Russell Martin (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Hiroki Kuroda stunk, as he gave up three homers, seven earned runs in five innings pitched but that didn’t really bother me.

Would I have liked to see Kuroda have two good starts in a row?

Yes, but that will come with time as he did post six strikeouts in last night’s game too.

What drove me to almost throw my remote right into my flat screen about 10 different times were the Yankee hitters, if you can even call them, as I was under the impression that hitters actually hit.

This game came served on a silver platter for the Yankee bats.

Toronto had starter Kyle Drabek on the hill, who the Yankees had a .326 average against.

Also, Drabek had lost four of his last five starts, giving up five homers, 20 walks and 14 earned runs.

And if you did your homework, you would have anticipated Kuroda’s crappy start because he has flip-flopped between one bad and one good all season.

Still, it was the Yankees game to lose because the bats had such a big advantage over Drabek, which almost made Kuroda’s woes irrelevant. Or at least this is what I thought.

Instead, I was utterly embarrassed watching the game with two friends, one a Mets fan and the other a Phillies fan; so I cannot even image how the utterly mortified the Yankees must have felt.

Here are what the Yankees are doing very well right now:

-        Playing totally crappy, uninspiring baseball.(...)
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Post tags: Blue Jays, Brett Gardner, Hiroki Kuroda, Keith Allison, Kyle Drabek, New York Yankee, Russell Martin, Toronto Blue Jays, Yankee

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New York Yankees at Baltimore Orioles April 24, 2011 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The O’s have been playing some great baseball lately but the Yankees have won four of the six times the two AL East rivals have faced each other.

Can the Orioles make the playoffs for the first time since 1997?

Well, I know Orioles fans have ripped me lately for not ranking them higher in my weekly power rankings. But until I see Buck and his birds sustain the top spot all the way to the All-Star break, I am not convinced this the O’s pitching can last that long.

For now, the Yankees can use these two games to jump up in the divisional standings but it won’t be easy as the O’s would love to tie up their season record vs. New York by winning both games.

PITCHING MATCH-UPS:

Ivan Nova vs. Jason Hammel

This game favors Hammel, but not by much.

Both team’s bats have had success against the other’s pitcher. Hammel’s is coming off an injury, and missed his last start but has a 4-1 record with a 2.08 ERA on the season. Hammel’s one loss was against New York but Hiroki Kuroda was on the hill for the Yankees and he blanked the O’s.

Nova has been so-so vs. Baltimore, but the O’s do have a .330 batting average against him. In his two starts this season vs. the O’s, Nova is 1-1 and has given up four homers. Nova looked better in his last start and will be looking to continue that tonight.

This game will be decided by to the offenses….and I think the Yankees are looking to make a statement.(...)
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Post tags: American League East, Baltimore Orioles, CC Sabathia, Hiroki Kuroda, Ivan Nova, Jason Hammel, New York Yankees, Yankee

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Nick Swisher - 'roll call'

SUNDAY SUMMARY:

The New York Yankees wrapped up the four game series in Kansas City with a 10-4 win, splitting the series 2-2 with the Royals.

Phil Hughes got the win, and he did pitch better but reality is the Yankee bats were really responsible for the win yesterday.

As Ibanez and Granderson each had a RBI; followed by Cano’s much-needed grand slam and Swisher’s solo shot both in the third; and finally A-Rod joined the party with a three-run bomb in the eighth.

It was great to see Cano break out of his slump, as that was only his second shot on the season but hopefully a sign of good things to come.

The Captain’s hot bat showed zero signs of slowing down, hitting a double off the first pitch thrown in the game and had a successful bunt in the third. Teixeira also helped out by drawing two walks in the game.

REALITY BITES:

The excuse of ‘it still early in the season’ has about worn its welcome but even more so for teams who live in the AL East.

Reality bites and it will sooner than you think if the Yankees don’t get the ball rolling here. They sit at 15-13 on the season, fourth in the division and four games back of the 19-9 Orioles.(...)
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Post tags: AL East, American League East, Boston Red Sox, Bronx, Curtis Granderson, New York Yankee, Nick Swisher, Phil Hughes, Royals, Yankee

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Ryan Howard (left) and Albert Pujols (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

So, here is a quick list of the Yankees and three other troubled teams who should be much better than they were in April:

1 -  Back in Spring Training, the New York Yankees were inundated with good pitching. Well, I don’t think skipper Joe Girardi anticipated that over the first month he would lose his newest star, Michael Pineda for the season; Phil Hughes and Freddy Garcia to be completely ineffective; and now banking-on Andy Pettitte’s return to his All-Star self after a year off. Fans can pray that either DJ Mitchell or David Phelps will be the Yankees version of the Knicks Jeremy Lin. Hey you never know until you try.

2 -  The Los Angeles Angels are yearning for Albert Pujols to hit his first homer as a Halo; and you can expect the rest of the anemic offense to follow when the best player in baseball finally does. This is not the start anyone was expecting. Take a look at Pujols’ career April/March numbers below:(...)
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Post tags: Albert Pujols, Andy Pettitte, Detroit Tiger, Joe Girardi, Justin Verlander, Michael Pineda, New York Yankee, Prince Fielder, Tigers, Yankee

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Returning to face the 2011 MVP and CY Young award winner Justin Verlander makes that losing feeling never go away.

That is the New York Yankees reality today, as they finished their road trip 3-3 and now have to host the Detroit Tigers for a three game set.

You would think that facing Verlander was enough, but Yankee fans will now get to relive the 2011 ALDS Game 5 because Ivan Nova will take the hill for New York.

Any Yankees fan that watched the Tigers eliminate the Yankees last October remembers the game like it was yesterday.

I was there that night at Yankee Stadium, just like I will be there tonight; in the same seats, with the same hope but this time I expect a different ending.

The odds are certainly in Verlander’s favor; as he has held the active Yankee hitters to a .193 average, with 64 strikeouts in 223 at-bats.

The Captain is the only Yankee who has had some success against Verlander, as he has a .364 batting average against him, with 12 hits and four walks but no RBIs. That is because there was no Yankee on base to drive in; nor was any Yankee able to drive him in. So, the Captain became another LOB stat instead.

Personally, I cannot stomach, watching the Tigers closer Valverde do his celebration dance on the mound again, and I am sure the Yankees feel the same.

The Yankees did beat Verlander and his Tigers, 6-3 on Opening Day last season but having CC Sabathia on the hill that afternoon was certainly a huge help.

So, the Yankees will have to be as close to perfect as possible and I believe that they can.

PREDICTION: YANKEES BEAT TIGERS 5-3.(...)
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