On JomBoy Media, JoezMcFly has a catchphrase, 27 outs. It’s his way of paraphrasing Yogi’s expression of It ain’t over, ’til it’s over.
The Yankees (21-13) were heading into the bottom of the ninth. It was as I would call it, Elvis Time. Meaning It’s Now or Never, for those of you who remember the old 1960 Elvis Presley song.
The Yanks were down 1-0. The offense was silent again, having gotten only two hits in the game up to that point. They were looking at being shut out for the sixth time this season, and the season was only 34 games old.
The Tigers got the only run of the game in the top of the sixth. Marcus Stroman gave up a leadoff single, got a strikeout, then walked three batters in a row to force in a run. Ian Hamilton came in and kept it at 1-0. Other Yankee relievers kept it there too, but the Yanks couldn’t do anything.
Finally, in that bottom of the ninth, they woke up. Aaron Judge led off with a single. New papa Alex Verdugo, in his second game back from paternity leave, laid down a beauty of a bunt. (Now that’s winning baseball!) Not only did it do its purpose of getting Judge, the tying run, over to scoring position, but it was a single for Verdugo, the winning run. Giancarlo Stanton then doubled in Judge to tie the game, sending Verdugo to third. Taylor Trammell PR for Stanton, just in case, although that would prove not to be necessary. Anthony Rizzo then singled through the drawn in infield to win it.
After getting only two hits through the first eight innings, the Yanks got four straight hits to start (and end) the bottom of the ninth to win, 2-1.
Stanton game-tying double after striking out in his first three at bats. Came up big when needed. Rizzo GW RBI single.
Stroman 5 1/3 IP, 1 R, 3 H, 5 W, 3 K. 3.41 Hamilton 1 1/3 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 0 W, 1 K. 2.65 V. Gonzalez 1 1/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 W, 0 K. 2.31 D. Santana (W, 2-0) 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 W, 0 K. 3.68
Luis Gil struggled with his control, and the Yankees’ (12-5) offense was shut down, and that combination combined to doom the Yanks to a 3-1 loss in Toronto Monday night.
Considering how many walks Gil gave up in his five innings, and how he threw 99 pitches in those five innings, the score could have been worse than it was.
The Yanks scored in the top of the second when with one out, Gleyber Torres singled, went to third on a single by Alex Verdugo and scored on a single by Oswaldo Cabrera. But other than those three consecutive singles, the Yanks only had one other hit all game long.
In the bottom of the second, Toronto got two runs off of Gil. A leadoff double, then three consecutive walks forced in a run and tied the game. After a strikeout, a WP brought in another run and Toronto was up 2-1.
Toronto scored another run, the last run of the game, in the bottom of the third. A leadoff single, a SB, and then, after two strikeouts, a two-out double.
Long time radio play-by-play announcer John Sterling announced his immediate retirement today. Sterling will be 86 on the 4th of July.
Gil (L, 0-1) 5 IP, 3 R, 3 H, 7 W, 6 K. 1 WP. 3.86 Wild today. Marinaccio 2 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 1 W, 1 K. 3.00 D. Santana 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 1 K. 3.68
A couple of months ago, I started following a person on Twitter (X, whatever). I liked his blog, reports, the guy was good. He called out bullshit columnists. He was more accurate in predicting where free agents would go than the big-name big shots. He got the scoop on things days, and sometimes weeks before the national guys. All good. He even tweeted on the afternoon of the national championship game that Jim Harbaugh would be leaving Michigan for the NFL and who he would be going to. All good.
But last night I had to unfollow the guy. Why? Because the guy from day one of spring training just kept continuously ripping Anthony Volpe to no end. It was like he had a bug up his ass about Volpe. Like Volpe stole his wife or something. I mean, he never would praise him but ripped him to no end. And I don’t get it.
Let’s backtrack a bit. Volpe doesn’t turn 23 for another 18 days. He only played 22 games in AAA. In other words, last year should have been his year in AAA. You can look at it this way. The Yanks rushed him to the majors last year. It was that or go with IKF for another year at SS or use Peraza. Well, Volpe won the job. He basically had to use 2023 as a learning year and it showed. A .209 batting average. 167 strikeouts. Those are numbers that showed that he probably needed another year in AAA.
But wait. He also had 21 HR and 24 SB. He also finished 8th in ROY voting and won a Gold Glove.
This year, he has drawn praise from the likes of Harold Reynolds of MLB network and Miami manager Skip Schumaker, among others, for the way he has matured and developed from last year to this year. The Yankees thought he could handle the struggles of last year, that Volpe could handle the rookie difficulties, especially those coming for someone with only 22 games of AAA experience under his belt.
So last night, Volpe went into the game leading the AL with a .417 batting average. Apparently, that wasn’t good enough for this guy that I unfollowed on Twitter. Also, the fact that Volpe, after an 0 for 4 last night that dropped his average going into tonight’s (Wednesday) game down to .375 leads the Yankees in WAR didn’t have any impact on this guy either. He’s called Volpe a cancer on the team. A Cancer! Of course, he doesn’t say who he wants playing SS on the team. I mean, if he wants Volpe off the team, who then should play SS, then? No answer to that.
Now to the 0 for 4 Volpe had. He ripped Volpe for a GIDP he had. But I don’t know if this guy was only following on Gameday or actually watching on TV like I was able to do. The pitch before the GIDP, Volpe crushed a ball down the LF line that missed hitting the foul pole for a 2-run HR by inches. So close that the umpires had to review it to be sure that the ball didn’t graze the pole. To rip Volpe for gidp after that really was unfair. The kid just missed a 2-run dinger. He crushed the ball. He couldn’t guide it. So he gidp on the next pitch. It was a good at bat. He just missed his pitch.
He then ripped him for flying out to right with two out and men on second and third to end an inning. Look, I wish he would have gotten a single for two runs there myself. But no mention of the fact that the flyout came on the TENTH pitch of the at bat. Volpe fouled pitches off. He made the pitcher work.
There is a reason Ty Cobb made out about 64% of the time. You can do everything right in an at bat and still make an out. Volpe in these two at bats had good at bats. The results just were not there.
So far this season, Volpe has shown a lot of improvement. Remember, he hasn’t turned 23 yet. That is 18 days away. For this guy to rip him as he has, is unreal. How about giving the kid a couple of years? Let’s see the numbers Volpe puts up at the end of this year. Let’s see his numbers after a few years in the majors. Remember, except for 22 games at AAA, for all intents and purposes, he basically made the jump from AA to the majors—and in NY no less, with Jeter comparisons to boot. Think that is easy?
So, I unfollowed the guy. I don’t know what he has against Volpe, but I got sick of it.
I hope Volpe makes the All-Star team. I hope at the end of the year, he gets MVP consideration. This year and for many years to come. Shut the guy up.
The general feeling in the industry is still that Blake Snell will fall to the Yankees. The Angels and Giants get mentioned, but the Giants owner basically admitted that his team was more or less done after they signed Jorge Soler to a deal. I’m not that convinced on other teams swooping in at the last minute for Snell, either. But anything can happen.
The Phillies could be a last minute contender for Jordan Montgomery, not Snell. Montgomery was thought to be headed back to Texas, or to the Cubs, but don’t be surprised if the Phillies get him. I still think the Phillies need a closer. They do have that Kerkering kid, but at 23, and with only 3 MLB games under his belt, do they really want to entrust a WS contending team to him as their closer? They lost Kimbrel in free agency to the Orioles and didn’t replace him.
Getting back to Snell, if the Yankees do land him, it won’t be easy. I think Joel Sherman wrote this in what I am going to go over here. The salary is NOT just throwing out some dollar figure. Because of the luxury tax, the Yankees would be paying 110 percent on top of that. So if Snell agreed to $30MM, the Yanks would actually be paying out $63MM. PLUS giving up their second and fifth round draft picks in July, PLUS giving up $1MM in international draft pick money. That is a lot to consider. Then you have to consider that even though $150MM is coming off the books after 2024, that money still has to be saved in order to sign Juan Soto, a free agent after 2024, to keep him in pinstripes. Soto is just 25. So what can you expect Soto, (represented by Simon Le Gree, aka Scott Boras) to possibly get? My guess is 13-14 years, and $520-$630MM.
One way to free up $$ for Snell is to trade away Gleyber Torres, who is a free agent after this year, move D.J. back to second base, and to play Oswald Peraza at 3B (or Peraza at 2B, DJ at 3B) or to sign Gio Urshela (a free agent) to play 3B. But that kind of defeats the go for broke purpose of signing Snell in the first place.
The other is to try to find a taker for the newly slimmed down Giancarlo Stanton, but that is a problem in its own right. One is who would take him. Another is in getting Stanton to waive a no-trade clause. A third is in how much salary that accepting team would pay Stanton and how much money the Yankees would have to pay Stanton.
A decision on Stanton may have to come sooner than you may think, and it may have nothing to do with how well Stanton may or may not be performing. I recently (within the last week) asked Bryan Hoch of MLB.com (Bryan recently came to one of our Lehigh Valley Yankee Fan Club Meetings) what the Yankees will do once Jasson (the Martian) Dominguez is ready to come back to the majors once he has recovered from his surgery. So far his recovery is progressing WAY ahead of schedule. Once Dominguez is ready, the Yankees would have the following outfield/DH contingent: Verdugo, Judge, Grisham, Soto, Stanton, Dominguez, Oswaldo Cabrera (who can play all INF and OF positions). And that doesn’t include guys who would be at AAA or AA like Spencer Jones, Oscar Gonzalez, Luis Gonzalez (no, not that one) and Everson Pereira. Discounting Jones, the two Gonzalezes, and Pereira, you have 7 guys. There would be a numbers problem, barring anyone on the IL at that given time.
Hoch said he asked Manager Aaron Boone the same question at Boone’s introductory spring training press conference, and Boone basically acknowledged it and basically said that they would cross that bridge when they got to it.
But yeah, getting Snell is still a possibility, but it won’t come easy (apologies to Ringo Starr). And there is going to be a numbers game in many ways here, whether it be in getting Snell, and even in the future when it is time to get the Martian on to the team.
I don’t mean this post to be judgmental or elitist, for none of us is perfect, but I figured I would write this as a way to vent. I’m sure in some or most of what you are about to read, you agree with.
The offseason can be frustrating, not only in waiting for free agents to sign, but in the news that you are getting. I don’t like to deal with rumors. So, even if I hear one that I believe in, or have a hunch, I usually don’t report anything until it happens or I am EXTREMELY certain that it will happen.
But if you go on Twitter or various blogs to check things out, what you see drives you crazy and that is what I am going to write about here. I’ll be nice and not name anyone.
There is one blog that has something like “Yankees free agent target.” This one drives me nuts because to them, EVERYONE is a Yankees free agent target. They list people that are clearly NOT targets because the Yankees already have that position filled; there is NO way the team is targeting that person because of that; the person is asking for too much money, even for the Yankees; the Yankees have a need for that position but are targeting someone ELSE; and/or that that player stinks or has character issues and there is no way the Yankees, or we Yankees fans, want that individual on the team.
But that blog lists EVERYONE as a Yankees free agent target. C’mon, get real. Stick to the ones that we KNOW are targets and leave the rest be.
The Orioles are selling their team, and for all those Orioles fans who have suffered with Angelos for so long, I feel happy for them. They have a good team of young stars and I’d expect some extensions with the new ownership. Also, for that new ownership to spend where Angelos did not. The price is supposedly over $1.72 BILLION. Already I see on Twitter that Orioles fans are asking for Blake Snell, thinking that they now have the ownership that will spend that money as opposed to Angelos. Don’t they realize that the sale has to be approved by the league and other owners? I’m sure that it will be, but spring training is just two weeks away. Snell probably will be signed by then, and even if he signs a week or so INTO spring training, that will be way before the sale is approved. Really, do you expect a $1.72 billion sale to just fly through in just two weeks? It obviously is complicated, not simple, and a lot of i’s need to be dotted and t’s crossed.
Remember a few blog posts ago where I wrote that you have to read the tea leaves? To survey the battlefield? Here is another example. A post yesterday (once again, to be nice, I won’t mention the person) said that the Yankees are out on Blake Snell. I don’t believe that because, to date, they are the ONLY team that made him an offer, albeit one much lower that Snell or his agent, Boras, were looking for. Hmm, elementary math states that ONE offer, minus that ONE offer if the team is now out on him, equals ZERO. So, to me, this is irresponsible reporting. If the Yanks ARE out on Snell (and I believe that they are just waiting for his demands to drop to close to what the Yankees offered) then what other offers does he have? List them. Convince me. Also, if a team has already spent on two starting pitchers and (if you do your research) has, my almost all estimations, already reached their spending limit, how is that team then IN on a certain free agent like Snell or Montgomery?
A lot of it is click bait, which I try to avoid here. Granted I am not perfect. But I try to avoid that type of bullshit.
But yes, reading those types of reports is enough to make you rant and vent, as is the case here.
The trade deadline came and went, and the Yankees did nothing significant to improve the team. In fact, when they did make a deal, they were the last team to make one, and when they did, it was for two run-of-the-mill relief pitchers who won’t improve the team much.
As a result, the fans and media were all over Yankees’ GM Brian Cashman. In one deal, the Yankees gave up RHP Juan Carela, their #29 prospect, a starter at High-A Hudson Valley, to the White Sox for Keynan Middleton, a 30-year-old righty. Middleton is 2-2, 3.96 this year with 2 saves, and 10-8, 4.00 for his career. They also gave up cash considerations to Texas for Spencer Howard, a 27-year-old righty. Howard has pitched in 39 MLB games, 29 as a starter and is 3-11, 7.20. Fans, in seeing that record and the last name of Howard, probably thought the Yanks picked up Moe, Shemp or Curly Howard. Hopefully both pitchers do well, but neither move the needle.
So, a team struggling mightily offensively, and who, besides Gerrit Cole, has no starter with five or more starts with an ERA under 4.35 (four starters have ERAs over 5.00), gets two relief pitchers who are a dime a dozen and nothing else? No wonder fans and the media are apoplectic. Even opposing executives criticized Yankees’ GM Brian Cashman, one saying that Cashman was stuck in in-between land, not knowing whether to buy or sell, and asking too much for players that (because of upcoming free agency) would just be rentals. Even Yankees’ players were not sure of what direction the Yanks were going in.
As for the game, it was like the movie Groundhog Day. Same thing, different day. Yankees’ starter Carlos Rodon, their big free agent acquisition (other than retaining Judge) fell to 1-4, 6.29. He gave up early runs, and the Yanks didn’t score until the bottom of the ninth, losing 5-2 to Tampa Bay. The loss puts the Yanks at 55-52, 11 GB but, and here is where the indecision came in, still just 3 1/2 games out of a wild-card spot. But they have to jump over teams to grab that.
At 55-52, the Yanks, the way they are playing, risk having their first losing season since 1992. They also are in last place in the AL East, and the only times in the last 100 years the Yanks have finished last were in 1966 and in 1990. Hopefully it doesn’t come to that in either instance. But the Yanks need to wake up.
Rodon gave up a couple of walks and a ground rule double in the second to give the Rays a run. In the top of the third, he gave up a HR, got a K, but then a single and another HR made it 4-0. Ian Hamilton gave up a run in the fifth and it was 5-0.
The Yanks finally got runs in the bottom of the ninth. Harrison Bader, PH for Jake Bauers, doubled with one out. After Aaron Judge hit a long fly out, Gleyber Torres doubled home Bader. Anthony Rizzo singled Torres to third. D.J. LeMahieu singled in Torres, and he moved to second and Rizzo to third on a throwing error on the play. The Rays made a pitching change and Giancarlo Stanton PH for Isiah Kiner-Falefa as the Yanks hoped for a game-tying HR. But Stanton was 3 for 39, no HR and 21 strikeouts in his career as a PH before this at bat. He struck out to end the game.
Frustrating day all around.
Rodon (L, 1-4) 4 IP, 4 R, 4 H, 4 W, 5 K. 1 WP. Gave up 2 HR. 6.29 Hamilton 2 IP, 1 R, 2 H, 2 W, 1 K. 1.77 Abreu 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 W, 0 K. 3.80 Ramirez 2 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 0 K. 2.67
Now this is more of what the Yanks signed Carlos Rodon for.
After losing his first three Yankees’ decisions, Rodon finally got his first win as a Yankee as the Yanks (54-48) beat the Mets, 3-1, Wednesday night. The two teams split the Subway Series this year, each winning two games.
Rodon was signed to a six-year, $162MM contract this past offseason, and was 0-3, 7.36 coming into this game. While not dominating in this game, or going too deep into the game, he still gave up only one run in pitching 5 2/3 innings.
The Yanks put two runners (singles by Isiah Kiner-Falefa (IKF) and Gleyber Torres) on in the bottom of the first with no one out, but Giancarlo Stanton struck out and Anthony Rizzo GIDP. With Aaron Judge out (more on that later) these veterans (along with LeMahieu, and Donaldson would be here too if he weren’t on the IL) need to step it up and lead. They haven’t. Oh, how I kill for sac flies.
The Yanks did get two runs in the bottom of the second. D.J. LeMahieu led off with a walk, Harrison Bader doubled D.J. to third, and Anthony Volpe walked to load the bases. Kyle Higashioka struck out, the first of two times he struck out with a man on third and less than two out (oh, for those SF!). Oswald Peraza then hit a fielder’s choice to third. It appeared that there was a force at the plate on D.J., but the Mets’ third baseman tried for the force at second on Volpe and didn’t get it. Run scores, everyone was safe. IKF followed with a SF (oh, for those SF!) to make it 2-0.
Rodon gave up his only run in the top of the third on a single, double and a SF.
The Yanks got an insurance run in the bottom of the fourth, thanks to more sloppy defense by the Mets. Bader got an infield single and advanced to second on a throwing error on the play. Volpe singled in Bader to make it 3-1, which wound up the final score.
Rodon wasn’t dominating, but he got out of the jams he put himself into. The Yankees’ bullpen tossed 3 1/3 hitless innings to seal the win.
LeMahieu 3 walks for the second straight game. Bader 3 hits.
The Yanks are off today. Joel Sherman of MLB and the NY Post reports that barring a setback, the Yankees are planning to activate Aaron Judge off of the IL Friday for their series in Baltimore. Note: It isn’t a done deal until it happens, but fingers crossed. One bit of warning. While we hope for the best, Judge won’t be at 100%. Just trying to temper expectations. Make them realistic. He’s human, not superman coming to the rescue, and will be playing in pain for the rest of the season. The question is, how he can manage that pain. If there needs to be surgery on that injured toe, it will be in the offseason. But 80% of Judge is probably better than 100% of a replacement. That’s the thing. Mickey Mantle famously played with pain his whole career and somehow thrived (until the last four years, when it caught up to him). But we saw how an injured toe badly affected LeMahieu at the end of last season and hope the same doesn’t happen to Judge. Once again, fingers crossed.
There has been a lot of B.S. in Toronto the last few games. In hitting his second HR of the game on Monday night, Aaron Judge was caught glancing into the dugout shortly before hitting the HR. People accused him of picking up a sign and cheating. Judge, as well as manager Aaron Boone, explained that Judge was looking over to see who was still chirping at the umpire after Boone had gotten ejected for arguing a bad call on Judge—a strike that once again, was too low for Judge. Judge wanted to also give a signal that “hey, shut up now, I am hitting here.”
Of course, not everyone bought that explanation, and instead wanted to state that Judge, one of the most loved and respected players in the game—a decent player who doesn’t show up anyone—was cheating.
Judge answered those people with a 2-run HR that broke open a tie game and was the winning blow in a 6-3 Yankees (25-19) win over Toronto last night. This time his eyes didn’t move off the pitcher. Take that!
The game wasn’t above other controversy though. And besides controversy, other problems for the Yanks. Both teams sniped at each other for where their base coaches were standing. It was so petty. One thing is for sure. If I were a third base coach and Judge was at bat, I would not be in the coaches’ box but as far back as legally possible. A foul liner off of Judge’s bat, if it hit me in the head, could kill me. The B.S. about where the coaches were standing was juvenile.
The scoring started when the Yanks scored two runs in the top of the third. Isiah Kiner-Falefa (IKF), who had a huge night, walked to start off the inning. Jose Trevino, who also had a big night, singled IKF to third. Gleyber Torres singled in a run. After Judge struck out, Harrison Bader hit a grounder that turned into a DP (Torres’ baserunning last night left something to be desired) but Trevino scored before the out on Torres at third so the Yanks were up 2-0.
Yankees’ starter Domingo German retired each of the first nine batters he faced but was ejected before the bottom of the fourth inning due to having too much stickiness on his hand. This is similar to the situation Max Scherzer of the Mets had last month, and Scherzer got a 10-game suspension out of it along with the ejection. We can expect the same for German. German had trouble with this same umpiring crew regarding rosin last month. Now it happened again. German claimed it was rosin on his hand. The umpires claimed it was something else that was stickier than rosin. One thing is for sure, and that is that German crossed the line, but MLB needs to define better what the line is as far as rosin is concerned. David Cone, a former pitcher, had a good video recently showing that in trying to wipe off rosin, that alcohol with water (I may be wrong here as far as what all it was) made the rosin even stickier in trying to get rid of the rosin. There is something going on, and MLB has to be better at defining what the line is, and in having something to remove rosin without making things worse.
Anyway, no German for a while. While the Yanks will be getting Luis Severino back shortly (see my minor league report for how Sevy did last night), the Yanks were shorthanded in the rotation to begin with, and a German suspension doesn’t help. You can’t call up someone from the minors just because of a suspension. Expect a couple of bullpen games while German is out.
To make matters worse, the pitcher who replaced German in the game was Ian Hamilton, who had to be pulled a bit later because of right groin tightness, and he is bound for the IL. I’d expect Greg Weissert to be recalled. If not him, then maybe Matt Krook or Nick Ramirez.
Back to the game. In the top of the fifth, IKF, not one for power, hit his first HR of the season to give the Yanks a 3-0 lead. But Ron Marinaccio gave up the lead as the Blue Jays scored three times in the bottom of the fifth.
That led to Judge answering the critics with his 2-run HR (11) in the eighth. The Yanks added another run in the ninth on a double by IKF, who came around on a couple of flyouts, with Torres getting the SF.
The win moved the Yanks into a virtual tie for third in the AL East with Toronto (Toronto is percentage points ahead), 7 1/2 back of Tampa Bay.
Yankees’ ace Gerrit Cole is on the mound tonight for the Yankees.
Torres 2 hits, 2 RBI but also out twice on the basepaths with baserunning mistakes. Judge 2-run HR (11) Take that, critics! Kiner-Falefa 2 hits, RBI. Solo HR (1). Trevino 3 for 3.
German 3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 2 K. 9 up, 9 down. but ejected & 10-game suspension coming up. 3.75 Hamilton 2/3 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 2 W, 2 K. 1.23 IL stint coming up. Marinaccio (BS, 3) 1 IP, 3 R, 4 H, 0 W, 1 K. Gave up 1 HR. 4.74 Weber (W, 1-0) 2 1/3 IP, 0 R, 3 H, 0 W, 0 K. 5.06 Holmes (H, 3) 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 W, 1 K. 3.86 Peralta (S, 3) 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 W, 0 K. 1.65 Has he replaced Holmes as closer?
Quick notes: Great job by Weber. Also, Bader’s defense is unreal.
After keeping Aaron Judge, owner Hal Steinbrenner promised him that there was enough money to make more moves.
But the Yanks only made one move after that—signing Carlos Rodon, who hasn’t pitched at all yet for the Yanks this year. More on that later.
One move the Yanks didn’t make, and it is costing them now, is that they didn’t address left field. They wanted to retain Andrew Benintendi but lost him in free agency to the White Sox (the White Sox have a terrible record right now at 10-22 before last night, and although Benintendi is hitting .275, it is without any power. His OPS+ is just 83, 100 being average).
I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Yanks do something to address LF. There has been misplaced trust that Aaron Hicks should have a bounce back season. Hicks before last night’s game was hitting .146 with no extra base hits and is below a converted infielder (IKF) on the totem pole. IKF is a converted infielder hitting .196 with no extra base hits before last night’s game. Oswaldo Cabrera has not built on the success he had in his MLB beginnings last year. He is struggling at .196. Franchy Cordero had a hot week but has been sent back to the minors after hitting just .151. Willie Calhoun has been DH-ing because his defense is subpar. The Yanks’ LF production may be the worst in the majors at that position this year.
With the struggles of those players, and injuries, the Yanks have brought up Jake Bauers. The journeyman OF hit a HR the other day, but in just his third game with the Yanks, he misplayed a fly ball last night into a run-scoring double, and that proved to be the deciding run in a 5-4 Yanks loss last night. The loss to Tampa Bay dropped the 17-16 Yanks ten games behind those first-place Rays in the AL East.
So yes, injuries have hurt, but LF is a place where no one has gotten injured. The Yanks just haven’t received any production there and I would expect and hope that something is done to fix that soon.
Speaking of Rodon, the lefty pitcher will have a cortisone shot in his back next week. His condition is chronic. Sigh. He was just signed to a 6-year deal for $162MM. When right, he is lights out, but now you wonder if he can manage that back issue or if he turns out to be another Pavano.
I wanted and applauded the Rodon signing. Of course, I, and probably the Yanks, not to mention Rodon, didn’t know there was going to be a chronic back issue to come with it.
Last night’s game started poorly. Starter Jhony Brito gave up a HR to Randy Arozarena in the bottom of the first. Arozarena was HBP twice later in the game, causing Arozarena and the Rays to become infuriated and causing Tampa Bay manager Kevin Cash to be ejected.
Tampa Bay, who are 18-2 at home this season, scored in the bottom of the second to make it 2-0. Yandy Diaz touched Brito for a HR in the bottom of the third, and the Rays tacked on another run after that. 4-0 Rays after three.
The Yanks tied it up in the top of the sixth. With one out, Anthony Rizzo singled. Gleyber Torres doubled home Rizzo. D.J. LeMahieu walked and after Willie Calhoun struck out, Harrison Bader hit his first regular-season HR as a Yankee (he had five in last year’s postseason) to tie the game.
In the bottom of the seventh, with one out and a man on first, Wander Franco hit a fly ball to left. Stats said there was a 95% chance of it being caught for an out. Instead, Bauers misplayed the ball into a double. The Yanks almost got the runner at home. He was originally called out, but the play was overturned upon review. The run turned out to be the deciding run.
In the postgame show, Jack Curry on YES mentioned what I believe. That instead of Jimmy Cordero pitching in that seventh inning, that it should have been Michael King. Manager Aaron Boone needs to realize that too, that King is his best reliever right now and to use him as such. Forget roles. You go by what you see and adjust to that.
Yes, injuries have hurt. But the Yanks have to make adjustments. In the bullpen, with King taking on the go-to role, and also in LF, where the Yanks’ LF production so far this season has been weak.
GM Brian Cashman said they tried to make more moves in the off-season but no move made sense. We will see if one makes sense soon. Someone in LF needs to step up or a move has to happen.
And with Rodon’s back being chronic, and with no pitching depth in the minors, a move for a starting pitcher may have to happen as well.
Volpe 2 hits, SB (11). LeMahieu 2 for 2 with 2 walks. Bader 3 RBI. 3-run HR (1).
Brito 4 IP, 4 R, 6 H, 1 W, 2 K. 1 HBP. 2 HR given up. 6.08 Abreu 1 1/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 1 K. 1 HBP 4.60 Hamilton 2/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 1 K. 1.50 J. Cordero (L, 1-1) 1/3 IP, 1 R, 1 H, 1 W, 0 K. 3.09 King 1 2/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 1 K 1.42
Mike Shannon, a RF/3B who won WS titles with the Cardinals in 1964 and 1967 and an NL pennant in 1968, died today at the age of 83.
Shannon played for the Cardinals from 1962-1970, and later was a long-time broadcaster for the Cardinals.
Shannon was a platoon RF for St. Louis in 1964, when he hit .261-9-43. In Game 1 of the WS, he hit a monster HR off of Whitey Ford in what turned out to be the last WS game Ford ever pitched. Shannon also hit a HR in the 1967 and 1968 WS.
In 1967, he moved to 3B because of the Cardinals picking up Roger Maris in a trade.
Nicknamed “Moonman”, Shannon was only 31 when he retired. His 162-game average was .255-12-67, OPS+ 97.
He hit .245-12-77 for the 1967 WS champs and finished 7th in MVP voting for the NL Champs in 1968, hitting .266-15-79.
The Sommer Frieze 
