You knew it couldn't last forever.

Mike Mussina entered Thursday night's game riding a personal four-game winning streak, but he was touched up early and often as the Tigers beat the Yanks 8-5 at The Stadium.  The game wasn't really that close as The Moose gave up a grand slam in the first and then two more runs in the second as the Yanks fell 5.5 games behind Boston in the AL East and .5 game back of the Mariners in the wild card.

The Good:

Bobby Abreu.  I thought when Abreu hits, the Yanks win.  Something's wrong -- something's amiss.  Abreu's two-run homer in the third sliced Detroit's lead to 6-3 and gave the Yanks a glimmer of hope.  Too bad it was just a glimmer.  Bobby finished 2 for 5 with 2 runs scored and 2 RBIs.

Hideki Matsui.  Godzilla picked up three more hits on Thursday and finally pushed his average over .300 for the season.  Matsui's RBI single in the first got the Yanks on the board and his ribbie double in the ninth delayed the inevitable.  Still, Matsui is putting together another solid season in pinstripes after a rough beginning.  Matsui finished 3 for 5 with a run scored and 2 RBI.

The Bad:

Mike Mussina.  The Moose put the Yanks behind the eight ball early on Thursday night.  Sure, he was hurt by A-Rod's error in the first, but his pitches were up -- especially his off-speed stuff.  The Yanks were able to tag Justin Verlander for three runs through the first three innings, but Mussina just couldn't hold down the Tigers.  And when Mussina looks bad, he looks old.  The Moose's winning streak came to a screeching halt with this effort: 5 IP, 9 H, 7 R (6 earned), 2 BB, 2 K, 1 HR.

The Ugly:

It's Gary!  Gary Sheffield made his return to the Bronx on Thursday night.  It was his first appearance since being traded in the off-season and his first appearance since claiming Joe Torre treated black players differently than white players.  Yep, he was booed in his first at-bat.  Sheffield stated before the game that he had nothing to clear up with Torre.  Sheffield has always been outspoken, but that's sometimes confused with "telling it like it is."  Sheffield just likes to talk.  I don't think he even realizes what he's saying half of the time.  How else to explain his strange logic?  He said Torre treats players differently based on the color of their skin, but he's not a racist.  Here's another Sheffield gem: "If I lose friends, so what. I don't need friends. I've got plenty of friends."  Yeah, I don't get it either.

Nevermind.  Speaking of bizarre logic, turns out Jason Giambi won't be disciplined for admitting (sort of) to using performance-enhancing drugs.  Why, you ask?  Because Commissioner Bud Selig thinks Giambi's a good guy.  He cited Giambi's $50,000 contributions to two different charities as reasons why he's letting the Yankee DH off the hook.  Oh, man, what a mess!   

The Yanks will try and stem the tide on Friday night and will give Andy Pettitte the assignment.  Pettitte is 3-0 with a 2.70 ERA in his last three starts.  Detroit Rock City will counter with lefty Nate Robertson.  Robertson is 7-9 on the season with a chunky 5.01 ERA.  Righties are batting a healthy .305 against Robertson this season, but he did pick up his first victory in nearly a month against the A's last week.

Time to get him back on the losing track.

2 Comments