After dropping the first two games of the season to the Red Sox, Yankees manager Joe Girardi has made some changes to his lineup for tonight’s series finale against right-hander Ryan Dempster.
The top three hitters in the Yankees’ lineup went just 2-for-23 over the first two games. Girardi told Brian Heyman of the Journal News that the changes were strategic, as he wants to break up the string of left-handers in the top of the lineup. Girardi used Brett Gardner, Ichiro Suzuki and Robinson Cano out of the first three spots in last night’s 7-4 loss.
Cano batted second in Game 2 of the ALCS against the Tigers last October, but he hasn’t been there in a regular season game since September 10, 2010. Hey, desperate times.