The Yankees finally go back to playing night games as they try to end their two-game losing streak tonight against the Orioles with CC Sabathia on the mound. Sabathia is going for his 20th win of the season.

Here are some notes:

• James “Mudcat” Grant once wrote a book about all of the African American pitchers to win 20 games, he called them the “Black Aces”. If Sabathia wins 20, he would become the 14th member of the Black Aces.
• CC is also going for a record 22 consecutive games at Yankee Stadium without a loss. He is currently tied with Whitey Ford at 21.
• Andy Pettitte‘s rehab start has been pushed back to Thursday. He is scheduled to throw 4 innings or 65 pitches, which ever comes first.
• Because of Austin Kearns‘ bone bruise on his right hand and Nick Swisher‘s knee, Colin Curtis was called up from the minors.
• Swisher played yesterday and hinted that he wasn’t 100 percent, but an MRI showed no structural damage. That means he’s just playing through pain and shouldn’t be making the situation worse by being active.

So the Yankees are finally back to playing at night, at least for one day. They go back and play another day game tomorrow. That means you can probably expect Jorge Posada to sit one of these games out. My guess is tomorrow’s game since Francisco Cervelli has a lot more experience catching Ivan Nova from the minors.

If Sabathia misses out on winning 20 tonight, he will have at least four more chances to get it done.

Under Buck Showalter the Orioles have become a different team and it showed this afternoon as the O’s beat the Yankees 4-3. A.J. Burnett wasn’t horrible, but wasn’t good enough as he allowed four runs over seven innings for the loss.

Here are some quick highlights:

• The Yankees had a guy with a .331 OBP leading off and a guy with a .395 OBP batting 9th, Derek Jeter and Brett Gardner respectively.
• Alex Rodriguez homered and drove in a pair of runs. That gives him 100 for the season, his 14th season with at least 100 RBI’s and 13th in a row.
• A-Rod is 3-for-6 with a homer and 3 RBI’s since returning from the DL.
• Nick Swisher started and went 0-for-3 with a walk.
• Colin Curtis was activated before the game. He pinch hit and struck out looking to end the game (the pitch was in the opposite batter’s box).
• Brian Matusz held the Yankees to just 3 runs on 5 hits.
• The Orioles’ bullpen held the Yankees hitless over 3 innings.

Some people really get a kick out of these so I figured I would post them. Here are a few pictures of Derek Jeter and his girlfriend Minka Kelly at the U.S. Open this past weekend. If it’s not your cup of tea, I’m sorry, but I don’t really post these that often.

Lou Gehrig, or the Iron Horse and Yankee Captain, played with the Yankees from 1923 until 1939. During that time he played in 2,130 consecutive games, a record that stood for 56 years. He finished his career with 493 home runs, 1,995 RBIs, a .340 batting average, a .447 OBP, and a 1.080 OPS. He also holds the record for most career grand slams at 23.

Gehrig was named the league MVP in 1927 and 1936 and also won the triple crown in 1934, leading the league in home runs, RBI’s, and batting average. He was elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1939 and was picked as the first baseman for the MLB All-Century Team in 1999.

Gehrig was born and raised in New York City and even went to college at Columbia University, although he did not play baseball in his freshman year because of eligibility rules. At Columbia he was a standout pitcher, once striking out 17 batters in a single game, but the Yankees were more interested in him as a hitter. He finished school in 1923 and made his major league debut in that very season.

Gehrig would not become a standout regular until 1926 when he played in 155 games, led the league with 20 triples, smacked 16 home runs, and hit .313. In 1927 he was truly amazing hitting .373 with a 1.240 OPS while leading the league with 447 total bases (52 doubles, 18 triples, and 47 home runs). His 1927 numbers still rival the stats for any player’s single season accomplishments to this day, Babe Ruth included.

That ’27 team was nicknamed Murderer’s Row in a large part because of Gehrig. In fact, Ruth hit 60 home runs that year and Gehrig still took home the AL MVP award. That offense powered the Yankees to a 110-44 overall record that year and a sweep in the World Series.

Gehrig was a hero in the 1927 World Series, but he really stood out in the 1928 World Series when he hit .545, had a .706 OBP, a 1.727 slugging percentage along with four home runs and nine RBI’s. All in four games.

Gehrig lead the league in home runs in 1931, 1934, and 1936, but only outslugged teammate Ruth in the ’34 season, his last with the Yankees (they tied in ’31 and Ruth was retired in ’36).

Midway through the 1938 season Gehrig first reported feeling tired. It was the start of his amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, later named Lou Gehrig’s disease, that would eventually end his career and take his life.

At the start of the 1939 season there was something clearly wrong with Gehrig, but it wasn’t until May 2 that he came out of the lineup for the first time in 2,130 games. Gehrig had to bench himself because Yankees manager Joe McCarthy refused to take him out of the lineup. The Yankees were on the road that day and the Detroit Tigers fans acknowledged that Gehrig’s games played streak had ended by giving him a standing ovation. He never played again.

Gehrig gave his famous “Luckiest Man on the Face of the Earth” speech on July 4th that year. It was on Lou Gehrig Appreciation Day at Yankee Stadium and took place in between a double header against the Washington Senators. On that day, Ruth and Gehrig put behind them a personal conflict that kept the pair from speaking with each other for years. There is a famous picture of Ruth embracing Gehrig. Gehrig didn’t hug Ruth back because his ALS had been so bad that he couldn’t lift his arms.

Gehrig died June 2, 1941 at the age of 37. Today he is remembered by the Yankees with a plaque in Monument Park and his no. 4 is retired. The Yankees also didn’t name another captain until Thurman Munson was given the honor in 1976, in memory of Gehrig.

Here are Gehrig’s stats:

The Yankees have owned the Orioles this season, beating them in 10 of the 12 times the two teams have faced each other, but Baltimore has been a different team since hiring former Yankees manager Buck Showalter. So this week’s three game series will not be as easy as the head-to-head record would make it seem.

Here are some notes:

• The Yankees will announce today what the next step for Andy Pettitte will be. Most likely he will pitch with Double-A Trenton on Wednesday, but he could do a simulated game instead.
• Nick Swisher had an MRI on his left knee which revealed no structural damage. There is inflammation though, but Swisher hopes he will be back in the lineup today.
• Nothing has been announced yet, but it appears that OF Colin Curtis is going to be called up today. He was pulled from a Triple-A game yesterday while his team was on the field.
• Here are the pitching match-ups vs. the Orioles:
  • Monday: RHP A.J. Burnett (10-12, 5.15) vs. LHP Brian Matusz (7-12, 4.72).
  • Tuesday: LHP CC Sabathia (19-5, 3.02) vs. RHP Jake Arrieta (4-6, 5.11).
  • Wednesday: RHP Ivan Nova (1-0, 2.89) vs. RHP Brad Bergesen (6-10, 5.47).

The Yankees play the Orioles six more times over the remainder of the season. Hopefully they can still manhandle them, but it might not happen. The next six games will go a long way to showing if the Orioles are for real or not. If they are real they still aren’t going to compete for the division next season, but it will make the AL East that much harder.

Also, we’ve got Curtis likely coming up. That’s a good move because with Swisher being a question mark Greg Golson had to start yesterday. Golson is a good runner and fielder, but you really don’t want him starting down the stretch, Curtis is a better option.

The Yankees got Alex Rodriguez back today, but his 2-for-5 day wasn’t enough to overcome Phil Hughes‘ poor start as the Yankees lost 7-3 to the Toronto Blue Jays to end their winning streak at eight games.

Here are some highlights:

• Hughes allowed 3 home runs for the second time this season (last time was July 4th also against Toronto).
• With an 0-for-4 day, Derek Jeter is now batting .154 over his last 20 games.
• Nick Swisher, day-to-day with a knee injury, pinch hit and went 0-for-1.
• Austin Kearns, day-to-day with a thumb injury, came in as a defensive replacement in the 9th inning.
• Don’t blame the bottom of the order for this one, Greg Golson and Ramiro Pena combined to go 3-for-6.
• Brett Cecil is now 3-0 with a 2.22 ERA in 4 starts against the Yankees this season.

The Rays also lost so they remain 2.5 games behind the Yankees. Up next are the Baltimore Orioles.

The Yankees traded Austin Jackson this offseason because despite the fact that they liked him, they liked Curtis Granderson more. However, through most of the season Granderson was either injured or a disappointment or both.

While Granderson was struggling, Jackson was thriving in Detroit. His BABIP might have been sky high, suggesting that he was over achieving, and he might have been showing very little power, but he was still hitting north of .300 while providing exceptional speed and defense. It made the Yankees and general manager Brian Cashman look bad.

So the Yankees hitting coach Kevin Long went to work with Granderson on fixing his swing to untap some of that amazing potential G-Unit showed with Detroit. It wasn’t anything major, but he cut out excessive movement and lowered his hands.

If the first 23 games after the fix are any indication, Granderson has done a complete 180. Here are his numbers:

23 G, 80 AB, 12 R, 24 H, 4 2B, 7 HR, 15 RBI, 10 BB, 16 SO, .300 BA, .385 OBP, .613 SLG, .997 OPS.

His BABIP is right where you want it too at .298 (.300 is about the league average and means he isn’t getting extraordinarily lucky). On top of that, the guy famous for not being able to hit lefties is crushing them. Since the fix he’s hitting .414 with three doubles and a pair of homers against southpaws.

It’s still early and there is certainly no guarantee that this will carry over into next season or even the playoffs. If this is a turning point in his career, the Yankees might have bought low on Granderson instead of making a poor trade. Just like another outfielder roaming Yankee Stadium, Nick Swisher, who is currently having a career year in Pinstripes.

The Yankees have Phil Hughes on the mound this afternoon as they go for the sweep of the Toronto Blue Jays and their 9th consecutive victory overall.

Here are some notes:

• Alex Rodriguez will be activated this afternoon. He will play third and hit cleanup.
• Marcus Thames got the start in right field yesterday when Nick Swisher was scratched because Austin Kearns couldn’t play due to a minor thumb injury. He is day-to-day.
• Swisher and Kearns might be day-to-day, but they aren’t playing this afternoon. On top of that Girardi must be uncomfortable with Thames in right because Greg Golson is getting the start in right field.
• Robinson Cano also has the day off, Ramiro Pena is starting in his place.
• Manger Joe Girardi expects to keep Javier Vazquez in the rotation despite yesterday’s poor start.
• Here is the lineup:
  • Gardner LF
    Jeter SS
    Teixeira 1B
    Rodriguez 3B
    Thames DH
    Posada C
    Granderson CF
    Golson RF
    Pena 2B

Golson won’t help the Yankees much offensively, but he helps give the Yankees one heck of a strong defensive outfield with Brett Gardner in left and Curtis Granderson in right. This is right up there as one of the best defensive outfields Yankee fans have ever seen.

The Yankees have won their 8th game in a row, overcoming a poor performance from Javier Vazquez who was pulled in the 5th inning to beat the Blue Jays 7-5.

Here is a quick recap:

• Vazquez did not look as sharp as he had in his two previous bullpen appearances, only managing to hit 89 mph on the gun.
• Marcus Thames started in right field, the first time in a long time, in place of Nick Swisher who was a pregame scratch and came through with the game winning home run in the 7th inning.
• Brett Gardner stole his 40th base of the season.
• Boone Logan, Joba Chamberlain, Kerry Wood, and Mariano Rivera all pitched great coming out of the bullpen.
• Toronto’s Jose Bautista was ejected in the 7th inning after arguing balls and strikes.
• Robinson Cano‘s bat woke up a little, he had 2 hits and 2 RBI’s.

If you are impatient or a Javy-hater, this was a tough game to watch, but the Yankees battled back after an early deficit, got a clutch hit from Thames, and the bullpen shut the door.

Andy Pettitte threw a simulated game, three innings, this morning and came through feeling great. One of the three batters he faced was Alex Rodriguez, who said he also felt great and could play tomorrow afternoon.

Up next for Pettitte is likely to be a bullpen on Monday and a minor league rehab start on Wednesday. He’s expected to throw 65 pitches in the minor league start. It’s possible he could make two starts, but it is more likely he’ll just make the one and be limited to 75 pitches in his first start back in the majors. That would set Pettitte up to start Monday, September 13 against the Tampa Bay Rays.

A-Rod was good in the batter’s box today, but still isn’t running at 100 percent. He’s probably going to be in the lineup anyway tomorrow, but it will probably be another week or two before he’s completely healthy. Despite the fact that Ramiro Pena and Eduardo Nunez have done well, it’s still a big deal to get him back.

Nick Swisher was actually written into the lineup for this afternoon’s game, but he still isn’t running at 100 percent because of the knee injury he sustained a couple weeks back. He’s day-to-day and available to pinch hit today.