And Then the Sun Shone Brightly

Beautiful day in the neighborhood after last night's monsoon. The Yankees fucked over their fans again by not calling the game until around 7 p.m.. That's NOT how you treat your customers. The game will be made up sometime in June, possibly as part of a day-night, two stadium doubleheader when the teams have a series at Shea.

Darrell Rasner's turn will be skipped so it will be Andy Pettitte facing fellow lefty Johan Santana this afternoon. Sunday night will now have Oliver Perez against Chien-Ming Wang, which is unfortunate because a John Maine vs. Wang match up would be a lot more exciting. Throw in the fact that the Yankees aren't getting any production against left-handers and you would rather face Maine even though he's a lot better pitcher than Perez.

Jorge Posada, Bobby Abreu, and Mets catcher Brian Schneider were at Mickey Mantle's restaurant yesterday to promote their charity driven wine labels. Posada is making good progress, but will not rush himself back even though the Yankees are hurting as much as he was.

"I'm going to be smart about it. ... I want to be back and I want to be healthy for the long run," said Posada..."

"I'm getting there," he added. "I'm really eager to get back. I feel good. I'm progressing. Every day is a different thing and so far it's been good."

Posada also had no problem with Boss Jr.'s recent outburst.

"He's saying the truth," Posada said. "He wants to win. There's nothing wrong of your owner wanting to win. So it's a matter of us really coming through and performing the way we need to."

Abreu agreed.

"We just have to go out there and do it," said Abreu. "You always have pressure. You just have to go out, do your job and help the team win."

Though the fans still get pumped up for the series, the impact isn't quite the same, especially for the Yankees that have been around a while. Andy Pettitte is one such player.

"Am I excited about it anymore? Not really, no," Pettitte said. "It's exciting for the fans, you get great crowds and the fans are into it. But as far as for me, it's not that exciting anymore."

Pettitte's more concerned about his poor pitching of late.

"Obviously I'm not happy at all with the way I pitched in my last start," said Pettitte, who left that game trailing 5-0. "And I'm definitely not happy working only four innings. Really, for me, that's unacceptable."

Here's to turning things around starting today.

Pettitte and Derek Jeter were among the players who praised Willie Randolph and hoped he survives the recent firing rumors.

"Obviously, I know him well and I wish him nothing but the best, so you never want to hear somebody might lose their job," Pettitte said yesterday before the Subway Series opener was rained out. "I hope that nothing like that would happen to him or his family."

"It's always tough on the manager. He doesn't pitch. He doesn't hit," Posada said. "The same lineup is going to be put out there by the next manager and every five days it's the same starting pitcher. It's tough to do the job. People take him for granted."

Jeter who has been buds with Randolph for a long time was even more emphatic in his backing of Willie.

"I don't see how people make such a big deal out of teams 40 games into a season. That always baffles me," Jeter said. "It's always baffled me how people write how a team's underachieving and this and that and you have 120 games left in a season. I guess that's my reaction to it. Not just 'cause it's Willie. It's 'cause it's anybody."

Said Jeter, "Willie was fun to be around. He likes to work. He's easy to talk to. He's played here in New York. He's managed in New York. He's coached in New York. He's been in the front office in New York. So he's pretty much been doing everything, so in terms of experience, you really can't get any more experience, especially in New York City, than Willie."

Unfortunately, Randolph has gotten the ill-fated "Vote of Confidence" from GM Omar Minaya.

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According to Joe Girardi, Harlan Chamberlain's condition has improved slightly, but the hospital is still running a battery of tests. There's no timetable for Joba Chamberlain's return to the team.

Jorge Posada made 45 throws from the outfield yesterday and said he felt better. He's still not sure when he'll be back behind the plate though. Jose Molina's hamstring has improved enough to the point where he doesn't think he'll need to go on the DL.

Ian Kennedy woke up yesterday morning with just a mark from the seams of the baseball that Jason Bartlett lined off his hip area. The team kept him from running yesterday, but he'll be able to resume normal activities with no problem.

The Tommy John surgery twins are making some progress. Humberto Sanchez threw off a full mound for the first time this year, while last year's number one pick, Andrew Brackman, threw off a half mound.

The Star-Ledger's Lisa Kennelley has a piece today on the waste of money known as Carl Pavano. The angle is that while he can rehab his arm, he can't rehab his image. The best line though comes from Pavano's agent, Tom O'Connell.

"Carl's a 1-2 starter," O'Connell said. "Those guys don't grow on trees. Those guys are very rare, 200-inning guys are very rare in this game, and they're the ones that make the money. And he did it two years in a row, before he got hurt, and I'm sure he's going to do it again."

Yeah, okay.

Tonight's first pitch may take a while to get to home plate. Astronaut Dr. Garrett Reisman will be throwing out the ceremonial ball from the International Space Station.

Reisman, a lifelong Yankee fan, carried a Yankee banner, a cap autographed by George Steinbrenner and a pile of dirt from the Yankee Stadium pitcher's mound with him onboard the International Space Station on March 12.

The New Jersey native said throwing the first pitch will be a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

"I am really honored to have this opportunity, in such a historic season, in the House that Ruth Built," he said.

Alex Rodriguez has exemplified the Yankees problems with runners in scoring position. He's just 1-14. He's got a chance to avenge his poor weekend series in Boston, with a 2-game series against the Red Sox in front of the home crowd.

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Bobby Abreu's game winning hit last night was the Yankees hit with runners in scoring position this season. So far they are 1-17.

Mark Melancon had to leave last night's Tampa (Single-A) game after warming up. He never faced batter. Melancon is coming back from Tommy John surgery, but there was no word on what occurred last night.
Update 3:10 pm EDT - Chad Jennings of the Scranton Times Tribune spoke with the boys down in Tampa and found out that Melancon had erroneously been left off the lineup card, making him ineligible to pitch.

The NY Times' Tyler Kepner has a nice story about Ian Kennedy and his anonymity.

All 3 pitchers the Yankees received from the Tigers for Gary Sheffield have opened the 2008 season on the DL. Humberto Sanchez is on the major league DL, while Kevin Whelan and Anthony Claggett are both on Trenton's injured list.

Yes, spring training is over, but that doesn't mean that the drills normally associated with spring training are. The Yankees took part in pitcher's fielding practice (PFP) before yesterday's game. Though Mike Mussina was late covering 1st Base in Wednesday night's game, Joe Girardi had planned this well in advance. Teammates jokingly left a note in Moose's locker that read, "Thanks for the P.F.P.".

The 2 sac bunts in one innings by the Yankees last night was the first time the Yankees pulled off that feat since 2003.

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A-Rod's 519th home run last night put him within 2 long balls of Ted Williams and Willie McCovey for 15th place on the all-time list. It was also the 174th of his Yankees career.

Shelley Duncan and Melky Cabrera are scheduled to meet with Bob Watson on Monday to appeal their 3 game suspensions.

The minor league affiliates begin their seasons today. Scranton (Triple-A) hosts Lehigh Valley, Trenton (Double-A) is at Binghamton, Tampa (Advanced 'A') hosts Lakeland, and Charleston ('A') is in Rome.

Morgan Ensberg learned the hard way that you can't talk on your cellphone will driving in New York City. He'll have to shell out $50 for the ticket he received.

Much has been made of Joba Chamberlain's over the top celebration after a big strikeout. But not everyone is bothered by it. Growing up, one of Joba's heroes was Frank Thomas, who he blew a fastball past to end the 8th inning on Tuesday. Joba's dad Harlan had a chance to talk to Thomas and told him about the poster Joba had hanging up of the Big Hurt when he was growing up.

"I just wanted to tell him how much of a dream that was," Harlan said he told Thomas.

Thomas told Harlan, "He brought it, and he deserved it."

And Thomas said he took no exception to Joba's fist pump after the strikeout.

"Well, the game has changed a lot in the last six or seven years," Thomas told reporters. "The bottom line is, if I get a hit in that situation, it doesn't happen."

Girardi said he would not tell Chamberlain to give up the fist pump.

"I'm not going to take that away from him," Girardi said. "Because I don't think he's showing people up. I think it's emotion, and you want emotion in this game. And sometimes people take the emotion the wrong way, that we're supposed to be just kind of -- playing. But I think emotion is good in this game as long as you're not showing anybody up."

Alex Rios now has a 22 game hitting streak against the Yankees. That's the longest string since the White Sox' Nellie Fox did it in 1951-52.

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Andy Pettitte and Ian Kennedy through a minor league intrasquad game against each other back in Tampa yesterday. Pettitte felt good and reached his goal of 77 pitches. He threw six scoreless innings of 1 hit ball, walking 1, and struck out 6. Kennedy threw 75 pitches in throwing 5 shutout innings. He allowed 4 hits, 1 walk, and struck out 5.

Robinson Cano, Chien-Ming Wang, and Jason Giambi are on our roto baseball team.

Bobby Murcer is still recuperating from a procedure earlier this month and won't be in attendance today. He's expected back soon though.

This is the first opening day with a new Yankees manager since Joe Torre came on the scene in 1996.

The NY Times' Tyler Kepner has a piece on the Yankees, "the more things change, the more they stay the same" attitude. "Win now or else" is still the motto.

The NY Post's Filip Bondy (still a weird looking dude) talks to the Bleacher Creatures about the Stadium. They want to stay right where they are.

The Yankees have won their last 10 home openers. They haven't opened against the Blue Jays during that stretch.

Today's anthem will be sung by the West Point Glee Club and the West Point Cadet Color Guard will present the American flag. Two F-18 fighter jets will also do a fly over. No eagle and no Ronan Tynan (though he could have God Bless America in the 7th) ? Pre-game ceremonies start at 12:40 p.m.

This will be Derek Jeter's 12 opening day start, surpassing Phil Rizzuto for the team record at shortstop.

The Yankees haven't had a lot of success against Roy Halladay (10-4, 2.99 in 26 games, 24 starts). Robinson Cano (5-13, .385, 2 HR), Johnny Damon (22-67, .328, 1 HR), Jason Giambi (17-54, .315, 3 HR), and Jorge Posada (12-37, .324, 1 HR) would be the exceptions. This is Halladay's 6th straight opening day start. He's 2-2, 4.09 in the previous 5.

Chien-Ming Wang is 3-2, 4.20 against the Blue Jays in 7 career starts. His ERA is higher from the 2.2 inning, 8 run fiasco he had last August. Aaron Hill (9-14, .643), Matt Stairs (4-10, .400), and Vernon Wells (6-16, .375) have done well against him.

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The Yankees finish up the spring training schedule (hard to believe we're there already) with a pair of games in Miami against the Florida Marlins. It's a bit of a homecoming of course for Joe Girardi who was manager of the year as the Marlins skipper in 2006 and then was fired after clashing with the Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria. Girardi also butted heads with the beat writers at times so it should be interesting to see what they write this weekend. Both games will broadcast on WCBS radio.

The Yankees 25 man roster is just about finalized. We know that Morgan Ensberg, Shelley Duncan, Jose Molina, and Wilson Betemit will be on the bench, and the final bullpen spots will probably be go to Darrell Rasner (please, anyone but Igawa) and Brian Bruney. Scott Patterson had better be here some time this season.

Kay is for Kool-aid: Michael Kay was overly effusive with his praise of George Steinbrenner in the wake of the Legends Field renaming ceremony. You would have thought Georgie was the greatest thing since sliced bread according to his YESman Kay, who poured on the praises on his 1050ESPN radio show. As you recalled Kay also shredded JoeTorre for weeks after his contract negotiation fell through. Stick to announcing Michael.

Former traveling secretary George Costanza David Szen has asked the court to be spared prison time for failing to report more than $50,000 in tips from players and coaches. Szen pleaded guilty back in December.

According to Peter Abraham, Andy Pettitte threw a 25-pitch bullpen session today in Tampa and felt great.

“As far as during my bullpen and stuff like that, I feel great,” Pettitte told the AP. “It loosened up good. Do I still feel it walking around? Yeah. Sunday is a good day. I need to get some good work in. That’s all I’m looking for now.”

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Ed Price of the Star Ledger sat down for a Q&A with Hal Steinbrenner, who has his own definitive opinions on how the Yankees should be run.

So it's the same process? Cashman makes recommendations to ownership, and then those are acted on?

Exactly the way it should be, in my opinion.

Andy Pettitte won't pitch the 2nd game of the season as originally anticipated, but after yesterday's side session he was confident he'll pitch one of the first five games.

Long time Yankees beat writer Bill Madden talks about his memories of Yankee Stadium.

Mark Feinsand has a piece on the confidence shown by the Yankees Big 3 - Joba Chamberlain, Phil Hughes, and Ian Kennedy.

Republicans and Democrats are split across party lines again...on Roger Clemens. This time about whether or not he told the truth before the Congressional oversight committee. Can you guys concentrate on something important, like say, ENDING THE WAR?

Johnny Damon was scratched from the lineup against the Phillies today as he's still experiencing flu like symptoms. He's expected to play again on the weekend.

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Dave Eiland would never have been mistaken for Joba Chamberlain when he was playing. Eiland didn't have the greatest stuff, but worked hard to get to the majors. After an up and down playing career, he's made the big time as the Yankees pitching coach. The Star Ledger's Ed Price has a wonderful piece on Eiland and the influence his late Dad had on his life and his work.

Former Yankees great Graig Nettles has revealed he is suffering from prostate cancer.

"A pretty good scare," Nettles said. "They said I may have had it a few years. So there wasn't any urgency. I always thought there would be an urgency of getting it out of your body, but they thought it wouldn't matter a couple months."

Nettles was diagnosed last November, but doctors told him surgery could wait until after spring training. Nettles served in his usual role as a special instructor for the Yankees. Our thoughts and prayers go out to "Puff" for a speedy recovery.

In case you missed it the other day, Chien-Ming Wang got the official nod that as the Yankees opening day starter. The Wanger was supposed to start last year's opener, but pulled a hamstring muscle. It's still hard to believe that Carl Pavano made that start.

Speaking of Pavano, he was once again added to the 60-day DL to make room for Morgan Ensberg on the 40-man roster.

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The Yankees play the Rays once again tonight- 7:15 at G.M.S. Field in Tampa. Darrell Rasner will get the start for the Bombers. Chien-Ming Wang will go up against minor leaguers this afternoon.

Big Yankees fan, pun intended, Meat Loaf has always been a big Yankees fan (if you have never heard the Scooter on "Paradise by the Dashboard Light", you must do so...NOW!) and a fantasy baseball fan as well. MLB.com's Doug Miller tells you all about it.

Cody Ransom has impressed the Yankees with his versatility and has a serious shot at making the club as an extra utility man. Chris Woodward was thought to be the front-runner, but he's been slowed by a hamstring injury. MLB.com's Bryan Hoch has a profile.

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Can't say enough about what a great day yesterday was in Blacksburg, Virginia. The Yankees-Va Tech game was one sided, but the score didn't matter. Seeing Alex Rodriguez sitting in the Va Tech dugout, talking with the players. Joe Girardi sitting in the stands with the fans. Derek Jeter and Johnny Damon signing autographs until their hands practically fell off. A good day indeed. Click Here to see a photo gallery from the Journal News.

Kevin Kernan of the NY Post has a lengthy story on Doc Gooden's rise from the ashes. Doc is taking things one day a time. No more BS it would seem, just reality. Doc is helping his son Dwight Jr. get a rap career going. Sadly Dwight Jr. was in prison for selling drugs at the same time his Dad was in jail. Here's to a better life for both of them.

Jose Canseco loves to shoot his mouth off, but lets see what happens now when he meets with fed Jeff Novitzky about Roger Clemens reported steroid use.

Mariano Rivera threw 2 perfect innings yesterday against the Blue Jays Double-A affiliate, New Hampshire Fisher Cats.

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Peter Abraham of the Journal News has a piece on the Yankees high hopes for Robinson Cano. Even Cano isn't sure what his limitations might be.

"This guy can hit 30 home runs. He could hit .330, .340 or even .350," Yankees hitting coach Kevin Long said. "He can be a middle-of-the-lineup guy. It's not going to happen at this junction in time, but he's pretty special."

Some of us are miffed about the whole Billy Crystal sideshow, but Lisa Kennelly of the Star Ledger tells us, a lot of the players are looking forward to it.

"I'm going to ask him, see if he wants to," said Chamberlain, giddy at the prospect. "And I think he might be left-handed. I'm going to ask him and see what he's doing."

"Sweet!" Jason Giambi said. "Great guy. Funny. Loves the Yankees. We love having him around."

The Post's Joel Sherman talks about Mo being Mo. Here's the cutter, try and hit it.

"It must drive hitters crazy to know what it is coming; know what is coming and still not get the barrel of the bat on it," Yankees pitching coach Dave Eiland said.

The Daily News' John Harper has a feature on the Yankees patient approach with 2007 #1 pick and favorite prank victim, Andrew Brackman.

"It will just take a little more of what we've been asking for around here," Cashman said. "And that's patience."

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In case you missed it over the weekend, the NY Times' Tyler Kepner had a good story on Billy Traber's road back from the reconstructive surgery he had in 2003. Traber's career highlight was a complete game shutout he pitched against the Yankees in 2003. He faced just one batter over the minimum, allowing a single to John Flaherty.

And yesterday, Kepner wrote up a great feature on the heart and soul of Yankees closer Mariano Rivera.

Hideki Matsui will be re-evaluated today to determine when he can play next. Godzilla went 0-3 as the DH in yesterday's game. Though his swings weren't very good, both he and Joe Girardi were pleased with the outcome. No word on when Matsui will return to the outfield.

Morgan Ensberg continued to help his chances yesterday, going 1-2 with an RBI, run scored, and a walk. He's now batting .429 this spring. Chris Woodward's 2-3 raised his average to .529 as he battles for a utility spot.

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Jon Papelbon has already established himself as an arrogant punk and a perfect fit for the zoo in Boston. Now he has decided to chime in on the Hank Steinbrenner-Red Sox nation scenario. Pap told Hank to "stick to his pencil pushing". Well Pap, stick to pitching and making your ugly mug even uglier on the mound.

Morgan Ensberg is adjusting quickly to life as a Yankee and as a first baseman. He credits coach Kevin Long with making a good adjustment to his swing.

"I'm embarrassed to say it, but in two weeks of working with Kevin, I have felt so much better as a hitter than I have my entire life," Ensberg said. "This is just working on stuff in the cage. This is silly. I would have thought that there was a time that I knew what was going on, but he just makes things simple."

Having another solid right-handed bat would certainly be a boon to the Yankees lineup. Ensberg, a career 3rd Baseman, can also give the Yankees more depth at 1st Base.

"I've felt really comfortable over there," Ensberg said. "I feel pretty competent as an infielder. It doesn't feel so foreign. I'm not as concerned about learning first base as I am about having quality at-bats. It's familiar territory."

Hank Steinbrenner mentioned that the Yankees will be honoring Bernie Williams, though there is no current plan in place. Um, then why say anything?

Hideki Matsui took no BP on Sunday after waking up with a stiff neck. It's not expected to set him back for making his debut later this week.

Mariano Rivera had a very effective bullpen session yesterday, with Jorge Posada looking on. Occasionally Posada stepped into the batter's box to get a better look. Jorge gave his closer 2 thumbs up.

The Yankees reassigned Marcos Vechionacci to the minor league camp earlier today.

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Chien-Ming Wang has been working on a new changeup and threw it 4 times in yesterday's game against the Phillies. It could be an effective weapon in addition to Wang's wicked sinker and hard fastball.

Among Melky Cabrera's goals this season is to increase his stolen base total. Cabrera stole 13 times in 18 attempts last season, and is hoping his new manager gives him the steal sign more often. That's one of the many goals Melky has for the season.

"Mainly on running bases, my batting and my defense," he said. "I want to work a lot on stealing bases, too. I want to steal more bases."

Alex Rodriguez has taken Melky and Robinson Cano under his wing, and the influence has already paid off.

"I feel better prepared now," said Cabrera, who took over center field from Damon last year. "I've always wanted to play every day and help the team. I appreciate that this manager, like Joe Torre, has showed confidence in me."

Ed Price of the Star Ledger has a Q & A w/ Ian Kennedy

Among the questions was the comparison some have made between IPK and Mike Mussina.

Q: People have compared you to Mike Mussina since long before you were teammates. Your pitching styles are similar -- wide repertoire, good control, outsmart hitters -- and both of you dip down low when starting a delivery from the stretch position. Do you like the comparison?

Yeah. He's pitched 18 years in the big leagues. It's awesome, especially since I looked up to him probably ever since high school. I haven't told him that.

I asked him (recently) how he came up with the "down" stretch. We were comparing stories. I thought he did it for the same reason, but it's a totally different reason. He had an old pitching coach that made him do something sort of like that, and he exaggerated it. I did it to get a grip on some pitches. ... It just buys me more time because my changeup's so hard to hold. (Kennedy holds the ball with his middle, ring and pinkie fingers on his changeup.)

Tyler Kepner - NY Times
Cano has quickly risen to the elite level of 2nd Basemen. GM Brian Cashman feels that only Phillies' 2nd Baseman Chase Utley is at a higher level. The Yankees did their best for a few years to try to be sure it would happen somewhere else. Thankfully, opponents saw less in Cano than the Yankees.

The Rangers turned down Cano as part of the A-Rod - Alfonso Soriano deal, instead opting for Joaquin Arias. For a brief time in 2004, the Yankees moved Cano to 3rd base in an attempt to deal him and Dionner Navarro to the Royals for Carlos Beltran. Later that season the Yankees also tried to package him in a deal for Randy Johnson. Luckily, no one took them up on any of the deals.

“Thank God we never traded him,” said Gordon Blakeley, a special assistant to Cashman. “We liked him a lot and we didn’t want to give him away, but he wasn’t a ‘No, don’t trade him for any cost’ guy. If we felt we could get a Beltrán or an A-Rod, he could have gone in a deal. We were fortunate.”

With a new long term contract, Cano can totally concentrate on baseball and continuing to improve in the field and at home plate. He already turns a slick DP with Derek Jeter, and could have a batting title in his future.

Austin Krum's professional career has not gotten off to a good start. Last year's 9th round draft pick was arrested yesterday for trespassing and resisting arrest. He was asked several times to leave "Tia's Tex Mex" in Tampa after having issues with another patron. Tampa police were called when Krum repeatedly refused and he made the mistake of being belligerent to them.

Mark Feinsand - NY Daily News has a piece on how Joe Girardi developed his managerial style.

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The Yankees open the spring season against the University of South Florida today. The Yankees defeated the Bulls the only time they ever met, back in 1982. The local CBS radio affiliate carries the USF games, but we don't know yet if this game will be on air. Here's the link just in case.

Tino Martinez warned the USF team, for which he's a volunteer assistant, not to try impressing anyone with an overly aggressive slide or by brushing back one of the Yankees hitters. Tino remembered some players on San Diego State U. doing just that when the Yankees faced them back in 1998.

Red Sox GM Theo Epstein apologized to Mike Mussina, via Brian Cashman, for his asinine "Bad Apple" comment the other day concerning the Yankees trip to Japan. Moose continued to downplay the whole thing.

Peter Abraham did a Q & A with Phil Hughes, using questions sent by readers of their respective blogs. Our favorite? "Who would win in a cage match between Joba and Ian Kennedy?" Surprisingly, Hughes went with IPK.

The FBI has confirmed that they have begun in an investigation to determine if Roger Clemens lied to Congress.

Mariano Rivera will not pitch before next Wednesday as the Yankees allow him to continue at his own pace. Hidkei Matsui is not expected to play in a spring game until March 9, so that his knee will be in better shape.

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It was a short work out day for the Yankees, with the team taking most of the day off in preparation for tomorrow's exhibition opener with the U. of South Florida. One person totally psyched about it is Tino Martinez. As we mentioned the other day, Tino is not only a Yankees spring training instructor, but also a volunteer assistant coach at the university, where his brother in-law is the head honcho.

"I'm going to wear my Yankee uniform to remind my college guys I used to play baseball as well," said Martinez, who is in camp with the Yankees as a guest instructor for the first time.

Tino's very excited about the impact the game could have on recruiting for school's team.

"They've really been building the USF baseball team the last couple of years, so this game is huge," Martinez said. "Just to have the chance to play on the same field as these guys, as [Derek] Jeter and A-Rod, it's something they'll never forget in their lives -- once in a lifetime. It's going to be a lot of fun."

Courtesy of Peter Abraham, here's the lineup and pitching plans for tomorrow:

Johnny Damon LF
Derek Jeter SS
Bobby Abreu RF
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Jason Giambi 1B
Jorge Posasa C
Robinson Cano 2B
Shelley Duncan DH
Melky Cabrera CF

Joba Chamberlain (2 innings)
Ian Kennedy (2 innings)
Phil Hughes (1 inning)
Kei Igawa (1 inning)
Jefff Marquez (1 inning)
Alan Horne (1 inning)
Chase Wright (1 inning)

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Mark Feinsand of the NY Daily News has a feature on the new, and hopefully improved, Brian Bruney. As we've previously mentioned, Bruney dropped 18 pounds in the off-season; he's also dropped an attitude where he was afraid to fail.

"With Torre - and I'm not trying to bad-mouth anybody - sometimes you would go out there and try to be so good because you were scared of doing bad," Bruney said. "You can't pitch like that. (Joe) Girardi understands that you make mistakes - and I'm going to make them."

Bruney is glad for a fresh start with Joe Girardi and pitching coach Dave Eiland, whom he formed a good rapport with while spending part of the '07 season at Scranton.

* * *

The Week Ahead

The Yankees will play an intrasquad game today, before facing the U. of South Florida on Friday. Then it's a home and away series with the Phillies over the weekend. Per Peter Abraham,

Mike Mussina will pitch two innings for the “home” team in the intrasquad game today. He’ll be followed by Darrell Rasner, Dan McCutchen, Sean Henn, Jon Albaladejo, Mark Melancon for one inning each.

Jeff Karstens will go two innings for the “away” team with Scott Patterson, Steven Jackson, Billy Traber, Edwar Ramirez, Ross Ohlendorf to follow.

And from the Star Ledger's Lisa Kennelley,

Chien-Ming Wang will pitch Saturday against the Phillies in Clearwater, Pettitte at home against Philadelphia on Sunday, and then Mussina again on Monday in Kissimmee against the Astros. Hughes will start Tuesday at Dunedin against the Blue Jays on short rest since he will only pitch one inning against South Florida.

* * *

Andy Pettitte is back focusing on his pitching and his 8 a.m. daily workouts. He's gotten Phil Hughes, Joba Chamberlain, and Ian Kennedy to join him. They in turn got Alan Horne to join the routine.

* * *

"This isn't a zoo!" barked Roger Clemens at reports and photogs yesterday when he arrived at Houston Astros camp. Columnist Mike Vacarro disagrees and tells the Rocket its time to close the zoo.

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One of our worst memories of the winless '80s, was the double tag-out at home plate of Dale Berra and Bobby Meacham by White Sox catcher Carlton Fisk. The Daily News' Bill Madden recently spoke to Meacham, ironically now the Yankees 3rd Base coach, about the incident.

"So Bobby," I (Madden) ask him, jokingly, "how long do you think it'll be before you wave two base runners home on the same play?"

"Oh, c'mon," he begs. "Do you know how many times I've seen that play happen every year? I'm serious! There've been so many different instances and ways it's happened or almost happened."

Gene Michael was the 3rd Base coach back on August 4, 1984 when the bizarre incident occurred.

"It wasn't Bobby's fault. It wasn't my fault," Michael said. "It was just one of those freak things. Rickey (Henderson) hit a ball into left-center that looked like it might drop. Bobby was on second, and Dale on first. Bobby held up briefly at second and then starts coming to third. But Dale was running head down, all the way, and he's right behind Bobby coming into third. I know we're gonna have a situation where there's two men on third, so I wave Bobby home. Since there's gonna be an out, it might as well be at the plate. But I couldn't stop Dale! Through the years, I've always told the story that, as I ran off the field, Fisk tagged me, too."

"All I know is that when 'Stick' sent me home, I tried to knock the ball loose from Fisk," said Meacham, "and then I hear the crowd yell again and I say: 'Wait a minute, he (Berra) didn't? Yes, he did!'"

The article also includes the tumultuous time that Meacham spent in pinstripes. A time when George Steinbrenner always brought his (type) 'A' game.

One player not afraid to have blood tests instituted to check for HGH is Derek Jeter. As a matter of fact, the Yankees captain is all for it. Jeter said in a radio interview over the weekend that he would have no problem with it, especially since players already have blood drawn during spring training. Jeter spoke further about it to reporters as did some of his teammates.

"(The problem) has gotten so much attention now, I think it would probably silence a lot of people that were critical of guys ... so I wouldn't mind it," Jeter said. "I can only comment on myself; I don't know about other people. I don't like needles very much, but I wouldn't mind it."

"I'm not saying I would ever be in favor of it, but if we did do it, that would be the only way the general public would finally believe that baseball is completely clean," said Mike Mussina, the Yankees' player union representative. "But I don't know if it will ever come to that."

Even Jason Giambi was on board. "I'm up for whatever they want to do. I don't really care. This has to be a union decision, not an individual one."

Jeter had to be quick on his feet Sunday when Chien-Ming Wang buzzed him under the chin during batting practice. Jeter said the ball really wasn't that close, though he did have to bail out quickly. Johnny Damon playfully threatened to charge the mound in defense of his hitting partner.

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The Daily Yankeeland

Longtime Star Ledger columnist Sid Dorfman has a good take on where baseball goes, or doesn't go, after the Congressional hearings.

Peter Abraham has some good audio from A-Rod from this morning.

With today being the first day of full workouts for the positional players, Joe Girardi held a meeting with all the players. He was actually the last on an agenda that included Brian Cashman, assistant GM Jean Afterman, and trainer Gene Monahan.

Andy Pettitte got some anxiety relief from an unexpected source on Monday; his old manager Joe Torre. Pettitte's cell phone rang about 2:30 pm on Monday as he prepared to address the media.

"He is a great man and I appreciated it," Pettitte said of the Dodgers' new manager. "He told me how proud he was of me. Other than that, I can't say."

Based on a conversation with Joe Girardi, Jason Giambi is expecting to play a lot more 1st Base this year. That would allow Hideki Matsui to get plenty of at-bats at DH.

"He told me, 'I need you at first base,' " Giambi said yesterday. "It was nice to hear."

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The Daily Yankeeland

Ron Villone has signed a minor league deal with the St. Louis Cardinals. Villone is hoping to pitch in his 14th major league season. Bubba Crosby signed a minor league deal with the Mariners, but was not invited to the major league camp.

We've been hearing from Hank Steinbrenner since last October, but now Hal Steinbrenner has some things to say. He sat down for an interview with GQ Magazine entitled, "The Godfather, Part II". Here are a couple of excerpts:

Was there a distinct moment at which you and Hank took control of the Yankees?
No. I obviously became considerably more involved at a somewhat dramatic pace when Steve, my sister’s ex-husband, left [in February of 2007]. A couple months after that, I think Hank realized I could use some help.

Various sources say you “hate” and “avidly disdain” the media.
No truth to that. That was Bill Madden [of the New York Daily News]. Look, first of all, I don’t hate anybody. It’s a useless emotion. It accomplishes nothing. He even said I hate the players, which is certainly not true. We’ve all had issues with the media, okay, but at the same time, I understand, Hank understands, they’re in business just like we’re in business.

Am I comfortable dealing with the media? Probably not as comfortable as Hank is. Definitely not as comfortable as my dad was. Have I had disagreements with them in the past, disagreed with things they’ve written and the reasons they wrote them? Yes, of course. But again, I understand what the deal is.

The Yankees' position players report today. It will be interesting to see what kind of shape Jason Giambi, who has reportedly lost a lot of weight, and Johnny Damon, who admitted he was out of shape last year when he reported, are in.

Hank Steinbrenner took yesterday's Pettitte press conference as an opportunity to take a shot at Congress and the NFL. Prince Hank feels baseball has been singled out and the NFL has gotten away with much more P.E.D. use than baseball. There's definitely some truth to what he says.

Hank also talked about how confident he feels about this year's Yankees team.

"I think we're a legitimate World Series threat this year," Steinbrenner said. "I think we're one of the four or five teams in the American League that can win it. I don't want to trash the National League, but the American League is very strong and everyone knows it.

"We're one of, I'd say, four teams that has a chance to win it, in my opinion. Starting next year or the year after, we may be the favorite."

According to the Sports Business Journal, the Yankees are seeking about $20 million a year for the top sponsorship package once they move into the new Stadium.

After 2 years away from the game, former Yankees pitcher and pitching coach Mel Stottelmyre is back at work as pitching coach for the Seattle Mariners.

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