Burnett Makes It A Solid First Week

As Yankees fans, we know not to make too big of a deal about what happens in April, especially the first week.

We've seen this team get out of the gates slowly, yet still make the playoffs. Heck, last year the Yankees started 13-15 and still won 103 regular season games and their 27th World Championship.

Still it's nice to get off to a good start, and taking each of the first two series against the Red Sox and Rays -- the two teams the Yankees figure to be battling for the AL East and/or the wild card -- makes this a particularly good first week.

MLB Does Yankees, Red Sox No Favors

Two games into the season and this much is clear, the MLB schedule makers did the Yankees and Red Sox no favors by having them open the season against each other.

For the second straight game neither starter managed to get through the sixth inning, but this time the Yankees bullpen got the better of the Red Sox bullpen in a 6-4 victory Tuesday at Fenway Park.

Yankees STILL Pedro's Daddy

Pedro Martinez can blab all he wants to the media about being the "most influential athlete" to step foot in Yankee Stadium, but he also knows this: the Yankees are still his daddy.

It's been five years since Pedro has donned the uniform of the Red Sox and his repertoire and game plan have changed, but the Yankees' formula for beating him remains the same: good pitching and tough, grind-it-out-at-bats to drive up Pedro's pitch count quickly.

A.J. Burnett delivered the good pitching Thursday, allowing one run in seven terrific innings, and the Yankees made Pedro work hard in six-plus innings en route to a 3-1 victory in Game 2 of the World Series at Yankee Stadium to even the best-of-seven at 1.

Game 3 is Saturday night in Philadelphia.

Yes, Sox fans can crow all they want about the 2004 ALCS, but the fact remains that the Sox won that series despite Pedro, not because of him. He went 0-1 with a 6.23 ERA in three outings, two starts.

Despite that, Pedro spouted off in his media session Wednesday about how his treatment by the New York media made him the most influential athlete to ever play at Yankee Stadium.

Bullocks. What Pedro fails to realize is that the only reason he garnered so much attention is because he played for the Red Sox. Had he played for the Mariners or Angels or Tigers, everyone in New York still would recognize his talent and greatness, but no one would care at all about anything he said. It's only because he played for the Yankees' archrivals that he gained significance.

But when you spew babble like that, you had better deliver, especially in the World Series.

Pedro pitched well, but he certainly didn't deliver.

Pedro did a good job mixing his pitches and keeping the Yankees off balance, but the Yankees dgrindout out at-bat after at-bat against Pedro. Martinez threw 17 pitches in the first, 26 in the second and 16 more in the third.

With Pedro at 59 pitches through three, you knew that if the Yankees kept it up, it would only be a matter of time before Pedro would crack or the Yankees would get to feast on the Phillies' middle relief.

Pedro cracked first, serving up a leadoff homer in the fourth to Mark Teixeira on a 1-and-0 changeup up to tie the score at 1.

The Yankees continued to work Pedro through the next two innings and with his pitch count soaring into the 90s in the sixth, the Yankees struck again, this time with two outs as Hideki Matsui lined a 1-and-2 curveball into the stands in right to give the Yankees the lead for good at 2-1.

And when Robinson Cano flied to end the sixth, Pedro's pitch count stood at 99. He should have been done. Every Yankee fan knows that once Pedro hits 100 pitches, he become increasingly vulnerable.

But Phillies manager Charlie Manuel had his inner Grady Little working and sent Pedro back out for the seventh. He paid for that decision as Jerry Hairston Jr. -- who started in right in place of Nick Swisher because he had been 10-for-27 in his career against Pedro -- and Melky Cabrera led off the inning with singles.

That was it for Pedro as Manuel brought in Chan Ho Park, but pinch hitter Jorge Posada made sure the Yankees took advantage of the opportunity with a single to center to make it 3-1.

Pedro ended up allowing the three runs on six hits and two walks. He struck out eight and threw 72 of 107 pitches for strikes. The reality is the Yankees should have tacked on one more run to his line.

That is in part because of Joe Girardi and Derek Jeter and in part because of ... you guessed it ... the umpires.

With runners on first and second and no outs, Girardi had Jeter, the Yankees' all-time hit leader who has a major league record 168 postseason, to sacrifice. Are you kidding me? Jeter? Really? He should be swinging away!

Even worse, after falling behind 0-and-2 and having the bunt sign taken off, Jeter still tried to bunt on the third strike and it went foul for a strikeout. C'mon Derek, you've got to know better than that!

Then the umpires got in the act.

Johnny Damon followed by hitting a low screamer down the first base line that Ryan Howard trapped before taking a two steps toward first, then firing wildly to second in an attempt to force Posada, who got in safely. First base umpire Brian Gorman, however, ruled Howard caught the ball on the fly and Posada was call out for a double play when he was tagged by Jimmy Rollins.

Replays, however, show the ball hit the dirt as it skipped into Howard's glove. The umpires huddled but did not overturn the call. Pedro was saved another run.

Not that it mattered with the way Burnett pitched. He was sharp and he was outstanding.

It was almost as if he was trying to prove something after his awful outing in Game 5 of the ALCS, in which he allowed four runs before recording an out in the first inning.

No such trouble this time as he retired the side in order on 12 pitches in the first.

But it's rare that Burnett can get through a start cleanly and he ran into a little trouble in the second as Raul Ibanez blooped a ground-rule double down the left field line with two outs before Matt Stairs rocketed a grounder that Alex Rodriguez -- who went 0-for-4 and is 0-for-8 with six strikeouts in the two games -- should have picked clean. Instead the ball got under A-Rod's glove for a single, giving the Phillies a 1-0 lead.

Burnett, though buckled down, striking out Pedro Feliz to end the inning and then surrendering a single, a double and two walks the rest of the way. When he handed to ball directly to Mariano Rivera to start the eighth, Burnett had retired eight straight, four on strikeouts.

Burnett ended up allowing just the one run on four hits and two walks. He struck out nine, threw 68 of 108 pitches for strikes and went a long way toward proving he is, in fact, New York tough and worth the big contract he signed in the offseason.

And with a day off today, Girardi didn't mess around with his suddenly leaky bullpen. It was Mariano for six outs or bust.

It was nearly bust, except the umpires blew yet another call, this time in the Yankees' favor.

With one out in the eighth, Rollins walked and Shane Victorino singled to put runners on first and second. Chase Utley, the Phillies' hero of Game 1, then hit a sharp ground to the right side that Cano fielded and fired to Jeter at second for one out. Jeter then made the relay to first to get Utley and end the inning.

Only thing is, Utley was safe. Replays show Utley's foot hitting the base before the ball was in Teixeira's glove.

Sometime these blown calls do, in fact, even out.

Rivera would have little trouble in the ninth, striking out Howard -- who struck out four times on the night -- and getting Jayson Werth to line out to second. Ibanez then doubled, but Rivera struck out Stairs to end it and earn his 38th postseason save.

Yet after the game, Pedro was still talking, telling the media that if he pitched for the Yankees, he would be king.

"It’s just that I don’t play for the Yankees, that’s all," The Hartford Courant reported Pedro as saying. "They love the fact that I compete. If I played for the Yankees, I’d probably be a king over here."

Not quite, Pedro. In New York, in order to be king, you'd actually have to back up your talk and win the game.

Runners In Scoring Position
World Series
1-for-9 (.111)
Game 2
1-for-5 (.200)
Game 1
0-for-4 (.000)
ALCS
12-for-64 (.188)
ALDS
6-for-17 (.353)
Regular Season
419-for-1,543 (.272)

Up Next
World Series Game 3
Saturday at Phillies, 7:57 p.m., FOX

Andy Pettitte (14-8, 4.16 ERA; Postseason: 2-0, 2.37 ERA in 3 Starts)
vs.
Cole Hamels (10-11, 4.32 ERA: Postseason: 1-1, 6.75 ERA in 3 starts)

Hamels has been very inconsistent this year. He was the World Series MVP last year and has the ability to dominate. He's also young and may be the victim of the Verducci Effect. Pettitte is Mr. Postseason with a record 16 postseason victories. You can almost count on a solid start from him. If Hamels is not sharp, it could be a long night for the Phillies.

Three-Man Rotation? Take The Risk

As the Yankees begin preparing for the World Series and their battle with the Phillies, WFAN's Brian Heyman and Sweeny Murti reported Monday that he Yankees are giving strong consideration to using a three-man rotation.

Given the alternative of giving Chad Gaudin a start in either Game 4 or 5, a three-man rotation should be the only consideration.

Gaudin has pitched well for the Yankees this year and the Yankees have won every one of his starts since they acquired him from the Padres in August.

But he hasn't made a start start since Sept. 28 against the Royals. In fact, he's made just two relief appearances since then and didn't even pitch two innings in either outing. That means it's been a month since Gaudin has pitched any significant innings.

Can Joe Girardi really afford to give a World Series start to a pitcher who likely wouldn't be able to go much more than four innings at best? Could he afford to drain the bullpen? If Girardi commits to giving CC Sabathia three starts in the series, is worth taking a start away from either Andy Pettitte or A.J. Burnett to give to Gaudin?

The answer to all of those questions is, "No, no, no and no!"

Of course, going with a three-man rotation in this era presents its own set of risks and making this move does not guarantee the Yankees anything at all.

Should Girardi go with a three-man rotation, Sabathia will be scheduled to start Games 1, 4 and 7, with Burnett likely to go in Games 2 and 5 and Pettitte in 3 and 6. Because there is no scheduled day off between Games 4 and 5, that means after their first turns throught he rotation, all three starters would have to make their subsequent starts on three days' rest.

Prior to Sabathia's Game 4 gem against the Angels in the ALCS, pitchers starting on three days' rest in the postseason hadn't had much success since 1995, going 20-35 in 85 starts with a 4.65 ERA, while averaging just 5.39 innings.

Those numbers don't inspire much confidence. In fact, looking at those numbers alone would be enough scare many managers away from using a three-man rotation. Asking the bullpen to get 10 or 11 outs in a playoff game is asking for trouble.

But managers can't make decisions like this on numbers alone. They have to take a long, hard look at their personnel, too, and determine if they have guys who have the physical ability and mental makeup to go on short rest.

In the Yankees' case, they actually do.

Sabathia has proven himself to be a horse so far in these playoff, going 3-0 with a 1.19 ERA. That includes his Game 4 start in which he allowed just one run in eight innings on short rest.

It wasn't the first time in his career he's done that. In four regular season starts on short rest, he is 3-1 with a 1.01 ERA, 0.825 WHIP and 26 strikeouts in 26-2/3 innings (an average of 6-2/3 innings per start).

He does have one other postseason start on short rest, taking the ball on three days' rest for his fourth consecutive outing for the Brewers last year and getting bombed in Game 2 of the NLDS. Sabathia, though, has said that by that point, he was emotionally drained after carrying the Brewers into the playoffs. The Yankees haven't overburdened him this season and CC is ready and willing to go two straight times with short rest.

The questions you have with a three-man rotation is how Burnett and Pettitte will hold up.

With Burnett it's not a physical issue. He's actually made four starts on three days' rest in his career and has fared very well, going 4-0 with a 2.33 ERA, 1.074 WHIP and 24 strikeouts in 27 innings pitched.

With Burnett the issue, as always, is which A.J. you'll get. He can be very, very good -- or he can blow up in one inning as he did in Game 5. Of course, that's an issue the Yankees will face regardless of whether Burnett goes on normal rest.

The thing about Burnett is that he has proven that he does have pride. He got bombed in Boston in early June and responded with a seven-week stretch that was brilliant. He went winless in August, but bounced back in September and finished strong.

After losing in Game 5, Burnett wasn't happy. He told the media that if Girardi needed him in relief in Game 6 or 7, he was eager to take the ball. Something tells me that hunger, that eagerness is going to be there for his next two starts. He'll have something to prove and will be determined to shine, regardless of his rest -- who is catching (Jose Molina or Jorge Posada).

With Pettitte you don't ever worry about his makeup. He's not going to be shaken up by anything and won't get caught up in the moment. He'll go out and battle. His resume of a record 16 postseason wins with five series clincers proves that.

The question is whether Pettitte's arm can hold up on short rest.

Pettitte hasn't started on anything fewer than five days' rest since the Yankees skipped his turn in the rotation to give his sore shoulder a rest in mid-September. He hasn't had any problems with that shoulder since, but also hasn't overwork it. In fact, Pettitte threw just 194-2/3 innings in the regular season, the first time he's thrown fewer that 200 innings since 2004, when he was limited to 83 innings because of an elbow injury.

He made three more postseason starts, pitching 19 more innings, getting an extra day's rest prior to Game 6 because of Saturday's rainout.

Had Pettitte been pitching every fifth day through September and in the playoffs, I'd be very concerned. He's had arm issues in the past and that kind of workload would have been a lot to burden.

But the fact that the Yankees have been able to give Pettitte plenty of rest means he should be strong and should be able handle one start -- his final start of the year and at Yankee Stadium -- on short rest and do well.

No, this is not a the type of scenario you want heading into the World Series. Both choices bring risks, but in the end only the three-man rotation will give the Yankees the best chance to win in every game.

It's a risk Girardi and the Yankees have to take.

Forget Posada-Molina; It's All About A.J.

Ever since Joe Girardi made the announcement, the focus for tonight's Game 2 of the American League Division Series against the Twins has been on who should catch.

Jose Molina is getting the nod over Jorge Posada ... and Posada, understandably, is far from happy.

But when you strip away all the noise, the reality comes into focus ... and that is tonight's game is entirely about A.J. Burnett.

The Yankees signed Burnett to a fat five-year, $82.5 million because he has electric stuff that is damn near unhittable when Burnett is on. Hitters simply hate facing him. But aside from last season when he won 18 games, Burnett, 32, has never won more than 13 victories in a season. He was wild and inconsistent.

This season, Burnett has shown that his final year in Toronto (18-10) to be more of a fluke than a revelation. He's had streaks of brilliance and stretches of hideousness. His season has been streaky and he's shown himself to be a bit of a headcase in going 13-9 with a 4.04 ERA.

Of late, Burnett's been terrific, going 3-1 with a 2.93 ERA in his last six starts pitching to Molina.

Burnett's in a groove, he's hitting on all cylinders again ... and that puts Girardi in a bit of bind.

Posada, rightfully, is the Yankees' No. 1 catcher. Yes, he has his flaws. He's hard-headed and doesn't always work well with his starters, creating the impression that he doesn't call a good game. He doesn't smother balls in the dirt well. He also doesn't block the plate well.

But he is also a superior offensive player. He's a leader. He throws out base stealers well enough (31 of 111, 27.9 percent this season). And, most importantly, the team wins when he's behind the plate.

This season the Yankees went 65-46 in games in which Posada caught, 29-23 with Molina and 25-17 with Francisco Cervelli (Note: there is some overlap because of games in which one player replaced another).

It's no coincidence that the Yankees missed the playoffs last season when Posada, who has caught 97 postseason games, missed most of the year with a shoulder injury.

And the last time Posada didn't start a playoff game was Game 3 of the 2005 ALDS when Joe Torre elected to have John Flaherty catch Randy Johnson, who also didn't mesh well with Posada. The result: an 11-7 loss to the Angels.

But Posada and Burnett have had their ups and downs. Posada caught Burnett's brilliant one-hit, 7-2/3 shutout innings against the Red Sox on Aug. 7. Jorge also called the game at the Mets on June 27, when Burnett allowed four hits and struck out 10 in seven shutout innings.

The two have also hooked up in some miserable efforts, notably April 25 and Aug. 22 in Boston.

And while the chemistry between Posada and Burnett has been volatile at best, this much is for certain: It's not Posada's game calling that's at fault for those bad games. It's Burnett's inability to execute the pitches he throws that's at the heart of the problem. Once the pitcher and catcher agree on a sign, it's up to the pitcher and pitcher alone to execute the pitch.

But with Molina, Burnett has been much more consistent, appears more comfortable and seems to have a better rhythm. The numbers are stark and undeniable:

In 16 starts pitching to Posada, Burnett went 5-5 with a 4.96 ERA, striking out 79 of 434 batters. Hitters had a .270 batting average with .775 OPS.

In 11 starts pitching to Molina, however, Burnett went 5-2 with a 3.28 ERA, striking out 77 of 227 batters. Hitters had a .221 batting average with .658 OPS.

Perhaps that difference is because both Burnett and Posada are very emotional and more likely to clash, whereas Molina is calm and more willing to play psychologist. That's something for someone with a degree in psychology to figure out. Unfortunately, my degree is journalism, which means I know something about everything, but I don't know everything about any one subject ... and definitely not enough about psychology.

But if we've learned anything since the Yankees' last World Series championship in 2000, it's that the three most important things in the postseason are pitching, pitching, pitching ... and in that order.

That means Game 2 tonight is a huge game. A win puts the Yankees in control of the series. A loss makes the series a tossup and brings with it doubts about the Yankees' chances in the postseason.

Girardi needs Burnett, who will be making his first career playoff start, to be at his best and means he needs Burnett to be comfortable and confident in an electric environment at Yankees Stadium. And right now, Girardi believes the best way to accomplish that is to start Molina.

It's not a no-brainer decision by any means. It takes Posada's potent bat out of the lineup. It also forces the Yankees to carry Cervelli as a third catcher instead of Freddy Guzman as an extra pinch runner so that Girardi can use Posada as a pinch hitter for Molina early in this game, if necessary.

The move also isn't permanent. If Burnett bombs, Posada will catch his next game.

But in making this move, Girardi is clearly gambling.

And it's up to Burnett to make sure that gamble pay off.

Burnett will be the reason the Yankees win or lose, not Molina or Posada.

A.J. Steps Foward, Joba ... Oy Vey!

Two weeks ago, talk radio in New York was filled with Yankees fans who were concerned about the state of the team's pitching.

Nevermind that the Yankees statistically had the AL's best pitching staff since the All-Star break. Fans were worried about a scuffling A.J. Burnett and a Joba Chamberlain who looked to be more like a fragile porcelain figurine and than a tough, fireballing bulldog on the mound.

Burnett responded by putting together three outstanding outings, capped by Tuesday's 4-3 walkoff win over the Royals on Juan Miranda's ninth-inning single.

After showing the form he had in winning three straight after the All-Star break in a win over the Red Sox, Joba reverted to the form that had Yankees fans pulling out their hair through much of the second half in a 4-3 loss Wednesday.

Burnett had miserable August and start of September and failed to win a game between July 27 and Sept. 7. But he's been brilliant in his last three starts, recapturing the form that made him one of the best pitchers in the majors in June and July. In his last 19 innings, he's posted a 1.89 ERA, struck out 25 and allowed 17 hits and nine walks.

Tuesday he was at his best. Burnett allowed two runs -- one earned -- on three hits and three walks, while striking out eight. He was lifted with one out in the seventh at 108 pitches (69 strikes) only because with nothing left to be decided in the regular season, the Yankees (102-57) capped Burnett's pitch count at 110.


For a while, however, it appeared that Burnett would be tagged for loss in this one as Phil Coke, who relieved in the seventh, forgot to take his brain with him to the mound. With the score tied at 1 after Mark Teixeira's 39th homer of the season in the sixth, the Royals had a runner on first with one out and elected to have Alex Gordon lay down a sacrifice bunt.

Gordon executed, sending the bunt to the left of the mound, where Coke fielded the ball. However, he took his sweet time and was late with the throw, allowing Gordon to reach with a single. Josh Anderson then bounce a tapper back to the mound. Coke fielded, but instead of getting the sure out a first, he wheeled, fired wildly to second and sent the ball in to center allowing the go-ahead run to score.

And as if that wasn't bad enough, Coke botched the next play, too. Mitch Maier bounce a tapper back to Coke, who could have caught Gordon drifting off third for the second out of the inning. Instead, he turned and got Maier at first, but allowed Gordon to score to make it 3-1.

I know lefties, such as Coke, can be flighty at times, but that was ridiculous. A major leaguer has to know better than that. This was was Little League-where's-the-play-type decisions the Coke botched.

But the Yankees bailed out Coke. First Nick Swisher homered in the bottom half to make it 3-2. Then the Yankees victimized former teammate Kyle Farnsworth in the ninth.

With one out, Francisco Cervelli and Eric Hinske singled to put runners on the corners. Robinson Cano then brought in the tying run, lofting an 0-and-3, 94 mph fastball into deep center for a sacrifice fly.

Hinske then displayed some surprising speed, stealing second and hustling to third when John Buck's throw sailed into center. Farnsworth responded by walking Johnny Damon to get to Miranda, who earned the whipped cream pie by lining a shot off Farnsworth to bring in the winner.

It was the Yankees' 50th come-from-behind win and 15th walkoff this season.

Burnett has one more start left in the regular season, but he looks to be back in the groove. If he can carry that into the playoffs, then look out because when Burnett is right, hitters simply detest facing him.

Joba, on the other hand, has become an enigma.

Since the end of July, he has gone 2-4 with both wins coming against the Red Sox. The rest of the time he's simply looked scared.

Wednesday, he was awful. Once again he was passive, afraid to challenge with his fastball and unwilling to attack the strike zone. It was maddening.

He allowed three runs on seven hits and four walks while throwing 91 pitches (just 52 strikes) in a mere 3-2/3 innings.

And the question becomes whether the Yankees can really trust him when they need a fourth starter in the ALCS? If he is aggressive, Joba can slow down any lineup. We've seen that this year. But when he's off, he's miserable. Who knows? Maybe the electricity of the crowd in the playoffs gets Joba's adrenaline going and he delivers.

But with Chad Gaudin having pitched well with the Yankees having won each of his starts, it sure is tempting to go with him over Joba.

The good news is there is time for that decision to be made.

The bad news is that the Yankees couldn't escape Joba's poor start with a win, snapping their winning streak at seven.

Derek Jeter hit his 23rd career leadoff homer, one off Rickey Henderson's team record, and Nick Swisher hit a two-run homer in the fifth to tie it at 3.

Swisher, however, misplayed a flyball from John Buck into a triple, allowing the go-ahead run to score in the seventh and capping the Yankees' last regular season homestand at 5-1.

Now it's off to Tampa after an off-day today, as the Yankees do some more fine tuning in their final three games of the regular season.

Runners In Scoring Position
Tuesday
1-for-4 (.250)
Wednesday
0-for-4 (.000)
Season
409-for-1,513 (.270)
First Half
217-for-819 (.265)
Second Half
192-for-694 (.277)
Since A-Rod's Return May 8
344-for-1,240 (.277)
Vs. Red Sox
45-for-204 (.221)

Up Next
Friday at Rays, 7:38 p.m., YES
CC Sabathia (19-7, 3.21 ERA) vs. David Price (9-7, 4.60)

The Yankees would love to make Sabathia the majors' first and possibly only 20-game winner, but they won't do it at the expense of extending him deep into this game. Like Burnett on Tuesday, expect Sabathia to have a pitch count of around 110.