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Well, Derek Jeter did it again. He was what many people call, “clutch”. As the game with the Cleveland Indians was tied 5-5 in the bottom of the eighth inning, and with two outs, Jeter stepped to the plate against Jensen Lewis and reminded everyone why he will be known as one of the greatest New York Yankees ever. On a 3-1 pitch, Jeter took Lewis yard and hit what turned out to be the game-winning home run and the run that led to the Yankees’ first win in their new home (Boxscore).

However, Jeter’s wasn’t the only home run hit by the Bronx Bombers who lived up to the nickname as Johnny Damon, Mark Teixeira, Melky Cabrera, and Robinson Cano each had solo dingers. Luckily five solo home runs were enough to win the game as the Yankees did leave 17 runners on base and Joba Chamberlain did not look good at all in his second start of the season, going 4.2 innings, giving up five runs on six hits and five walks with four Ks. Ugly. However, a bright note is that the bullpen, particularly the middle relief (c’mon, do we ever challenge the ninth inning greatness of Mariano Rivera?) looked good as Phil Coke, Jonathan Albaladejo, and Brian Bruney combined to pitch 3.1 innings, giving up one hit, walked none, and struck out three with Bruney getting the win. Let’s hope they keep up the good work.

Current Record: 6-5 (1-1; 5-4); 1.5 games behind the Toronto Blue Jays

It’s official, folks, Brett Gardner has beaten out Melky Cabrera for the starting centerfielder job. It was announced yesterday by manager Joe Girardi and despite both players doing well during spring training, Gardner is the man and there will not be a platoon situation. Girardi also said that Cabrera will make the team in a backup capacity.

Here are the stats as of today:

Gardner: .385 BA; 1.121 OPS; 3 HR; 6 RBI; 10 R; 35 Total Bases; 6 BB; 7 K; 5 SB in 52 AB
Cabrera: .340 BA; .908 OPS; 1 HR; 9 RBI; 10 R; 26 Total Bases; 6 BB; 2 K; 2 SB in 53 AB

Obviously, this was a close matchup, but looking at the stats above, choosing Gardner between the two was the right choice. Hopefully, Gardner continues to rake at the plate… no pun intended. Okay, I admit, fully intended. (Sad trombone SFX)

Mark Teixeira helped the New York Yankees beat his former team, the Atlanta Braves, 6-4 on the road yesterday in Kissimmee, Florida. Teixeira went 2-for-2 with a homerun, including a walk and seems to be clicking on all cylinders thus far as he is hitting .391; 2 HR; 6 RBI; 7 R in 46 AB this spring. Teixeira’s bat will need to stay this hot, particularly during the beginning of the season with Alex Rodriguez out of the mix as A-Rod comes back from hip surgery. However, if Xavier Nady (3-for-4; 1 RBI), Melky Cabrera (3-for-4; 1 R) if he gets the centerfield job, and Robinson Cano (1-for-3; 1 HR) hit this well, the Yankees will be just fine. And, let’s be honest, the Yankees offense will be just fine, especially if Hideki Matsui comes back strong from injury and stays healthy since he’ll probably be batting clean-up, getting Teixeira pitches to hit, as well as driving him, Derek Jeter, and Johnny Damon across the plate.

Brett Tomko got the win for the Yankees, going 3.0 innings, giving up three hits and one walk. Edwar Ramirez got his first save of the spring, pitching two-thirds of an inning with one strikeout. The Yankees are now 18-10, 7-7 on the road.

So, Bernie Williams is mulling over a comeback after his stint with the Puerto Rican team at the World Baseball Classic, and it wouldn’t necessarily be with the New York Yankees either. Williams played 16 seasons with the Yankees from 1991-2006 and never officially retired, so a return for a 17th season with the Bronx Bombers is quite possible. You never know, right? But where would he play?

At centerfield, it’s a tight race between Brett Gardner and Melky Cabrera and I don’t see Bernie having the range to cover center anymore. Call me crazy, but the guy is 40 years old. Unless he shoots himself up with some of that A-Rod juice, Williams won’t be as pliable, quick, or have the endurance to survive a whole season of manning the middle of the outfield.

How about designated hitter then? Forget it as there are already four players on the depth chart for this position – Hideki Matsui, Nick Swisher, Jorge Posada, as well as Johnny Damon. So, basically, it comes down to this – thanks for 16 seasons, Bernie, but there just isn’t spot for you on the team, but you’ll always have a spot in our hearts.

Okay, fine, so CC Sabathia is only earning his money in spring training thus far, but last night’s game against the Cincinnati Reds at Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, hopefully, foreshadows great things to come. Sabathia went 7.2 innings, gave up one run on four hits (all singles), struck out seven Reds, and walked none as the Yankees beat Cincinnati, 4-1. Sabathia is now 2-1 in the spring and last night Mariano Rivera logged his first save of the preseason, striking out one. And he only needed five pitches to get the job done. Best. Closer. Ever. Mark Teixeira, one of the Yankees’ other big free agent signings (along with Sabathia and AJ Burnett), earned his money as well, going 2-for-3 with an RBI.

Other Observations: Brett Gardner went 0-for-2, but did draw a walk and stole his fifth base of the spring. He is batting .383; 3 HR; 6 RBI; 9 R in 45 AB. His competition for the starting centerfield job, Melky Cabrera, is batting .313; 1 HR; 9 RBI; 9 R in 48 AB. Gardner has the edge thus far, which spurred some “trade Cabrera” talk, but it’s a close call. Who would you start? Leave your comments below!