The Yankees beat Oakland last night/early this morning 3-1 and Phil Hughes was in a word, dominant. I’ve had the privilege of seeing him pitch in several games, and this is the best I can ever remember him being. He was incredible tonight, leaving the Oakland offense baffled. Hughes was so good that he carried a no hitter into the eighth.

Phil was outstanding and really exciting to watch last night. You can’t ask for more from your 5th starter. 7.1 IP, 1 H, 1R, 1ER, 2BB, 10 SO, 101 pitches. That puts Hughes at 2-0 with a 2.19 ERA. I think I’ll take that from my 5th starter any day. Tonight showed just how great he can be. Ace type stuff if you ask me.  On the other end Joba Chamberlain has emerged as the setup man as most Yankee fans knew he would, despite Girardi saying the spot was open for competition. Joba has been electric out of the pen. He came in two nights ago with bases loaded and got out of a jam, and although he gave up a hit for an unearned run tonight, he looked outstanding once again. Chamberlain currently has a 2.16 ERA and continues to be dominant like his friend Hughes, being the major part of the bridge to Mariano.

Personally this is what I’ve hoped for all along. I think this is exactly where both of these guys are at they’re best. I know there’s some fans who still believe Joba will eventually be a starter along with Hughes but personally I just don’t see it. I think Hughes showed tonight exactly how great of a starter he can be, and I’m by no means comparing Joba to Mariano, but I think Joba has the stuff as well as the mindset to be a great closer once Mariano decides to hang it up. Only time will tell but I think both of these guys will emerge into there respected roles this year. If you ask me this is exactly where they both belong.

On a side note Joe Girardi only touched on it briefly but can you imagine if Hughes took that no hitter into the 9th inning and had a high pitch count. It would have been the CC Sabathia situation all over again. If Hughes pitch count was too high would Girardi really have taken him out of the game? I understand Girardi’s mentality, but just like with CC, it would have been a hard decision to make.