And All is Right With the World

The Yankees are finally in first place in the AL East after a 3-1 win over the Indians and a 6-3 loss by the Red Sox at the hands of Toronto. Our current record is 28-20, only half a game better than Boston’s 28-21, so we aren’t in the clear just yet, but looking at the way we have been playing over the past couple of weeks, we are definitely the hottest team in our division, if not the entire American League. We play the Indians again at 7 PM EST tomorrow, with C.C. Sabathia taking on his old team which is starting Fausto Carmona. Should be a good one.

Yankees look for sweep!

After coming away with a thrilling 13 inning win on Saturday the Yankees look to sweep the Oakland A’s on Sunday. The 1:05pm start will feature Andy Pettitte and Justin Duchscherer as the starting pitchers.

Duchscherer is 10-5 this season with a 1.82 ERA. With those numbers it is no surprise that he was a member of the 2008 All Star Game. Justin has won 7 of his 9 decisions, with his last start a 7.2 inning no-decision, in which he allowed 5 hits and 2 runs against the Anaheim Angels. The A’s lost that game 4-3. In Duchscherer’s last start against the Yankees, he went 7 strong innings and allowed just 5 hits and a run. He is 1-1 in his career against the Yankees. Newcomer Richie Sexson has the most career at bats against Duchscherer, going 4-14 with 2 doubles and a homerun. Alex Rodriguez is 4-11 career against Justin with a homerun and 5 RBIs.

For the Yanks, Andy Pettitte will look to pick up his 11th win of the season. Andy is 10-7 with a 4.03 ERA on the season. Pettitte is 9-5 in his career against the A’s including a victory against them earlier this season. Pettitte is 6-2 with 2 no decisions in his last eight starts.

Let’s finish the series with a sweet sweep!

Yankees/A’s Game Two

After a big win Friday night, the Yankees will battle the A’s again on Saturday afternoon at the stadium.

For the A’s, 22 year old rookie Sean Gallagher will throw. Sean is 1-0 since coming over in the Rich Harden deal before the All Star Break. In his last start, Gallagher went 7 innings, allowing just 2 hits and 2 runs in a 9-2 win over the Angels. Gallagher, a 12th round draft pick by the Cubs in the 2004 draft is 4-4 overall, with a 4.25 era. As a Cub, Gallagher had lost his last three starts before coming over to Oakland. No current Yankee player has faced Gallagher in their career.

For the Yankees, Joba Chamberlain will be on the hill. Joba is 2-3, with a 2.62 era on the season. Chamberlain has pitched in 47 games in his career, with 2008 being his first full season in the majors.  He has made five starts at home this season, going 1-1 with a 3.41 era. His last start was on July 11th against the Blue Jays and he went 6.2 innings, allowing 7 hits, and 3 runs in a 5-0 loss. His last win was June 25th at Pittsburgh, a game in which he pitched 6.2 scoreless innings. Frank Thomas is the only current A’s player to face Chamberlain, and he is 0 for 2.

This game is scheduled to begin at 1:05pm.

Yankees/A’s set to battle

After the AL won the marathon of an All Star Game, the New York Yankees, and Oakland A’s, both coming off four days off will tango Friday night for the first of three at Yankee Stadium. The Yankees are coming off a loss to Toronto, and sitting at 50-45, 6 games back from Boston, and 5.5 from Tampa Bay, while Oakland has lost their last two, and are 51-44, and 6 games out in the AL West.

For the A’s, Joe Blanton will take the mound. After the A’s lost Rich Harden, Blanton along with Dana Eveland will have to take the responsibility of carrying the load for Oakland starters. Blanton has had some troubles this season, but looks to get off to a better second half. Joe is 5-12 on the season with a 4.96 era. In his last outing against the Yankees, he went 6.2 innings, allowing 6 hits and 4 runs- all earned in a loss. Blanton is 3-6 in his last 9 decisions. For Yankee hitters, Derek Jeter is 4-12, Alex Rodriguez 4-7, and Jorge Posada is 2-5, but no one else has had great success off Blanton. Rodriguez has 2 homeruns and 5 RBI’S, in those 4 hits.

For the Yankees, the Moose, Mike Mussina will take the mound. Mussina has been solid for another season. The 39 year old right hander is 11-6 on the season, with a 3.61 era. For his career, Mike is 17-10 against Oakland. Mussina is coming off a 6 inning no decision in a 4-2 loss to Pittsburgh last week.

Time for the Yankees to show what they are made of here in the second half. Let’s get a win!

Yankees/Blue Jays Game Two

After getting shut out by Roy Halladay on Friday, the Yankees look to get back on track today against the Blue Jays. The 12:07 start will feature Darrell Rasner for the Yankees, and Jesse Litsch for Toronto.

Rasner, 27, from Carson City Nevada is 4-7 on the season with a 4.94 era. He has lost his last three starts and 7 of his last 10. In his last four outings, he has only lasted five innings. Rasner is 1-0 on the season against Toronto, pitching 6 strong innings against them earlier in the season.

Litsch, the Pinellas Park Florida native is 8-5 on the season, with a 4.01 era. He is 0-1 on the season against the Yankees, after getting beaten earlier in the year (he lasted 5.1 innings in that game.) Litsch is 3-4 in his last 7 decisions and went 5.1 innings in his last start, in which he allowed 8 hits, and 6 runs in a 7-1 loss to the Angels. Yankee hitters have very limited experience against Litsch, but Damon, Cabrera, Rodriguez, and Matsui all are hitting over .300 on the year so hopefully they will be able to continue hitting. As for the rest of the lineup, much can’t be said.

Toronto comes into the game in fourth place in the AL East, barely ahead of Baltimore. The Blue Jays are 46-47 on the season, while the Yankees, sitting in third place are 6.5 games back with a 49-44 record.

Here is the lineup for tonight:
Jeter SS
Abreu RF
Rodriguez 3B
Giambi 1B
Posada DH
Cano 2B
Cabrera CF
Moeller C
Gardner LF
Rasner RHP

Go Yankees!

Chamberlain v. Halladay

Tonight’s Yankees/Blue Jays game will feature two tough right handers squaring off in the first of a three game set leading into the All Star Break. For the Yankees, Joba Chamberlain will throw, while the Blue Jays will use former All-Star Roy Halladay.

Chamberlain comes into tonight’s action with a 2-2 record and a 2.45 ERA. In his last ten games, he only has one decision, that being a win on June 25 at Pittsburgh. In his last outing, Joba went 6 innings, allowing 4 hits, and 3 runs in a no decision against the Red Sox. The Yankees eventually won 5-4.

Halladay is 10-6 overall, and sits with a stellar 2.88 ERA. Roy is 11-5 in his career against the Yankees and won his last start against New York, going six strong innings. Roy has won his last two starts and is 6-1 in his last 7 decisions.

The Yankees are 49-43 overall, and 22-21 on the road. The Blue Jays are 45-47 overall, and 25-19 at home. The game is set for a 7:07EST start time.

Here is the Yankees lineup for tonight:
Gardner LF
Jeter SS
Abreu RF
Rodriguez 3B
Giambi DH
Posada C
Cano 2B
Betemit 1B
Cabrera CF
Chamberlain RHP

Time for the Yankees to gain some more momentum before the All Star Break! Go Joba!