Showalter Enthusiastic as Yankees Look Ahead

June was tucked in the memory book. It was the third straight winning month for the New York Yankees, the first time they have done that in six seasons. Manager Buck Showalter was pleased but his mind already was racing ahead. “When do we start the second half?” he asked Wednesday.

Looking at the huge monthly calendar on his office wall, battlefield-plan sized, Showalter answered his own question. “Sunday in Oakland,” he said. “Jimmy Key pitching.”

Showalter smiled. That’s not a bad arm or pitching mind to have going for you in Game No. 82. But first there are Games 80 and 81 Friday night and Saturday in Oakland. The Yankees left on a 10-game West Coast trip Thursday. Then comes the All-Star break. They won’t return home until July 15.

If they want Yankee Stadium to continue to rock, the way it did this week against the Detroit Tigers with renewed fan support, they will have to take care of business. “We know we’re going to run into three hungry clubs,” Showalter said. “The Western Division in our league is a pit fight. They all have a chance to win it. Oakland is a streak away from getting into it. California and Seattle are already in the hunt.”

That’s reality in the A.L. West. The A’s, who Thursday moved out of last place, are closer to first place than the second-place team in the N.L. West. You can knock the A.L. West clubs for poor winning percentages or you can be wary of them.

It is the Yankees’ job to stay focused. Showalter will remind them what’s at stake, but there are enough veterans in his clubhouse who have a perspective on what the 10-game trip means that it is unlikely any reminder from the manager will be needed.

“It’s an important trip,” Key said. “We’re fortunate to get it over with before the All-Star break. I look at that as an advantage because it means less travel after the break. We’ll take something like the first West Coast trip (a 5-3 record). You want to be at least .500.

“It won’t be easy. California has a good club. Seattle too. Oakland has struggled but they’ve got good players. We’ve got to find a way to get some wins. You want to go into the break on a positive, and the only way to do that is to have a good trip.”

Showalter would like to get more consistency from his pitching staff. He’ll take his chances with the club’s offense. The Yankees don’t have anybody among the league’s RBI leaders. Paul O’Neill leads them with 39. But try to find another club that has seven players with at least 32.

That’s why the Yankees, who are averaging 5.2 runs per game, are third in the majors (behind the Tigers and the Toronto Blue Jays) in runs scored. They also trail only the Tigers for the most home runs with 91. Again, the Yankees have nobody among the leaders but seven have hit at least seven homers.

Showalter’s approach of giving all his personnel playing time has kept them all reasonably sharp. It makes for an atmosphere in which egos are subordinate to team pride. It also puts less of a burden on each individual because they’re learning to trust in the capability of their teammates.

The Yankees want the Showalter style, which embraces them all, to work. And with the goading George Steinbrenner lurking in the background, it had better work if Showalter is to remain their manager.

“Each and every series gets more important as you move through a season,” Spike Owen said. “You want to make sure you do well, so when you get back playing against the Eastern teams you’re there or in close proximity to the lead.

“We have to take care of our business. Not do a lot of scoreboard-watching. Do what we have to do and not worry about Toronto, Detroit and Baltimore.”

*

The Yankees are concerned about lingering soreness in Jim Leyritz’s left wrist. With Matt Nokes ineligible to come off the DL until Tuesday, Mike Stanley is their only healthy catcher. Hensley Meulens, who caught in high school, is a likely emergency replacement although the Yankees also have veteran Rich Gedman at Columbus. “I’ll play anywhere,” Meulens said.