"I am trying to be too fine early in counts and that is getting me behind," Sabathia said. "I need to throw more pitches in the zone."

Now keep in mind that Sabathia's first four starts last year (0-3, 13.50 ERA) were far more odious than his initial quartet with the Yankees, and yet he still orchestrated the kind of season for Cleveland and Milwaukee that induced the Yanks to guarantee the lefty $161 million. But that 2008 season combined with his Cy Young award-winning 2007 left him with, by far, the greatest workload in the majors.

Sabathia insists "my arm feels great" and Joe Girardi reasoned that he is a power pitcher who will unfurl in full glory as the weather warms. But even now Girardi was treating him like a workhorse.

Sabathia had squandered a 5-4 lead in the sixth before the Yanks took a 7-5 edge in the bottom of the inning. Girardi stuck with Sabathia in the seventh though the big man already had 100 pitches. He stuck with him after the first two men reached and stuck with him after visiting the mound following an RBI groundout by Jason Giambi made it 7-6 with two outs.

"It was his game," Girardi said. Translation: Girardi trusted the imprecise Sabathia over the middle-inning dynamite in his bullpen. But on the next pitch, Matt Holliday swatted an RBI single, tied the score and knocked out Sabathia. Amazingly, six Yankees relievers then combined for 7-1/3 innings of shutout relief, notably 3-1/3 by Jose Veras. That provided enough time for Cabrera to hit yet another homer to right field in this ballpark.

That enabled the Yanks to go 4-2 on this homestand, despite a 22-4 humiliation against Cleveland. They are 9-6 on the season without A-Rod and with Chien-Ming Wang portraying the majors' worst pitcher. That is all positive. But it would be so much more so if Sabathia were acting like an ace.

The ball is going to fly at the new Stadium. The Yanks need Sabathia to lead an arm resistance to the long-range missiles.

Oakland Athletics News News » Enough warmups, Yankees need CC to step up
Enough warmups, Yankees need CC to step up
There were a lot of home runs and not many fans, or what we will call -- until further evidence -- the usual at the new Yankee Stadium. How fitting that the first homestand in this building's history ended yesterday with a homer -- to right field -- with maybe 10,000 people around to see it. Melky Cabrera hit a two-run shot off former teammate Dan Giese with one out in the 14th inning to give the Yankees a 9-7 triumph over the A's. It was the 26th homer hit in six regular-season games in this long-ball haven, the 18th to right field. Yankee Stadium tour Cashman wary of dingers Greenberg: Lundqvist saves day Ortiz has warning for Joba More from The New York Post