The rosin spots on Cliff Lee's cap may look suspicious, but Yankees manager Joe Girardi isn't losing any sleep over them.
Is this the cap of a dirty cheater, or just a dirty cap? Some in the New York media suspect the former, but Yankees manager Joe Girardi is not suspicious of Cliff Lee's rosin-covered Rangers headwear.NEW YORK -- Indians fans remember Cliff Lee's dirty Chief Wahoo cap. The bill always had a white spot of rosin on the top. The back of the cap looked like he'd been hit in the head with a mud ball as the rosin mixed with sweat and dirt.
It looked suspicious, a potential sleeper cell for foreign substances that might find their way onto a baseball to make it do funny things at big times in a game.
Opposing managers never complained about Lee's cap when he pitched for the Indians, but he was asked about it Sunday at Yankee Stadium before the Texas Rangers worked out in preparation for Game 3 of the American League Championship Series. Lee will face Andy Pettitte and the Yankees Monday night.
"It definitely makes me pitch better," said Lee, sarcastically. "I know that much. Without that hat, I don't think I could do it."
A Yankee broadcaster talked about the cap over the weekend in Texas during the first two games of the series. It was suggested that he may have pine tar to help him get a better grip on the ball.
"What it is, is rosin," said Lee. "I go to the rosin bag quite a bit. I touch my hat in the same place over and over and it just accumulates."
Yankees manager Joe Girardi had no problem with Lee's cap.
"It's rosin," he said. "It's available to everybody."
No changes: After CC Sabathia and Phil Hughes pitched just four innings each in the first two games, it was speculated Girardi might bring back Sabathia on three days rest to pitch Game 4 Tuesday in place of struggling A.J. Burnett.
Girardi shot that down Sunday. "Our rotation is still the same," he said.
Sabathia threw a bullpen Sunday in preparation for his Game 5 start Wednesday.
"We set up our rotation this way for a number of reasons," said Girardi. "Phil Hughes has never thrown on short rest. We have Andy Pettitte coming off a [groin] injury. There are a lot of things that go into making up your rotation.
"It's been a tough year for A.J., but we believe in him."
Pass it along: When the Rangers decided to give rookie Elvis Andrus the starting shortstop job in 2009, they signed Omar Vizquel to mentor him.
"Omar gave Elvis a lot of smarts on the mental side of the game," said manager Ron Washington. "That's the most important thing that he got from Omar Vizquel."
Andrus is hitting .429 (3-for-7) with three runs and two stolen bases in the first two games of the ALCS. Girardi was quick to see Vizquel's handiwork.
"I believe Omar Vizquel is a future Hall of Famer," said Girardi. "He was a Venezuelan shortstop [like Andrus], who came to the big leagues at a very young age. Andrus seems to play very similar to him."
Jeter's take: How has Derek Jeter lasted so long in New York, where every victory puts the Yankees that much closer to the World Series and every loss is a potential crisis?
"I don't read the papers and I don't listen to the newscasts," said Jeter. "I think that's the biggest thing. You have to take the approach that every game is a big game. If you play every game like it's a Game 7, you never have to change your approach."
Special voice: Earlier this year Bob Sheppard, the legendary Yankee Stadium public address announcer, died. Sheppard's introduction of Jeter coming to the plate was recorded, at Jeter's request, when the team still played in the old Stadium. Now the recording is played every time Jeter bats at home.
"It means a lot to me," said Jeter. "I do it to honor him. He's the voice of the Yankees. ... I think he was as big a part of the tradition here as any player."
Finally: When Jeter starts at shortstop Monday, it will make him the all-time leader in LCS games played with 50. He will move one game ahead of Manny Ramirez. ... The Rangers are 5-12 in their postseason history. Four wins have come this season.