Girardi decides to stand pat on rotation

After giving the impression he finally would disclose the odd man out in the rotation, Joe Girardi dropped a bombshell of a different kind.

After the Yankees' 9-3 win over the Toronto Blue Jays Sunday, he announced there won't be any change. He's sticking with six guys for at least another turn, starting with Freddy Garcia Monday, Phil Hughes Tuesday and A.J. Burnett on Wednesday.

The decision came as a surprise, given Girardi's insistence that he would return to a five-man rotation after the road series against Boston last week. The assumption was that either Hughes (4-5, 6.75) or Burnett (9-11, 5.25) would not make the cut.

Girardi said Burnett's last start -- in which he allowed two runs in 51/3 innings against the Red Sox -- was intriguing enough to keep the six-man rotation for now.

"I'm really curious," Girardi repeated several times. "I loved what I saw from A.J. in Boston."

At the suggestion of pitching coach Larry Rothschild, Burnett tweaked his delivery in hopes of garnering more consistent results. Now Girardi is anxious to see if those solid statistics continue.

"It's not that it's not important now," the manager said of the five-man rotation. "But we want to see. We thought some guys made some progress when we went to Boston . . . Let's see if their progress continues, and we stay to it, we stay to it, and if we don't, we don't."

CC Sabathia, who picked up his 19th win Sunday, reiterated his desire to pitch on regular rest, saying: "We all came up with five-man rotations and getting in routine, so I don't think it's me. I think it's everybody."

But the uncertainty is just something the starters on the bullpen bubble need to deal with, Girardi said.

"They're getting the ball, that's the bottom line," he said. "I think people do like to know where they're going to be every five days or every six days, but life's not always that way, this game's not always that way and you have to make some minor adjustments. The good news is they're getting another chance."

The manager again made it clear that he's in no rush to make a final long-term decision on his rotation.

"I'm allowed to change my mind; that's why I don't make instant decisions," said Girardi, who added that it's possible he could pitch Sabathia Friday on regular rest or move him to Saturday.

"I'm answering no more questions regarding that. We just want to see it again. We liked what we saw from our guys, and if we decide to give CC an extra day here, we can do it."

Asked if he plans to share his preference with the team, Sabathia just smiled.

"I'm sure they won't ask me because everybody's been pitching good," he said. "We'll just go with what they say."