Game 154. 0-ffensive. Yanks blanked for third straight game.

You can’t win if you don’t score. For the third consecutive game, the Yanks were shut out as they lost to Toronto 3-0.

Lately, Joe Girardi’s bullpen moves have been questioned, leading Girardi to become very testy lately in his dealings with the media. Even when he appears to make the right move, as yesterday, it doesn’t work out.

CC Sabathia pitched his heart out, pitching seven shutout innings,  but was pulled for Tyler Clippard in the eighth. Clippard gave up a two-out, three-run HR to Jose Bautista to lose the game.

The Yanks managed only three hits all game. With injuries to Headley, Teixeira, Castro …. and the youngsters now on the team, the lineup lately has looked like a spring training lineup.

I worked all day yesterday, but did hear one thing on the radio on the way home. At one point in the game, Gardner was on first base. Gardner has 16 SB this season. This from a guy who led the league a few years ago. A guy who stole 49 and 47 not long ago. In other words, Gardner isn’t running enough. He should have at least twice as many steals as he has now (that goes for Ellsbury too, who has just 18). Sterling and Waldman mentioned that he doesn’t run enough, then wondered how, when he finally decides to try and steal, he tried to do so on an 0-2 pitch with two out—-the easiest pitch for the other team to pitch out on. Sure enough, Toronto pitched out and Gardner was out. Sigh.

The loss drops the Yanks to 79-75. They are 4 1/2 games out of the final wild card spot with just 8 games to go. Their tragic # is 4.

They need to go 3-5 in the last 8 games to avoid a non-winning season, which would be their first since 1992. Even at that, they have to go 5-3 even to match their worst season since 1992 (which was 2014 at 84-78). Those 8 games are against the three teams ahead of them, Toronto, Boston and Baltimore. Not only that, Tanaka, who will miss his next start, may miss the other one as well.

Sabathia 7 IP, 0 R, 4 H, 3 walks, 2 K. 4.02
Clippard (L, 3-5, 3.60 AZ/NYY) 1 IP, 3 R, 2 H, 2 walks, 0 K. Gave up 1 HR.

 

Game 150. Sanchez does it again! Yanks win 5-3.

Forgive me for a moment as I play devil’s advocate.

If you are the manager of another team, and the score is tied, and the other team has runners on 2nd and 3rd with two out…

and the HOTTEST hitter in baseball is up at the plate…

do you pitch to him? Or walk him to load the bases for the next hitter, hoping for a force at any base?

And if you are the owner of a manager who decides to pitch to him anyway, only to see that batter hit a 3-run homer that wins the game, do you fire that manager?

For that is exactly what happened in the Yankees’ 5-3 win over Tampa Bay Tuesday night.

Of the 16 outs Michael Pineda recorded for the Yanks tonight, 11 were by strikeout. He gave up a two-run triple in the third to put the Yanks in a 2-0 hole.

Mark Teixeira hit a HR in the fourth to cut it to 2-1. Teix’s 13th HR of the year was #407 of his career, tying him with Duke Snider on the all-time HR list.

In the seventh, Ronald Torreyes and Mason Williams each singled. 1st and 3rd, one out. As I mentioned before, I think the Yanks should look at dealing Gardner for a decent starting pitcher and look into giving the LF job to Williams in 2017. He might platoon with Frazier (Williams vs. RHP,  Frazier or Hicks vs. Lefties).

Gardner singled to tie the game, Williams going to third. Gardner stole 2nd while Hicks (just off the DL) stuck out.

So 2 out. Men on 2nd and 3rd, tie game. Sanchez up and 1st base open. Would you pitch to the hottest hitter in baseball or walk him?

Fortunately for us Yankees fans, Tampa Bay manager pitched to Sanchez. He should be fired for his decision. Sanchez hit a 3-run HR (17) to the delight of us Yankees fans.

Was he kidding? Pitching to Sanchez right now?

Thank you very much, Kevin Cash.

In the 8th, a triple and WP let the Rays score a run.

Pineda 5 1/3 IP, 2 R, 5 H, 1 walk, 11 K. 4.89
Layne 1/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 walks, 1 K. 3.24 (Bos/NYY).
Once again, Girardi uses Layne for just 1 batter. AAAARGH! At least THIS time, it didn’t burn him.

Severino (w, 3-8, 5.88) 1 1/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 walks, 1 K.
Clippard (H, 23)  1 IP, 1 R, 1 H, 0 walks, 2 K. 3.22 (AZ/NYY)
Betances (S, 12) 1 P, 0 R, 0 H, 0 walks, 1 K. 2.79.

Anthony Swarzak was called back to the Yanks, the other day.

The win puts the Yanks at 78-72 with 12 games left.

 

Game 148. Lost Weekend.

It’s been a lost weekend for the Yankees, who lost their fourth in a row—the last three to Boston— on Saturday afternoon. The score was 6-5.

With 14 games left, the Yanks are 7 out for the division and 4 out of a playoff spot. They’d need to jump 4 teams to make the playoffs. The numbers and time left are not on their side.

Once again, the Yanks got off to a lead, and couldn’t hold it. Once again a starter couldn’t go deep into the game and the middle relief couldn’t shut down Boston.

Once again, Joe Girardi pulled Tommy Layne after Layne faced one batter and did his job, only to have the pitcher following Layne give up runs.

I like Girardi. But his penchant for the binder is killing him (and us fans) this week.The NY Post has (rightfully so, in my opinion) been questioning his moves, particularly as regards Layne, who has been pitching well, but who Girardi keeps pulling out after just one batter.

Show some confidence in him, Joe. If he is doing well, leave him in there.

Also, add the squeeze bunt to your repertoire.

Lastly, injuries struck again. This time it is Castro and Ellsbury. The Yanks are literally limping to the finish line.

The Yanks got off to a 3-0 lead in the third on an RBI triple by Gardner and a 2-run HR by Sanchez (15).

Boston got two back in the bottom of the inning.

Austin Romine doubled in two in the fourth to make it 5-2. The Yanks couldn’t score after that.

Xander Bogaerts homered in the fifth to cut the Yanks’ lead to 5-4.

The Red Sox won the game in the seventh by scoring two runs. Mookie Betts singled to tie it and the winning run scored on a WP by Adam Warren. Boston almost scored an insurance run on the same play when a disgusted Romine pulled a rock, forgot about the runner on second (the runner that was on third scored) and had to scramble back to the plate to tag him out just in time.

Sheesh.

Mitchell 4 2/3 IP, 4 R, 3 earned, 5 H, 1 walk, 3 K. Gave up 1 HR. 3.75.
Severino 1 1/3 IP, 1 R, 2 H, 3 walks, 1 K. 6.00
Layne (H, 11) 1/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 walks, 0 K. 3.35. (Bos/NYY)
  Layne faced one batter, got him out. Threw just two pitches.  LEAVE HIM IN, JOE!
Warren (BS, 3; L, 6-4, 4.85; Cubs/NYY)   1 2/3 IP, 1 R, 3 H, 0 walks, 1 K.

 

Game 142. Yanks streak ends, lose ground in 4-2 loss.

All things must pass, and the Yankees’ 7-game winning streak came to an end Sunday with a 4-2 loss to Tampa Bay.

With the loss, the Yanks lost ground. With 20 games left, they are 4 games out of the division lead, and tied with Detroit, 2 games out of a wild card spot. They are 76-66. The Dodgers now made a rare visit to Yankee Stadium for three games.

Luis Cessa gave up 5 hits, but 3 were HRs as he took his first loss of the season. He gave up a 2-run HR to Corey Dickerson in the first inning.

The Yanks’ Chase Headley cut the deficit to 2-1 with a HR in the fifth, his 14th of the season.

Cessa gave up a HR to Logan Forsythe in the sixth. Manager Girardi had the bullpen up, but they must not have been ready, because a few batters later, Brad Miller hit one out to make it 4-1 Rays.

Brett Gardner, who had 3 hits on the day, had an RBI single in the seventh. Once again, the final was 4-2 Rays.

Cessa (L, 4-1, 4.34) 5 2/3 IP, 4 R, 5 H, 0 walks, 5 K. Gave up 3 HR.
Severino 2 1/3 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 1 walk, 3 K. 6.18
Layne 0 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 0 walks, 0 K. 3.49 (Bos/NYY). Faced 2 batters, gave up 2 hits.
Parker 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 walks, 1 K. 2.51 (Sea/NYY)

Game 135. Girardi’s quick hook saves 5-2 Yanks’ victory.

At this time of year, there is a huge difference between being 3 1/2 out of  a wild card spot, and being 5 1/2 out. Sure, it’s two games, but those two games can feel like ten games when you have less than 30 to go.

The Yanks needed a victory over the Orioles on Sunday afternoon to keep it at 3 1/2. Also, the less teams they need to jump over, the better. That is why Manager Joe Girardi pulled out all the stops, and had a quick hook that saved the game for the Yankees in their 5-2 win.

The Yanks got three in the first. Gardner and Refsnyder walked, and after Sanchez and Castro struck out, Headley singled in a run, a wild pitch moved the runners up, and Romine singled in two.

The Yanks made it 4-0 in the third. Refsnyder singled, Sanchez walked, and after Refsnyder moved to third on a DP ball by Castro, Headley once again came through with two out with another RBI single.

But starter Michael Pineda gave a run back in the bottom of the fourth. In the fifth, a single and double made it 4-2, and Girardi brought out the hook and pulled Pineda. Some managers would try to squeeze another inning from him so that the starter can get the win. Not in this case. In came Severino, who got a strikeout, but then two walks loaded the bases.

Severino, in trouble, then got a strikeout and groundout to get out of the inning.

This raises some questions on Severino. He has had a terrible year this year, going 2-8, 6.79. But his numbers are drastically different.

As a starter: 9 starts, 0-8, 8.58.
As a reliever: 5 games, 2-0, 0.00.

He’s only 22, so I’d say it’s too early to give up on him as a starter right now, but those numbers do have you scratching your head.

Anyway, Severino bridged the gap to the bullpen, and the Yanks got another run in the ninth when Austin reached second on an error, went to third on a sac bunt by Torreyes and scored on a SF by Gardner. Some littleball that the Yanks have to do more often.

Pineda 4 + IP, 2 R, 5 H, 2 walks, 4 K. 5.10
Severino (W, 2-8, 6.79) 2 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 2 walks, 2 K.
Layne (H, 7) 1/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 walks, 0 K. 3.35 (Bos/NYY)
Warren (H, 11) 2/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 walks, 0 K. 5.05 (Cubs/NYY)
Clippard (H, 19) 2/3 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 walks, 2 K. .3.31 (AZ/NYY)
Betances (S, 8) 1 1/3 IP , 0 R,0 H, 0 walks, 2 K., 2.08.

The Yanks are 70-65. 4th in AL East, 6 1/2 behind Toronto. They have a big three game series at home vs. the Blue Jays starting today. They are 3 1/2 games out of the final wild card spot and have to jump three teams to get it.

Game 134. OUCH! KILLER! Yanks blanked again, 2-0.

In two of the biggest games of the year, against a team the Yanks have to catch and pass in the standings, a team ahead of them, the Yanks have come up empty.

Empty as in zero.

For the second straight night, Baltimore shutout the Yanks, this time by a 2-0 score. In these two games, the Yanks have managed just six hits—combined.

CC Sabathia pitched well, giving up two runs, one unearned, in six innings, but got no run support.

The Yanks fall to 69-65, and in the last two nights, have lost two games to the O’s– a team ahead of them that they NEED to catch.

This hurts big time.

One problem the Yanks had—in one inning, they had the bases loaded, one out and didn’t score. Castro struck out on what John Sterling, on radio, said may have been ball four. For their HRs, Castro and Didi don’t walk much. That is a problem.

Not only that, neither Ellsbury or Gardner have even 20 SB. Weren’t they supposed to be setting the table with 40 SB each? What happened to that?

Sabathia (L, 8-12, 4.20) 6 IP, 2 R, 1 ER, 2 walks, 1 k. Gave up 1 HR.
Warren 1 IP, 0 r, 2 H, 1 walk, 2 K. 5.12 (Cubs/NYY)
Clippard 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 2 walks, 2 K. 3.35 (AZ/NYY).

Game 126. Sanchez HRs again as Yankees blank Seattle.

Gary Sanchez homered again (9) as the Yanks blanked Seattle 5-0 on Wednesday afternoon.

Sanchez solo HR in the first was the only run Masahiro Tanaka needed as the Yanks improve to 65-61. Thursday is an off day, and on Friday the Yanks face the Orioles and try to get 5 over .500 for the first time all year.

In the second inning, Judge was HBP and singles by Hicks and Austin brought him home. 2-0.

A single by Hicks, Austin reaching on a FC, single by Torreyes and SF by Gardner made it 3-0.

To the seventh. Gardner singled and Didi bunted him over to second. Normally, I would applaud the bunt, but with Sanchez hot, Seattle then walked the red-hot rookie to get to Teixeira. Teixeira responded by singling in run to make it 4-0.

In the ninth, Gardner walked and Didi doubled him to third. Seattle, apparently freaked out by Sanchez, intentionally walked him again. After Teix struck out, Castro hit a SF for the final score of 5-0.

Once again, the battery of Tanaka and Sanchez was brilliant.

Tanaka (w,  11-4, 3.11) 7 IP, 0 R, 6 H, 1 walk, 5 K.
Clippard 2/3 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 0 walks, 1 K. 3.61 (AZ/NYY)
Betances (S, 6) 1 1/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 walk, 3 K. 2.23.