You would think scoring 8 runs and banging out 13 hits would be more than enough offense to win a game.

You would think.

However, the old adage still rings true -- pitching wins ballgames -- and right now the Yanks don't have enough.  The Yankees losing streak reached four as the Devil Rays dropped the Yanks 10-8 Monday night at the Trop.

The Good:

Alex Rodriguez.  A-Rod continues to dominate.  He hit homers number 13 and 14 which tied a MLB record for most homers in April (Albert Pujols in 2006).  He finished the night 4-5 with 4 runs scored and 3 RBIs. 

Jason Giambi.  Giambi also continues to wield a hot bat as he went 3-4 with a walk and an RBI.  His 17 RBIs are tied for second in the AL and his production would be the talk of the Yanks if it weren't for A-Rod's staggering total of 34 RBIs.

Robinson Cano.   Cano continues to be the best eighth place hitter in the league as he went 2-3 including his first homer of the year.

The Bad:

Kei Igawa.  The Yankees were desperate for quantity and quality from a starter and Igawa failed to deliver on both counts.  Igawa continues to live up in the strike zone and it continues to hurt him.  I can't even get on the bullpen tonight (Brian Bruney and Luis Vizcaino specifically: 1.1 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 3 BB combined) because they've been asked to do too much.  Igawa's line: 4.1 IP, 8 H, 7 R, 3 BB, 3 K, 2 HR.

The Ugly:

B.J. Upton's home run.  Not only does Upton have a bizarre hitting style (he corkscrews his front foot before he swings), but his homer was a line drive that just managed to graze the foul pole (and why isn't it called the fair pole if it's a fair ball when it hits it?  Yeah, I went there).  I don't know why, but it was just ugly.

Even though the needle in YankeeLand seems to be bordering on panic, there is some good news to report.  Chien-Ming Wang is back and will make his first start of the season on Tuesday night.  The Yankees also welcomed back Hideki Matsui to the team after a stint on the DL and Jorge Posada returned  to the starting lineup after a stunted weekend in Boston.  And the big news -- Phil Hughes will make his major league debut  on Thursday night against the Toronto Blue Jays at The Stadium.  

It's been a bit of a bad stretch for the Yanks recently, but there is no need for anyone to have kittens.  The offense is clicking, the starting pitching should receive a positive jolt with the return of Wang which will in turn allow the bullpen to rest and recover. 

It may not be their greatest virtue, but Yankee fans should exercise some patience.