I don't think it's eight yet, but it's looking very likely.

"That makes it eight losses in a row for the Yanks. I guess it can get worse."

Eight? You know something that we don't know about today, already? ;-)

Normally I don't root for heads to roll, but some kinda shakeup seems necessary. I'm seeing a lot of closeup shots of Guidry on the bench lately, and I don't have a good feeling about his future with the team.

I forced myself to watch last night to the bitter end, even when Mariano was being taken out of the game - it's almost like I wanted to experience the absolute bottom of being a Yankees fan this year, just so I would appreciate winning the division that much more in September.

Cool. Seven, right, just seven...

Coming into the season I thought the Yankees' starting rotation was weak, but I could not have predicted this disaster. Of everything that has gone wrong with the pitching, Mariano is freaking me out the most. He has got to be rusty because the alternatives are not good.

One of the Yankees' starters is going to have to man up and give this team a complete game shut out or something close to that so the bullpen can rest and the offense can take a deep breath.

It is on Karstens!

I hope heads roll, and these in particular: Minky, Myers, Melky (sent down for Thompson), Nieves (call up Pelittere?), Cairo. It's okay to be patient with the regulars -- Abreu, Damon, and Cano will come around, right? -- but the bench is a black hole.

Abrue, Damon and Cano WILL come around. I'm actually rooting for Minky to keep sucking only so as to insure a speedy departure from our midst

I'm positive the scouting report on Cano reads "Will swing at high fastball out of the zone when behind in the count." I've seen him strike out on it a few times the past week.

I'm starting to think this is the "curse of Bernie:"

"Non-roster invite? I'll give you a non-roster invite ..."

It's not Torre's fault that the pitching has been garbage but since I didn't want Torre to come back this year, I can't be sad if he goes. I'll miss the 1996 Joe Torre. I won't miss 2006 Joe Torre. '96 Torre platooned Hall-of-Famer Wade Boggs. Present-day Joe Torre treats every veteran (except ARod) as though he was 'warrior' Paul O'Neill. The big question is who replaces Torre if he gets canned? I can see it being Girardi or Bowa and not Mattingly. This team needs a kick in the ass and I'm not sure Donnie Baseball is the guy to do it. I say replace Torre with Zombie Billy Martin.

6 Something might happen to Minky, like Womack, but not to Melky or Myers. The LOOGY may suck but he's a "gamer" and does anything he's asked and more, just rarely well. Melky has already proven himself a major leaguer and it will take a lot to send him away. He's also a plus defender, which is really all you ask of your backups. Offense is a bonus. Nieves might go if an option appears outside the organization.

But I still wanna know about Shelley Duncan. Who's got the dirt?

7 It's sad that Minky hasn't sucked enough to be waived or even benched. Wouldn't Womack be an upgrade over him right now?

11 I'm part of the won't-be-sad-if-he-goes camp, but like most I'm worried about who would replace him. Would Girardi really be a good choice?

Oops, meant the Torre comment for 10.

11 Not sure I agree. Melky showed he could play last year, but this year he seems to have regressed. He's young enough to learn to adjust, but why not send him down so he can get his swing back at AAA? Thompson should fill the role of fourth OF pretty well.

12 Isn't Shelley Duncan one of these too-old-for-the-level-he's-playing guys (he's 26 or 27 now)? That doesn't mean he has no utility--he could be another Andy Phillips. And I mean, the Andy Phillips who should have been called up at 26 or 27 y.o., and given a real shot, not the 30 y.o. variety.

In other words, Shelly Duncan, or Andy Phillips, or Josh Phelps should be an imporvement over Minky, though obviously none of them is a 'solution' in the long run.

11 Mike A. at RAB told me Shelley Duncan isn't going to happen.

12 How bad does he have to be? I mean, Minky's already batting worse than Womack did, and he was challenging for the statistically worst season by a position player in Yankee history (at least if I remember Goldman's article correctly).

14 Oops, I meant 11.

14 Thompson is 27 as well, and I guess I could dream that Shelley is half of what his brother Chris is...

I'm just glad I don't live in Boston. One of my Sox fans is beyond obnoxious about this.

Er, Sox fan friends...

18 Exactly. Thompson is 27, so he is probably the at the limits of his development. He makes a wonderful 4th OF and PR (it helps to have speed). Duncan is 27, probaly peaked skill-wise, and might make a decent back-up 1B or PH (he has some power) for this year.

21 Agreed on Thompson and Duncan. They're not to be counted on as lifesavers but as backups. They'd probably be good in that role. Too bad they don't have the veteranosity that counts a lot with Torre (who is afflicted with veteranitis).

Schilling responded about Sockgate on his blog. I'm still skeptical, probably because I don't like the guy at all, but he said some good things about the BS media.

How about trading some offense for some pitching? The Yankees right now look like a weighlifter with huge biceps and pecs with skinny legs. Some balance would be nice.

24 What offense would be available to trade?

It fascinates me that you all focus on the offense when the pitching is so clearly the problem. What they need to do is play a few games without using 2/3 of the pen. That means either using Igawa as a long man or letting a starter like Karstens fall on his sword. Another option would be to switch out Bruney, who's tired and ineffective at the moment and still has options, for Rasner and either put Rasner back in the rotation and use Karstens as the long man or vice versa. At this point it's worth taking a couple more loses (say today and Tuesday) in exchange for getting the pen some real rest (today, off-day Monday, Tues). You don't want to abuse Pettitte, Wang or Hughes, but any of the other guys has to go 110 pitches regardless of the results and they have to be replaced by a long man that will finish the game. I don't care if they lose a game 25-6, a single win is far less important than fixing the pitching right now.

26 Agreed.

26 Totally agrre. Butsome of the (far smaller) problems on offense are easier to fix: almost anyone would be an improvement on Minky and Nieves. At the same time, the pitching should improve (in theory) with the addition of Moose and Wang, though that does not do anything in the short run for the BP. There need be no dichotomy between trying to fix the (major) pitching problems and trying to improve the offense.

I prefer to just read the convos you guys have here since it's quite intimidating here obviously, but look at me following Cliff's post. Ha. Just sneaking in to express my frustration & big sigh as a fan.

To lose seven straight is something, infuriating & disappointing sure, but what was painful to see was how Mo was last night. It was a dagger when Torre took him out in the situation that he was in. To have struggling starters & a lousy bullpen sucks, but to see Mo as such last night really got to me. I hope there's nothing more to it than "rustiness." I refuse to be alarmed by it but it's a heavy feeling that's lingered til this morning, so I have to vent it out a little here.

Plus, some of the hitters are getting as intolerable as the bullpen. Arod can't save them alone & good for them to realize it this early.

Yet still, I'm crazy & blind as I'm still for optimism & it's-still-only-April routine, I know they will snap out of this. Hope it's today. I slept with a heavy heart last night but I'm ready for yet another game of baseball. So, GO YANKEES!

Carry on guys.

26 Although didn't the rainout give them rest? Viz had 2 days rest and was still bad.

29 Nice to hear some enthusiasm. Anyway, I think Torre took out Mo mainly because he'd thrown 21 pitches already, and didn't want to burn him in a blowout. If he had less pitches, I think Torre would have left him in to get out of it. I was reading some people's dismay here last night when "Rivera couldn't get out of it himself," but I don't think that was the case.

26 Agreed. It's not that I'm focusing only on the offense, it's that there's much left to say about the pitching. The starters need to go deeper. That's about it, though you said it better.

Damon's hurt?

http://tinyurl.com/2ugm33

33 Update: Pete Abe says Damon is DHing and Giambi is at first, which means no Stink! Also means, Damon probably is hurt.

He also made a good point about his new commenters:

"This is a blog about the Yankees, so feel free to make original, coherent comments about the team, ask questions or make points.
This is not a message board for you to post "C'mon, get a hit Derek" or things like that. Or to let us know you think that losing streaks suck. We all get it.
We've had a lot of regulars for a long time here and there is usually is a high level of discussion. Join in, please. But don't clutter up the board with silly comments. Take it someplace else.
Thanks."

I actually think that posting"C'mon Derek get a hit" is positive and OK, but I see his point...

34 He means that you should be posting "C'mon Bobby get a hit".

{34] Minky has bad career numbers against against Wakefield, so (it seems) Torre is giving him a rest and Damon a break from the field. Unfortunately, this does not suggest that Stinky is losing his starting status, or else Phelp would probably start today.

33 Damon always seems to get hurt when we already have a slew of injuries so he never winds up on the DL.

37 But this is the only time I can remember that he himself is considering the DL because it hurts "to stand up," as he put it.

37 Damon's always hurt. You can stop there. It's to his credit that he's never hit the DL before in his career . . I think (Ripken theories could apply).

A couple things from last night lingered -- aside from all the negativity and those sneers at those of us, faithful fans, no less, MOI!, who continue to find rays of sunshine in the midst of shitstorms.

One was the note from Simone wondering if Mo might not be secretly injured or not. Short of some enterprising soul running the videos of top form Mo vs. last night's Mo and analyzing some form of injury, all we appear to be left with is a mechanics' failure of some sort -- any commentary I've heard is the speed is there, the location is not. Wonder if location covers the movement of the cut fastball...

The thing is that if there is something, damn few will be talking about it.

Since we have had spasms in the past with Mo as Human, I will continue to assume this is the work of baseball gods with a perverse sense of humor. Yankee fans traditionally (since '96) go through this period when we doubt the excellence we know is there. A small price to pay for entrance to the Pinstripe Fandom.

Imagine being a slack jawed Sawks Fan, waiting for the traditional meltdown and fold. If this were the SAWKS playing today with an 8th loss riding on the arm of a rookie who had been shelled in his first outing, my bet would be on beanballs, bench clearing brawls etc. But it's not. We are Yankees, a cut above, consummate professionals who will reflect, reach down deeper and perform higher.

Let the word go forth, that character counts and that starting today young lads Jeff and Phil will demonstrate a new rise of excellence. Hark! Do I hear a Moose Call? Are we 11 and 19 yet?

A sleeping giant has been awakened, Admiral Yamamoto. Phil Hughes, the Ben Affleck look-alike, will leap to his team's defense. Jeff Karstens, the Josh Hartnett look-alike, has taken command. Derek is with Jennifer Garner, Nurse Sandra. We are the proud, the gallant, the Pinstripes. Play Ball!

"Imagine being a slack jawed Sawks Fan, waiting for the traditional meltdown and fold. If this were the SAWKS playing today with an 8th loss riding on the arm of a rookie who had been shelled in his first outing, my bet would be on beanballs, bench clearing brawls etc. But it's not. We are Yankees, a cut above, consummate professionals who will reflect, reach down deeper and perform higher. "

yawn... hows the weather up there on that horse? what a load of horsecrap.

We should take a page out of the Israeli Baseball League's book and sign Sandy Koufax. He's probably got something left in the tank.

41 Oh, look who it is.

41 Yea, man, take it easy. He was just joking and trying to lighten the mood. Go away if you can't handle that.

41 The lowly ric(tum), I knew I would flush you out.

44

i know it was a joke... but im writing an outline, so ill be on the laptop.....and ill be watching you :)

sincerely,
slack jawed sawks fan

41 It's actually pretty nice.

I had hoped that the Yankees would change managers in the off-season, rather than giving Joe this victory lap (mostly due to his inability to continue the greatest virtue of his stewardship -- the ability to maximize effort/efficiency out of veteran players). But Joe's here, and despite the usual in-game managing blunders (nothing new there), it's hard to put this awful start on his shoulders.

Funny. Not much talk about the guy who spent a boatload of cash for Kei Igawa, the guy who figured Minky was a workable option at first base, the guy who seemed to be counting on Pavano to actually log some innings this year...

Look. I love what Cashman has done for the club -- but that club plays in Scranton. How long before people start talking about some of the roster decisions made in the off-season?

47 People- led by one Jim Dean- have been talking about that for a while now.

Anyone have the link for today's game? Its blacked out on the west coast.

If they are going to get rid of Torre, they damn well better replace him with someone who has a long established track record of managing a bullpen like a virtuoso. The offense/lineup writing is pointless. The talent we have on offense scripts it's own success for the most part.

But we need a guy who has proven over and over that he knows how to manage a pitching staff.

Can anyone think of anyone who fits that profile that would be available? Kerrigan?

48 Thanks.
49 That may be a blessing in disguise. Tracking yesterday's debacle on my phone was probably preferable to actually watching it -- and doing so from the Coachella Festival didn't hurt either.

Couple weird looks from some Arctic Monkeys fans when I shouted 'fucking Pettitte!' however.

26 Cliff, you must have miss my comment 5 which focused on pitching as being the Yankees' problem.

51

Good point. I guess I could wartch Brady Quinn break down in tears when he goes at number 56.....:)

50 I thought of Kerrigan, but didn't he struggle as a manager? I'm not sure.

45 Like most jokes, the humor touches that sensitive nerve: you'll never see Arod or Jeter looking to "fire up" their team by assaulting another player a la the Great Cap'n Tek. A profile in courage as he kept his mask on...

Nor will you find a Yankee fandom choosing that moment to enshrine on their laptops in the form of screensavers etc. That sort of puerile high school play is left for the bottom feeders of the baseball world.

Which is why Cap'n Tek making the Hall is about as much of a possibility as is reaching total enlightenment while drinking beer. As a devoted SAWKS fan, I know you've tried the latter. I bet you could shoot beer out of you nose, though. Let me know how your prayer program works out for you this season.

In Stink related news, he's now hitting .140/.232./220.

Womack in April 05

.280/.330/.329

This is the worst starter we've had in a long damn time.

53

Tears of joy when Dallas picks him at 22

54 Yeah i think he did, but he didn't have the offensive firepower he'd have as skipper of the Yankees.

If he were given the job I'd just tell him, forget about the offense, and spend every minute thinking about the pitching.

Let Mattingly be the "Offensive Co-ordinator" or whatever.

57

Say it aint so.....RO.....MO.....?

That look on his face is priceless. He is thinking "Doesn't everyone know Im a cute white QB from Notre Dame?"

I actually think the Raiders--surprise surprise--made a bad pick by not taking Peterson or Quinn. Russell has a rocket arm, but his fundamantals are awful and he's dumb as a stump. You can fix the fundamentals, but he'll never be able to play in the NFL at the level of a number one pick.

My Steelers got Timmons! Yea defense! Have a good time with the fish Porter!

you know, I looked at the stats, and Minchia had, before this season, a career .357 OBP. Cash figured he'd play good D and get on base for the big guys, at least. He's 32. While he's not good, or even adequate, he's not nearly as bad as he's playing right now.

I don't think we have ever found out how Minky made the team. I have a suspicion that part of the reason he is there is to give cover to ARod's less than inspiring throws last year. He made a pretty good scoop last night on a Jeter throw. He's going to have to make Mark Belanger numbers to stay, that's for sure, so he needs another 90 points on that average. I would have given the nod to Phelps over Melky today. Phelpsie has the hot bat.

I never thought I'd see Lugo and Youkilis win a ball game. I hope life isn't a big joke, because I don't get it sometimes.

26 I think the focus on the offensive is a result of not having ANY confidence in the pitching. In other words, we know the pitching is going to let us down, so we're turning to the offense to save the day. It's irrational, but at least in knocking the offense, you can except things to get better. It's no fun kicking a dead body, which is what the pitching is.

As sad as it may seem, it is time for Joe to move on. It's time to forget the Red Sox...the wild card is still there to keep hope alive, but changes have to be made now.

55

i dont understand your last paragraph, but its all good anyway...

59 They said Vince Young was stupid too after he scored so low on the Wonderlick test... Maybe I took a different variation, but it didn't seem to ask anything remotely academic. Anyway, "Stoopid"'s on the cover of Madden Football next year, so maybe that explains it >;)

I'm beginning to hate reading the comments on this blog. It's full of nothing but "let's change the team everywhere." It's so negative and depressing.

First pitch of the game and down goes another pitcher. Holy Curse Batman!

First pitch...this season is one cruel joke.

Oy vey.

65

Guess we should leave "everything" alone; things are going so well.

327 days until Opening Day 2008.

Ok, I'm a Sox fan, but damn - first pitch - what the hell is happening to the Yankees? I hope he does well now, not well enough to win, but well nonetheless.

65 Sorry Max...wow, this team is playing well. Better?

Why do the gods hate us all of a sudden? Is it because we're starting Stink?

Wow, the roll call is really loud today.

Jesus, when it rains, it pours. Typical Sox, playing dirty :)

My gut says Karstens is going to have a good game. Hopefully, it's not the Taco Bell that I should've have eaten talking.

Was that because of the injury, or because Karstens isn't very good?

Oh,