Yankee Notes
Phil Hughes had his first regular season start yesterday and he got pounded. Now, there is talk that he may be the biggest headache of the Yankee rotation. Really?? No question the lack of velocity which plaqued Hughes in spring training was also the case yesterday as he barely broke 90 mph. However, as Joel Sherman pointed out in his article this morning, this is not any different than last year except that last year he was the number 5 starter. As a result, he didn't make his first start until the second week in April which allowed him to build up arm strength. Let's wait to see what Hughes does throughout the month before we throw him overboard.
Brett Gardner went 0 - for Sunday striking out a couple of times. What totally confounds me is with his speed why doesn't he bunt for a hit. Mark Texiera is red - hot and it was great to see Jorge Posada belt a couple of home runs. If Jorge keeps this up, the Yankees will have one of the best DH's in the AL.
While everyone is on Hughes, what about the performance of Bartolo Colon. Little Andre was brutal and could not slam the door on the Tigers. Not sure how this guy is on the roster. It was fitting that his first appearance was on the same day as Wrestlemania.
Ivan Nova makes his 2011 debut tonight against the Twins at the Stadium.
Great Saturday: Leafs, Yankees Win
It's not often that I have a doubleheader win but yesterday was one of those days as the Yankees continued their power barrage defeating the Tigers 10 -6 and the Maple Leafs stayed alive with a 4 - 2 win over the Ottawa Senators.
Yankees - If April is Mark Texiera's worst hitting month then how he has started this season could bode well for an MVP type year for the smooth fielding first baseman. Texiera's second home run in two games catapulted the Yankees to a lead they never relinquished. Alex Rodriguez and Russell Martin each homered and Derek Jeter had two hits moving that much closer to 3,000.
A.J. Burnett had an ok start going 5 innings and allowing 3 runs. He cruised over the first 4 innings but then ran into trouble in the 5th. What was encouraging was that instead of blowing up he actually beared down and limited the Tiger damage. However, as far as I'm concerned the jury is still out.
Phil Hughes is on the mound against Maz Scherzer today at 1pm.
Leafs - They just won't go away. The Maple Leafs jumped out to a 2 - 0 lead, gave it away but took control by scoring twice after the Sens tied it to defeat Ottawa 4 -2 and stay alive in their improbable playoff run. Joffrey Lupul continues to impress as he was a force in the Senator zone all night and assisted on Tyler Bozak's goal which put the Leafs ahead 3 - 2.
Phil Kessel opened the scoring getting his 30th goal of the season. The young right winger had a very solid game for the Leafs and now has 61 points, the highest point total in his career. James Reimer was solid in net, making big saves when he needed to and Dion Phaneuf was a tower of power on the Leaf blueline.
The Leafs moved 4 points closer to Buffalo and are 3 points behind the Rangers. The Rangers are in Philly today at 12:30 and Buffalo faces Carolina down south at 5pm. Today should be interesting.
The Leafs are next in action Tuesday at the ACC against Washington
Opening Day Victory: Yankee Recipe For October
The Yankees opening day win over the Detroit Tigers couldn't have been drawn up better by Joe Girardi. Six solid innings by the starting pitcher (C.C. Sabathia), big home runs (Mark Texiera and Curtis Granderson) and a lock down finish by the bullpen (Joba, So and Mo) produces a win. Couldn't have worked out better.
As the Yanks get ready for this afternoon's game against the Tigers, its clear that the Yankees will need offense and a reliable bullpen to be successful this season. And for the Yankees, success means an October run ending with a World Series ring.
One game does not make a season and today will be a little different as the enigmatic A.J. Burnett toes the rubber for his 2011 debut. The Yanks have spent a lot of time with Burnett this off season and spring. They have 82 million reasons for the extra attention. If the Yankees are to be successful, it may depend more on Burnett's performance than that of Ivan Nova and Freddy Garcia.
Thursday's win was a promising one not only because of the perfromance of Joba and Rafael Soriano but also the hitting of Texiera and Granderson. Texiera has historically started slowly with last year being his worst April ever. He changed his off season regimen and focused on hitting. Granderson had terrible first half of the season last year. However, after working with Kevin Long, Granderson has hit the most home runs off lefties for a left-handed hitter in the majors. If both these two can continue this for the season, the Yankee offense will be deadly.
First pitch today at the Stadium is 4:07pm.
Gritty Leafs Won’t Go Away, Win 5-3
For those of you in the "same old, same old group" you received another example of why you are wrong last night as the Maple Leafs blew a one goal lead, came back from being down in the third period and won 4-3 in a shootout against the Boston Bruins, marking the fourth time this year the Leafs have defeated the Big, Bad Bruins. In a place where the Leafs have historically had trouble, they stunned the TD Bank Garden crowd when Joffrey Lupul tied the game in the third for his second goal of the game.
After an exciting overtime period which saw Tim Thomas stop Mikhail Grabovski on a penalty shot and the Leafs kill off a penalty to close out the extra period, Nazem Kadri scored the only goal in the shootout on a beautiful move that made Tim Thomas look like an old bar league goalie. The Bruins must have read the Lightning scouting reports becuase they tried to beat James Reimer three times high on his glove side. The first two shots went over the net. The third shot by Rick Peverly went high again but the Reiminister of Defense got his glove on it and secured the Leafs win.
What has been most impressive since the Red Wing loss has been the fact that the team has been playing with desperation right from the opening faceoff. It was clear that the Leafs were the much quicker team last night and even the Bruins NESN broadcasters grudgingly had to give credit to the Leafs as being faster and grittier than the playoff bound Bruins.
The penalty kill at the end of the overtime period really illustrates the difference in this team as Tim Brent and Luke Schenn had two blocked shots, Brent off the stick of Zdeno Chara - he of the hardest shot in the NHL. It was a gutty performance and one that can only bring future dividends for this Leaf team going into next season.
Once again, the Leaf power play was putrid however they did score once with the man advantage. That being said, it is imperative that the power play be improved next season if the Leafs are to make the playoffs and be a factor. The season long maligned penalty kill was 4 for 4 in stopping the Bruins, none bigger than the PK in the overtime.
The Leafs now are 12-8-4 against their Northeast rivals. What's extremely important about that is that they have taken it to the Sabres and Bruins in the last seven games they have played against those teams posting a 7-0 record. Saturday they face the Senators in Ottawa and have a chance to fatten their Division record. The Senators would like nothing better than to put the Leafs out of their misery. That's why they must take control early and continue playing with the desperation they have showed in the last two games.
Puck drop Saturday on HNIC is 7pm.
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