Victory masks many concerns for the Yankees and Phil Hughes.
Hughes has had a couple of bad starts now with no command. Frankly, it couldn't come at a worse time for the Yankees.
A lot of attention has been paid to the recent struggles of Cliff Lee: 29.1 IP over 5 starts, 47 baserunners against 35Ks.
Let me put that in context for you:
- CC Sabathia- 36.2 IP in 5 starts, 40 baserunners and 33K.
- Phil Hughes- 27IP in 5 starts, 38 baserunners and 20K.
- Javy Vazquez- 20.1IP over 5 games, 34 baserunners and 17K.
- AJ Burnett- 30 IP over 5 starts, 51 baserunners and 21K.
- Dustin Moseley- 26IP over 5 games, 44 baserunners and 16K.
- Andy Pettitte- 0IP over 0 starts because he's still on the DL.
Cliff Lee hasn't been great lately, but I'd pay him $20M per year for 5 years to have those struggles.
While it's certainly nice to have AAA MVP Jesus Montero as a backup, I think the Yankees are making the right move by leaving him in the minors and putting Chad Moeller back on the 40-man for the September call-up instead.
The other callups and activations include Greg Golson, Lance Berkman, Alfredo Aceves and Jonathan Albaledejo.
Over at the Daily Dish, Brandon shares his early opinion on which team figure to go into next season in a strong position to contend.