The Los Angeles Dodgers will add some spice to interleague play on Wednesday, as the team will play a doubleheader with the Yankees after a rain delay caused the game to be called on Tuesday night. The two teams haven't played in New York since the 1981 World Series and it also marks a return for Don Mattingly to NY.
The game also marks the return of former Yankees great Don Mattingly, as he was a candidate for the manager's job when it went o Joe Girardi a number of years ago. Mattingly took over for Joe Torre in LA and while the team hasn't been off to the best start at 29-39, they still are hanging around and the two games in NY will be a good test for the squad. Cuban star Yasiel Puig has been on fire since getting called up and the team will be relying on him to knock around Phil Hughes, who is on the mound for the Yankees, and while he was scheduled for the Tuesday game, he will now pitch the night game.
Check here for the game stream for the Yankees vs. Dodgers.
Hughes has been roughed up in his past few starts and he is 3-5 on the season with a near 5.00 ERA and instead of Hughes, Hiroki Kuroda will pitch against Hyun-Jin Ryu, who has been the most consistent pitcher for the team behind Clayton Kershaw. He has gone 6-2 on the year with a sub-3.00 ERA and he will have to beat a Yankees team that has overachieved with injuries, going 38-31 to stay right with it in the AL east.
Mattingly spoke a bit about the past and said that the organization treated him fairly and that he was looking forward to playing at Yankee Stadium. Mattingly was a coach with Torre for the Yankees for four seasons and while the team didn't make the World Series, he learned a lot of skills that he has continued to use as manager of the Dodgers. Girardi said that the return of Mattingly is a positive thing, as is the Dodgers, although he would like leave with two wins after a tough road trip on the West coast.
The team went 4-6 after playing the Mariners, Angels and A's and the team is dealing with injuries still with Mark Teixeira, who was placed on the DL again with a wrist issue. Lyle Overbay will take over and now the Yankees are thrilled they didn't get rid of him, while they also will rely on Travis Hafner who hit a three run home run against the Angels on Sunday for a 6-5 win. The team was up 6-0 before the bullpen allowed a few runs, but Mariano Rivera was able to come in to take the save and keep the win alive.
The offense needs to wake up a bit and they are now three games behind the Red Sox in the standings and the catching up could begin on Tuesday. The team had some issues hitting over the past nine games while batting .199, but a return to the home park in Yankee Stadium may be just what the team needs after the West coast swing anyway.
