Game 4 ALDS. Yanks are eliminated, 4-3. Furious comeback comes up short.

They’ll talk about that 16-1 beating all winter. They will talk about Boone leaving Severino in for the fourth, about Lynn coming in instead of Green, I don’t know if any of it would have mattered, considering the score.

We’ll remember the two one-run losses even more. Win those, and the Yanks would still be playing, despite that beatdown.

The Yanks lost Game 4 of the ALDS to Boston Tuesday night, 4-3, and therefore lost the series 3 games to 1. The Red Sox advance to face Houston in the ALCS.

You now wonder which players will be back. CC, Gardner (0 for 8 in the ALDS), Robertson, Britton, Happ, Lynn, Walker, Hechevarria and McCutchen (2 for 15 in the ALDS) are all free agents or have options that may not be picked up.

A couple of key hits here or there, liners that found Boston gloves or that went foul while their balls blooped in. Shots that fell short of the fence while theirs barely cleared the wall, that we’ll remember.

Aaron Boone did shake up the lineup, hoping to get more lefty oomph in there. Gardner started in LF, Hicks in CF, Walker at 3B. McCutchen and Andujar sat.

CC got out of a bases-loaded jam in the first, but gave up 3 runs in the third. One of the hits a bleeder by Yankee-killer Steve Pearce. One RBI double appeared to be misplayed by Gardner, but to be fair, it was hit so hard it probably handcuffed him.

Boone’s bullpen management may be questioned a bit. It’s one thing that hopefully improves next year.

Zach Britton gave up a HR in the fourth to Christian Vazquez. 4-0 Boston. The HR just cleared the short porch.

The Yanks finally got on the board in the fifth when Sanchez doubled, Torres got an infield hit and Gardner a SF.

In the bottom of the ninth, Judge led off with a walk, Didi singled and after Stanton (4 for 18, 6 strikeouts in the ALDS) struck out, Voit walked. Walker was HBP to make it 4-2. Sanchez just missed a game-winning grand slam, getting under it and hitting it to the warning track for a SF, 4-3. But Torres barely missed beating out a dribbler and the game, series, and season were over.

Up until that ninth inning, the Yanks had only scored 2 runs in their previous 19 innings. That won’t get it done.

Just like in 2017, in those games in Houston that year, the Yanks couldn’t come up with the big hit when you needed it.

The homers are nice. That HR record is nice. But hitting with RISP, being able to get the bat on the ball, avoiding strikeouts, going the other way, situational hitting, those are things that need to be improved upon for the Yanks to advance to the next levels. Homers alone won’t do it. Also, baserunning. The Red Sox were 5 for 5 in stealing bases in the series, the Yanks didn’t even attempt one.

Starters who go deep would help too. The longest any Yankee starter pitched in this postseason was the five innings Tanaka went in getting the Game 2 win.

Hopefully for the youngsters, Torres and Andujar (1 for 9 in the series), this postseason was a learning experience. Same for veterans like Stanton, making his first postseason appearance. Learn from it.

The bullpen did a great job keeping the Yanks in the game and giving them a chance.

Gregorius 2 hits (out of the Yanks’ 5)

Sabathia (L) 3 IP, 3 R, 5 H, 2 W, 1 K.
Britton 2 IP, 1 R, 2 H, 0 W, 3 K. Gave up 1 HR.
Robertson 1 2/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 W, 4 K.
Betances 1 1/3 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 1 W, 3  K.
Chapman 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 1 K.

More post-mortem analysis to come in the coming weeks.

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Game 2 ALDS. Yanks even series behind the Kraken.

Turn the page.

Gary Sanchez had a poor regular season. His .186 batting average was the lowest ever for any Yankee with 300 or more plate appearances.

But he did hit 18 HR. He hit 33 last season. He hit 20 in just 53 games in 2016. You knew the power was there, and that at any time he could put up a two homer, 4 RBI game.

That is the Sanchez we hoped would return, and in time for the playoffs. Make up for a bad regular season with a great postseason.

It is the Sanchez we got last night. Sanchez hit two homers and drove in 4 runs as the Yanks won 6-2 to even the series up. Game 3 is in the Bronx Monday night.

David Price started for Boston, and he has had a couple of problems lately. #1, he has trouble against the Yankees. #2, he has trouble in the postseason (0-9 record in 10 starts). #3 Gary Sanchez owns him. Not a good combination.

So Aaron Judge, the second batter of the game, hit a 445-ft. HR to give the Yanks a quick 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first. Judge has homered in all three postseason games so far.

Sanchez came up in the bottom of the second and continued his mastery of Price by hitting a HR to make it 2-0 Yanks. With two out, Price proceeded to walk Gleyber Torres and Brett Gardner. Gardner was starting in CF for Aaron Hicks, who has a tight hamstring. Hicks was available for pinch-hitting duty and the hammy won’t keep him out for the rest of the series (if it did, he wouldn’t be available again until the World Series–no ALCS).

Andrew McCutchen then singled off of the green monster to make it 3-0 Yanks and give Price an early shower.

Meanwhile, Masahiro Tanaka was on, and was his postseason bulldog self. (He is now 3-2, 1.50 in five postseason starts). He gave up a HR in the bottom of the fourth, but it was a solo one, and went five innings giving up just that one run.

In the seventh, the Yanks broke the game open. Judge singled and Voit walked. Stanton, who is struggling—so much so that lots of people are comparing him to A-Rod and A-Rod’s postseason struggles—hit a topper that at first it appeared as if Nunez’ throw hoping for a force pulled the fielder off the bag. But Boston reviewed and the call was overturned. Forceout. Hmm. The fielder must have kept his big toenail on the bag because it didn’t look that way. Nunez’ throwing was shaky all night long. He almost made 3 errors instead of the one he did make. But then again, when he was a Yankee, he had the nickname of Nun-E.

Hopefully Stanton comes around. Aim for RF in the Bronx, Giancarlo. You are strong enough to hit it out anywhere, especially there. Stay back.  No need to pull everything.

So it was first and third, one out, and here is where Sanchez hit his second HR of the game, a 479-ft. bomb that left everything and went out on the street. 6-1 Yanks.

Dellin Betances gave up a run in the bottom of the seventh to make it 6-2, but that was it. Yankees’ pitchers limited Boston to 2 runs and 5 hits. Good job.

I am a bit concerned yet about the Yanks’ hitting w/RISP. 2 for 10 last night (the Yanks had 8 hits and drew 7 walks, so they could have scored more runs than 6). Hopefully that picks up.

Judge 2 hits, solo HR.
Voit 0 for 2 but drew 3 walks.
Sanchez 2 HR, 4 RBI
Gardner 0 for 2 but drew 2 walks.

Tanaka (WIN) 5 IP, 1 R, 3 H, 1 W, 4 K. Gave up 1 HR.
Betances (H) 2 IP, 1 R, 2 H, 0 W, 1 K.
Britton 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 W, 0 K.
Chapman 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 W, 1 K.

In the other ALDS series, Houston beat Cleveland 12-1 behind Gerrit Cole’s 7 innings and 12 K. Houston is up 2 games to 0.

The NL was off. Milwaukee is up 2-0 on Colorado and the Dodgers are up 2-0 on the Braves.

Game 159. Yanks rout Rays 12-1. Magic # for wild card game at home is 1.

$500,000? What $500,000?

I’ll get to that in a moment.

The Yanks (98-51) routed the Tampa Bay Rays this afternoon 12-1 and with the win, the Yanks’ magic number over the A’s for hosting the wild card game is down to 1.

Meaning that any Yankees’ win or A’s loss this weekend means that the wild card game will be played in the Bronx.

The Yanks got off to a quick 4-0 lead in the top of the first inning. Gardner doubled, and with one out, Voit walked. Stanton walked. A WP moved everyone up and scored a run. Andujar hit a 3-run HR (27) and it was 4-0 Yanks.

To the fourth. Torres singles. PB. Romine singles. 5-0. Hechevarria singles. Forceout. Judge SF to make it 6-0. SB. Double by Voit. 7-0.

Bottom of the fifth. CC hits a batter with a pitch. Up 7-0, you cannot see it as intentional.

Top of the sixth. Romine is thrown at. No excuse for that. Hechevarria singles and Gardner triples to make it 8-0. Judge SF. 9-0. Voit homers (13, 12 as a Yankee) 10-0. Stanton hits his first of 2 HR on the game. 11-0.

In the bottom of the sixth, CC gets revenge for trying to hit Romine by hitting a batter. Both he and Boone are ejected. CC had a low pitch count at this point. Two more innings would have made an incentive bonus of $500,000 kick in. Instead, CC stuck up for his teammate, drilled someone, finished two innings short of kicking in that bonus, and said to hell with the $500,000, I am sticking up for my teammate.

Great job, CC.

Which is why his teammates love him. 

If the Yanks lose the wild card game, this could be the last game CC ever pitches for the Yankees. A free agent, CC turns 39 next July. He, because of the knee and age, doesn’t go into the sixth or beyond anymore. Whether he comes back at all, or whether the Yanks want him for 2019, is a question mark right now.

He would pitch in the ALDS vs. Boston. But do the Yanks make it that far?

Luis Cessa gave up a HR in the seventh. 11-1.

Stanton hit his 2nd HR of the game in the ninth (37), 12-1, the final score.

With the 4 HR, the Yanks have 260 with 3 games left. The single season record is 264 by the 1997 Seattle Mariners. The Yanks have 3 games in Fenway to get 5 HR to break the record.

Gardner 2 hits, 1 RBI, scored 3 runs.
Judge 2 RBI
Voit 3 for 3, 2 RBI. HR. Boy, is he hot.
Stanton 2 HR.
Andujar 2 hits, HR, 3 RBI
Hechevarria 2 hits.

 

Sabathia (W, 9-7, 3.65) 5 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 W, 5 K
Cessa 3 IP, 1 R, 1 H, 0 W, 5 K. Gave up 1 HR.   4.67
Loaisiga 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 W, 2 K.  5.56

 

Game 156. Yanks win “bullpen” game, 4-1. Use 8 pitchers who 2-hit Rays.

In order to give some starters more rest, and to set up a playoff rotation, manager Aaron Boone went to a “bullpen” game against the Tampa Bay Rays on Monday night, using 8 pitchers who two-hit the Rays in a 4-1 Yankees’ victory. They walked six but struck out 13.

The win improved the Yanks’ record to 96-60 and kept them 1 1/2 games ahead of the A’s for the top wild card spot. The Yanks’ magic # for getting that wild card game against Oakland at home is 4.

One reason Boone did this is that it appears more and more likely that the games in Boston this upcoming weekend will mean a lot to the Yankees as far as holding off Oakland to secure home field advantage for the wild card game. It could come down to the final game.

Boone will have a lot of decisions to make, and one that has been made is controversial. He has said that Gary Sanchez will be the catcher in the wild card game, despite Sanchez committing two more passed balls yesterday and hitting .180. He might be hoping for lightning in a bottle, since a normal Sanchez could give you a 2-HR, 5 RBI game. But the Sanchez of this season has many thinking that Boone should start Austin Romine instead.

Didi Gregorius felt better but it remains to be seen whether that torn cartillage in his wrist will allow Didi to play anymore this season. Meanwhile a tight hamstring forced Aaron Hicks out of last night’s game. His replacement, Brett Gardner, got an RBI and made a game-saving catch.

The Yanks scored first when Andrew McCutchen homered in the third inning. It was his 20th of the season, and fifth as a Yankee.

Tampa Bay, who was eliminated from the playoffs with the loss, scored in the fourth to tie the game. They were helped by one of the two passed balls Sanchez had on the night.

In the fifth, Aaron Judge walked, moved to second on a passed ball, and scored on Gardner’s single. 2-1 Yanks. Giancarlo Stanton doubled Gardner home, 3-1, but was thrown out at third on the play.

The Yanks got the final run of the game in the seventh when McCutchen and Judge hit back-to-back doubles.

There has been a considerable number of likes on the Lehigh Valley Yankee Fan Club Facebook page recently, and a lot are from people outside of the Lehigh Valley. I don’t know how you heard of us, but welcome. Check out the website, http://lvyankeefanclub.org/ for information about our 2019 bus trips.

McCutchen 2 hits, HR.

Now for the pitching, this is going to look like a spring training game.

Holder 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 2 W, 1 K.  2.92
Tarpley 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 1 K.  4.50
Gray (W, 11-9, 4.98) 2 IP, 1 R, 2 H, 1 W, 2 K.
Green (H, 13) 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 3 K.   2.57
Robertson (H, 21) 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 2 W, 1 K.  2.88
Chapman (H, 1 ) 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 W, 2 K.   2.54
Betances (H, 20) 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 0 K.  2.60
Britton (S, 7) 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 3 K.  3.18 (Balt/NYY)

Game 154. Yanks clinch playoff spot with 3-2 win. Stay 1 1/2 up on A’s.

The Yanks (95-59) clinched a wild card spot in the playoffs with a 3-2, 11-inning, win over the Bad News Bears (oops, 44-110 Baltimore Orioles) yesterday, but whether the Yanks will be playing that one-game, sudden-death wild card game in the Bronx is very much still up in the air.

Oakland scored in the bottom of the ninth, thanks to a Minnesota error and a passed ball (hmm, Twins imitating Sanchez) that let in the winning run, and won 3-2. The A’s remain 1 1/2 games behind the Yankees for the top wild card spot.

The Yanks’ magic # over the A’s to ensure that the wild card game will be played in the Bronx is 6. Any combination of Yanks’ wins and A’s losses adding up to 6 and the game will be in the Bronx. The Yanks own the tiebreaker.

The Yanks got two runs in the second on homers by Aaron Hicks (26) and Luke Voit (12, 11 as a Yankee). They now have 251 HR on the season, on pace to tie the 1997 Seattle Mariners for the all-time single season record by a team (264).

Gary Sanchez continued his defensive woes, committing a PB and a throwing error in the third inning that allowed the Orioles to score a run. Besides a PB and an error, Sanchez also went 0 for 4, striking out twice, and his batting average dropped to .182. He was dropped to eighth in the lineup, and you really wonder if it’s just best right now to have Romine in there instead.

The Yanks could really have been in trouble except that Steve Wilkerson was twice thrown out at home.

Baltimore tied it in the fifth, and would have had more except for one of those times Wilkerson was thrown out at home (by Judge) and the fact they left the bases loaded.

After the Voit HR, the Yanks didn’t do too much offensively, and it became a battle of the bullpens.

Jonathan Holder got out of a huge jam in the top of the 10th. The Orioles left the bases loaded.

Finally, in the bottom of the 11th, Didi Gregorius singled, and Aaron Hicks double drove in Didi with the winning run.

Hicks 2 hits, HR, 2 RBI
Andujar 2 hits
Voit HR

Lynn 5 IP, 2 R, 1 ER, 7 H, 2 W, 4 K.  4.80 (Min/NYY)
Green 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 1 W, 1 K.  2.60
Chapman 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 2 K.  2.59  Encouraging outing since just off DL
Betances 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 3 K.   2.64
Britton 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 W, 2 K.  3.26 (Balt/NYY)
Holder 1 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 1 W, 0 K.  2.97
Kahnle (W, 2-0, 6.75) 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 W, 1 K.

MLBTR states that CC wants to return in 2019, even if not to the Yanks. Tough call. Questionable knee, doesn’t go too deep into games. 39 next July. Yanks may want to cut the cord, so to speak.

Also, MLBTR reporting that Yanks have interest in bringing back McCutchen (a free agent) if the price is right, but that probably means buying out Brett Gardner’s option at $2MM instead of bringing him back at $12.5MM. Also, you have Clint Frazier and Jacoby Ellsbury (both of whom missed most or all of this year due to injuries) to think about…

Then again, Bryce Harper is a free agent….

Game 147. Yanks blow out Jays, 11-0.

The Yanks blew out the Toronto Blue Jays, 11-0, to match last year’s win total of 91.

Masahiro Tanaka continued his recent run of great pitching. As of now, it looks like J.A. Happ would start that wild card game. Some maneuvering would have to be done to have Tanaka start it instead of Happ. We’ll see what happens.

Aaron Judge was activated off the DL. He isn’t cleared to hit yet, but just play D and PR. He got into the last two innings as a defensive replacement. We’ve missed him and the fans let him know that by giving him a resounding ovation when he took the field.

The Yanks got five runs in the first inning. McCutchen doubled, Stanton walked and Hicks singled in a run, with Stanton taking third and Hicks moving up on the throw. After Andujar popped up, Didi hit a groundout moving both runners up, scoring Stanton. 2-0. Torres singled in Hicks. 3-0. Sanchez singled. Voit doubled in two. 5-0.

Three runs in the third basically salted the game away. Didi was HBP, and two batters and two outs later, Voit walked. Gardner singled in a run to make it 6-0. McCutchen walked to load the bases and Stanton singled in two to make it 8-0.

McCutchen homered in the fifth. #18 and #3 as a Yankee. 9-0.

To the eighth. Didi homered (24) 10-0. Sanchez doubled, Voit reached on an error, moving Sanchez to third and Gardner got a SF. Voit must have thought there were two outs because he got doubled off of first, but after Sanchez had scored.

McCutchen 3 for 3 with 2 walks.
Stanton 2 RBI
Gregorius HR, 2 RBI
Torres 2 hits, RBI
Sanchez 3 hits
Voit 2 RBI
Gardner 2 RBI

Nice offense night. 2 HR, 14 hits, 7 walks, scored 11 runs.

Tanaka (W, 12-5, 3.47) 6 IP, 0 R, 4 H, 2 W, 8 K.
Cessa (S, 2) 3 IP, 0 R, 3 H, 1 W, 4 K.  4.93

Funny to see Cessa get a save in a 11-0 blowout, but he pitched 3 innings, so…

With the win the Yanks go to 91-56.

Oakland won, so the Yanks stay just 1 1/2 up on Oakland for the top WC spot.

(Forget the division, the Yanks are 9 1/2 out with 15 to go. Boston’s tragic # for getting the AL East is 6).

But as for getting the top WC spot, the Yanks magic # is 14, and probably just 13. As of now, the Yanks would win the tiebreaker.

The Yanks’ magic # for just getting in as the 2nd WC is 6.

Game 144. Sanchez and Happ key Yanks’ 7-2 win.

I advocated dropping Gary Sanchez down in the lineup, it was done (to 6) and it worked as Sanchez hit a 460 foot home run and had three hits in the Yanks’ 7-2 win over the Minnesota Twins Monday night.

Just like Masahiro Tanaka did a few nights earlier, J.A. Happ put in his bid to start the wild card game with a great performance.

Sanchez broke open a scoreless game with his HR (16) in the sixth. 1-0 Yanks.

The Yanks broke open a tight game with six runs in the seventh. McCutchen and Hicks walked, and Andujar doubled in both runs. 3-0. Stanton doubled in Andujar. 4-0. Gregorius doubled in Stanton, 5-0. Sanchez singled and Bird walked. Bases loaded, no one out. Gardner struck out, but McCutchen hit a SF, 6-0. Hicks walked to re-load the bases but Andujar lined out to end the inning.

The Twins got two in the bottom of the eighth.

Final 7-2 Yanks.

The win is the Yanks’ 90th of the season (90-54). They are 8 GB of Boston with 18 to go. The tragic # for Boston to win the AL East is 11. The magic # for the Yanks to win the top wild card spot is 16, and the magic # to make the playoffs as the second wild card team is 9. The Yanks lead the A’s by 3 games for the top wild card spot.

The Yanks drew 10 walks in the game.

McCutchen, RBI, 3 walks
Hicks 2 walks
Andujar 2 RBI
Sanchez 3 hits, solo HR.
Gardner 2 hits.

Happ is 6-0 as a Yankee.

Happ (16-6, 3.75 Tor/NYY) 6 IP, 0 R, 6 H, 0 W, 3 K.  1 WP
Cessa 2 IP, 2 R, 4 H, 0 W 2 K.  5.35  1 WP
Holder 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 1 K.  3.15

SWB will host Game 1 of the International League (AAA) finals tonight, Tuesday evening vs. Durham.