Yanks vs Rangers 8/10/10 wrap up : Yanks don't play big in Texas

Other then the heat here in New York you would have though that tonight's game in Texas was game 1 of the playoffs. In what could end up being a playoff match up this October, the Rangers won the game in walk off fashion in the 10th inning with a David Murphy single off Mariano Rivera.

Truth be told I had never expected the Yankees to compete in this game with a line up that included Marcus Thames hitting third, Austin Kearns hitting fifth and A.J Burnett making his first start since experiencing back spasms.Burnett pitched well giving up three runs over seven innings and was saved from getting a loss when Alex Rodriguez hit a clutch solo homer to tie the score at three in the eighth.

The game would go into extra innings and Joe Girardi would summon the great Mariano Rivera to keep the Yanks in the game, but something surprising happened. Rivera would give up the walk off hit. If you are looking in the box score it will show that Rivera gave up three hits. But two of the hits were hit so soft that the Yanks could not get the runners out.

Yankees Player of the Game: Alex Rodriguez

A-Rod hit the game tying home run, and had this been pre-2009 Postseason it would have lead to a debate over if he was clutch or not. Alex also had a brilliant diving play in the tenth inning on a Vlad Guerrero ground ball that was ticketed to left field. At the time the play saved the Rangers from winning the game, but was over shadowed once Daniel Murphy got the base hit to win it.

Second Guess Move of the Game :

Sadly their are a few moves to choose from, starting with why didn't Girardi pinch hit Posada for Cervelli in the eight inning when the go ahead run was on third base. Girardi said following the game that Posada's shoulder was sore and he would not have been able to catch. If that really is the case then I think that it may be time to bring up Jesus Montero and give him a shot. I know that Montero is not much better then Posada defensively but at least he has hit in the minors, and in the spot tonight would have been able to catch had Posada been used as a pinch hitter. Cervelli hit a weak jam shot to the first baseman, and Brett Gardner continued to slump by not getting the run in.

Honorable Mention : The timing on when Girardi was going to use Mariano Rivera.

Currently the Yankee universe is in panic, the Yanks have now lost two games in a row in heart breaking fashion and Wednesdays game does not get much better with the Rangers throwing Cliff Lee. Javier Vazquez will go for the Bronx Bombers, last time out Vazquez struggled with his command and his fastball lacked velocity. If there is any consolation it is that following the Rangers series the Yanks head to Kansas City to take on the lowly Royals for four games and then head back to the stadium for games against the Tigers and Mariners.

Yanks Quick Hits Upcoming homestand

The Yankees return home tonight to face the Blue Jays and A-Rod still hasn't hit 600 and the race in the AL East got alot closer. The Yanks lost two out of three in Tampa, so their lead in the east is down to one game. The Yanks face the Toronto and Boston and look to increase their edge in the standings over the Rays.

• Tonight A.J Burnett will face his old team, at the stadium. In Burnett's last two starts he hasn't allowed a run while picking up two victories.
• Against Burnett tonight is Brendan Morrow. This season Morrow  hasn't picked up a decision against the Yankees but has an ERA of 4.15,while striking out 15 batters in 13 innings.
• When the Yanks left home, a week ago many figured that Alex Rodriguez would have hit 600 already. That hasn't been the case and much has been made about his struggles since hitting 599. On the road Alex was sure to hear boo's but with this seven game home stand he has a chance to do it at home and end all the talk and debate about it.
• After the Jays leave town the Yanks welcome in the Boston Red Sox. The Red Sox are 6.5 games out of the AL East and 5.5 out in the wild card. This weekend in the Bronx is a big series for them, they can pick up some games on the Yanks or lose even more ground. If the Yanks beat up on the Sox this weekend, it would be a huge up hill climb for Boston.
• The Newest Yankees made their debut's this past weekend. Kerry Wood will wear # 39 , Austin Kearns will wear # 26 and Lance Berkman will wear # 17
• Andy Pettitte will throw a bullpen session on Tuesday or Wednesday. If all goes well, Pettitte will throw a few more sessions and then have a rehab start.
• Alfredo Aceves was transferred to the 60 day DL, but is expected to begin throw to live hitters in a few weeks.
• Joba Chamberlain has pitched to an ERA of 6.17 in July
• Jeter is hitting .333 in day games, but only .238 in night games
• Since coming back from the DL in early July, Marcus Thames has only gotten 18 at bats, but has gotten six hits (.333) 1 HR and 4 RBI

Welcome to the Bronx Austin Kearns and Lance Berkman

Past trade deadlines for the Yankees have produced sub-par trades. I mean if you consider Kyle Farnsworth for Ivan Rodriguez a big deal than i guess not, but the last big impact player the Yanks acquired at the deadline that I can think of is Bobby Abreu (great deal). Yesterday the Yanks acquired two players that improve the team, Lance Berkman and Austin Kearns coming to the Bronx in separate deals.

Lance Berkman is the bigger name of the two, being a five time all star and known for his hitting ability. Due to his 10 and 5 rights (10 years in the league, 5 with the same team) Berkman had the right to veto any trade. Berkman turned down a trade to the White Sox and after that Brian Cashman was all over him. Cashman offered Mark Melancon and a prospect for "The big puma", who agreed to the trade. I think that it is a great trade for the Yanks, early reports are that the Astros will eat four million of Berkman's 7.5 million contract. Berkman can play first base and play the corner outfield spots, although he will see most of his time at DH. What I love the most about Berkman is that this year he is having a "down" year yet has an OBP of .372 and has 13 homers and 49 RBI. The only thing that worries me is that with Jorge Posada struggling to stay behind the plate, Posada will need to share the time at DH, possibly moving Berkman to the bench or outfield. With the move the Yanks can send Juan Miranda back to AAA Scranton.

With the addition of Berkman the line up could possibly look like this :
Jeter
Swisher

Tex

A-Rod

Cano

Berkman

Posada

Granderson

Gardner

You could always switch Berkman and Posada depending on who's hitting better.

The other deal the Yankees made that was over shadowed by Berkman was adding Austin Kearns to be a role/bench player. This season with Cleveland, Kearns was having a nice season hitting .272  with 42 RBI along with playing spectacular defense. When Kearns was told the news that he was going to the Yankees he said that playing time didn't matter to him with a team like the Yankees. You gotta love a player like that right away, it says something about Kearns, a free agent after this season, that he isn't worried about his next contract and his stats but more importantly helping the team win. The Yanks can now send down Colin Curtis who played decent in his time up and was a fan favorite, but the Yanks don't need him if they have Kearns.

Marcus Thames most likely will lose some playing time now that Berkman and Kearns are here but that's not a huge loss. Granderson may lose a bit of playing time against lefties since Kearns and Thames hit them well, most of all it strengthens the bench. For Kearns the Yanks gave up nothing just cash and a player to be named later.

The Yankees made two big moves that really helped the club out, the trade deadline isn't done just yet so more help could be on the way. The bombers could use some help in the bullpen so maybe a small move may be made there to help the club. If the Yanks don't make another move I wouldn't be upset they have already made two good trades. Now if they could just get rid of Chan Ho Park....