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I don't know if its origin is biblical or just a very sage piece of advice that has been handed down for generations.  For Yankee fans who now see the past two weeks in their rear-view mirror, subscribing to the belief that, "patience is a virtue" should help ease the pain. 

Seeing old reliable, Mariano Rivera, implode vs. the Red Sox was just a sign of things to come.  Being able to withstand the repeated blown opportunities to push runners home from scoring position early in ballgames along with a recent collective stumble by the starting pitchers, Yankee fans have to be patient.  After all there are 118 games to go...118!

You know that old cliche' (old because I don't hear it much any more) about clicking on all cylinders?  The Yankees are not even close to hitting on all cylinders even if they are driving a small 4 cylinder--forget about the big high performance engine they should be driving.  What has made this recent swoon almost unbearable is the fact that Tampa Bay, the most talented team $70 Million can buy, has made everyone else look silly--including the Yanks.  There's no talk about playing for second here in the AL East, but thanks to the Wild Card, we don't have to panic, not now anyway.  The Rays have the deepest and best starting rotation in the majors.  Check the numbers.  If they can sustain any level of performance close to what they have done so far, everyone else in the division should be looking up at them the rest of the way.  It's hard to go through a real slump when the other time has trouble scoring.

Once the Yankees get healthy they will have less margin for error in stalking the Rays.  Unfortunately, Boston is waking up now; even Dice-K and his mysterious Gyro ball did something last weekend vs. the Phils and their bats appear to be waking up.  Hey, who juiced the bats up in Toronto???

New York can do it.  But, it won't happen without some kind of consistency out of the people who get the biggest paychecks.  Stats can be turned and twisted, chewed and spit out any way you'd like to have them be portrayed.  The reason the Yanks pay a lot more for their top people compared to other teams is to take some of the uncertainty out of expectations for those said players.  You should know what you are going to get.  But, it has to come together.  When hitters are struggling, big-time pitchers need to be more dominant.  When pitchers are giving up more runs than normal, big-time hitters need to out-score people. The defense should be there every day; there is no reason for it not to be.

Maybe the fresh air of the upper Midwest, playing outdoors in the Twin Cities new Target Field will breathe some new life in our tired-looking, struggling club. Patience.  Patience.  118 games to go.

How comforting is it to see what Phil Hughes is doing as a full-time starterand, for that matter, Joba Chamberlain as a late inning reliever?

We can all recall the histrionics of the past couple of years that surrounded those two guys.  For example, the absurd "Joba Rules", Joba as the next Mariano only to become essentially a long experiment as a starter, to Joba competing for the fifth starter spot, but everyone really hoping he ended up hanging with Mo and the others in the bullpen.  Hughes and Ian Kennedy were thrown out there much before they were ready.  Hughes had to suffer through regaining his confidence and his stuff going down to Triple-A only to eventually return with a vengeance first in relief, then as a starter.  What a job he did last year helping the Bombers down the streth towards the play-offs.

Seeing how well Hughes has consistently performed this year points to several things.  First of all, he has matured greatly in his mental approach and his demeanor is one of a 10-year veteran.  Reading his quotes and seeing him in post-game interviews he is just focused on the basics--making good pitches, adjusting to which pitch is working best for him that particular day, and working to keep getting better each day.  It has worked.

When you see Hughes pitch and compare it to A.J. Burnett you can see why Hughes has been consistent and Burnett, although off to a decent start, is not as consistent.  Hughes has shown the ability to, as the pitching gurus say, "repeat his delivery"...ala Mariano.  It is smooth, pretty effortless, and technically sound.  Burnett on the other hand has what all experts agree to be "electric stuff."  But, that same electric stuff ends up bouncing in the dirt, sailing high and away to lefties and up and in to righties because he doesn't consistently finish.  He just fires.  Some people would call him "effectively wild", but I'd rather have a guy be economical in his pitch count, be able to go deeper into a game, and not issue free passes.

I am a Hughes fan.  Not being a bandwagon guy, I liked him when he first came up.  He just wasn't ready to handle the bigs as well as the biggest town in the bigs at that time.  Now he is.  Phil Hughes has the ability to be a #2 or #3 guy with other MLB rotations, but he is #5 with the Yanks.  The Yankees front office will do well to be sure Hughes is in pinstripes for years to come.  He can easily leap-frog Vazquez, and when Any Pettitte decides to retire to Texas he'll slide up to #3.  My hunch is, if he keeps coming on, and you take the element of Burnett's big contract out of the equation, Hughes could eventually be a #2 behind CC.

Given Francisco Cervelli's offensive break-out the past week or so, this is really just a huge bonus.  What Cervelli provides the Yankees in other ways more than cements his place in the lineup.

Last year we saw that he had excellent defensive skills with his cat-like quickness saving wild pitches in the dirt combined with laser beam throws to nail runners foolishly testing his arm. As a rookie he was not shy dealing with veteran pitchers, but rather a fiery, take-charge guy who helped elevate the intensity in an otherwise rather quiet, business-like Yankee infield.  He appears to have a great relationship with his mound staff and it's evident they like throwing to him.

Cervelli can run, too.  No, not the cliche', "...he runs well for a catcher."  He flat out runs well and can take an extra base and put some pressure on a defense when he is on the base-paths.  Add to that his ability to handle the bat at the plate, drop a sac bunt when asked...the guy is extremely valuable.

For a someone who was hitting a buck-90-something in Trenton before the Yanks summoned him from Trenton, this year is a wonderful surprise.  But, again, even if he was hitting .200, he would still be a valuable cog in the Yankee machine.

He has shown the ability to stay in the moment, not to get caught up in all the hype, and show that the stage in New York and in baseball's toughest division is not too big for him.  Cervelli is appreciative of where is, how he got there, and knows that every day is a new opportunity. He also knows that he has to keep working to be a great major leaguer on a daily basis.  

This is not a sure-fire match, but to some degree Cervelli is a modern day version of his manager, Joe Girardi.  Joe made his living by being an intense leader from his position behind he plate.  He never hit for power like some other backstops around the league, but he was a valuable contributor with his defensive skills, his handling of the pitching staff, his ability to run a bit (for a catcher), and his Punch & Judy, singles/doubles hitting style.  Cervelli doesn't have a lot of pop for the long ball, and neither did Joe.  Joe has to see a bit of himself when he sees Cervelli in action.

Who is having more fun playing baseball than Francisco Cervelli?  No one.  Who is more thankful for what he has been doing to this point, Cervelli or Yankee fans?  Sorry, dumb question.

It's amazing how a 6-1 potential laugher can become a 7-5 nail-biter.  Just leave it to the Not Ready for Prime Time Players.

That was the case today as the Yanks completed the sweep of the hapless, but slightly improved Baltimore O's. You would think that with Joe Girardi giving Mo a little more rest someone would step up when given the opportunity to shine.  Poor David Robertson and Boone Logan.  Just when you think we've got a couple of pretty trust-worthy guys they go south on us.

I know they are young and they will more than likely do some good things this year, but Wednesday's matinee showed they are still not ready for prime time.  Robertson has not looked as sharp as last year.  His fastball looks to have straightened out and his breaking ball cannot consistently find the strike zone, or at least be close enough to entice hitters. Serving up two late inning homers is no way to garner the manager's confidence.   Logan, a much-needed lefty, had an 0-2 count in the 9th inning and then issued four straight balls because he does not have enough confidence in his stuff to make a 2-strike hitter have to offer.  Whew!

So, it's back to middle relief for Robertson and lefty on left match-ups here and there for Logan until they show they are ready to handle the bright lights of the last two innings.  In the mean time, let's hope Andy Pettitte's muscle tightness in his throwing arm is just a one-time miss in the rotation and Mo is 100% for this weekend and beyond.

As traditional as the pinstripes are to the New York Yankee uniform and their identity, so is the policy on facial hair. Mustaches are allowed, but anything that begins to resemble a beard, goatee, or anything in between--those are just not allowed. When players join the Yankees, either by working their way up in the farm system or being acquired via free agency or trade, they all know the policy is just part of the tradition and the way it is done in New York.

It was just last fall that the Yankees captured their 27th World Series championship. As is common in today's game, the winter, or off-season, brought about a little re-tooling and shuffling of that winning roster. The former Yankee with the longest tenure, Hideki Matsui, went to the California Angels. Regular contributors in the outfield, Johnny Damon and Melky Cabrera, now play for Detroit and Atlanta, respectively. While valuable back-up catcher and great defensive player, Jose Molina, now is with the Blue Jays.

It's interesting to observe former Yankees when they leave the Bronx Bombers and have the freedom to express themselves, not being restricted by other teams when it comes to facial hair. The most curious is Damon. Before coming to New York Damon played for the Yanks arch-rival, Boston. There, he caught national baseball attention by wearing long hair and growing a full beard, hence garnering a new nickname--"the cave man"--similar to those Geiko commercials. Of course, Damon cleaned up in New York and so far, is still clean-shaven in Detroit.

Matsui, who is as humble and unassuming as anyone to ever play for New York, looks exactly the same, albeit strange in that Angels uniform with "double nickels" on the back.

The two who have busted out and are enjoying facial hair freedom are Molina and Cabrera. Molina has the well-trimmed full beard working as a Blue Jay, while Melky has opted for the latest baseball rage, the minimalist style of goatee, which is akin to the shell of a chocolate dipped ice cream cone on his chin.

You wonder if that was something they always wanted to do, but were too restricted in New York, or was it just such a surge of independence that they felt they had to express themselves now that they were no longer Yankees? It's kind of analogous to a teenager who transfers from a private school to public school and can shed the uniform for whatever is stylish and cool with his new schoolmates.

Facial hair isn't a bad thing, unless you have a graying old mustache with a wild variety of hairs in it, like me. But, for Molina and Cabrera, whatever version of a beard or goatee they wear isn't bad, either. It just signifies that they are no longer New York Yankees.

For other posts by this guy go to:  www.realsportsanalysis.blogspot.com/