Sorry if this arrives a bit late. I had to get sprung from Facebook (or do I call it Meta now?) prison again, so I couldn’t copy or post anything for a while.
An Aside: Fight for your First Amendment rights. Fight censorship. What they do is B.S. as far as restricting those rights.
The Yanks set their ALDS roster, and there may be a few surprises. First who is on.
Who is not on: LeMahieu, who apparently has a foot fracture, Benintendi, and rookie Oswald Peraza.
As for the pitchers. On: Cole, Cortes, Severino, Taillon, German, Schmidt, Trivino, Loaisiga, Luetge, Peralta, Holmes, Castro.
Not on: Effross (needs TJ surgery), Montas, Chapman (we will get to that in a bit), Marinaccio, Abreu, Britton, King (went down a few months ago), Green (lost at beginning of the year), Weissert.
The Yankees’ bullpen is a concern. Chapman was inconsistent, and not reliable. There was no certainty he would be on the roster. But then, since he wasn’t sure, Chapman blew off a mandatory workout, his excuse was unacceptable, and the Yanks told him to stay home. With Effross’ surprising diagnosis, Chapman would have made the roster. Instead, he is replaced by Castro. Chapman is a free agent, and it is certain he won’t be back with the Yankees. Who would want him after this selfish incident, who knows. But that would be their problem.
GM Brian Cashman’s moves at the trade deadline do not look good. There is nothing he can do about the injuries, but Benintendi, Montas, and Effross aren’t on the ALDS roster, and Bader barely made it after the Yankees had to wait on his injury to heal.
But anyway, the Yankees did take Game 1 of the ALDS (best-of-five) Tuesday night, 4-1.
Gerrit Cole pitched into the seventh and ran into trouble in the third inning. Cole, who gave up 33 HR in the regular season, gave up a one-out HR to Steven Kwan. We’ve seen Cole fall apart when something throws him off, and it appeared that would happen again. Cleveland loaded the bases after Kwan’s HR, and you were afraid they would break things open with a big inning. With the bases loaded and one out, Cole got a force at home. A bad call by the umpire didn’t let Cole get the strike three he wanted, but he held it together and got the strike three a bit later to get out of the inning surrendering only the one run.
In the bottom of the third, Harrison Bader homered for the Yankees to tie the game at one.
In the bottom of the fifth, Josh Donaldson led off the inning by hitting a ball that looked like a HR. It hit the top of the wall and bounced back into play. Donaldson was into his HR trot and got thrown out. Had he been running all the way it would have been an easy double. Lesson: Run them out!
Isiah Kiner-Falefa picked Donaldson up by singling to right, then advancing all the way to third on a 2-base error by RF Oscar Gonzalez. Jose Trevino made Cleveland pay for the error by hitting a SF to put the Yanks up 2-1.
In the sixth, the Yanks got some insurance runs. Aaron Judge led off with a walk and stole second. Judge went to third when catcher Austin Hedge’s throw went for an error. Anthony Rizzo followed with a 2-run HR to make it 4-1, which wound up as the final score.
Rizzo 2-run HR. Donaldson 2 for 2, walk. Bader solo HR.
Cole (WIN) 6 1/3 IP, 1 R, 4 H, 1 W, 8 K. 1 HBP. Gave up 1 HR. Loaisiga (H) 2/3 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 0 W, 0 K. Peralta (H) 1 1/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 1 K. Holmes 2/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 0 K. 1 HBP.
Game 2 is scheduled for Thursday night, with Nestor Cortes on the mound. Friday is supposed to be another off day. However, the weather forecast is not good and Game 2 could be postponed to Friday, which would mean havoc to the pitching rotation. If you play Game 2 on Thursday, Cole could come back for Game 4 on regular rest on Sunday, with Cortes on 3 days rest for a Game 5.
But if Game 2 is postponed until Friday, Cortes won’t be able to do that. Now if Cole goes in Game 4 you cannot bring Cortes back for Game 5 on two days’ rest. Instead, the Yanks would probably use Cole in Game 4 only if down 2 games to 1, then figure out later who goes in Game 5 (Taillon or German). If the Yanks are UP 2 games to 1, then they save Cole for Game 5 if necessary and go with Taillon or German in Game 4.
Of course, no matter what the weather does, the easiest way to avoid that headache is just to win in a 3-game sweep.
Recently, Tyler Wade, who was picked back up by the Yanks and sent to SWB after being DFA’d by the Angels, declared free agency.
In other game ones, the Phillies held on beat the Braves, 7-6. The Dodgers won Game 1 over the Padres 5-3, and those hated Astros got a 3-run walk off HR by Yordan Alvarez to win 8-7. Seattle blew a 7-3 lead they had after 7.
There should be no doubt that Luis Severino is the Yankees #3 starter come playoff time.
Severino was marvelous last evening, pitching 7 no-hit innings as the Yankees (98-61) defeated Texas, 3-1.
It was Severino’s third start since coming off the IL. As a result, his pitch count was limited to 90 (he threw 94) and therefore was pulled for safety reasons. Also, Miguel Castro was activated (Chi Chi Gonzalez DFA’d) and the Yankees do need to see if Castro should be on the postseason roster or not.
Aaron Judge was 1 for 4 with an infield single. He has 2 days and 3 games left to see if he can hit #62 to set a new AL and Yankees record. You now wonder if he will do it. He has just 1 HR since September 20. His batting average is at .311, 4 points back. I doubt that he will make it up to win the Triple Crown. The Yanks have a day-night doubleheader today. If Judge doesn’t get a HR in the opener, does he play in the night game? I’m sure if he DOES HR in the opener, he will be given the night game off. Maybe even tomorrow too.
The Yanks scored in the fifth inning on a leadoff single by Oswald Peraza followed by a force out by Aaron Hicks. Isiah Kiner-Falefa walked, and Kyle Higashioka singled in Hicks.
The Yanks hit into six DP in the game.
In the top of the eighth, Marwin Gonzalez led off the inning with a 400 ft. HR (6), before Judge struck out. Giancarlo Stanton followed with a 457 ft. HR (30) to make it 3-0.
Castro came in for the eighth and got an out before losing the no-hitter and then the shutout.
Stanton solo HR (30) good to see. Hopefully coming out of slump. Peraza 2 hits. .333 in limited time. Be interesting to see if on postseason roster. Higashioka 2 hits, RBI. Heating up after a bad season. Gonzalez solo HR (6)
Severino (W, 7-3) 7 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 W, 7 K. 3.18 Castro (H, 9) 1 IP, 1 R, 2 H, 0 W, 1 K. 4.18 Just off IL. First game since mid-July. Effross (S, 4) 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 1 K. 2.54 (Cubs/NYY ERA)
Aaron Judge will have to wait for HR #62, going 1 for 2 with a pair of walks in the Yankees’ (96-60) 2-1 loss to Baltimore Friday night.
Judge is at .314, about 7/10th of a point behind Minnesota’s Luis Arraez (.315) as Judge also goes for a Triple Crown.
A couple of mistakes, lack of control, no run support and a lot of rust hurt the Yanks in the loss.
In the first inning, Baltimore scored on a walk, a SB, a throwing error on Jose Trevino on the SB that allowed Cedric Mullins of Baltimore to go to third, and an RBI single. I thought Gleyber Torres should have caught or at least knocked down Trevino’s throw, but it is what it is.
The Yanks only got four hits in the game, struck out 13x, and their only run came on a HR by Oswaldo Cabrera (5) in the bottom of the fifth. No way does Cabrera not make the postseason roster. Even if D.J. LeMahieu, Andrew Benintendi or Matt Carpenter do get over their injuries and make it.
As for someone else, I’ll get to that in a bit.
Domingo German was the tough luck loser in this game, having pitched well, but getting no run support save for Cabrera’s HR.
In the top of the sixth, German walked the first two hitters before getting a groundout that moved the runners up. He was then relieved by Zack Britton.
Britton is just coming off of TJ surgery and it is said that control is the last thing to return. Britton walked a batter before throwing a WP that enabled the deciding run in the game to score. He was then removed with a tired arm. Nice try in coming back and hoping to make the postseason roster. It is obvious that Britton isn’t ready yet.
It will be interesting to see if Matt Carpenter, now taking batting practice, can get a couple of games in before the postseason, and if he can make the postseason roster, because if Giancarlo Stanton wasn’t Giancarlo Stanton, and making over $30MM a year, then based on performance alone, Stanton should NOT be on the postseason roster. Stanton is hitting .140 since coming off the IL, and .156 since June 1. If the Yanks had guts (and it would be a highly controversial move), if Carpenter is ok, they put Carpenter on the postseason roster and DH him and leave Stanton off of it. It won’t happen, though. But the Yanks are racing against the clock to get Stanton straightened out. I fear Stanton will kill the Yanks in the playoffs. He’s been THAT awful. Gallo-like awful. If Stanton is on the postseason roster, as expected, then PLEASE Aaron Boone, drop him in the lineup. To Seventh. Maybe even Eighth like Joe Torre did with A-Rod in 2006. You can’t just keep putting him 4 or 5.
But then, Boone had Gallo hitting cleanup in last year’s wildcard game loss at Boston. Sigh. Don’t make the same mistake, Boonie.
LeMahieu came off the IL for the game. Locastro taken off the roster. LeMahieu went 0 for 3 and we will see if D.J. is good enough to be on the postseason roster or not. Soon, we see about Benintendi, too.
Feelings be damned. If someone isn’t ready or deserves to be on the postseason roster, then leave him off. You can’t mess around come playoff time.
Today’s game may be delayed or postponed. The weather forecast calls for rain in NYC.
Cabrera 2 hits, solo HR (5)
German (L, 2-4) 5 1/3 IP, 2 R, 3 H, 3 W, 6 K. 3.31 Tough loss. Britton 0 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 W, 0 K. 1 WP. 13.50 Rusty. Not ready. Go home and heal up more. Marinaccio 1 2/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 2 W, 3 K. 2.09 Chapman 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 W, 0 K. 4.11 Effross 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 1 W, 2 K. 2.59 (Cubs/NYY)
Boone also revealed postgame that right-handed reliever Clay Holmes received a cortisone injection for inflammation in his right rotator cuff and likely won’t pitch again until the American League Division Series starts Oct. 11. We will have to see how he is. Meanwhile, Wandy Peralta should be off the IL by then, and Miguel Castro and Albert Abreu have finished rehab. The Yanks will have a LOT of interesting decisions to make regarding the postseason roster.
Aaron Judge tied Roger Maris for the AL and Yankees’ single-season HR record by hitting his 61st HR last night in the Yankees’ (96-59) 8-3 win at Toronto.
The blow broke a 3-3 tie in the top of the seventh inning. Fitting that it was the game-winning hit.
So, 61 years after Maris, who wore #9, hit 61, Judge, also a RF, who wears #99, matches him. And Maris sometimes played CF, especially after Mantle went down late in the 1961 season. We’ve seen Judge play a lot of CF himself this season.
The Yankees are off today and return to NY for a weekend series against Baltimore. If Judge doesn’t hit #62 Friday night, maybe he does it Saturday, October 1. If so, he would break Maris’ mark exactly 61 years after Roger hit his 61st.
Judge wasn’t the only one to tie a single season Yankees’ record last night. Gerrit Cole struck out four batters to give him 248 on the season, tying the mark set by Ron Guidry in 1978.
Judge’s HR was his only at bat in a 1 for 4 night. He still leads, barely, in the batting title race as he possibly could win a Triple Crown. He is hitting .3134 to the Twins’ Luis Arraez .3133. Xander Bogaerts of Boston is at .309. Should Judge win the Triple Crown, he would be only the second player since 1967 to do so. He would be the third Yankee. Lou Gehrig in 1934 and Mickey Mantle in 1956 are the Yankees to have done so. By the way, no NL hitter has won the Triple Crown since Joe “Ducky” Medwick of St. Louis in 1937.
Having won the AL East the night before, manager Aaron Boone made Anthony Rizzo the de facto manager for the evening. Most of the lineup was made up of the bench players, and rookie Oswald Peraza hit cleanup.
The Yanks scored three times in the top of the first inning. Judge walked, and so did Oswaldo Cabrera. Josh Donaldson singled in Judge, and Peraza then got a single for his first MLB RBI to make it 2-0. After a force-out, Marwin Gonzalez hit a SF to make it 3-0.
Cole retired the first 15 batters he faced before giving up a HR to Danny Jansen leading off the bottom of the sixth. As we have seen this year, anything that seems to throw Cole off a bit seems to mess him up big time, as far as limiting the damage. A single and walk immediately followed. After a lineout, a single brought in one run. A balk by Cole moved the runners up to second and third. A SF tied the game before Cole got out of the inning.
In the top of the seventh, Aaron Hicks singled before Judge hit his AL record-tying HR (and we know about the steroid controversy surrounding the NL and MLB mark, a fact alluded to by Roger Maris, Jr. in a postgame interview). But two outs after Judge’s line drive blast (394 ft with an exit velo of 117+ MPH, the hardest HR Judge has hit all season), the Yanks tacked on another run. Peraza singled, went to second on a WP and scored on a single by Harrison Bader, who moved to second on an error. 6-3 Yankees.
The Yanks got a couple of insurance runs in the top of the ninth. Cabrera doubled, and Donaldson was HBP. A groundout by Peraza moved the runners up. Bader then hit a ball back to the mound, but in trying to get the runner out at home, Toronto pitcher Adam Cimber threw the ball back to the backstop and both runners scored. 8-3.
Judge 2-run HR (61). Ties AL record and Yankees’ record for most HR in a season. Peraza 2 hits, RBI. First MLB RBI Locastro 2 hits Hicks 3 for 3 with a walk.
Cole (W, 13-7) 6 1/3 IP, 3 R, 3 H, 1 W, 4 K. 1 Balk. Gave up 1 HR. 3.51 Cole’s 248 K ties Guidry single season NYY record.
Britton (H, 2) 1/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 2 W, 0 K. 13.50 After TJ surgery, control is the last thing to return. Effross (H, 16) 1/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 0 K. 2.63 (Cubs/NYY) Schmidt (H, 4) 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 1 W, 1 K. 3.29 Chapman 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 2 K. 4.24
D.J. LeMahieu is expected off the IL on Friday, and we will see about the corresponding move.
The Yankees’ (94-59) magic number remains at 2 after a 3-2, 10-inning loss in Toronto Monday night.
For this game, I will start at the end and work my way backwards, because a questionable decision by manager Aaron Boone led to the loss.
In the top of the tenth, the Yanks wasted their chance. Oswaldo Cabrera was the ghost runner on second. A strikeout, walk and strikeout put runners on first and second and brought Aaron Judge to the plate. Toronto wouldn’t let the big guy beat them and walked Judge. Anthony Rizzo grounded out to end the threat.
In the bottom of the tenth, Yankees’ pitcher Clarke Schmidt got a strikeout, then Judge made a fine catch to save the game temporarily. With Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. up, the Yankees pitched to him, a decision I disagreed with. You don’t let the big guy beat you. I (and many other Yankees fans) would have walked him to set up the force at any base. Boone didn’t like the matchup on Kirk (an All-Star) either and decided to go after Vlad. Vlad will probably be a HOF just like his dad. Vlad finished 2nd in MVP voting last year. He’s Toronto’s “Judge”—their best player (with no disrespect to Springer, Bichette or Kirk). You don’t let the big guy beat you. Boone did let the big guy beat him, since Vlad singled to win the game (then acted like a jerk afterwards. I’m old school, and Vlad wasn’t classy after his hit. Get your hit, celebrate with your teammates, keep quiet and stay classy. Didn’t like his B.S. at all. Did DiMaggio, Mantle, Aaron or Musial act that way? No.) I and many fans were and are critical of Boone there. There are two out. Walk him and set up a force at any base for the last out of the inning. Other guys, you pitch to. A future HOF? No.
Going back, the Yanks scored first when Judge led off the game with a single and then Rizzo doubled. Gleyber Torres hit a SF to put the Yanks on the board.
Isiah Kiner-Falefa (IKF) homered (4) in the second to put the Yanks up 2-0.
But IKF made a big mistake in the fourth. With a man on first and no one out, Vlad singled. I don’t know what the official scorer was thinking because that ball should have been a DP ball. It should have been ruled an error and the two runs scored off of Luis Severino should have been unearned. Severino pitched well except for one batter. After IKF botched that ball (ruled an infield hit), a walk loaded the bases. A short flyout advanced no one, but then Teoscar Hernandez doubled, just missing a grand slam (and Hernandez, hot-dogging it, could have found himself thrown out at second. See above about staying and playing classy). That double tied the game. Sevy then got out of the inning, but it should not have been that way. IKF needs to make that play.
So, two mistakes. One by IKF, and the one by Boone, cost the Yanks the game in my opinion.
Judge was 1 or 3. A single, 2 walks, 2 strikeouts. We are still waiting on #61. He does have the batting lead at .3144. Luis Arraez (.3129) and Xander Bogaerts (.3127) are behind Judge as Judge not only is looking for the AL (and Yankees) single-season HR record but also at a triple crown.
Tonight’s game will be on TBS (out of market only). Check your carrier. If you get the YES network, then you are good there. As for me, I’ll be checking out TBS.
The Yanks struck out 14x last night.
Rizzo 2 hits. IKF solo HR (4)
Severino 4 IP, 2 R, 3 H, 3 W, 4 K. 3.41 (both runs should have been unearned) Trivino 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 W, 1 K. 4.76 (A’s/NYY) Effross 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 0 K. 2.65 (Cubs/NYY) Marinaccio 1/3 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 W, 0 K. 2.18 Loaisiga 1 2/3 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 W, 1 K. 4.27 Holmes 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 0 K. 2.54 Schmidt (L, 5-5) 2/3 IP, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 H, 0 W, 1 K. 3.35
Interesting news I see. Aroldis Chapman is a free agent after the season and the Yanks will most likely not be bringing him back. Not only that, but he may also not even be on the postseason roster. The Yanks are even considering DFAing him as of now.
The Yankees (83-58) reduced their magic # for winning the AL East to 3 with a 7-5 win over Boston on Saturday.
While they hit 3 HR, none were by Aaron Judge, who is stuck on 60 as he tries to tie and surpass Roger Maris’ AL and Yankee record of 61.
Judge went 0 for 3 with a walk and fell one point behind Boston’s Xander Bogaerts in the batting race, .315 to .314. Luis Arraez of the Twins is at .313. Since Judge is way ahead in HR and RBI, he also could be a Triple Crown winner as well.
The Yanks got on the board first when Gleyber Torres homered (24) in the bottom of the first inning. 1-0, Yankees.
Domingo German had a shaky second inning though, giving up 2 HR and 3 runs as Boston took a 3-1 lead.
The Yanks got a run back in the bottom of the second. With one out, Oswaldo Cabrera and Harrison Bader both walked. Isiah Kiner-Falefa (IKF) singled in Cabrera, Bader out at third.
The Yanks went up 4-3 in the bottom of the fourth on a two-run HR by Cabrera (4). Now this will be interesting in the offseason. Andrew Benintendi is a free agent, and currently on the IL with a broken hand. Do the Yankees try to sign Benintendi or do they feel confident in having the 23-year-old rookie Cabrera as their starting LF in 2023?
In the fifth inning, the Yanks upped their lead to 5-3. Kyle Higashioka led off with a single and Judge walked. A flyout moved Higashioka to third. One out later, Josh Donaldson’s infield single brought home Higashioka. 5-3, Yankees.
After a year away because of Tommy John surgery, Zack Britton returned to the mound but was ineffective, as Boston cut the Yanks lead to 5-4 in the sixth when Britton walked in a run. Lou Trivino came in with the bases loaded and one out and made sure that was all the Red Sox got.
But Boston tied it up in the seventh off of Trivino and Lucas Luetge, who with two out, couldn’t slam the door before Boston tied the game.
Anthony Rizzo hit a 2-run HR (32) in the bottom of the seventh that wound up deciding the game. 7-5 Yankees.
The Yankees (91-58) clinched a playoff spot with a 5-4, 10-inning win over Boston Thursday night. Should they finish in a tie with Baltimore, the Yanks get in due to a tiebreaker. The magic # for clinching the division and a bye is 6.
A couple moves were made before the game. Scott Effross back off the IL. Greg Weissert sent down. Wandy Peralta to the IL. Zack Britton back off the IL.
The Yankees also DFA’d Miguel Andujar. They should have traded him when they could have got something for him. Since his 2018 season when he was second in ROY voting, hitting 47 doubles, 27 HR 92 RBI and OPS+ 130, Andujar hasn’t been the same. That injury that cost him most of the 2019 season seems to have destroyed his career. Since then, Andujar has only hit .228-8-26 in 359 at bats. OPS+ 58. The power hasn’t shown up. Of the 82 hits since 2018, only 15 were for extra bases. 100 is a normal OPS+. That drop-off from 130 to 58 is drastic. Granted he has been a yo-yo, up/down, up/down from SWB to NY in that time, but he clearly has dropped off considerably from 2018. A shame.
Aaron Judge almost won the game with a HR in the bottom of the ninth. How appropriate if #61 would have been a walk off into Monument Park. But the 404 ft. drive was caught just in front of the fence, 408 feet away. Judge was 0 for 2 in the game, with 3 walks. Boston’s Xander Bogaerts was 0 for 5 in the game, however, so Judge’s lead for the AL batting crown increased over Bogaerts. Judge is at .316, Bogaerts .314 as Judge tries not only for the AL single-season HR title, but also for a Triple Crown.
The Yanks scored first in the bottom of the fifth inning. Oswaldo Cabrera walked and went to second on a passed ball. He had to stay at second on Harrison Bader’s infield single. Isiah Kiner-Falefa (who made a fine defensive play in the ninth) singled to load the bases, and Kyle Higashioka’s SF scored Cabrera.
Giancarlo Stanton hit a 2-run HR (28) in the bottom of the sixth and the Yanks went up 3-0.
Jameson Taillon was great, pitching six shutout innings, but Clarke Schmidt gave up the lead in the top of the seventh. Schmidt started the inning by going HR, single, walk, HR and before you knew it, the Yanks lost their 3-0 lead and were losing 4-3.
Aroldis Chapman ran into trouble in the eighth, once again with his control. Lou Trivino got out of a bases loaded, one-out jam to keep the score at 4-3, but the Yanks need to fix their bullpen problems before the playoffs start.
The Yanks tied it in the bottom of the eighth. Stanton led off with a single and was PR for by Tim Locastro, who stole second. A groundout moved Locastro to third and he scored on a SF by Bader, who has really been great in his first three games with the club.
Judge got an OF assist in the top of the ninth, perfectly playing a single off the wall in right and throwing out Tommy Pham as he tried to make a double out of it. Then in the bottom of the ninth, the almost game-winning #61. So Close!
Clay Holmes had no trouble with the ghost runner for Boston in the top of the tenth, then it was the Yankees’ turn. Marwin Gonzalez PR for Anthony Rizzo as the ghost runner. Gleyber Torres was intentionally walked to set up a DP, but Josh Donaldson singled to win the game.
The Yanks sit as the #2 seed in the AL. There is almost no chance of catching Houston for the #1 seed (7 back with 13 to go). If, as expected, it stays this way, the Yanks get a bye into the ALDS where, as of now, they would face the winner of the Cleveland/Seattle series. You get what you hope for, and I won’t want to pick who I’d like to face, but I will say this. The Yankees targeted and didn’t get Luis Castillo, who went from the Reds to the Mariners at the trade deadline. Castillo has given the Yanks fits this year, as a Red and as a Mariner. The Yanks are 5-1 vs. Cleveland this year, 2-4 vs. Seattle (thanks in part, to Castillo). Now things could change, and it could be the winner of Cleveland/Tampa Bay or the winner of Cleveland/Toronto. Only 1 1/2 games separate Toronto, Tampa Bay and Seattle for the 4, 5, and 6 spots.
AAA: SWB (77-63) lost 3-2. CF Blake Perkins 2 hits, RBI 2B Chad Bell 2 for 2 RF Michael Beltre 2 hits
Chi Chi Gonzalez 5 IP, 1 R, 2 H, 1 W, 6 K. Gave up 1 HR. 4.36 Effross (L, 0-1) 1 IP, 2 R, 3 H, 0 W, 0 K. Gave up 1 HR. 10.80 REHAB Bard 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 W, 0 K. 4.54 Deivi Garcia 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 W, 3 K. 7.75 #26 prospect. Overall: 4-5, 6.71 Zach Greene 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 1 K. 3.34
AA: Somerset (83-53) won 6-3. This concludes their regular season. As the first-half division champ, Somerset will start a best-of-3 semifinal playoff vs. Portland at Portland on Tuesday.
DH Jasson Dominguez solo HR (1). First AA HR for “The Martian” #2 prospect. Overall stats (3 levels): .273-16-59, 37 SB. Just 19 years old.
3B Andres Chaparro 2-run HR (19) 2B Jesus Bastidas 2 Hits, 2 RBI Solo HR (18) C Rodolfo Duran Solo HR (9)
Albert Abreu to the IL. The Yanks brought up Luke Bard, who was at AAA after the Yanks recently plucked him off of the waiver wire. Bard, a RHP, is 4-4, 4.50 in his career, mostly for the Angels.
Also going on the IL is Scott Effross, who the Yanks just recently got off of the Cubs at the trade deadline. Clarke Schmidt was brought back up.
Giancarlo Stanton is expected to come off the IL on Thursday. He will strictly DH at first.
You never know. That is why you play the games. For example, in the mid-1960s, when the Mets were really, really terrible, a young pre-closer Tug McGraw outdueled future HOF Sandy Koufax. Who’d have thought?
Last night, if you bet on the game, you’d probably take future HOF Max Scherzer over Domingo German, especially with the way the Yanks have played in August (6-14). But German outpitched Scherzer, and the Yanks (75-48) beat the Mets 4-2. The Yankees’ magic # for winning the AL East is now 33.
Had Scherzer won, he would have gotten career win #200 before his 100th loss. Not too many pitchers have done that (Whitey Ford is one who did). Instead, he is 199-100 for his career.
The Yanks struck early, getting a run in the bottom of the first inning. Andrew Benintendi, who is heating up, was HBP. One out later, Anthony Rizzo singled Benintendi to third. Benintendi just got in ahead of the tag when D.J. LeMahieu hit a SF. 1-0.
After going over a week without a HR, Aaron Judge finally got HR #47, touching Scherzer in the bottom of the third inning. 2-0.
In the bottom of the fifth, Isiah Kiner-Falefa doubled, went to third on a sac bunt by Marwin Gonzalez, and scored on a double by Benintendi. 3-0, Yankees.
German was cruising until the Yanks messed up in the top of the seventh. With one out, a popup to short RF was dropped when there was miscommunication between 2B Oswaldo Cabrera and RF Gonzalez as to who would catch the ball. Because of the collision, Cabrera dropped it for an error. Two pitches later, German made his only mistake, giving up a 2-run HR to Daniel Vogelbach. 3-2.
The Yanks came right back in the bottom of the seventh, getting an insurance run. With one out, Kiner-Falefa singled with one out and went to second on a throwing error by Mets’ SS Francisco Lindor. One out later, Benintendi singled to make it 4-2, which wound up as the final score.
You can’t win if you can’t score, and the Yanks have scored only 21 runs in their last 10 games.
The frustration is building and was evident in manager Aaron Boone’s postgame press conference after the Yanks (73-48) lost for the 14th time in their last 17 games, 5-2 to Toronto. The loss cut their AL East lead, once 15 1/2, to 7.
The Yanks got on the board first, scoring a run in the second inning. With one out, Jose Trevino doubled, then Isiah Kiner-Falefa reached on an error. Estevan Florial, who was 0 for 16 coming into the game, got a single to put the Yanks up 1-0.
Gerrit Cole no-hit Toronto for 4 1/3 innings, then the roof fell in. All five of the hits he gave up came in the same inning. After a strikeout, Double, Walk, Double and Toronto led 2-1. Two infield singles then loaded the bases. Another double made it 4-1.
Gleyber Torres hit a HR (18) in the bottom of the eighth to cut it to 4-2, but Albert Abreu gave up a HR in the top of the ninth to Matt Chapman. 5-2 Toronto.
It doesn’t get any easier. The Yanks face Manoah today, then have two games against the Mets where they are scheduled to face Scherzer and DeGrom.
The Yanks retire #21 in honor of Paul O’Neill today.
Judge 2 hits Torres solo HR (18) Trevino 2 hits
Cole (L, 9-6) 6 IP, 4 R, 5 H, 2 W, 5 K. 1 HBP 3.41 All five hits in 4-run fifth inning. Marinaccio 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 2 K. 1.80 Effross 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 W, 1 K. 2.75 (Cubs/NYY) Abreu 1 IP, 1 R, 1 H, 0 W, 1 K. Gave up 1 HR. 3.32 (3-team ERA)
The Sommer Frieze 
