Joe Girardi tends to be one of the more positive managers. He likes to see the silver lining on bad performances. But there was no silver lining to the Yankees overwhelming loss to the Pittsburg Pirates on Tuesday night. His response was without equivocation—“We stunk!” This loss was then matched by an equally great performance Wednesday by the same team and Joba Chamberlain on the mound.

Tuesday’s loss was their third loss in four games. All of those teams, I might add, have losing records. Hitless Alex Rodriguez, when being interviewed about the game, felt that Girardi’s expression of disgust was unnecessary. But being a leader is about stating the reality, and the reality is that the Yankees grossly underperformed Tuesday. They missed multiple chances for victory.

Wednesday’s win shows the Yankees in all of their promise and capacity. They won 10-0. Chamberlain proved Girardi’s decision to move him to starter. Girardi is quoted in the Daily News as saying:

“Joba has the ability to pitch games like this; that’s the kind of stuff he has. When you lose three out of four, you want to get back on the right track. Joba was up to the task.”

It’s hard to know who Yankees fans are going to see from one night to the next. Are they going to see a powerful winning team, or a team that throws all of it’s opportunity down the toilet?

Entering this weekend’s series against the Cincinnati Reds, it looked as if the Yankees were salvaging a mediocre season. Things weren’t looking bad. But the loss of Chien-Ming Wang seemed to boding ill-fate for the Yanks. The only consolation to going down the first two games was a resurgent win on the third.

Game one was their first loss after a 7 game winning streak. It came, in part, from a controversial call by Joe Girardi. He told Mike Mussina to intentionally walk Jay Bruce. This was followed up by a Jolbert Cabrera’s double down the left field, setting the pace for a three-run inning for the Reds which culminated in a 4-2 loss.

Game two provided opportunities for the Yankees that never came to fruition, with the Reds again handing them a loss 6-0. The New York Post quotes Johnny Damon who managed to walk three times without scoring:

“It’s just a shame because we had so many opportunities to score runs and we didn’t. We didn’t find a way to put any pressure on them.”

Game three’s win owes a lot to Andy Pettitte. His time on the mound ended in the 6th inning with a rain delay. But it ended 19 straight innings without allowing a run. Additionally, he’s only allowed one run in his last three starts, all of which ended in Yankee victory.

Let’s hope that the rest of the New York Yankees season looks more like game 3, rather than game 1 and 2.

Joe Girardi says that he doesn’t mind Johnny Damon criticizing his decision to move Joba Chamberlain to the starter position. That’s a nice response for the media but I can’t imagine that any leader appreciating public displays of disagreement. Everyone knows that differences occur in every organization, but you always want to communicate an attitude of solidarity to the media, to your opponents, and to your ticket buying fans.

The problem that Damon has when he shoots his mouth like this is that he opens himself up for the exact same public discrimination. If Girardi is at all displeased with Damon’s recent play, he should make it well known. It’s fine to talk smack, but you better be ready to take it when it comes back to you.

The argument that Damon makes is that the Yankees are losing games by not having a strong pitcher like Chamberlain in the bullpen. Giardi vehemently disagrees.

In the Daily News, Girardi is quoted as saying:

“I want to know the games that we’ve sacrificed by doing what we did . . . It doesn’t always work that way.”

Damon is then quoted as saying:

“Yeah, we could have used (Chamberlain) on the last road trip. No doubt about it. Would we have won those games? Maybe. Maybe not.”

Joe Girardi inadvertently won the game for the NY Yankees Thursday night. He contested a controversial call in the ninth inning. His behavior got him kicked out of the game and is being touted as the reason for the Yankees win.

Umpire Chris Guccione ruled the a ball had ticked the handle of Jason Giambi’s bat, resulting in a foul tip, giving the Baltimore team a strike three. This forced Girardi from the dugout in what was to be an extremely dramatic display of displeasure. There was even the kicking of a hat.

In being ejected, he returned to his office, with a standing ovation from the crowd. This got the entire team fired up, giving them the extra push that they needed to squeak out a tough win. The Daily News quotes Jason Giambi:

“Maybe that’s the little spark that we need to get us going. We’ve been right on the verge, playing good baseball but not great baseball. Maybe this is the thing that gets it all going.”

The drama must have gotten to pitcher Johnson, who then walked Bobby Abreu and allowed a single by Cano which won the game.

When asked later if it was worth getting ejected for the win, Girardi responded that he’d do it 162 times. Maybe the Yankees have a new winning strategy.

So Alex Rodriguez is back. All goodness should return to the Yankee universe, right? Well, this was not the case in a 12-2 massacre by the Baltimore Orioles.

A-Rod did hit a two-run homer in the sixth inning. But that doesn’t match 12 runs scored by the other team. Yes, it’s great to have a star hitter like Rodriguez, but when all else stinks, there’s not a whole lot the guy can do.

Baseball is perhaps one of the most team centered sports. You can’t rely on a Michael Jordon night after night to bring home the wins. Even ace pitchers play every five games or so. Baseball requires depth, and perhaps this is where the Yankees are falling short.

Filip Bondy of the Daily News proclaimed:

“Lousy pitching…questionable hustle…bad karma …a hopeless, early deficit. Robinson Cano failed to cover second base on what should have been a fielder’s choice and third out . . . Mike Mussina blew apart like so many Yankee starters this season, only worse . . . Another distressing error from Johnny Damon followed in the second, [bringing] another two unearned runs.”

What’s a team to do? I do think we need to give manager Joe Girardi some time to make this team his own, but I do think the responsibility falls on him. And the expectations are huge. New York Yankee ticket buying fans expect a winning team, and 20-25 doesn’t cut it.

What’s the reason for Yankees manager, Joe Girardi’s strange lineup last week against th Kansas City Royals.

Hideki Matsui ws put in right field. Alex Rodriguez was pushed up to third rather than acting as the usual cleanup hitter, Jorge Posada was placed as the fourth hitter. Robinson Cano was assigned as the seventh hitter rather than the sixth. Morgan Ensberg started at first base. Bobby Abreu and Jason Giambi were placed on the bench.

So what’s the reason for all of this shifting? Girardi said that he was trying to readjust things to face left-handed pitcher John Bale. He also said he wanted to rest Abreu.

Whatever his reasons, the result was broke a slump by the Yankees, scoring big and making 12 hits. It was a win that the team seemed to need, preventing a malaise that could have hurt their entire early season.

Pettite also had a great game. Peter Abraham reports:

“Pettitte went 6 2/3 innings, allowing five hits with two walks and one strikeout. Pitching on the road for the first time since admitting that he used Human Growth Hormone, Pettitte received little abuse from the small crowd of 16,143 beyond a handful of fans chanting “HGH” in the second inning.”

It’s good news for a struggling team. It might encourage us New York baseball fans to be more proactive at buying Yankee tickets.

The above title refers to Joe Girardi’s comment following the first loss of his career as manager with the Yankees. The New York Times continues the quotation: “You come to the ballpark and prepare to win, and losing stinks.”

And lose they did, in their second outing against the Blue Jays. The score at the end of the night was 5-2. Alex Rodriguez couldn’t stop the ill-fated defeat with his two-run homer in the seventh. That could not compete with A.J. Burnett’s performance of keeping the Yankees from scoring for six innings.

Mike Mussina gave Yankee Ticket holders little to be excited about this season in a lukewarm performance on a very cold night. The Daily News explains the performance of the Yankees’ starting pitcher:

“Mussina allowed four runs (three earned) on eight hits in 5-2/3 innings, although the majority of the hits were bloops and bleeders.”

The simple fact is that Mussina was totally mediocre. And that couldn’t compare with a very good Blue Jays team. It is the beginning of the season. There’s along way to fall. But the fact of the matter is that Mussina has got to step it up for the Yankees to reach their aspirations of a championship this season.

Now is the time to buy your NY Yankee tickets if you want to see a few games in the traditional stadium. We’re talking about a stadium that has housed the world’s biggest baseball franchise since 1923. And this is the last year.

The Yankees are a team that can never extricate themselves from a storied history. And they can never get away from the fact that their fans expect greatness from them. With seven seasons in a row without a championship, mediocrity is not sitting well with them.

So there’s been changes in the last few years. Former Yankee catcher and coach, Joe Girardi, is now at the helm of this franchise that would love to win a championship, this their last year in the old stadium. To dream of such things is almost too glorious to think of, but every fan must hope. And so Girardi is bringing a new commitment and focus to an experienced team. He’s conditioning them hard.

Team Captain, Derek Jeter is quoted in the daily news as saying:

“It’s going to be a special year. . . . There’s always optimism going into a new season. Obviously this year some things are different, but everyone here is excited.”

Let’s hope they give the old ball park a generous send off with a great 2008 season.

February 14th, Valentines Day, the Yankees start their Spring Training. Many of their stars are returning, with one major new edition. Mr. Joe Girardi takes up uniform No. 27, replacing Joe Torre as the new manager. What’s in store for this team with 26 World Series Titles and new leadership?

For Giraldi’s part, he’s trying to keep a flexible attitude about the challenges instore. He’s quoted saying:

“I think every managing job is different, because of players and all the parts,” Girardi said. “Everyone changes. It’s different people and different situations, with different expectations.”

One thing that Giraldi is inheriting is a franchise with little turnover, with its major stars still in on the roster. They spent more than $400 million to keep it that way. I think this was important, given the new manager. And it’s not as if the team stunk last year either.

I think all in all, it’s a good strategy. Keep the same basic elements in place. Give the franchise a new leader, and see how it plays. At the end of the day, it seems that they’ve got what it takes to be a great team. They just need a chance to do that.

To see how the team does this year, feel free to check online for NY Yankee tickets.