Molina Injured

Tonight, when Joe Girardi took Jose Molina out of the game in the 8th inning only to insert Wilson Betemit in as the runner, I nearly kicked the television. It really made no sense. The speed was marginally better at best and Molina still had to catch in the 9th. I knew that Posada would ultimately replace Molina behind the dish and that was bad enough considering Jorge’s shoulder woes. So, why, why Girardi would you do such a thing?

Then I read that Jose Molina injured himself in the 4th inning of today’s game. I think it was when he was tagging up and slid into home. When he was walking back to the dugout after his slide, you could see him brushing his leg a bit (I didn’t really think much of it). He hung in there for a few more innings and that’s the reason Girardi took him out when he got on in the 8th. So, in terms of that decision, all is forgiven (although I can argue that Joba should have come in instead of Farnsworth since Joba would have done a better job at keeping the Sox off the bases, allowing Jorge to simply play catch instead attempting to throw guys out).

With Molina headed to the DL, his presence both behind the plate and with the stick will definitely be missed. He has hit .364 for the Yankees and has actually been their best hitter over the past week or so (talk about surprises). This means that Chad Moeller, a weak offensive player, will be called up to catch (Jorge did not look ready to throw yet) or at least play backup to a catcher who will not be able to challenge runners.

Believe it or not, the loss of Jose Molina now overshadows the absence of Derek Jeter.