The Yankees beat the Orioles last night 8-5, surviving another puzzling, mediocre outing by Phil Hughes and a mini-meltdown by Kyle Farnsworth in the 9th.
Fortunately for the Yankees, Daniel Cabrera was his usual wild self (whatever happened to the Mazzone Effect?) and the Bombers cruised to a relatively carefree win.
Hughes's velocity was weak again, as he often failed to top 87 on his fastball, if the YES radar guns are to be believed. Hughes also seems to tire consistently in the 5th or 6th inning, so arm strength seems to be an issue for him right now.
The playoffs are in clear view now, as the Yankees took advantage of a Tigers' loss to move 3.5 games up in the Wild Card. The Yankees are as close to Boston as Detroit is to the Yankees, and they're exceedingly likely to stay right where they are.
Less than two weeks until the end of the season, and the Yankees are in good shape. Which is important because Mike Mussina is starting tonight and Minky seems to have won back the first base job. Some things never change; some people never learn.
