Consistent Colon

Commentary:

Bartolo Colon continued to look like he has been reborn, embodying his 2005-self for the third game in a row.  The movement on his pitches was once again fantastic and he held the Tigers to 3 runs over 7 innings while striking out 7.  He allowed two solo HRs to Avila including a game-tying blast in the 7th.  Despite the late comeback by the Tigers to tie the game at 3, the Yanks came through in the top of the 9th with a hard single up the middle by Swisher that scored Teixiera from 2nd, just ahead of the throw.  New York picked up its 5th run on a wild pitch by Valverde later in the inning who threw 35 pitches to record 3 outs.

The bullpens made the difference in this game with Valverde shouldering the loss for the Tigers.  On the flip side, Joba and Mo pitched a scoreless 8th and 9th with Rivera picking up his 11th save and Chamberlain accumulating his 2nd win of the season (2-0).

The Yankee offense got on the board early against Tigers' starter Justin Verlander who struggled over 6 innings, throwing 127 pitches, allowing 8 hits, walking 4 but held New York to just runs.  Despite the win (5-3), the Yankees were 2-14 with RISP and left 11 on base.  The good news was that Posada had 2 hits after being mired in a terrible slump (something like 1 for his last 30).  Gardner had a good game once again with 2 walks and 1 hit as his average has climbed to .211.

As a side note, Phil Hughes had good news today regarding his possible thoratic outlet syndrome.  Not too many details have been revealed yet however.

Grades:

Offense: B  5 runs scored without the home run is  good but 2-14 with RISP is not.

Starting Pitching (Colon):  B  Gave the Yanks length but allowed 3 runs.  Another good start by the veteran.

Bullpen:  A+  Another great performance.

Weather for Tomorrow's Matchup (@ Tigers):

It's going to be a chilly game tomorrow night and feel more like March than the first week of April due a cold front that will pass through the area tonight.

Game Time Conditions (7:05pm):  Mostly cloudy with a temperature of 40.

Verification of Yesterday's Forecast:

Forecast Temp:55
Observed Temp: 57
Forecast Conditions:  Mostly cloudy.
Observed Conditions: A few high clouds.

Grade: A