Rangers-Yankees: Damaso Marte Blows It for New York

The bullpen was just fine until Damaso Marte got here.

Yankee relievers had the second-best batting average against and the fourth-lowest ERA in the league, but along comes Marte, and suddenly, Joe Girardi is putting him in there every time the game is on the line.

On July 29, the ex-Pirate gave up two runs on three hits and a walk in the seventh, costing New York a game against the Orioles, but the manager threw him right back out there in the eighth inning of a close game against Texas on Monday night.

After Marte escaped a jam in the eighth, Girardi inexplicably sent him back out for the ninth, where he got into even more trouble, walking the bases loaded with two outs. 

Following a base on balls to left-hander Josh Hamilton, I thought the skipper would finally bring in righty David Robertson, who had been warming up for what seemed like all evening, to pitch to right-handed Marlon Byrd.

But he did not.

Girardi left Marte in, and he promptly gave up a walk-off grand slam on the first pitch.  Damaso has now surrendered six earned runs in 4.2 innings with the Yankees. That's an ERA of 11.57.

Mariano Rivera has been suffering from back spasms, but where was Jose Veras?  Girardi will probably say he was unavailable because he pitched the previous two days, but that's unacceptable. This was an important game, and Veras could've at least faced Byrd. 

Why is Edwar Ramirez allowed to pitch to only four batters and Brian Bruney only five, but Marte gets to face nine lefty and righty hitters over two innings? That just doesn't make sense.

And don't say, "That's why they should not have gotten rid of Kyle Farnsworth." They have plenty of guys in the 'pen that are capable to pitch in that spot. Marte isn't one of them.

Here are the grades from the Yankees' heartbreaking 9-5 loss to the Texas Rangers.

Joba Chamberlain, SP: (F) The sub-headline for this game was that Chamberlain left in the fifth inning with right-shoulder stiffness. It will be devastating for the Yankees if he misses significant time, especially with Chien-Ming Wang already on the DL and Darrell Rasner struggling at the back-end of the rotation. 

I was really looking forward to Joba pitching Saturday against the Los Angeles Angels because he was the only starter not to face L.A. this past weekend.

As for this game, Joba didn't have his best stuff for the first time since fully transitioning to the starter's role. He gave up more than three runs for the first time since joining the rotation.

Joe Girardi, Manager: (F) Not only did Girardi stick with Marte too long, but he once again didn't get anything going on the basepaths for the offense. Down 5-4 in the sixth, the Yankees got the first two men on base, but the manager didn't bunt with Robinson Cano up.

Instead, Cano flied out to left and the runners didn't advance, so they couldn't score on Ivan Rodriguez's groundout. New York didn't plate a run that inning. Girardi didn't attempt a single steal, lay down a single bunt, or try a hit and run.

I don't know how many times I have to say this: You can't rely solely on the long ball. Those home runs that you hit off of Rangers and Royals pitching in July and August won't be there in October against the Angels and Red Sox.

The Yankees HAVE to start learning how to consistently score runs using small ball.

Johnny Damon, DH: (A) Damon went 2-5 with a double and a run scored.

Derek Jeter, SS: (C-) Jeter was 1-5 and got robbed of a go-ahead RBI single in the ninth when Josh Hamilton made a great sliding catch in center.

Bobby Abreu, RF: (C) Abreu was 1-4 with a run scored.

Alex Rodriguez, 3B: (D+) A-Rod was 0-3 with a walk and a strikeout.

Jason Giambi, 1B: (A+) The moustache is gone and so is Giambi's slump. He went 3-4 with a homer and two RBIs.

Xavier Nady, LF: (A+) Nady continues to hit. He went 2-4 with a solo shot and is now batting .400 in pinstripes.

Robinson Cano, 2B: (C+) Cano went 1-4 with an RBI and a run scored.

Ivan Rodriguez, C: (F) Pudge went 0-4 with a K and left two runners on base.

Justin Christian, CF: (F) Despite the fact that Christian went 0-3, I like Girardi starting him and giving the slumping Melky Cabrera the day off.

Richie Sexson, PH: (INC) I thought this guy was supposed to be good against lefties.  He struck out facing a southpaw in the ninth.

Melky Cabrera, CF: (INC) He could only watch as Byrd's grand slam flew over the wall to end the game.

Edwar Ramirez, RP: (A+) Ramirez got right back on the horse after surrendering a salami of his own the day before. He retired all four batters he faced, striking out two.

Brian Bruney, RP: (A) It's good to see Bruney back. He went an inning-and-a-third, striking out one and walking one.

Damaso Marte, RP: (F) The way I see it, Marte should be behind Rivera, Ramirez, Veras, Giese, Bruney, and Robertson in the bullpen. There's a big difference between being good in Pittsburgh and being good in New York.

Yankees Overall Grade: (D) The roller coaster continues for the Bombers. Following their biggest win of the season over the Angels on Sunday, the Yankees had a chance to pick up a game on both the Tampa Bay Rays and the Boston Red Sox on Monday, but they faltered and lost Joba along the way.

New York still has good pitching matchups the rest of the way in this series, and they need to take the final three games.

Jordan Schwartz is Bleacher Report's New York Yankees Community Leader. His book "Memoirs of the Unaccomplished Man" is available at amazon.com, barnesandnoble.com and authorhouse.com. Jordan can be reached at [e-mail]