TORONTO – Momentum was Mike Mussina’s middle name last night.
Pitching for renewed credibility in his 17th major league season, the 38-year-old right-hander, who was pulled from the rotation following a third consecutive ghastly start Aug. 27, not only achieved that personal goal, but also elevated himself into consideration for a start in the postseason.
Though the Yankees aren’t there yet, they drew inexorably closer in reducing their wild-card magic number to 15 with a 4-1 victory over the Blue Jays that represented their seventh straight triumph. And though Mussina probably never will be able to hit the heights that he had been able to consistently reach over the course of a distinguished career in which he has won 248 games, he wasn’t that from it against Toronto.
In fact, Mussina’s performance was likely the best outing by a Yankees starter over the course of this streak, which commenced last Tuesday at home against the Mariners. Before being pulled by Joe Torre with two out and two on in the sixth while holding a 4-0 lead, Mussina surrendered five hits.
“It’s nice to feel like I contributed to the cause here, which I haven’t felt for a long time,” said Mussina, who last won on Aug. 11. “Needing wins the way we do, we can’t afford to send somebody out there who’s going to give up six or seven runs in two innings.”
Mussina was aggressive all night, in command of both a fastball that consistently registered in the high 80s, as well as a sharp curve. He kept the Jays off-balance, changing speeds, succeeding in throwing first-pitch strikes to eight of the first 10 batters he faced and to 15 of the 23 Jays he faced overall. Normally a fly-ball pitcher, he induced 10 ground-ball outs.
It was as if, after all these years at the top of his craft, Mussina reintroduced himself as a major league pitcher following three starts in which he was pummeled for 20 runs (19 earned) on 25 hits in 92/3 innings and was scored upon in eight of 10 innings.
“When I look back, those three games probably will have ruined my year, whatever it would have been,” said Mussina (9-10). “Of course, if we win the World Series, that would make it easier to forget.”
Mussina said he had no idea where the ball was going when it left his hand in those three starts. He appeared as “Lost” as all those people on ABC’s fictional island. And his place in the rotation was assumed by 22-year-old neophyte, Ian Kennedy. Fact is, if Roger Clemens hadn’t gone down with an elbow injury, No. 35 might not have gotten another chance to reclaim his good name.
Now, it appears Mussina is a lock to get the ball again, regardless of whether The Rocket is able to resume his spot in the rotation. There is the experience factor cited by Torre, and there is the schedule that features one off day between now and the Sept. 30 finish line.
“Certainly Moose showed us we can send him out there and be back to the pitcher he is,” said Torre, who will review the potential rotation today with pitching coach Ron Guidry. “He knows what to do, he’s been down this road before, and he’s won important games for us.
“His experience gives him an edge.”
One 52/3-inning performance doesn’t a revival make. He will have to prove himself again and again before he can be trusted to get the ball in October. If Clemens is healthy, the Yankees’ choice for a fourth starter likely will be between Mussina and rookie Phil Hughes.
But that’s a decision for later. The point for the present, however, is that Mussina, a) did not derail the Yankee Express, and b) reasserted himself. Just when everyone thought he was out, he pitched himself right back in.