AL East

Brett Gardner did not start last night in the New York Yankees' fourth game of the season. Brett Gardner did not play in the game.

Apparently Gardner was sore. As best as can be determined, his derriere was sore from sitting on the bench.

It is inexplicable that Gardner, who was declared the starting left fielder, has now been benched in half of the Yankees' first four games.

Someone once said: "Dorothy, you're not in Kansas anymore."

Last night, Javier Vazquez at times looked as though he might have been looking for his ruby slippers.

Javy, you're not in Atlanta anymore.

Many Yankee fans and most of the Yankee brass have trumpeted the return of Vazquez as just what the Yankees needed. They've pointed to the Yankees' lack of a fourth starter in the playoffs last season and proclaimed that Vazquez solves that problem.

So it wasn't his back, but it looks like Brian Roberts will be headed to the DL.

Roberts came up wincing and in noticeable pain after swiping his second base of the year in the first inning of the Orioles home opener against the Blue Jays. The diagnosis: an abdominal strain.

Roberts was a spring-training worry for the Orioles, missing almost all of the preseason schedule with back issues. He reportedly had them straightened out, and he looked to be rounding into regular season form with a two-hit performance last night in the O's victory over the Rays.

What I’m Reading

• The Rays might be built for 2010, but what about beyond that? Carlos Pena and Carl Crawford might be skipping town after the season is over.

The Yankees will have Yogi Berra and Whitey Ford present the team with World Series rings during a ceremony that will take place during their home opener against the Angels on April 13. The festivities will start at 12:15 p.m. and Bernie Williams will throw out the first pitch at game time.

Here is the press release :

When the Yankees signed pitcher Kei Igawa to a 23 million dollar contract, they didn’t envision the left-hander spending the length of his contract in Triple-A Scranton. With time running out, the Yankees are taking another direction to find a use for Igawa: the bullpen.

It took only two games into season for Boston Red Sox slugger David Ortiz to blow a gasket at the media. Here is what Ortiz had to say after his 0-for-7 start.

“Good,” he said, turning to face the reporters encircling him. “You guys wait ’til [expletive] happens, then you can talk [expletive]. Two [expletive] games, and already you [expletives] are going crazy."

When the Yankees got Curtis Granderson in the winter, some people weren't totally sold on the center fielder.

"He only hit .249 and he can't hit lefties and he strikes out too much," were some of the things I heard about why trading for Granderson wasn't a good move.

After this past series with the Red Sox, I'm sure most of those critics will be silenced.

One of the most common things heard about new players is having them "earn their pinstripes." The way Granderson played this past series, he's earned them.

It’s likely that we are already seeing Kevin Towers influence on the Yankees as they have claimed former Padre outfielder Chad Huffman on waivers according to Buster Olney of ESPN.

Huffman, 24, is expected to start the season in Triple-A. He spent the entire 2

What I’m Reading

• Pedro Martinez is still out there. He’s available. He even threw a side session at Fenway on Opening Day. What’s in store for his future , though?