Burnett is better than Moose

Simple as that. Mussina gave up a two-run shot to Vernon Wells and that was all she wrote. The Yanks had two respectful rallies, the first started by Arod's two-run HR that knocked Burnett out in the 7th. However, the rally stopped there as Toronto's big southpaw Brian Tallet came in and cruised through two perfect innings.

The second rally nearly tied the game. In the 9th, Jeter and Abreu reached, only to be followed by an Arod strikeout, a warning track fly from Giambi (that died in Death Valley) and a poor Cano at-bat (popping out on the first pitch). In fact, Cano had such a poor game (0-4, 2 Ks), that Girardi may consider switching him with Matsui tomorrow.

Not even Mussina inducing five double-plays was enough to beat Burnett tonight. The bullpen didn't help much either: Hawkins and Farnsworth combined for 2.1 innings, allowing four hits, two inherited runners to score, and one earned run. Hawkins was lucky it wasn't more as Molina nailed a runner trying to steal second. Ohlendorf looked solid though (after he drilled the lead-off hitter with a fastball), inducing two ground outs and a strikeout. We shouldn't jump to conclusions, but if Farnsworth can be dealt for a bag of balls, do it - I'm confident Patterson, Britton, and eventually Horne and Marquez can do at least as good a job for a fraction of the cost.

Considering the pitching match-up (and Molina instead of Posada ('stiff shoulder')), I wasn't expecting to win the game, and if Moose is ultimately our fifth starter, he's an excellent one at that.

PS: If anyone needs evidence of why Joba should be a starter, look at tonight's game. Joba has the potential to be better than Burnett, who went 6 innings and allowed just two runs against (probably) baseball's best offense. That's what a mid-90s fastball and consistent breaking ball can do.