their offense wasn't good at all, and they dropped another game in the postseason race.  Things got worse earlier yesterday when they lost another player - Zoilo Almonte - to the DL and made some moves to call up more scraps to add to the heap.  They needed something good yesterday to get a little positive momentum going, a win perhaps, and they had the right guy on the mound to help get it done in Hiroki Kuroda.  He showed up in a big way today and in a much appreciated change of pace he got some offensive support on his way to his 9th win of the season (still not enough for Jim Leyland).

Game Notes:

- The offense had a few chances early.  Brett Gardner led off the game with an infield single and got doubled off on an Ichiro lineout, and they couldn't come through with runners on second and third in the 2nd.

- Hirok was up to the challenge of covering them though.  He worked around a HBP in the first thanks to some bad baserunning by Daniel Nava and had his fastball and slider working really well early.

- The Yanks blew another opportunity in the 5th when Eduardo Nunez was thrown out trying to score on a grounder to third.  John Lackey helped redeem them by throwing a wild pitch to move Luis Cruz to second and Gardner capitalized with an RBI single to give New York a 1-0 lead.

- The smallball success continued in the top of the 7th against a tiring Lackey.  Nunez doubled, moved to second on a Chris Stewart groundout, and scored on a single by Cruz.  Another single by Gardner put 2 on with 1 out and 1 in to end Lackey's day.

- Kuroda helped his cause covering the plate on a passed ball in the 5th to keep the game scoreless, then hurt it with a wild pitch in the 7th that allowed a second run to score.  Still, 2 runs in 7 against the Sawx and handing it over to D-Rob and Mo is a job well done.

- D-Rob and Mo handled things easily in the final 2 frames, thanks in part to a spectacular catch-throw double play by Chris Stewart to end the 8th, and the Yanks evened up the series.

A New Roster Move Low Has Been Reached

That's how I feel right now.  Like Lloyd Christmas in "Dumb And Dumber."  When Zoilo Almonte hurts his ankle and hits the DL and his replacement is Melky Mesa and his 36.7% K rate in Triple-A fresh off the Triple-A DL, and Alberto Gonzalez is being DFA'd to clear a spot for the return of Thomas Neal to do the righty DH duties, that's when I've had enough with this dump.  Non-stop injuries and non-stop terrible injury replacements.  It's reaching comically-bad levels of low now.  Just as uninspiring as uninspiring gets.

Joe's Old Mother Hubbard and he's just got nothing in the cupboard.  It wouldn't shock me if A-Rod's entire body just separated from itself in his final rehab AB tonight and one of Jeter's legs fell off.  At least it's not all bad news.  Still got that Overbay-Wells-Hafner trio locking down the 4-6 spots in the order...

P.S.- Yep, absolutely mixed in a slight "Major League 2" reference just lines after the "D&D" one.  And I did it with a hangover, a possible seasonal allergy attack, and a charred hand.  No DL trips for this guy though.  Rub a little dirt on it and get back out there.

Game 96 Wrap-Up: BOS 4 NYY 2

(Courtesy of the AP)

Second half started the same way the first half ended, with the Yankee pitchers giving up untimely home runs to dig a whole for the offense and the hitters doing little to try to climb out.  Same shit, different day.  Do I even need to recap that?

F*ck Yeahs:

- Nobody: Maybe Brett Gardner for scoring a run on his own with a bunch of stolen bases, but he got tossed early for throwing his helmet after a bad third strike call and he didn't get a hit.  Nobody had more than 1 hit.

Oh Nos:

- Andy Pettitte: 6.1 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 4 K.  Another so-so outing for Andy, who looks very much like a 41-year-old pitcher on his last legs and likely will for the remainder of the season.  4 runs shouldn't be a guaranteed loss but it is these days and that's the number of runs he always seems to give up.  Putting his team down 3-0 on 2 early HR in the first 2 innings was not helpful at all.

Next Up:

Second game of the series is this afternoon, on FOX I believe.  Hiroki Kuroda and John Lackey are the starting pitchers.