The Sports Xchange
MLB Team Report – New York Yankees – INSIDE PITCH
A lot went wrong for the Yankees in the first half of 2012. Their all-world closer was lost for the season on May 3, their run-creating left fielder played only nine games while their two veteran left-handed starters were each forced to the disabled list in the final week of June.
Yet here they are entering the second half with a comfortable lead in the American League East, jockeying daily with the Texas Rangers for the privilege of holding baseball’s best record.
“It’s been a strange first half, I think,” manager Joe Girardi said. “It’s been kind of streaky for us. At different times, different parts of our game has struggled. But we give our guys a lot of credit. They found ways to win games.”
As well as things have gone for the Yankees, the second half promises to be a serious challenge for New York. Of the remaining 77 games, 44 will be played against their four AL East opponents, against whom they have struggled to stay above .500 this season.
“It’s better than not being where we’re at, the alternative,” Girardi said. “You just have to continue to play well and try to win series, and if you could do that, things should take care of themselves.”
The rotation will be bolstered by the return of CC Sabathia in the week after the All-Star break, as the former Cy Young winner will join Hiroki Kuroda, Ivan Nova and Phil Hughes in the top four spots. Veteran Freddy Garcia is expected to continue filling the spot vacated by Andy Pettitte’s fractured leg, though rookie David Phelps is waiting in the wings if Garcia stumbles.
The Yankees lived and died by the home run during the first half, using the long ball to overcome their dreadful performance with runners in scoring position. They hope the situational hitting will improve, something that should happen as Robinson Cano and Mark Teixeira continue to heat up.
The biggest surprise of the first half has been the bullpen, which managed to survive the loss of Mariano Rivera on May 3. Rafael Soriano has been nearly perfect as Rivera’s replacement as closer, while David Robertson looks to be rounding into shape after missing a month with an oblique injury. First-half surprises Cody Eppley and Clay Rapada played a major role in the bullpen’s success, so it remains to be seen whether they can continue that over the final three months of the season.
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MLB Team Report – New York Yankees – NOTES, QUOTES
–RHP Joba Chamberlain (elbow, ankle) allowed no hits and no walks and struck out two in one inning during his first rehab appearance.
He allowed an unearned run on two errors, a groundout and a passed ball while pitching Tuesday for the Yankees’ rookie-level affiliate in the Gulf Coast League.
Chamberlain began spring training rehabbing after undergoing Tommy John surgery in June 2011, and then he severely injured his right ankle in late March while playing with his son on a trampoline. He subsequently underwent ankle surgery.
–LHP CC Sabathia threw a bullpen session Sunday, reporting no problems with his strained left groin. Sabathia is scheduled to throw a bullpen Tuesday in Kansas City, then throw a simulated game on Friday when the Yankees return to Yankee Stadium, lining him up for a potential return on July 17 against the Blue Jays. “I’m ready to go,” Sabathia said.
–RHP Cory Wade was recalled from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre for Saturday’s doubleheader under MLB’s new 26th man rule, which permits teams to bring up an additional player for doubleheaders. Because Wade had not been in the minors for 10 days, he was required to be optioned back to Triple-A after the game, though that likely would have happened anyway after the reliever allowed three earned runs on four hits in only 2/3 of an inning.
–LF/DH Andruw Jones had his best day of the season Saturday, hitting three home runs while making a pair of spectacular plays in left field during the Yankees’ doubleheader split against the Red Sox. Jones, who had a productive second half in 2011 for the Yankees after struggling during the first half, is hopeful that Saturday’s performance can be the start of another solid second half. “Last year it took me a while, just like now,” Jones, who also homered Sunday night, said. “It took me until the second half to get in a good groove and I finished strong. This year, hopefully it will be the same thing.” Jones now has 11 home runs in 127 at-bats this season.
–C Russell Martin was given the night off Sunday, having finally snapped his career-long 0-for-30 streak with a second-inning double in the second half of Saturday’s day-night doubleheader. “It was a tough half for Russell,” manager Joe Girardi said. “I gave him one extra day and I told him, come back after the break and be the player you’re capable of being. Put the first half behind you.”
–LF Brett Gardner did 25 swings off a tee and soft-toss drills Sunday, taking another step in his rehab from a right elbow strain. Gardner, who has had two rehab assignments cut short since going on the DL in mid-April, will likely need a lengthier rehab stint this time. “He’s got to do some BP in the cage, then some BP in the field and then they’ll give him some at-bats,” manager Joe Girardi said. “It’s been that last part that’s been the problem. I know one thing. It’s not like he can play two or three games. He’s going to have to play more because he’s been out so long.”
–RHP Cory Wade was optioned to Class AAA Scranton/Wikes-Barre after being called up to serve as the 26th man for Saturday’s doubleheader. Wade allowed three runs in two-thirds of an inning during Saturday’s nightcap.
BY THE NUMBERS: 23 — With their two runs Sunday night, the Yankees have scored 23 runs in the first inning over their last 10 games, scoring in eight of those contests. The Yankees scored in the opening frame of each game against the Red Sox, scoring 14 runs in the first inning of the four games.
QUOTE TO NOTE: “We’ve been playing well, still winning games. Guys have stepped up to pitch well. I want to get back as soon as possible to try to help the team. It always sucks going on the DL, but it’s something that needed to be done, and I feel better now.” — LHP CC Sabathia, on what it’s been like for him to watch the Yankees play since he landed on the DL on June 27.
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MLB Team Report – New York Yankees – ROSTER REPORT
MEDICAL WATCH:
–LHP Andy Pettitte (fractured lower left fibula) went on the 60-day disabled list June 28.
–LHP CC Sabathia (strained left adductor muscle) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to June 25. He threw a bullpen session July 8, and he hopes to return to the rotation shortly after the All-Star break.
–LF Brett Gardner (right elbow bone bruise and strain) went on the 15-day disabled list April 18, and he was transferred to the 60-day DL on June 26. He was shut down again May 2 because of pain in his injured right elbow. He made rehab appearances with Class AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on May 8-9, but he re-strained a muscle near the elbow. He had an MRI on May 23. While the test showed his muscle strain had healed, he continued to feel some stiffness in the arm. Gardner moved his rehab to Tampa on May 24, and he took his first dry swings May 28. He felt no pain hitting in the cage at the team complex in Tampa on June 1. He played an extended spring training game June 5. His began a rehab assignment with Class A Charleston on June 8 but was shut down a day later due to renewed elbow pain. He received a cortisone and plasma injection June 14. He did 25 swings off a tee and soft-toss drills on July 8 but still has several other major hurdles to pass before going on a lengthy rehab assignment.
–OF Austin Romine (lower back strain) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to March 26, and he was transferred to the 60-day DL on May 12.
–RHP Mariano Rivera (torn anterior cruciate ligament in right knee) went on the 15-day disabled list May 4, and he was transferred to the 60-day DL on May 13. He announced May 9 that he was also dealing with a blood clot in his right calf, delaying his knee surgery. He had season-ending surgery June 12.
–LHP Cesar Cabral (stress fracture on tip of left elbow) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to March 31, and he was transferred to the 60-day DL on May 17. He will miss at least the first half of the season.
–RHP Joba Chamberlain (Tommy John surgery in June 2011, right ankle surgery in March 2012) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to March 26, and he was transferred to the 60-day DL on May 3. He threw about 25 pitches from halfway up the pitcher’s mound June 3, and he began throwing bullpen sessions June 8. He might be able to start a rehab assignment in mid-July.
–RHP David Aardsma (Tommy John surgery in July 2011) went on the 60-day disabled list Feb. 25. He began a rehab assignment in the rookie-level Gulf Coast League on June 19. He was shut down June 29 due to a recurrence of elbow problems.
–RHP Brad Meyers (right labrum strain) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to March 26, and he was transferred to the 60-day DL on May 29. He made a rehab appearance for Class A Tampa on April 9, but he hadn’t pitched again as of July 1.
–RHP Michael Pineda (torn labrum in right shoulder) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to March 31, and he was transferred to the 60-day DL on May 4. He underwent season-ending arthroscopic surgery May 1.
–LHP Pedro Feliciano (left rotator cuff surgery in September 2011) went on the 60-day disabled list Feb. 22. He threw a bullpen session June 26, and there’s a chance he could return late in the season.
ROTATION:
RHP Hiroki Kuroda
RHP Ivan Nova
RHP Phil Hughes
RHP Freddy Garcia
BULLPEN:
RHP Rafael Soriano (closer)
RHP David Robertson
LHP Boone Logan
RHP Chad Qualls
LHP Clay Rapada
RHP Cody Eppley
RHP D.J. Mitchell
CATCHERS:
Russell Martin
Chris Stewart
INFIELDERS:
1B Mark Teixeira
2B Robinson Cano
SS Derek Jeter
3B Alex Rodriguez
INF/OF Jayson Nix
INF Eric Chavez
OUTFIELDERS:
LF Raul Ibanez
CF Curtis Granderson
RF Nick Swisher
OF Andruw Jones
OF Dewayne Wise
OF Darnell McDonald
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