Game 145. Yanks shut down by Brew Crew, 4-1.

Jameson Taillon made one huge mistake, but in giving up homers, a solo HR is one thing, but a 3-run HR is quite another. Taillon’s mistake was in giving up a 3-run HR to Willy Adames, and it was the difference in a 4-1 Yankees loss to Milwaukee on Saturday night.

Adames killed the Yankees with a HR Friday night, and this 3-run HR in the third inning made Adames Milwaukee’s single-season leader for a SS, topping the 29 HOF Robin Yount had in his MVP season of 1982.

The Yankees only run came on a HR by Josh Donaldson (15) in the top of the fourth inning.

The Brewers tacked on another run in the bottom of the fifth. They only got four hits in the game, but that 3-run HR was the killer.

The Yanks only got five hits, striking out 12x. Giancarlo Stanton (.212) struck out all four times he was up. Rookie Oswaldo Cabrera was 0 for 4 with 3 strikeouts. Hopefully the Yanks get Anthony Rizzo back today from the IL

Marwin Gonzalez of the Yanks had to leave the game in the top of the third when catcher Victor Caratini’s return throw to the pitcher struck Gonzalez in the head. Such a freak thing.

With the loss, the Yanks’ lead in the AL East shrunk to 4 1/2 games over Toronto. So today is a big day with Gerrit Cole on the mound. An almost-must win today. Monday is an off day before the Yanks come home to face Pittsburgh on Tuesday.

Speaking of Cole, his 228 strikeouts lead the majors. He is 20 behind Ron Guidry’s Yankee season record of 248, set in Guidry’s magical CYA season of 1978.

The Yanks magic # for clinching the AL East remains 13. With the Orioles losing yesterday, the Yanks’ magic # for a playoff spot is 6 (they own the tiebreaker over the Orioles).


Donaldson solo HR (15)

Taillon (L, 13-5) 5 IP, 4 R, 4 H, 2 W, 4 K. Gave up 1 HR. 4.04
Weissert 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 0 K. 6.75
Chapman 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 W, 1 K. 4.55
Marinaccio 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 W, 3 K. 1 HBP 1.88

Note on the MVP debate

Judge WAR (Wins Above Replacement) 9.2. Yanks are in 1st, 87-58. So with a normal player, subtract 9 wins. Yanks then are 78-67, and instead of in 1st place, 2nd seed in AL behind Houston, getting a bye into the ALDS, they are in 3rd place in AL East, and squeak into the playoffs as the #6 seed and have to play in the best-of-3 wild card round.

Ohtani WAR 8.7 (combined hitting and pitching). Angels are 63-82. Tied for 3rd in division, and FAR OUT OF PLAYOFF CONTENTION. Take 9 wins away and they are 54-91, in fourth place in their division, barely above Oakland for the cellar.

Ohtani is a great player. But who has been more valuable? The Angels have been out of it since what, June? There is no pennant race pressure on him.

Meanwhile Judge has been carrying a team on his back regarding winning or losing the AL East, and the higher or lower seed that would entail.

MVP: JUDGE.

UPDATE: Frankie Montas is scheduled for an MRI on his shoulder.

Game 144. Disappointing 7-6 loss for Yanks.

It was a disappointing game in many ways as the Yankees (87-67) blew a 5-0 lead and lost to the Milwaukee Brewers 7-6 on Friday night.

Before the game, Aroldis Chapman came off the IL, and Ryan Weber was DFA’d. The Yanks will have many more moves next week as several others come off the IL.

With the loss the Yanks’ magic # to clinch the AL East remains at 13. Since Baltimore lost, the Yankees’ magic # to secure a playoff berth is 7 (since the Yankees own the tiebreaker against the Orioles).

It looked great early on for the Yankees. They scored three runs in the top of the first. Aaron Judge led off the game with a single, and one out later, Gleyber Torres doubled, Judge going to third. A SF by Josh Donaldson plated Judge. Oswaldo Cabrera walked, then Isiah Kiner-Falefa (IKF) singled in one run and Marwin Gonzalez singled in another. 3-0. They had runners on second and third after a WP but couldn’t add on further.

Later in the game, Gonzalez had to leave due to illness, and Cabrera had to move to first, which he never played before. Also, catcher Jose Trevino had to leave after taking a foul ball off his knee. He was replaced by Kyle Higashioka.

The Yanks added two runs in the top of the second, when Aaron Hicks led off with a single, then Judge singled. A walk to Giancarlo Stanton loaded the bases. Torres flied out, no advance, but a run scored when Donaldson hit into a force at second. An error on the play allowed Judge to score as well. 5-0.

But Yankees’ starter Frankie Montas, who struggled in the first inning, gave up a 3-run HR in the bottom of the second. 5-3. The trade for Montas has been a disappointment. He is 1-3, 6.35 as a Yankee in 8 starts (5-12, 4.05 overall). With Sonny Gray before, and now Montas, the joke going around is that the Yankees should stop trading for Oakland pitchers. Anyway, I cringe every time I hear talk about whether Montas is the Game 2 or 3 playoff starter for the Yankees. From what I’ve seen, HE SHOULD NOT BE ON THE PLAYOFF ROSTER! I’d prefer Cole, Cortes, Severino (off the IL next week), Taillon and even German over Montas right now. That is 5 guys when you probably only need 4 and maybe, depending on the playoff schedule and off days, 3. Yes, that is right. In my pecking order, once Severino comes back, Montas is #6 … and depending on how you like Clarke Schmidt, maybe even #7.

To the top of the third, and Aaron Hicks made the same mistake he made a few days ago. He has to realize who bats behind him. With two outs, he doubled. NORMALLY, you would be happy with the double. You go to second base. NOT IN THIS CASE. Hicks should have just stopped at first. For by going to second, he took the bat out of the hands of the most dangerous hitter in baseball, Judge. Judge, of course, was intentionally walked. Stanton made out. Hicks has to learn to stop at first on such occurrences, or Stanton (hitting .215) needs to step it up. Aaron Boone and the coaches also should realize this and talk to Hicks about it.

Willie Mays would sometimes stop at first in those situations so as to NOT take the bat out of the hands of Willie McCovey. Mays had baseball smarts. Hicks? Not so.

Maybe move Torres to 2 behind Judge? After all, he’s hot lately. Stanton isn’t.

To the fourth, and the Yanks stranded two more runners. Meanwhile, the Brewers tied the game in the bottom of the fourth off of Montas and Lucas Luetge. Given a 5-0 lead, Montas couldn’t get out of the fourth inning and Boone had to use most of his bullpen for the rest of the game. Unacceptable.

The Yanks stranded two more runners in the sixth.

In the bottom of the eighth, Milwaukee took the lead. On one play, Gleyber Torres couldn’t come up with a ball hit up the middle. A tough break there. But on another, IKF made an error with two out allowing a run to score. The internet has been on his defense lately. Could Oswald Peraza have made that play? Who knows. But IKF has to make that. Instead, 6-5, Brew Crew.

Donaldson tied the game in the top of the ninth with his 14th HR of the season, a ball that hit the foul pole. Cabrera followed with a double but was left stranded. The home plate umpire made an absolutely horrendous called third strike call on Miguel Andujar with Cabrera on third and one out. MLB needs to do more than to give umps a slap on the wrist on these egregious errors. They need to suspend or fire umps. We have seen so many bad calls and nothing happens to the umps. Boone was tossed arguing the call. Yeah, the manager and/or player pays for the umps f-up.

Clay Holmes came on for the bottom of the ninth and blew the game. This has to be very concerning for the Yankees. You need a reliable closer going into the postseason. In 2009, EVERY closer blew a postseason game except for one. Mariano Rivera. The Yankees won the World Series, their last one to date. Since July 9, Holmes ERA is 6.86. He has lost 4 games and has 3 blown saves. He has walked 13 in 19 2/3 innings. He has to right the ship and quickly or the Yanks will have to find another closer for the postseason.

The loss is one thing. But the 2 for 11 w/RISP, 11 left on base, and the struggles of Montas and Holmes are another. That is what made this loss so disappointing. Oh yeah, one more thing at the bottom.

Judge 2 hits.
Torres 2 hits
Donaldson 3 RBI. Solo HR (14)
Cabrera 2 for 2, 3 walks.
Hicks 2 hits.

Montas 3 1/3 IP, 4 R, 4 H, 4 W, 2 K. Gave up 1 HR. 4.05 (Oak/NYY ERA)
Luetge 1/3 IP, 1 R, 2 H, 0 W, 0 K. 2.75
Weissert 1/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 1 K. 7.56 SEE BELOW
German 1 2/3 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 1 W, 2 K. 3.12
Peralta 1/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 1 K. 2.40 SEE BELOW
Trivino 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 3 K. 4.69 SEE BELOW
Loaisiga 1 IP, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 H, 1 W, 0 K. 4.43
Holmes (L, 6-4) 2/3 IP, 1 R, 2 H, 2 W, 1 K. 2.59.

One more thing here. (I told you above, didn’t I?) Check the pitching line above. Weissert faced one batter. Stuck him out. Peralta faced one batter. Struck him out. Trivino faced three batters, struck them all out.

WHY DIDN’T THEY STAY IN THE GAME LONGER, BOONE? Don’t mess with success!

Game 139. Lead down to 3 1/2 after 4-2 loss to Rays.

Before the game, news regarding C Jose Trevino. He was put on paternity leave. Ben Rortvedt was called up from AAA.

Trevino also is the team nominee for the Roberto Clemente award, given for community service.

With Trevino joining the list of unavailable Yankees due to injury or paternity leave, the lineup was further depleted, and the Yankees (83-56) lost to Tampa Bay 4-2 Friday night. Their lead in the AL East, once 15 1/2, is now 3 1/2.

Even the return of Derek Jeter to Yankee Stadium for the first time in a while didn’t bring any luck.

Some reinforcements back from the IL can’t arrive quickly enough (more on that in a bit), but how good will they be? How rusty?

Yankees’ starter Frankie Montas gave up back-to-back, one out doubles in the first inning, and the Rays were up 1-0.

The Rays got three runs in the fourth, thanks to a couple of misplays by Aaron Hicks, who was then booed mightily and pulled from the game. Harrison Bader can’t arrive soon enough, it seems. I had to laugh and pull a “show me” attitude when Hicks said his goal in spring training was to be a 30/30 guy. Not even close and right now his goal should be just to remain on the team in 2023, which I don’t believe will happen. Hicks contract, with 3 more years to go, is one of the worst in Cashman’s GM history. The Yanks, like they did with Joey Gallo and Sonny Gray, need to know when to cut the cord. As with Gallo and Gray, they’ve stuck with Hicks too long. Once the fans turn on you, you got to go.

With one out in that fourth inning, Ji-Man Choi walked. Montas got the second out, then gave up a single. Wander Franco, just off the IL, and who doubled in the Rays’ first inning rally, doubled again, driving in two runs. Hicks had the ball in his glove at the foul line, but with the side wall approaching, appeared to shy off and dropped it. He thought it was a foul ball and took his time getting the ball back in while two runs scored. Very bad look. Then he misplayed the next drive into another double and the Rays lead went from 1-0 to 4-0. If he makes the first play, the game remains at 1-0. He basically gave away three runs. With the Yankees’ offense compromised, that was like giving away the game. The fans then gave Hicks the “Gallo” treatment, not only booing him but actually chanting “Joey Gallo” at him. It was a bad look and made manager Aaron Boone pull Hicks after the inning.

On top of that, Hicks to that point was 0 for 2, 2 strikeouts, and his batting average dropped to .211.

You can’t have this. The Yanks need to find a taker for him or eat his contract. Like I wrote, when the fans turn on you as they have, you got to go.

This isn’t to be mean at Hicks. It’s just reporting the reality of what happened and what must happen.

The Yanks scored a run in the seventh, thanks to who else? Aaron Judge. Oswald Peraza walked, and with one out, moved to second on a groundout. Judge singled to make the score 4-1.

Kyle Higashioka homered (8) in the bottom of the ninth to make it 4-2. Judge walked with two out in the ninth, but Gleyber Torres, the potential tying run, flied to right to end the game. The ball was caught at the fence.

Judge 2 hits, RBI
Andujar 2 hits
Higashioka 3 hits, solo HR (8)

Montas (L, 5-12) 5 2/3 IP, 4 R, 9 H, 4 W, 4 K. 1 HBP 3.89 (Combined A’s/NYY record)
Luetge 1 1/3 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 W, 0 K. 2.49
Weber 2 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 W, 1 K. 0.84

Game 134. Yanks hold on for 2-1 win. Judge (Who else? 53rd HR) leads way. Benintendi needs surgery.

The Yankees (80-54) got one heck of a scare, and perhaps a break, in the bottom of the ninth, but they held on to defeat Tampa Bay, 2-1, on Sunday afternoon.

Of course, they were led by Aaron Judge, who factored into both runs the Yanks scored.

Judge hit the second pitch of the game for his 53rd HR of the season. The 450 ft. blast set a new season high for him, passing the 52 he had in his ROY season of 2017. It also was his 115th RBI of the year, also passing his 2017 total of 114.

Judge had three of the Yankees’ six hits in the game.

In the top of the seventh, Judge doubled, and on a ball hit to short, went to third. Usually, you do NOT do that. But Judge beat the throw to third. It’s a risky play, but with the Yanks’ offense in a funk, he decided that he needed to be aggressive. It probably won the game for the Yankees. Judge then scored on a SF by Oswaldo Cabrera. The way the inning played out, if Judge did not go to third on that play, he would not have been driven in. It turned out to be the deciding run.

Meanwhile, four Yankees’ pitchers combined to shut Tampa Bay out into the ninth. Then Clay Holmes came in and things got hairy. He gave up a leadoff double. A liner to right moved the runner to third. A single made it 2-1. A liner to CF (nice range by defensive replacement Estevan Florial) for out #2. Then a double, but the potential tying run was held up at third. Then Holmes went to 3-2 on Yandy Diaz. Holmes got a called strike three call on a pitch Diaz and the Rays thought was low. Watching on TV, I thought the Yanks caught a break, for I thought it was ball four myself. Makes up for all those low strikes called on Judge.

So, the Yanks lead over Tampa Bay is five, and it’s six over Toronto. The Yanks’ magic number to clinch the AL East is 25. 28 games to go.

But some other Yankees’ related news:

Andrew Benintendi needs surgery to repair a broken hamate bone in his right wrist. He had problems with it before and it was removed, but either not all of it was removed or some bone grew back. The hook detached from this bone. This was the injury from the other night. At least it was caught early, due to advances in medical technology. In 1965, this was misdiagnosed for Roger Maris, and even though Maris eventually had surgery, he was never the same again and lost power in that hand.

The great Albert Pujols, retiring after this season, hit his 695th career HR yesterday, placing him 1 behind Alex Rodriguez for fourth place on the all-time HR list. Barry Bonds had 762* (asterisk intended), Henry Aaron had 755, Babe Ruth 714 and Rodriguez 696*. We will see if Pujols catches Alex and if he can even get #700 before he retires.

Game recap.

Judge 3 hits, Solo HR (53)

Montas (W, 5-11) 5 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 W, 7 K. 1 WP. 3.79 (combined A’s/NYY stats)
Trivino (H, 3) 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 W, 2 K. 4.76 (Combined A’s/NYY stat)
Marinaccio (H, 5) 1/3 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 1 W, 0 K. 1.80
Loaisiga (H, 9) 1 2/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 W, 2 K. 4.79
Holmes (S, 18) 1 IP, 1 R, 3 H, 0 W, 1 K. 2.42

Game 129. Judge hits #50, but Yanks lose, 4-3.

Aaron Judge became the third Yankee (after Babe Ruth and Mickey Mantle; A-Rod* also did it, but two of the three times A-Rod* did it were with Texas, and the asterisk is there on purpose) and tenth player in MLB history with multi-50-HR seasons, but the Yanks (78-51) lost to the Angels Monday night, 4-3.

The Yanks’ lead over Tampa Bay is 7. The magic number for clinching the AL East is 28.

Yankees’ starter Frankie Montas gave up 3 HR, one to Shohei Ohtani, who has 4 career HR off of Montas. Ex-Yankee Mike Ford also tagged Montas.

Luis Rengifo started the scoring by hitting a HR off Montas in the bottom of the second.

The Yanks tied it in the third, but the way they did it raises questions. Also, Aaron Boone’s lineup raises questions.

With one out, Isiah Kiner-Falefa walked and Oswaldo Cabrera singled IKF to third. D.J. LeMahieu squeezed IKF home to tie the game. Now in certain circumstances I love the squeeze. Not here. The play took the bat out of Aaron Judge’s hands. He was then intentionally walked. Andrew Benintendi then grounded out to end the inning.

I can see D.J. not wanting to hit into a DP. Understood. But a sac fly gets the run in and then first base is NOT open, and the Angels probably DON’T walk Judge then. But with first base open, the Angels walk a 49 (now 50) HR guy to get to a guy with 4 HR this season. A no-brainer. Your best hitter had the bat taken out of his hands.

Which leads us to the lineup. Boone needs to stop changing the lineup every day and stick with something. And he needs to protect Judge. Put Giancarlo Stanton behind him. Now I understand when Stanton was on the IL that other than Rizzo, the only choices were Josh Donaldson or Gleyber Torres, both struggling, and that for a while, Rizzo was out with back issues. But you need someone behind Judge that the pitchers fear. Roger Maris in 1961 had Mantle behind him. It’s why Maris DID NOT GET ONE INTENTIONAL WALK ALL YEAR LONG IN 1961. Granted Stanton is still getting his bearings after coming off the IL, but he inspires more fear than Benintendi does. I’d have had a lineup of DJ, Benintendi, Judge, Stanton, Rizzo, Torres (Donaldson didn’t start last night). Donaldson 6 if Torres isn’t starting. Cabrera 7th. The kid is handling himself well. See below. He almost saved the game for the Yankees. Then Trevino or Higgy eighth, with IKF ninth. And LEAVE IT THAT WAY.

The Yanks went up 2-1 in the top of the fourth when Anthony Rizzo homered (29).

But in the bottom of the fourth, Ex-Yankee Mike Ford homered to tie the game.

In the top of the fifth, IKF doubled. Two outs later, Judge was intentionally walked again (see previous paragraph) to face Benintendi, who flied out. Now I don’t know what Stanton would have done, and this isn’t a knock on Benintendi, but you need a 24 HR Stanton or a 29 HR Rizzo protecting Judge, not a 4 HR Benintendi. The bat gets taken out of your best hitter’s hands again. Twice in a game that you lost 4-3 your best hitter didn’t get a chance to swing the bat.

In the bottom of the fifth, Ohtani, who seems to own Montas, hit a 2-run HR to put the Angels up 4-3. It was, as mentioned above, the fourth career HR Ohtani has hit off of Montas. The mistake here, as pointed out on MLB network’s broadcast, was that it was the fourth straight splitter thrown in the same location. To Ohtani’s credit, he adjusted. Montas needed to mix things up a little better there to keep Ohtani off balance.

In the eighth, Judge finally got to swing the bat again, and that is when he hit HR #50 to cut the Angels’ lead to 4-3.

The Yanks had a runner on in the ninth with two out. Rookie Oswaldo Cabrera got a good swing on one, but the ball was caught on the warning track by Mike Trout for the final out. The pinch-runner was Tim Locastro, called up when Marwin Gonzalez was put on paternity leave.

The purpose of this blog is not only to report, but also to provide objective analysis. I would do certain things to the lineup and leave it alone rather than to change it daily to suit the analytics people. But having the bat taken out of Judge’s hands twice helped contribute to a loss. You want your best hitter at least having a chance.

I do get a bit upset with people pushing the Ohtani MVP narrative. Yes, he’s great. But the second word is VALUABLE. Not special, which Ohtani, by being a great pitcher and hitter, is. Not Player of the Year or decade. VALUABLE. With Ohtani, the Angels are still only a fourth-place team at 56-73. Without him they are what, fourth? Last? But take away Judge from the Yankees. Are the Yankees (78-51, 7 game lead) still in first place? I don’t think so. Judge leads all of MLB in R, HR, RBI, Slugging average, OPS, OPS+ (199), and total bases. That is seven categories. And he leads the AL in walks. Without him the Yanks are not in first place. With Ohtani, the Angels are still in fourth. Enough said.

Clay Holmes came off the IL. Luke Bard sent down.



Judge solo HR (50)
Rizzo Solo HR (29)

Montas (L, 4-11) 6 IP, 4 R, 8 H, 0 W, 6 K. 1 WP. 1 HBP. Gave up 3 HR. 3.94 (Combined A’s/NYY Stats)
Holmes 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 1 K. 2.34
Luetge 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 W, 1 K. 2.53

Game 124. Judge hits 48th as Yanks beat Mets, 4-2.

In July, the Mets swept the Yanks in a 2-game series at Citi Field. The Yanks returned the favor last night, sweeping the Mets this month in the 2-game series at Yankee Stadium.

The win was the Yankees (76-48) third in a row, all by 4-2 scores. The magic number for clinching the AL East is now 32.

It didn’t come easy.

The Yanks struck first, getting two runs in the bottom of the fourth inning. Andrew Benintendi led off with a single, but then was erased when D.J. LeMahieu GIDP. This hurt because Aaron Judge then hit his 48th HR of the season, a 453-ft. blast. The Yanks then loaded the bases on singles by Anthony Rizzo and Gleyber Torres and a walk to Josh Donaldson. A walk to Oswaldo Cabrera forced in a run to make it 2-0. It was Cabrera’s first MLB RBI.

Cabrera is only hitting .160 (4 for 25) since he has been called up, but in his short time up so far, has made three outstanding defensive plays. One of them happened in the top of the fifth. A double, followed by catchers’ interference on Kyle Higashioka, gave the Mets runners at first and second with no one out. A sac bunt moved the runners over then Yankees’ starter Frankie Montas got a lineout. Starling Marte then singled in one runner, but Cabrera nailed the second runner with a perfect throw to the plate to save a second run.

The Mets tied in the sixth, thanks to a bad play by Gleyber Torres. They got a one out single, followed by a two-out double. On the double, Pete Alonso had held up at third and was trying to go back to the bag. Torres, however, ran after the guy who doubled, Jeff McNeil, trying to get him rounding the bag too far at second. He was too late. While he was doing that, Alonso scored the tying run. 2-2. Isiah Kiner-Falefa (IKF) was pointing and yelling to throw home. Terrible play.

The Yanks scored two in the bottom of the seventh, and Benintendi, who has been clutch lately, came through again. Cabrera singled and was sacrificed to second by IKF. Jose Trevino PH for Higashioka and singled Cabrera to third. Benintendi singled to make it 3-2 and put runners on first and second. After LeMahieu struck out, Judge singled to make it 4-2.

Clarke Schmidt had relieved Montas in the sixth, and he tried to close it out. He got the first two men out in the ninth. Then he just couldn’t get that last out. More specifically, he could not get that last strike.

A walk on a 3-2 pitch. the runner then went to second on defensive indifference. A single on another 3-2 pitch. Runners on the corners. Another walk on a 3-2 pitch. Bases loaded.

Finally, Wandy Peralta came in and got a flyout (on an 0-2 pitch) to end the game. It took 13 or 14 pitches when the Yanks were one strike away to finally close the deal. Whew.

The Yanks are off today and are flying out to Oakland. Estevan Florial was sent back to AAA after the game. Giancarlo Stanton comes off the IL tomorrow to face the A’s.

Benintendi 2 hits, RBI
Judge 2 hits, 2 RBI. Solo HR (48)
Cabrera first career RBI. Outfield assist that saved a run.

Montas 5 2/3 IP, 2 R, 6 H, 1 W, 6 K. 1 HBP 3.84 (A’s/NYY ERA)
Schmidt (W, 5-2) 3 IP, 0 R, 3 H, 3 W, 0 K. 2.18
Peralta (S, 2) 1/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 0 K. 2.44

Game 119. Yanks lose to Toronto, 9-2.

Frankie Montas struggled in his Yankees’ home debut and the Yankees’ offense went back into its funk in losing to Toronto 9-2 Thursday evening.

The Yanks’ lead in the division was cut to 9 over Tampa Bay and Toronto. The Yanks are 73-46 and the magic # for clinching the division is 36. However, the Yanks are only 21-28 in their last 49 games, and 3-12 in their last 15. Also, it’s tough watching the guys they got rid of doing well while the guys they got are struggling. It’s just been a bad month all around.

Once again, Yankees’ pitching couldn’t limit the damage when they were one strike away from doing so. In the top of the second, Montas gave up a single, got a strikeout, then gave up a double. A force out made it 1-0 Toronto. Then came the backbreakers. First, a walk that put runners at first and second, then a bloop single by George Springer on a 1-2 count (one strike away from getting out of the inning only giving up one run) that made it 2-0. Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. then followed with a 3-run HR to make it 5-0 and the game was kind of over right then.

Guerrero’s HR, 362 ft., wouldn’t have been a HR in any other ballpark. The porch giveth, but the porch also taketh away.

The Yanks got their two runs in the bottom of the third to cut the score to 5-2. Jose Trevino led off with a walk and Estevan Florial was HBP. An infield single by D.J. LeMahieu plus an error on the play scored Trevino and put runners on first and third. Aaron Judge grounded into a force out that scored Florial.

Toronto got a run in the fifth as Springer was in the middle of everything. He was 5 for 5 for the night.

The Blue Jays got three runs in the seventh, helped by a two-base error by D.J. LeMahieu (originally a throwing error on Josh Donaldson but correctly changed to a fielding error on LeMahieu). They should have had a DP there. Instead, the error helped lead to three runs. 9-2. End of scoring for the game.

Yankees’ rookie Oswaldo Cabrera played SS in his second MLB game and went 2 for 4. His first MLB hit was a double. Meanwhile, Estevan Florial is trying to get off the schneid. He’s 0 for 16 in the majors this season.

The Yanks struck out 13x.

LeMahieu 2 hits
Rizzo 2 hits
Cabrera 2 hits (First 2 MLB hits)

Montas (L, 4-10) 6 IP, 6 R, 8 H, 1 W, 2 K. Gave up 1 HR. 3.87 (Combined A’s/NYY Record)
Abreu 1 IP, 3 R, 2 ER, 2 H, 1 W, 1 K. 3.16
Luetge 2 IP, 0 R, 3 H, 1 W, 3 K. 2.74

Game 114. Yanks “squeeze” past Bosox, 3-2.

Isiah Kiner-Falefa drove in all three Yankees runs with his first HR of the season and a bunt single on a safety squeeze play to lead the Yankees (72-42) past Boston, 3-2, Saturday night.

The win dropped the Yankees magic # for winning the AL East to 40.

Frankie Montas’ first start as a Yankee didn’t go too well, but he hadn’t pitched in 11 days because of the death of his mother-in-law. This next one went much better.

Some wildness cost Montas two runs in the bottom of the fourth. A walk, one-out single, WP, and walk loaded the bases for Boston. A HBP forced in a run and a second run scored on a SF.

The Yanks surprisingly came back to tie it in the top of the fifth. Andrew Benintendi led off with a walk, and one out later, Kiner-Falefa (IKF) snaked on over the Green Monster for his first HR as a Yankee. Finally, in game 114 of this season, he got one. Maybe it wasn’t as dramatic as Bucky Dent’s in 1978, but equally as shocking. (And on June 20, 1978, ANOTHER Yankee SS hit a grand slam at Fenway off of Mike Torrez to lead the Yankees to a 10-4 win after being down 4-0 in THAT game. That would be Fred “The Chicken” Stanley!)

With one out in the top of the ninth, Andrew Benintendi just missed a HR (which would have been his first as a Yankee) as he doubled to CF. An infield single by Jose Trevino put runners on the corners. Then, a play that the Yankees need to do more often. They put on a safety squeeze play. You have to catch the defense napping; you have to execute the bunt and not pop it up. You do the safety and not suicide squeeze to make sure the runner isn’t out if you miss the pitch or if it’s a ball (like on a pitchout). But if you can execute the bunt and get it down, you most likely won’t bunt into a DP, and most likely the runner scores. IKF did everything perfectly, and with the second baseman shifted towards second, no one was there to cover first, so not only did Benintendi score what turned out to be the winning run on the play, but IKF reached first for a single.

I loved it. That’s baseball!

With Clay Holmes struggling, Scott Effross closed out the ninth, but not before putting a scare in us and not before Trevino and IKF combined to make a fine defensive play.

Kiner-Falefa 3 hits, 3 RBI. 2-run HR (1) and GW RBI safety squeeze single

Montas 5 IP, 2 R, 5 H, 2 W, 4 K. 1 HBP, 1 WP 3.59 (A’s/NYY ERA)
Luetge 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 W, 1 K. 2.75
Trivino 2/3 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 W, 0 K. 5.59 (A’s/NYY ERA)
Chapman (W, 1-3) 1 1/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 2 K. 1 HBP 3.94
Effross (S, 2) 1 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 0 W, 1 K. 2.88 (Cubs/NYY ERA)

From MLB.com:

Kiner-Falefa is the only Major Leaguer in the last 30 years to have a game-tying homer and a go-ahead RBI bunt in the same game, according to STATS.

Game 109. Yanks lose 5th straight, 12-9.

I have friends in the Lehigh Valley Yankee fan club who are on their way home to PA after their road trip to St. Louis. I hope their travels have been safe and the rest of their trip was fun. The games they watched in St. Louis certainly were not fun.

The Cardinals swept the Yanks (70-39) Sunday by winning 12-9 and extended the Yankees’ losing streak to a season-high 5 games.

In losing, the Yanks made, shall we say, some cardinal sins. They gave up too many runs with two out. Those pitchers have to finish off the inning. Also, it’s one thing to let an All-Star in Nolan Arenado beat you all series. It’s another thing to have a guy hitting under .150 beat you all series.

For the first time in months, the Yanks lead in the division is less than 10 games. It’s now 9 1/2 over Toronto. It’s only 1/2 a game over Houston for best record in the AL. The Yanks trail the dodgers by 5 1/2 for the best record in baseball. No need for panic yet, but the Yanks have to right the ship, and soon. They now head to Seattle, so most of us Easterners won’t be awake for the end of the games.

The Yanks got a run in the top of the first when D.J. LeMahieu doubled, went to third on a groundout and scored on a SF by Matt Carpenter.

St. Louis tied it in the bottom of the first.

In the top of the second, the Yanks scored three runs and you thought it could be their day. Gleyber Torres singled to lead off the inning. Andrew Benintendi singled Torres to second. Aaron Hicks singled to score Torres and send Benintendi to second. Before those three hits, those three hitters were a combined 3 for their last 79. So, you thought, maybe this’ll be a good day after all. After Jose Trevino struck out, Marwin Gonzalez was HBP to load the bases. LeMahieu struck out, but Aaron Judge singled in two runs, and it was 4-1 Yanks.

But St. Louis came right back with five runs in the bottom of the second to take a 6-4 lead. Yankees’ starter Frankie Montas, just acquired at the trade deadline, hadn’t pitched since July 26, a 12-day gap, because of being on bereavement due to the death of his mother-in-law. He had just arrived in St. Louis Saturday night and didn’t meet most of his teammates until hours before game time. So, he gets a mulligan here. Tough situation for him. Two walks (oh, those bases on balls! As the old Cardinal, Frankie Frisch would say) started the inning. Then a one-out double drove in one run. Another walk loaded the bases. A SF drove in another run. Then a two-out 3-run HR by Nolan Arenado made it 6-4, Cardinals. All-Star Arenado killed the Yanks all series with his bat and glove.

Meanwhile, the Yanks’ lineup, without Anthony Rizzo or Giancarlo Stanton, was good enough this day to get 16 hits. Rizzo and Stanton were surely missed In Friday’s 4-3 and Saturday’s 1-0 losses.

The Yanks tied the game in the top of the fifth when Benintendi led off with a double and Hicks walked. Trevino singled to load the bases. After a couple of strikeouts, Judge doubled off the base of the wall to tie the game. In fairness, the Yanks did get some big two-out hits of their own, Judge’s double, for example, here. After Judge’s double, both manager Aaron Boone and pitching coach Matt Blake were ejected for arguing balls and strikes. One strike called on Matt Carpenter, batting after Judge, was a terrible call by the home plate umpire. Looking at it on video, the pitch looked a good four inches outside. I can’t blame Boone and Blake for arguing that one.

But once again, the Cardinals came right back in the bottom of the same inning. With one out, a single. Then a double by Paul DeJong, who we’ll read again about shortly. After a pitching change and another out, a single to drive in DeJong. Two walks (there’s those walks again!) to load the bases. Another pitching change, then ANOTHER walk to force in a run before getting the last out of the inning. 9-6 Cardinals.

The Yanks, to their credit, battled back. In the top of the sixth, Josh Donaldson led off with a single. Torres singled Donaldson to second, and one out later, a single by Hicks loaded the bases. Trevino singled in a run, and a force-out by Gonzalez made it 9-8.

But any hopes for a comeback died in the bottom of the eighth when DeJong hit a 3-run HR to put the Cardinals up 12-8. Here was a fatal mistake all series for the Yanks. DeJong had the GW 2-run double Friday night against them. Here yesterday he had a big RBI double and 3-run HR. At games’ end, he was hitting .157. You just wanted to pull your hair out, letting a guy with a batting average that low beat you.

As a result, LeMahieu’s solo HR (12) in the top of the ninth went for naught. 12-9 final.

LeMahieu 3 hits, RBI. Solo HR (12)
Judge 2 hits, 4 RBI
Torres 3 hits.
Benintendi 2 hits
Hicks 3 hits, RBI
Trevino 2 hits, RBI

Montas 3 IP, 6 R, 5 H, 3 W, 2 K. 1 HBP. Gave up 1 HR. 3.59 (Combined A’s/NYY ERA)
Abreu (L, 2-1) 1 1/3 IP, 2 R, 2 H, 1 W, 3 K. 2.73 (Combined 3-team ERA)
Loaisiga 1/3 IP, 1 R, 1 H, 2 W, 0 K. 6.66
Trivino 1/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 W, 1 K. 5.86 (Combined A’s/NYY ERA)
Peralta 2 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 W, 1 K. 2.36
Effross 1 IP, 3 R, 3 H, 0 W, 0 K. Gave up 1 HR. 3.06 (Combined Cubs/NYY ERA)

8 walks. Ouch. The Yanks could use a pep talk/clubhouse meeting right now.

Game 108. Monty’s revenge. St. Louis’ Montgomery beats Yanks and ex-teammates, 1-0

Jordan Montgomery had to have some strange feelings facing his ex-teammates. Montgomery, traded by the Yankees to St. Louis on Tuesday, had to face his ex-teammates on Saturday night.

No doubt he wanted a little revenge on the front office who traded him away. He got that, pitching five shutout innings in a 1-0 Cardinals win over the Yankees (70-38).

Also getting a little revenge was Giovanny Gallegos, who the Yanks traded away a few years back when they got Luke Voit. Gallegos closed out the game.

The Yanks finish the 2/3 mark of the season at 70-38, which means they are on pace for 105 wins. But the way they’ve played lately, they better pick up the pace. After a 52-18 start, the Yanks have gone 18-20. They are 9-15 in their last 24 games.

The absence of Anthony Rizzo (back, day-to-day) and Giancarlo Stanton (on IL, Achilles) was noticeable. The Yanks only had two hits in the game. Aaron Judge needs help, and he can’t do it himself (even though he had one of the two hits—a single). Teams will and are pitching around him without Rizzo and Stanton backing him. The bad slumps that Aaron Hicks (0 for his last 32), Andrew Benintendi (2 for 25 as a Yankee) and Gleyber Torres (1 for his last 22) are undergoing need to be overcome. Without Rizzo and Stanton, those three guys need to come through, not to mention Josh Donaldson (.221) or Kyle Higashioka (.200, and he had the other Yankees’ hit in the game).

Domingo German was the tough-luck loser in this game. He pitched well, giving up only one run in five innings. With two out in the bottom of the first inning, NL-MVP favorite Paul Goldschmidt doubled, and All-Star Nolan Arenado singled for what would turn out to be the only run of the game. Is it me, or does it seem like Yankees’ pitchers are giving up a lot of two-out runs lately?

The Cardinals have made a couple fine defensive plays in their two wins over the Yanks.

Today, Sunday, Frankie Montas makes his Yankees’ debut. In what may be a surprising move, in order to make room for Montas, the Yanks had to send Ron Marinaccio back to the minors, despite his sterling 2.03 ERA. Other guys don’t have options like Marinaccio has.

German (L, 1-2) 5 IP, 1 R, 4 H, 0 W, 3 K. 5.09
Marinaccio 2/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 W, 1 K. 2.03 Sent down to AAA after game.
Trivino 1 1/3 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 W, 1 K. 5.91 (A’s/NYY ERA)
Chapman 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 W, 0 K. 4.62

The loss was the Yanks’ fourth in a row, their season high.