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A great second basemen might have made that play, but it was hit extremely hard with a lot of slice. There is a reason it was called a hit. As for Jeter, it's not even about the range. He is simply off to an awful start this year defensively, and to be completely honest, he hasn't swung the bat too well either. This game is going to be extremely difficult to win with the way Harden is pitching. If this guy could only stay healthy the sky's the limit.

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4/15/07 Pettitte vs. Harden Keys to the game: Pettitte hands the ball directly to Rivera (or one reliever in between).

Things are beginning to spiral out of control. The Yankees put Mike Mussina and Carl Pavano on the DL today. Mussina had to cut short a side session after only seven pitches, however he is optimistic about coming off the DL after his stint expires. He is retroactive to last Wednesday, the last time he pitched. I have not heard anything else on Pavano, except that he never even got on a mound today. Chase Wright, who has been solid at AA to begin the year, gets the start on Tuesday. The Yankees are hopeful that Jeff Karstens or C.M. Wang will pitch in place of Mussina next weekend in Boston. If everything goes well, the Yankees should have a rotation of (in no particular order) Pettitte, Wang, Mussina, Karstens, and Igawa in about a week and a half. I, for one, am not counting on anything.

That's true, but there might be a light at the end of the tunnel. Pettitte is going tomorrow, so hopefully he'll give them seven strong. Mo pitched his first inning since Tuesday, so he'll be ready to go tomorrow. In terms of guys that won't be available, the list will probably include Bruney, Proctor, and Vizcaino. I'd assume Farnsworth would be available as a last resort. If they don't get a long start from Pettitte they won't win tomorrow. They do have an off-day on Monday, so that, along with pitchers resting tomorrow, should allow the bullpen to recover (at least a bit). Pitchers are injured, but hopefully that will change soon as well. Mussina says he is feeling much better, and the Yankees are optimistic that he will only miss one start. There was no more news on Pavano today, and in his case, no news is the best news. Wang pitched well in an extended spring training game, so he appears to be on his way back by the end of the month. Karstens will throw in a single A game on Monday. Pettitte, Igawa, and Rasner are currently healthy. Obviously I'm more optimistic after a win, but there has been some good news regarding the injury front in the last few days. Hopefully we continue to hear that kind of news.

I'm not sure, but Torre made it very clear yesterday that this injury was not in any way related to anything he had last year.

Torre seemed confident yesterday that Pavano would start on Tuesday. It appears to be precautionary, especially considering Pavano's history. If this was a game later in the season, I would imagine that he would not be skipped.

Really tough loss, but the sun will come up tomorrow. Today Minky's hole in the lineup really was exposed: Sixth Inning - bases loaded, none out, Yanks up 3-1, Minky hits in a double play Eighth Inning - bases loaded, one out, score tied at 4, Minky hits a blooper over the pitchers head and they get the force at home Tenth Inning - man on second, twos outs, score tied at 4, Minky fouls out to the third basemen With the exception of Farnsworth, who continued to fall behind in the seventh inning and finally gave up a longball, the bullen was really good. Particularly Vizcaino. As I said earlier I would not be surprised if he begins to take over eighth inning duties. Bruney wasn't bad. He really made one bad pitch, it just happened to cost them the game. It seems so long ago, but Igawa improved over his last start. However, he still struggled with control problems. Hopefully his progression continues. In terms of offense, Minky and Cabrera both had poor games, which ended two rallies late in the game. Damon, Jeter, Abreu, and A-Rod all swung the bat particularly well. There was good stuff and bad stuff in this game, but in the end the Yankees came up on the short end, and thats all that matters. The Yankees essentially lost this game when they had second and third and nobody out in the eighth and couldn't get a single run. Rasner vs. Blanton tomorrow certainly does favor the Yankees, but if the offense can get going the Yankees have a chance. Tough loss, but they'll be a lot of these in a 162 game season.

Alright Joe, I know it's not common to bring closers in on the road, but please. You've already put a lot into this game. EDIT: Ugh, he's staying with Bruney. This is probably the end.

Oh man, that was a close one. What I like about Vizcaino is that he's not afraid to throw any of his pitches in tough situations. I could really see the Yankees working Vizcaino in the eighth inning more than any other Yankee. Now, get some runs, and hand the ball to Mo. EDIT: And Torre's decision to pinch run for Giambi comes back to bit him.

Those last two pitches were strikes.

Now what does Joe do in the tie game situation, I'm sure he's not going to Mo.

Dammit, he really hit that hard, just didn't lift it.

Good move by Joe to show Phelps in the on deck cirlce.

Absolutely, now, to pitch to him or not to pitch to him, that is the question.

Would have been 3-1 if Joe didn't play hit and run.

Wouldn't be so sure about that.

A runner on second and two outs in this inning is probably going to do us little good.

Could have something to do with a certain bench coach. Maybe he was pulling all the strings in the dynasty years. By the way, Vizcaino is quickly going to find himself setting up Rivera directly if he continues to pitch like this and Proctor and Farnsworth continue to pitch like they have. As for this game, what could be a huge problem this inning or next (if there is a 10th) is that Kevin Thompson is now A-Rod's protection.

Vizcaino definitely has the best secondary stuff of any of the setup men.

We're in the same boat with this one, but if you don't see Torre doing postgame interviews, it might be Mattingly, and I certainly wouldn't want that.

And Myers earns his week's pay.

If they can just get through this inning, they have the top of the order coming up in the ninth.