Game 4

Even after an incredibly successful 12-year run in pinstripes, Joe Torre is still learning from the past, still evolving as a manager. Starting Chien-Ming Wang tonight on short rest is evidence of that.

When the Yankees faced elimination last year in Game 4 of their division series against the Detroit Tigers, Torre had no choice but start Jaret Wright because of a poor decision he made following Game 2.

Torre and the Yankees opted to leave Wang in New York to keep him fresh for a potential fifth game, which is a prime example of a manager planning too far ahead. Sure there's no telling if Wang would have made a difference, however, in retrospect he clearly was the better of two options.
Just like how he's a better option for tonight's game than Mike Mussina, for several reasons.

It's a gutsy decision only because Wang has never pitched on short rest before in his three-year major-league career (although he has made two relief appearances). But Wang's numbers at home are significantly better than on the road. And this lines up Andy Pettitte for a potential fifth game. When you take a step back, this becomes an easy choice.

And watching Wang struggle in Game 1 at Cleveland last week made it even easier. It's actually astonishing that Wang's home and away splits are so drastic considering he's led the majors with 38 wins over the last two seasons. At home he is 21-7 with a 2.90 ERA in 230 innings; on the road he's 17-6 with a 4.61 ERA in 187 1/3 innings.

With regards to asking Wang to pitch on short rest for the first time, Torre said, "If you're going to do it to anybody, I think the sinker-ball pitcher is probably the guy that will be hurt the least."

Opposing Wang is Paul Byrd, one of the more fascinating pitchers of the last decade because of his remarkable staying power. According to a scout who has followed the Indians this year, Byrd has no fastball to speak of, his breaking stuff is average at best and he throws another pitch that looks sort of like a combination of a splitter and change. "He relies only on spotting his pitches," the scout said.

And he hasn't done that well against the Yankees, at least in recent outings. The Yankees scored seven runs in two innings off him Aug. 11. Over the last two years the 37-year-old righthander has an 8.53 ERA against the Yankees, having given up 12 earned runs and 23 hits in 12 2/3 innings.

Here's how the Yankees' expected lineup for tonight has fared against Byrd in their respective careers:

Johnny Damon, 3-for-19 (double)

Derek Jeter, 11-for-27 (three doubles, triple)

Bobby Abreu, 2-for-5 (two walks)

Alex Rodriguez, 4-for-15 (home run)

Hideki Matsui, 1-for-5

Jorge Posada, 3-for-18 (two doubles)

Robinson Cano, 2-for-8 (double, home run)

Melky Cabrera, 3-for-5 (home run)

Doug Mientkiewicz, 6-for-19 (3 doubles, a triple)

That's a combined 35-for-121, a .289 average.

Byrd also is fascinating to watch because of his old-school windup. He resembles a pitcher from the early part of the century as he waves both of his arms behind him to start his delivery, then bringing his arms together above his head.

Byrd, who made his major-league debut with the Mets in 1995, recently told Sports Illustrated he used to use that old-school delivery before his college coaches changed him. He reverted to it after undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2003.

One final note about Byrd: Last month an odd item ran on the AP wire about him, which found its way onto blogs all over the Internet. If you missed it, here it is, word-for-word.

Paul Byrd is writing what he calls a "spiritual journal" that he is going to have published in book form and hopes to have on the market by spring training. It's called "The Free Byrd Project," a candid and graphic look at how he has managed to remain true to his faith despite the pitfalls associated with a ballplayer's daily lifestyle.

"It's not politically correct. It's not for a 10-year-old. It's not a bubble gum-feel good book. It's only for a certain audience," Byrd said. "It's more of a personal account of things I've struggled with conversations I've had with Atheist ballplayers, coming clean with some issues I've had, like struggling with pornography on road trips when you're missing your wife all those things you encounter because of this lifestyle. So it's not a book that shows me as having it all together. But it's not going to point fingers or sell anybody out. If anything, it's going to just be me selling myself out a little bit with some of my struggles."

So, um, back to Torre's decision to start Wang on short rest ...