Hank Steinbrenner is the biggest...uh...kitty...I've ever seen

NEW YORK -- Yankees ace Chien-Ming Wang is expected to be sidelined until at least September after injuring his foot running the bases, prompting club co-chairman Hank Steinbrenner to chastise the National League for playing without a designated hitter.

An examination in New York on Monday showed Wang partially tore a tendon and sprained his right foot Sunday during the Yankees' 13-0 interleague win at Houston. He will be on crutches and wear a protective boot for a minimum of six weeks, the latest blow to the team's banged-up pitching staff.

"My only message is simple. The National League needs to join the 21st century," Steinbrenner said in Tampa, Fla. "They need to grow up and join the 21st century.

"Am I (mad) about it? Yes," Steinbrenner added. "I've got my pitchers running the bases, and one of them gets hurt. He's going to be out. I don't like that, and it's about time they address it. That was a rule from the 1800s."

Making a rare appearance on the bases at an NL park, Wang pulled up rounding third and hobbled home on Derek Jeter's single. Wang doubled over after scoring, pointed toward his right foot and was helped off the field.

"This is always a concern of American League teams when their pitchers have to run the bases and they're not used to doing it," Steinbrenner said. "It's not just us. It's everybody. It probably should be a concern for National League owners, general managers and managers when their pitchers run the bases. Pitchers have enough to do without having to do that."

Wang is 8-2 with a 4.07 ERA in 15 starts after winning 19 games each of the last two seasons. The right-hander will join injured Yankees starters Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy on the disabled list.

New York reliever Brian Bruney has a similar injury to Wang's and it is uncertain when he will return.

Steinbrenner said for now, the Yankees probably will have to look within the organization to find a replacement in the rotation for Wang. Right-hander Dan Giese is one possibility.

Several attractive pitchers, including Cleveland ace C.C. Sabathia, could become available as the July 31 trade deadlines approaches.

The Yankees were off Monday and start a series Tuesday night at home against San Diego. Their win in Houston kept them six games behind first-place Boston in the AL East.

The sinkerballing Wang has been the most consistent Yankees starter over the last couple of years.

Mike Mussina and Andy Pettitte remain in the rotation, and Joba Chamberlain recently was converted from relieving to starting. Right-hander Darrell Rasner has been in a slump lately.

Wang was well on his way to helping the Yankees finish a three-game sweep in Houston when he was hurt. He'd pitched five strong innings, and scored during an eight-run burst in the sixth that put New York ahead 11-0.

Wang is 5-0 in seven road starts this season.

"It's a manager's worst nightmare when a pitcher's on a basepath," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said after Sunday's victory. "It's unfortunate."

After the game, Mussina summed up the problem that AL pitchers sometimes face at NL parks.

"We don't hit, we don't run the bases," Mussina said. "You get four or five at-bats a year at most, and if you happen to get on base once or twice, you never know. We run in straight lines most of the time. Turning corners, you just don't do that."

I agree this is ridiculous. It's horrible the Yanks are having to deal with this insanity right in the middle of their surge to the top. Good thing they can overcome adversity. Go Yanks!

i happen to agree with steinny. we go to the game and pay to see pitchers pitch, not run the bases or swing the bat. when they get hurt doing that its really something we have to scratch our heads at.

Amen! The Yankees are victims of NL immaturity! Let the pitchers pitch and the batters bat! Go Yankees!

This is insane! really he's afaraid of his guys having to run, what a *****. I want to enact a rule that we can have Ellsbury run for Ortiz from now on, I mean we dont pay Ortiz to run the bases hes paid to hit the ball.

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Originally Posted by gRYFYN1

, what a *****.

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Really "M-O-R-O-N" is edited out ?

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Originally Posted by gRYFYN1

This is insane! really he's afaraid of his guys having to run, what a *****. I want to enact a rule that we can have Ellsbury run for Ortiz from now on, I mean we dont pay Ortiz to run the bases hes paid to hit the ball.

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Well, that's actually part of Ortiz' job, to run bases, no matter how badly he does it. The fact of the matter is that American League pitchers are not conditioned to run the bases, it's very dangerous to have them running high speed once a year around a corner. There should be a pinch runner rule for interleague games.

First instant replays now this. Bud has alot to think about.

Gryf, beat me to it...

So a baseball team should be composed of like 100 players.

9 batters. 9 fielders. 4 base runners. 12 pitchers.

But you'd have to break it down more than that.

I don't pay to see Giambi bat against lefties. I don't pay to see Jeter bat against a pitcher with a 90+ mile per hour fast ball.

They should even put up the batting practice screen in front of the pitchers since I don't pay to see the Detroit Tigers pitchers field the ball in the world series.

You'd need two short stops. I don't pay to see Jeter move left or right.

You'd have to sub in during at bats. I don't pay to see Vlad Guerrero take a pitch.

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Originally Posted by dannymac910

First instant replays now this. Bud has alot to think about.

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This is nothing like instant replay.

Interleague play has been going on for like 10 years now, and pitchers have been hitting in baseball since it started. Now a big-name pitcher on a team with a loud-mouth owner gets hurt, and it's suddenly a gigantic issue?

It's really baseball 1.01

According to the "Online Text of the Official Rule Book" found on http://www.baseball-almanac.com/rulemenu.shtml, "Baseball is a game between two teams of nine players each, under direction of a manager, played on an enclosed field in accordance with these rules, under jurisdiction of one or more umpires."

Pitcher=1
Cather=2
First Base=3
Second Base=4
Third Base=5
Short Stop=6
Left Field=7
Center Field=8
Right Field=9

oops...
Designated Hitter=10

It's unfortunate that the Wang got hurt, but Steinbrenner can psuk it. I think the DH blows chunks, and I like to see the pitchers have to get up there and swing the bat. Sometimes they get lucky, and sometimes it's just funny to watch.

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Originally Posted by filihok

It's really baseball 1.01

According to the "Online Text of the Official Rule Book" found on http://www.baseball-almanac.com/rulemenu.shtml, "Baseball is a game between two teams of nine players each, under direction of a manager, played on an enclosed field in accordance with these rules, under jurisdiction of one or more umpires."

Pitcher=1
Cather=2
First Base=3
Second Base=4
Third Base=5
Short Stop=6
Left Field=7
Center Field=8
Right Field=9

oops...
Designated Hitter=10

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BINGO!!!

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Originally Posted by beerchaser

It's unfortunate that the Wang got hurt, but Steinbrenner can psuk it. I think the DH blows chunks, and I like to see the pitchers have to get up there and swing the bat. Sometimes they get lucky, and sometimes it's just funny to watch.

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thats true... because now pitt can get ANOTHER bat and fall even further behind. Along with MIL. Lets have more records broken by bullshït "players" like Howard and Felder. Lets give pitchers ANOTHER reason to be fat and out of shape. "Just come pitch dont wory about the rest of the game." Hey while we are at it... Im sick of players like Ortiz, Giambi, Howard, Fielder, Even the aging Frank Thomas who I LOVED. All those guys are 1 dimentional players

Time to get into the 21's century??? The rule was over 100 years old before the a$$hole commish had to go and mess it all up. U HATE the DH and with it would be abolished. The yankees didnt win more than 1/2 their championships with teh DH. there were 70+ WS won without a DH why must we still have the DH?

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"This is always a concern of American League teams when their pitchers have to run the bases and they're not used to doing it," Steinbrenner said.

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yes because it's not part of the game right???

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"It's not just us. It's everybody. It probably should be a concern for National League owners, general managers and managers when their pitchers run the bases. Pitchers have enough to do without having to do that."

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NL owners havent had a problem for 137 years why would they have a problem. They have pitchers that are conditiond to PLAY THE GAME!!!
You mean with a 206 Million payroll you dont have a backup SP you can put in the rotation?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

No Bud Selig is nuts....just because not that he had anything to do with this!

The NL needs to adapt the DH!

The Yankees need to keep winning!

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Originally Posted by RickD

No Bud Selig is nuts....just because not that he had anything to do with this!

The NL needs to adapt the DH!

The Yankees need to keep winning!

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or the AL needs to remove the DH..........actually I understand Steiny Junior's comments,this is aguy WHO wants to win & win now & has lost his "best" pitcher till September - it is only natural to be upset,but as usual,he has stuck his foot in his mouth with the 21st Century comments. :rolleyes: