OAKLAND, Calif. -- For Joe Girardi, having Dellin Betances, Andrew Miller and Aroldis Chapman in the New York Yankees' bullpen must be a toy comparable to Evel Knievel having a brand-new Harley-Davidson in his garage.
He simply cannot wait to use it.
And despite his best efforts to control the impulse to wear it out, he can't seem to stay away from it, even when he knows it might be better to let it rest awhile.
Girardi had two such nights this week -- consecutive nights, no less -- and the Yankees manager's behavior on both of them raised serious doubts about his commitment to his own ideals, namely to coax more length out of his starters, and not overuse, and potentially burn out, the strongest unit on his ballclub.