New York Yankees

According to Peter Abraham of the Journal News, Xavier Nady’s elbow injury could mean the end of his Yankee career, as an MRI revealed a tear in his elbow and is likely to require surgery.

Take the train to the game, as it’s part of the Big Apple game-day experience, and convenient too, dropping you off right outside the park. Once you get your bearings, take a lap around the new Yankee Stadium to take it all in; the exterior more resembles the stadium Ruth played in than the just-closed version, which had been almost completely reconstructed in the 1970s.

With the recent struggles of Yankee pitcher Chien-Ming Wang, and, if he continues to struggle, I think the Yankees should consider signing Pedro Martinez. Just give me a chance to explain.

The concern with Wang might be, and hopefully is, his mechanics. Manager Joe Girardi and pitching coach Dave Eiland are sure to be closely monitoring Wang after a pair of terrible starts, leaving him with an 0-2 record and an alarming 28.93 ERA.

The people who say Derek Jeter is overrated must not watch Yankee games.

For the second day in a row, the Captain played an integral role in New York's win over the defending American League champion Tampa Bay Rays.

On Tuesday, the shortstop's opposite field single in the eighth got the go-ahead run to third with less than two outs.  His three-run homer in the ninth put the game out of reach.

According to reports, Xavier Nady's previously "Tommy John" repaired right elbow popped when making a throw against the Rays in Tuesday night's game, and the surgery may need to be re-done keeping him out the remainder of the year.

Nady is a nice player. At worst, he is a top-fourth outfielder and excellent trade bait; at best Nady is a 280/25-30/100 producing corner outfielder.

I've heard many people say that his loss is a good thing in that it will insure Nick Swisher gets an everyday job.

Derek Jeter seems to be enjoying the lead off spot this season thus far. 

He knocked in Cody Ransom on a huge go-ahead RBI single with two outs in the ninth inning off of Rays closer, Troy Percival.

Andy Pettitte pitched into the eighth inning, but handed the ball over to Brian Bruney who got the win as Pettitte left in a tied game.

Mariano Rivera, the only player who wears No. 42, closed the game out for his second save of the season as the Yankees won, 3-2.

It looks like the Yankees' Xavier Nady will need surgery, although the team hasn't released an official statement yet.

If he has surgery, that will pretty much end his season and the Yankees will have to call someone up to take his place.

It could mean an opportunity for Shelly Duncan, or John Rodriguez, who knows, but it won't be Austin Jackson. I will be back later with more as it develops and the lineups for today's game.

One more quick note, Evan Longoria is out of the lineup for Tampa today due to a family matter.

The Tampa Bay Rays successfully threw-out the argument for a minimum payroll last year —winning a pennant with an opening-day payroll of $44 million (compared with the Yankees’ $209 million)— but the residual cost of winning the pennant is clear (since a title is only that much further).

There may be no more under-rated or under-appreciated aspect of a baseball team than the bullpen. While few relievers get the glory that they deserve, a collective bullpen as a whole can single- handedly lead to a team's success or demise. Therefore, with the 2009 major league baseball season now under way, I feel it is undoubtedly appropriate to give my assessment of the this year's Yankee bullpen.