Yanks' Bats, Pen Bail out Chien-Ming Wang

They owed him one.

After Chien-Ming Wang led the Yankees to victory in each of his first three starts with just nine total runs of support, the Bombers' lineup exploded for 15 Wednesday night against Boston to help their ace avoid picking up his first loss of the season.

Wang blew a 7-3 lead in the top of the fifth, but New York answered right back with four in the bottom half of the inning to regain the advantage at 11-9.  The Yankees bullpen, meanwhile held the Red Sox bats at bay for the remainder of the game to secure a 15-9 win.

Here are my grades for the Yanks over their three game winning streak.

Joe Girardi, Manager: (B+)  On Monday, Girardi benched the struggling Robinson Cano until the eighth inning when he pinch hit for Alberto Gonzalez.  The move worked out as Cano broke a 7-7 tie with a solo home run, which would be the difference in the game.

On Tuesday, the manager, who was without Joba Chamberlain because he was with his ailing father, choose to insert Kyle Farnsworth in the eighth inning of a 5-3 game.  While Girardi immediately gets docked a whole letter grade for putting Farnsworth into a baseball game, the reliever did his job, which makes you wonder exactly how difficult the position of setup man really is and why Joba isn't in the rotation yet.

On Wednesday, Girardi used the bullpen perfectly over the final five innings to bail out Wang who really didn't have it on this night.

Johnny Damon, LF: (C) Damon went 2-8 with two walks, three runs and three RBIs over the last three days.

Derek Jeter, SS: (A+)Is it surprising to anyone that the Yankees offense broke out of its slump and the team started winning again as soon as the Captain returned from injury?  With New York up 4-3 in the bottom of the fourth, Jeter stepped to the plate with the bases loaded and two outs.  There was roughly a 100% chance he would hit a two-run single to right field and that's exactly what he did to extend the lead to 6-3.  7-13 with five RBIs and three runs scored in three games is pretty good, right?

Bobby Abreu, RF: (C) Abreu is cooling down but he continues to contribute, going 3-13 with two walks, two runs and three RBIs since Monday.

Alex Rodriguez, 3B: (A+)A-Rod moved into 15th place on the all-time home run list Wednesday night, passing Ted Williams and Willie McCovey, with a mammoth shot in the first inning.  What was most impressive about the round tripper was that it was off a pitch that was outside and yet Rodriguez was still able to hit the ball about 450 feet into the Boston bullpen in left center field.  The MVP also went 4-5 with a homer on Monday.

Hideki Matsui, DH/LF: (A-) Godzilla continues to raise his average almost everyday, going 4-14 with three runs and two RBIs since my last report.

Morgan Ensberg, 1B: (A) Ensberg went 2-5 with a run and an RBI on Monday.  The Yankees are now 3-0 in games he starts.

Melky Cabrera, CF: (A-)It seems like Cabrera bats in a different spot in the lineup every night and he gets a hit no matter what.  Melky is 4-13 with a walk, two steals, two runs and an RBI over the three game winning streak.

Chad Moeller, C: (A)How many good backup catchers do the Yankees have in their organization?  Moeller is 4-10 on the season.

Alberto Gonzalez, SS: (D)Hopefully we won't see too much more of Gonzalez this season.  He's a good young player, but when he's playing it means a starter is not.  Gonzalez remained in the lineup Monday, despite Jeter's return, going 0-2 with a walk and a run scored.

Robinson Cano, 2B: (D+) Cano had the decisive home run in the win over the Rays Monday night, but he picked up just one more hit in the next two days and continues to struggle at the plate.

Jason Giambi, 1B: (C+)The Giamzero went the opposite way Wednesday night for what feels like the first time all year and lo and behold, he picked up some RBIs.  Amazing.  The Yankees are now 5-7 with him playing and 4-0 without him.  That makes him the LVP, right?

Jorge Posada, DH: (A)Posada returned to the lineup Wednesday after two days off resting his sore arm and he returned with a boom going 2-5 with three RBIs and two runs.  The Yankees haven't really suffered with his absence behind the plate thanks to the brilliant play of Jose Molina and Chad Moeller.

Ian Kennedy, SP: (C) Kennedy had his first good start of the year Monday but had to leave the game in the seventh inning after taking a line drive to the hip.  He appears to be alright, which is a good thing, because he's finally showing signs of improvement this year.

Andy Pettitte, SP: (B) Pettitte once again looked like the number two starter the Yankees are hoping he will be this season when he gave up three runs in seven innings Tuesday in a 5-3 win over the Rays.

Chien-Ming Wang, SP: (F) After a near perfect game against the Red Sox on Friday, Wang is allowed a free pass on his first bad start of the year, especially since the Yankees were able to win the game.

Billy Traber, RP: (D-) The lefty was terrible on Monday, giving up two runs in a third of an inning, but he did his job on Wednesday, retiring David Ortiz on one pitch.

Brian Bruney, RP: (C-)Bruney also had a meltdown on Monday but rebounded nicely on Wednesday, throwing a scoreless 1.2 innings for his first save since his days with the D-Backs in 2005.

Mariano Rivera, RP: (A+) Two more saves and his earned run average remains spotless.  Even I can't bash that.

Kyle Farnsworth, RP: (A)If Farnsworth can do it, it can't be that hard.  Get Joba in the rotation.

Ross Ohlendorf, RP: (F)Here's a Ross Ohlendorf related story.  My friend Adam who went to school at Princeton with Ross bet me $50 Wednesday that his team, the White Sox, would win more games this year than the Yankees.  I'm looking for suggestions on how to spend that $50 this fall.

LaTroy Hawkins, RP: (A) Four straight good appearances. Oh boy.

Overall Yankees Grade: (A)  Some spotty pitching at times on Monday and Wednesday, but the Yankees were still able to win three straight.  That's a good sign considering how dormant this offense was just last week.