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Yankees' Kennedy still seeking first win

May 22, 2008 - 12:23 PM Baltimore (24-21) at NY Yankees (21-25) 7:05 pm EDT

BRONX, New York (Ticker) - One day after making the decision to begin Joba Chamberlain's transformation from reliever to starter, the New York Yankees would like to get a win from another of their young pitchers.

Ian Kennedy attempts to get his first victory in his eighth start this season when the Yankees meet the Baltimore Orioles in the rubber game of their three-game set on Thursday.

Chamberlain, the team's usual eighth-inning pitcher, worked the final two innings of Wednesday's 8-0 win against Baltimore as New York formally began the process of turning last year's pitching sensation back into a starter.

"This is the timetable that we had set," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. "It's going to (take) him a while to (get) where he's going be - a hundred pitches. But this is what we had planned all along, and we're sticking to our plan that we talked about over the winter and in spring training."

Kennedy (0-3, 8.48 ERA), who was a pleasant surprise in his own right for New York when he went 1-0 with a 1.89 ERA in his three starts last season, has experienced a disappointing sophomore campaign and may be first in line to be dropped from the rotation when Chamberlain is ready.

The righthander has yet to last more than six innings in any start this season, including Thursday's 5-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays. Kennedy surrendered five runs and five hits in five innings, walking one while striking out three.

He will be opposed by Brian Burres (4-4, 3.47), who snapped a three-start losing streak on Saturday. The lefthander allowed two runs and four hits over 6 2/3 innings, walking two while striking out three in a 6-5 victory over the Washington Nationals.