When the eleventh inning rolled around last night with the Yanks clinging to a one-run lead, the Yanks could have turned to Joba for the save. By stretching him out at the big league level, the Yanks have some flexibility with regards to his usage. That Joe Girardi opted to go to LaTroy Hawkins instead isn’t some testament to his stubbornness. Rather, Girardi knew Kennedy was hurt, and outside of Joba, the other option for Kennedy’s next scheduled spot would be Kei Igawa. What would you do there?
Meanwhile, last night’s game showed not the impact of transitioning Joba into the rotation but rather the impact of an early-season pitching injury. Had Brian Bruney not hurt himself earlier in the year, the entire tenor of that game – and many others this month – changes. Bruney is sometimes the forgotten man, but losing him hurt.
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