If we are to believe that this is the post-steroids era, how much more can we reasonably expect from Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez? Sure, it is the middle of August when it makes most sense that older players–and in the Yankees’ case, younger ones too–slump. Still, Jeter and Rodriguez are both on the wrong side of 35 and are having the worst seasons of their respective careers. Older than 35, that used to spell the begining of the end of most players.  (Let’s not consider Mr. Rivera, okay; there are always exceptions.) The natural course of things.

Is this just a lull? The dog days of August when most every bat goes into a temporary funk? Will Jeter and Rodriguez finish the season strong and play deep into October? Can they bounce back next year? I think they’ve both got some good ball left in them, and perhaps even some surprises. But I also think it’s getting late early or at least earlier than it did ten years ago.

Four game series against the Tigers starts tonight. Over at PB, our man Cliff breaks it down like only he can do. In the same space, Jay Jaffe takes a look at the Yankees’ catching situation. Not to be left-out, dig Steve Goldman’s post on Alex Rodriguez’s blustery RBI total.

Over at the Times, Ben Shpigel writes about Rodriguez’s season as well.

A friend passed along this cool tidbit from Jayson Stark (behind the paywall at ESPN):

Love this incredible note from the geniuses at our new favorite blog, You Can’t Predict Baseball: When Mariano Rivera gave up a leadoff ninth-inning triple to Elvis Andrus on Wednesday and then stranded him on third, it preserved one of baseball’s most amazing streaks. In the entire career of the great Mariano, when he’s allowed the tying run to reach third with nobody out, the other team has never gotten that run home.

[Picture by Bags]

Take it away, Jackie (and thanks to joejoejoe for the link):

Here’s another ideal spot for you sandwich heads.

Amazing, really.

What annoys New Yorkers the most?

The Gothamist has some fun with our daily pet peeves.

Joe Posnanski talks about Heart and Derek Jeter. He also talks about hustle (grit and guttiness!) and all sorts of words full of integrity signifiying…? You tell me.

Burnett was hardly burnt; he was very crisp. But the Yanks offense was left bruised and bloody as hell by this guy:

I replayed the game quickly after a long day in the city dodging raindrops and the early Kansas City run didn’t register as important on my radar screen. In fact, with Arod smacking what looked like his fourth straight homer to start the second, and a couple of other squared up outs from Swisher (in the first) and Berkman to end the second, I thought the game would play out much like the night before, with the Yanks piling up the homers in an easy victory.

They didn’t hit another ball really hard the entire game – maybe Swisher’s fly out in the fourth qualifies as hard-hit, but even still. A few grounders shot through the infield courtesy of Cano and Gardner, but that was it. And the first inning run stood up stiff, like a stubborn cowlick. Royals 1, Yanks 0.

Bullington had a passable fastball operating in the low 90s with just enough run on it to miss the sweet spot of the bat. He mixed in a low 80s breaking ball that was tough on lefties when ahead in the count. He saved his best fastball to strike out Arod in the eight, when Arod had a couple of good hacks to try to tie the game. It was an incredibly effective performance and a hard-earned first career victory for the former number one draft pick.

But when a guy gets brilliant results with less than impressive stuff, how much credit does he deserve? I thought the Yankees did a so-so job of getting into hitter’s counts and took some aggressive swings at hittable pitches, but always for naught. The guy just got it done. I wouldn’t bet on him getting by with the same stuff next time out, but what do I know?

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Yanks look to win the series today. AJ Delight is on the hill.

C’mon Score Truck, bring ’em home.

[Picture by Bags]

Two of my favs…

Lean Back…

For the first part of the game tonight, the Yankees hit one fly ball after another deep into the outfield at Kaufman Stadium. They just didn’t hit anything hard enough or far enough to carry over the fence. Whole lot of warning track outs. Mark Teixeira kept the Yankees in the game with a series of brilliant fielding plays–leaping, diving, picking–and eventually the fly balls started to carry. Alex Rodriguez broke a 1-1 tie in the top of the sixth with a solo home run to dead center. Jorge Posada and Curtis Granderson added solo shots of their own and the Yanks were up by three.

The Royals scored a couple to make it a game but then Rodriguez hit a pair of two-run homers (another one to center—the “lean back” shot pictured above,  and finally one up in the water fountain in left field). That was more than enough to finish the Royals. All three of Rodriguez’s homers came off fastballs, low and over the plate.  And that’s the fourth three-dinger game of Rodriguez’s career. He DH’d tonight and now has 21 homers on the season, to go 97 RBI.

Final Score: Yanks 8, Royals 3.

[Photo Credit: Jamie Squire/Getty Images]

After last night, let’s hope the Yanks have a big, ol’ feast tonight.

Pile it deep and high.

Let’s Go Yan-Kees!

And here, dig this barbeque tour from Anthony Bourdain:

Part Two:

In the Summer. In the City. In the Summer…

[Picture by Bags]

We want Jesus Montero. We want Eduardo Nunez. Well, maybe not we. At the very least, I want Montero and Nunez on the big league roster–and the sooner the better. As much as I think the trade deadline additions of Lance “Big Puma” Berkman and Austin “Big Ears” Kearns will help the offense and the outfield defense, respectively, more needs to be done to strengthen the bench.

After a dreadful start to his inaugural Triple-A season, Montero has been hitting torridly for Scranton/Wilkes Barre. He has lifted his season slugging to .495 and his OPS to .855, both impressive numbers for a 20-year-old catcher, even one who is defensively limited. I’m a firm believer in the Bill James philosophy of advancing players who have shown the ability to master a level of minor league play. And right now Montero is mastering pitchers in the International League. With the Yankees in the midst of a heated three-team pennant race, they need every roster advantage they can muster.

Let’s face it, Francisco Cervelli has been living off a hot April and May for the entire summer. He has been an offensive nonentity for months, and his defensive play has been far worse than his gilded reputation. The Yankees need more offense from the catching position; Montero can provide that, while also giving the Yankees a needed third catcher for those days when the frequently injured Jorge Posada needs to DH. So how do the Yankees make room for Montero, who could also provide another DH and pinch-hitting option? I would suggest cutting back to 11 pitchers–the horrors!–by releasing Chad Gaudin, who has become window dressing at the end of the bullpen. In two weeks, the Yankees will be able to add to their pitching staff anyway, as one of the benefits of the expanded September rosters.

While Cervelli can at least rest on his early season laurels, Ramiro Pena has no such fallback. He has been an offensive donut in every way: no batting average, no walks, and no power. At a different time, the Yankees could have afforded a no-hit, good-field utility infielder like Pena (does Chicken Stanley come to mind?). But not now, not with Alex Rodriguez and Derek Jeter needing more days off than ever. There is simply too drastic a drop-off from Rodriguez/Jeter to Pena, especially if the Yankees happen to be facing a top-tier pitcher that night.

With a player like Nunez, the Yankees would reduce the falloff. Nunez has extra-base power, can steal bases (21 in 26 attempts), and offers enough versatility to back up three infield positions, in addition to the outfield. Nunez is not the defensive shortstop that Pena is, but he is so much better offensively that he is worth the tradeoff.

So let’s get Nunez and Montero up here pronto. Traditionally a conservative organization when it comes to promoting their young players, the Yankees will likely wait to bring the pair up in September, once Scranton’s season has ended. I just hope such conservatism doesn’t cost the Yankees a game or two in the standings between now and then…

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A few weeks back, I was hanging out with my six-year-old nephew over at his house. He was sitting on the floor, working on a puzzle when his mother started singing “Empire State of Mind.” At first, he sang along, and then, by the middle of the son, he stopped and looked irritated. “I KNOW that song already!” he said. You know you’ve reached a certain stage in life when you get annoyed by a song because you’ve heard it too much.

Well, I’ve had no need to hear “Dust in the Wind” by Kansas again, ever, in my life, until our own Hank Waddles dubbed Dustin Moseley, “Dustin, the win” Moseley.

That’s Alonzo, who?

Ol’ Mosie’s on the hill in KC tonight.

Let’s Go Yan-Kees!

Dig this fun piece at the Smithsonian on the origins of food idioms:

Sowing your wild oats: According to World Wide Words, a blog written by British lexicographer Michael Quinion, this expression dates to at least the 16th century, and refers to the worthlessness of wild oats (the probable precursor to cultivated oats) as a cereal crop. Therefore, a young man who sows wild oats is—ahem—spreading seeds without purpose, or otherwise pursuing idle pastimes.

Upper crust: In olden days, the top half of a loaf a bread was considered better, and was served to the nobility. (Source: Mad as a Wet Hen!)

Over at PB, Jay Jaffe takes a look at the two-halves of Phil Hughes’ season:

On both sides of the line, Hughes has received virtually identical defensive support from his teammates, above-average support at that, given that the league batting average on balls in play is .294. He’s got two main problems: he isn’t striking out hitters at nearly the same clip as early in the year, and his home run rate has more than doubled. The latter is a byproduct of him generating fewer groundballs (which don’t go for homers) and getting a bit more bad luck on his increased number of fly balls (which do, given enough of ‘em).

Man, is it ever pleasant in the Rotten Apple today. The humidity is gone. Cool breeze, sun peaking out. Oh, yeah…

[Picture by Bags]