GAME 70: Yankees at Braves

YANKEES (38-31, Second Place AL East)
Jeter SS
Swisher RF
Teixeira 1B
Rodriguez 3B
Cano 2B
Posada C
Cabrera LF
Gardner CF
Wang RHP
Pitching: RHP Chien-Ming Wang (0-5, 12.30).

BRAVES (33-36, Fourth Place NL East)
McLouth CF
Escobar SS
Jones 3B
McCann C
Anderson LF
Kotchman 1B
Francoeur RF
Johnson 2B
Hanson RHP
Pitching: RHP Tommy Hanson (2-0, 4.08).

TIME/TV: 7 p.m., MY9.

Is He Good Again, Yet? Chien-Ming Wang will be making his fourth start since coming off the DL. He is winless this season, and has a career high 5 losses already this season. He keeps "improving" but he has yet reached that level where he once was.
Don't Let Him On The Bases Either: It's been over a year since Wang last won a game, that is because of the LisFranc sprain of his foot sidelined him while running the bases in Houston last June. Wang will be batting in an NL park for the first time since that injury.
Powerless: The Yankees have hit one home run in their last four games. They have grounded into eight double plays during this time as well.
If This Guy Even Warms Up in the Pen, I am Turning the Game Off: Brett Tomko's line for his last three appearances: 3.2 IP, 6 hits 7 earned runs, 2 walks, 4 strikeouts and has given up three home runs. What purpose does he, and Angel Berroa even serve on this team?

UPDATE: For anyone interested in Girardi's protest of Sunday's game, the MLB has decided to deny it. Therefore the game is final and will not be replayed from the eigth inning.

UPDATE 7:20: Three groundball outs and a 1-2-3 inning for Wang. What does he think this is, 2007? Great play by Cano to start the inning too. I thought McLouth was safe for sure.

UPDATE 7:37: Maybe if Wang was pitching well I would have to hold my breath with him running down the line. Anyway, not much the Yankees could do there with the bases loaded and Wang up. It's an automatic out, you have to pray for a walk.

UPDATE 7:48: Disaster averted here in the second inning. Wang got into some trouble then a high chopper toward first brought him and Teixeira in to catch it and neither one was called off. They almost collide but Wang caught it and threw it to first to Cano who just got there in time to cover the bag.

UPDATE 7:53: Leadoff double for Jeter. Michael Kay has a John Sterling moment calling he is going for three, then telling us no he held up.

UPDATE 8:13: 3-0 Braves as Wang is getting hit hard now. Garrett Anderson crushed a double into the right-center gap to drive in 2 runs.

UPDATE 8:27: Does anyone think the Yankees get bonuses if they leave runners in scoring position? Because this is ridiculous. Bases loaded and they can't get the hit.

UPDATE 8:47: "This ballpark is more for the pitchers."-Ken Singleton...I guess Chien Ming Wang is the exception.

UPDATE 8:53: Hughes is up in the bullpen with Wang up third this inning. I guess the Yankees think Sabathia will make his next start. Meanwhile Wang has his helmet on and a bat in his hands in the dugout.

UPDATE 9:01: Tommy Hanson is being taken out of the game after the pinch-hit walk by Matsui. Hanson is one of the up and coming arms in the majors and pitched really well today. This was not some nobody who shut out the Yankees. But it's still the Yankees and they had plenty of chances. They should have been able to put something together. Meanwhile Jeter is up and with the amount of groundballs and double plays he's had lately, don't let it come as a shock if that is what happens here.

UPDATE 9:05: I was really hoping I would be wrong folks. I really was. I thought if I said he would do it, it wouldn't happen. But it did. Derek Jeter: Captain of the NY Yankees and Double Plays.

UPDATE 9:07: Phil Hughes is in. He has really been coming around of late. I would love to see him in the rotation, but Wang probably lives another day, just had one bad inning. On another note, if the Yankees do in fact lose this game, enough is enough. Girardi needs to have a closed-door meeting with this team and address what is going on. They are playing awful baseball, offensively and defensively. In fact, the pitching has been much better. It's the other 8 players out there not performing.

UPDATE 9:36: I am ready to throw my laptop out the window.

UPDATE 9:43: Brian McCann just hit a BOMB. You'd think Brett Tomko was pitching with how hard he hit that one. Well if there was any chance the Yankees would have winning this game it all just went out the window. 4-0 Braves.

UPDATE 9:57: This team is hopeless. If anyone knows how to hit a baseball get down to Atlanta NOW.