It Appears the Yanks May Have Righted Their Ship

The Yankees are heading into the half-way point of the season on a bit of an upswing. Granted, it's hard to tell for sure since a sweep of the hapless, depleted Mets is not an efficient barometer of success.

Still, CC Sabathia and AJ Burnett seemed poised to go on huge runs, and the bullpen has been straightened out. Burnett, in particular, has really turned things around. Since his horrendous start in Boston, he has pitched 20.1 innings, surrendering just 10 hits and one earned run, with 26 strikeouts. He is still walking too many people, but he is starting to be the pitcher the Yankees saw pitch against them last year. He has also lowered his ERA almost a full run, from 4.89 to 3.93. The way A.J was pitching, the game against the Mets was over the moment he took the mound.

After his gem against the Mets, Burnett told reporters: "It comes down to pitching ahead and trusting my stuff. Obviously, you want to pitch a little more ahead than I did tonight, but I don't need to be fine and paint on the corner. I just need to stay in my lanes and let the fastball get ahead to put them away as fast as I can."

You know that GM Brian Cashman means business this season when he finally cut ties with Jose Veras. Cashman has been proud of "finding" Veras, and there was a point last year when he looked like a legitimate set-up guy. But the hard-throwing righty just could not throw strikes, so the Yanks cut bait with him and chose to go with the David Robertson, Phil Coke and Phil Hughes in the pen.

The most important factor in the pen is Brian Bruney. Yes, the mustache has to go, but since coming off the DL for the second time, he has appeared in four games and has restored order to the 8th inning. (Granted, the two walks against the Mets Sunday night was problematic, but in general he has mastered his control.)

In the month of June, the Yanks' bullpen has pitched to an ERA of 2.65, and kept batters to a .189 batting average. That's a complete turnaround from April and most of May.

We all know about the power the Yanks have showed up and down the lineup, albeit it aided by the wind currents at the new Yankee Stadium. (I still miss the old place.) So there is not a need to chronicle it all here. But one of the best offensive weapons the team has is Nick Swisher. Forget the batting average, it is meaningless. The 128 OPS, and .373 on base percentage tells you that he is constantly part of big rallies. His defense has been less than desired, however, but it seldom hurts the team.

Speaking of defense, is there a way to determine how many runs Mark Teixeira saves the Yanks with his stellar defense at first? What a burden is lifted off the shoulders of Yankee fielders when they see the big guy over there at first. Just get the ball in his general direction, and he will snatch it up. (Conversely, how do you think the Met infielders feel about throwing to Daniel Murphy?)

Before this five-game winning streak, the Yanks were looking dreadful. Funny how a few well-pitched games and some timely hitting can change that. Jorge Posada commented to reporters, "We're simplifying things and having a plan when we come to the plate. Seeing what they're trying to do against us and getting good pitches to hit later in the game -- that game plan is paying off."

Something that must stop now is Girardi's new penchant for batting Robinson Cano 5th. He's killing too many rallies with double plays and weak pop-ups. Stop the madness, Joe, I'd rather see him lower in the lineup.

With the division the Yanks are in, the playoffs are no guarantee. Toronto won't go away, Tampa Bay is making a run, and Boston, well, they look pretty good right now.  Only the Orioles are inept. So, if the Yanks have indeed righted their ship, they've done it just in time.

To date, the Yanks rank 2nd in the league in Runs Created Above Average. The Rays are first, and they are making their run.

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