Apologies for the Berenstain Bears-esque title, but if you believe in trends, then The Yankees have a 66.7 percent chance of winning tonight’s series opener against the Rangers.
That’s because August 13 is Boone Logan’s birthday, and as the left-hander turns 28 today, he brings the knowledge that the Bombers are 6-3 this season in games on the birthdays of current members of the 40-man roster. Technically, they’re 7-3, as the Yankees beat Detroit on Derek Lowe’s birthday of June 1, but as he wasn’t part of the team then, we’ll leave him out of the discussion.
Looking back, those nine Yankees who have celebrated in-season birthdays this year have put on performances ranging from pretty good to one that was utterly forgettable.
Among position players, Mark Teixeira (2-for-5 with a double and a run scored in a win over Baltimore on April 11) and Derek Jeter (2-for-5 in a June 26 win over Cleveland) lead the way, but Raul Ibanez did have an RBI in the Yanks’ June 2 loss at Detroit, and despite going 0-for-4, Andruw Jones was in the lineup for the team’s win in Texas on April 23.
That leaves five pitchers with summer birthdays, and while only two of them have pitched in their birthday hat, the other three have seen wins either on their big day or in their closest start to it.
The two who have pitched are both relievers, and they’ve had opposite appearances; David Robertson struck out two Orioles in a scoreless inning during the Yankees’ April 9 win, but poor Cory Wade threw just three pitches – giving up a walk-off home run and taking a loss – in the team’s May 28 loss in Anaheim to the Angels.
As for the starters, you have only one who is currently active, that being Phil Hughes – who watched the Yankees beat Cleveland on June 24, then pitched a six-hit shutout over eight innings to help the team beat the Indians again two days later…on Jeter’s birthday.
Andy Pettitte, meanwhile, missed pitching on his birthday by 24 hours, but got a pair of wins; the Yankees beat Washington on July 15, and the next day, Pettitte gave up just two runs over seven innings in the Yanks’ extra-inning victory over the Nats.
And finally, we come to CC Sabathia, who has had the worst luck of the bunch. His birthday, July 21, saw the Yankees lose their third straight in Oakland, and despite pitching seven strong innings the next day (with several family members in attendance), he took a no decision as the A’s completed a four-game sweep.
That brings us back to Mr. Logan, who may or may not see action in back of David Phelps (and possibly Derek Lowe) tonight against Texas. If he doesn’t, he at least has a win in his most recent game, as the lefty pitched two-thirds of an inning in Saturday’s win in Toronto.
Can the Yankees rebound from a tough loss Sunday to give Boone a birthday W?
