Why Robinson Cano Will Be the Most Important Yankee Come October

Before fans dub Curtis Granderson the most important hitter in the Yankees lineup this October, they need to reconsider.

While Granderson was busy slugging his way to his most impressive season yet, Robinson Cano was also putting together another career season.  Although he didn’t hit .342 as he did back in ’06, Cano was the only regular Yankee starter to hit over .300.  And while most of the MLB couldn’t keep up with Granderson’s 41 home runs, 119 RBIs, and 136 runs scored, Cano bested Granderson in hits, batting average, and extra-base hits.

What’s most impressive about Cano’s .302 average was that he did it for most of the season without having Alex Rodriguez hitting ahead of him in the cleanup position.  Cano spent a better part of the second half of the season filling the void left by A-Rod, hitting out of the cleanup position behind Mark Texeira.

Cano, who was just short of beating Mattingly’s record for most extra-base hits by a Yankees left-handed hitter, has also excelled in clutch situations this season.  With runners in scoring position this year, Granderson hit .242, while Cano hit 76 points higher at .318, and Cano’s .277 average with runners in scoring position and two outs was 69 points higher than Granderson’s .208.

But it’s not just his bat that scouts and coaches are impressed with.  The sure handed Cano is often considered one of the top two second basemen in the league, with Boston’s Dustin Pedroia being the other. 

It could be his cannon for an arm, or the fact that he made just three errors in 1,393.1 innings in 2010, amounting to a .996 fielding percentage and earning him his first Gold Glove Award.

As far as postseason numbers, neither Granderson (.272) nor Cano (.248) has an average to brag about, but Cano does have the experience of playing October baseball in the pressure-cooker of New York. 

2011 marks the sixth consecutive season that Cano will be playing postseason baseball for the Yankees, giving him 141 total at bats in the playoffs, while Granderson, who has only been a member of two postseason teams, has only 81 playoff at bats.  Notably, Cano also out-hit, out-homered, and out-scored Granderson in the 2010 postseason.  

With that being said, don’t be surprised to see Cano take home two awards this October.

Pitching Showdown in the Bronx

The stage is set for Monday night in the Bronx.

Game 3 of the ALCS between the Texas Rangers and the New York Yankees is scheduled to begin tonight at 8 p.m. in New York on TBS.  With the series tied one a piece, both teams go into this game tonight looking to take the lead in the series with their proven postseason pitchers taking the mound.

Cliff Lee goes for the Rangers, posting a 6-0 record with a 1.44 ERA in seven career postseason starts, including three complete games.  Opposing Lee is New York's postseason stud Andy Pettitte, looking for his 20th career postseason victory.  Along with his 19 wins, Pettitte posts a 3.87 ERA in 41 career postseason starts.

The Rangers are coming off of their first home playoff win in the team's 50 year history.  For the Yankees it's business as usual as they are on a quest for their Major League leading 28th World Series Championship.

The hype over tonight's pitching matchup is not for nothing.  Andy Pettitte boasts a hefty 5-0 record with a 2.88 ERA in his last nine postseason starts while Cliff Lee is 5-0 with a 1.67 ERA in his last five starts in Yankee Stadium.  Two of those five wins were complete games, with one of them being the 6 hit, 10 strikeout gem in last year's Game 1 of the 2009 World Series while he was a Philadelphia Phillie in which he surrendered one run.

Game 3 could prove to be an important one, as the records indicate that out of the previous 19 ALCS Game 3's in which the series was tied 1-1, the winner of Game 3 has gone on to win the series 14 times.  If you're manager Joe Girardi, you've got to like your chances with Andy Pettitte on the mound, who holds the Major League record for wins, starts and innings, and Captain Derek Jeter in the lineup.  Jeter is one of the few players in the Majors to have steady success against Lee, posting a .432 batting average against Lee, including postseason; that is the highest out of any player in the MLB.

With Game 4 looming tomorrow night and a plan to start a rocky A.J. Burnett, it would be crucial for this seasoned Yankee team to take the lead in the series tonight.