Melky takes a seat

I just had a chance to look at the lineup, and I was happy to see that Melky Cabrera is not in the starting lineup. Instead, Brett Gardner is in center field batting ninth.

Since April 25 (the last day Cabrera's season average was over .300), he is batting .219/.280/.292 in 219 at-bats and 241 plate appearances. He also has three home runs and 22 RBI over that period. There is one word that can describe this stretch: dreadful. Cabrera has been so bad that Robinson Cano has overtaken him in the batting average race much sooner that I ever would have thought.

Cabrera is still young (23), but I don't know how much more growth there is for him. I've always felt that he's been overrated by Yankees fans, as he is essentially a glorified fourth outfielder.

That said, Gardner is 0-for-6 with two strikeouts and one stolen base. While early, he will need to prove that he can stay in the lineup, or else Cabrera will have to start.