MLB – Bombers Dominant Despite Injuries, Add Old Nemesis DLowe to the Mix of Merry Pitchers
By Cole Hoyt, Contributing Writer and loyal Yankees fan
Among the many attributes that make the Yankees one of the best teams in all of sports is their ability to play hurt. Yankees fans cheered for Derek Lowe Monday night against the Texas Rangers.
Yes, that is correct! The former Red Sox and rival is now in a Pinstripe uniform after the injury of CC Sabathia. Lowe’s outing on Monday night came with four scoreless innings and a save. Yankees catcher Russell Martin was Lowe’s former catcher on the Los Angeles Dodgers just a few years ago. Martin told reporters after the game, [He had] great stuff today and it just kept getting better every inning.” (See here) After being released by the Cleveland Indians on Friday, Brain Cashman and the Yankees front office do it again by picking a winner. Rookie David Phelps had an impressive outing in place of CC Sabathia who is out with an elbow injury.
Yankees continued to roll on Tuesday night as Yankees starting pitcher Hiroki Kuroda pitched a complete-game, two hitter, and shutout. Yankees star outfielder Nick Swisher came up big again, homering in two straight games. Swisher told the media after the win that, “Hiro’s my hero”. Mark Teixeira followed in Swisher’s footsteps with a homerun of his own.
Freddy Garcia took the mound for the Yankees on Wednesday night at Yankee Stadium. Garcia took Andy Pettitte’s spot in the rotation after Pettitte was placed on the Disabled List. Even after giving up two homeruns to Texas Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton. The key to Garcia’s success was the amount of strikes he threw. Out of the 100 pitches he three 64 landed in for a strike.
The Yankees have dominated the Texas Rangers so far this season. With stellar pitching and great run support, they are the best team in baseball. The Yankees .598 win percentage earns them the third best in the league. But keep in mind this is without Mariano Rivera, Alex Rodriguez, Joba Chamberlain, and Andy Pettitte. Wow! To think that the Yankees have been in ESPN’s top three power rankings for the last 8 weeks is incredible. The Bombers are 1st in slugging percentage and 2nd in runs in the Majors.
In the next 32 games, the Yankees will play 25 of them against teams in their American League East division. This opportunity can go both ways. But with the Yankees playing the way they are they should be excited and welcome the competition.