The Three Vs. The Twins

Games 118-120
@ Minnesota Twins

Pitching Probables

Tonight, Monday August 11
Sidney Ponson (7-2, 4.23) vs. Glen Perkins (8-3, 4.38)

Tuesday, August 12
Mike Mussina (15-7, 3.27) vs. Nick Blackburn (9-6, 3.60)

Wednesday, August 13
TBA (Darrell Rasner, Dan Giese, Chase Wright?) vs. Kevin Slowey (8-8, 4.07)

Series Predictions

Yankees will take 2 out of 3, winning the first two games and having a letdown on getaway day with TBA on the hill. Ponson will struggle tonight but the offense will have a good game against Perkins, who could have beaten the Yankees in his last appearance against them, if not for his second baseman forgetting how many outs there were in an inning and also being matched up against a locked-in Mike Mussina.

The Moose will not have his best start on Tuesday, but he will persevere and pick up his 16th W.

TBA will get shelled.

-Good news out of Tampa today, as Matsui continues to progress while he's now strapped into a clunky knee brace. He is running the bases again tomorrow, and he could end up playing in rehab games as soon as this weekend. Girardi said he might come back as early as next week, barring any setbacks. That would change the dynamic offensively, and might actually provide the lineup a good situational hitter, something they sure could have used in Anaheim.

Also, Chamberlain says he's ready to begin throwing again. He wanted to start building himself back up on Wednesday, but Girardi pushed him to Friday. Probably a smart move, Girardi's rationale in the pre-game was that they wanted to have his own staff present to evaluate Joba throwing, thinking that they would pick up if he was trying to mask discomfort better than minor league coaches or organizational execs.

-Even more good news out of Tampa, as well: the Rays lost Longoria to a fractured wrist, a stunning turn-around after he and the team downplayed his injury as a short-term problem. He joins Carl Crawford on the DL, who is out with a ligament sprain in his middle finger which could linger and prove serious, as well. Frustrating considering that the Yankees have dug themselves an enormous hole in the division race and this is the first true prolonged adversity that team will have to face, possibly for the rest of the year. Until they show signs of cracking, the Wild Card has to be the focus.

-In non-baseball news, I had my greatest moment ever watching the Olympics last night. The U.S. swimmers winning that 4x100 relay race, outstretching the thuggish smack-talking French and keeping Michael Phelps in line to win 8 gold medals...it was absolutely riveting. The pure passion that Phelps and his teammates displayed upon winning reminded me why I love watching sports, something that has been dormant throughout this extremely flat Yankees season. It stirred awake my still-fresh muscle memory of February and the New York Giants vs. New England Patriots, albeit for only a few fleeting seconds. Great stuff. Hope Phelps wins another gold tonight.

Back again soon with updates. Can't wait to see which version of your #3 Starter Sidney Ponson shows up tonight.

8:35 PM, End of Top 2nd Inning: Couldn't have played out any better for the Yankees. 1st and 3rd nobody out and they manage to completely squander that opportunity. Pudge pop-up, Melky GIDP. Unbelievable is the word that Michael Kay used. Nothing unbelievable about it if you've been watching all year.

10:00 PM, Bottom of 8th Inning: Eight listless, completely pathetic innings from the Yankees' offense tonight. Strong outing for Sidney Ponson, but now Girardi is trying to stretch him for 8 innings. Going down by more than 3 is lights out, although it seems highly unlikely that any lights are coming on in the top of the 9th, whether they're facing Perkins (another underwhelming lefty the Yankees have made look like a #1 starter) or Joe Nathan. Michael Kay will undoubtedly ask, going into the commercial break, "Do the Yankees have a rally in them?", and the answer, as it has been all year, seems like it will be no.