Jaret vs. Chris

It appears as though the Bombers have added Wright to the rotation in 2007 after all. Chase, not Jaret. The results weren't all that different actually, which is kind of eerie and interesting. Think about it. Jaret used to go about 5 innings, giving up a few walks and 3-5 runs. We won a bunch of games for him with good run support and he left town looking a tad bit better than he probably was in reality. In exchange we took back Chris Britton, who ended today's game with a perfect inning. Talk about eerie.

The difference in Wright v.2006 and Wright v.2007 is that the price for v.2007 is about 4% of the v.2006 model. Chase Wright had never pitched above A ball until this year, and even now he's only had two AA starts. Jaret Wright is on the Major League DL now with more physical problems.

I'm liking the Cashman plan already. Wang out? Mussina out? Pavano out? Karstens out? Bring up Rasner and Wright to fill in. Bullpen getting overworked? Chris Britton is free on Tuesday. Call him. Rasner was very good. Wright did what he had to do. Britton wasn't scratched. Now, I think this is a seriously bad formula for a division championship, but it works in a pinch, and that's where the Yankees strength lies in 2007, compared to the last couple of years when we tried guys like Ponson, Erickson, Small, Chacon, Leiter, Redding, and May. If we have more trouble you can bet that Ohlendorf, Sanchez, Clippard, and Hughes will come up and make a fair account of themselves. At least they won't be caught by the tabloids eating one of everything on the menu at Katz' like Ponson. (I made that up.)(Maybe.)

How 'bout A-Rod? What's not to like about 8 homers and 21 RBIs in 12 games? Need 284 RBIs this season? Call A-Rod. Need 108 round trippers? A-Rod's got you covered. You know he won't keep it up all year long, but has there ever been a player in the history of God's green earth that needed this kind of start to keep it positive? If 2006 was a nightmare, this is a dream come true. It's almost like he steps to the plate and you say to yourself, "He's gonna do it again, isn't he?" That's a far cry from last year when even his supporters (yours truly included) were often found on their knees looking at the TV with one eye praying, "Just make good contact. Take a walk. Anything but a strikeout. Move the runner over, brother."

Mientkiewicz bought himself another month of plate appearances with that home run. Ugh. You know Joe was sitting there next to Mattingly and turned to him to say, "He's been getting good looks, and the swing was there. It was only a matter of time." As if, he was talking about Albert Pujols in an 6-27 stretch or something. (Mike's imaginary Yankees' dugout brought to you by Bigelow's.)

Iggy up next. Give 'em hell Iggy. See you tomorrow. Go Yankees!