Bomber Bites for April 3rd

Mar 19, 2014; Lake Buena Vista, FL, USA; New York Yankees pitcher Ivan Nova (47) throws a pitch in the first inning of the spring training exhibition game against the Atlanta Braves at Champion Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jonathan Dyer-USA TODAY Sports

Yankees Fall to 0-2 in 2014: The Yankees got six strong innings from Hiroki Kuroda, who gave up just three hits and two runs, but failed to capitalize on their own opportunities. The Yankees went 0-for-10 on the night with runners in scoring position. The offense has been out of sync in both games thus far and the starting pitching has put the team into a hole very early in the game before settling down. The Bombers will need to reverse both those trends quickly to avoid a sweep.

Astros honor Jeter: The team that passed on Derek Jeter with the first pick in the 1992 draft honored his Hall of Fame career before the game Wednesday. In a short pregame ceremony with former Yankee teammates Roger Clemens, Andy Pettitte, and Mike Stanton, the Astros presented the Yankee Captain with a pair of No. 2 Yankee cowboy boots, a cowboy hat, a set of golf clubs and lessons from Tiger Woods’ former coach Butch Harmon. Then led by manager Bo Porter, the Houston players stepped out of their dugout and the bullpen to lead the fans in a standing ovation as Jeter walked to the plate in the first inning.

Heads High in Clubhouse:

The Yankees record through two games matches their record through two games in 2009 and 1998. Those seasons ended pretty well for the Bombers. While it’s never fun to lose your first two games, it’s two early to hit the panic button in the Bronx. As

Alfonso Soriano

reminded reporters in last night’s post-game “There are 160 games left.” That’s a lot of baseball.

Mandatory Credit: Chad R. MacDonald.

Tonight’s Game: Ivan Nova (9-6, 3.10 ERA in 2013) will make his season debut tonight as the Yankees try to fight off the brooms at Minute Maid Park. Nova has never faced the Astros before and has produced a 5.74 ERA (62.2IP, 40ER) in 13 career appearances (12 starts) in April, marking his highest ERA of any calendar month. The Astros will send lefty Brett Oberholtzer (4-5, 2.76 ERA in 2013) to the hill.

YGY Series Preview Show Tonight: We want to remind you that the Yanks Go Yard Show will air it’s second episode of the season tonight at 11:00 PM ET. Host and senior staff writer Ricky Keeler recaps the Yankees’ first series of the season against the Astros. Plus, we look ahead to the first starts for Masahiro Tanaka and Michael Pineda this weekend against the Toronto Blue Jays. Jeff Morten from Jays Journal is back with us to breakdown the pitching matchups and players to watch in this series for a Jays’ team that has already put shortstop Jose Reyes and closer Casey Janssen on the DL. The YGY Show is your home for previews of every series in podcast form! You can listen to the show LIVE by clicking the link below at 11:00 PM Eastern time…And those are your Bomber Bites for Thursday, April 3rd!

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO THE YANKEES-BLUE JAYS SERIES PREVIEW SHOW TONIGHT!!!

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