The Yankees come back from their road trip to take on the Cy Young stacked Tigers. Brandon McCarthy (3-0, 2.55 ERA) gets the pleasure of facing off against Max Scherzer (13-3, 3.27 ERA). McCarthy has been enjoying his time in pinstripes. In four starts for New York he is 3-0 with a 2.55 ERA. He had his roughest outing with the team against Texas, allowing four runs and nine hits in six innings.
Over his last seven outings, Scherzer is 5-0 with a 2.08 ERA, including seven innings of one run ball against the White Sox his last time out. However, he has a 5.17 ERA in three regular season starts at Yankee Stadium. “There’s just nothing you can do about it,” Scherzer said. “You have the short porch in right. You’ve got to do everything you can to keep the ball from going in the air in that direction. That’s a lot easier said than done. You just realize it’s there. The thing is, if a cheap one does go out, you just don’t let it affect you. You don’t sit there and cry about it and let it affect the next hitter. If it happens, you just turn the page and get the next guy out. You have to have that relentless mentality.”
The big headline in this series will be Joba Chamberlain, who will make his first appearance in the Bronx since signing with Detroit in December. He pitched the first seven seasons of his career in New York, and had a 0.38 ERA in 19 games as a rookie in 2007 and a 9-6 year during the 2009 World Series championship season. “They gave me the opportunity to play baseball,” Chamberlain said. “I’m so grateful for that, thankful for the opportunities. Through all the ups and downs and the good years, and the Joba rules and what have you, but without the opportunity with the New York Yankees, I wouldn’t have the opportunity to sit here and talk to you about this.”
Notes on the game
Chamberlain’s HR/9 rate is 0.4 this season, tied for the lowest of his career.
When Esmil Rogers made his Yankees debut Sunday, he became the 50th player the team has used this season. They have used a franchise record 29 pitchers, including 11 starters and have started a rookie pitcher 49 times, most in the Majors.
First pitch at 7:05 pm on Yes and ESPN.
