WHY IT'S JUST BUSINESS AS USUAL FOR IVAN NOVA

(Photo: Getty)

Ivan Nova needed only one run from his teammates today but to play it safe the offense went out and gave him 3. The "2011 AL Rookie-of-the-Year" was absolutely spectacular today as he pitched 7 innings of shut out ball to help the Yankees take 3-out-of-4 from the Minnesota Twins.



Bouncing back from that rough outing earlier this week in Kansas City, Nova made the pitches when he needed them the most and was in total control from the start. Even when the Yankees did their best imitation of the Bad News Bears in the field, Nova picked up his teammates and shut down any chance of the Twins scoring. Nova mixed up his pitches and had the Twin hitters off balance for most of the afternoon. His final line today was 7 IP's - 5 Hits - 0 ER - 5 K's - 1 BB. The best part? Nova earned his 13th win of 2011 and lowered his ERA to 3.96.



The Yankee's bullpen combination of David Robertson and Mariano Rivera has quickly become the most dominant 8-9 combo in MLB this year. DRob did what DRob does in the 8th. Despite giving up two infield singles, both of which could have been outs, and a walk to Jim Thome, "Houdini" closed the door on any hope the Twins had. And then it was Mo time in the 9th: 1-2-3 went the Twins and Mariano gets his 33rd save of the year.Ivan Nova continues to show amazing composure despite his age. I mentioned it a couple weeks ago in this piece, WHY IVAN NOVA IS JUST WHAT THE DOCTOR ORDERED. This 2010/2011 Ivan Nova reminds me so much of the 1995/1996 Andy Pettitte. I remember when Pettitte became a full time starter for the Yankees. What stood out for me was the way he handled himself on the mound. It seemed no matter what the game situation was, Pettitte kept his composure and showed so much heart. When you turned on a Yankee game and Pettitte was on the mound, when you looked at him you couldn't tell if the Yankees were up 3-0 or down 7-0. Pettitte literally threw one pitch at a time. That is exactly what Ivan Nova is showing to me now. I believe we are truly watching a pitching phenom develop right before our eyes and it goes way back to how much we've supported Nova here at BYB. This piece, WHY HE'S SUPER NOVA is from March, but it just shows that there were early signs, this kid was bound to have a great year. So, enjoy it Yankee fans, I know I am!

For the first 6 innings today the Yankee bats were pretty much sleeping. They managed to manufacture a run in the 6th inning to break the scoreless game. Even though Nova and the bullpen only needed that one run today, the Bronx Bombers tacked on a couple more in the 7th inning with back-to-back, and a belly-to-belly home runs by the "2011 AL MVP" Curtis Granderson and his shadow, Mark Teixiera. (Photo: AP)

For Grandy it was home run #35 of the year and he is now tied with Jose Bautista of Toronto. And for Tex, it was his 34th HR of the season. Can anyone say Maris & Mantle, 1961? Here at BYB, we began seeing the Maris/Mantle & Granderson/Teixeira similarities early on. Check out

WHY ITS 1961 ALL OVER AGAIN and WHY MANTLE & MARIS ARE STILL INTRIGUING TODAY. Casey's been pounding that drum all year.

Other Game Highlights today:

• In addition to Granderson's inside the park homer, it gives him 98 RBIs on the year and Grandy also stole his 24th base of the year.

• Teixeira's solo blast gives him 95 RBI.

• David Robertson continues to dazzle, particularly against lefty hitters. Robertson pitched an inning striking out two more left handed hitters. Robertson has now faced 96 left handed hitters, striking out 47 of them! Can anyone say CY Young? I can... read WHY DAVID ROBERTSON IS CY YOUNG WORTHY.

• Cano hit his 33rd double of the season. Nice.
  
  

FINAL SCORE: New York Yankees 3 - Minnesota Twins 0.





--Mikey Blue, BYB Senior Writer

Email: DonnieBaseball2323@gmail.com

Twitter: @MikeyBlu23





Please comment and let me know what you think and follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue on Facebook, just type it in.

WHY MOVES ARE ABOUT TO BE MADE

Is Andruw Jones the guy the Yankees have been looking for? The word from our buddy Jon Heyman is that the Yankees are in pursuit of a big bat and fourth outfielder and Andruw Jones fills that role and the Yankees want him BADLY. Let’s not forget, Andruw Jones is only 33 years old. When he was with the White Sox last year, he still had some pop hitting 19 home runs. The best part is what he does to lefties pitching. He has an .863 OPS against lefties in his career, including a .931 mark in 2010. I like that, I like that alot. The only problem is he's not a superstar anymore. I remember him in the beginning with the Braves cranking out home runs against the Yankees in the World Series. He had over 400 home runs to this day, but age brings a slow down and Andruw is in fact slowing down. That being said, for a fourth outfielder and pop, I'll welcome Andruw Jones.

It will be interesting to see just how close the 2 sides are. I know the Yanks have always liked Andruw, just like they do anyone who does damage to the Yanks, but the truth of the matter is, this could very well be a good fit. The only issue, which I have voiced a few times is Andruw's agent, Scott Boros. Now, I'm not fond of Boros and the Yankees just need to be careful when they start talking numbers. What they don't want is a lengthy contract for a broken down player, but they know stuff better than me. They are the baseball men, I'm the one on my computer in the basement acting like I know everything. And on that note, let me say this,

This morning I posted WHY THOME SHOULD BE A YANKEE. Yes it’s true, I expressed my excitement for Jim Thome and having him in our lineup. While it makes sense in my head, it was smartly disputed by lenNY’s Yankees who brilliantly wrote this:

Well, it doesn’t happen to me often, but he’s right. Unless Thome wants to work for cheap and ride the bench, he’s not coming to the Bronx. The word is Thome wants $8 million. The Yankees won't pay that for a bench rider and part time DH. Plus, the word is the Rangers are looking at him. If Thome DOES want $8 million and the Rangers are paying, well, they can have him.

So where are we? Back where we started I guess, I'm just itching for the Yanks to make a move. I like the rumor of Andruw Jones, I’d like him our lineup and yes, I like my theory of Jim Thome cracking baseballs into the “Thome Town” right field stands at Yankee Stadium, but that’s why this is the offseason. Rumors, “reports” and bogus stories are flying high. Once again, the Yankee fans are waiting for something, ANYTHING, that they can celebrate. Let’s hope it’s soon.

Please comment and let me know what you think and follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue on Facebook, just type it in.

WHY THOME SHOULD BE A YANKEE

Jim Thome, The 39 year old former first baseman and current DH is a free agent. This man hits home runs, plain and simple. It doesn't matter what park he's in, it doesn't matter if he's in the American League or National League. Jim Thome is a home run machine. Get up there and hit it as hard has he can. That's his job and he knows it.

Jim Thome is a throwback. Loose fitting uniform, always dirty, eye black and walks up to the plate and holds his bat out as if to say "I'm about to hit this out." There is no way around it, even at 39, Jim Thome is larger than life. In 2010 with the Twins, Thome hit 25 home runs. In the year before where he was in his final year with the Chicago White Sox making $13 million, he moved onto the Twins to make $1.5 million.

So why am I saying all this to you? I'm telling you because in my heart of hearts, I believe Jim Thome, a veteran home run hitter, should end his career in pinstripes. Why not? Yankee Stadium, which, for a brief time had a rightfield stands titled "Damon's Deck", should be called "Thome Town". The town where balls are deposited regularly by Jim Thome. Can you imagine how many home runs Thome can give us at Yankee Stadium? 30, 35? Yes, Thome is older, but he still knows his role and when you concentrate on something long enough, you get into a rhythm and just keep rolling. You don't believe me? Ask Josh Hamilton when he put on a clinic at the old Yankee Stadium during the Home Run Derby in 2008.

Thome would be an incredible option for the New York Yankees. Yes, we've all been told Jorge Posada is our DH, but is he really? You don't think Posada and Martin will be platooning behind the plate with Jesus Montero joining them and filling in on occasion and eventually getting his sea legs? I believe that. I expect Martin to be our number 1, Posada and Montero platooning the 2 and 3 slots and with a guy like Thome as the DH platooning with Posada? I don't see how we can lose? Plus, what could Thome possibly want to get paid? $1 million, $2? Maybe $2.5 million? It makes sense to me. Anyone disagree?

Please comment and let me know what you think and follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue on Facebook, just type it in.