Yankees baseball blog

Bombers need Rocket boost

If you want to know why the Yankees want Roger Clemens back, why there is a light on in the window and this story isn't going away, all you have to do is look at the way the three guys who were supposed to come up aces for the Yankees this season - Randy (Keep 'Em Close) Johnson, Carl Pavano, Mike Mussina - pitched over the weekend against Boston's batting order. That means a big-boy batting order, as opposed to what the Yankees see from the A's and Mariners.

The Yankees don't just have the most expensive team. They have the most expensive pitching staff in history, one really costing George Steinbrenner around $100 million if you throw in the $9 million of Steinbrenner's money the Crack Baseball Committee sent to the Diamondbacks to help pay off Javier Vazquez's contract. Continue

Searching for right direction,Yanks reach fork in road

It may be "too early for a race right now," as Joe Torre put it, but the Yankees have to wonder how good they really are, which will dictate if there is a race at all. Are they the team that slaughtered several AL bottom feeders during a streak that righted their season? Or are they the one that got pounded in two losses to the Red Sox over the weekend? We may get more of an answer as they start a 12-game road trip during which they play baseball's worst team, the Royals, two possible playoff teams, the Cardinals and Twins, and the mediocre Brewers.

The Yankees were 15-2 from May 7 to May 26 against Oakland, Seattle, the Mets and Detroit, with only the Mets boasting a record over .500. They are 4-5 against the Red Sox, the team that some believe is the only measuring stick that matters. The Yanks are 1-5 against first-place Baltimore and have dropped two of three home games to contenders Texas and Anaheim. The only winning teams they have a winning record against are Toronto (3-2) and the Mets (2-1). Continue

Yanks look to get well soon

Brian Cashman can't hit, run, throw or more importantly, pitch. But in the mind of George Steinbrenner, the presence of his GM can help pull the Yankees out of a two-game losing streak by being with the club in Kansas City instead of working out of his Yankee Stadium office. Not long after the Yankees dropped a 7-2 decision to the Red Sox Sunday night, The Boss informed Cashman to be on the Yankees' charter that departed late yesterday afternoon. "All I know is that (Steinbrenner) asked that I go to Kansas City," Cashman said yesterday.

So, instead of enjoying a full Memorial Day holiday at home, Cashman was in the air headed for the home office for MLB futility: K.C. Asked what kind of mood The Boss was in, Cashman simply said, "The same as always." That's Yankee-speak for Steinbrenner being furious about losing twice to the Red Sox and in the manner in which his $200 million club was beaten. Continue

A-Rod on field of screams

A fan in the seats held up a sign that read "E-Rod" before the official scorer at Yankee Stadium could retract what appeared to be an eighth-inning error charged to Alex Rodriguez when A-Rod retreated from and then misplayed an Edgar Renteria grounder with two out. Howie Karpin, the scorer, reasoned that the ball took a funny bounce before A-Rod muffed it, and Rodriguez escaped without being charged with another blunder in a 7-2 loss to the Red Sox.

When it comes to Rodriguez and playing the field this season, it hasn't exactly gone as well as it did last year when A-Rod, a two-time Gold Glove shortstop, made the smoothest of transitions to a new position. This season though, Rodriguez' glove has haunted the Yankees all year with eight boots at the hot corner. "I don't think it's pressing," Rodriguez said. "It's just a matter of attacking the baseball . . . that's still something I'm learning at third base." Continue

Nixon: Sturtze guilty

hey have a history, so it was rather significant when Tanyon Sturtze plunked his old buddy Trot Nixon in the ribs with a pitch to lead off the ninth inning in the Yan kees' 7-2 loss last night. "I knew it was intentional, but I'm not going to waste my time on that," Nixon said. "I don't know if it was from last year. I don't know if he felt he couldn't get me out. Of course, he is going to deny it. I ain't worried about it. It didn't bother me."

So you really believe it was intentional? "It was," Nixon said. "It don't matter to me, though." Nixon and Sturtze, if you remember, paired off when the teams brawled last season. Down the hall, Sturtze was nowhere near as colorful about the incident. He said it was not intentional and had nothing to do with their fight last year. Continue

Real Boomer shows up in Bronx this time

Derek Jeter had seen this script played out before. It just wasn't as fun to watch David Wells dealing from the batter's box as it had been for Jeter from his shortstop vantage point. The Yankees tagged Wells for two home runs in the first inning - including a leadoff shot by Jeter - but the hefty lefty then held his former team scoreless into the ninth as the Red Sox cruised to a 7-2 rubber-game victory last night at the Stadium. "He's done it for us, he's done it against us. ... But that's Boomer," Jeter said. "The guy moves the ball around and knows how to pitch."

That had been a debatable statement throughout much of Wells' first season on the Boston side of this heated rivalry. He entered with two wins and a 6.81 ERA in his first seven starts for the Sox, and compounded that by giving up tracer home runs to Jeter and Gary Sheffield and a hard single to Alex Rodriguez as the Yanks matched Boston's two-run first inning. Continue

Steinbrenner mum

There was a time when George Steinbrenner literally might have breathed fire if the rival Red Sox embarrassed the Yankees with a 17-1 beating in front of a sold-out crowd at the Stadium. But those days are gone, it seems, and the Boss was quiet in the aftermath of Saturday's debacle.

Joe Torre said he did not hear from Steinbrenner following the loss. When asked if he was surprised that Steinbrenner opted not to attend the series, Torre said, "No, not really." "He hasn't left Tampa too often," Torre said. "I know he went to the (Kentucky) Derby to watch his horse (Bellamy Road)." Torre added that he never expected to hear from Steinbrenner about the blowout loss and thought "that game was probably more a concern to other people (outside the organization) that it was to me." Continue

Mussina, Yankees unable to stop Sox

One day after the Yankees suffered their most lopsided loss ever to the Red Sox, the Bronx Bombers were hoping that Mike Mussina would come out and continue his magical May in the series finale. Mussina didn't deliver, getting smoked for five runs in three innings, as Boston took the rubber match from New York at Yankee Stadium by a 7-2 final.

The loss snapped Mussina's four-game winning streak, also bringing the Yankees' streak of six series wins in a row to an end. "All of the things that made the last month good, all the weapons I had -- the ability to throw breaking balls for strikes, to throw the fastball in and out -- I didn't have any of that today," Mussina said. "It's tough to pitch against any lineup -- let alone theirs -- without any weapons. I didn't have any today." Continue

Matsui having power outage

Four days ago, Terry Francona sat in a Rogers Centre office and dreaded - half playfully, half sincerely - the return of the Yankees into his life. And one player in particular.

"Matsui, that --, he's going to hit .800 against us," Francona said with a smile of admiration. "Now you see he's getting hot again. You could see it coming."But in the Yankees' historically bad 17-1 loss to the Red Sox yesterday at Yankee Stadium, you couldn't see much of Matsui at all. As it grew ugly early, Joe Torre pounced on the chance to rest his centerfielder, lifting him for pinch hitter Bernie Williams in the fifth. And Matsui, the most media-friendly player on the team, had left the ballpark by the time Torre wrapped up his postgame news conference.

Those were his highlights. His last at-bat, a third-inning strikeout against Matt Clement, turned out to be the Yankees' final meaningful matchup of the day. In these first two games against the Red Sox, Matsui is hitless - .000, not .800 - in six at-bats. Continue

Jeter plunked again

The numbers are, of course, up for interpretation, but you don't have to be a conspiracy theorist to wonder about them. When Derek Jeter was hit by a pitch in the third inning yesterday, it was the eighth time since 2003 he'd been plunked by a Red Sox pitcher. Opponents have been accusing Jeter of crowding the plate for years, and even Joe Torre admits that Jeter dives forward to get a better look at outside pitches. But the Sox hit him more than any other team, including other AL East rivals who play the Yankees 19 times per year.

Boston starter Matt Clement, who leads the majors with seven hit batsmen, nailed Jeter before yesterday's game became a rout. Jeter suffered a bruised left shoulder blade; he's listed as day-to-day and is expected to play today, Torre said. "But I always expect that," Torre added. Continue

Pavano, Yanks struggle in big loss to Sox

The Yankees entered Saturday's tilt with the Red Sox with 16 wins in their last 18 games, thanks largely to their starting pitchers, who went 15-1 with a 2.93 ERA in that span. Saturday, Carl Pavano didn't live up the rotation's reputation, getting hit hard during his 3 2/3-inning outing as the Red Sox hammered the Yankees, 17-1, at Yankee Stadium.

The right-hander was charged with five runs on 11 hits, falling to 4-3. "I threw a lot of pitches -- and not too many quality pitches," Pavano said. "Must have been tough to watch." "He pitched well his last two starts and he had a good warmup today, so he went into the game with a lot of confidence," said manager Joe Torre. "It just wasn't his day." Continue

Here's to you, Mr. Robinson

The brilliant smile was ever-present as Robinson Cano talked about his two huge contributions to the Yankees' 6-3 victory over the Red Sox last night at the Stadium, Cano's first taste of the Yankee-Boston rivalry. "One of the best nights of my life," Cano said. "Why? Because this is the first time I've helped the team like that. I made the play and I hit the homer to tie the game. That's why."

Cano's first key moment came as the Yankees were trailing 3-1 in the sixth. The Yanks would have been in a deeper hole had it not been for Tony Womack's picture-perfect one-hopper to Jorge Posada on Edgar Renteria's single to left that cut down Mark Bellhorn at the plate. But one batter later, Cano showed off his fielding flair. He knocked down David Ortiz's grounder up the middle, gathered himself, then picked up the ball and fired his own one-hopper to Posada to nail Johnny Damon trying to score from second to end the inning and keep the Yankees within striking distance. Continue

Giambi starts series against Bosox on bench

Jason Giambi arrived at the Stadium last night, changed into workout clothes and headed down to the batting cage. Working with hitting coach Don Mattingly is part of his daily routine now - "I want to keep doing good things at the plate," he said - and so is checking the lineup card to see if he's playing.

Last night, he wasn't, and didn't. Although Giambi has done his best to get past his horrid early-season slump (that led to the Yanks asking him to consider a minor-league stint), Joe Torre is still sensitive to Giambi's easily affected confidence. Giambi has eight hits in his last 23 at-bats and 11 in his last 35, but still has a .226 average. "Jason's been swinging the bat pretty well and has hit some balls hard," Torre said, "but I didn't think we wanted to send him out there against a knuckleballer." Continue

Sheff Wakes up with Tim gone

Though he barely might be able to break a pane of glass, let alone an opposing hitter's bat, Tim Wakefield may be the only pitcher who can sneak a fastball by Gary Sheffield. After seeing Wakefield's knuckleball float up to the plate, it is hard for Sheffield to adjust when Wakefield decides to crank it up with his upper-70s heater.

So no one was happier than Sheffield when Wakefield was pulled for reliever Alan Embree during the sixth inning of last night's game between the Yankees and Red Sox. Shortly thereafter, Sheffield deposited a heater of his own into the upper deck in left field, the decisive blow in the Yankees' 6-3 win in the opener of a three-game series at the Stadium. Continue

Unit can't fins his place

He remains a humble servant to the greater Yankees cause, one unassuming spoke in the wondrous pinstriped wheel, a self-effacing supplicant. Once again last night, Randy Johnson asked not what he could do for his team, he asked what his team could do for him. And on this night, the answer happened to be, "plenty." "I've said it before," Johnson said. "My job is the same as any starting pitcher. We're supposed to keep the team in the game. Keep them close. I feel like I did that tonight."

And we've said it before: For all the zeroes contained on Randy Johnson's paychecks, he has somehow managed to get the job description all wrong. Sure, it didn't much matter last night. Thanks to Robinson Cano's heroics on both sides of the ball, thanks to Red Sox third base coach Dale (Send 'em!) Sveum's tireless right arm, Johnson wound up with his fifth victory of the year, the Yankees moved another game north of the Red Sox and crept another game closer to the Orioles with a 6-3 win. Continue

Yanks ride bats of Cano, Sheff to victory

The Yankees have struggled against Tim Wakefield's knuckleball for the past two years, flailing away at the right-hander's floaters with very little success. Leave it to Robinson Cano, the wide-eyed rookie who had never seen Wakefield before, to figure out how to beat him. Cano bashed a two-run homer to tie the game in the sixth, setting up Gary Sheffield's go-ahead three-run blast just minutes later, as the Yankees defeated the Red Sox, 6-3, in the first of three weekend games at Yankee Stadium.

The home run was just one of two major contributions by Cano in the win, as he gunned down Johnny Damon at the plate in the top of that inning, preventing the Red Sox from adding to their lead. Just one play before that, Tony Womack did the same, throwing out Mark Bellhorn at the plate. Continue

Cash hopes to keep Cano, Wang

We won't know for certain until the July 31 trade deadline passes, but the Yankees are so thrilled with the contributions of rookies Robinson Cano and Chien-Ming Wang that GM Brian Cashman said yesterday he wants to keep the two players to help his graying club get younger. "I can't guarantee it, but the preference is to keep them," Cashman said. "We need to get younger and stay younger. They are young and having input in a pennant race. That bodes well for them long-term here rather than being dealt for a quick fix."

Still, Cashman cautioned, "These guys are assets and you use them to help your team win or you use them as pieces to help acquire people to help your team win. That's the history of our sport." The Yankees, always active in the trade market, have sacrificed prospects to fill holes on the major-league club for years. They included lefty Brad Halsey and catcher Dioner Navarro in the winter deal for Randy Johnson. At the 2003 deadline, they traded Brandon Claussen, their best minor-league pitcher at the time, to the Reds for Aaron Boone. Yhency Brazoban was part of the Yanks' deal for Kevin Brown. Continue

Brown looking like old self

As much as anyone in the locker room, Kevin Brown symbolized the Yankees' dreary 11-19 start, during which he contributed four losses and no victories. If fans had lost confidence in him by the time the Devil Rays pounded him for eight runs and 13 hits May 3, they were not alone. Brown felt the same way about himself. "You'd have to be dead, probably, for that not to happen," he said.

Since then, Brown has evolved into one of the central figures in the team's 15-2 revival. He is responsible for four of the victories, including 4-3 over the Tigers last night at Yankee Stadium, and no losses. It has not always been elegant. After four innings last night, he had allowed three runs and nine hits. But after he lost seven consecutive regular-season starts - the Yankees' longest such streak in 60 years - before the turnaround, the team would be pleased if he simply maintained his newfound even keel. Continue

Yanks complete sweep of Tigers

During the 16 games leading up to Thursday's series finale against Detroit, the Yankees' starting pitchers kept one-upping one another in a month-long contest of "Can You Top This?" Kevin Brown took the mound on Thursday and was more workmanlike than stellar in the Yankees' 4-3 win over the Tigers, struggling early in his attempt to keep New York close to a Detroit team it was trailing for the first time in three games.

But Brown persevered after allowing nine hits and three runs in the first four innings, and the Bronx Bombers took a lead they would never relinquish on Alex Rodriguez's towering fifth-inning home run, which finally touched down in the Yankees' bullpen behind the left-center field fence. Continue

To Sheff, Quantrill message is one Yanks needed to send

Paul Quantrill's payback pitch on Tuesday night was a reminder that the issue of protecting teammates hovered over the Yankees the last couple of years, particularly as it applied to the Red Sox. You always had a sense that many a Yankee thought Manny Ramirez or David Ortiz should have been forced to hit the dirt on occasion, especially since Pedro Martinez and even Bronson Arroyo seemed to have no qualms about throwing purpose pitches.

Yesterday, Gary Sheffield confirmed that sense. Sheffield was talking about how important it was for a pitcher like Quantrill to let the opposing team, even if it was only the Tigers, know it would have to answer for plunking Alex Rodriguez on a night when he'd already hit two home runs. Continue

He's captain crunch

As Tino Martinez likes to remind people, the stats on the back of Derek Jeter's baseball cards don't do justice to how much he contributes to the Yankees. Since he arrived nine years ago, he has had a knack for coming through with a big play when the Yankees needed it, and he did it again last night in eye-opening fashion.With the Yankees clinging to a two-run lead over the Tigers with two men on in the seventh inning, Marcus Thames hit a blooper to center that seemed destined to fall in. But Jeter came out of nowhere to make an over-the-shoulder catch while falling over second baseman Robinson Cano for the second out of the inning. "That was the best play I've ever seen," Jorge Posada said. Continue

Wang, Yankees earn third straight win

Derek Jeter has wowed the Yankee Stadium crowd -- and his teammates -- on many occasions over the years, making one spectacular catch after another throughout his career. So when you hear Jorge Posada call Jeter's seventh-inning catch "the best play I've ever seen," that's a pretty strong statement.

With the tying runs at first and second, one out in the inning and the Yankees nursing a two-run lead, Marcus Thames lifted a pop fly to shallow center field. Both Jeter and Robinson Cano ran toward the outfield in pursuit of the ball, but it was Jeter -- while running over his second baseman -- who came up with the ball, saving at least one run, and possibly the game, as the Yankees went on to defeat the Tigers, 4-2, at Yankee Stadium. Continue

Moose stays locked in

Mike Mussina is nothing if not finicky. He's been known to be thrown off by big things, like a season-opening trip to Japan, and small things, like a slight change in a game's starting time.

Last night's game with the Tigers was in the Bronx and started at 7:08, so no problems there. But Mussina took the mound in weather that was more suited for Halloween than the week before Memorial Day, with a game time temperature of 48, an icy wind and light rain that began falling in the third inning. The conditions were so unpleasant the Yankees offered free tickets to a future game to fans who were brave enough to stick around.

Mussina is locked in right now, though, so it probably wouldn't have mattered if he were pitching in a snowstorm on the day before Christmas. He threw seven shutout innings for his fourth win in five outings as the Yankees crushed Detroit, 12-3. Continue

A-Rod bares pain, therapy

Yankee slugger Alex Rodriguez hit one out of the park for troubled souls everywhere yesterday when he bravely declared that he sees therapists to deal with his personal demons. The baseball superstar made the public admission about the help he's gotten for his private anguish after he and his wife, Cynthia, donated $200,000 to a mental health program at the Children's Aid Society in Washington Heights.

"I don't know where I'd be" without therapy, A-Rod told the television show "Extra" in a segment to air tonight at 7 on Channel 4."I think it's a different life that I've discovered and I thank Cynthia for that because therapy is an incredible thing and you might get to know someone you didn't even know was in there." Continue

Quantrill pitch delivers hit

Alex Rodriguez stroked two homers, as did Jorge Posada. Gary Sheffield returned from a two-game hiatus to hammer a two-run shot and Robinson Cano blasted an upper deck shot in the eighth for his first career homer.

But perhaps no one was more popular in the Yankee locker room after last night's 12-3 pasting of the Tigers than reliever Paul Quantrill. Only no one was really saying so. The Yankees were cruising with an 11-0 lead as Rodriguez stepped to the plate to open the last of the seventh. Rodriguez was the only reason for what remained of the 37,099 fans to stay on a cold and rainy night as they hoped to see Rodriguez post his second three-homer game of the season. Continue

Homer-happy Yanks top Tigers

Three games against the Tigers can be easily overlooked when they're sandwiched between overhyped series with the Mets and Red Sox. But the Yankees made sure not to look past Detroit, instead bashing a season-high six home runs against the Tigers in a 12-3 victory. Alex Rodriguez and Jorge Posada each drilled a pair of homers, as New York won for the 13th time in its last 15 games.

Mike Mussina tossed seven scoreless innings to earn his fourth consecutive victory. "We've got to build on something, play well and treat every team that comes in like it's the World Series," said Gary Sheffield, who also contributed a homer. "We're trying to get back in the race and get back to first place." Continue

Alex's field of screams

Any way you rate it - anecdotally, statistically, sabermetrically or by his own harsh self-criticism - Alex Rodriguez is off to a bad start at third base after showing unusual mastery of the position last year in his first go-round at the hot corner.

It's certainly not enough to change his nickname to E-Rod, but Rodriguez, a two-time Gold Glove winner at shortstop, has seven errors already after making only 13 all last season. He has five errors in his last 15 games and is on pace to commit 26 errors. Several of his boots have cost the Yankees runs. Continue

Unit's speed in slide

There have been moments for Randy Johnson. Moments like Saturday in the seventh inning, when he came up and in against Cliff Floyd and then whiffed the Mets slugger down and away. Moments like the first inning of the April 29 game against Toronto, when he gave up a leadoff single and then struck out the side with a mixture of simple power and sophisticated trickery from his mystifying slider.

Moments like May 9, when his 119th and final pitch of the day sent Mariners second baseman Bret Boone flailing as the Big Unit bounded to the dugout in exhilaration. But there have been fewer moments than in the past. Johnson arrived in the Bronx with a reputation as the premier power pitcher of his generation - perhaps the greatest lefty in baseball history - yet he has recorded only 55 strikeouts in his first nine starts; he had 81 over the same number of outings last year. Continue

Tony pays quick dividends

That Tony Womack is a destructive force on the basepaths, wreaking havoc on opposing pitchers, catchers and infielders with his speed and daring, is no surprise. But to those who thought he might be a destructive force in leftfield, wreaking havoc on his own pitchers, that hasn't been the case, which is a pleasant surprise.

"He's gotten to more balls than Matsui in leftfield, even though he's not as experienced," Yankees manager Joe Torre said of Womack, who has started his last 17 games in leftfield after the team's early slump and an injury to Bernie Williams had a domino effect on the Yankees' defensive alignment. "I'm comfortable with Tony out there." Continue

Sheff: Get that sot out of here!

Knowing that a cor tisone shot would likely force him to miss a third straight game tonight, Gary Sheffield refused the spike yesterday to calm an inflamed ten don in the left hand. Sheffield underwent an MRI yesterday and was examined Dr. Melvin Rosenwasser, a hand specialist, who suggested the shot to treat tendinitis.

But Sheffield, who missed the final two games of the Subway Series at Shea Stadium this past weekend, shunned the needle and wants to play tonight when the Yankees open a six-game home stand against the Tigers with the Red Sox in for the weekend. Continue

Unit: Let me pitch

Randy Johnson is a creature of habit. He freely admits that his between-starts routine is one of the most important parts of his success, and believes that the fluctuating number of days between outings - five days of rest instead of the usual four - has contributed to his inconsistency this year. "Is it a big deal? Absolutely, to me," Johnson said yesterday.

The problem is, there isn't much Joe Torre and pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre can do about it. Stottlemyre said he would try to accommodate the Big Unit in the future, but short of skipping rookie Chien-Ming Wang - which is what the Yanks did this last time through the rotation - he has few options with a veteran pitching staff that is difficult to manipulate. Continue

Jeter set to have elbow treated today

Today is an off day for the Yankees, one that three banged-up Bombers badly need. Derek Jeter (left elbow), Gary Sheffield (left hand) and Jorge Posada (right shoulder) were all held out of the starting lineup yesterday, though Jeter scored the game-tying run in the eighth inning as a pinch-runner.

Jeter, who was hit by a Kris Benson pitch Saturday, is not certain to play tomorrow against the Tigers. The shortstop will go to the Stadium today for treatment. As of yesterday afternoon, additional tests on his elbow were not scheduled - initial X-rays Saturday were negative - but the Yankees will see how he is progressing today. Continue

Pavano plowing ahead

No matter how many times or ways the question was asked, Carl Pavano had the same answer. "I have to make good pitches against their hitters, that's all I can control," Pavano said repeatedly when quizzed about facing Pedro Martinez yesterday at Shea Stadium, where the Mets used their stone hands to gift wrap the Yankees a 5-3 victory. "I have to worry about what I have to do. A lot of things are out of my control. I just worry about the task at hand."

Whatever concern the Yankees had about Pavano when he opened 0-2 are quickly diminishing, thanks to a pair of stellar starts in his last two outings. Coming off a complete-game shutout of the Mariners, Pavano limited the Mets to three runs — one earned — and eight hits in seven innings as he improved to 4-2. In his last two starts, Pavano is 2-0 with a tidy 0.56 ERA. Continue

Womack man of steal

When the Mets made the pitching change in the eighth inning, going to Roberto Hernandez, Tony Womack hustled off second base, back to the visitor's dugout at Shea. Womack wasn't taking a bathroom break, but rather went to Yankee bench coach Joe Girardi to get the stopwatch numbers on Hernandez — how long it takes the right-hander to get his pitch to the plate.

Armed with that information, Womack went back to second, got a great running jump with Alex Rodriguez at the plate and took off and easily stole third base as David Wright stayed well behind the bag.  Derek Jeter followed Womack's lead and suddenly the Yankees had two runners in scoring position, trailing 3-1. Continue

A-Rod is taken off hook

Alex Rodriguez escaped notoriety yesterday after making a costly error he called "unacceptable." The Mets had runners on second and third with two out in the second inning when Pedro Martinez hit a two-hopper to Rodriguez that should have kept the game scoreless. He said it probably was the easiest play he's had to make in his 11-year career. But it went off the tip of his glove, and the Mets capitalized by scoring two unearned runs. "A ridiculous error," he said.

Rodriguez had a chance to make up for it in the eighth with runners on second and third and one out in a 3-1 game, but he fouled out to first baseman Doug Mientkiewicz. After Hideki Matsui singled home two runs and scored on Bernie Williams' double to take A-Rod off the hook, Rodriguez moved to shortstop for the third time in his Yankees career. Continue

Yankees rally to take Subway Series

The Yankees couldn't do much against their old friend, Pedro Martinez, on Sunday afternoon at Shea Stadium, but the Bronx Bombers did all the damage they needed against the Mets' bullpen, pulling out a 5-3 win to take the first installment of this year's Subway Series.

Hideki Matsui's two-run single against Roberto Hernandez in the eighth tied the game at 3, setting up Bernie Williams' game-winning double just two pitches later. The inning was made possible by a pair of Mets errors, as David Wright and Jose Reyes couldn't make routine plays. "We had a lot of fight in us today," said manager Joe Torre. "I was very proud of the way we went after it." Continue

Johnson sounding like a man who's lost it

The fasten-your-seat-belt 97-mph fastball is no more than memory. The buckle-your-knees slider is gone, too. So is the '80s mullet 'do. There isn't one thing scary about Randy Johnson right now. The only way we know for sure it's truly Randy Johnson is that snarly, snarky personality. Johnson is still hell on reporters and photographers. But lately, hitters don't cringe at the sight of him.

That goes for non-hitters posing as hitters, too, such as Mets reliever Dae-Sung Koo, a hitting neophyte who turned Johnson's first Subway Series performance from lackluster to downright embarrassing. Koo scorched a double off him to the warning track. Continue

Sheff sits out first of season

Gary Sheffield missed yesterday's Subway Series game - the first game he has missed all season - because of a sore left hand. He doesn't expect to be out any longer. In fact, if it were up to him, he would've played yesterday. "I should be in there (today)," Sheffield said after the Yankees' 7-1 loss to the Mets. "I wanted to play today, but (Joe Torre) felt like giving me the day off."

Torre decided to sit Sheffield after hearing from hitting coach Don Mattingly that the outfielder was favoring his hand during batting practice. Sheffield was in the original lineup, batting third and playing right field. After the game, Torre said the middle finger on Sheffield's left hand was bothering him. Continue

Dinged Derek: I'll play

After leaving yesterday's 7-1 loss to the Mets at Shea Stadium with a bruised left elbow, Derek Jeter vowed to play today. "That's the plan," Jeter said when asked if he would be in the lineup.

X-rays of the elbow were negative. Following an 0-for-5, two-error game Friday night Jeter was 0-for-2 when Kris Benson drilled him leading off the sixth inning. He stayed in the game to run the bases, but was replaced by Rey Sanchez at short in the home half of the frame. "It swelled up quick and it hurt a bit," Jeter said of the elbow, which immediately had a knot on it. Continue

This Bean still from good crop

Colter Bean finally had his first bad outing of the season for Columbus on Wednesday, but the Yankees still like what they've seen from the 6-6 righty reliever. Bean, who made one appearance for the Bombers on April 26, has held opposing hitters to a .164 batting average in Triple-A, and has impressed the Yanks with his poise, presence and work ethic.

In a telephone interview last week, Columbus pitching coach Gil Patterson said he could only talk for a few minutes because he was headed out to the field for extra pitcher fielding practice with Bean. At 255 pounds, Bean is hardly quick, "but that hasn't stopped him from wanting to be better at fielding," Patterson says. Continue

Unit can't save silent bats vs. Mets

Joe Torre expects the same thing from Randy Johnson every time the big lefty takes the mound for the Yankees: domination. Unfortunately for Torre, that dominance hasn't been there in most of Johnson's starts this season. It certainly wasn't the case on Saturday, as the Mets knocked the Big Unit around for four runs on 12 hits in 6 2/3 innings, taking a 7-1 decision from the Yankees at Shea Stadium.

"It's tough to live up to yourself all the time," Torre said. "We don't need somebody to strike everybody out, we just need them to give us a chance to win. I know he's not pleased with where he is right now. He wants more. We certainly expect more, and I know he does, too." Continue

Randy a slow starter

He has yet to consistently display the overpowering arsenal that has made him one of the game's most dominant pitchers. He has not recorded double digits in strikeouts through eight starts and he even went without one in his last outing against Oakland last Sunday, the first time he failed to fan a batter in a game when going more than three innings since he was with the Expos in 1989.

But none of that seems to keep Joe Torre up at night thinking about Randy Johnson. As far as Torre is concerned, all is well with his 41-year-old lefthander. "He's intimidating," Torre said. "I think he's a lot more aware what goes on here. He seems very comfortable." Continue

Brown gets colorless win

Effective but far from attractive. That's the best way to describe Kevin Brown's five-inning stint last night at Shea Stadium, where the Yankees beat the Mets, 5-2, in the first of six Subway Series games.

While Brown rode a two-game win streak into the game that pair of victories came against the hitting challenged A's in back-to-back starts. Surely the Mets' Cliff Floyd, Mike Piazza, David Wright and Carlos Beltran would provide more of a challenge to the veteran right-hander. Continue

Jeter: 2 E's, 3 K's, and relief with W

Derek Jeter has had his share of great moments against the Mets. The Yankees' captain has a .363 average against the Bombers' crosstown rivals, and a .323 mark at Shea. Oh, and let's not forget that leadoff homer in Game 4 of the 2000 World Series. Yes, Jeter has had many good nights against the Mets over the years. Last night was not one of them.

Jeter made two errors in the same inning - his first such occurrence since Sept. 3, 2002, in the eighth inning against the Red Sox. Jeter also went 0-for-5, striking out three times - including once with the bases loaded and once to end a threat with runners on second and third. Continue

Yanks' victory is error-prone

The Subway Series is supposed to be the pinnacle of New York baseball, recalling memories of the days when three teams shared the city and the sport's fiercest rivalries were staged inside the five boroughs. But what transpired Friday night at Shea Stadium was hardly deserving of that title. A better fit would be the Sub-Par Series.

The Yankees outlasted the Mets, 5-2, in an error-filled, sloppily played game that had the sellout crowd of 55,740 booing for most of the night.The Yankees capitalized on errors by Kaz Matsui and Doug Mientkiewicz to take a 3-1 lead in the sixth inning, and Kevin Brown emerged from the ugliness to win his third straight, allowing three hits and no earned runs in five innings. The Yankees' 11th victory in 12 games, combined with the Orioles' loss, moved them to within 4½ games of the division leader for the first time since April 26. Continue

Life of Brian

Yankees general partner Steve Swindall yesterday dismissed growing speculation that Brian Cashman will leave his Yankee GM post when his contract expires after the season, possibly to take a similar job with either Philadelphia or Washington.

Instead, Swindall revealed to The Post that he opened extension talks with Cashman during spring training, and that Cashman "acknowledged he wants to come back." Cashman verified the exchange and that his "preference is to return." Both men said negotiations have been tabled because Cashman wants to focus right now on remedying the team's deficiencies. Continue

Ruben ready to play

Ruben Sierra went 1-for-3 in an extended spring training game yesterday, and will be at Shea tonight when the Bombers open the Subway Series. "We just pulled him out after three at-bats because we thought he was ready," GM Brian Cashman said. "We're looking forward to getting him back."

The switch-hitting slugger, who spent the past month on the disabled list with a torn biceps muscle and then a strained rib cage suffering during rehab, will be activated before the game. Don't look for him to play as often as he did before getting hurt, however, since the Yanks have a glut of designated hitters with Bernie Williams and Jason Giambi looking for playing time there; this weekend, all three - or Tino Martinez, if Giambi plays first - will come off the bench, giving Joe Torre a lethal trio of potential pinch-hitters. Continue

E's & M's spell end for Yanks

It had to end some time, but the Yankees would have preferred it not end like this. If they had been victims of a dominant pitching performance, perhaps, or a well-timed home run, then maybe the Bombers could have graciously acknowledged they were beaten by a team that finally played better than they did. Instead, the Yanks could only blame themselves.

After playing crisp, clean, clutch baseball and winning 10 games in a row, the Bombers stumbled around Safeco Field last night, committing three errors, blowing an early lead and dropping a disappointing 7-6 decision to the Mariners. Continue

Joe's hands full with lineup card

Jason Giambi's audition is over, but Joe Torre's juggling act is just beginning. Is Giambi a first baseman? He was last night, but might not be this weekend against the Mets at Shea Stadium. Is Bernie Williams a designated hitter? Sometimes, but only if Giambi isn't. What about center field for Williams? It's possible, but he probably won't be there very often.

And how about Tino Martinez? The Yanks weren't originally planning to play him more than a few times a week, but it's hard to imagine keeping his bat on the bench for very long. "It's nice to have options," Torre said before last night's series finale with the Mariners. "I've been with other clubs where you didn't have any options." Continue

Torre refuses to sit struggling Matsui

Since Hideki Matsui hadn't homered in 140 at-bats and was hitting .250 going into last night's game against the Mariners at Safeco Field, Joe Torre was asked if he believed Matsui was feeling the effects of playing every day. "I don't think he is tired, no more than any of the other players," Torre said of Matsui, who remained in the cleanup spot versus lefty Jamie Moyer last night. "He has been doing it for so many years."

So long, in fact, that Matsui played in his 1,616th straight game last night. Two weeks ago, Torre may have thought about giving Matsui a rest, but not any more. "He is all right," Torre said. "I am a lot more comfortable with him than I was a couple of weeks ago. He wasn't seeing the ball well." Continue

Yanks watch win streak slip away

About halfway through the Yankees' season-high 10-game winning streak -- which ended with a 7-6 loss to the Mariners in Safeco Field on Wednesday night -- New York made two errors in one game in Oakland but still won. Manager Joe Torre didn't hesitate to mention how sloppy his team was on defense that night and said they were fortunate to score 15 runs and coast to a victory.

On Wednesday, they weren't so lucky. The Yankees made three errors, all of them led to runs, and New York suffered its only blemish on an otherwise brilliant swing through Oakland and Seattle. "We gave them too many outs, no question," Torre said. The third and last error was the most pivotal. Continue

Rocket rumors soar

It is a scene that stirs hearts from the corridors of power at the Stadium to the Barcalounger of any Yankee fan, to perhaps, Roger Clemens' sprawl in a Houston suburb: The Rocket, back in pinstripes, riding to the Yankees' rescue like some flame-throwing cowboy. But how possible is a reunion between one of baseball's all-time greats and its most famous team? Depends on who's talking.

The struggling Astros say they are not shopping their ace, but their owner did not rule it out. Clemens recently said, "I'm not going anywhere now, I know that for sure," but he didn't invoke his no-trade clause or slam the door, either. Some rival baseball executives believe Houston will deal Clemens for future help if it continues to stumble, especially if the Astros find a rich contender willing to rent him for half a season. Continue

Sierra suffers minor setback

Ruben Sierra (torn biceps muscle/strained rib cage) left an extended spring training game in Tampa yesterday after just one at-bat, complaining of a cramp in his left leg. GM Brian Cashman said it's unclear how serious the injury is, but expects Sierra to try to play in another extended spring game today. If it was only a cramp, Cashman said, the switch-hitter could still rejoin the Yanks this weekend as originally hoped. (Daily News)

Pavano excels for streaking Yanks

Before Tuesday's game, Jason Giambi was in a place he's become very familiar with these days: standing by home plate in the indoor batting cage, with hitting coach Don Mattingly by his side and countless pitches speeding in his direction. Once Tuesday's game started, Giambi found himself in a place he hasn't visited very often: the comfort zone.

Giambi, who has been struggling all year and was demoted to eighth in the Yankees' batting order this week, snapped out of it in a huge way for a night. He got three hits, including a monster solo home run, and his three RBIs helped spark New York to a 6-0 victory -- the Yankees' season-high 10th win in a row -- over the Mariners, before 35,549 in Safeco Field. Continue

Williams slams Yanks' win streak to nine

The Yankees are pushing so many of the right buttons these days that even their so-called problems turn out to be solutions. "A good problem to have," is how manager Joe Torre referred to veteran Bernie Williams -- who has been banged-up early this year and benched periodically to make room for hotter players -- before Monday night's game against the Seattle Mariners.

Then he watched as that "problem" belted a J.J. Putz pitch over the wall in right-center field for a seventh-inning grand slam that busted open a tie game and powered the Yankees to a 6-3 victory before 37,814 in Safeco Field. Continue

No big concern for Unit

Because Randy Johnson missed a start with a left groin injury on May 4 and hasn't dominated hitters with his usual brilliance in two outings since coming back from the problem, the immediate questions are centered around his health.

Sunday in Oakland Johnson, 41, didn't register a strikeout for only the fourth time in his Hall of Fame career. And in six innings he gave up four runs (three earned) and seven hits in a 6-4 that the Yankees had to climb out of the 3-0 ditch Johnson put them in by surrendering three runs in the first.  Johnson said he was fine last night. "I talked to [manager] Joe [Torre] after the game and he said it wasn't an issue," GM Brian Cashman said of Johnson's groin. Continue

Cashman backs Giambi

Jason Giambi's weekend in Oakland wasn't easy. Yet, according to general manager Brian Cashman, it was productive — and the general manager remained supportive of his struggling slugger. Giambi was heavily booed by A's fans Friday. Saturday night, an idiot fan wasted a cup of beer by pouring it over Giambi's uniform. In between, he also vented about a Yankee employee leaking the contents of a meeting last week between Giambi, Cashman and manager Joe Torre, when Giambi didn't bite on a suggestion that he could find his swing in the minor leagues.

But on Sunday, Giambi hit a game-winning double off lefty Ricardo Rincon to lift the Yankees to a 6-4, series-sweeping win over the A's.  Giambi didn't stick around Sunday to talk about his heroics — but he didn't blow off the media because he was ticked at the constant criticism thrown his way recently. "I went to see my family — it was my grandmother's 85th birthday," Giambi said before he went 1-for-4 with two strikeouts in last night's 6-3 win over the Mariners at Safeco Field. Continue

Unit's line less than striking

Right from the start yesterday, pitching was a chore for Randy Johnson. As A's darted around the bases scoring three runs in the first, you knew Johnson didn't have his "A" game going. "He battled it and earned his money," Joe Torre said of the $16 million Johnson is pulling down.

For only the fourth time in his career, Johnson failed to fan at least one batter. But he was good enough to earn the win in a 6-4 victory over the A's. "Strikeouts are what they are," said Johnson, who is 4-2. "It doesn't show how you win games."Johnson, who is third on the all-time K list with 4,211, bagged his 250th victory. He is the 42nd chucker to reach that milestone. Torre said Johnson's rough outing had nothing to do with a recent groin problem. Continue

Jason double is 8th wonder

Jason Giambi just wants to put Saturday behind him and he made that abundantly clear yesterday. One day after telling the Daily News that he was "pissed" over how the Yankees handled asking him to consider a trip to the minor leagues, the beleaguered slugger made his best case yet for staying in the majors, then bolted the clubhouse before reporters could ask him about it.

Maybe Giambi wanted to avoid any more questions about his startling comments, but he easily could have changed the subject since it was his two-out, eighth-inning double to right that drove in the go-ahead run in the Yanks' 6-4 victory over the A's, sending the Bombers to their eighth straight win. Continue

Tino's homer streak keeps him dialed in

Tino Martinez's cell phone has been ringing incessantly lately, with countless family and friends calling to find out why he's been hitting so many home runs. His mother even joined in, telling him, "Whatever you're doing, keep doing it." Martinez showed yesterday he hasn't changed a thing with his swing.The first baseman continued his eye-opening power streak, hitting two home runs to lead the Yankees to a 6-4 win over the Oakland Athletics, marking their eighth straight win.

Martinez has now hit home runs in seven of his last eight games and even he seems a bit befuddled by it. "I'm just trying to have good at-bats," he said with a shrug. After hitting 23 in 458 at-bats last season for Tampa Bay, Martinez now has 12 in 105 at-bats, and is tied with teammate Alex Rodriguez for the American League lead. Continue

Tino, Giambi lift Yankees to eighth in a row

Jason Giambi broke open a tie ballgame in Sunday's seventh inning by doubling home what proved to be the game-deciding run, and the Yankees' winning streak reached eight games with a 6-4 victory over the Oakland A's before 37,237 in McAfee Coliseum. The Yankees' record improved to 18-18, marking the first time they've been at the .500 mark since they were 4-4 on April 13. The A's lost their eighth game in a row.

After the A's grabbed a 3-0 lead in the first inning off Yankees starter Randy Johnson, Martinez lined a laser of a solo shot to right field in the second inning against A's righty Dan Haren. It was Martinez's second homer of the series and his ninth in his last 11 starts. And then he hit another one. Continue

Giambi moans

Jason Giambi said he was "pissed" about the manner in which the Yankees asked him to consider a trip to the minor leagues. By saying so, he may end up having to deal with an equally angry front office.

Giambi wasn't happy when the Yankees raised the possibility of a stint in Triple-A, but he was particularly peeved when he learned that reporters knew about the request before he did. He spent the past few days stewing over the situation and told one friend that he was "very upset" about it. Continue

Joe has Berning desire

Bernie Williams was out of the lineup again last night, but Joe Torre said he plans on playing Williams against the Mariners either tomorrow or Tuesday, perhaps even using him in center field for the first time since May 2. Don't look for Williams to return to being a daily staple in the Yankees' lineup, however. Williams has battled numerous injuries during his career, with the latest being a hyperextended elbow that severely hampered Williams' already weak throwing.

"He's not going to be an everyday player anymore, because I think he'll be better off if he isn't," Torre said. The Yanks likely will use Williams primarily at DH, where he'll share time with either Jason Giambi or Ruben Sierra. Continue

Yankees pass through seven's gate

If Alex Rodriguez's words prove prophetic, the American League could be in a lot of trouble pretty soon. The Yankees third baseman, fresh off his team's 15-6 pounding of the Oakland A's before 41,180 in McAfee Coliseum on Saturday night, said he expects his team to build on its winning streak, which hit a season-high seven games.

"We're still a long way away from where we want to be," Rodriguez said. Well, they're getting closer. Consider these numbers from Saturday night: The Yankees banged out 18 hits, hit four home runs -- one by Rodriguez and one each by Derek Jeter, Tino Martinez and Jorge Posada -- and still managed to leave nine runners on base. Hideki Matsui, who has been mired in a hitting slump, broke out with a 4-for-5 night that included three doubles and a walk. He scored three runs and drove in another. Continue