If used properly and the post season thing works out the way it should, Joba’s addition will probably make this one of the best Yankees season ever.  I would love for the Yankees to have a 2 inning shutdown guy. 

And Britton’s back too.  So, so long Farnsworth?

and hopefully the velocity is as well.

I’d be more worried about his velocity if his injury had anything to do with his arm.  Being that it didn’t, I definitely think he just needs time.  He really hasn’t pitched much at all in the minors post injury.  He should be fine.

Does anyone think Tabata is dogging it at Tampa? I just have this feeling he is. I mean, he looks so strong and intimidating. I would expect him to have 20 some homers by now given all the hype and just how good he is, but his homers are really down and that i believe is cause for concern.

Also, with Giambi coming back up in the Toronto series, who is the guy on the current roster who will be demoted. I like the configuration of this team right now and adding Giambi could break some chemistry just like it did when Sheff was added last year towards the end of the season. Melky’s playing time will decrease and no more of Andy’s excellent play at first. If it aint broke dont fix it. Unfortunately, its going to happen.

Smart thing would to use Giambi much like they used Strawberry......Insert hin into a rotation of DH, very little IB, and LH PH.......I can only hope that Torre doesn’t try to force him into the starting lineup, as they did with Sheffield last September.....Please Joe, do not take Melky out of CF.....

six guys [1) Phillips, 2) Giambi 3) Matsui 4) Damon 5) Abreu 6) Melky], each taking one day off a week would seem to make the most sense.  When phillips sits, you play giambi at 1st. When Giambi sits, you play one of the 4 OF at DH.  When an OF sits, you just rotate the other three into the best defensive alignment possible.

For all the options, you adjust for defensive replacements after the yankees score their 10 runs. 

Betemit and Duncan are the odd men out, unless you want to sit Damon twice a week instead of one.  Which I would completely be comfortable with.

Does anyone think Tabata is dogging it at Tampa? I just have this feeling he is. I mean, he looks so strong and intimidating. I would expect him to have 20 some homers by now given all the hype and just how good he is, but his homers are really down and that i believe is cause for concern.

He’s not dogging it. The problem is that he doesn’t elevate the ball. It’s hard to hit home runs off of the ground.

I doubt Giambi will be playing first base at all.  They’ll want to keep him strictly at DH when he plays.  He’s a liability at first and now coming off injury, I can’t see them putting him on the field in any way.

Austin Jackson is a better prospect than Tabata.

When the Yankees erred in taking CJ Henry, and I said so at the time, I was at the same time very happy that they took and signed Jackson. The Vernon Wells comps were noticed.

That and Jackson was considered the top 14-and-under baseball player in America when he was 14. Then he was called he top 16-and-under baseball player when he was 16.

Then he sort of drifted away from baseball, still playing the game but not working on it. Basketball became his new love. The Yankees did not forget what a baseball talent he was and made the selection and signed him.

BTW.... Is Tabata still porky?

Everyone needs to remember this was Hughes 3rd start in the majors.  The “Franchise” has been so talked about around the league, tv/radio, and the blogs that we need to remember THIS IS HIS THIRD ML start ..... oh yeah and it was after 3 months of rehab.

This kid is the real deal.  I think the Yankees are lucky that he’s coming up now.  It’s early August and their are 52 games left.  Let’s show the kid the same patience we showed Igawa at the start of the season.  He’ll get it together.  You can see that he is very focused with his approach, you can tell by his body language and his no fear attitude to throw strikes.  Did throwing strikes hurt today?  YES IT DID.  But the finesse will return.  If he’s in the rotation to stay he has about 10 more starts to go.  That’s more than 3 times his ML experience so far.  Let him learn from Gator, Pettitte, Clemens, and Posada. 

He is the new guard.  Him and Wang are the future of the Yankees.  Let’s remember he is 21.  In 2-3 weeks he will be at the top of his game.

we need to remember THIS IS HIS THIRD ML start ..... oh yeah and it was after 3 months of rehab.

Preacher meet choir.

Did throwing strikes hurt today?  YES IT DID.

No, throwing strikes didn’t hurt.  Throwing 88MPH fastballs, middle of the plate, up in the zone, that hurt.  I saw his next-to-last rehab start in AAA, and his fastball didn’t have the same pop as it did yesterday.  He also didn’t lose the velocity/command later in the game.  But it also wasn’t nearly as hot (early evening, was probably about 80 when the game started), and he only threw 70-something pitches.

Early in the game his strikes were low 90’s fastballs on the corners, below the belt.  I can really see his next start being able to maintain that into the sixth inning, plus having a little better command of his curve.  2-3 weeks is a reasonable expectation.

Two innings - 5 Ks?

I may love Joba.

I may love Joba.

You may love him?

Fabian already said it, but Tabata is not hitting the ball in the air.  When he makes contact, it’s a GB 58% of the time, which is what Wang has allowed this year.  No matter how hard you hit the ball, you’re not going to have a very high IsoP doing that. 

There are plenty of rumors that his hamate bone is still hurting and that he’ll have it removed in the offseason.  If so, I really do think he’s going to break out big time next year.  Even now, however, it’s easy to forget that he’s having a pretty good season considering he’s 18 years old.

#10 I’m with the preacher and the choir. There’s a lot of excitement here about Hughes, and I have no reason to doubt it will all be justified someday. But the list of guys who pitch to their potential in the majors, in the modern era, at age 21 ... is what? Dwight Gooden? Anyone else? Hughes probably will alternate form brilliant to mystifying, and the experience will matter a lot sometime soon, maybe next year. But people need to give him some breathing room.

I actually find myself not rooting against him. If he’s as good as you guys say, he’ll be something to watch. The last time I said that about a Yankee was Bernie Williams in his prime.

I was looking for a decent place to put this, and since the article talks about Chamberlain i figured this was the place. There is an interesting article about the Trenton pitching staff on <a href= http://minorleaguedugout.com>MinorLeagueDugout.com</a>. They’ve has some rough games of late, but overall they’ve been fantastic.

That Joba Chamberlain AAA relief line really makes me perk up in my chair.  18 Ks in 8 innings?