As mentioned in a post earlier this week, Phil Hughes has had an up and down season. He pitched well in his debut against Detroit, but had four bad or just decent outings before dominating Texas last Monday. A solid start from him today would mean a lot, since it would likely buy him some more time at the major league level.
Hughes’s time at the major league level could also be impacted by the performance of Chien-Ming Wang. Last time we saw the Wanger was in his perfect two innings last Wednesday. The Yankees should not hesitate to use him in relief of Hughes today. He needs the work, and it’s not like the rest of the bullpen is lighting the world on fire. Phil Coke also hasn’t pitched Tuesday, so just as Veras threw one inning before Wang pitched two on Wednesday, so we could see both Coke and Wang in relief.
(Which brings me to a question: Why did Veras pitch over Coke last night? Coke was warming in the bottom of the eighth. Why not let him pitch? He hadn’t tossed since Tuesday, and Veras got work Wednesday.)
Jay at Fack Youk asks a relevant question to kick off his game post: Who is Carl Pavano? Coincidentally, this was the title of my first ever post at RAB. The Yanks will face Pavano for the second time this season. They didn’t hit him too hard the first time, as they managed just four hits and one run through six innings. Thankfully the Rafaels blew that one, as Perez allowed two runs without recording an out and Betancourt allowed three runs in his 1.1 innings. Given Carl’s perpetual absence during his four-year Yankees tenure, I’d really like to see the Yankees sock it to him. Just once.
Game time’s at the odd hour of 12:40 p.m. today.
Lineup:
1. Derek Jeter, SS
2. Johnny Damon, LF
3. Mark Teixeira, 1B
4. Alex Rodriguez, 3B
5. Robinson Cano, 2B
6. Hideki Matsui, DH
7. Nick Swisher, RF
8. Brett Gardner, CF
9. Francisco Cervelli, C
And on the mound, number sixty-five, Phil Hughes.