Still Waiting for (Good) News on Swisher

Swisher went for an MRI yesterday, but the results have not been made public at this juncture. Here's hoping that it's nothing too serious, as Swisher is an important part of this team - both for this season and, hopefully, next. With the team scoring all of one run over the past sixteen innings, some good news would be quite welcome.

Update (from the LoHud Yankees Blog): "Nick Swisher has inflammation but no structural damage in his left elbow. He’s going to get treatment all day today, and he expects to continue sitting out until the pain goes away."

Game 143: Yankees at Angels

Yankees (87-55)
Derek Jeter SS
Curtis Granderson CF
Mark Teixeira 1B
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Robinson Cano 2B
Andruw Jones RF
Jesus Montero DH
Russell Martin C
Brett Gardner LF

Pitching: RHP Bartolo Colon (8-9, 3.72)

Angels (78-65)
Erick Aybar SS
Howie Kendrick 2B
Bobby Abreu DH
Torii Hunter RF
Mark Trumbo 1B
Alberto Callaspo 3B
Vernon Wells LF
Peter Bourjos CF
Jeff Mathis C

Pitching: RHP Jered Weaver (16-7, 2.49)

Pitching Match-Ups at Angels

Game 1: Tonight @ 10:05 PM | TV: YES | Radio: WCBS
RHP Bartolo Colon (8-9, 3.72) vs. RHP Jered Weaver (16-7, 2.49)

Game 2: Tomorrow @ 9:05 PM | TV: YES | Radio: WCBS
LHP CC Sabathia (19-7, 2.97) vs. RHP Dan Haren (14-8, 3.20)

Game 3: Sunday @ 3:35 PM | TV: YES | Radio: WCBS
RHP Freddy Garcia (11-7, 3.50) vs. RHP Ervin Santana (11-10, 3.18)

Betances, Banuelos, Phelps, & Warren Likely to Join Team

I would be utterly shocked if these four arms didn't pitch in the Majors in 2012 (be it for the Yankees or some unforeseen trade partner), so it makes sense to give them some exposure to life in the show. I also wouldn't be opposed to any of the four picking up some low-leverage innings down the stretch - especially when one considers the hectic September schedule and the likelihood that Sabathia et al will be rested, at least to some degree.

Game 142: Yankees @ Orioles

First Pitch: 1:05 PM | TV: YES | Radio: WCBS
YANKEES (87-54)
Derek Jeter SS
Curtis Granderson CF
Mark Teixeira 1B
Alex Rodriguez DH
Robinson Cano 2B
Nick Swisher RF
Eric Chavez 3B
Francisco Cervelli C
Brett Gardner LF

Pitching: RHP Ivan Nova (15-4, 3.89)

ORIOLES (56-85)
J.J. Hardy SS
Nick Markakis RF
Adam Jones CF
Vladimir Guerrero DH
Matt Weiters C
Mark Reynolds 1B
Nolan Reimold LF
Chris Davis 3B
Robert Andino 2B

Pitching: RHP Alfredo Simon (4-8, 4.64)

Game 141: Yankees vs. Orioles

First Pitch: 1:05 PM | TV: YES | Radio: WCBS
Check out this mighty lineup after yesterday's late night affair:

YANKEES (87-53)
Eduardo Nunez SS
Russell Martin C
Nick Swisher RF
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Andruw Jones LF
Jesus Montero DH
Brandon Laird 1B
Greg Golson CF
Ramiro Pena 2B

Pitching: RHP A.J. Burnett (9-11, 5.25 ERA)

ORIOLES (55-85)

TBA

Pitching: LHP Zach Britton (9-9, 4.22 ERA)

Brackman on His Up and Down Year

From the NY Daily News:

Andrew Brackman, the Yanks' 2007 first-round pick and the former hoops player at N.C.State, was among the five players called up Tuesday from Triple-A Scranton. The 6-foot-10 righty struggled mightily with his control for much of this season and admitted he considered walking away from the game after an embarrassing start at Durham in July.

"That was definitely the lowest point in the season for me. It was tough to get on the bus. Very hard," the 25-year-old Brackman said. "I had some conversations with my dad, talking about what to do after baseball....But we didn't come up with any Plan B's. He yelled at me and told me to get on the bus.

"And I decided I'm not going to just hang it up. I'm going to go to the end and see what happens. I just stuck with it. I told myself I had to get better, and found a way to do it."

With a 2-6 record and an unsightly 8.10 ERA in 13 Triple-A starts, Brackman was shifted to the bullpen following another rough outing - a nine-walk disaster in Buffalo on July 29. But he made a mechanical adjustment with the positioning of his hands at the start of his delivery, and allowed just three earned runs over 20-1/3 innings in nine relief appearances thereafter.

"It was a rough season, but I've been throwing the ball well lately," Brackman said. "I was at a point in the season where something had to change and I had to do something to get better....It's a funny game, something so small can help you out so much. I'm just glad to be feeling the way I do now."

There might even be a chance that he gets in a few games. Later in the article there's a quote from Cashman saying that if an opportunity presents itself for the new call-ups to pitch, they'll pitch. He also mentioned that he wants to save the regular bullpen guys as much as possible down the stretch.

More Call-Ups

The only change from yesterday's post is that Brackman, and not Dellin Betances, was called up.