Phil Hughes fired a fastball to ward the inside corner. There were two outs, a runner on first and the Yankees led 4-0 in the sixth inning yesterday.
The intent of the 94-mph dart was to freeze Paul Konerko for a strikeout, and Hughes believed he had accomplished just that with his 2-2 pitch. But home-plate umpire Dan Iassogna did not, moving the normally stoic Hughes to let out a yell and momentarily pace off the mound.
“It was the perfect pitch in a big spot and I let my emotions slip,” Hughes said.
But something happened at that moment that was as meaningful as anything in Hughes’ seven shutout innings in the Yankees’ 12-3 triumph over the White Sox: He gathered himself and returned to the mound quickly without even a glance at Iassogna. Konerko leads the AL in homers. One swing against a distracted Hughes could have drawn Chicago within two runs and forced Yankees manager Joe Girardi to begin thinking about deploying a recently overused bullpen.
“You cannot get caught up in the last pitch,” Hughes said. “I had to settle down, forget it and execute the next pitch.”
Jorge Posada and Hughes agreed Konerko would be looking for Hughes’ best fastball. So to disrupt the slugger’s timing, Hughes delivered his blossoming cutter and Konerko swung through it.
“It wasn’t even my best cutter of the game, but it is amazing what happens when you throw your pitches with conviction,” Hughes said.
That emphasizes the difference between Hughes and Javier Vazquez. At this moment, not only is Hughes’ stuff better, but so is his mental state. He can’t wait to deliver the next pitch because he believes so fully in it. Vazquez is mentally shot. He has lost faith in his fastball and himself.
That is why Hughes is now no worse than the Yankees’ No. 4 starter and Vazquez is a salvage job. The Yankees are going to watch Vazquez today during a bullpen session before making a decision, but sources told me the initial inclination is to skip Vazquez’s next start Friday at Fenway Park and let Hughes go on normal rest in that spot, followed by CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett.
That would be another reminder that, so far, the Yankees have received little from their offseason shopping spree. Vazquez has been the AL’s worst pitcher. Curtis Granderson still wasn’t hitting lefties before going on the disabled list yesterday with a strained left groin. And Nick Johnson is batting a passive .141.
Meanwhile, Johnny Damon and Austin Jackson are thriving in Detroit, and Hideki Matsui is performing around his career norm for the Angels. The Yankees arguably would have been better off figuring out how to keep the band together, which would have given them not only a championship roster, but Jackson, Ian Kennedy and Aroldys Vizcaino still in the system for depth.
“I could see how the question could be asked [about buyer’s remorse],” general manager Brian Cashman said. “But we can’t judge this situation now. It is too early to convict.”
And if nothing else, yesterday’s Yankees’ win was a testament to patience, whether in dealing with veterans or as a message to the Yankees to have greater faith in their own, such as Jackson. For the biggest stars of this victory were Robinson Cano, Brett Gardner and Hughes. All homegrown. All with growing pains in the recent past that the Yankees endured.
Now each is thriving in a major role, with Cano the No. 5 hitter, Gardner the center fielder again in Granderson’s absence and Hughes making Vazquez’s struggles more tolerable.
Against the White Sox, Hughes fixated on limiting walks. The results: He walked one while throwing first-pitch strikes to 19 of 25 batters and going 0-2 11 times. His ERA fell to 1.44, his batting average against to .122, but his confidence again rose.
“In the past I threw too many 2-0 fastballs afraid and they got hit,” Hughes said. “But when I throw with conviction suddenly those pitches are missed or fouled off. When you have a no-fear demeanor, the ball comes out of your hand right.”
Ten years younger, Hughes already possesses a better fastball and much more than Vazquez.