Girardi: Posada-Burnett stuff is much ado about nothing
Galleries
Photos: Yankees vs. Red Sox
BOSTON - Joe Girardi wishes the whole A.J. Burnett/Jorge Posada discussion would go away. That appears unlikely, though, at least until Posada catches Burnett without difficulty.
"I think people are trying to make this a bigger story than it needs to be," Girardi said.
Girardi spent a significant chunk of his 22-minute pregame meeting with reporters last night giving candid and frank answers regarding the difficulties Burnett and Posada have had in Burnett's last three starts.
Burnett and Posada got their signs crossed in his two previous starts, leading to three wild pitches and a run-scoring balk, but Saturday's issues revolved around pitch selection.
After the Yankees' 14-1 loss to Boston, Burnett talked about not being "100 percent behind" everything he threw. Girardi, while not criticizing his pitcher, said that responsibility ultimately falls with the pitcher.
"He has to throw what he has confidence in," former Yankees catcher Girardi said. "That's his job because we're not inside their head. And sometimes as a pitcher and a catcher, you see things totally different."
Which was the case, judging by what Burnett and Posada said Saturday after Burnett allowed nine runs in five innings.
"It seemed like earlier in the game, they were on the curveball," Posada said. "I wanted to throw a couple of more pitches so we could get away from the curveball.''
Said Burnett: "It's just a couple of heaters where I felt I should have thrown a hook and then I step off and re-gather. But [Posada] was fine back there. It's just a matter of me throwing what I want to throw. You don't throw a pitch unless you're 100 percent behind it.''
Girardi certainly agreed with that. "To me, that's the most important thing is that a pitcher has conviction," he said. Talking generally of catchers and their responsibilities, he said, "We're suggestion boxes."
It is important to note that Posada and Burnett have worked well together for most of the season, and that neither was outright critical of the other Saturday.
"When you get players after a game, and an ugly game like that, players sometimes are frustrated and will say things," Girardi said. "These two guys have worked very well together this year, and yesterday was a struggle. But because we've talked about it , I think this story's become bigger than it really is."
Girardi said Jose Molina, who caught CC Sabathia last night, might catch Burnett at some point the rest of the season, but he added that if he does, it simply will be a result of the way he's rotated his catchers.
"The way I've caught Jorgie and Molina is Jorgie's either caught two out of three or three out of four [in a series],'' Girardi said. "I've not given anyone a personal catcher here, so I'll continue to rotate them. Physically, I've talked to Jorgie; he's usually two of three or three of four. He's not 25 anymore.''
But still as fiery as ever. Posada has had occasional issues with past Yankees pitchers, but Girardi cited the catcher's resume. "This is a guy that has played in six World Series," Girardi said. "He's doing something right."
Including, at times this season, with Burnett. "People seem to forget that Jorgie was behind the plate matched up against [Josh] Beckett at our ballpark," Girardi said of the 15-inning victory over Boston Aug. 7 in which Burnett threw 72/3 scoreless innings. "He lost 3-0 and pitched pretty well in Oakland [last Monday], and if we score our normal runs, no one even questions what went on in that game. We had a bad game yesterday."
Notes & quotes: Johnny Damon, forced to leave Friday's game after fouling a pitch off his right knee, was back in the lineup last night. "I feel good," he said . . . Of struggling reliever Alfredo Aceves, Girardi said: "You look at some of the hits he gave up, he just didn't hit his spots, and that's going to happen with every pitcher. He'll get it back to where he needs to be."
