Problems Continue in Motown

Another night. Another city. Another poor performance from the Yankees.

Was it Justin Verlander, or are the Bronx Bombers just this bad right now? The hard-throwing right-hander came in winless with a 9.00 ERA, but looked dominant in Detroit Monday night, mowing down nine Yankees in the process.

It was the best Verlander looked in two seasons.

CC Sabathia went the distance, but wasn’t nearly as sharp as Verlander. Placido Polanco's double and Miguel Cabrera’s RBI single in the opening inning comprised the only scoring of the game until the sixth, when Curtis Granderson's bunt single started a one-out rally for the Tigers. Polanco doubled in Granderson, then came home on Magglio Ordonez’s second home run of the season.

With their fourth straight loss, the Yankees dropped to 9-10.

How can a team this good, play this poorly?

I understand about the injuries. I realize A-Rod and Chien-Ming Wang are out. I get all of it. But Sunday’s finale in Boston was embarrassing and the team didn’t show any moxie coming off the weekend sweep at Fenway tonight in Detroit.

Sabathia’s been good, but not great. Mark Teixeira needs to pick it up, too.

Honestly, all of the Yankees need a swift kick in the butt.

The Yankees don’t display any fire. They don’t play at all like the Red Sox. Boston, in my mind, is still the team to beat. They have prime guys, in their prime, that rally around each other. David Ortiz is batting sub .230 with no homers and Boston is riding a 10-game win streak. How crazy is that? One night it’s Jason Bay. The next, Mike Lowell. The next, somebody else. That’s a championship team.

Forget Tampa, the AL East is going through Boston again this year.

The Yankees need to snap out of it quickly, or the division will surely get away from them. It’s too good a division not to. The Toronto Blue Jays, of all teams, are in first – and look good. You still have Tampa. And Boston’s looks great.

I’ll tell you, if the Yankees can’t get it going with all this talent, Joe Girardi has to go.

The Yankees were helpless Sunday in Boston. Justin Masterson started for the Red Sox and left on the winning side, hurling 5 1/3 innings of one-run, six-hit ball.

ONE RUN OFF JUSTIN MASTERSON!

Don’t even get me started on Jacoby Ellsbury’s straight steal of home off Andy Pettitte. Actually, you know what, I’ll say this: That’s fire. That’s passion. That’s winning baseball. That’s something the 2009 Yankees have yet to get a grip on.

Tomorrow, New York welcomes back Phil Hughes, who takes Wang’s turn in the rotation. Hughes didn’t record a win in an injury-plagued 2008. Let’s hope 2009 is a better year for him.