Lets get it on!

Derek Jeter driving the Score Truck!!!

Hooooooo!

Hoooooooo!!!

ARE YOU KIDDING ME???

What else is going to happen to this team?

I'm glad Robertson's ok, but this team needs an exorcism or something ...

This is my Game Thread! There are many like it, but this one is mine!

Without me, this Game Thread is useless, without this Game Thread, *I* am useless ...

[3] just getting ready to tune in the radidio... what happened??

[5] batted ball off his tush. Robertson is still in.

Oh, sure, NOW everybody shows up!

=)

[6] Line drive off his butt or lower back, caromed in the air to Alex at 3rd for the out.

Um, gulp.

Phew!

Perfect.

Thank. You. Derek.

it's freaking pouring in atlanta.

i will miss both games...

[12] Thelarmis Benneil Herpeart?

Gah. Perfect pitch.

[13] couldn't be further! but...hilarious - and clever : )

[you'll never get it...]

Weirdness; there's a half-game on now.

[11] What'd he do?

Oh, noes. Are we getting Good Joba or Bad Joba today?

[17] His patented jump throw from the hole ... saved a run.

Miranda's right -- on defense.

Always nice when Joba Farnsworth gets them to hit the ball at someone

haha Joba Farnsworth... the human white... blanket?

[22] Whale?

Al Leiter said "plays the game right" and I expected Beckett to appear.

This isn't looking good.

good job good joba.

Oh God.

Not even close, Kay.

That was scary

Mo really doesn't look good.

Heart, you may now restart beating.

Phew.

Stop walking Thome

This feeling is a little like a peek into the future of life-without-Mo.

Whoo.

Mo escaped there.

[30] Double plays make everyone look good!

But in the present WE HAVE MO!

there ya go Mo!

First 1-0 game at Target Field.

[36] I do think that 70 percent Rivera is a hell of a lot better than most.

[39] agreed. I'm not crazy concerned about him, his velocity is about normal and he seems to be missing low. He goes through these stretches, theres still something left in the tank. Someday there wont be, but we're not there yet.

Dear Yankees,

Thank you for making what should have been one of the most relaxing weeks of my year completely miserable.

Please get healthy and stop sucking.

Sincerely,

jjmerlock

ps. more substantive comments to follow

Up - game starting, I don't post during games. More later. So much to complain about, so strange to see the team looking more horrible than I could ever imagine, but right in the thick of the standings.

Is this game starting at 7:10 ET? I'm not getting a radidio feed on the mlb.com app.

No rest for Brains or Cano

WHOOO HOO!

Chad Gaudin is back in pinstripes again, egh? So, does Ivan "Super" Nova give up the ol jersey for him?

[46]

Bye bye Boone

[47] I did a jig.

another wasted baserunner. In scoring position with 1 out? No problem... we can strand em with the best of em!

why not a hit/run with Tex at the dish? Worst-case scenario is a sharp liner and they double up Nicks.

Speaking of Nicks.. good to see him up the ladder (and Gritner is back in the alt-leadoff leadoff spot)

He was safe. Not all that close.

[49] We don't run plays.

[51] unwritten Coffee Joe Rules?

Cano looks so lazy on that play but turns it better than anyone.

Leiter would really love to shove a sock down Michael Kay's throat.

[52] If you can name three plays this team has put on in the last two weeks I'd be shocked. We don't steal with anyone but Gardner, we don't hit and run, we don't squeeze. We stand around and wait for Randy Winn to hit the three run HR.

[55] I should amend that. We occasionally hit and run. It usually involves Posada.

[55] dude, I watch the Yankees every night (well, listen when I'm at work), so I know that much. But I'm saying.. WHY NOT START IT.. then you a. might could produce a run, and b. got the element of surprise on your side, too.

[57] We don't run plays. Hell, sometimes we fake out the other team by trying to make them think we might run a play, and then doing nothing. (The pinch stand there)

Of course we occasionally should, and there's no reason not to, but we don't run plays.

Hola Isabel y amigos. Como estamos?

How about that Derek Jeter? Single handedly won the game for AJ! Declining? Now let's sweep this 1.5 Header.

Happy about this new lineup. Maybe Gardner not stealing, kept Tex from not hitting...could be karma cancelling.

Question, it seems that there a much fewer broken bats flying around this season (even with consideration of Damon gone). Better Bats?

God, it's like everything Derek hits is off the end of the bat. Weak dribbler after weak dribbler.

You can't get out of a slump with a blooper, michael.

[60] I did like that game-winning weak dribbler over the left center wall, though.

[62] true dat

[62] 78 tie-breaker!

[62] I know, I missed it!

Beautiful curve, Andy.

Teix was handcuffed on that, it looked like.

Robinson Cano.

[64] (bows)

[54] That's a pretty long line. Maybe charge $10 each and pay off the national debt.

For some reason I thought this game was to start at 8 pm

Frankie with the wheels!!

Pop quiz .... what is the top price of a seat at Target Field?

[72]

$320?

Yay! Russo!

Surprised a catcher got that call.

some of the worst camera work i've ever seen today.

[73]

lower

Frankie & Russo for the run!

ROOK!

[77] 250?

Hard not to like Russo.

[80]

$275, for the front row right behind the plate, available only as a season ticket

Other than that, top single game ticket price is $77

Kay needs to learn how to read the outfielders

Bat & glove!

Thames would have caught that!

[85]

with his teeth maybe ...

I'm not gonna say that Brains offers more than Posada, but it's hard to ignor all the little things Frankie does... like not allowing himself to be doubled up, and then ultimately scoring a run. Doesn't really show in the stats but certainly has impact.

Anyone know what the MiLB report is on Russo's Defense?

When Granderson comes back, is it a given that Gardner still plays every game? I would lean toward no. The only problem is the Yankees really don't have a left fielder on the team. It could be that Cashman needs to make a trade for one.

[87] Russo only played 13 minor league games in the outfield. He is really a 2B.

[88] Gritner has a .362 wOBA. Why are you worried (at this point) about replacing him? Considering his D and speed, I'm pretty happy with what he has produced.

Jeter's looked a lot better over the last week or so

[89] Yikes! So aside from Winn and Thames, we have an infielder in the OF?

[90] Because Gardner has had hot stretches before but he is still a below average offensive player, and the Yankee lineup has more than a few of those right now.

That would've been a run if Swish got him over.

Disgusting inning. You'd think Girardi would try to put on some kind of play?

[95] We don't run plays.

[96] I am well aware of that. Still like to ask...keeps me from throwing things.

did he accidentally snag the plate on pitch #3 to Arod?

Its the 4-corners offense ...

This lineup needs a real shakeup. I think I might move Tex, Arod and Cano up one place for a few games.

I guess that silly work the count thing is out the window now?

God, this offense is feckless.

[102] It's utterly feck-free.
I hated that Jeter dribble double, too, didn't you? He should have choked up.

[91] He certainly has more hard-hit balls than he has in weeks, that's for sure. Still, they're sprinkled among a lot of weak, groundball outs.

[103] Hated it with a passion. :)

[97] When was the last hit and run we put on?

[93] We know Gritner is a weak bat, but he does have the 2nd highest WAR on the team. Rather then judge him on what you think he will do, how about judging him on what he has done so far? And certainly with Grandy and Swish in the OF, Teix and jeter waking up, and getting Po back, I'm happy to have his speed and defense in this lineup.

If Grandy or Swish go down for an extended period then yes, a 'real' OFer would be in order.

Can Russo run?

Sweet!!!

Jeez... another lucky dribbler for Gritner.

[107] +1 Old YF!

+3 Gritner!

Gardner has a lot of Johnny Damon in his swing ...

Yah! GRITNER!!!

Nice hit, Brett. Good hustle, kid.

Gee our runs this game are courtesy of Cervelli, Russo & Gardner. Is their yearly combined salary one par with a month of A-Rod or Teix?

[112] He totally does. I've noticed that too.

Also, Kevin Russo is such a freaking upgrade over WPA.

That way he fights off and kind of whips that inside pitch using his hands...

this umpire has blown all game

Derek is pissed!

[120] Rightly so.

[116] With a better artm, better D, and more speed.

Robbie is fucking ridiculous sometimes.

Jeez... another lazy play.

[122] But much less power.

[54] I mis-read that for a second and...yikes, that's an image that won't go away too soon...

72 pitches through 6 innings? Not too shabby from the ol man...

I stand. I applaud you.

[127] Yeah, nice. Maybe CG. Or maybe yet another episode in the "Andy leaves the ball on the mound for Mo" saga.

[127] Kay thinks its 54 through six, which makes it even more impressive.

[127] That's why they call him Andy Pettitte.

[129] Pettitte's durability and mk's stupidity are equally impressive.

[127] Masterful performance. I love watching him keep everyone off-balance. It's so much more gratifying in some ways than watching an overpowering performance.

[129] Wow, that really would be impressive. (I'm watching ESPN.)

Teix can't buy a hit.

[130] [129] And that's why they call him Michael Kay.

Ooooh. Teix can't buy one!

[107] I am judging him on what he has done...over his career. I am not saying bench him completely, but I'd like the Yankees to have the option to limit his playing time. Until the lineup becomes whole, I don't think the Yankees can afford to have too many low impact hitters.

[135] Heh heh heh heh. On both counts.

[133] He had something like 66 in the middle of the last inning, and Kay was screaming that he had 51 and how impressive that was, before declaring that he 50-something strikes out of 60-something pitches.

Come on, Alex, give Liriano a nice parting gift here...

Nolan is old school. As am I.

Oh, fuck. Not that kind of parting gift. That was so hittable.

Oh well, Rob next inning. I guess Liriano will start it...

[134,135] I'm on the radio... did Tex take his wallet out at home plate or something?

[136] wait, what are you talking about? his numbers have improved every year so far. But even so, he doesn't even have 600 career at bats in the majors yet. And 1/3 are this year when he is doing quite well.

If Boston stays hot, it may very well be time to panic.

[142] Liner right side of the infield, Morneau playing way in the hole dives to his left (toward the line) and nabs it.

[143] He was awful in his first year and then a notch below average lasy year. The jury is still out on exactly what trend he is setting. If it make sense to judge him on 176 PAs this year, then wouldn't his 600 PAs be more significant?

Regardless, I don't think Gardner is an everyday player in the Yankee lineup as it is currently constituted. If Cashman can get another bat who can also play LF, Gardner's presence shouldn't stand in his way.

Damn.

why was cervelli so far off the plate?

Damn.

Crab.

Target's a big ballpark I guess.

Son of a bitch

That was just an awful pitch by Andy.

[148] Exactly what I just asked my son!

Robbie has some arm.

Pettitte has to buckle down here...I don't see two runs in this lineup.

[146] I wouldn't judge how good he is going to be based on 176 ABs, nor on his first year. But you seem to suggest that we ignore what he has done this year over what he did in his first year (when he had less ABs). It makes no sense to me.

NIce play, Andy.

I'll take that

Go get him, Andy!
Love that play.
Go home Delmon, you stiff.

[156] I am not suggesting we ignore anything. Rather, I think everything should be taken into account, both about Gardner and the state of the team.

Also, it should be noted that Gardner is not exactly tearing things up. A few more poor games and he'll be back to a below average offensive player.

Good job, Andy.

[155] And that's why his name is Andy Pettitte.

Here we go. Late innings means Score Truck, right? Relief pitcher, Robinson, good combo...

Nope.

Yanks really needed something from Robby there. He is another Yankee who has kind of fizzled of late. Until Sunday, Arod was the only Yankee keep up his end of the bargain, but now you really don't have anyone.

Is there a reason Michael Kay can't tell when an outfielder has a beat on a ball?

Are you kidding me?
This park is murder on hits to CF.

thanks for the tip last night.. After the 5th inning I watched Big Fan on Netflix whilst me wife chipped away at her neverending DVR soap opera cache.

[168] intended for Weeping.

[166] He's Michael Kay?

Attaboy.

Nicely done, Brains, nicely done!

C'mon Russo!

Get a hit or Jesus gets it ...

What an anemic offense.

I hate to say this, but I'm going to watch the Celtics for a while. Keep me posted.

From RAB:

Update: Boone Logan has been optioned to make room for Chad Gaudin, who’s officially been re-signed. Shane Lindsay, who was claimed off waivers less than two weeks ago, was designated for assignment to make room on the 40-man roster.

Duhr. About time.

[174] You lose your pinstripes!

Oh boy

Gardner has to make that play.

Ohferchristsakes

Awful play by Arod...this team is sinking.

sigh ... the Yanks DO put on a defensive play ...

I love the wheel play -- when it works.

Hey. Time out in Orlando.
WTF?
This is why I don't want Girardi to try any plays.

There's one.

Nice, Andy!

Damn it! How do you not get a double play on that. Why didn't those runners stray??

[183] Don't worry. He never will again.

Here's the difference between winning and losing...the Yankees big bats havent come through...let's see what the Twins' big boys do.

Good pitch, Andy.

[187] Good.
There are hundreds and hundreds of opportunities to put on bad plays, and rarely an opportunity for a good one.

Right now, Mauer is as close to money as you can get.

[191] So you'd walk him?

[192] No, because Morneau is the next best thing. It just shows the predicament the Yankees are in.

Aggggh!

takes some strong wrists to hold up like that

Boy, every one of those balls was very close or over.

Money!
Now that is money.

Frankie is pumped!

Wow...guess money aint worth what it used to.

Yes!.

Mr. Andy Pettitte.

Andy is a golden god.

Andy Pettitte, ladies and gentlemen.

Andy Pettitte.

[190] Really, I'm not a fan of everyone standing around and waiting for Kevin Russo to hit the Earl Weaver three run homerun either.

ANDY!

Dear Andy ... Joba is calling copyright infringement on the pumped-up manuever.

[195] Indeed.

damn that andy pettitte.

hi team.

HUGE!
Yanks are flashing the leather tonight.
Even the double that scored the Twins second run was perfectly executed, defensively.

andy the dp wizard.

Hey, Ms. O, just in time!

[194] you tricked me! the gameday audio is like 60 sec behind. A lotta times I see the banter's reaction to a play before I hear it. I thought we were giving up a run or 2.

[201] You're the guy who throws a bucket of gasoline on a fire because you refuse to just stand there and do nothing.

I wasn't at all worried!
(Excuse while I go throw up.)

I wonder what's more frustrating: a Tex infield pop with a man on third, or a Mauer double play on a scorching ground ball.

[208] Heheheh. Fastball under the hands. Looked like a strike. Blue didn't think so.

Neck tattoos ... definite turn-off

must take

looked like ball 4

Leiter's cracking up at mk!

That call was Sterlingesque!

[209] I think we can agree that doing nothing is not working for this team at the moment. It might be worth it to occasionally take a risk.

[207] hey weeping. yeah, good timing on my part.

[216] yeah he adds gross on top of ugly.

I almost wanted Gardner to take regardless.

Shallowest CF I've ever seen.

Gah. Just missed that.

Damn it.
Nice he turned on one, at least.

[218] Putting on the play didn't work either. It was much worse than doing nothing.

[219] the second comment was for diane at [213] but i guess is applicable to mk too :}

More first pitch swinging.

swisheroo!!!

YYYAAAAYYYYYYYY!!!!!!

SWISHER!!!

Nick the Stick!!!!!!

There we go.

Swish! That's why you don't bat Gardner in the 2-hole!

btw what time did this game start that it is already in the 9th?

He fucking smoked that ball.
Fuck.

Swish swat!!

Now that's an iPhone app I can get behind.

so, who pitches the 9th?

So ... just because I've had this discussion with many ... THAT is why Nick Swisher is NICK THE MOTHERFUCKING STICK.

Just sayin' ...

Do the Yankees go to Mo? He wasn't warming.

AGGGGGGHHHHHH!

nice dig out tex. but god damnit have you been attending the jorge posada baserunning academy.

[230] Preach on, Brother Man!

Teixeira can't do anything right lately.

Jorge Teixeira running the bases there.

[233] Like seven, for some reason. Eastern.

Geez, even when Teix gets a hit, it's an out.

Start the Blues music: If I didn't have no bad luck, I'd have no luck at all.

[241] ahh ah ha hah hah ah!

[233] It started at exactly the usual time, Ms. Oct.

I figure it's much better for Andy to start the inning, anyway. Mo's already pitched today. I like Andy here at least to start it.

[244] ESPN game

[241] The Great "Nick the Stick" Controversy of 2010.

[245] Heh hheheh. Very nice.

Andy one batter at a time and then Mo?

[248] Ah.

Mo.

alright mo.

Well all right, here we go...

strange times when going to mo seems like the wrong move

I'm with Cult, it's "Nick The Stick"!

NJ is of course, "Mr. Glass"

Let's go to Mo!

I can't ever argue against using Rivera, but today's game leaves me a bit worried.

Damn. I wanted Andy to start. Damn.

Oh, right, sorry. When I said "usual time" I was forgetting that usual Minn. start time is 8ish.

This isn't going to be an easy save. Mo is in the midst of one of his lonest bad spells. Will be very interesting to see how this inning workouts. It's kind of a pivotal moment in the season.

[249] Controversy? No controversy at all. There's only *one* Nick "The Stick". Here's a hint. He's on the field *right* now, just like he was for our World Series win last year ...

Oh, Swisher totally earned that "Nick the Stick". While NJ is on the shelf the moniker belongs to Swish.

Well, c'mon, bring it Mo!

how does poor frankie still have legs?

Scary swing.

Batting Gardner second probably cost the Yankees a game or two over the last 10. Hopefully Mo can close this out so we get one back.

Good basketball game.
Okay, okay, I want my pinstripes, so I'm watching baseball.

One, one Mariano Rivera out.

That's one, baby. And the hard one.

Did that hit the bag?

alright good to get morneau out of the way.

[266] With Swisher hurt for some of that, were there alot of other options?

[267] Do you really watch the 1st half of NBA games?

[264] Eh, he's young.

[270] No, but it was within inches. If it hit the bag it would have been a hit.

Minneapolis is a real pretty city, huh?

Where the hell was that?

[272] He played more than a few games there when Swish got back. I can live with the ones before he did.

Two! Two Mariano Rivera outs.

[273] We'll discuss this another time. I'll watch playoff basketball over pretty nearly anything. Though not over Mo for the win, of course.

That's two.

[277] Seems like Rivera has been getting a lot of bad calls. Actually, it doesn't seem....he has, if PitchFx is accurate.

Thanks be to Mo!

That MOre like it.

That was much more like it.

Three! Three Mariano Rivera outs.

And there's your Andy to Mo classic, ladies and gentlemen.

the yankees win!!!

[280] i love playoff basketball myself.

Well, it weren't no laugher. but that. will. do.

How many two-save days have there been, I wonder?

What a beautiful performance from Andy.
God, how I love that man.

Maybe the Yankees do have a spell over the Twins?

[286] I like it too, but usually only the 4th quarter. It seems as if the first three quarters of NBA playoff games mean nothing toward the eventual outcome.

[288] We need to get Tim Keurk. to answer that. Maybe Sunday night.

Awww.

Well done, Mr. Andrew Eugene.
Well done.

[291] I know, a lot of people say that.
I just like watching basketball at a high level. If the Knicks were ever any good, I would probably watch games very differently. But I feel like I have no dog in the fight, so I experience the NBA in a purely aesthetic way. (I'm like the Weeping of basketball!)

Wow, that's a mighty satisfying couple of wins. The eighth inning Houdini act was special. The sound of that Swisher dinger is sweet music.

[294] i agree riyank. there are usually big runs in the nba - but there is a lot to watch the first 3 quarters that sets up the 4th quarter. i usually end up rooting for one team over the other, but watching for pure enjoyment of the game is a lot of fun and quite different than the baseball experience.

Really beautiful performance by Andy. Mo looks like he's not throwing too hard but he got it done...escaped some hard hit balls in the first game.

The Magic won't impress me if they win this game. They'll impress me if they can win Game 6 in Boston.

I'm liking the NBA playoffs although the Cavs meltdown was so puzzling that it was a downer. Not that I have any huge love for them but I never like to see a team go out like that.

The Suns-Lakers is fun.

Life in New England will be much more fun if the Celtics echo the Bruins' collapse, of course, so I'm certainly rooting for the Magic to rise. But, I also like watching Howard, and Ray Allen has always been one of my favorite players.
[296] The only thing is, Ms. Oct., that in the back of my mind, I know that the Knicks suck. Again. Still. If the Knicks were in the play-offs, I would probably not even be paying attention to the Yankees.

sigh...

Oh well, that's all an extremely unrealistic fantasy.

[299] I can barely remember the Knicks playing playoff basketball...

Let's hope Wade and Bosh arrive soon?