Yeah, that’s about the size of it; Yanks have been playing a lot of games this season where they win or lose by (or annoyingly only scoring) one run. Not surprisingly, this was shaping up to be one of those shit-end-of-the-stick one run games; low scoring and other pitcher is lights out. Surprisingly, the team usually scores a lot of runs for The Composer (yunnow, Eovaldi, Vivaldi, ahh nervermind) , surprisingly his gem did not go to waste as Girardi and the batters themselves have a habit of pissing away these kind of efforts with “plays” or notebook strategies or just plain bad at-bats, but no.

Somehow, they managed to get on the good side of karma as the last inning saw them load the bases with none out and Beltran, known more for blown opportunities without even moving rather than good luck, managed to sky the ball enough to let Happy Nutheryearonearth boy Brett Gardner dash in with the winning @#$%ing run in the bottom of the night. Surprise, surprise, Yanks did not lose in extra innings (another annoying habit of late) and beat a surprisingly (if you are playing the Drinking Game with the word surprise, you are a lush) beating-the-league-like-they-owe-you-money Astros club by the score of @#$%ing 1-0.

It’s not that I hate low scoring games. It’s just that I hate having to go to bed in the middle of one with a summer cold and then wake up and write this before an early call. Oh well, enjoy your day and remember: @#$%!

Weekend of Humble Pie for the Yanks.

Nervous?

Picture via Lover of Beauty. 

The Yanks won on Saturday afternoon cause they wuz a-supposed to win. And that made us happy.

First big league victory for Luis Severino who was impressive because he didn’t have his best stuff.

Let’s see what CC’s got today.

Another breather for Alex…

Jacoby Ellsbury CF
Brett Gardner LF
Carlos Beltran RF
Brian McCann DH
Greg Bird 1B
Chase Headley 3B
Didi Gregorius SS
Stephen Drew 2B
John Ryan Murphy C

Never mind the haze:

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

Picture by Bags

Carlos Carrasco out-pitched Masahiro Tanaka but there the Yanks were, down by a run, 3-2, in the bottom of the 8th inning, bases loaded. Stephen Drew hit the ball hard but directly at left fielder Michael Brantley. That was your ballgame as the Indians scored 4 runs in the top of the 9th and beat the Yankees again–4 in 5 games this year. This time it was 7-3.

We don’t have to like it, but that’s baseball, Suzyn.

[Image Via: 4CP]

Long night for the Yankee offense. They had to deal with Josh Tomlin, Cleveland’s thin-lipped starter who bears a slight resemblance to a young Gary Oldman. Tomlin threw darts, mixed pitches, changed speeds and rocked the Yanks--and the rest of us–to bed. The Yanks kept crushing pitches but they’d go foul because Tomlin placed them just so. The Bombers hit some balls hard in fair territory too but they were either directly at fielders or Cleveland’s men were making nice plays to turn those balls into outs.

A home plate umpire with a horeshit strike zone didn’t help. But he’s not to blame. Tomlin was.

As Crash Davis once said, “Fuck this fucking game.”

But in the 9th inning, there the Yanks were–down 3-2 with men on second and third, 2 out for Didi Gregorious. He hit a harmless fly ball to left field to end the game but the Yanks had their chance right there. Close but no.

They’ll get them tonight, Carrasco or no Carrasco.

Picture by Bags

What? I wasn’t going to mention Bird in the title?

The kid hit a pair of 2-run home runs  yesterday to boost the Yanks. Even better was Nathan Eovaldi. Guy’s stuff is so good–he threw 4 pitches yesterday at 101–it’s easy to be critical of him. He was perfect through 5, faltered in the 6th, and then showed some guts but coming back out and pitching a clean 7th. Shreve held the Twins down in the 8th and Betances put heads to bed to close it out.

It’s clear what the Yankees saw in Eovaldi and while he is not a finished product he’s improved, don’t you think?

Final Score: Yanks 4, Twins 3.

[Photo Credit: William Claxton]

Excuse me for losing faith but when Alex Rodriguez came to the plate with the bases loaded in the bottom of the 7th inning last night, I didn’t think he’d strike out or pop out, I thought he’d hit into a double play. Rodriguez is in a slump and was 1-27 going into the at-bat. Never mind the lack of hits, the swings haven’t been that good the past week. I wasn’t trying to reverse jinx him by anticipating the double play, I just didn’t have confidence he’d put a good swing on the ball. Well, shows what I know. After taking a cutter outside for a ball, Rodriguez put a fine swing on a fastball, low–but not low enough–and outside–but not outside far enough–and hit a grand slam. Nobody in big league history has hit more of them than Rodriguez.

The Yanks had been trailing 4-1. Now, they had a lead. They scored 3 more times in the 8th and beat the Twins, 8-4.

They’re all important wins and this was no exception. Looked like they were done after CC Sabathia fell apart in the 7th inning. Seems as if the Big Guy hits a wall later in games and can’t recover. But the late comeback gave us another reason to appreciate these 2015 Yankees who have given us a good deal of pleasure so far.

[Photo Credit: Elsa/Getty Images]

Last night’s game was long and strange and it took awhile to shake off the disquieting feeling that settled shortly after Bryan Mitchell was struck in the face with a line drive in the second inning. Turns out he’s okay–and we can only hope the same is true for Mark Teixeira who left the game not long after he fouled a ball off his knee–but the image of him being hit was hard to shake.

Wait, they still had to play the game?

It was a slog and the Yankees trailed several times. Big hits from Brian McCann and Carlos Beltran kept them in it, and they won it in the 10th on an error by our old chum, Eduardo Nunez. Go figure.

Final Score: Yankees 8, Twins 7.

Get the papers, get the papers.

[Photo Credit: Adam Hunger/USA Today]

As in “Tanaka” who pitched a complete game on Saturday afternoon in Toronto as the Yanks beat the Jays, 4-1.

He was in control all game with the exception of the 5th inning. The Yanks had a 1-0 lead when a base hit and a couple of walks loaded the bases for Josh Donaldson. Game of inches? You bet. Because Donaldson just missed hitting a grand slam–he got under a 2-0 pitch. Instead of a fat 4-0 lead, his fly ball out to left was good to score a run, but then Tanaka struck out Jose Bautista and retired Edwin Encarnacion on a soft line drive to second base.

Yanks tacked on a few runs–including a long dinger by Mark Teixeira–and the win ensures they’ll leave town in first place no matter what happens today.

We’ll take it. Yes, we will.

Picture by Bags

The Yankees got on base against David Price on Friday night but could not plate a run off the man. Meanwhile, Ivan Nova had one inning that went screwy on him, but otherwise out-pitched his counterpart. Still, as the 8th inning began, the Yanks trailed 3-0. A very loud Toronto crowd enjoyed themselves and why shouldn’t not?

A run-scoring double to the gap by Chase Headley finally got Price out of there and then Carlos Beltran pinch-hit for Chris Young with runners on second and third, one out. Aaron Sanchez, 15 years Beltran’s junior replaced Price. The first two pitches he threw were clocked at 97 mph–high and out of the zone. Still, Beltran swung, waving at them both. Sanchez threw another high fastball, this one too high and too inside and then came back with yet another heater. This one was 97 mph too but it wasn’t out of the strike zone, it was right over the plate. And Beltran did not miss it.

His 3-run homer put the Yanks ahead by a run. Delin Betances, who threw a lot of pitches and didn’t look wonderful on Thursday in Cleveland, came on to pitch the 8th and was blazing–killer fastball, nasty breaking ball.

His partner Andrew Miller pitched the 9th and goddamn it was an adventure. With one man out, he walked Chris Colabello and then gave up a hard-hit single to Kevin Pillar. A wild pitch greeted Ben Revere putting the tying run at third and the winning run at second.

Miller composed himself and struck Revere out like he was supposed to but then had to contend with Troy Tulowitski. And you had to figure it could go either way. Seemed like everybody in the park was standing and when a team is on a wining streak like the Jays have been, well, I figured he’d get a base hit and win the game. I muted the TV and watched in silence, pacing back-and-forth in my living room.

The at-bat had plenty drama. The count went full, of course, all three balls came on fastballs that were outside. The rest were sliders, fast ones, slower ones, backdoor, inside and low, and Tulowitski kept fouling them off, one after the other. On the 12th pitch of the at bat he foul tipped a slider, bearing in on him but up. Brian McCann held onto the ball and the Yanks had the game.

A thriller goes the Yanks. Hot damn.

Final Score: Yanks 4, Jays 3.

Today, they’re back at it and the Jays can leapfrog right back into first.

Let’s hope for more good things.

Never mind the Toronto Turf:

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

Picture by Bags

There is good news. The good news is that the Yankees are pitching well. Sure, the starters aren’t going deep enough into games, and yes, the bullpen is taxed, but as a whole, they are performing well. CC Sabathia wasn’t terrific last night, giving up 9 hits, but he bulled his way through 6 innings allowing only a couple of runs.

It’s just that nobody is hitting. Four lousy hits all night. Rallies left limp and for dead in the 8th and 9th. I could recount these failures by why bother? If you didn’t see it live, you’ve seen something like it before, enough to know you don’t need to know more. Less you are a some kind of masochist or something.

2-1 was the final and that’s how it unfolds when you’re in a slump.

Oh, the Jays won again, and now they are in first place.

Game on, fellas. Something tells me good t hings are right around the corner.

Picture by Bags

‘Cause there ain’t no cure for the summertime blues.

The Yanks’ offense looked dead in the water again last night. Never mind a slump, they were up against a formidable pitcher in Carlos Carrasco. But solo home runs by Stephen Drew and Carlos Beltran tied the score and the top of the 10th inning, pinch-hitter Chase Headley dropped an RBI single in front of the right fielder, the Yanks scored a couple, and it was Miller Time. Ah, Miller time.

Hell of a spot to blow your first game of the season. Miller wasn’t awful, the Indians hit a couple of good pitches. Still, by the end of the inning, the score was tied. And that’s how it remained through good relief pitching–or weak hitting–on both sides. On and on.

The Indians finally scored the winning run in the bottom of the 16th and those of us who stayed up for it are now feeling less than spry.

And so it goes during a slump–hard hit balls go for outs, the other guys’ bloopers fall in for hits.

Course the Jays won, too.

Shake it off. Today is…well, it’s already today. Onward!

[Illustration by Francis Livingston]

All you need to know about yesterday’s fait accompli is that after Jose Bautista hit a home run, a fan threw it back on the field and accidentally hit Brett Gardner in the back.

Shut out. 

Picture by Bags

It was close for awhile there yesterday. Then Ivan Nova gave up a grand slam and that was more than enough for David Price, who pitched a sweet game as the Jays beat the Yanks, 6-0. Toronto is now just two-and-a-half back. That makes today’s game especially important for the Yanks. Yes, they’ve got Masahiro Tanaka going, but he hasn’t been great lately, and well, this feels like one of those lost weekend’s don’t she?

Maybe I should stop doubting Nathan Eovaldi. He pitched a swell game last night. Gave up a solo home run to Josh Donaldson in the first on a 99 mph fastball on the black and that was it, as he pitched into the 7th inning. Really nice job. Shame his boys couldn’t help him out s’more, but Eovaldi’s benefitted from a ton of runs this season so I suppose it all evens out.

R.A. Dickey, the dastard, pitched well too, and the game went into extra innings tied at 1. Andrew Miller pitched a nifty 9th inning on only 6 pitches but he did not return in the 10th to face the heart of the Blue Jays line up. First guessers just ahead of second-guessers on this move by manager Joe Girardi for sure.

Instead, the young right-hander, Branden Pinder–nice slider, powerful fastball–replaced him. Pinder got Donaldson to look bad swinging at a couple of sliders and then threw a third one which Donaldson lined to center field. Good thing Didi Gregarious was positioned to catch it–though the ball almost took his glove off. Pinner got a called strike one on Jose Bautista with the slider, another called strike on a fastball inside and then tried to get another fastball by one of the better fastball hitters in the game. The location was off and Bautista hit the ball over the fence in left field.

That’s all the Jays needed as they won, 2-1.

Third straight 2-1 game the Yanks have been involved in. A difficult loss for sure, especially at the hands of that made-for-TV-bad guy, Bautista. David Price goes today for the Jays and the Yanks have held their own against him, which is what I’m afraid of.

Could be a long weekend for the Bombers which is a drag for the rest of us because it is diamond-in-the-back-sunrooftop beautiful here in New York.

Picture by Bags

Another 2-1 game, this time the Yanks won, thanks to a go ahead home run by Jacoby Ellsbury. The story of the night, though, was CC Sabathia, who not only pitched with determination and force but who was more animated than I ever remember seeing him. There he stood, sweat pouring off him like he was Zero Mostel under the hot stage lights. The stuff was sharp and he got into it with the home plate ump–aw, sensitive. When CC stuck out David Ortiz with the bases loaded to end the fifth, he let out a yell that we could feel uptown. Onions! And pride. A terrific way to enter what should be a tough weekend series against the red hot Jays.

Just a little bit of Flavor.

[Photo Credit: Rich Schultz/Getty Images]

Luis Severino has a plus fastball and at times last night he had a sharp-breaking slider and a decent change. He didn’t pitch deep into the game–and was done a disservice by Chase Headley who made another throwing error–but he made a good impression in his debut. The Yanks were stymied by Steven Wright–the other Steven Wright, though it is fitting that a guy with that name is a knuckle ball pitcher. And they had the tying and wining runs on base in the 9th when pinch-hitter Brian McCann flew out to center field to end the game. Near miss and bummer of a loss since the O’s and Jays both won.

Speaking of Steven Wright I once saw him in the lobby of the Brill Building. This was 25 years ago. He got out of the elevator, wearing an old Red Sox cap. I just looked at him and said, “The Red Sox?” And in that monotone voice he looked at me, deadpan, and said, “Well, I’m from Boston.”

Which made sense.

[Photo Credit: Anthony Gruppuso/USA TODAY Sports Images]

For a good while tonight there wasn’t much scoring and then…

…well, then, our boys took care of that, thank you very much.

In the end, it was a familiar story for the 2015 Red Sox, another beating.

The Yanks unloaded in the 7th, scoring 9 runs, more than enough to put the Sox away, 13-3.

All this after an odd bit of strategery from ol’ Joe G.

[Image Via: Tavis Coburn]

The Score Truck has been rumbling through the streets recently, and the Yankee bats were out in force again on Sunday afternoon in Chicago, piling up twelve runs against the White Sox to wrap up another series win and a successful 6-4 road trip.

Jacoby Ellsbury got things started when he jumped on the second pitch of the game from Chicago’s Jeff Samardzija and drove it into the stands just to the left of dead center field. Samardzija seemed to settle down as he retired nine of the next eleven Yankee hitters after that, but then the fourth inning happened.

It all started innocently enough. After striking out Mark Teixeira for the first out of the inning, Samardzija fooled Brian McCann enough to induce a weak pop up to the left side. McCann slammed his bat down in disgust, but the ball was headed towards the Bermuda Triangle between left field, center field, and shortstop, and it fell into the grass for a single. Carlos Beltrán followed with a four-pitch walk, and then Chase Headley singled to load the bases with one out.

Stepping up to the plate was Didi Gregorius. If they had an award for Comeback Player of the Year within the year, Gregorius would win it in a landslide. After hitting .206 in April, Gregorius hit a robust .317 in July to bring his overall average up to a more-than-respectable .260. He’d end up hitting .438 on this ten-game road trip, and it’s gotten to the point where I actually expect him to come through in important situations. So I wasn’t surprised at all when he poked a single into left center to plate McCann and Beltrán (with a nifty slide) to give the Yanks a 3-0 lead.

Next up was Stephen Drew (don’t look now, but the average is almost up to .200), who naturally singled to load the bases again for the top of the order. An Ellsbury sacrifice fly to the wall in center field pushed the score to 4-0, but with two outs and runners on second and third, Brett Garnder’s at bat felt huge. Sure, the Yanks already had a four-run lead, but a base hit in this spot would bury the ChiSox, and Gardy provided just that as he shot a single to the second baseman’s right, throwing two more shovels of dirt on the Sox and bringing the score to 6-0.

Those six runs would have been enough, but the Bombers weren’t done. They’d add three more in the next inning on a Teixeira home run (his fifth in the last four games) and a two-run double from Drew, then three more in the seventh on a two-run triple from Drew and an RBI groundout from Ellsbury for an even dozen runs.

But as impressive as that offensive performance was, the story of the game was Ivan Nova. We know that this Yankee team will score runs (the OPS numbers of the top five hitters in the lineup look like this: 729, 824, 918, 958, 789), but with Michael Pineda recently landing on the DL, Masahiro Tanaka showing signs of regression, and CC Sabathia being CC Sabathia, suddenly we’re counting on an awful lot from Nova, Nathan Eovaldi, and a kid who still hasn’t thrown a pitch in the major leagues.

All Nova did on Sunday was dominate the White Sox hitters with a strong fastball, a confident breaking ball, and a diving sinker. The only hint of trouble he faced in the early going came in the third inning, and it wasn’t of his doing. After Adam Eaton singled with two outs, he stole second and advanced to third when McCann’s throw squirted into center field. The score was still only 1-0 at the time, so Eaton carried an important potential run with him, but Nova quickly extinguished the threat with a strikeout, one of seven he’d pile up on the afternoon.

Nova did yield a run in the sixth on a walk, a fielder’s choice, and a ground ball base hit, but he did so with a nine-run lead. He seemed a bit irritated, but he recovered nicely to strike out Avisail Garcia on three pitches (three swings and misses) to end the inning and put a cap on his six-inning performance. Final score: Yankees 12, White Sox 3.

So things are good in the Yankee Universe. They’ll bring their six-game division lead back to Yankee Stadium for three games against the hapless Red Sox, and they won’t have to travel out of the Eastern time zone until a potential playoff game in someplace like Houston, Kansas City, or Anaheim. Better still, only 24 of their remaining 58 games will be played on the road, and three of those road games are against the Mets at Citi Field. While teams all around the league have retooled and traded prospects for a shot at the brass ring, the Yankees just might be in better position than any of the other contenders as we head into August and September… and October.

It’s good to be Yankee, and it’s good to be a Yankee fan. Some things never change.

And on Saturday night, the Yanks got their asses kicked in Chicago.