Yankees vs. Brewers-Battle of first place teams

Here are some news and notes before tonights game.  I also have the Yankees lineup for you.  Freddy Garcia will match up against Zach Greinke.  Greinke has a good record but not a great ERA.  He has not rounded into form yet, remember he missed the first month or so of the season with an injury.  He must get good run support though, the Brewers do have a good offense.  This is a interesting series, two first place teams and you have Prince Fielder taking aim at the short porch in right field. 

Bartolo Colon is on his way back to New York and will be evaluated by the Yankees tomorrow. After a four-inning simulated game on Monday, the Yankees believe there’s a chance Colon could be ready to pitch this weekend against the Mets.  It looks like that is what they are setting him up for as he practiced running and bunting today. 


“That’s what we have to evaluate,” Joe Girardi said. “Do we feel that he is ready? We’ll get a chance to look at him tomorrow and make that decision.”

So why would Phil Hughes need a series of rehab starts, but Colon would need nothing more than a simulated game?  Here is the managers answer to that question, it is pretty simple if you ask me “He’s really only missed two starts,” Girardi said. “It’s not abnormal to skip a pitcher a start and then for him to come back and make the next start. You see that happen all the time, where a guy might pitch on 10 days rest. He did somewhat make a rehab start yesterday: 60 pitches, four innings for Bartolo. He said he felt great, and he could have went more. I believe him, because he was built up. I don’t think missing the two starts was really that much, because he was playing long-toss in that time and keeping his arm in shape. The concern for me is not his arm, it’s making sure his leg is healed. That, we’ll check out.”

 Derek Jeter took batting practice, fielded ground balls and ran the bases at about 50 or 60 percent effort today. Girardi said it’s “probably fair to say” that Jeter would need at least two rehab games before being ready to return. When he might be ready for a rehab assignment is still uncertain. “The one thing you have to see is you have to see him run at 100 percent,” Girardi said. “And you’ve got to see him recover and maybe do it a couple of days in a row before you possibly send him out on a rehab.”  It looks like he could come back next week in Cleveland and be set up to get 3000 hits at home against Tampa before the All Star Break.

 Rafael Soriano played catch today — Girardi said he was pretty sure it was a regular long toss — and reported no problems.  He should be back after the All Start break and that will help out the ailing bullpen.

 Update on Eric Chavez: He's progressing slowly, I would be after the All Star Break he will be back. 

 Phil Hughes will make a Double-A rehab start tomorrow. It seems likely that he’ll need one more — Brian Cashman has said as much — and Girardi said he’s not sure whether Hughes could do enough tomorrow to show the Yankees he’s ready. “I can’t tell you that,” Girardi said. “I’m looking forward to his start to see how he does, I can tell you that, and to make a determination if we think he’s ready.”

Yankees Lineup: Brett Gardner, Curtis Granderson, Mark Teixeira, Alex Rodriguez, Robinson Cano, Nick Swisher, Jorge Posada, Russell Martin, Eduardo Nunez.  Freddy Garcia is on the mound against Zach Greinke.