Tuesday Thoughts- Three in a Row

There were certainly different sentiments surrounding the Yankees after Friday's loss and Monday's win. After Friday's drubbing at the hands of the Chicago White Sox, there were questions of whether AJ Burnett should stay in the rotation or not. Sure, these questions still exist, but after three wins in a row, you tend to feel better about things. Since Burnett was trounced in Chi-town, the Yankees got clutch offensive performances, and key outings on the mound by Ivan Nova, CC Sabathia, and even Javier Vazquez in relief.


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Why do the Yankees have such a great record this season without Alex Rodriguez? It has nothing to do with A-Rod being a jinx or a poor player, it just shows that the Yankees have clutch offensive players that can step up when they are needed. We saw this on Monday night against a strong pitcher in Trevor Cahill. Mark Teixeira, Robinson Cano, Nick Swisher, and Marcus Thames all had monster nights after Dustin Moseley did not have a strong outing. Cano has filled in beautifully in the cleanup spot, and all of a sudden, Tex has 92 runs batted in before September 1st.
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John Sterling is out of control. We all love his different nicknames and sayings for different players when they hit a home run, but Monday's postgame was completely ridiculous. After Marcus Thames' three run bomb in the fifth inning, Sterling did his usual song of "Happy THAMES are Here Again," but then he went on to shout: "Marcus timed a fastball, no, he THAMESED a fastball!" What does that even mean, John? At least he provides a nightly laugh for anyone listening.
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Speaking of Thames, how great of an acquisition has he turned out to be? He's one of the few Yankees with an average over .300, and he has cracked four homers in the last three games. His two homers on Friday were critical in a 12-9 victory, he hit a solo blast in a 2-1 victory Sunday, and Monday night, he put the game out of reach for the Athletics.
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Here's a good topic for debate: should Ivan Nova be one of the four Yankees' post-season starting pitchers? This year, MLB has ensured that teams will have to work with three pitchers, as there are not as many days off as the 2009 season, which the Yanks obviously used to their advantage. Even if Andy Pettitte does return this year, the Yankees can throw out a rotation of CC Sabathia, Pettitte, Hughes, and Nova. Vazquez seems effective in relief, and at this point, you really cannot take a chance with AJ Burnett. I'd almost rather see Dustin Moseley at this point. Nova has looked strong and fearless over two starts, so the playoff atmosphere shouldn't bother him at all.
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Kudos to the New York Yankees staff. I had a chance to attend the game with my father, uncle, and friend Monday night. My dad, who has had a couple of knee surgeries, needed to stretch his knee in our seats, so an usher allowed him to sit in the unoccupied handicapped seats behind our section, which gave him the chance to stretch his leg and enjoy the ball game. Sometimes, I feel a bit annoyed when ushers are constantly checking my tickets after I run to grab food, but Monday night, they did a nice thing for a nice guy.
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The Yankees need to win 7 of their next 9 home games. I went into this homestand against Oakland, Toronto, and Baltimore thinking that the Yankees needed 8 out of 10, and I stand by that sentiment. Boston is now 7 games back, but there is still time for the Sox to catch up. Tampa Bay keeps on winning, and the Yankees' last three weeks of the schedule are completely brutal. Not only do they have to make another trip to Texas, but they play the Rays 7 times and the Red Sox 6 times. As stressful as it may be, every day the Yankees win is another day off the schedule while remaining on top.