Ex-Yankees update: Chien-Ming Wang, Arodys Vizcaino, tons more

This blog has been starving for an update on ex-Yankees, and I thought there would be no better time than today to revive this blog’s old periodic feature.

Why today? Well, that’s easy. Haven’t you seen the Nationals box score from last night?! If you were too lazy to click through that link, I’ll just go ahead and tell you that old friend Chien-Ming Wang picked up his first win since beating the Mets on June 28, 2009, while wearing pinstripes. Wang had a no-hitter through five innings, lost it in the sixth, but left without allowing a run. Although it may hurt some of you to see him back to his winning ways, I feel really good for him. It’s been a long journey for him, and I guess he needed a fresh start.

Another reason to bring back the ex-Yankees feature today is due to some news out of Braves camp. Atlanta called up  pitching prospect Arodys Vizcaino, who went from the Yankees to the Braves in the Javier Vazquez deal in the 2009 offseason.

Without further ado, below are updates on some more old friends.

Top 10 visited posts on lenNY’s Yankees in 2010

The Yankees made a ton of news in 2010. Some news garnered more attention on my blog than you might have expected. Here are the top 10 visited posts at lenNY’s Yankees of 2010.

10. Chan Ho Park’s diarrhea of the mouth (literally) [Video]
This may have been the funniest news of the year, and it came just two weeks into the season.

Berkman and Wood fit for Yankees in 2011

The Yankees last week declined 2011 options on Lance Berkman, Kerry Wood and Nick Johnson. It’s almost certain Johnson won’t be back in pinstripes next year, but I believe Berkman and Wood fit right into next year’s puzzle.

Just to clarify, the Yanks declined their options because of their overpriced contracts.

Berkman's option was for $15 million, Wood's for $11 million and Johnson's for $5.5 million.

On Soon-to-Be 35-Year-Old Berkman:
Although Berkman is bound for Houston again, I think Berkman at a discount would fit nicely with the Yankees in 2011. He’s definitely in line for a serious pay cut, as his six-year, $85 million deal just expired and his numbers are in great decline.

Unfortunately, it’s a “two-way street,” as my pal said. Berkman probably wants to go back home to Houston. Perhaps Andy Pettitte’s decision to return or not will impact Berkman’s. We’ll see how this all plays out, but I think the best-case scenario is he’s back in pinstripes on a one-year, $5 million deal with a club option.

On 33-Year-Old Wood:
Do I really have to explain? He allowed two earned in 26 innings for the Yankees in the second half. He earned a new contract. As far as I’m concerned, he’s first in line to take Mariano Rivera’s place if the unthinkable happens (or if he gets injured).

Yankeeist: Texas’ success with two strikes

Larry Koestler of Yankeeist posted a great analysis today on how the Rangers have been successful against the Yankees when hitting with two strikes. Here’s an enticing excerpt:

But the biggest eye-opener here is Texas' overall batting line with two strikes. The American League overall hit .181/.251/.275 with two strikes in the count in 2010. Texas is hitting a ridiculous .251/.298/.392 with two strikes! While they did hit .201/.263/.293 in those situations during the season, they've clearly been dramatically overperforming all series.

Be sure to check out the post for his full analysis.

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Oh by the way, Game 6 is tonight at 8 p.m.! Here are the lineups; Lance Berkman is hitting fifth and Phil Hughes is on the hill. Plus: CC Sabathia is available for “anything.”

Berkman always had good postseason stats

I meant to write this before the postseason but schoolwork prevented me from doing so (and now of course I don’t get to look like a genius for saying what I’m about to say). The fact is, Lance Berkman has always been good in the postseason, which is why I wasn’t shocked to see him carry the offense in Game 2 last night.

Last night he broke a tie with the Twins on a homer and another tie with an RBI double. Here’s what he’s done in his career.

For his career, he’s hitting .321/.426/.566 in the postseason in just more than 100 at-bats.

According to Andy Pettitte, Berkman told him he had made a small change at the plate that gave him a lot of confidence to hit line drives. This seems to be the case.

Berkman, Pettitte propel Game 2 victory

Lance Berkman and Andy Pettitte led the way in Game 2, as the Yankees beat the Twins, 5-2.

Best of All: The Yankees banged out 10 hits against the hated Carl Pavano. Pettitte shined with a seven-inning, two-run outing. “Typical Andy,” as Berkman put it.

Berkman broke a 1-1 tie in the fifth with a solo shot, then broke a 2-2 tie in the seventh with an RBI double. Talk about clutch.

Worst of All: Jorge Posada was the only Yankee starter without a hit. That’s about it!

Coming Up: The two teams head back to New York for the next two games of the series, but the Yankees could end it early with a win Saturday night.

Yanks clinch playoff berth behind CC’s gem

CC Sabathia nearly tossed a complete game in tonight’s postseason-clinching win for the Yankees. They crushed the Blue Jays, 6-1, but still remain a half game out of first place because of the Rays.

Best of All: Now us Yankees fans don’t have to worry about what would’ve been the biggest collapse in sports history.

Derek Jeter is showing life in September. He scored three times tonight and had a couple of hits. Like everyone I’ve asked, Jeter’s regular season totals don’t mean anything if he comes up big in the postseason.

Worst of All: Lance Berkman is hitless since last Wednesday.

Coming Up: The Yankees vie for their first series win since Baltimore a week and a half ago.

Bombers beat Rays, extend lead in AL East

A five-run first inning fueled the Yankees 8-3 victory over the Rays tonight. The Yankees now lead the Rays by 2.5 games in the AL East and their magic number for a playoff berth is down to 3.

Best of All: Derek Jeter extended his hitting streak to 10 games with two hits tonight, but is still hitting just .265 on the year.

Phil Hughes turned in his first quality start since Aug. 19, earning his 17th win of the season.

Both Lance Berkman and Robinson Cano contributed two-run doubles.

Worst of All: Javier Vazquez allowed an inherited runner to score in the seventh and allowed three hits in one inning of work.

Mark Teixeira was the only Yankee starter without a hit, but he did score twice.

Coming Up: The Yankees have already assured themselves first place after their series with the Rays ends, but how many games they’re up by depends on Wednesday and Thursday.

The Marcus Thames praise thread

With August injuries to Lance Berkman and Alex Rodriguez, the Yankees didn’t figure to have an offensive upgrade. But they have. In the six games Marcus Thames has started since those two injuries, the Bronx Bombers have averaged more than eight runs per game.

Thames is the only Yankee hitting over .300 in August, and he’s sitting at a cool .368 AVG with a .772 SLG.

However, with Berkman rehabbing in Trenton, Thames is likely to lose some playing time. Here’s what Joe Girardi had to say on the matter.

“He’s been big for us, there’s no doubt about it,” Girardi said (of Thames). “The key thing for us is getting people back healthy. That’s really important. I have some decisions to make, but the best thing would be for me to have to make some hard decisions.”

I think when Berkman returns you’ll see him starting strictly against righties while Thames will earn starts against southpaws.

Feel free to express your love for Thames in the comments.

Twitter: Red Sox claiming Damon to keep him away from Yankees, Rays

The Red Sox claimed Johnny Damon off waivers, but it’s up to Damon if he’ll make a return to Boston because of his no-trade clause. He has until 1:30 p.m. Wednesday to decide.

Red Sox blogger Chuck H. of Two Cents From Beantown wondered the same thing I wondered.

I'm not really clear what the Red Sox are hoping to achieve with this claim of Damon. I am confused. This team did ZERO at the trade deadline to improve this ball club, yet now they want to bring Johnny Jesus back into the fold to help them with the nearly impossible task of making the playoffs at this stage of the game?

Doesn't add up.

Couldn’t agree with Chuck more. The Red Sox are not COMPLETELY out of the playoff run yet; 5.5 games isn’t absurd when you consider how many times they face the Rays and Yankees down the stretch.

So why ‘d they do it?

A lot of people on Twitter added input to this discussion. The quick vote was 7-2 in favor of the Red Sox claiming Damon to prevent the Rays and Yankees from getting him, but take a look at what they had to say.

One tweet I’d like to discuss for a second is the one from truegrich. Would Damon hurt the Yankees if they acquired him?

I don’t think so. With Lance Berkman on the DL and Brett Gardner struggling, Damon would add a nice spark to the offense. And everyone knows he adds nothing but good to a clubhouse.

That being said, I’d rather have Manny Ramirez than Damon. But he’s not available, and likely wouldn’t be to the Yankees.

Berkman to DL, Eduardo Nunez called up

The Yankees’ newly acquired DH Lance Berkman will nurse his right ankle on the disabled list and the Yankees have taken action by calling up infield prospect Eduardo Nunez from Triple-A.

Nunez’s reputation in the minors is an infielder with a nice bat and weak fielding skills, but I don’t think we’ll be seeing much of him in the field with Ramiro Pena making web gems every night he plays. This is the first time Nunez has reached the majors.

I had a feeling Berkman wasn’t recovering from that ankle injury very quickly when I saw it happen live. If you missed it, Berkman hit a grounder to the right side and the pitcher covering stepped on the bag where Berkman’s foot was headed. I don’t think Berkman ever touched first base, and the video replay showed an ugly turn of his ankle.

By the way, I’ll have a post up with pics and video from last night’s game soon!

Tigers-Yankees series preview

Johnny Damon and Austin Jackson make their season debuts in Yankee Stadium tonight, as the Tigers are in town for a four-game series.

For a check-in on all the ex-Yankees, check out my post earlier today for a complete update.

Head to Head:
The Yankees lost three out of four to the Tigers back in May and this week marks their final matchup of the season.

Pitching Matchups:

Date:	Tigers starters	Yankees starters
Mon., 7:05 p.m.	Max Scherzer (7-9, 4.03)	J. Vazquez (9-8, 4.90)
Tues., 7:05 p.m.	J. Verlander (13-7, 3.72)	CC Sabathia (15-5, 3.14)
Wed., 7:05 p.m.	J. Bonderman (6-8, 5.16)	D. Moseley (2-2, 4.41)
Thurs., 1:05 p.m.	Rick Porcello (5-10, 5.53)	Phil Hughes (14-5, 3.94)

Lineup Note: Both catchers are in the lineup tonight, leaving Lance Berkman on the bench.

Prediction:
The Yankees will win three out of four to even the season series. Tonight’s matchup will be tough, but I give the edge to the Yanks in the next three.

Poll Results: Berkman shouldn’t hit 2nd

Despite my best efforts to persuade fans Lance Berkman still has time to turn his stint with the Yankees around, the fans voted in convincing fashion Fat Elvis should remain low in the order.

I argued that Berkman’s track record is too good for him not to come around, similar to the way Derek Jeter and Mark Teixeira inevitably broke out of their slumps this year.

But there’s always that chance I’m just totally wrong, when Berkman never quite figures out New York City. We’re just going to have to wait and see.

New poll: Should the Yankees bench Gardner?

Yankees shut out by former 1st-rounder

The Yankees failed to win the series finale against the Royals, as the first pick of the 2002 draft, Bryan Bullington, tossed eight innings of shutout ball in a 1-0 win. A.J. Burnett threw all eight innings but was the hard-luck loser.

Best of All: The Yankees didn’t get perfect game’d. Robinson Cano broke it up in the fifth, but Lance Berkman promptly grounded into a double play and rolled his ankle by stepping on Bullington’s heel. He’s day-to-day.

Brett Gardner got the only other Yankee hit, but he was caught stealing shortly after.

Worst of All: The Yankees’ woes against pitchers they’ve never seen before continued Sunday. I think t

The Yankees committed three errors on the day, including two on one play in the sixth.

Coming Up: The Yankees are back at home this week with series against the Tigers and Mariners.

Sticking up for Berkman

Judging from the latest poll results, fans are strongly against Lance Berkman hitting second in the Yankee lineup. Those who listened to my segment on a radio show yesterday heard that I have strong hopes for Berkman down the stretch.

With a late-season push, I believe Berkman can hit his way to the No. 2 spot in the Yankee lineup. His main competition will be Nick Swisher, who’s been raking in the second half.

My only problem with Swish lately is his on-base percentage has declined significantly (.377 first half, .330 second half). But his production has still increased, making him better fit for a No. 6 slot, protecting Robinson Cano.

Neither Swisher nor Berkman are particularly fast players, but when both are playing well, they’re great at getting on base. I think when Berkman heats up with the Yanks Joe Girardi should flip flop these two in the lineup.

Berkman’s age might be showing in his stats lately, but a long, long track record says he’ll still find ways to get on base at a high rate.

Rivera allows walk-off to Murphy in 10th

Rangers outfielder David Murphy drove in three runs, including a walk-off single off Mariano Rivera in the 10th inning to lead the Rangers to a 4-3 victory over the Yankees.

Best of All: Alex Rodriguez came up with a huge game-tying homer in the eighth, the 601st of his career.

A.J. Burnett tossed a seven-inning quality start and David Robertson threw 1-2/3 innings of shutout ball in relief.

Worst of All: Murphy was the Rangers’ player to watch noted in my series preview. In fact, in the past three series previews, the opposing team’s player to watch has homered at least once in the series. I no longer will be posting a player to watch for the opposing team.

Rivera’s ERA rose about 1.00 for the first time since July 18.

Derek Jeter, Lance Berkman and Brett Gardner combined to go 0-for-12. Yikes.

Coming Up: The Yankees will be challenged by a lefty again Wednesday, as Cliff Lee takes on Javier Vazquez.

Bondy: Girardi sounds like a hockey coach

Do you think the Yankees lost yesterday because Joe Girardi has been messing with the lineup too much and putting the team out of rhythm? Well, Filip Bondy of the Daily News does, and, on an unrelated note, he also thinks Girardi sounds like a hockey coach with all his nicknames.

And I couldn’t disagree more, with both of Bondy’s conjectures.

Bondy’s first mistake was neglecting to mention why Girardi used backups yesterday.
As you can see from the lineup, the only subs used were for the seven-eight hitters, which, in Bondy’s mind, turns the ‘A’ lineup into a B-minus. Let me explain why I think Girardi did what he did:

1. He used Marcus Thames over Lance Berkman because Berkman is terrible vs. lefties and Thames is great vs. lefties. It seems Bondy would’ve preferred the .185 hitter over the .328 hitter.

2. Brett Gardner had played 14 straight days and Girardi really wants to get a good look at Austin Kearns now to judge how much he should be used down the stretch. If anything, a day off for Gardner keeps his legs fresh, which he’s complained about this year.

Another thing Bondy forgot to mention was the Yankees were facing Jon Lester. He hadn’t allowed a hit until the fifth inning — and that hit belonged to one of the subs! Of the six Yankee hits yesterday, two came from the subs.

…he benched Brett Gardner, whose fleetness of foot can't change games while he's sitting until the eighth.

This is true, but when Gardner did get his chance in the eighth, when the Yankees really needed a steal, he couldn’t judge what pitch to go on — against a righty. He should’ve left on the first pitch because no Red Sox catcher is going to catch him stealing.

Sometimes it seems Brian Cashman has brought in half the Western hemisphere to audition for the roles of Johnny Damon and Hideki Matsui, who might still be here but for several measly million dollars.

That was his lede paragraph. He says this without acknowledging Gardner and Curtis Granderson have played up to, if not better, than last year’s duo thus far.

Girardi manages by the book and does an excellent job of keeping his older players fresh. I guess he, the manager of the team with the best record in baseball, has some things to learn from Bondy, the writer for the Daily News.

I can’t wait to see what arguments Bondy will come up with if Mark Teixeira misses a few games this week.

I think Bondy felt like dissing Girardi because his name is already in Girardi-nickname form. He’s probably upset about that.

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Apparently, another Daily News reporter wrote an unreasonable column for this morning. Brien of It’s About the Money, Stupid took it down.

Yankees News: Sox salvage split, Tex out

A few tidbits of the day’s happenings in Yankeeland:

• The Red Sox won a nail-biter over the Yankees, 2-1, as Jon Lester defeated Phil Hughes. The Yankees had major opportunities to score in the last three innings, but Daniel Bard and Jonathan Papelbon came up big in big spots to earn the series split.
• Mark Teixeira hit his team-leading 26th homer — accounting for the only Yankee run — and he’s on an absolute home run tear lately. Six of his last 10 hits are home runs.
• Unfortunately, Tex made the last out of today’s game, stranding Derek Jeter at second base.
• Tex stayed behind for the flight to Texas, as the team gave him permission to wait in New York with his wife. They’re expecting a baby to be born Tuesday. This is bad news for the Yankees, as they have four lefties ahead and Tex’s absence means Lance Berkman most likely will be playing first. The Yankees benched Berkman today because they faced southpaw Jon Lester.

Yanks crush Red Sox in Sunday showdown

Dustin Moseley came up big in place of A.J. Burnett, ousting Josh Beckett and the Red Sox on Sunday Night Baseball in a 7-2 win.

Best of All: Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez reached milestones and Lance Berkman had his best game as a Yankee. It was a pretty good night.

Oh, and Mark Teixeira hit his 25th homer to Cancun.

Worst of All: Jorge Posada went 0-for-4 with two Ks.

Coming Up: The Yankees and Red Sox wrap up the series Monday afternoon.

Yankees down Red Sox, 5-2, without A-Rod

The Yankees didn’t need Alex Rodriguez to beat the Red Sox Saturday, 5-2, as CC Sabathia earned his 14th win and Mariano Rivera nailed down his 23rd save.

Best of All: The Yankees used four straight singles with two out in the fifth to take a 4-2 lead and they never looked back.

Curtis Granderson and Robinson Cano tallied two hits apiece, while Ramiro Pena, who started at third in A-Rod’s place, drove in a pair.

A-Rod’s injury doesn’t appear to be serious.

Worst of All: The three biggest slumping Yankees — Derek Jeter, Lance Berkman and Brett Gardner — went hitless.

Coming Up: With the series tied, the Yankees and Red Sox will play a Sunday night showdown between A.J. Burnett and Josh Beckett on ESPN.