Last night’s game illustrated the Yankee’s season. A rally that was too little, too late.
The Yankees had a chance to strike first. They had two on in the first against the starter, Scott Kazmir. They never struck. Then the Yankees starter Darrell Rasner just self-imploded. It may well have been the last start Rasner makes for the 2008 Yankees.
After getting out of the first, Rasner just ran out of everything. He made it through four outs and twelve batters today. He allowed six hits and two walks en route to a five-earned run effort.
Al Aceves came in to replace Rasner. The Mexican Gangster threw five stellar innings. He allowed one run on five hits. He had two walks and struck out four. 63% of his pitches went for strikes.
The Yanks couldn’t put much of anything together throughout the game. An unlikely rally materialized in the top of the ninth. Cody Ransom (3 for 3 last night) drove in the Yanks’ first run of the night. Derek Jeter blasted a three-run shot, and A-Rod went back-to-back with another monstrous home run that might have dented the catwalk on top of the roof of the Tropicana. That was all the Yankees could muster. As a result, the Yankees slipped a half-game behind idle Boston.
The ineffectiveness of Rasner just outlights the problems that the Yankees’ rotation has faced all season. I put 20% of the blame on Joe Girardi and how he has managed the rotation and 80% on the pitchers themselves. Had Chien-Ming Wang not gotten hurt, had Phil Hughes been more effective and not fractured his ribs, had Ian Kennedy been able to retain control and the form he displayed last year and had Joba Chamberlain continued what he had done — offer a glimmer of hope — we wouldn’t have seen Rasner on the mound last night.
Girardi was short and abrupt with questions from beat writers about Rasner’s spot in the rotation, but it definitely looks like Rasner has pitched his final game for the Yankees this season. At this point, I don’t see any harm in giving Hughes, Chase Wright, and Kennedy some innings this season, it’s almost a given that the Yankees will not make the playoffs and for the first time in his career, Jeter will be home in October.
