Yankees @ RangersRangers Ballpark in Arlington
(three games)
Players to Watch
YANKEES: Melky Cabrera - It's safe to say the Melk man has been delivering this year and delivering consistently. And nobody saw this coming after the very ugly 2008 he had. So far the 24-year-old is hitting .328/.374/.492, with 5 HR and 20 RBI. The .328 average leads the Yanks. If I would have told you that Melky would be leading the Yankees in hitting on May 25th you probably would have thought I was crazy.
He's also been one of the Yankees most clutch hitters. He's hitting .300/.353/.333 with runners in scoring position, .323/.353/.452 with a homer and 8 RBI in high leverage situations, and a ridiculous .478/.500/.609 with a homer and 8 RBI in late & close situations.
In his career he's done OK against the Rangers, hitting .275/.351/.471, with a homer and RBI in 18 games. He must like Rangers Ballpark beacuse he's hitting .346/.433/.577 in 10 games there. Last year, however, he was invisible against Texas, going 0-for-8 in two games.
Melky vs. Harrison: NR
Melky vs. Millwood: .364/.364/.636 (4-for-11), 2B, 3B, 2 K
Melky vs. Holland: NR
RANGERS: Michael Young - Now the Rangers third baseman, Young continues to be a major weapon in the top of the Rangers lineup. He's currently hitting .343/.387/.562, with 7 HR and 18 RBI. He currently leads the team in batting average, on-base %, hits (58), and doubles (16). Although he's slowed down a bit over the last week, he's had a great month of may, hitting .403/.425/.532, with a homer and 5 RBI.
In his career against the Yankees he's hitting .289/.317/.395, with 4 HR and 35 RBI in 63 games. Last year he was much better against the Yanks, hitting .346/.414/.692, with two homers, three doubles, and six RBI.
Young vs. Hughes: 0-for-3
Young vs. Chamberlain: .500/.500/1.000 (3-for-6), HR, 3 RBI
Young vs. Burnett: .222/.222/.444 (4-for-18), 2B, HR, RBI, 4 K
Injury Report
YANKEES:
- Xavier Nady, RF: 15-day DL with an injured right elbow.
- Cody Ransom, INF: 60-day DL with a strained right quad.
- Jose Molina, C: On the 15-day DL with a strained left quad.
- Jorge Posada, C: 15-day DL with a strained right hamstring.
(Nady, Ransom, Molina, and Posada, have all went down to Tampa to begin rehab.)
- Damaso Marte, RP: 15-day DL with a sore shoulder. Haven't heard anything new on Marte for weeks now.
- Brian Bruney, RP: Is headed back to the 15-day DL with a mysterious pain in his right arm. He's had an MRI and arthrogram and they both came back clean, but he wants to make sure before he does any serious damange.
RANGERS:
- Vincente Padilla, SP: 15-day DL with a strained right shoulder.
- Willie Eyre, RP: 15-day DL with a strained right groin.
- Joaquin Benoit, RP: 60-day DL as he recovers from right rotator cuff surgery.
- Eric Hurley, SP: 60-day DL with a torn right rotator cuff. He's done for the year.
- Dustin Nippert, RP: 60-day DL with right shoulder soreness.
(three games)
OK, so it didn't end as well as we'd all have liked, but the Yankees head to Texas after a great homestand that saw the Yankees win eight of their ten games. With their 8-2 homestand the Yankees are now 25-19 and were able to climb to within one game of the first place Red Sox, and just a half game behind the second place Blue Jays.
Overall the team is playing very good baseball. They're hitting, they're pitching is getting much better as their team ERA slowly creeps back to respectability, and they're even playing some very solid defense (no errors in their last 11 games). Another thing this team continues to show is their ability to come back. During the homestand they won four games in walk-off fashion, six on the year. Last year they had a total of nine walk-off wins all year. And so far this season they've already have 17 come from behind victories, which leads the majors. They also seem to get major contributions from a different player everyday, whether it's a rookie like Francisco Cervelli or a superstar like Alex Rodriguez, everyday it seems like it someone else, which is always good to see.
Health wise the Yankees still have their share of injuries, but slowly the players are working their way back. Four injured Yankees - Jorge Posada, Xavier Nady, Cody Ransom, and Jose Molina - went down to Tampa today to begin rehabbing their injuries, Chien-Ming Wang is healthy and working out of the pen, and should be close to returning to the rotation, and Brian Bruney has said he will pitch through the mystery pain he's feeling in his arm since the tests all came back clean. (I'm still concerned about Bruney, though.)..... UPDATE: Bad news, turns out Bruney is headed back to the DL.
The Rangers are one of the biggest surprises of the young season, and head into this series with the Yankees with the best record in the AL at 26-17. They currently are in first place in the AL West and lead the Angels by three games. They also come into this series on a hot streak of their own, winners of 10 of their last 13.
Offensively they're very solid. Michael Young, Ian Kinsler and Josh Hamilton are All-Stars, and their supporting cast isn't too bad either. That cast includes guys like Marlon Byrd, the rejuvenated Andruw Jones, Nelson Cruz, Chris Daivs, Hank Blalock, and veteran Omar Vizquel. One Ranger you may not have heard of is rookie shortstop Elvis Andus. The 20-year-old is having a very nice rookie campaign, hitting .291/.333/.457, with 3 HR, 9 RBI, and 6 steals.
None of that should come as a surprise, though, because Texas always hit, but this season the major difference is they're starting to get some solid pitching too. Their starters have been much better than in years past, and they even are tied for the league lead in complete games with four. The bullpen, like most teams is a little shaky in the middle, but their closer, Frank Fracisco has been lights-out this year. He has yet to give up a run and is ten for ten in save opportunities.
Last season the Rangers won the season series 4-3.
Health wise the Yankees still have their share of injuries, but slowly the players are working their way back. Four injured Yankees - Jorge Posada, Xavier Nady, Cody Ransom, and Jose Molina - went down to Tampa today to begin rehabbing their injuries, Chien-Ming Wang is healthy and working out of the pen, and should be close to returning to the rotation, and Brian Bruney has said he will pitch through the mystery pain he's feeling in his arm since the tests all came back clean. (I'm still concerned about Bruney, though.)..... UPDATE: Bad news, turns out Bruney is headed back to the DL.
The Rangers are one of the biggest surprises of the young season, and head into this series with the Yankees with the best record in the AL at 26-17. They currently are in first place in the AL West and lead the Angels by three games. They also come into this series on a hot streak of their own, winners of 10 of their last 13.
Offensively they're very solid. Michael Young, Ian Kinsler and Josh Hamilton are All-Stars, and their supporting cast isn't too bad either. That cast includes guys like Marlon Byrd, the rejuvenated Andruw Jones, Nelson Cruz, Chris Daivs, Hank Blalock, and veteran Omar Vizquel. One Ranger you may not have heard of is rookie shortstop Elvis Andus. The 20-year-old is having a very nice rookie campaign, hitting .291/.333/.457, with 3 HR, 9 RBI, and 6 steals.
None of that should come as a surprise, though, because Texas always hit, but this season the major difference is they're starting to get some solid pitching too. Their starters have been much better than in years past, and they even are tied for the league lead in complete games with four. The bullpen, like most teams is a little shaky in the middle, but their closer, Frank Fracisco has been lights-out this year. He has yet to give up a run and is ten for ten in save opportunities.
Last season the Rangers won the season series 4-3.
Pitching Matchups
Game 1: Today @ 2:05 p.m. | TV/Radio: YES, WCBS 880
RHP Phil Hughes (2-2, 7.06 ERA) vs. LHP Matt Harrison (4-3, 4.71 ERA)
RHP Phil Hughes (2-2, 7.06 ERA) vs. LHP Matt Harrison (4-3, 4.71 ERA)
Game 2: Tomorrow @ 8:05 p.m. | TV/Radio: MY9, WCBS 880
RHP Joba Chamberlain (2-1, 3.70 ERA) vs RHP Kevin Millwood (4-4, 3.12 ERA)
RHP Joba Chamberlain (2-1, 3.70 ERA) vs RHP Kevin Millwood (4-4, 3.12 ERA)
Game 3: Wednesday @ 8:05 p.m. | TV/Radio: YES, ESPN2, WCBS 880
RHP A.J. Burnett (2-2, 5.28 ERA) vs LHP Derek Holland (1-1, 4.82 ERA)
RHP A.J. Burnett (2-2, 5.28 ERA) vs LHP Derek Holland (1-1, 4.82 ERA)
Players to Watch
YANKEES: Melky Cabrera - It's safe to say the Melk man has been delivering this year and delivering consistently. And nobody saw this coming after the very ugly 2008 he had. So far the 24-year-old is hitting .328/.374/.492, with 5 HR and 20 RBI. The .328 average leads the Yanks. If I would have told you that Melky would be leading the Yankees in hitting on May 25th you probably would have thought I was crazy.
He's also been one of the Yankees most clutch hitters. He's hitting .300/.353/.333 with runners in scoring position, .323/.353/.452 with a homer and 8 RBI in high leverage situations, and a ridiculous .478/.500/.609 with a homer and 8 RBI in late & close situations.
In his career he's done OK against the Rangers, hitting .275/.351/.471, with a homer and RBI in 18 games. He must like Rangers Ballpark beacuse he's hitting .346/.433/.577 in 10 games there. Last year, however, he was invisible against Texas, going 0-for-8 in two games.
Melky vs. Harrison: NR
Melky vs. Millwood: .364/.364/.636 (4-for-11), 2B, 3B, 2 K
Melky vs. Holland: NR
RANGERS: Michael Young - Now the Rangers third baseman, Young continues to be a major weapon in the top of the Rangers lineup. He's currently hitting .343/.387/.562, with 7 HR and 18 RBI. He currently leads the team in batting average, on-base %, hits (58), and doubles (16). Although he's slowed down a bit over the last week, he's had a great month of may, hitting .403/.425/.532, with a homer and 5 RBI.
In his career against the Yankees he's hitting .289/.317/.395, with 4 HR and 35 RBI in 63 games. Last year he was much better against the Yanks, hitting .346/.414/.692, with two homers, three doubles, and six RBI.
Young vs. Hughes: 0-for-3
Young vs. Chamberlain: .500/.500/1.000 (3-for-6), HR, 3 RBI
Young vs. Burnett: .222/.222/.444 (4-for-18), 2B, HR, RBI, 4 K
YANKEES:
- Xavier Nady, RF: 15-day DL with an injured right elbow.
- Cody Ransom, INF: 60-day DL with a strained right quad.
- Jose Molina, C: On the 15-day DL with a strained left quad.
- Jorge Posada, C: 15-day DL with a strained right hamstring.
(Nady, Ransom, Molina, and Posada, have all went down to Tampa to begin rehab.)
- Damaso Marte, RP: 15-day DL with a sore shoulder. Haven't heard anything new on Marte for weeks now.
- Brian Bruney, RP: Is headed back to the 15-day DL with a mysterious pain in his right arm. He's had an MRI and arthrogram and they both came back clean, but he wants to make sure before he does any serious damange.
RANGERS:
- Vincente Padilla, SP: 15-day DL with a strained right shoulder.
- Willie Eyre, RP: 15-day DL with a strained right groin.
- Joaquin Benoit, RP: 60-day DL as he recovers from right rotator cuff surgery.
- Eric Hurley, SP: 60-day DL with a torn right rotator cuff. He's done for the year.
- Dustin Nippert, RP: 60-day DL with right shoulder soreness.
6 Comments:
i am not so confident that wang will be fine this year. i know his career record/consistency, but this problem could take awhile.
Marte. lol
Bruney to the DL :(
I hate texas this where both are young pitchers got injured (Joba and Hughes)
Bruney's injury is mysterious, since nothing showed up on the MRI. Uh-oh. Cashman needs to get on the phone. Our pen needs help.
Yea, I just updated the post below about Bruney, will do the same here.
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