Facing Stern Test Against Tigers, the Yankees Ace Part 1
The unofficial winners of this year's trade deadline were the Detroit Tigers, who traded for the former Tampa Bay Rays ace David Price to add to a formidable rotation. During a four-game series this week at Yankee Stadium, the Yankees were scheduled to face three Cy Young Award winners: Price on Tuesday, Justin Verlander on Wednesday, and Monday's starter, Max Scherzer.
The series against the first-place Tigers will be a stiff test for the Yankees, facing a division leader for the first time since facing the Baltimore Orioles from July 11 to 13. The Yankees began Monday only a game and a half back in the American League wild-card race, and this series can sink them or bolster their playoff chances and their confidence.
Passing the first test, the Yankees topped Scherzer and the Tigers, 2-1, behind the pitching of their less-heralded midseason trade acquisition, Brandon McCarthy, who allowed one unearned run in five and two-thirds innings to improve his record as a Yankee to 4-0. Relievers Matt Thornton, Adam Warren, Shawn Kelley and David Robertson collectively pitched three and a third scoreless innings to preserve the win. The Yankees gained half a game on the idle Toronto Blue Jays in the wild-card standings.
The Yankees scored both of their runs in the third, the first on a sacrifice fly by Jacoby Ellsbury, which looked as if it would clear the loaded bases before center fielder Ezequiel Carrera made a spectacular diving catch. Brian McCann singled two batters later to drive in the deciding run.
In contrast to the Tigers' star-studded staff, McCarthy has been the most consistent starter in an injury-riddled, patchwork Yankees rotation that took another hit Monday when the team placed David Phelps on the 15-day disabled list with inflammation in his right elbow.
Manager Joe Girardi said Phelps would rest for two weeks before picking up a baseball again, meaning he was unlikely to return to the rotation for at least three weeks.
As a result, the Yankees still do not have a scheduled starter for Friday's game against the Cleveland Indians. Girardi said the replacement starter would most likely come from the 25-man roster, the top candidates being Chase Whitley and David Huff. Girardi did not rule out the possibility that Michael Pineda (right shoulder injury), who threw 58 pitches Sunday in three and a third scoreless innings in a rehabilitation outing with Class AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, could start.
Pineda's next scheduled start, either in the minors or with the Yankees, will be Friday.
'I really don't think it's going to be here,' Girardi said. 'But as I said yesterday - and I probably shouldn't have said it - sometimes circumstances dictate that you need a guy sooner than maybe they're ready. Sitting here today, I'd say our plan is for him not to start here on Friday.'
The most newsworthy development, although perhaps the one with the fewest short-term implications, was the rookie starter Masahiro Tanaka's making 25 throws at 60 feet from flat ground in the outfield before Monday's game. Tanaka, who is scheduled to throw again Tuesday, reported no pain.
But Girardi downplayed the importance of Tanaka's throwing session.
'You look at it as a start, really,' Girardi said. 'Obviously, if there was discomfort, you'd look at it as very discouraging, so it is a positive day. But like I said, there's still a long ways to go. But you have to plow through each step.'
The Yankees and the Tigers were two of the most active teams approaching last week's trade deadline. While the Tigers drew the bigger headlines, the Yankees acquired some roster flexibility by trading for Martin Prado and Stephen Drew, both of whom are capable of playing multiple positions.
That versatility came in handy Monday when, minutes before the game, the Yankees announced that first baseman Mark Teixeira had been scratched from the lineup with lightheadedness. Prado, who had been slated to play right field, moved to third base, while Chase Headley, the original third baseman in the lineup, took Teixeira's place at first.
But Prado, who has played most of his time defensively at third base, made an error in the fifth, overthrowing Headley after fielding Eugenio Suarez's ground ball. Suarez then stole second. Ian Kinsler followed with a single, which scored the pinch-runner Andrew Romine to cut the Yankees' lead to 2-1.
But the Yankees shut down the Tigers afterward and showed that their pitching staff, at least for one night, was pretty good, too.
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