Rivalry not healthy, but Yank outlook is
There is usually endless hand-wringing over a Yankee loss to the Red Sox. This, though, felt like nothing. Sure, the Yanks dropped Saturday’s game, 4-1, at the Stadium to the team from Dysfunction Junction, also known as Fenway Park. But there was no angst, no teeth-gnashing, no pouting. Why should there be? The Red Sox are no threat this time.
No matter how many hits Pedro Ciriaco gets against the Yanks or how many times Jon Lester looks like his old self against them, the rivalry is lopsided this season and not just because the Yankees are ahead, 7-4. The Yanks, odd as it may sound, are survivors.
It may be hard to think of a team with all these boldface names and this enormous pay roll that way. But survival might be what the Yankees do best now in an injur y-laden season in which no individual is having a particularly spectacular year but the team still has the best record in the American League.
That, plus a 121⁄ 2- game lead over the fourth-place Sox, shows why the Yankees have it all over Boston this season. Heck, even when they lose to their rivals, the Yankees manage to have an OK day.
They got good news from a clean bullpen session by CC Sabathia, as well as another vow by the big lefty that he’ll return to the rotation Friday in Cleveland, whether Joe Girardi is still hedging or not. And Sabathia’s rotation replacement, 25-year-old righty David Phelps, was sharp enough against Boston to offer further proof of how adept the Yankees are at enduring. Let’s look beyond one loss and think long term here, people.
Phelps pitched well for the second time while keeping Sabathia’s spot warm, turning in the longest outing of his career and featuring an effective two-seam fastball and curve. He allowed three runs — two on a firstinning homer by Adrian Gonzalez on a pitch that wasn’t even a strike — in 62⁄ innings, and a handful of fans
3 gave him a standing ovation when he came out in the seventh. Derek Jeter, the DH on Saturday, met him at the dugout steps for a fist bump.
Getting by while one cog or another is down with an injury has been a recurring theme all season for the Yanks. They have, after all, been without the great Mariano Rivera for most of the year. Andy Pettitte is still out and so is Alex Rodriguez.
In two starts in place of Sabathia, Phelps has allowed five runs in 112⁄ 3 innings, a 3.86 ERA. That doesn’t make him Justin Verlander, but it doesn’t mean he was slugger fodder, either — the Yanks were 1-1 with him as a placeholder.
“We like what he does,” Girardi said.
“He’s a valuable guy on your team because he can do so many things and he’s had success in all areas.”
There are plenty of other examples. With A-Rod out with a fractured left hand since July 25, the three men manning third base — Eric Chavez, Jayson Nix and Casey McGehee — had combined to hit .385 with seven homers in 22 games entering Saturday. Homers Friday and Saturday notwithstanding, Curtis Granderson has been slumping lately and so has Robinson Cano. But Nick Swisher (3for-4) is batting .380 with four homers and 14 RBI over his last 12 games.
And, lest we forget, there’s closer Rafael Soriano, who some might consider the Yankee MVP this season for the work he’s done replacing Rivera. Soriano has converted 30 of 32 save chances since taking over and, as a closer, he has a 1.49 ERA and has held opponents to a .527 OPS.
Girardi called it “very gratifying” to have players filling in so ably. He was talking about veteran players such as Chavez who had been stars elsewhere and then came to the Bronx after their career arcs had changed. But it applies to Phelps, too, who has also done enough good work in relief that it will be interesting to see if he’s the one who goes to the minors when Sabathia returns.
Was everything great Saturday? Of course not. The Yankees managed to add legs to the season-long narrative on failing with runners in scoring position, going 0-for-9 in such situations. Somehow, they’ve still scored the second-most runs in baseball.
None of the fill-ins could do enough to overcome a rejuvenated Jon Lester, who allowed one run in seven innings. Still, the Red Sox’s victory raised their record in August to just 6-11. The Rays and even the Orioles are the Yankees’ V concerns, not Bobby Valentine’s crew. Valentine’s got so many problems now that even the ultimate manager provocateur can’t add sizzle to a rivalry that can use every extra dose these days. Part of the reason for that is because the Yankees have done few things this season as well as survive.