Yanks Hoping Wang Will Return Sept. 1st

The Yanks pounded the Padres today, rattling off their 5th straight win (38-33) and, more importantly, they had a moral win today with Andy Pettitte pitching 7 beautiful innings against the struggling Padres. Without Wang, the team could have packed it in so they really needed to set the tone for the remainder of the season and the bats and pitching both looked very sharp tonight. While the Yanks may miss Wang over the course of the season, right now the schedule is favorable for NY as they’ll play the Padres, Reds and the Pirates (who have the offense, but don’t have any pitching). If the Yanks can keep this up, they can definitely best the Rays or even the Sox as they face tougher NL teams like the Cubs or Phillies.

Now, about Wang, he’ll be wearing that soft cast for about 6 weeks. He’ll eat with it on and he’ll sleep with it on and that’s just the way it goes for the Yankee ace. The Yanks are actually hoping to have him back by September 1st, and that could be the best-case scenario at this point in time. We have about 2 more weeks left in June and he’ll be out for all of July and August (presumably) so that should give Wang about 8 weeks to rehab (6 weeks to heal and 2 or 3 weeks to get into game shape). The team will have to be careful with Wang though, making sure not to rush him back too soon as this injury could possibly linger on if the rehab process isn’t an extremely careful one.

In-Game Bits: Traber, Randolph Reactions

A few notes as the Yanks beat up the Padres (7-0, Giambi 2 HR):

• With CMW being placed on the DL, the Yanks have recalled Billy Traber. Traber has worked on a slider in AAA and hopefully that’ll give him some more pitching depth. Having a lefty in the pen, even if he isn’t that great, could help the team in some in-game situations.
• Next up, Willie Randolph means a lot to the Yankee organization and, although it may be too soon to talk about giving him a job (it’s way to soon for that), I’m sure he’ll end up with the Yanks or he’ll at least find work elsewhere (this isn’t the end for Randolph, who is just a class act).
• Here’s an interesting reaction to Randolph’s situation from none other than Yogi Berra. Berra certainly feels for Randolph, but he knows this is just part of the territory. “You’re hired to be fired,” says Berra, and he definitely knows a thing or two about being fired in NY.

Tuesday’s Bits: Phil Hughes, Morgan Ensberg, Maple Bats, Derek Jeter

I’ve got a couple of interesting bits for today:

• First, Phil Hughes is still around (rehabbing) and Tyler Kepner reports that, according to Brian Cashman, he’s still an untouchable young pitcher in the Yankee system. Ever since Hughes got the call it seems as though his mystique has faded and others have seemingly flew by him on the depth chart, and while that may be true (see Joba) he’s still considered a future star so the Yanks will NOT deal him if C.C. Sabathia becomes available (but that Ian Kennedy, he could go).
• Next up, Morgan Ensberg has been signed by the Cleveland Indians and he will head to Triple-A for his assignment. Ensberg is just such a weird story. How do you go from being an AS in 2005 to being a bench player for the Yanks in 2008 and being so bad when given a chunk of playing time that they cut you? Hmm, maybe George Mitchell missed a guy? Who knows…
• Moving along, Tom Verducci has a piece out on maple bats and the problem they have been for baseball. I’ve been speaking on the bats for a while now as they are a tremendous safety issue that must be dealt with before someone else is seriously injured. Even Johnny Damon is expecting some sort of change soon, which is why he’s making the transition from maple to ash.
• Finally, we’ve got some reaction regarding the firing of Willie Randolph. Derek Jeter says that he feels sorry for Willie and hopes that he’ll have the chance to manage again. Jeter found out about the firing late into the day, which is fine since the Mets chose to fire Willie Randolph around 1 AM in the morning. That’s not only strange, but it’s also pretty tasteless, come on.

More later…

A-Rod’s New Text Buddy (OMG, LOL!!)

According to an ESPN report, Alex Rodriguez has been communicating with, who else, but Pete Rose via text messages and on a regular basis. Rose has served as a friend, mentor and hitting coach when A-Rod has needed it. See that? The internet continues to be a venue for all sorts of creepy outcasts… OK, I’m just kidding everyone.

Breaking News: Willie Randolph Fired

The news just came out and he’ll be replaced by Jerry Manuel (bench coach). Pitching coach Rick Peterson and first base coach Tom Nieto were also released. I know this isn’t a Mets blog, but that’s some pretty big news (especially for NY) and Willie is a part of the Yankee family, so I figured this warrants a post (why so late though?).

Hank Blasts NL Baseball

You know that guy that you’re friends with, the guy that always seems to say whatever it is you or anyone else in your circle of friends are thinking, no matter how inappropriate or rude it may be? Well, it seems like Hank Steinbrenner is that guy for all of us.

From the AP:

NEW YORK — Yankees ace Chien-Ming Wang is expected to be sidelined until at least September after injuring his foot running the bases, prompting club co-chairman Hank Steinbrenner to chastise the National League on Monday for playing without a designated hitter.

“My only message is simple. The National League needs to join the 21st century,” he said.

Ha! I’m glad that he said it, I mean, we were all thinking it as soon as we saw Wang limping up to Robinson Cano. Embedded within his comment is a tireless debate about the National League versus the American League, and while I love AL baseball, I think it would take something away from the game if both leagues were exactly the same. I like having that distinct difference between the two leagues although it could cause problems for Interleague Play. Now if you want to complain about IP, that’s another story, but the fans generally enjoy it and it provides us with something fresh.

In the end, I would have to say that Wang’s injury was an anomaly and nothing more (dozens of AL pitchers rounded the bases this weekend with no real problems). It was a freak occurrence and these things happen. Too bad it had to happen to Chien-Ming Wang and the Yankees (but thanks for the memorable line Hank).