Yankee team ERA in games that Pudge has caught: 7.80

Team ERA with Molina behind the plate: Awesome (sorry, couldn’t find that one…).

I’m not sayin’…I’m just sayin’…

Sure, it’s only five games for Pudge…and yes, those were games against the Angels and the Rangers…but the Yankee pitching has taken a turn for the worse with Pudge Rodriguez as the everyday catcher. He did call seven-innings of shutout ball for Sidney Ponson against Ervin Santana last week, but otherwise it’s been ugly. Aside from that Ponson game (a 1-0 loss), the last time a Yankee starter pitched well was when Mike Mussina got the win in an 8-2 victory over Angels — a game caught by Jose Molina.

Now, I’m not calling Pudge a bad signal caller, but Molina seems to have a certain knack. Let’s look at last night. Ponson struggles badly giving up two runs (and what should have been more) in two innings with Pudge behind the plate. Pudge gets knocked out of the game saving a third run and Molina comes in…Yankee pitching then only lets up one run the rest of the game.

Perhaps the data sample is too small to say anything at all…and again Pudge’s games have been against two teams that can really score runs. But I’m starting to wonder if Pudge’s offense is worth losing Molina behind the plate…

The Yankees have to be content. 2-for-4 against an Angels team that just beat the crap out of Boston is pretty good. Some may argue that the Halos gave this game away today. Sure, four errors and ten unearned runs is not pretty. But at the same time the Yanks did something with their extra at-bats and that is critical.

And just look at the new guys hit. Xavier Nady with his six RBI. Pudge with a home run…

So what happens to Darrell Rasner who got mauled today (five runs in four innings)? Ian Kennedy is getting a starting spot and either Rasner or Sidney Ponson is taking the hit. Who sits??? Rasner who has been consistently just below average all year or Ponson who somehow has managed to turn 111 hits in 89.1 innings into a 6-2 record. And yes, he did look impressive Friday against the Angels by tossing seven innings of two-hit ball.

Tough call…the almost average farmhand or the career underachiever who’s winning for some reason… I want to say Ponson should go because he feels like a ticking time bomb to me, but at the same time I find him fascinating. How long can he keep giving up this absurd number of hits and still win ballgames? It’s like watching a guy on a greased tightrope slowly wobble his way along. You’re almost sure that he’ll fall, the question is…when?

In the end, this question probably won’t matter as Phil Hughes will be back soon and given a chance to join Kennedy in the rotation. Meanwhile, Rasner and Ponson will be watching, hoping Hughes continues to be a chronic injury problem.