Notes: Pettitte bumped to Monday

Notes: Pettitte bumped to Monday

Left-hander given regular rest as Clemens continues to rehab

By Bryan Hoch / MLB.com

NEW YORK -- Flying back from an unexpected trip home to Houston this week, Andy Pettitte was placed on notice that he might have one more regular-season Yankee Stadium start after all.

So when the Yankees tabbed the left-hander -- and not the ailing Roger Clemens -- to pitch Monday's regular-season home finale, Pettitte said he had prepared for the assignment, coming on his normal fifth day of rest.

"I'll just do whatever I have to do to get ready to pitch when they want me to," Pettitte said.

The last-minute switch was another move made out of caution for Clemens, who tweaked his left hamstring while performing distance running on Thursday's off-day.

Clemens was scratched from Saturday's start and reassigned to Monday before the Yankees decided to push him back one more game, tentatively shooting for Tuesday at Tampa Bay. Yankees manager Joe Torre waited until Pettitte threw a bullpen session on Saturday before announcing the switch prior to New York's 12-11 victory over Toronto in 10 innings.

"It was all about giving [Clemens] as much time as we can without disrupting anything," Torre said. "The fact that Andy was on his fifth day made it easier to do."

Clemens said that he has been encouraged by seeing some "spots" rise in the back of his left leg, which could be due in part to the amount of "digging" that trainers have done. Clemens threw in the bullpen for about five minutes on Sunday and reported no issues.

"I just need to get in game situations," Clemens said. "It's going to be completely different from what I'm doing out here. I've got to be honest -- we're at a real critical part of the season, and I don't want to go back. ... I just want this thing to feel the right way and get out there."

With the timing of Clemens' injury, it is possible that he could have just one more regular-season start before the Yankees open a potential American League Division Series series. Pettitte pointed to Clemens' 12-day layoff before a classic Sept. 16 effort at Fenway Park as one reason for optimism that the Rocket would pick it up in a big spot.

"He's shown he can take two weeks off and be very strong and throw a great game," Pettitte said. "That'd be a concern for me, personally, because I feel when I throw on my fifth or sixth day, I need to stay on my game. I feel like I struggle if I have too much rest.

"Roger is totally different. We just need to make sure he's as healthy as he can be going into the playoffs. The good thing is that I don't feel like we're in desperate need where we need to rush him out there."

As the playoffs near, the Yankees' home slate will conclude featuring Pettitte going for his 15th victory. Pettitte said that he has been surprised by how good his left elbow has felt, even deep into September, and credits the surgery that shortened his 2004 campaign with Houston for helping to restore his health.

"I've had to deal with my elbow, after my rookie season, for the eight years that I was here," Pettitte said. "It's just nice to feel like I don't have to eat anti-inflammatories the whole year."

100 grand: With a fifth-inning triple on Saturday, Hideki Matsui reached the 100-RBI mark for the ninth time in his professional career, including four times in the Major Leagues.

Matsui, who missed four months last season with a broken left wrist, said the milestone was notable considering his lengthy absence. Matsui entered Sunday's game batting .289 with 25 home runs and 102 RBIs in 138 games.

"I don't really get caught up in the numbers game, but the more the better, certainly," Matsui said through an interpreter. "At least I reached a number similar to what I had before I got hurt. In that sense, it was important."

Going to 'war: After Saturday's game, Torre spoke about how it might be needed to put an arm around rookie right-hander Edwar Ramirez and remind him about all the tough outs he'd recorded. Ramirez has allowed four runs in his last three appearances, including one home run, and got just one out in Saturday's appearance.

Then, in the middle of the clubhouse on Sunday morning, Torre did just that, enveloping the string-bean reliever in an embrace.

Ramirez said that he worked on a mechanical flaw in the bullpen on Sunday with pitching coach Ron Guidry and Triple-A coach Dave Eiland, trying to close his front shoulder and prevent flying open.

Bombers bits: The Yankees paid tribute to Phil Rizzuto in a pregame ceremony on Sunday, featuring speeches by Reggie Jackson and Bobby Murcer. ... Over New York's last 16 games entering play on Sunday, the club's starting pitchers were 8-1 with a 2.56 ERA and had not allowed a home run in 88 innings. ... Rookie reliever Joba Chamberlain turned 22 on Sunday.

Coming up: The Yankees will play home game No. 81 on Monday, with Pettitte (14-8, 3.79 ERA) making the start for New York opposite Toronto right-hander A.J. Burnett (9-7, 3.40 ERA). First pitch is set for 1:05 p.m. ET on the YES Network.

Mussina tops Jays for third straight win

Mussina tops Jays for third straight win

Righty's seven strong innings help Yankees gain on Red Sox

By Bryan Hoch / MLB.com

NEW YORK -- The Yankees are almost certainly going to be in the playoffs, and Mike Mussina is almost certainly going to be a part of it.

Making his third start since returning to the rotation, Mussina moved closer to locking up a potential playoff start on Sunday, pitching seven strong innings against the Blue Jays to help the Yankees to a 7-5 victory, the 250th of Mussina's career.

The effort moved the Yankees to within 1 1/2 games of the Red Sox in the American League East as they close in on completing a historic comeback. New York's magic number for clinching a playoff spot dropped to two, as the Yankees remained 5 1/2 games up on the Tigers in the AL Wild Card race.

"We're just playing baseball the way we wanted to play it from the beginning," said Mussina (11-10). "We had a lot of struggles in the beginning of the season, and now, with a week to go, we're in the position we want to be in. We're playing the game the way we want to play it. It's not anywhere close to the same team it was in April and May."

The Yankees have won 14 of 17 to improve to a season-high 25 games over .500. New York will complete its home schedule on Monday, making up an April 25 rainout, before playing its final six games on the road.

"This is the time of year that you want to play well, because the pressure is on," Yankees manager Joe Torre said. "You have certain things that you need to accomplish. We've played well under pressure all year. The most important thing is to make sure we don't lose our edge."

Mussina, who had to be pulled from the rotation in late August after three consecutive horrid starts, has re-emerged in September to regain Torre's trust. With the exception of a three-run blip in the second inning, Mussina held Toronto scoreless in six of the seven innings he pitched on Sunday, including retiring nine straight to close out his start.

"I'm just glad [Torre] gave me a chance to go back out there and pitch," Mussina said. "He didn't have to. He made a decision and could have stuck with it. They let me get back out there and do it again, and I've thrown the ball pretty well since they let me back out there. It's the way the game works sometimes."

Mussina scattered seven hits and struck out five to move past Vic Willis for sole possession of 43rd place on baseball's all-time wins list, one shy of longtime Torre favorite Bob Gibson.

"It's nice to have been given a chance to go out there for that long a period of time, a chance to win 250 games," Mussina said. "To play with some of the talent and some of the people that I've had a chance to do it, it's been a lot of fun. It's been great, and I hope to go out there and win a few more."

After playing two extra-inning contests to open their series with the Blue Jays -- 25 innings of baseball that spanned nine hours and 45 minutes -- the Yankees were able to record Sunday's win in more efficient fashion.

Toronto starter Dustin McGowan was chased in the fifth inning, as Robinson Cano gave New York the lead on the final pitch from McGowan (11-10), ripping a run-scoring single to right. Facing reliever Brian Tallet, Doug Mientkiewicz nubbed a slow roller up the third-base line that Russ Adams could not barehand, allowing a second run to score on the hit.

Jose Molina then came through with a bloop single to left that brought home New York's sixth run, one of a season-high three RBIs in the backup catcher's three-hit game.

Molina opened the season with the Angels, now a possible playoff opponent, and has provided an upgrade over original backup Wil Nieves. After Jorge Posada caught all 10 innings of Saturday's arduous five-hour affair, Molina was able to offer a full day off and yet not hurt the team offensively -- he has hit safely in nine of his last 10 starts and 10 of 14 since joining the Yankees.

"I'm still adjusting," Molina said. "It's not easy. I've been on the West Coast for seven years, and coming to the East Coast, it's not easy, family-wise or personal-wise. You've just got to step up and do your job, no matter what the situation is. When you get home, you deal with those things."

The two clubs traded three-run innings in the second, as Mussina saw a string of 14 scoreless frames end. Adam Lind had a two-run double and Curtis Thigpen had a run-scoring single for the Blue Jays, but the Yankees answered with run-scoring singles by Molina, Johnny Damon and Derek Jeter in the bottom half, providing Mussina with enough of a cushion to get back to work comfortably.

"He was great," Molina said. "He was hitting his spots. In the second inning, he gave up some runs, but those pitches were good. There wasn't anything bad at all."

Mussina also had strong defense and some fortunate play-calling. Molina picked off Alex Rios on a snap throw down to first base in the third inning, and Melky Cabrera, who preserved a tie game in the 10th inning on Saturday with an outfield assist, turned in another on Sunday to throw out Gregg Zaun at the plate on a questionable tag play ending the fourth inning.

Like on Saturday, the Yankees had to endure a bullpen crisis, but this time they had a magic answer. Before the game, Torre had indicated to reporters that rookie sensation Joba Chamberlain would be unavailable, but he reversed field after consulting with general manager Brian Cashman and pitching coordinator Nardi Contreras, the architect of the so-called "Joba Rules."

"We're on the move with this thing," Torre said. "A lot of it is going to be judged on pitch counts. The days off will vary. Certain situations have to be right for us to be in a position to use him, and unfortunately, it called for that."

Reliever Luis Vizcaino surrendered a two-run homer to Matt Stairs in the eighth, but Chamberlain -- pitching on his 22nd birthday -- was summoned to pitch out of a two-out, two-on jam, striking out Lind on a slider to end his inning. Since Chamberlain threw just five pitches to Lind in the eighth, the Yankees sent him back out for the ninth, when he set the Blue Jays down in order for his first career save.

"It's all fun," Chamberlain said. "It's all new experiences every time I go out there, so it's good."

Historic day for Yankees staff

Historic day for Yankees staff

Team uses team-record 10 pitchers in win over Toronto

By Bryan Hoch / MLB.com

NEW YORK -- The next time you use the phrase "records are made to be broken," think back to Saturday's affair at Yankee Stadium. There are some that you might be better off not seeing shattered.

The Yankees set a franchise mark using 10 pitchers in Saturday's game, an afternoon matinee that was delayed for 92 minutes by rain before a marathon, 10-inning affair played out with the Blue Jays that lasted exactly five hours on the nose.

It created a memorable day at the ballpark, for certain, but nobody seemed to be too enamored with their unique date with the history books.

"It was no fun," Torre said. "That's the only thing I can tell you. It's no fun."

The nine relievers used behind New York starter Phil Hughes were just one shy of an American League record, set by the Mariners on Sept. 25, 1992, at Texas. For this weekend, though, it was the status quo: in the first two games of the series, the Yankees and Blue Jays have combined to use 33 pitchers, 18 by New York.

They're the kind of games that could have only taken place in September, with expanded rosters and a smorgasbord of relief options to whittle through. At times on Saturday, it appeared as though Torre was emptying his bullpen for open auditions, bringing out ghosts of Yankees relief past.

The afternoon came on a quick turnaround from a Friday night nailbiter, though that contest at least featured an ace-quality pitching matchup between Roy Halladay and Chien-Ming Wang before stretching into a 14-inning affair.

But with Toronto starter Shaun Marcum done after three innings with a sore right knee and New York's Phil Hughes exiting having allowed three runs in five innings, it was clear both teams would be in need of some relief. Neither got much.

"It's a tough day," catcher Jorge Posada said. "You wait for the game to start, then you start at [2:37 p.m. ET] and play five hours. It's tough but I'm just happy we got the win."

While Blue Jays manager John Gibbons had to call on seven relievers, including losing pitcher Josh Towers -- tagged with the defeat when Melky Cabrera came through with a 10th-inning single -- the Yankees were even quicker on the trigger, contributing 221 of the 423 total pitches thrown in the game. Of those, Hughes threw less than half (99).

Veteran Ron Villone and rookie Ross Ohlendorf combined to pitch a scoreless sixth inning before September callup Jose Veras, who had been making his case for the postseason roster, came undone in a five-run Toronto seventh that changed the course of the game, spoiling a 6-3 lead.

Veras had two outs with runners on second and third before uncorking a wild pitch, then throwing a passed ball charged to catcher Posada, before Aaron Hill came through with a run-scoring single.

"He almost came out of the inning," Torre said. "Then it turned ugly."

Edwar Ramirez, rescued from an independent league club in Edinburg, Texas, earlier this season, turned in his second shaky performance in two nights by serving up run-scoring hits to Russ Adams and Adam Lind, leaving Toronto with an 8-6 lead.

Though the Yankees fought back for three runs in the bottom half, regaining the lead, Kyle Farnsworth handily helped give it right back. Farnsworth, who was not expected to be available due to tightness in his right shoulder, faced five hitters and retired just one of them -- a hot Matt Stairs drive that looked as though it were headed for right field before first baseman Wilson Betemit snared it with a terrific diving catch.

"I left some balls up," Farnsworth said. "It's frustrating, but it's one of those things. I've just got to keep going. I felt fine, but I'm a little rusty, I guess. It [stinks]. I'm getting tired of that."

Farnsworth had entered to boos and the reception was even more vicious as he walked off, lifted for an out from Chris Britton and then the first Major League appearance by Japanese import Kei Igawa since July 26, beginning the "memory lane" portion of Torre's evening. Igawa surrendered a hit to Hector Luna, scoring one of the three runs charged to Farnsworth, before he too was just another name in the box score.

"It was so surreal," Torre said, "for me to watch this whole thing."

In the bullpen, seemingly spilling onto the field with regularity, players began to ponder what names might be summoned next.

"We were thinking about who's down, who's up," Karstens said. "You know Joba [Chamberlain] is down. We kind of figured [Luis] Vizcaino was down, because the phone rang a bunch of times and he wasn't in the game. I think we were just happy the way it turned out. We wanted to end it quick."

With the Yankees tying the game in the ninth, Mariano Rivera trotted in to "Enter Sandman" and helped get the game to extra innings, where Jeff Karstens -- who hadn't pitched in the big leagues since an ill-fated Aug. 14 start vs. the Orioles -- recorded three outs and became the winning pitcher when New York ended the arduous affair.

"It wasn't pretty, but we got the job done," Karstens said.

Cabrera's hit to center, plus his key outfield assist a half-inning earlier, clicked off the stopwatch on nine hours and 45 minutes of baseball played at Yankee Stadium over a 24-hour period. Informed that the 10 Yankees pitchers set a new club mark, Karstens laughed that he thought New York had just used "four or five," then smirked.

"It's nice to be part of a record," Karstens said.