Yankees 5, White Sox 3: Yankees' offense 'explodes' for fives runs against Chicago

Fresh off of his walk-off antics on Friday night, Yankees infielder Martin Prado was back it again on Saturday, collecting three hits, including a two-run double to put his team ahead, as the Bombers would go on the beat the Chicago White Sox, 5-3, on Joe Torre Day at Yankee Stadium.

After a pregame ceremony to honor the former Yankees manager, Torre, which included the retiring of his No. 6 uniform, Hiroki Kuroda took the mound for the Yankees and gave up an early 2nd inning run that put the White Sox on the board.

Connor Gillespie opened the top of the 2nd with a double into right field off of Kuroda. Alexi Ramirez brought him home a batter later with a double of his own.

The Yankees answered back in the bottom half of the inning with tying against Chicago starter Scott Carroll -- well, mainly against Chicago's defense. Carroll walked Mark Teixeira to open the inning, then Carlos Beltran reached on a fielder's choice, with everybody safe. A batter later, Prado dropped down a sacrifice bunt; Jose Abreu ran up to get the ball, but his throw to the bag was off target, lead everybody to be safe with nobody out.

Immediately after that, Chase Headley grounded into a double play that scored Teixeira from third base to even the score at 1-1.

The Yankees' offense struck again two innings later, putting pair of runs on the board to go up 3-1. Brian McCann doubled to kick off the inning, then Teixeira walked to put two on with nobody out. Teixeira, though, ran himself off of the bases on a single to right by Beltran -- McCann was held up at third, but because Teixeira didn't see that, he, too, ran to third, and was eventually tagged out. Beltran would also take second on the play.

A batter later, Prado ripped a two-run double into the left field corner, bringing home both runners to give the Yankees a two-run advantage, and finally some run support for Kuroda, who put together a quality start.

Kuroda escaped danger in the first inning, stranding a pair of runners, then struck out the side in the 2nd inning after giving up the back-to-back doubles to open the inning. The only other run he gave up in six innings of work was on an RBI single by Abreu that score Alejandro De Aza, who walked and later took second base on a wild pitch.

Kuroda only gave up two runs on five hits, while walking two and striking out six on 101 pitches. He picked up his 9th win of the season.

After Kuroda had shut down the side in the 6th, the Yankees' offense went back to work in the bottom half of the inning two add on to it's lead. Beltran led off the inning with a solo homerun that just barley sneaked over the right field wall for his 15th homerun of season, in his first game since Tuesday night. Prado lobbed a double into right field a batter later, moved to third on a ground out by Headley, then scored on a sac-fly by Stephen Drew, giving the Yankees their fifth run in a game for the first time since August 8.

Shawn Kelley opened the 7th inning by giving up hits to two of the first three hitters, followed by an RBI groundout that scored Jordan Danks to pull the White Sox to within two runs. Kelley got one more out before Dellin Betances was brought on to get the final out of the 7th inning on four pitches.

Adam Warren proceeded to toss a three up, three down 8th inning before handing the ball off to David Robertson, who worked around a Paul Konerko walk to record his 22nd consecutive save -- longest streak in the majors -- and 34th of the season to close out the Yankees' third straight victory.

The Yankees and White Sox will wrap up this three-game series on Sunday afternoon at Yankee Stadium. Chris Capuano will be on the mound for New York as they go for the sweep, but will have to face the dominant lefty Chris Sale at 1:05 p.m. ET.

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Game 123: Michael Pineda returns to the Yankee Stadium mound

This very disappointing season for the Yankees took another hit on Tuesday night, as the Bombers kicked off a very important six-game homestand with a 7-4 loss to the Houston Astros, a team that boasts the third worst record in baseball.

Houston struck out 15 times last night, they left 10 runners on base, and they beat the Yankees by three runs for their third win over the Yankees in four meetings so far this season.

With Baltimore's win last night, the Yankees are now 9 1/2 games back in the AL East -- they're all but officially out in the division, it seems -- and they're four games back of the Mariners and Athletics for the second wild card.

Tonight's lineup against Houston:

LF Brett Gardner
DH Derek Jeter
CF Jacoby Ellsbury
3B Mark Teixeira
C Brian McCann
3B Chase Headley
SS Stephen Drew
2B Martin Prado
RF Ichiro Suzuki

* Carlos Beltran was scratched from tonight's lineup after feeling some pain in his elbow after a swing in last night's game. Joe Girardi told reporters that Beltran will see a doctor later today, and that he only hopes he'll be out for a day or two.

This is the same elbow that has caused Beltran pain for most of the season. He could have had the surgery and probably returned by now, but instead, he's still hurting and might need to get something done in the winter.

Pitching matchup preview:

For the first time since early April, Michael Pineda will take the mound for the Bombers at home in Yankee Stadium this evening. The right-hander made his long-awaited return from the DL last week, one run on two hits over five innings against the Baltimore Orioles.

If the Yankees are going to make any sort of playoff push, Pineda is going to be a big piece of that puzzle.

Going for the Astros will be the right-hander Scott Feldman, who held the Yankees scoreless for 6 2/3 innings on Opening Day. Feldman is coming off of a rough outing against the Boston Red Sox over the weekend, where he gave up seven runs on nine hits.

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Yankees 3, Orioles 11: Carlos Beltran stole home and the Yankees still lost

With an opportunity to gain ground on the AL East leading Baltimore Orioles this week, the Yankees missed their first of three chances, as they took an early lead and fell behind late, falling to the Orioles, 11-3, on Monday night at Orioles Park in Camden Yards.

The Yankees and O's traded runs in the 1st inning of the ballgame. Brett Gardner tripled to kick things off against Baltimore start Bud Norris, then scored a couple pitches later on a groundout by Derek Jeter.

The Orioles were quick to counter against the Yankees and starting pitcher Chris Capuano. Manny Machado hit a one-out double, moved to second base on a wild pitch, then scored two batters later in a sac-fly to center by Nelson Cruz, who would come up big for Baltimore later in the game.

After Baltimore came back to tie the game, the Yankees jumped right back into the lead with two runs off of Norris in the 2nd.

The big right-hander walked Carlos Beltran to open the inning, then gave up a single to Chase Headley, putting runners on the corners with nobody out. He struck out Stephen Drew before Beltran stole home -- yeah, Carlos Beltran stole home -- to put the Yankees up 2-1. Headley took second on the play, then moved over to third on the same play when Machado's throw to the plate hit Beltran. Norris, backing up the play, made a bad toss to the play, letting Headley to score.

Yeah, it was a crazy play. You're going to need to look up the video of it on MLB.com.

And with that, those were the only runs the Yankees were able to manage against Norris, who went five innings, giving up three runs on five hits. Jeter doubled off of Norris with one out in the 5th, and that was actually the last hit the Yankees would get in the game.

Baltimore got a run back against Capuano in the 3rd when Adam Jones hit a one-out single to left field, scoring Jonathan Schoop, who singled to open the inning then move to second base on a ground out.

Chris David put the O's up 4-3 in the 5th with a two-run homerun to left off of Capuano, who lasted six innings, giving up four runs on six hits. He struck out seven and didn't walk anybody. Not a bad start from him, considering what the Yankees got him for, but again, it was the offense that failed to pick him up.

Things only got worse from there, as Jones made it a 5-3 game with an RBI double in the 7th, right before Cruz extended the game with a two-run bomb deep into the Baltimore night off of Adam Warren, who has pretty much been getting worse since about May, making it a 7-3 lead.

After the three-run 7th against Warren, the O's opened the game wide open against Chase Whitley in the 8th. Jonathan Schoop, who only hits well against the Yankees -- that's not even a joke, he's hitting .385 with 3 HR and 10 RBI in 8 games, his best average against any club this year -- and hit his third homerun against the Bombers this season, a three-run shot to left off of Whitley, pushing the score to 10-3.

They got one more run off of Whitley before he was finally taken out of the game, getting an RBI single from David Lough for the 11th run.

This was ugly, and the Yankees, after winning six of seven games, have lost three straight and look worse than they have at any point this season.

Now seven games back of the Orioles, the Yankees will continue this series on Tuesday night at 7:05 p.m. ET. Shane Greene will start for the Yankees, and Baltimore will counter with Wei-Yin Chen.

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Yankees 10, Indians 6: Esmil Rogers impresses in his first start with the Yankees

Esmil Rogers, everybody.

Making a spot-start in the place of David Phelps, who was place on the disabled list earlier in the week, Rogers made his first start since 2013 a good one, pitching five innings of one-run ball and giving up just four hits, as the Yankees beat the Cleveland Indians, 10-6, on Friday night in the Bronx.

Carlos Beltran, who has been hitting the ball very well since early July, had a big night, picking up two hits, including a grand slam that opened the game up in the 6th inning.

Rogers' night didn't get off to the best of starts giving up a quick run in the 1st inning. Jason Kipnis opened up the game with a double into left field, and then scored a couple of batters later one a two-out single by Carlos Santana.

He was much better during the next few innings, retiring the side in order in the 2nd and 4th innings. His worst inning after the 1st was the 3rd, when he gave up a leadoff single to Roberto Perez, and later walked Michael Brantley. He worked his way through five innings, giving up the one run on four hits, walking one and striking out three while throwing 88 pitches.

I mean, it was really hard to see this coming from Rogers. Gotta give the credit to Brian Cashman for picking this guy up off of waivers. In most cases, you could assume that the Yankees would give Rogers another start, but with Michael Pineda very close to returning, it seems unlikely.

After falling behind by a run in the top of the the 1st inning, the Yankees jumped all over Indians starter Trevor Bauer, who had trouble throwing strikes, and didn't get much help from his defense.

Bauer struck out Brett Gardner to open the frame, and then it all went downhill from there. Derek Jeter reached on an infield single when Jose Ramirez mishandled the ball at shortstop. Jacoby Ellsbury worked a walk, and then Carlos Beltran put the Yankees on the board with an RBI single to right field. After Brian McCann walked to load the bases, Bauer issued his third walk of the inning to Chase Headley, forcing in a run. Stephen Drew followed up with an RBI single, and then Martin Prado made it a 5-1 game on another infield single due to more bad defense by the Indians.

Bauer was finished after giving up a leadoff double to Gardner in the 4th and then walking Ellsbury a couple of batters later. Having pitched seven innings of two-run ball against the Yankees in July, Bauer only last 3.1 inning, giving up five runs on six hits, walking four.

The Yankees broke the game open with another five-run inning in the 6th. John Axford walked Ichiro Suzuki and Gardner to open the inning, then after Jeter sacrificed both runners over, Ellsbury was intentionally walked to load the bases ahead of Beltran, who smacked a hanging curveball into the right field seats for the 11th grand slam of his career, extending the Yankees' lead to 9-1.Francisco Cervelli hit a pinch-hit double after the Beltran homer, then scored a couple of batters later on a Drew groundout for the 10th run.

The Yankees eventually announced that McCann left the game with a mild concussion after taking a foul tip off of his face mask earlier in the game. He'll be tested again in the morning and then the Yankees will make a decision on whether or not to DL him.

David Huff took over on the mound to start the 6th inning, giving back a run to Cleveland after three of the first four hitters collected base knocks off of him, including Daniel Murphy, who hit an RBI single into left field that scored Brantley, who doubled to open the inning. Shawn Kelley eventually came in for the final out of the inning.

Cleveland tightened the gap with four runs in the 7th inning against Kelley and Adam Warren. Perez singled, Kipnis walked, and Mike Aviles singled to load the bases with nobody out ahead of Brantley, who walked to force in a run. That brought in Warren, who immediately gave up a two-run double to Santana. And then Murphy hit a sac-fly that made it a 10-6.

Warren walked Ramirez to open the 8th before striking out Perez. Rich Hill then came on for his second outing with the Yankees, getting Kipnis to ground into a double play to end the inning.

Dellin Betances took for mound for the 9th inning, recording the first two outs, including a strikeout of Aviles, before giving up back-to-back singles, which led to him striking out Nick Swisher to end the game, giving the Yankees their fifth win in their last six contests.

The Yankees and Indians will continue this three game series on Saturday afternoon with Brandon McCarthy on the mound for the Bombers, taking on Corey Kluber at 1:05 p.m. ET.

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Yankees will stop pushing Carlos Beltran back to the outfield

It's been a few months since Carlos Beltran put on a glove and played right field for the Yankees this season, and it doesn't seem like a return to the outfield is coming anytime soon.

Just ahead of the 4 p.m. buzzer on Thursday's trading deadline, the Yankees acquired the very versatile Martin Prado, who can play around the infield as well as in the outfield, where both Joe Girardi and Brian Cashman have said the 30-year-old will mostly play, which takes the pressure off of Beltran to rush things and possibly re-injure his elbow.

"I think there’s probably a little less of a, I don’t want to use 'sense of urgency,' but (sense) that we need to get him out there," Girardi said before the game. "We have more options. We were carrying three outfielders for a while there. Carlos was the fourth, and then we were running infielders out there. But with Martin (Prado), who’s played a lot of outfield, and then having Ich too -- we’ll make sure (Beltran)'s ready when he goes out there."

Beltran hasn't played the field since May 12, when he felt pain where doctors later found a bone spur in the joint. He started a throwing program a couple weeks ago, but isn't to the point yet, he says, where he can make a throw to home plate from the outfield is needed.

Signed to a three-year, $45-million deal in the offseason, Beltran has been limited to just 24 games in the outfield this season. He's served as the Yankees' DH since originally returning in June.

He went on the DL with a concussion just before the All-Star break, but has been on fire since then, hitting .375/.429/.625 (21-for-56) with four homeruns and 12 RBIs.

In getting Prado from the Arizona Diamondbacks, the Yankees are now able ot relegate Ichiro Suzuki back to the bench role that he played well in earlier in the season before being forced to full-time outfield duties. Because of that, they now have a true fourth outfield in Ichiro, meaning there's not much of a need for Beltran right now.

"I think we’ll keep him throwing and see where he's at," Girardi said. "The one thing we don't want to risk is him having a setback. We've kind of taken it day by day, but we'll keep him throwing."

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Yankees 3, Red Sox 4: New Yankees, same Yankees

The sorta-new-look Yankees lineup made it's debut against the Boston Red Sox on Friday night in Boston, but by looking at the box score, you would have thought that Joe Girardi was running out the same out lineup that has struggled to score runs all season, as the Bombers fell to the Sox and their rookie starter, 4-3.

New look, same results: The Yankees only managed six hits in this one, two of them from Carlos Beltran -- a solo homerun in the 4th inning, his 13th of the season, that put the Yanks on the board after falling behind 2-0, and the second being an RBI single in the 6th inning that scored Jacoby Ellsbury, who walked and stole second base to open the inning. One of the other four Yankee hits was from Derek Jeter, who hit a rare homerun -- a solo shot over The Monster, his 2nd of the year, that pulled the Yankees to within a run in the 8th. Other than that, not much else. Ellsbury and Mark Teixeira each collected a hit, as did Ichiro Suzuki, who started in right field before Martin Prado pinch-hit for him later in the game and went 0-for-2 in his Yankees debut.

Facing his former team: Chris Capuano, who started the season with the Boston Red Sox before he was released in early July, started on the mound for the Yankees. Didn't get a chance to watch the game tonight, so it's hard to say exactly how well he pitched, but he gave up all four Red Sox runs on eight hits, while striking out five without walking a batter over 6.1 innings. The Sox took a 2-0 lead against Capuano in the 3rd inning. Dustin Pedroia hit a ground-rule double over the right field wall for the first run, driving in Brock Holt, who hit a one-out triple just ahead of Pedroia. David Ortiz singled him home a batter later for the second run. David Ross made it a 3-1 game in the 4th inning on an RBI single, and then Pedroia put up the fourth run in the 7th on a single off of Shawn Kelley.

Big league debut: After trading away three of their pitchers on in the final 48 hours leading up to the trading deadline, the Red Sox called up Anthony Ranaudo to make his big league debut against the Bombers on Friday night. Beltran was really the only hitter capable of figuring him out, driving in both of his RBIs against him. However, the right-hander lasted six innings, giving up just two runs on four hits with four walks.

Other notes: Pedroia was the only hitter that Kelley faced out of the bullpen. Matt Thornton pitched the final two outs of the 7th inning, getting Ortiz to ground into a double play on the first pitch he threw, and then Adam Warren took care of the 8th with a 1-2-3 on 12 pitches ..... Chase Headley made a pair of really great plays at third base. The first on a pick in near the third base line in the 3rd inning to make the out, and then a second a few innings later when he laid out for a ball to his right, again getting the out at first base.

Up next: The Yankees and Red Sox continue this series on Saturday afternoon at 4:05 p.m. ET. Allen Webster will start for Boston, while the Yankees will counter with Shane Greene. The game will be on FOX, I believe.

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Game 104: Starting a new streak

The Toronto Blue Jays finally ended their miserable run at Yankee Stadium on Saturday, defeating the Yankees in the Bronx for the first time since August, 2012, ending the Yankees' 17-game home winning streak over the Jays.

So now the Yankees -- 7-2 since the All-Star break -- will be looking to start a new streak against the Jays, who now have some more confidence that they can, in fact, beat the Yankees at Yankee Stadium.

This is the final game of the 10-game homestand to open up the second half of the season. After today, the Yankees will hit the road and make a stop on Texas on Monday to meet the Rangers for three games down in Arlington, then head back north for a three-game set at Fenway Park.

Today's lineup against Toronto:

LF Brett Gardner
SS Derek Jeter
CF Jacoby Ellsbury
DH Carlos Beltran
1B Brian McCann
3B Chase Headley
C Francisco Cervelli
RF Zelous Wheeler
2B Brendan Ryan

Pitching matchup preview:

Shane Greene gets the ball for the Yankees today in the finale of this three-game series. Greene enters the day 2-1 with 2.79 ERA through his first three big league starts.

The worst of those three outings was the most recent one, this past week against the Rangers. Greene exited with two outs in the 6th, and finished by giving up four runs on five hits in what would be his first loss of the season that day.

Greene, the rookie, will be going up against the veteran left-hander JA Happ, who's coming off one of his best outings of the year after throwing six scoreless innings in victory against the Red Sox.

"That might have been, in my opinion, his best outing of the year," said Blue jays manager John Gibbons told reporters. "He had a good curveball going that he established, he used quite a bit. He primarily relies on his fastball, because he has a good one, but he had a good curveball that he was throwing over the plate and a good changeup. That was big, that was a big part of the reason he held them in check."

Yankee Notes:

* The Yankees had four scouts on hand to watch Cuban outfielder Rusney Castillo workout at the University of Miami on Saturday, according to the NY Post.

With almost the entire league there to watch him, some believe that the outfielder could land a contract in the range of what Yasiel Puig got from the Los Angeles Dodgers a couple years ago -- Puig signed for $42 million.

The 27-year-old is a very strong, fast player that could easily help the Yankees now and in the future, possibly filling up right field next to Ellsbury and Gardner. His power, along side the speed of Ellsbury and Gardner, that could be one of the most dangerous outfields in all of the Majors.

* It doesn't sound like Mark Teixeira will need to go on the DL. Joe Girardi told reporters that they're shooting for a Tuesday/Wednesday return for the switch-hitting first baseman.

* Carlos Beltran hasn't been missing any time lately, expect for the fact that he hasn't played in the outfield since May. Girardi also believes that Carlos Beltran isn't too far off from returning to the outfield, suggesting that he could be just a few weeks away.

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Yankees midseason awards: the best and worst of the team's first half

We've reached the official halfway point of the season with the Yankees heading into the four-day All-Star break today. At 47-47, the Yankees are 5 games back of the Baltimore Orioles in the American League East.

Hal Steinbrenner opened up his checkbook for the Yankees to spend almost $500 million on free-agents, such as Jacoby Ellsbury, Brian McCann, Carlos Beltran and Masahiro Tanaka. But that wild offseason spending has hardly paid off for the Bombers, with really only Tanaka and Ellsbury earning their money so far.

There is no doubt that this team has under-performed so far this season, but you could also point out the fact that injuries have riddled the team just as much as they did last season, with four fifths of their Opening Day rotation currently on the DL.

The Yankees had a goal of winning one last World Series calls it a career at the end of the season, but with the way things are going now, they could be out of the playoff hunt by the time September rolls around.

Most Valuable Player: Masahiro Tanaka

Without a doubt, Tanaka has been the best player on the Yankees' roster this season. Named an All-Star in his first Major League season, Tanaka is 12-4 with a 2.51 ERA in 18 starts but has lost three of his past four outings. Regardless, without him, it's hard to see the Yankees even still being in contention for the division title.

There were a lot of expectations on Tanaka shoulders when coming over, having gone 24-0 last season in Japan and then getting such a big contract (seven-years, $155 million) with the Yankees put a lot of eyes on him. He not only met the challenge, but he went above and beyond it in his first couple of months.

Obviously we don't know if the elbow injury was there when his recent downward spiral began, but maybe the routine of having to pitch every fifth day, compared to once a week in Japan, was starting to get to him.

The Yankees are hoping that Tanaka is only going to be out for about six weeks, with Tommy John surgery currently on hold. There is no doubt that should Tanaka be out for the rest of the year, the Yankees' playoff chances are essentially over.

Least Valuable Player: Carlos Beltran

After a brilliant postseason with the St. Louis Cardinals last October, Beltran hit the open market with the Yankees keeping a close eye on him, and likewise from Beltran, who always dreamed of being a Yankee. Brian Cashman, according to some reports, did not want to sign Beltran on anything more than a two-year deal, but in the end, with the Kansas City Royals making a series push, Cashman gave him a three-year pact, for some reason that is already looking like a terrible mistake.

Hitting just .216 with nine homeruns and 28 RBIs in 61 games for the Bombers this season, Beltran has already been on the DL twice -- first for an elbow injury in May, and the second being right now with a concussion from a batting practice accident.

There has always been some concerns about Beltran staying healthy through the end of this deal, but if anything, we thought it would be related to the bum knees that have troubled him in the past. Instead, it's the bone spurs in his elbow which have limited him to being a DH-only for the Yankees since he can't throw. And because of that, the Yankees have had to use Ichiro Suzuki on a full-time basis, and it even forced more regular playing time for Alfonso Soriano, who shouldn't have been getting that.

Biggest surprise: Yangervis Solarte

Where did this guy come from? A career minor leaguer, Solarte broke through in spring training and earned a spot on the Yankees' Opening Day roster. He carried his hot bat in Tampa with him to the regular season, hitting .303 in April and .296 in May, where he started to finally come crashing down to Earth near the end, and eventually posted a .164 batting average before he was optioned to Triple-A.

He didn't stay in the minors very long, coming back after just over a week later. Since his call-up, he's 1-for-9, though.

I don't know, maybe he just went on a hot streak for a couple of months, but it seemed like he would never come back to life, which is no longer the case. I really hope that he can turn things back around and start hitting well again -- not just for the Yankees, but for himself -- because he's a fun person to watch. Long live the Legend of Yangervis.

Biggest letdown: Michael Pineda

Honestly, Pineda is the team's biggest letdown, in my opinion, because we hardly ever got a chance to watch him pitch. He only completed four starts before he was dumb enough to get caught with pine tar on his neck, leading to a ten-game suspension, during which he would get hurt and we haven't seen him sense.

This was suppose to be the year that Pineda finally took the mound for the Yankees and made fans realize why it was such a big deal to acquire him. With a 1.83 ERA in his first four starts, Pineda was off to a great start before stupidity and bad luck caught up to him.

Pineda completed a 25-pitch bullpen session without issue Friday, but a mid-August return to the majors remains his best-case scenario. Coming back anytime in August would be a major addition to the Yankees' rotation, but right now.

Reason to keep believing: the schedule gets easier

The Yankees have 40 home games at Yankee Stadium in the second half of the season -- that's the most in the leagues. The Orioles, meanwhile, who lead the division, have one of the league's toughest schedules in the second half, which could bode very well for the Bombers.

On the flip side, the Yankees have struggled at home this season, but you never know how that might play out in the second half.

This team, for the most part was build for their home ballpark, with the power in Mark Teixeira, McCann and Beltran -- Soriano was another, but was recently DFA'd. McCann and Beltran have struggled, while Teixeira is leading the team with 17 homeruns so far. You have to think that they'll turn it around at some point. This lineup is weak, yes, but it can't hit this bad for the entire season, can it?

Reason to stop believing: the injuries

Four fifths of the Yankees' Opening Day starting rotation is currently on the disabled list -- and two of those guys, possibly three, are pretty much done for the rest of the season, with Pineda, as I mentioned, likely to come back sometime in August, at the earliest.

If there was one player that the Yankees could not afford to lose this season, if was Tanaka. And go figure, they lost Tanaka for at least six weeks, possibly longer if the rehab doesn't work and he needs to have Tommy John.

Coming into the season, the rotation figured to be the Yankees' biggest strength, and now it's their biggest weakness with Chase Whitley only going 3-4 innings a start, and there being no other reasonable in the minors because they're all here. The trade market is dry, and the Yankees don't have much to get the top-tier pitchers out there.

Without injuries, the Yankees are probably sitting pretty in first place right now.

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New offseason signings not living up to expectations for the Yankees

Back in 2008, the New York Yankees were facing a crossroads. After ending the final season in old Yankee Stadium, the Yankees missed the playoffs for the first time since and it was time to reload for the opening of the new palace in the Bronx. The Yankees spent more than $400 million in salaries to starting pitchers CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett and first basemen Mark Teixeira to put New York back on top of the baseball world with its 27th World Series championship.

The Yankees faced a similar predicament this past offseason and after another spending spree, the results haven't been nearly the same. The signings of outfielders Jacoby Ellsbury, Carlos Beltran along with catcher Brian McCann and Japanese ace Masahiro Tanaka have not achieved the desired result.

Entering the All Star Break, the Yankees hold a pedestrian 47-47 record, but trail the first place Orioles by just five games.

Masahiro Tanaka

Tanaka was one of most sought after free agents of the offseason that came with major question marks, but that didn't stop Brian Cashman and the Yankees from giving the 25-year-old starting pitcher a seven-year, $155 million contract. If there were any doubts about Tanaka's ability and his famed splitter, those doubts were cast aside almost immediately.

For much of the first half of the season, Tanaka was the best pitcher in the American League. He compiled a 12-4 record with a 2.51 ERA with 135 strikeouts and just 19 walks in 129 1-3 innings before the bad news came. After allowing a season-high five earned runs in a loss to Cleveland, it was revealed that Tanaka had a partial tear of a ligament in his right elbow. The diagnosis didn't call for Tommy John Surgery, but six weeks of rehab. Despite the sparkling start to his Yankee career, Tanaka's elbow injury has clouded the excitement of the first three months of his debut season in the Bronx.

The jury is still out on what to make of Tanaka's future as a top of the rotation starting pitcher, but one thing is for sure, there aren't many pitchers in all of baseball with a more talented array of pitches.

Jacoby Ellsbury

The Yankees shocked the baseball world when they pried Ellsbury away from the rival Red Sox on a seven-year deal worth more than $150 million. The contract is an extraordinary amount of money for any outfielder, but especially one that has reached double digits in home runs once in his career. In 2011, Ellsbury his 32 homers and drove in 105 runs in what can now be looked at as a career year and not what you can expect from the speedster.

Ellsbury had no first season jitters in the pinstripes as he hit the ground running in April. In the season's first month, Ellsbury had a slash line of .312/.369/.452 with an .821 OPS, but May saw the Yankee center fielder slump badly with a .231 batting average and a .317 on-base percentage. Through 93 games, Ellsbury has a .282 batting average, .346 on-base percentage, .400 slugging percentage and .746 OPS with six homers and 42 RBIs.

Ellsbury's offensive numbers are around his career averages, but his value has come on the bases where he has stolen 24 bases in 29 attempts and in center field with his 247 put outs, which leads center fielders in the American League. Ellsbury has also committed just one error.

There is a case to be made that Ellsbury didn't deserve the contract he received from the Yankees given his lack of power, but he more than makes up for it in other areas. His base running and outfield defense have made him a vital member of the 2014 Yankees.

Carlos Beltran

Upon signing a three-year, $45 million contract with the Yankees, Beltran exuded such happiness and pride of a life-long dream of donning the pinstripes finally coming true. Unfortunately Beltran hasn't been on the field as much as he would have hoped and when he's been in the lineup, there hasn't been much to cheer about.

A red hot start in April was slowed when Beltran collided with the wall down the right field line in Tampa and he seemed to never fully recover. Beltran hit the disabled list when bone chips were found in his right elbow and just last week he was sidelined with a broken nose after a mishap in batting practice.

All of Beltran's ailments make you wonder if an outfield over 35 can continue to play at a high level at this stage in his career. We probably won't have that answer until this time next year. The bone chips injury could have ended Beltran's season with a surgical procedure, but to his credit he's playing through the discomfort.

Beltran has been extremely disappointing with a slugging percentage just one point higher than Ellsbury and a .216 batting average with a .271 on-base percentage to boot. If the Yankees have any chance of catching the Orioles and playing in October this season, Beltran will have to be the player he was in St. Louis in the past.

Brian McCann

McCann like Beltran was a household name in the National League before coming to the Bronx, but the former Braves catcher has also struggled at the plate. McCann has a . 239 batting average and a on-base percentage below .300, but there could be signs that the Yankee catcher is finding his stride. In 40 at-bats in July, McCann has a .350 batting average, one home run and three RBIs and two doubles.

McCann's first season with the Yankees has been an eventful one. While he tried to get used to a completely new city and new league, 80 percent of New York's starting rotation has gone down to injury. McCann has managed to hold together a rag tag group of starting pitching misfits around veteran Hiroki Kuroda and in the process has thrown out 44 percent of would-be base stealers, which is second in all of baseball behind St. Louis veteran Yadier Molina.

If that wasn't enough for McCann to deal with, his former hitting coach in Atlanta, Terry Pendleton, told the New York media last week that McCann would never truly be comfortable in New York. McCann has a lot to deal with, but he's improved the catching position and kept the Yankees afloat behind the plate. He may not have lived up to his five-year, $85 million contract the Yankees gave him in the offseason, but he's been one of the Yankees' most valuable players this season.

It's clear that the 2014 squad can't compare to the success that the 2009 had, but there is the potential for the offense to get it going and improve upon a meager offense that has managed 375 runs this season, which is third worst in the American League.

Getting back to the World Series for the first time since 2009 is a distant thought at this point, but playing meaningful games in October isn't. The pitching staff is depleted and no one should expect Tanaka to pitch again this season.  Now is the time for Ellsbury, Beltran and McCann to step up and prove their worth.

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Game 91: Yangervis Solarte returns

The Yankees have just four games left before the All-Star break that starts on Monday. This team, more than ever, could really use those four days off next week, with injuries and tired bullpen arms taking over the team.

The Yankees and Indians played 14 innings last night, with the Bombers prevailing, 5-4, thanks to a solo homerun in the top of the 14th by Jacoby Ellsbury Brandon McCarthy, making his Yankees debut, last 6.2 inning, then it was the bullpen that went till the very end.

As the entire city waits on the edge of it's seat to hear from LeBron James and whether or not he'll be taking his talents back to Cleveland, the Yankees and Indians will complete this four-game series tonight, and the Yanks will look to take three of the four game before heading to Baltimore for a series against the Orioles.

Tonight's lineup against Cleveland:

LF Brett Gardner

SS Derek Jeter

CF Jacoby Ellsbury

1B Mark Teixeira

DH Brian McCann

C Francisco Cervelli

3B Zelous Wheeler

RF Yangervis Solarte

2B Brendan Ryan

* Solarte is back! The Yankees recalled him from Triple-A Scranton this afternoon, while placing Carlos Beltran on the 7-day concussion DL after taking a ball off of his face during batting practice yesterday. Solarte went 12-for-20 with four extra-base hits during his brief trip to Scranton.

Pitching matchup preview:

With Masahiro Tanaka in the DL, the Yankees are going to need pitchers to start stepping up and filling the void left by the team's ace, and that starts with David Phelps tonight.

3-4 with a 4.01 ERA this season, Phelps is looking to build off of his last start, when he allowed just one run on three hits in seven innings against the Minnesota Twins.

TJ House will take the mound for Cleveland tonight. House is coming off of his first Major League win, in which he allowed three earned runs in 6 2/3 innings against the Kansas City Royals.

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Injury Notes: Masahiro Tanaka hits the DL; Carlos Beltran breaks his nose in BP

The news we all feared having to his this season came to life on Wednesday when the Yankees placed Masahiro Tanaka on the disabled list with what they're calling, for now, inflammation in his right elbow. By going on the disabled list, Tanaka becomes the fourth starter in the Yankees' Opening Day rotation to his the DL.

If you have been paying attention to everything happening around the league over the past couple of years, a pitcher coming up with elbow pains is never a good sign, with most cases seemingly leading to dreaded Tommy John surgery. For now, we can only hold our collective breath that isn't the case with Tanaka, who leads the league in wins this season.

With Tanaka on the disabled list, the Yankees recalled outfielder Zoilo Almonte from Triple-A Scranton before the game. Almonte was actually in the lineup and listed on the roster before Tanaka was even placed on the DL, which left some mystery as to what the Yankees were going to do. Ultimately, they put him on the DL and with the All-Star break coming up, the Yankees might be lucky enough to only have Tanaka miss one start, which would this Sunday against the Baltimore Orioles.

Tanaka was sent back to New York on Wednesday for an MRI after complaining about soreness in his elbow after Tuesday night's game, in which he gave up a season-high five runs on 10 hits in 6 2/3 innings. Tanaka would now like to fly out to Seattle to be seen by Yankees' team team physician, Dr. Christopher Ahmad, who is at a conference of orthopedic surgeons in Seattle.

Both Brian McCann and Brett Gardner told reporters before the game on Wednesday that neither one of them saw anything out of the ordinary from Tanaka other than the fact that he was having a bad game on the mound.

11-1 with a league-leading 1.99 ERA in his first 14 starts of the season, Tanaka has been regressing lately, losing three of his last four outings, going 1-3 with a 4.25 ERA. Maybe it had something to do with this injury, or maybe it was just some fatigue setting in from pitching every four days in the majors, compared to once a week in Japan.

The Yankees can't miss this guy for any longer than a start or two. It's safe to say that should something bad happen to Tanaka, and  -- dare I say -- Tommy John is eventually needed, the season is over and the Yankees would realistically have no chance of making a run at the playoffs.

**********

Carlos Beltran was originally in the Yankees' lineup last night, but was scratched before the game after when a batted ball caromed off an L-screen and ricocheted back into his face. Beltran suffered two small facial fractures in his face, and it remains to be seen if the 37-year-old outfield will have to go on the DL.

Manager Joe Girardi stayed optimistic before the game, telling reporters that we could see in the lineup on Thursday for the series finale between the Yankees and Indians.

"I had a headache for the whole day but now it's getting better,'' Beltran said. "Hopefully tomorrow it will get better and I could be back soon, but I don't know what the team's going to do. With the concussion things, teams take that serious. Honestly, I don't feel like I have that. But at the end of the day, it's not my decision.''

Beltran missed the first two games of this four-game series because of some swelling in his knee. Wednesday was suppose to be his first game since Sunday, and now we'll have to see if he even plays tonight.

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Yankees 7, Twins 4: Zelous Wheeler goes yard for his first big league hit

Zelous Wheeler waited eight years to make his Major League debut, bouncing around the minor leagues, getting over 2,000 at-bats in the minors before the Yankees called-up on Wednesday night.

In his second big league at-bat, Wheeler hit a 412 foot homerun into the left-center field bullpens, a few batter after Carlos Beltran launched hit 9th homerun of the year, back up Masahiro Tanaka, who in the first time in 18 starts this season failed to record a quality start, as the Yankees beat the Minnesota Twins, 7-4, on Thursday night at Target Field.

It was clear from the start that Tanaka was not on the top of his pitching game, coming off of two straight losses -- even though he pitched well in both starts -- as the Twins jumped on the board with a quick run in the first inning.

Brian Dozier opened the inning with a single off of Tanaka, then two batters later, Chris Parmelee hit a one-out double into the right field corner, scoring Dozier to put the Twins up 1-0. Parmelee was tagged out trying to stretch the double into a triple.

Minnesota went up 2-0 in the 3rd inning after Sam Fuld and Dozier reached on singled to kick off the inning, putting runners on 1st and 3rd,

The two runs gave Phil Hughes some room to work with, having beat the Yankees in his first start against them back on June 1 when he tossed eight innings of two-run ball. Hughes retired 11 of the first 12 batters that he faced through four innings, having set down the first six to make it 24 straight Yankee hitters going back to that June start at Yankee Stadium.

The Yankees' lineup finally broke through against it's former teammate in the 5th inning. Mark Teixeira and Brian McCann hit back-to-back singles open the frame, then Beltran cleared the bases and gave Bombers a 3-2 lead with a three-run shot to right field. Both Beltran and McCann are hitting in the .220's, and need to start hitting better, obviously. Two batters later, Wheeler prompted John Sterling to debut "Wheels up for Zelous" for his first big league homerun, making it a 4-2 game.

Minnesota gained a run back on Tanaka in the bottom half of the 6th inning on an RBI groundout by Kendrys Morales, scoring Kurt Suzuki, who doubled then moved to third base on a Parmelee groundout. That cut the Yanks' lead to 4-3.

The Bombers, though, would extend their lead up to four runs in the next half inning with a three-run frame. Ichiro Suzuki drew a one-out walk and Wheeler followed up with a single. The next batter, Brendan Ryan, doubled to score Ichiro and move Wheeler to third, making this a 5-3 game.

Brian Duensing relieved Hughes to end his night. Hughes, and All-Star Game candidate two weeks ago, has been roughed up lately, and was tagged for seven runs on eight hits tonight, with a walk and six strikeouts.

Brett Gardner welcomed Duensing to the game with an RBI single that scored Wheeler and put Ryan on third base with just one out. A batter later, Derek Jeter grounded out, which was enough to score Ryan, giving the Yankees a 7-3 lead.

Tanaka in the 7th inning gave up his fourth run of the game for the very first time in his big league career. Trevor Plouffe doubled with one out, then Edurado Escobar singled home Plouffe to pull the Twins within three runs.

Like I said, this wasn't Tanaka's best game, facing the Twins for the second time in his career. He was charged with four runs on seven hits, with just three strikeouts and no walks on 85 pitches in seven innings of work.

He handed the ball off to Dellin Betances, who shut down the side in the 8th while striking out a pair, during his normal Betances thing. That lead to David Robertson, who issued a two-out walk, but still struck out the side to end the game for his 19th save of the season. Robertson has been really good in his first season as the closer, and as a free-agent at the end of the season, the Yankees need to lock him up.

Back to .500, the Yankees will send Chase Whitley to the mound on Friday afternoon for a special 3 pm start time on Independence Day, going up against right-hander Kyle Gibson. The game will be aired on ESPN.

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