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Teixeira returns to lineup, batting seventh
Mark Teixeira is back in the Yankees’ lineup for tonight’s series opener against the Kansas City Royals, and he’s hitting in a rather unfamiliar spot — the No. 7 hole. Yankees manager Joe Girardi recognizes that Teixeira still isn’t at 100 percent physically and also hopes that moving Teixeira down in the order will get him going offensively.
“It’s been somewhat of a struggle, not just for him but for a lot of our guys,” Girardi said. “He hasn’t played in a few days and he hasn’t really had a lot of at-bats, so I just thought I’d move him down. I said, ‘My goal is to get you back where you belong.’ Just maybe get him going a little bit.”
Teixeira hasn’t started a game batting seventh since 2003, his rookie season with the Texas Rangers, when he did it 32 times.
“Maybe people will stop asking him so many questions all the time,” Girardi said. “He’s been the focus of our lineup and if the other guys were hitting he probably wouldn’t be the focus. There’s a lot of other guys struggling in those situations, some worse than he is.”
Long: “It’s probably not as bad as it looks”
We could throw a number of glaring statistics out there about how the Yankees aren’t getting the job done, but let’s stick to this basic one — they are 6-for-59 with runners in scoring position after today’s 5-2 loss to the Cincinnati Reds, and no matter how you want to slice it, that’s not doing anyone much good.
“As frustrated as everybody is,” Yankees hitting coach Kevin Long said, “it’s probably not as bad as it looks.”
There’s a lot of focus on Alex Rodriguez, who broke into a home run trot when he launched that deep eighth inning drive off Logan Ondrusek that even Joe Girardi thought was going to give the Yankees a 4-3 lead. The wind knocked it down, and Long said he had no problem with Rodriguez’s approach in that at-bat, nor the first-pitch rips he took against Johnny Cueto in the third and sixth innings.
“Those are all fastballs, they’re all good pitches to hit, they’re all strikes,” Long said. “We talked about one thing, moving the ball to left-center field, because it looked like he was inside out a little bit. So he makes the adjustment, he crushes the ball, and he gets nothing to show for it.”
Raul Ibanez’s two-run homer off Cueto was their only successful hit in four RISP at-bats on Sunday. Yankees manager Joe Girardi seemed like he was out of answers as he met the media for the afternoon’s wrap-up.
“It’s strange to watch what we’ve watched the last week or so,” Girardi said. “You can probably go back even further than that. With these guys, the way they’re capable of swinging the bats and the runs that we’re scoring is kind of strange.”
Long said that he recalls having similar RISP-related conversations in 2009, and that’s likely. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, this is the tenth straight year the Yankees have had at least an 0-for-20 string with RISP, so these trends do seem to come and go. And the Yankees can’t wait for this one to go away.
“There’s things happening now that we can overcome,” Long said. “We can’t say, ‘poor us.’ If anything, let’s fight against the world right now. Let’s go. That’s the message I want these players to have. I think that’s the best way to go about it.”
Game 41: Yankees vs. Reds
May 20, 2012, 1:05 p.m. ET, Yankee Stadium, Bronx, N.Y.
TV / Radio: YES, WCBS 880 AM
The Yankees will go for the series victory this afternoon behind CC Sabathia on what is another lovely day in the Bronx, temperatures in the 70s and mostly clear skies. There’s a breeze whipping the flags from left field to right field, but otherwise it’s quite pleasant here.
Sabathia is trying to bounce back from a rough outing last time out in Baltimore when he allowed a season-high eight hits and took the loss in a 5-2 decision against the Orioles, the first time in five starts he hadn’t completed eight innings. Sabathia walked a season-high four in that start as well, so he and “not” personal catcher Chris Stewart will try to get that back on track today.
The Reds give the ball to right-hander Johnny Cueto, who is making his third career start against the Yankees. The 26-year-old beat the Bombers last June 22 in Cincinnati, pitching the second game of a doubleheader that was created by a phantom rainout (I remember looking out the window at 8 p.m. on the rainout day and seeing perfectly clear skies). Cueto lasted just four innings in his last start on May 15 at Atlanta, permitting eight hits and six runs (five earned).
Here are today’s lineups:
REDS (20-19)
Chris Heisey LF
Drew Stubbs CF
Joey Votto 1B
Brandon Phillips 2B
Jay Bruce RF
Ryan Ludwick DH
Todd Frazier 3B
Ryan Hanigan C
Zack Cozart SS
Pitching: Johnny Cueto RHP (4-1, 1.89)
YANKEES (21-19)
Derek Jeter SS
Curtis Granderson CF
Robinson Cano 2B
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Raul Ibanez DH
Nick Swisher RF
Eric Chavez 1B
Dewayne Wise LF
Chris Stewart C
Pitching: CC Sabathia LHP (5-1, 3.77)
Game 40: Yankees vs. Reds
May 19, 2012, 1:05 p.m. ET, Yankee Stadium, Bronx, N.Y.
TV / Radio: YES, WCBS 880 AM
It’s a gorgeous Saturday afternoon in the Bronx, not a cloud in the sky and temperatures in the 70s, as the Yankees and Reds meet for the second game of this three-game series. Ivan Nova and Homer Bailey comprise the pitching matchup for this one, as Nova comes back from a sprained right ankle. Freddy Garcia and David Phelps are on standby just in case there are any problems, but the Yankees are expecting that Nova will get through just fine.
Here are today’s lineups:
REDS (19-19)
Chris Heisey LF
Drew Stubbs CF
Joey Votto 1B
Brandon Phillips 2B
Jay Bruce RF
Todd Frazier 3B
Mike Constanzo DH
Devin Mesoraco C
Wilson Valdez SS
Pitching: Homer Bailey RHP (1-3, 4.35)
YANKEES (21-18)
Derek Jeter SS
Curtis Granderson CF
Robinson Cano DH
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Raul Ibanez RF
Nick Swisher 1B
Russell Martin C
Dewayne Wise LF
Jayson Nix 2B
Pitching: Ivan Nova RHP (4-1, 5.44)
How Pettitte talked his way back out for the eighth
The Yankees don’t want to make a habit of having Andy Pettitte throw 115 pitches, but the look in the lefty’s eyes convinced manager Joe Girardi to send the 39-year-old back out for the eighth inning on Friday — despite what sounded like reservations from head athletic trainer Steve Donohue.
I’ll let Pettitte tell the story, recounting what happened in the dugout during the New York seventh inning:
“It was kind of funny. Joe comes and goes, ‘I don’t want to push you too hard,’ and I was getting a little bit of a massage from our trainer. I’m like, ‘I’m good. I feel like I can give you another one.’ I knew I was getting a little tired but I was staying within myself. Our trainer says, ‘How many pitches you got?’
“I think he said like 106. He’s like, ‘Maybe you ought to go pitch to pitch.’ Stevie drops that on him. Anyhow, I felt like I was in a good rhythm. I know Joe trusts me and I felt like I could give him another inning. I’m thankful that I told him I was good and I was able to get through that inning.”
It worked out, as Pettitte pitched a perfect eighth to complete his longest scoreless outing since July 8, 2008 against Tampa Bay. It was also Pettitte’s first victory since July 8, 2010 against the Mariners.
“It’s not something I want to do on a consistent basis,” Girardi said. “He looked like his stuff was still really good. I know he has to go again in five days and then he gets an extra day, and I think about that as well. It was just kind of the way he looked, and I talked to him. I looked him in the eyes.”
Here is Girardi’s postgame press conference:
Game 39: Yankees vs. Reds
May 18, 2012, 7:05 p.m. ET, Yankee Stadium, Bronx, N.Y.
TV / Radio: MY9/MLB Network, WCBS 880 AM
The Yankees try to break their three-game losing streak tonight by sending Andy Pettitte to the mound for his second start of the year, kicking off Interleague play and a three-game weekend series with the Cincinnati Reds. Dusty Baker’s club comes in with Bronson Arroyo heading to the hill.
Here are tonight’s lineups:
REDS (19-18)
Zack Cozart SS
Drew Stubbs CF
Joey Votto 1B
Brandon Phillips 2B
Jay Bruce RF
Chris Heisey LF
Todd Frazier 3B
Miguel Cairo DH
Ryan Hanigan C
Pitching: Bronson Arroyo RHP (2-1, 3.25)
YANKEES (20-18)
Derek Jeter SS
Curtis Granderson CF
Robinson Cano 2B
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Raul Ibanez RF
Nick Swisher 1B
Eric Chavez DH
Dewayne Wise LF
Chris Stewart C
Pitching: Andy Pettitte LHP (0-1, 5.68)
Game 36: Yankees at Orioles
May 15, 2012, 7:05 p.m. ET, Oriole Park at Camden Yards, Baltimore, Md.
TV / Radio: YES/MLB Network, WCBS 880 AM
It’s shaping to be a nice evening in Baltimore as the Yankees go for the sweep of this two-game series with the Orioles. CC Sabathia gets the nod, looking for his sixth straight winning start. He has pitched into the eighth inning in his last five starts and completed eight frames in each of his last four outings. Once again, Sabathia is working with “not personal catcher” Chris Stewart.
The Yankees get a second look at Wei-Yin Chen, who made his Major League debut against New York on April 10 and allowed four runs (two earned) in 5 2/3 innings, taking a no-decision in a 5-4 Yankees win. Chen served up a homer to Derek Jeter, his first big league batter faced, and is coming off a career-high 7 2/3 inning start against the Rangers at Oriole Park.
Here are tonight’s lineups:
YANKEES (20-15)
Derek Jeter SS
Nick Swisher RF
Robinson Cano 2B
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Mark Teixeira 1B
Curtis Granderson CF
Andruw Jones DH
Jayson Nix LF
Chris Stewart C
LHP CC Sabathia (5-0, 3.51)
ORIOLES (22-14)
Robert Andino 2B
J.J. Hardy SS
Nick Markakis RF
Adam Jones CF
Matt Wieters C
Wilson Betemit 1B
Bill Hall DH
Steve Tolleson SS
Xavier Avery CF
LHP Wei-Yin Chen (3-0, 2.43)
David Robertson placed on disabled list
Yankees reliever David Robertson has been placed on the 15-day disabled list with a left oblique strain. The Yankees have recalled right-hander Cody Eppley from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
Yankees’ Robertson out with ribcage soreness
Joe Girardi called his clubhouse a “M*A*S*H*” unit, and it sure feels like that. David Robertson is among the Yankees’ walking wounded, having been unavailable since Friday with left ribcage soreness. Robertson could be sent for tests tomorrow morning in Baltimore.
“I’m not really concerned,” Robertson said. “I would like to get back out there as soon as I can. But I don’t want to go out there and take a risk, end up putting myself on the DL for a long period of time. There’s a little worry, but I honestly don’t think it’s too bad.”
With Robertson out, Rafael Soriano came in and locked down the save tonight in New York’s 8-5 win over the Orioles.
Nova diagnosed with ankle contusion, sprain
Yankees right-hander Ivan Nova left tonight’s game with a contusion and sprain of his right ankle. X-rays were negative. We’ll have more information when possible, but this sounds like the kind of injury that could cost Nova at least his next start.
Additionally, left-hander Clay Rapada left tonight’s game with a viral infection, the Yankees said. Rapada was spotted by television cameras needing help to return to the clubhouse.
Bryan Hoch
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