A similar refrain from Johnny Damon

Damon is without doubt a valuble component in our lineup. When he is hitting, stealing bases and giving the pitcher fits, it helps the entire offense. Especially now that we don't have A Rod or Posada to drive the ball out of the park, we need small ball to score runs.

It's from Wang's home, Taiwan. I like to watch Damon in the games. He is a great player. We always see his smile during those games. Damon knows what he need to do in the team. We wish he could keep playing for Yankees.

Its play like that which makes Matsui very expendable.

Its play like that which makes Matsui very expendable.

I do't think we should deal away Matsui just yet. He has been one of the best bats on our lineup and has done well as DH. We don't need to shop him around at the deadline. Teams are going to want him and will come at Cashman in July. Maybe we will deal him then, but we don't need too and shouldn't unless we get real value in return.

Damon has been pretty awesome as of late. After the season is over however, I'd like to see him and Matsui go but that will never happen.

Matsui is probably our best trading pieces and we need pitching bad.

YANKEES MINOR LEAGUE SCOREBOARD May 3, 2008

Durham (Rays) 8
Scranton/WB 15
W: J. Marquez (2-4, 7.47); L: M. Prochaska (1-2, 9.00)
HR: DUR: J. Rodriguez (5), D. Johnson (2), J. Weber (2), M. DiFelice (1). SWB: J. Christian (1).
http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?gid=2008_05_03_dubaaa_swbaaa_1&t=g_box&did=milb
Portland (Red Sox) 3
Trenton 6
W: A. Claggett (1-0, 0.00); L: M. Asencio (1-2, 4.20); SV: J. Cox (1)
HR: TRE: C. Curtis (2).
http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?gid=2008_05_03_prtaax_treaax_1&t=g_box&did=milb
Jupiter (Marlins) 0
Tampa 5
W: A. Aceves (3-1, 2.60); L: G. Taylor (4-2, 3.40)
HR: TAM: J. Calzado (1).
http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?gid=2008_05_03_jupafa_tbyafa_1&t=g_box&did=milb
Charleston 8
Hickory (Pirates) 2
W: A. Olbrychowski (2-2, 3.94); L: D. Molleken (2-2, 4.68)
HR: CHA: B. Baisley (2), J. Snyder (2), D. Williams (2). HIC: M. Davis (5), E. Huber (5).
http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?gid=2008_05_03_crdafx_hicafx_1&t=g_box&did=milb
You may also see http://www.yankeesdaily.com for details.

YANKEES MINOR LEAGUE SCOREBOARD May 4, 2008

Durham (Rays)
Scranton/WB 1:30PM
---------------------------------
Portland (Red Sox)
Trenton 1:05PM
---------------------------------
Jupiter (Marlins)
Tampa 1PM
---------------------------------
Charleston 3PM
Hickory (Pirates)
---------------------------------
You may also see http://www.yankeesdaily.com for details.

This offense is a beautiful thing to watch when flowing on all cylinders.

A-kei Igawa will start against Detroit not Kennadia? Cashman's angle suggests trade.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3380856

For someone who is struggling, Giambi sure is walking alot.

How about this? Rasner has pitched 6 innings of 2 run ball. Maybe it's a flash in the pan, maybe he is earning a spot in the rotation.

He did the same thing last year against Seattle.

Anytime you say your leaning towards something as a GM, it means, well, we're working on something else but we can't tell you before it happens.

Guys, Matsui is not going anywhere, and if he does go somewhere, it's going to be to a team that can afford him AND has good pitching. -- WOW -- WHAT A CATCH BY DAMON! -- Back to topic. Some teams we could hook up with are :

Indians: Cliff Lee, Sabathia ( Final Year )
Giants: Johnathan Sanchez, Matt Cain
Blue Jays: Burnett, Marcum
Angels: Lackey, Santana
A's: Joe Blanton, Santiago Casilla, Huston Street
D'Backs: Scherzer, Lyon
M's: Morrow, Hernandez

Feel free to add anymore suggestions.

Kudos to the following:

Ensberg
Molina
Moeller

Even though I didn't mention the regulars in that list,the purpose is to give guys who had to come up on short notice and do a good job in absence of our guns, Posada and A-Rod.

By the way, Rasner is our number five guy from here on. Kennedy is gone to Triple A, a couple days after the Yanks said they were in no rush to demote him. Hmm... trade in the works?

I'm glad to see Rasner pitch well, I had a feeling he would and is the reason why we didn't need to search the FA market. Who knows how long Phil has been hurting and hopefully it's been a while so when he comes back he can just jump into the swing of things again and pitch like he did last year for us. BD those three players and add in Alby Gonzalez in there and our young guys have really stepped up for us when we need to stay afloat. Players like Cano will turn around and have a solid season, who knows about Giambi, but if Shelly Duncan can pick his play up a bit he could really help this club. When we get all our players back we should be firing on all cylinders and take the Red Sux down off their high perch. I'm not as worried as some because this is a better start than last year and nobody in the AL East is running away with it while we struggle.

BD, either a trade or Clemens/Wells. It is obvious from the way Cash answered the question. It was same when Cash said Betemit, Phillips and Crosby would start, none did.

You I am not neccesarily advocating for Wells but I know how the Yankees think...short term, I would prefer Clemens, Clemens could be used in the pen when Joba comes back as a starter. Farnsworth is gonna be the setup guy, we're remolding him.

Anyone alarmed by USC/Redskins TE Fred Davis missing persons case, he has been located.

Farnsworth is looking like a potentially effective set up man. I hope he doesn't blow up soon like we all have seen him do in the past.

We served the Mariners without Arod, Posada and others. Giambi's not hitting but I give him credit for all the walks. On base can = runs.

We also beat two of the game's premier pitchers in Felix Hernandez and Erik Bedard. Carlos Silva is no slouch either, but the first two are certifiable team aces and we were able to survive against Bedad thanks to sucky fielding behind him and really get to Hernandez who is a strikeout machine and inning eater. This could be a turnaround series, bring on the Indians.

YANKEES MINOR LEAGUE SCOREBOARD May 4, 2008

Durham (Rays) 5
Scranton/WB 9
W: K. Igawa (3-3, 3.86); L: C. Mason (1-4, 4.94)
HR: DUR: R. Brignac (3). SWB: J. Lane (7), C. Ransom (5).
http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?gid=2008_05_04_dubaaa_swbaaa_1&t=g_box&did=milb
Portland (Red Sox) 2
Trenton 3
W: Z. Kroenke (2-0, 2.38); L: H. Jones (0-1, 1.47)
HR: TRE: C. Malec (2).
http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?gid=2008_05_04_prtaax_treaax_1&t=g_box&did=milb
Jupiter (Marlins) 1
Tampa 9
W: I. Nova (1-5, 4.13); L: J. Santos (2-1, 4.02)
HR: None.
http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?gid=2008_05_04_jupafa_tbyafa_1&t=g_box&did=milb
Charleston 8
Hickory (Pirates) 1
W: Z. McAllister (4-1, 0.92); L: R. Delossantos (1-2, 4.55)
HR: CHA: J. Montero (4), B. Baisley (3).
http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?gid=2008_05_04_crdafx_hicafx_1&t=g_box&did=milb
You may also see http://www.yankeesdaily.com for details.

Bpark, who do you think the Yankees are going to bring in? I don't think it's Clemens or Wells, but rather by trade. If so, who the heck are we trading? Kennedy certainly has hurt his value, and we don't have a starting pitcher tommorow! Isn't Pettitte supposed to go out there in the four spot? These Yankees are truely mysterious at times.

We have an off day tomorrow. Pettite should be our starter Tuesday, and then I guess we will bring Wang back on normal rest.

I am happy to see Rasner pitch well. I hope he can keep it up. On another subject I think it was a mistake to send Kennedy down. Ian needs experience at the big league level and sending him down may hurt his confidence and make him press more when he returns. They should have just let him pitch and let him mature at this level.

http://myteamrivals.typepad.com/thebronxdaily/

http://myteamrivals.typepad.com/yankeesredsox/

If I had to guess I would say a pitcher from Oakland.

Clemens is more plausible than Wells, Gammons said we've had discussions about Clemens lately.

Does anybody actually think Roger Clemens will be useful to this club? Sure he may win 5-6 games, but he'll lose at least that many. He will be no more effective than Kennedy or Igawa can be. I'd rather see someone on our current payroll pitch and possibly earn their paycheck rather than throw more money at an old cheat who is washed up. We all knew this would be a season that prepared our youngsters for the future and when the hiccup they have to battle through it, sending Kennedy down only hurts. Big League hitters take the pitches just off the plate while AAA hitters may not, Kennedy will be the same pitcher when he comes back until he pitches more innings with the big club. By sending him down it seems like they're giving up on him. Rasner looked very strong walking nobody and picking up four strikeouts, and we could keep a rotation of Wang, Rasner, Pettitte, Musina, Kennedy until Hughes comes off the DL, to me that's much more attractive than any rotation that involves one of the fat washed up has-beens Clemens or Wells.

Maybe Kennedy gets a start in AAA then gets recalled to make his May 10th start? I'd rather see Kennedy get the ball then Kei Igawa.

As for White, which matt pointed out, well we have never really seen what he can do in the Majors. Maybe he can hold down the fort and be a no.5 starter. With the lack of alternatives the Yanks may give him a shot. Cashman will try to get Igawa going because of the money, but if Igawa gets crushed than we will need someone to step up.

Personally I prefer recalling IPK because he is part of the future. If we let him work through his problems he will be a horse in our rotation for many years to come.

BPark,
Really you need to stop. Perhaps you missed the part where I said that Wells hasn't thrown a ML pitch this season? He was fat and old back when he was fat and old. Now, with all that inactivity? Maybe we should talk to Gooden too? Can he play with a tracking bracelet around his ankle? Clemens isn't going to give us any more than Igawa or Rasner or White or anyone. He didn't last year. He's 45 years old. How long do you think he would actually be effective? Maybe we can pick up El Duque too? He hasn't pitched all year either.
Rasner has earned his next start. He gave us everything we could have wanted. In case no one noticed, after the first inning he was next to stellar, even getting himself out of trouble in the 4th. Andy's got his hands full tonight but he can do it. And I think as long as Damon stays healthy, he'll stay on this team. Giambi is done with us after this year. Duncan will hopefully mature into our everyday 1b-man. Matsui and Damon can share LF/DH.

I think that Kennedy is further away than most of you. He is mentally shot. He is the reason that sports psychologists earn big bucks. His confidence is gone, completely. To have him say in public what he did, even Michael Kay and Bobby Murcer couldn't believe it. You just don't do that.
He'll need to rattle off some seriously strong outings at SWB to even begin to think about pitching up on the big club again. If he comes back and throws another couple of stinkers in the Bronx, he'll be lost for the season if not longer. And I don't think you can blame this one on anyone but IPK, not Joe, no Cashman, not Hank. They all thought what we did. IPK was goign to be a valuable part of our rotation in 2008. Go maybe 20-25 starts (or 25-30 with limited innings) and give us some .500 ball, maybe a tick above. That isn't happening this year. If he's not treated right, he may never pitch again in the bigs. Someone whose confidence is shaken that badly is a ticking time bomb.

THURSDAY THURSDAY THURSDAY THURSDAY!!!!

Looking more like Thurday's starter is going to be Moose. I'm fine with that. He's pitched well of late and seems to have found a good combination of pitches. However, Joe DID say that they might give him extra rest too.....

I'm hoping that some of you here (obsportsgirl for instance!) can give me some advice. We're driving down to New Rochelle Wednesday afternoon for the night. We'll likely take the train to the stadium rather than drive. What time will the park open? Can we get there early for BP? Are there good places to go for autographs (with ARod out, he'll have plenty of time to sign my son's ball!) This is my first ever trip to the mecca and my dad's first in well over 50 years. Any help or assistance would be great! Feel free to email me or reply here. Thanks!!

I think bpark throws around the name "Clemens" just to tick people off. The Yankees would be STUPID to waste money on Roidger (maybe they could pay him with other people's ex-wives and 15 year old girls?). Not only would he NOT even match the abysmal effort he put forth last season, but his signing would be PR suicide. Our reputation and legacy have already been tarnished quite enough over the last several years recycling a looooooong list of drug abusers, drunks, and CHEATS. Why would we want to endure so much scrutiny for a guy that can't hope to get it done anymore? While I used to value his opinion, I am starting to think that bpark is FULL OF CRAP. The constant barrage of transactions, trades, and signings that he speculates about (none of which EVER come to fruition) are TIRED. The Yankees need to separate themselves from Roidger Clemens' 5 TENT CIRCUS as much as humanly possible. Check it out, Roidger Clemens will never pitch for us, or anyone else for that matter, ever again. HE'S FINISHED.

I would be surprise to see Kennedy back by March 10th if at all this year. I am waiting to hear how Clemens didn't help us come back from 15 and 1/2 back to our final record. To say Igawa is a better mentor to Hughes is plain ridiculous.

You got Rasner at 2 ahead of Pettitte after 1 start?

Oh, and I did some back checking on the blog, Bpark. You, Sir, can kiss my hairy butt. Frankly, I don't have to be a fan of ANY single player to be a fan of this team. I can't stand Barak Hussein or Hitler-y Clinton, but I still LOVE my country. I don't have much use for my drunk Uncle Tony, but I still love my family. If my ability to love this team was governed by liking each individual player, I would have moved on 20 years ago. I question YOUR loyalty to the team, jackass. Do you have even a f-ing clue as to what Clemens has done to damage the Yankees' legacy? Or does your man-crush on his fatass prevent you from seeing past year 2000? Just quit while you are behind, bpark. Stop proposing pitching rotations comprised of 50 year old hacks with NOTHING left in the tank. Noone wants to see your rotation of Roidger Clemens, Randy Johnson, David Wells, Jimmy Key, and Billy Crystal. It's not amusing anymore. In fact, it's sad. You are losing credibility by the post. Your posts are so counter-productive that I can't seem to get off of them. You do know that we just swept the Mariners right? We just punked their 3 best pitchers, 2 of which would be staff ACES on nearly any team. You did see Rasner come in and do pretty damned good? You did see us score runs like gangbusters SANS our 2 most prolific hitters? No, you probably didn't, because you would have to come off of Clemens' zipper long enough to look around. It's 2008, bpark, not 1998. All these old tubbies you are pimping are DONE. Maybe you are OK with Clemens' infamy being associated with this team, but I am not. Frankly, any a-hole willing to look the other way just because Clemens was wearing pinstripes while he CHEATED the game is a DISGRACEFUL fan of baseball, and should be ashamed of themselves. Let me bottom line this for you. No one is comfortable admitting that the best hitter of all time, and (argueably) the best righty of all time tried to stop the hands of time by using PEDs. It sucks. BUT, the faster we can collectively swallow the bitter pill, and MOVE ON, the better off we will be. This means you, bpark. Do everyone a favor: stop posting your Clemens nonsense.

bpark, by throwing .500 ball? He went 6-6 in 17 starts. That means that he got 5 ND's. Blame those on whomever you want but we were playing lights out ball. If he was so valuable to us and we were playing that good a game, why wasn't he 10-2?

Why Clemens didn't help us in 2007?

How about a 6-6 record, a 4.18 era, a 4.47 era vs. American League opposition; and a 2.1 innings pitched, 11.57 era, no decision in the ALDS? All of this for the bargain basement price of 30 million dollars (pro-rated of course).

I'm curious what Kennedy said? I didn't see it anywhere. Was it frustration? I'd have been a little ticked too after seeing a story saying "Yankees in no hurry to demote Kennedy" then doing it two days later... I mean yes this is the Bigs and if that's what they want, well that sucks but oh well... ya can't blame the kid for being upset with the whole thing... but he'll be fine. I think he was doing ok, not good but not horrible like Igawa did last year. He was not getting a lot of run support but who has been lately?

Rasner did well, so proud of him. They tried and got him early but he showed poise and 'settled down' as they like to say so much... He can really do no worse than Huhges or Kennedy have been doing so far, so until he gets lit up, he's just as good at #5.

No way do we need Clemens or Wells or any other iffy pitcher. I'd rather have Brad Penny than either of those old fellas. Their better days are far behind them. Clemens could give us what, maybe 5? The only reason you even entertain him is because of his grit, but even grit doesn't take you far if your mechanics are bad/going.

Golf, in bpark's eyes he DID. Never mind the constant hamstring, blister, knee, and softicity of the wang problems he had right when we needed him most. Q: What happens when someone stops using roids? A: Their body falls apart.

Jeremy, check out the last article on IPK on the Yanks' site. Pretty ignorant of him to voice his opinions about being sent down like that in a public forum. He sounds like a toddler that didn't get the candybar he wanted. He's probably right in saying what he said, but making those comments to a reporter is a great way to Ryan Lief himself. SSHHHH, IPK.

I'm curious what Kennedy said? I didn't see it anywhere. Was it frustration? I'd have been a little ticked too after seeing a story saying "Yankees in no hurry to demote Kennedy" then doing it two days later... I mean yes this is the Bigs and if that's what they want, well that sucks but oh well... ya can't blame the kid for being upset with the whole thing... but he'll be fine. I think he was doing ok, not good but not horrible like Igawa did last year. He was not getting a lot of run support but who has been lately?

Rasner did well, so proud of him. They tried and got him early but he showed poise and 'settled down' as they like to say so much... He can really do no worse than Huhges or Kennedy have been doing so far, so until he gets lit up, he's just as good at #5.

No way do we need Clemens or Wells or any other iffy pitcher. I'd rather have Brad Penny than either of those old fellas. Their better days are far behind them. Clemens could give us what, maybe 5? The only reason you even entertain him is because of his grit, but even grit doesn't take you far if your mechanics are bad/going.

Clemens and Pettitte both lost games last year because of lack of run support. But I guess to you guys, Chase Wright is better than both of them. I see after 1 start you got Rasner at 2 above.

Another phantom second posting... hahahah, roger-that Chaz, going to read it now. Maybe I did read that. I didn't think much what I read yesterday but he's a youngin... and take it from me, I get passionate at times, sometimes I say things that I shouldn't! No one's perfect is all... :)

We're on a 3 game win streak!!! :O

Don't forget Pavano, maybe we can throw him out there over Clemens. Clemens is suppost to have 20 wins in 4 months right?

I guess you can blame Clemens too for Hughes's pitching this year.

Clemens was clearly the reason Joe Torre was given a garbage contract offer right? lol. You guys are too much. Clemens killed Boston for us last year.

It's not that he's so much better, it's that Roger is not a good option for us; the money, the stamina, his image, his mindset right now are all questionable. Roger last year barely went past 6 innings in any game. He did not have the upper-hand with hitters, he was hittable.

Aside from Roger's veteran status and all his previous achievements, he functionally offers no more than the two kids we're having trouble with. He may go 4-6, but what you're going to get is just as iffy as having Hughes, Kennedy or Rasner in there. Why bring on that if you don't have to is all people are saying.

Hughes isn't exactly needing mentoring right now, I'd venture a guess that his rib was more to do with his ineffetiveness than him needing Roger to help coach him on how to throw a fastball, etc.

So, I see no upside to Roger.

If the argument is SP, we can find just as good or better than Clemens... better than Wells easily.

Rasner deserves his shot right now... but I see no reason why we try to bring on Clemens, AGAIN. I'm sorry I just don't. I'd rather see this as a rebuilding year than to start trying to salvage the season for the season's sake. What's more is it doesn't need 'salvaging' yet even. We need consistency in hitting and pitching, when we get them, we're usually on the better end of it.

Bpark, now you're just reaching. Noone said put Rasner in the 2 hole, but, I would take Pavano over Clemens. Chase Wright is better than Clemens, but not Pettite. We can blame Clemens for Hughes' pitching this year? What the hell does that even mean? BFD that Clemens showed up for games vs. Boston, the sun will even shine on a dog's butt every so often. Are you high? Is the room spinning? Step away from the keyboard before you hurt yourself.

bpark,

Don Larsen pitched the only perfect game in World Series history. Does that make him a HOF pitcher and the greatest of all time? No. One game is just that, one game, however great it may be. The Boston game is not an argument for bringing Clemens back.

Yo Chaz, can you specify which comment was the one that Kennedy shouldn't have made?

"I guess if I can pitch under a smaller microscope down there, I guess it might put a little less pressure on me," Kennedy acknowledged. "You are on a bigger scale here. In Scranton, I'm struggling, but here, the world is going to end."

Sounds like he's not sold that going down is going to fix his 'problem'...

"I was kind of surprised, because I feel like I've been throwing well," Kennedy said, "but if you don't do well and get drastic changes and drastic improvements, this is what happens.

I have to agree with his confusion, looked like he was ok from the Brass, then poof, nope, sorry, actually yes, pack your bags...

"They made it sound like they wanted me here, but they'd rather have me improve in Scranton and get my confidence back up. I feel like the last two times, I've been doing better. It's not going to be easier because it's in Scranton. It's still baseball, it's still a game."

I agree with him here too, it sounds like he thinks whatever is wrong that going down isn't going to fix or change that, but I don't know exactly what they're saying "is" wrong. :P

The reason I put the rotation Wang, Rasner, Pettitte, Mussina, Kennedy is so we don't pitch our weakest pitchers 3 in a row, its what we were doing when we had Hughes and Kennedy in the rotation. Do you think Hughes was our number 2 pitcher so far this year. Have you been paying attention to the season thus far. Before the demotion and DL stint our rotation was Wang, Hughes, Pettitte, Mussina, Kennedy, all I did was replace Hughes with Rasner because he's on the DL. This is something called strategy so we try and not drop 3-4 games in a row after Wang. Pettitte hasn't pitched lights out in his last two outings and thats going to happen from time to time, he's still our number two but has to pitch behind one of the youngsters because of his reputation for pitching well after a team loss. I'm more disappointed than shocked in Kennedy's response, I'm sure many people feel that way when they're demoted to the minors but the majority have the maturity to keep their mouth shut and just play baseball. The Yankees are paying him a good deal of money he needs to realize that even if he doesn't make it back this year he will be back and just work on what the Yankees tell him to work on. And the last thing on Rasner, he has not had a bad outing this year in the majors or in the minors, I had confidence in him to the tune of 6 IP 3-4 ER, 4-5K, 3-4BB and he was in the ballpark for my expectations. With this offense over a complete season and this bullpen continuing to pitch well for the most part if you have an ERA of 4 pitch 6 innings per start, you'll have a very good record. This team was dormant for a while, but April is hasn't been their month in a couple of years, but they're only 3 games back from Boston. We made up 15 last year we can make up the 3 in no time, we just need to keep playing good baseball, play smart, and keep Clemens outside of the Bronx in general let alone in Yankee Stadium.

Clemens really is a beauty. He's now apologizing for "mistakes" he made in his personal life, but refuses to specify what he's apologizing for. What a world-class loser. He's a one man circus complete with clowns, a trapeze artist, the bearded lady, and those bears that ride bicycles. LMFAO.

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hb53CbGVJA8oE243FF2q7wp4LGqAD90FI56O1

LOL!!!!!!!

I love that article. Maybe Clemens is apologising because the rest of us can't see what a stand up guy he is.

How can a man be sorry if he hasn't done anything? Clemens amazes me.

bpark,

I don't mind telling you, I was never more embarrassed as a Yankee fan was when Clemens announced to thousands of Yankee fans at the game against Seattle that he was coming back over the PA system as if he were some savior coming out of the heavens to save this team. At that moment I said big freakin' deal!!! Clemens didn't do much to help this team to close that 15 1/2 game gap between the Yanks and Suks last season like you assert. There were many reasons for that, mostly because the offense came alive not because of Clemens. In fact Clemens came close to being the reason why this team collapsed in the post season, only it was Hughes who came in and bailed his sorry butt out of trouble by out pitching him and saving the team for one more game. This rotation is a wreck right now, the Yanks aren't going to make it worse by adding another one to the rotation by adding "The Savior" or even "The Beer Guzzler" who only gets exercise when he lifts a canof Coors to his mouth. This team needs to concentrate on geting younger, not older.

Another thing, there's no guarantee that Kennedy won't be back sometime this season along with Hughes. IF Kennedy does well in the minors he could be called up again. His problems are mental not with his mechanics. Even though I don't oppose him being sent down there's no guarantee that he won't be over his mental problems by the time he is recalled. That's why I'm not sure sending back down and keeping him there will do much for him. That's the problem with these type of situations, it's difficult to measure the progress or lack of progress he makes in the minors. Personally, I would have kept him in the majors, and have him work on the sidelines with him for a while since this is a period of the season where the Yanks don't need 5 starters, especially since his problems are rooted in his inability to pitch at the pro level not at the minor league level. So he could still have the same problems when the Yanks recall him, demoting him may do nothing for him, it could make things worse.

bpark,

I don't mind telling you, I was never more embarrassed as a Yankee fan was when Clemens announced to thousands of Yankee fans at the game against Seattle that he was coming back over the PA system as if he were some savior coming out of the heavens to save this team. At that moment I said big freakin' deal!!! Clemens didn't do much to help this team to close that 15 1/2 game gap between the Yanks and Suks last season like you assert. There were many reasons for that, mostly because the offense came alive not because of Clemens. In fact Clemens came close to being the reason why this team collapsed in the post season, only it was Hughes who came in and bailed his sorry butt out of trouble by out pitching him and saving the team for one more game. This rotation is a wreck right now, the Yanks aren't going to make it worse by adding another one to the rotation by adding "The Savior" or even "The Beer Guzzler" who only gets exercise when he lifts a canof Coors to his mouth. This team needs to concentrate on geting younger, not older.

Another thing, there's no guarantee that Kennedy won't be back sometime this season along with Hughes. IF Kennedy does well in the minors he could be called up again. His problems are mental not with his mechanics. Even though I don't oppose him being sent down there's no guarantee that he won't be over his mental problems by the time he is recalled. That's why I'm not sure sending back down and keeping him there will do much for him. That's the problem with these type of situations, it's difficult to measure the progress or lack of progress he makes in the minors. Personally, I would have kept him in the majors, and have him work on the sidelines with him for a while since this is a period of the season where the Yanks don't need 5 starters, especially since his problems are rooted in his inability to pitch at the pro level not at the minor league level. So he could still have the same problems when the Yanks recall him, demoting him may do nothing for him, it could make things worse.

I wouldn't get too excited about Rasner yet. I was good that he got started against a weak team that is slumping right now to get him going, but there's no reason to think he will stay at this level based on one start, especially since he has done anything in his career to think that. For all we know he could get blasted from here on out. I still think Steve White would be a better option than Rasner or Igawa, this team has to start looking at fresh approaches, and different options rather than the same failed ones it keeps going with time, and time again.

One game at a time, Matt. One game at a time.

The Yanks had a chance to deal Matsui in the offseason to the Giants for pitcher like Johnathan Sanchez, and Sean hennessey, but didn't. I feel that was a big mistake. Sure, losing Matsui would have put a big hole in the lineup, but at least the pitching would be in better shape. No chance of getting Matt Cain, the Giants realize he is going to be one of their cornerstones in their rebuilding process. Guys like Scherzer, Burnett, Morrow, and Sanchez are pretty much untouchable right now.

LOL, maybe they'll give us Zito.

SSSSSSSHHHHHHHH!!!!!!! You might give someone in the front office another idea us Yankee fans will regret. Barry Zero, really!!

This team definitely needs to go in a new direction, this team already knows what it's going to get from Igawa, we've all seen it before. He offers nothing, try someone else like a Steve White.

jeremy,
I agree with you about Kennedy's comments. People seem to be making a huge deal over very little. (that NEVER happens in New York!)

Not a big deal to me, I just chalk it up to a rookie not knowing how to handle the press. I guess he doesn't have the "canned" answers to questions like those down pat yet.

Yup, I would have to agree with that Chaz. We all love the "canned" answers, and when someone goes away from that we go "what the?! You can't say that!" Heh, that's also why I think Moose is my favorite interview of all time. He NEVER has canned answers, but generally has smart answers.

Matt I can't agree with you more about Kennedy, he was good in the minors and had one or two good starts last season against MLB hitters, he can do it it's all about confidence. I see a lot of immaturity in him, he's young but the best place to mature is on the big club, we can skip over him a start or two throw four starters and have our pitching coaches work with him. He want to pitch like Moose its obvious, let them work together and get things going in the right direction, especially because whatever Moose is doing right now is more than I expected and pretty darn good. I agree we cant be all over Rasner's good start but I think he can be a solid starter, and I keep forgetting about White. Raz might just be the anchor to the rotation to complement Wang (Ace) and Pettitte who will be very solid this year IMO. I still don't trust Moose but he's definitely earning it, and I'm still excited to see Hughes come back in June, I think he'll do a little better especially with a couple of minors rehab starts. I hope Kennedy will be back I liked his stuff he just nibbled and then got ballsy and tried to attack the strike zone and centered up a pitch that got smashed. He wasn't far off so I hope he can come back soon.

Yeah, I'm not saying Rasner won't be good, but I would like to see other prospects get the chance to pitch who have actually earned it through performance rather than the same old options we know will be awful like Igawa who are only getting chance after chance because of the size of their contracts, and not talent.

Yeah, I mean I do see some possible jabs he's throwing out there, but to me they're just emotional responses.

I love un-canned responses, that way I can see how you really feel! It does give a better sense one way or the other... ;)

Hey gang, I guarantee we will not lose today/tonight! :D

IPK just needs to mature, same as all our young talent save Joba, who seems to be poised and confident already. More reason to see him as a starter (when he can). Sucks having so many "ifs".

I think if both Hughes and Kennedy both pitch well in the minors we'll see both back up this season. My only concern is Kennedy, and how the move might affect him.

Chaz, Wholan put this:

Rasner looked very strong walking nobody and picking up four strikeouts, and we could keep a rotation of Wang, Rasner, Pettitte, Musina, Kennedy until Hughes comes off the DL, to me that's much more attractive than any rotation that involves one of the fat washed up has-beens Clemens or Wells.

By wholohan@uvm.edu on May 5, 2008 12:09 AM

Kennedy is gone anyway. Probably until september.....or hopefully longer.

How can y'all say Clemens has destroyed the Yankees legacy off allegation only, when and this part is hiprocritical, Pettitte actually admits to using PEDS and you love him.

Obviously, Clemens is apologizing for cheating on his wife and being a pour role model.

I don't like Clemens because we're going to have to give him a contract when we have people already on our payroll that can suck just as much and probably do better because they're younger. As I said He averaged UNDER 6 IP last year, had OVER a 4 ERA. I'd rather see White, Igawa, or Karstens pitch before we even consider giving the Rocket another $30 mil pro rated. We have plenty of in house options before we can be desperate. Behind those three we have Horne (probably not ready yet but could come up in a pinch), Marquez, and McCutchen in AAA and Betances in AA that all could make a spot start. The difference between Pettitte and Clemens is Pettitte stepped up and was a man, said he did something wrong, Clemens is guilty, there's evidence, testimony from Pettitte who has proven to be reliable, and he still denies everything. Roger Clemens is a grade A scumbag and he has no place on these Yankees. Why spend the money to bring in a looser like that when we could get just as much or more from their minor leaguers. If they all go down as useless and injured then MAYBE you consider desperate actions, but not now, we're what 30ish games into the season don't be foolish, Roger Clemens will give us under 7 wins, over a 4.5 ERA probably over 5 and average under 6 IP thus our BP is not saved with or without him. NO ROGER CLEMENS ON THIS YANKEES TEAM!

wholohan,

Just to let you know Horne has been out for a while with a bad biceps, and Marquez has struggled somewhat, and McCutcheon has been at AA, but should be moved to AAA and Betances should move up to AA, otherwise you're on target about everything else.
We already have three three pitchers who can go 6 innings ( Mussina, Hughes, and Kennedy) this team doesn't need another. Give the pen a break!!

the yanks could play with wut we have for now and buy time before we jump to any clemens decision. We may be able to stay afloat and keep close to the sox and other division leaders by the trade dateline and opt to go for a solid no 2 or no 3 starter. Moose is a no 4 starter at best. meanwhile rasner or hughes or kennedy could remain as the no 5. we've seen how trying to develop and win at the same time could be costly, i say we put the best rookie in the no 5 spot. i seriously think we needa stop rushing all these kids, they should go thru the farm system the way they normally would have.

Oh, I just googled where people were in our minors system, bad info but my stance doesn't change. We have in house options lets use them first. If they all fail then maybe then you look to outside options, but I think a trade has to be exercised before we go to a depleted free agent market.

Pettitte is extremely reliable, he stepped up and said in an apology, he used HGH once, later he said twice, who knows the truth.

We agree on one thing Clemens is not gonna get a pro-rated deal, if we re-sign him its in the 2-5M range. Clemens did proof in his final 2 games against Boston in August and September that he still has it for the big games. I say if he wants to go out on top we give 2M with a personal service contract and he can rewrite his wrongs. Karstens, Igawa and Britton are complete jokes.

But those three are on our payroll we have to get away form throwing money at losers like Clemens just to have it hurt us in the long run. Clemens is a bigger joke than Karstens and I'd rather see Igawa toe the rubber than Clemens we pay Igawa how much? Too much to go out and pay another guy who couldn't get the job done.

Again to emphasize MY POINT being: yankees should only put ONE ROOKIE in the rotation. Rookies are meant to be no 5 starter regardless of how high their prospect level is. Thats how u START a major league career. Anything above that is u putting too much pressure on the poor kid.

Hughes is coming back, Kennedy hopefully is not.

Mussina has been doing better. Not sure how deep he's going but he's been doing better.

I don't want Clemens replacing Schilling, we can hit Schilling.

Pettitte
Wang
Mussina
Clemens
Hughes

Thats it thats all.

bpark,

As far as I'm concerned "The Savior" didn't prove himself at all last season. He was only 6-6 with a 4+ ERA. How is he proving himself with those numbers? He wasn't even close to what he was worth with those type of numbers, I wouldn't pay half a million for him. The Yanks didn't get him just to pitch in the big games. When they got him the team was struggling, they expected him to help them more than what he did, at least more than just those 2 games against the Suks you keep mentioning. Where was he in his biggest start of the season, which was the post season game against the Indians where he was just too much of a wreck to start in the first place, and Hughes outpitched him. Again, I have to wonder how different things would have been if Clemens were actually healthy, and Hughes would have been available to come in in relief of Wang.
In case you're thinking about asking me, I don't want Karstens, IGawa, or Clemens pitching for this team, period.

Take Kennedy out the rotation because he's gone. Your concerns are limited to Hughes and Mussina. Lets see how Mussina goes for the rest of the year before we jump on him. Hughes is out till July but I have a feeling he will come back strong.

Matt, I know the 6 and 6 record was over 4 months but also, look at the lack of run support and the games blown by the pen, particular in may and june.

I hope we don't get that desperate to need any of those three, the rotation is weak now, but like I said I think Rasner can get the job done as proved by his solid control. I don't see how you can write off Kennedy and not Hughes they both sucked so far but have good stuff, they're different styles of pitchers so if you don't like Kennedy I guess it's because he doesn't throw the sexy mid-90's fastball. If the bullpen can keep pitching well maybe we'll see Joba starting this year. We could even call up Kennedy and have him come in from the pen and work on his stuff in mop-up situations and whatnot. He needs to see better hitting, he proved himself in the minors. He needs to mature mentally and change his approach to better hitters.

Bpark, When have I (since the scandal) backed Pettite? Do you not remember my Adroid PEDitte posts? I just don't ride him as hard because he at least "sort of" owned it. I mean, he certainly didn't come out and say "I used HGH, I lied to you (the fans) about it, I tried to hide my use of it, I was looking for an edge, It was stupid, It will never happen again." Andy was sorry for GETTING CAUGHT, then turned around months later and bashed the media for "blowing it out of proportion". Not exactly the stand-up guy I have idolized since I was a kid, but he at least didn't deny it once he got busted. All that said, Andy gets support from me (I guess) while on the field. Otherwise, he can take a leap off a bridge for all I care. Like Clemens is your guy, Pettite WAS mine, and he did not earn my forgiveness. The rest of the fanbase and the media wants to hold him on a pedestal for the way he handled the situation, fine.

Pettitte had a lack of run support and a bullpen that prevented him from winning close to 20 games, but he still won 15. Clemens was a savior that failed at saving anything. Winning the division was what we were supposed to do and he was supposed to get us over the hump, he didn't so now we need to move on c'mon honestly.

Hughes is and was way further along than Kennadia.

I support both Pettitte and Clemens, they are both hall of fame Yankees. The evidence against Clemens is marginal, arguable at best, it is far from conclusive. The perjury stuff has more legs with regards to the Nanny vs. Canseco.

Pettitte also pitched 2 more months than Clemens last year and had spring training to prepare.

A bigger issue in not winning the division was our 200M dollar lineup was suppost to easily surpass 1000 runs, we got close and that came in a late surge.

The last thing this team needs to be doing is going back to the old ways of trading older, more established prospects. We've seen what a failure that policy has been in the past. This team didn't have much in the way of options in terms of the FA market or the minors when it came to starters, at least none were good enough to be a # 3 starter. I wouldn't make a blanket statement about rookies in the same rotation. There are rookies who can handle the stress, and pressure of being in the majors, and there are those who can't. You could say the same about FA agent pitchers as well, especially those who come to New York just ask the likes of Kenny Rogers, Javier Vazquez, or Randy Johnson. Hughes has the personality and demeanor to pitch at this level this season, he has shown it in the past so it was worth the risk of having both up at the same time. Also, both have shown that they can pitch at this level in terms of talent and ability, they have nothing left to prove in the minors. The problem isn't that they don't have that, it's more mental for them than anything else. Sending them back down may not help them, it may hurt them more, no telling. Holding a rookie player back can be just as detrimental as is rushing a player before he is ready.

Pettitte has had a nice career but he isn't a HOFer when it comes to anything.

We really are freaking out more than we need to about the starting rotation. Fellas, look at what we have:
Wang - 6-0, freaking lights out!
Andy - Pitching respectably
Moose - (knock on wood) he's mixing pitches very well, looks like he's figuring out life without the heater
Granted things get a touch harder at 4 and 5, but I think we are more or less OK.

Rasner (for now) Why slam the kid for bad performances that have yet to pass? I say 1 start at a time. So far, 1 start, 1 win.
Kei Igawa/Any other AAA starter until Hughes comes back. - Methinks Hughes was rocky because he was hiding injury. How the hell did that rib break? 10 to 1 says he hurt it off the field, and hid it from Joe G.
Once we get Hughes back, I think if we put him at #4, then use whichever starter (Rasner, Igawa, IPK) is doing the best job at #5, we should be fine. The bullpen looks good, and the offense will score runs.
Of course, once we get close to the deadline, we have the option of either trading for a good setup guy and moving Joba to the rotation, or trading some prospects for a really sharp veteran starting pitcher. Either way, we get even stronger. Sacrificing potential dynasties for 1 season should not be an option. Patience (remind me I said this, LOL).

Matt, Hughes will be in the rotation again this year, maybe after a couple of warm starts or simuted action. He could come right back depending on what happens between now and then. Kennadia simply came up last year because of the injury to Clemens. He was not ready and he is not ready now.

My point is that Clemens wasn't a difference maker last season, and he won't be one if comes back this season because he is injury prone.

We are 1 game over .500 with 9 dudes on the DL. It could be alot worse.

Other than the game in Anaheim last year in front of Hughes's family, he pitched very well. Kennadia would not have been on the playoff roster even if he was 100% healthy and wasn't getting married. Torre trusted Villone way more than Kennadia and Villone wasn't initial on the playoff roster either.

Performance based to earn the 5 spot. We will have the 4 and 5 spots in the rotation for the next 60 days to evaluate who is "big league ready". IPK gets a break, Igawa and Rasner get a shot. If they pitch well, they stay, If they don't, then IPK and whoever is next in line gets called up. We only need 1 of the 4 to get the job done, fellas. Let's give them all a chance.

Correct Chaz. Of those guys, 2 are our best hitters (not including Cano).

I am not sure if Clemens is injury prone. I think that had more to do with his conditioning. We asked him to come back a month before he planned on it, then we rushed him up. I don't think he will be a difference maker either but he will be a big game pitcher and he is better than all other non trade options.

chaz,

I agree with you, like I said once the weather starts warming up the offense will take off, but we have been more lucky than good. No one has started to run away with the division yet.