HOT BATS OR NOT, IT'LL STILL COME DOWN TO THE STAFF
http://myurl.com.tw/orqq (New York Post)
THE Diamondbacks pounded 11 Chien-Ming Wang pitches into the same dirt where
the Yankees appeared buried two weeks ago. Wang had more sink last night than
Bobby Abreu's batting average did during May. But that was then, and this is
now.
The Yankees won for the 10th time in 12 games, 4-1, behind the sizzling
Abreu's three-run, first-inning homer, and behind a pitching ace who allowed
only six hits, no walks and never any doubt that they could keep surging,
even against reigning NL Cy Young Award winner Brandon Webb.
「Wang always gives us a chance to win,」 said Joe Torre, paying the ultimate
compliment a starter can receive.
Wang gave up his first homer in seven starts (to Chad Tracy), needed Derek
Jeter to climb the ladder on a smash by Chris Young with two on for the last
out in the seventh. Otherwise the right-hander was as dominant as he was in
beating the White Sox, 4-1, last week in the only other game since the
Yankees began their turnaround when they scored as few as four runs.
The Yankees have 25 quality starts (three runs or less in six innings),
second fewest in the American League. Wang has seven of them, which is not
good news when, even during this surge, they have given up 4.40 runs per game.
To get to 95 wins, the minimum needed to achieve the wild card or the AL East
title the last six seasons, the Yankees will have to go 64-36 in the final
100 games. To keep that pace will require more starting pitching like they
received last night, which they haven't gotten enough of from anybody besides
Wang and Andy Pettitte.
「Unless you pitch and keep yourself in the game, it's tough to have the
little things we've been doing mean a great deal,」 said Torre.
Tougher still remains the task of projecting this staff as capable of
sustaining a long run. The battle resumes tonight when Mike Mussina takes the
mound with a 5.63 ERA for a team whose cumulative ERA is only ninth in the
AL. The bullpen has the same ranking, thanks to a starting staff that has
caused Yankee relievers to work 2132/3 innings, second most in the league.
When Kyle Farnsworth gave up an eighth-inning leadoff double to Stephen Drew
last night, the right-hander had failed to retire his first batter for the
ninth time in 28 appearances.
Mike Myers has allowed 14 of the 29 runners he has inherited to score, Luis
Vizcaino 11 of 25. Only Scott Proctor has a reliable chart retiring first
batters (28 of 33). And only fools feel Roger Clemens, a six-inning pitcher,
is going to take much pressure off this bullpen.
Clemens showed he still had his splitter Saturday, but he will have to gain
more velocity with his fastball. Even if more starts bring proof he can still
bring it, the Rocket is not bringing the fifth starter the Yankees still need.
「[Tyler] Clippard is not melting,」 said Torre, trying to be complimentary,
after reiterating that Phillip Hughes' sprained knee still leaves him off the
radar.
By July 31, The Yankees are going to need miracle water for Hughes or a trade
for a fifth starter. Until that happens, Carl Pavano remains an albatross
around the neck of Brian Cashman, just like Vizcaino and Farnsworth, who
raised hair again as Tony Clark's smash with two on and two out landed in
Abreu's glove.
Andy Pettitte, who pitched to a 4.20 ERA last year in the NL, has been good.
So far. Mussina has to get better, as does Clemens, which they probably will.
But the bridge to Mariano Rivera remains rickety, over a long gorge.
There are 100 games to go, many of which will have to be won like last
night's was. Always, it comes down to pitching. And even 10 wins in 12 games
have failed to show the Yankees have enough.
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