The Yankees are an irresistible force. The Orioles are not an immovable object. We’ve seen that over the past two nights, and the Yanks will give it another go this evening, sending ace-in-training Joba Chamberlain to the mound to complete the sweep of the Orioles. It seems like Yanks fans are getting greedy, gearing up for a ninth straight victory. But, as Kenny Singleton is wont to point out, it just feels like they’re going to win every game. He was referring to the atmosphere in the clubhouse, but it infects the fans, too.
No one forgets Joba’s last outing against Baltimore. It was defined by one play: the fist-pump by Aubrey Huff following a first-inning homer. Joba didn’t think much of it, or at least didn’t play it up in the media. He went on to finish strong, allowing no runs after the homer while striking out five. The nine hits were a bit high, but that’s the life of a budding pitcher. His last start against Minnesota was a bit more dominant. He looks to build on that tonight.
Adam Eaton takes the hill for Baltimore. Last time he faced the Yankees was another infamous game. Phil Hughes let things get out of hand in the second, which was a shame because Eaton is a pretty terrible pitcher. They got him for four runs in five innings, but that wasn’t enough to overcome the deficit. The Royals smacked him around in his subsequent start, for seven runs in five innings. The Yanks have seen him recently, so let’s hope they can put a similar hurt on Eaton.
Johnny Damon apparently tweaked his neck while leaping for Adam Jones’s homer. While Phil Hughes would have appreciated a save, the jump was pretty futile. He’ll sit out today with hopes of returning tomorrow. Speaking of Hughes, the Yanks announced that he will make another start, on Monday in Texas, while Chien-Ming Wang will take the hill on Friday for Scranton.
Lineup:
1. Derek Jeter, SS
2. Robinson Cano, 2B
3. Mark Teixeira, 1B
4. Alex Rodriguez, 3B
5. Hideki Matsui, DH
6. Nick Swisher, RF
7. Melky Cabrera, LF
8. Francisco Cervelli, C
9. Brett Gardner, CF
And on the mound, number sixty-two Joba Chamberlain.
Also, be sure to check out Matt from Fack Youk’s post on the Yankees’ work with cancer patients. I thought it was a very good read.