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Curtis Granderson is on a similar pace to his signature season of 2011, when he batted .262 with 41 home runs and league highs of 119 RBIs and 136 runs scored.

On this date last season, Granderson was .272-7-17 with 16 runs scored. This season he entered Wednesday’s action at .276-9-17-19. The nine homers tied Josh Hamilton for the AL lead and trailed Matt Kemp’s 12 among Major League leaders. He’s also continuing to rake against left-handers, batting .333 (10-for-33) with 18 homers since the start of 2011, the most by any lefty against a lefty over this stretch. It’s been a remarkable ascent from when Granderson batted .183 against southpaws during his final season in Detroit.

Led by Granderson, the Yankees slugged a league-leading 38 homers through 23 games while

One of the best parts about the beginning of the MLB season is the “on pace” debate. You know, the one that starts when a guy hits three homers on Opening Day and we’re reminded he’s on pace for 486.

With the calendar flipping to May 1, the first “month” of the regular season is in the books, and those debates are usually cooled off by now. But, really, why not continue them? After all, the regular season is six months long, so why not just multiply numbers out a bit (by, say, 6.1, since there are three games in October this season as well) and see where people stand?

I did just that, and in addition, broke the same totals down into a per-game average, then multiplied that by 162 in order to get the “true” pace. After doing the math and

Thursday night certainly was a night for the ages for one of the more prolific hitters in baseball, Curtis Granderson. To this point in the season, Granderson had already hit three home runs, but something was just a little off with his swing. Whatever was wrong with his game before the Yankees’ 7-6 victory over the Twins was certainly righted.

The Yankees needed this win. It was the last game in the homestand before they traveled up to Boston, and it was a chance to split a series with a Twins team that has had little success in the Bronx over the last decade. Phil Hughes gave up four unearned runs in the first, with Eduardo Nunez committing a huge error that extended his pitch count and the inning. With the Yankees down 4-0 right off the bat, Granderson and the offense went to

Uneven start to the 2012 season...

I guess the season opening series sweep by the Tampa Bay Rays set the tone, but this has been a hot and cold season thus far.  The New York Yankees followed the Rays series with their own sweep of the Baltimore Orioles, but they've struggled against the Minnesota Twins in the Bronx.  Given how the Yankees have owned the Twins in recent years and the fact the Twins were a 99 loss team last year with no notable improvements, it seems odd that the Yankees are fighting to salvage the fourth game of the series with the Twins and at least earn a split.

Now you see him, now you don't...

I was excited last week when Hiroki Kuroda pitched a gem, but after getting pounded by the Twins yesterday , he's had more bad starts than good.  It's only three

The Yankees are headed to Disney World today – more specifically, Disney’s Wide World of Sports Complex in Lake Buena Vista, Fla., where they will take on the Braves at 1:05 p.m.

Hiroki Kuroda, who Joe Girardi has said will open the season as his No. 2 starter, is on the mound, and he has a handful of regulars behind him. The starting lineup:

Eduardo Nunez SS
Robinson Cano 2B
Mark Teixeira 1B
Raul Ibanez DH
Eric Chavez 3B
Francisco Cervelli C
DeWayne Wise CF
Chris Dickerson RF
Justin Maxwell LF

Among the pitchers on the trip who may see action behind Kuroda are Cory Wade, prospect Adam Warren, switch-pitcher Pat Venditte, and lefty Cesar Cabral.

According to Chad Jennings of the LoHud Yankees Blog, Girardi said on Wednesday that the Yankees will likely carry a second lefty

A foot apart…

Yes, I admit it.  I was genuinely concerned.  Yesterday, news broke that David Robertson had hurt his foot in a mishap at his home.  The Yankees sounded very concerned and of course they ordered a MRI and were making comments about the severity of the injury.  The immediate thought was the Lisfranc injury suffered by former Yankees starter Chien-Ming Wang.  While Wang is pitching again, it took years and he is still not the same guy who won 19 games in successive seasons a few years back. 

Today, it was announced that Robertson had a deep bone bruise after missing a step on the stairs at his home.  The foot is a boot and he’s on crutches until Sunday, but it now sounds as though Robertson will be back sooner than initially

Once you’ve failed Boston, come to New York…

Okay, I admit it.  I am not overjoyed to see the Red Sox reunion on the Yankees roster.  First, there was former Red Sox reliever Hideki Okajima, then reliever Manny Delcarmen, and now utility infielder Bill Hall.  Of the three, Okajima is actually the only who’s last team was the Red Sox but still, the three have served their time in Beantown and are now “enemies” in a friendly camp. 

If Okajima can win a job, that’s fine but I don’t really see him beating out Cesar Cabral unless the latter is a complete washout in camp.  Delcarmen, in my mind, is simply fodder for the spring with no hope of seeing the major league roster come Opening Day.  Hall is an interesting pickup. 

Thanks for the memories…

Although Prince Fielder had other ideas, today was Jorge Posada Day.  On a day when the Milwaukee Brewers’ talented free agent signed an unexpected 9-year, $214 million contract with his father’s former team, the Detroit Tigers, a Yankee Legend called it a career.  So, while Tigers fans are rejoicing, the Yankees Universe is united in sorrow to see the end of a tremendous career. 

It was time.  Although I knew that Posada could still hit, he was ill at ease at DH and he was no longer the consistent clutch hitter that he had once been.  He could have held on for a few more years in a more limited role, but I am grateful that he recognized that it’s best not to overstay your welcome.  It would have been awful

After some thought, I’ve come around…

Now that I’ve had time to digest the Friday night whirlwind that brought pitchers Michael Pineda and Hiroki Kuroda to the Bronx, my initial disappointment was evaporated.  Don’t get me wrong, I love the power potential of Jesus Montero, and I know full well that he’ll be as devastating against the Yankees as Jay Buhner was if not more.  But I recognize that from a position of need, a top of the rotation starter is better than a player without a position. 

Ever since I first heard Jesus Montero’s name, it always included a statement that he’d eventually have to find a new position because he would outgrow catcher.  The obvious moves would be to either