Whaddayou know, the Yanks are half-a-game in front for the lead in the AL East (also by virtue of having played three games less than the Red Hots), and depending on how you look at it either are the best team in MLB by winning percentage or third best by total wins. This without being at full strength too; Tanaka and Montgomery are missing from the starting rotation, Gary Sanchez is taking a ten-day trip to the DL after a really unlucky/startlingly poor start offensively and the New Monster On The Block being relatively average to sub-optimal. That’s not to mention Greg Bird finally getting healthy enough to contribute Heinz horseshit at the plate. But we know what the deal is. Judge is seeming to make some adjustments and settling into a productive streak, whether or not that means more tank jobs is relative at this point. Sir Didi is also slowly getting back on track, while Hicks and Gardner have both continued to contribute when you least expect it. Severino is the unquestioned Lord of the Rotation and there’s promise with German and the Thunder from AA Under, Jonathan “Johnny Lasagna” Loaisiga. Austine Romine is the new Francisco Cervelli (hopefully without the juice) and of course, our true MVPs are the kids the team didn’t think were ready to even start the season with the big team; Miguel Andujar and Gleyber Torres. How bad do you think the Yanks would have fallen off without these two?
So with all that, maybe we can discuss what the Yanks can do to sustain their current level of productivity and perhaps build on it. There’s an obvious need for another top flight starter to share the burden of being consistently good with Sevi. Sonny Gray is not the guy; if he’s inconsistent with Romine as his caddy, what will it come to when he has no choice but to pitch consistently with Sanchez? It’s a problem many wink at, but few really want to get into depth about. C.C. is older now, and old for a starter of his stature and accumulated mileage. He’s had a few bad luck starts, but mainly he hasn’t been able to stretch the game enough to give the bullpen a break (back to that soon). German is not the guy… yet. He and Johnny are both tasked with difficult missions; hold down the rotation until reinforcements arrive. The latter has been brilliant in two starts, but the sample is still insignificant. German has been alternately brilliant and lousy, but again you can’t blame him so much because he was supposed to be getting innings on the farm like Justus Sheffield (which makes you wonder what’s going on with Chance Adams, who is ostensibly the next starter on the call-up list were it not for Johnny skipping the line). Tanaka had also been on/off from the start, which seems to have become his M.O. the last couple of years. So what can all this inconsistency be attributed to? Could the difference be as simple as age, or when Sevi sought advice/training with fellow D.R. compatriot and the Yanks’ nemesis Pedro Martinez? Hmmm… if he ends up winning the Cy Young or dominating in the playoffs, I would certainly advocate for the Yanks putting aside their differences (or pride) and hiring Pedro as their minor league pitching guru before anyone else gets the idea (that is, if Pedro is capable of doing the same).
As for the bench, they have to figure out a way to get Fraizer and Drury back up; those guys are wasting away in Scranton and can contribute right away. Neil Walker, thanks for holding the fort down. Tyler Austin, I’d miss you, but we could get a good lefty relief pitcher for you and Shreve…. well, maybe not put a damper on things with a deal like that.
All in all, the Yanks are either in a good place or really fortunate, all things considered. They can deal from a position of strength if they want to, but I have a better feeling they will hold with what they have and replenish their pitching/catching stock in the minors. Still holding out hope that the few under-performers will get really hot soon (Stanton seems to thrive in the heat, and that hasn’t been a key feature in the Northeast of late) and they can keep two steps ahead of the Sox for the east. As has been the last few years, pitching will determine whether they pass or fail, and hopefully the rotation will not be out of gas when September and October become a thing.
Enjoy the game!
Craziness in Detroit. Apparently the pitching coach made some racially insensitive remark to endothermic employee and he got canned within a day.
[1] The "endothermic" is throwing me off a little, you mean the employee was taking heat for something unrelated? I couldn't find anything specific...
great write up Chill. Seems to me another SP before the trade deadline is gonna happen, and is needed. Agree that Tyler is a nice piece, but probably not for more than a rental. My money is on Cash.
btw, hard to believe John Stirling is about to turn 80. 29 years w/o missing a game according to Wikipedia. like him or hate him, he's a constant.
[2] I meant another. Not sure how endothermic crept in there. He was just fired this afternoon.
Phew!
like how the kid pitches out of it.
I missed last night's gem. Now I get to see this strugglefest. Oi! Atta boy, Cessa.
Shit
[5] You must have a truly "smart" phone >;)
If there were ever to be a trade with the Mets for one of Thor or DeGrom, I would include Tyler in that package. He fits several needs for them and I could see him being a solid contributor for years in Citi Field, so it would lessen the number or quality of prospects they'd have to give. That said, I like Drury and Frazier more.
And I think Stirling is an acceptable cornball most of the time, but his best work was with Kay as his partner and vice-versa. Breaking them up was a mistake, but that's how the business is.
I don't see what the obsession with Cessa is though. What am I missing?
[9] iPad actually. Stupid autocorrect
Universal DH
Bats need hats.
Gah. Stanton.
Ugh ... GleyBAH!
Gio pitching is out of this world
And tonight’s offense is Lost in Space
Last ups ...
We’ll sweeps are hard.
I’ve had a great night. This was not it.
And down.
Blergh.
What a shit-ass game. The offense is not so scary without Gary (hitting or not) and with Bird not hitting.
Time to drop Walker and bring up Clint and Brandon.
There was one interesting call from Kay's radio show this afternoon; a frustrated Yanks fan wondered why hitters were not trying to choke up on the bat with two strikes or trying to make contact in any way, also wondering what role the hitting coaches had in the boring "all or nothing" approach. Was it something that could be fixed? Kay and LaGreca's implied-shade response was that the hitters were doing exactly what they were told, and that in the organization's view, there was nothing wrong with this approach as it largely avoided the possibility of hitting into double plays.
While you can't argue with a winning record, one would argue that better teams (or teams with better pitching) would easily exploit such aggressiveness and could easily strike out batters, especially in critical at-bats with men on base. Tampa Bay might have figured this out, certainly the Phillies did this today. It very well likely explains the struggles that the usual sluggers have had, and it might become habits with both Andujar and Gleyber.
I HATE/DESPISE this approach for many reasons and I hope the Yanks see fit to abandon it soon and let these guys' natural hitting prowess take over. Who the hell approves these kinds of things, really? I would rather see their sluggers hit base-clearing doubles than to strike out three or four times for the sake of a 500 ft bullshit solo home run.
[23] Interesting. The biggest case for choking up has to be Bary Bonds. Dude was a monster power hitter, but choked way up on the bat.
[22] Ask and ye shall receive ... Brandon is now up!
Time for a knife fight
Well, done CC ... now let's score runs ... and lots of them.
Thanks Nune5!!!
EVERYBODY GLEYBER NOW!
Miggy Jr.!
FUCK YOU, BLUE.
We'd better get that call.
Gar.
Nice, Didi
Miggy Jr. again!
Belly to belly. Good for Bird
Grrrr ... think Gardner should have gone for that.
Get out of it CC!
Only one run, I’ll take it
Very nice, CC!
Judge gavels in two more
Hey folks! I’m in NY
Great post title, Chyll!
Let’s go Yan-Kees!! !!! ⚾️⚾️⚾️
Bird redux!
I hope they’re showcasing Shreve for trade purposes.
One
Two
Three!
Night all
[40] Hee-hee, I knew you'd pick up on that >;)
Still brick hot here in the Midwest
Not good
Fuck
What a bunch o fucking bollocks. One strike away from getting out of it.
Didn't take long to see which Sonny was pitching tonight. Hope Boone keeps him in for 120 pitches, at least save the BP.
Gleyber clean up. 1st time
10mins late and already 4-0?! Sonny is just garbage..
Where did Hicks get hit? I hope it’s not a broken wrist or concussion or something. He gonna be ok?!
Hicks staying in, so can’t be too bad
Where’d he get hit? I can’t watch and it just said: injury delay
####### Sonny ############# Gray.
Bugger.
Great job Sonny, another 2-strike hit.
So Sonny can't throw with 2 strikes. Not so hot with 1 either.
I don't want to dislike anyone on this Yankees team ... but boy, oh boy, Sonny is testing my patience ...
Well, him and Chasen Shreve ...
I said 120 pitches. At this rate, maybe 3 innings. We need Hamels. Soon.
Christ, can we employ the "Mercy Rule"?
WTF did Rothchild have to say to Sonny? Throw sttikes? What kind of pizza fo you want after the 3rd?
If it's me?
The only thing I'm saying after this game is ... Take the pizza, leave the gun.
We need a starter to replace Gray, and another for I’m sure innings capped Johnny Lasagna
Just get Adam Warren in there and be done with this.
Thank you.
Judge overrules that motion to score
Yeah ... that kind of night.
Definitely that kind of night
maybe they ought to stretch out Adam
Can we get a bucket of used balls for Sonny? Maybe a bucket of warm spit?
Can we get a bucket of used balls for Sonny?
How many?
One?
No?
Just the bucket?
DONE DEAL!
hey, maybe Els can pitch. wouldn't be worse.
It seems like we're running out of ways to say, "Sonny Gray sucks." If nothing else, he keeps the pundits on their toes and digging through their thesauruses.
So I sleep through most of yesterday's day at the beach and wake up for this death march.
It REALLY is that kind of night.
I guess Shreve can pitch tonight. Offense isnt doing anything to get back in the game
I hate the Shit Sawx brown nosing by Verducci.
Memo to Boone, give Judge the night off when Sale is pitching
It's REALLY REALLY that kind of night ...
Hopefully the Shit Sawx get their offense out tonight and the bats go quiet tomorrow
I SURE would like if the Yankees batters would STOP TRYING TO PULL OUTSIDE PITCHES!!!!
[83] Long Day's Journey Into Naught
Hey Chyll... how about a new thread for tonight?
I guess not
Nice start for Sevy
Monument Park for the Judge
Nice start for Judge!
EVERYBODY GLEYBER NOW!!!
Blow us out at home, we’ll have our revenge
Hicks joins the homer party
And they are making sure the homers can’t be Kevin Pillared.
Ah, Sevy
Hello, gentlemen.
Matt, it’s for Miggy’s service time
[97] Evening! So far? So good!
It's a sultry evening here in southern New England, but not as stifling as in the Bronx I think.
Sevy is on fire
Come on, Higgy
HIGGY GOES MIGGY!
HIGGY!
Get that ball back
Cash has the magic touch with catchers recently.
Oh, well, I'd forgotten about Jesus. But recently, that fits too, because he traded the dude.
HIGGY!!!
1st hit?!
I’m at an amazing beer bar in Philthy with a dear friend (from college/band mate/former roommate) and my wife:)
Nice one, cult!
Hi, RI !!!
Gosh I like David Price in a Red Sox uniform.
Everybody home run tonight
Thelarmis!
What are you drinking???
Believe it or not, a Lost Abbey Devotion. Cheers!
late to the party. 5 Bangs against Price makes last nite easier to stomach
Howdy, Nostra!
Have a tasty one for me!
[113] Exactly.
everybody hits
Slainthe, cult!
Double figures anyone?
I want double digits
I was drinking gin, but I have just stopped and I'm having an ice cream sandwich.
I love Aaron Hicks!
Me too, rbj!! (Always)
I’ll go seven for Sevy, then bring in the second tier relievers.
[118][121] After last night ... I WANT THE SCORE TRUCK!
Just a bit outside
Checking in from the Outer Banks. Game's on t.v.! First one I've seen since Wednesday. Sevi! 9-0! 5 homers! Holy shite!
bourbon night.
[126] Same here! But Sunday is always bourbon night
Watchyerlips!
Hm. Yeah maybe post-ice-cream-sandwich drink is bourbon!
Dammit ... WHERE IS MY SCORE TRUCK?!?!?!?
like that Sevi convinced Boone to let him out again. NO SHREVE
Standing O for Sevi.
Luis!
nice out for DB.
Still looking for double digits
Finally a relaxing game.
What do you guys think about Alex in the booth? This is the first time I've heard him. Some of his comments seem to be a bit too packaged, too PC. Maybe I'm too picky, but public speaking is one of my passions.
3 for hicksie
double digits. kinda like Arod
Wow!
What's that I hear?
beep, Beep, BEEP!!!
IT'S THE SCORE TRUCK!
Awesome!
[136] He's just 100% Alex ... he just sounds exactly as I would expect him to ... smart, a student of the game ... but with weird blind spots and insecurities.
Well, Alex definitely comes prepared.
[142] Great evaluation!
Double motherfucking digits!! Drury and Walker!! Beer!!!!!
no beer, more bourbon
So will Cappie hit 106?
Chappi. too much bourbon
oops. DB still in
surprisingly, Chappie comes in
Everybody plays!
Goddamn, I wanted that shutout
1,2,3. nite all.
Bring on the Braves!
[136] I heard Alex on a midday show earlier in the week; he knows his stuff, but sounds too rehearsed. You hope he settles down with time, but it is a bit off-putting listening to someone who sounds like he's reading copy for a testosterone-booster commercial.
[152] I know, right? Slightly annoying...