Sunday in the Bronx

What goes on at Yankee Stadium four-and-a-half hours before game time? At this moment, Tony Pena is hitting balls at Chad Moeller - in his catching gear - from about 75 feet away, simulating wild pitches.

Careful, Tony - considering that Moeller was the one and only healthy Yankee position player on Joe Girardi's bench yesterday. Jorge Posada (and, to a lesser extent, Mo Rivera) has battled through flu-like symptoms for the past few days.

Mike Mussina attributed yesterday's brief, 6th-inning light-headedness to possible dehydration (or not having eaten enough). Either way, he deserves a case of Mountain Dew from Girardi for his performance.

Here's a few stats for the day: Jose Veras has allowed just one earned run in his last 15 games (16.1 IP) dating to June 5, with 16 Ks. And Mussina's 114th win as a Yankee passed Eddie Lopat for sole possession of 13th place on the Yankees' all-time list.

At this time last year, Joba Chamberlain was preparing for the Futures Game, and could've passed through Yankee Stadium unnoticed. When we asked him if that felt like a long time ago, he said, "like six years ago.'' Right now, he's preparing for his first start vs. the Red Sox.

Former Futures Game teammate Jacoby Ellsbury, who became a good friend of Joba's, will get his chance against Chamberlain tonight. The two exchanged a hello hug in front of the home clubhouse door yesterday. But in parting, Chamberlain said with a grin that he essentially told his buddy to be prepared for his 0-fer tonight.