Johnny Damon believes he will be back in the Yankees’ lineup today after missing the previous two games with a sore lower back that surfaced Friday morning and could have started in the hamstring area.
“I expect to play,” Damon said after the Yankees were spanked 7-3 yesterday by the Orioles at Yankee Stadium. “[Friday] I couldn’t bend down or do any type of movement.”
Damon said muscle relaxers taken Friday helped and he spent most of yesterday receiving treatment. He felt enough improvement that he took a “few soft swings off a tee.”
Joe Girardi, who wanted to wait until today to decide if Damon was going to return, used Jerry Hairston in left and in Damon’s No. 2 spot in the batting order. Hairston went 0-for-3, but his sacrifice bunt helped build a run in the first when he moved Derek Jeter from second to third.
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Though Hideki Matsui is hitting .263 (31-for-118) against lefties, he wasn’t in the lineup yesterday against Brian Matusz. Instead, Girardi gave Shelley Duncan his first start of the year in the DH slot. Duncan went 1-for-3 against the lefty.
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The Yankees lost consecutive games for the first time since Aug. 16-17 at Seattle and Oakland. The last time they lost two straight at home was June 17-18 to the Nationals.
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The Yankees are batting an anemic .172 (5-for-29) with runners in scoring position in the previous four games (2-2). They were 1-for-4 yesterday and the hit came in the ninth when Jorge Posada singled in a run that made it 7-3.
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Alex Rodriguez, whose three-run, first-inning homer night got lost in the Derek Jeter celebration and the long night, doubled in the first yesterday. He is hitting .425 (17-for-40) with two homers and 13 RBIs in 10 games this month.
Reportedly Rodriguez will not be punished by MLB for his steroid use with the Rangers. Rodriguez was not available for comment yesterday.
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Andy Pettitte, Joba Chamberlain and Phil Hughes will visit Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center’s Department of Pediatrics Tuesday afternoon.
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Friday night’s delayed start and a stoppage in the seventh inning hiked the Yankees’ rain delay total to 15 this season. They have lost 22 hours, 22 minutes to rain and have had three games — all at home — postponed.
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LHP CC Sabathia (16-7; 3.40 ERA) draws RHP Jeremy Guthrie (10-13; 4.96) today. RHP Joba Chamberlain (8-5; 4.45) faces RHP Jered Weaver (15-5; 3.76) Monday night in a make up game against the Angels at the Stadium.