Yankees Take Holiday Matinee vs. O's

It was a hot 4th of July. It rained, too, and today's holiday matinee at Yankee Stadium was delayed half an hour.

Clarke Schmidt started against the Baltimore Orioles, and pitched shutout ball over the 1st 4 innings. But, in the 5th, he gave up a home run to, of all people, former Yankee Aaron Hicks. And Hicks still got booed by the Bronx crowd. Schmidt ended up giving up 3 runs in that inning, and left thereafter.

Gleyber Torres hit a 2-run home run in the bottom of the 1st. He nearly had another homer in the 3rd, but it was caught at the warning track. Isiah Kiner-Falefa got a run home in the 4th with a sacrifice fly. But Schmidt's wobble in the 5th allowed the O's to tie the game.

Cliché Alert: Walks can kill you, especially the leadoff variety. To start the bottom of the 5th, Jose Trevino drew a walk on Kyle Gibson. It turned out not to mean anything, as Anthony Rizzo grounded into a double play. But Torres drew a walk. Giancarlo Stanton hit one up the gap. So often, Torres has been criticized for a lack of hustle. This time, he ran through the stop sign put up by 3rd base coach -- and former Mets manager -- Luis Rojas, and managed to score all the way from 1st base, giving the Yankees the lead.

The Yankees picked up 3 runs in the 7th, including a home run by Trevino. They got another in the 8th. The Orioles picked up a run in the 9th, but Albert Abreu finished it off. Yankees 8, Orioles 4. WP: Schmidt (4-6). No save. LP: Gibson (8-6).

The series continues tomorrow night. Randy Vásquez starts against Dean Kremer.

Happy Independence Day. Happy Lou Gehrig Day. Happy George Steinbrenner's Birthday. And happy John Sterling's Birthday. As I said yesterday, Celebrate safely, everyone: Be careful on the grill, don't drink too much, and leave the fireworks to the professionals.

Yankees Get Comeback Win vs. Orioles

The Yankees came home, and began a 4-game series with the Baltimore Orioles. Aaron Hicks made his return to Yankee Stadium, and got the hell booed out of him.

John Sterling, the longtime Yankee broadcaster celebrating his 85th birthday on this 4th of July, might have said to his WCBS radio partner Suzyn Waldman, "You know, Suzyn, you just can't predict baseball." Well, the easy thing to predict would have been that Hicks would have a big day, maybe even get the game-winning hit for the Orioles. But no, he only went 1-for-4, raising his batting average to a whopping .229.

On the other hand, Domingo Germán was far from perfect in his 1st start since his perfect game. He allowed 3 runs, 1 of them unearned, and didn't get out of the 5th inning. Fortunately, the Yankee bullpen got the job done the rest of the way: Nick Ramirez finished the 5th and got through the 6th, Ian Hamilton in the 7th, Tommy Kahnle in the 8th, and Clay Holmes in the 9th.

Anthony Volpe and Kyle Higashioka hit back-to-back home runs in the bottom of the 5th, to close the Yankees within 3-2. Volpe scored the tying run on a wild pitch in the 7th. And in the 8th, Giancarlo Stanton and Anthony Rizzo singled, and Harrison Bader hit a home run.

Yankees 6, Orioles 3. WP: Kahnle (1-0). SV: Holmes (10). LP: Yennier Canó (1-1, and no relation to Robinson).

The series continues this afternoon, with a 4th of July matinee. Clarke Schmidt starts against Kyle Gibson. Celebrate safely, everyone: Be careful on the grill, don't drink too much, and leave the fireworks to the professionals.

IKF Leads Yankee Win Over Mariners

Just the luck to which the Cashman Era Yankees have become accustomed: On the day that Aaron Hicks, who had been designated for assignment, got picked up by a Divisional opponent, the Baltimore Orioles, the center fielder who replaced him, Harrison Bader, went on the Injured List.

Fortunately, for last night's middle game of a series away to the Seattle Mariners, catcher Jose Trevino was activated from said Injured List. He went 0-for-4, but did draw a walk. 

Nestor Cortés started. Over the 1st 4 innings, he allowed no runs on 3 hits and a walk. But in the 5th, he allowed 2 runs on 2 hits and 2 walks. After the 4th inning this season, his ERA is 14.67.

Fortunately, the Yankees gave him some run support, early and often. The game began with Gleyber Torres singling, Aaron Judge drawing a walk, Willie Calhoun flying out, DJ LeMahieu reaching on an error, Isiah Kiner-Falefa singling Torres and Judge home, and Jake Bauers hitting a sacrifice fly that scored LeMahieu. It was 3-0 Yankees.

In the 3rd, Calhoun and IKF singled, and Anthony Volpe hit a home run, to make it 6-0. In the 4th, Greg Allen hit a solo home run, so it was 7-0 before Cortés faltered and made it 7-2. Judge led off the 7th with a home run. IKF singled home 2 runs in the 9th. On the night, he went 4-for-5 with 4 RBIs. His batting average, long under his weight, is now up to .243. Michael King and Ryan Weber each pitched 2 scoreless innings.

Yankees 10, Mariners 2. WP: Cortés (5-2). No save. LP: Logan Gilbert (3-3).

The series concludes tonight. Clarke Schmidt starts against George Kirby. Then the Yankees have tomorrow off. Then they start a series away to the Los Angeles Baseball Team. (I like to call the Dodgers that, in reference to the fact that they left Brooklyn in 1957, and should have given the name up.)

Hicks Stick Assists Affray of A's

The Yankees went from playing the best team in the worst stadium, the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field, to playing the worst team in the worst open-air stadium at the best stadium, the Oakland Athletics not at the Oakland Coliseum but at Yankee Stadium II. The A's, struggling to win anything, including a new ballpark deal in Oakland to the point where they seem to be moving to Las Vega, might have been just what the Yankees needed after a bad weekend in St. Petersburg.

Nestor Cortés started, and gave up 4 hits and a walk, but no runs, over the 1st 5 innings. But it took until the bottom of the 5th for the injury-riddled, weak-hitting Yankees to support him. Harrison Bader led off with a triple, and Oswaldo Cabrera hit a home run, to make it 2-0.

Cortés got into trouble in the 6th, as the A's loaded the bases with nobody out. Aaron Boone replaced him with Ron Marinaccio. Thanks to a double play, Marinaccio managed to get out of it with only 2 runs scoring. It goes into the books as a blown save, but it was hardly a bad performance. At any rate, the game was now tied.

A good team would have done something about it immediately. The Yankees did: After Anthony Volpe led off the bottom of the 6th by striking out -- remember, as big a prospect as he is, he is still a rookie -- Gleyber Torres hit a home run, Anthony Rizzo singled, and DJ LeMahieu hit a home run. In the 7th, Jose Trevino singled, and Aaron Hicks hit a home run. The crowd had been booing his every appearance, but with his 1st dinger of the year, he got some cheers. (He's still batting just .153.)

Ian Hamilton pitched a perfect 7th. Nick Ramirez pitched a scoreless 8th and 9th. Yankees 7, A's 2. WP: Marinaccio (2-1). No save. LP: JP Sears (0-3).

The series continues tonight. Clarke Schmidt -- oy -- starts against Drew Rucinski.

Collapse of Cole Leads to No Merry Old Souls

Three games, away to the league leaders. All decided by one run. Won only one of them. Not good enough.

Yesterday, in the series finale away to the Tampa Bay Rays, the Yankees couldn't even trust their alleged ace, Gerrit Cole. He authored a collapse that left no Yankee Fan feeling like a merry old soul.

The Yankees got home runs from Anthony Rizzo and Harrison Bader in the top of the 3rd inning. They got RBI doubles from Aaron Hicks (believe it) and Gleyber Torres in the 4th. They got a sacrifice fly from Oswaldo Cabrera in the 5th. And, to that point, Cole had allowed just 2 hits and a walk. It was 6-0 Yankees, and things were looking up.

But, as they would say in English soccer, "Six-nil, and you fucked it up!" The main problem with Cole is that he gives up home runs. He gave one up in the bottom of the 5th, and an error by Torres led to another Rays run, making it 6-2.

Then came the bottom of the 6th. Here's how it began for Cole: Double, double, walk, home run. Tie ballgame. Jimmy Cordero, the losing pitcher in Friday night's game, was brought in: Walk, wild pitch, and then a grounder to 1st on which Jose Siri, the player who had walked (and previously homered) never stopped running, until he bowled over the home-plate umpire. Which was ruled accidental, and the go-ahead run allowed to stand. It was 7-6 Rays.

I will not be asking this Siri what's wrong with the Yankees.

A Bader single, a ground-rule double by Cabrera, and a groundout by Jose Trevino tied the game in the 7th. But despite Cabrera getting to 2nd with 1 out in the 9th, the game went to extra innings. Hicks got caught in a rundown in the top of the 10th, and that was that. Albert Abreu allowed a single in the bottom of the 10th that allowed the winning run to score.

Rays 8, Yankees 7. WP: Jalen Beeks (1-2). No save. LP: Abreu (1-1), although the loss really should be charged to Cole. To his credit, he took responsibility, telling the media, "That's awful. I've got to find a way to do a better job to get us out of there and get us a little bit deeper and prevent the runs. The lack of command really burned us, and balls over the plate were touched."

The Rays are now 28-7, with easily the best record in Major League Baseball. The Yankees are 18-17, 10 games behind -- with a winning record, but still in last place in the American League Eastern Division. And, with their injuries, they don't look like they'll be getting going soon. Taking 2 out of 3 in Tropicana Field would have sent a message. Instead, the Rays sent the message: We're great, you stink.

This is the team that Brian Cashman has built. The Rays are the team that Cashman should have built.

The Yankees return home tonight, to face the woeful Oakland, possibly-moving-to-Las Vegas, Athletics. Let's see if they can mess this series up. Nestor Cortés starts tonight's opener, against JP Sears.

Mayday

Today is May 1, also known as May Day. May Day is a European festival of ancient origins marking the beginning of Summer, due to it being around halfway between the Vernal Equinox (these days, usually on March 21) and the Summer Solstice (usually on June 21). Traditions often include gathering wildflowers and green branches, weaving floral garlands, crowning a May Queen (and sometimes also a May King), and setting up a Maypole, around which people dance.

In 1889, May 1 was chosen as the date for International Workers' Day by the Second International, to commemorate the Haymarket Affair in Chicago and the struggle for an 8-hour working day. As a result, International Workers' Day is also called "May Day," but the two are otherwise unrelated.

"Mayday" is also an emergency procedure word, used as a distress signal in voice-procedure radio communications. It is used to signal a life-threatening emergency, primarily by aviators and mariners, but in some countries local organizations such as firefighters, police forces, and transportation organizations also use the term. Convention requires the word be repeated three times in a row during the initial emergency declaration ("Mayday mayday mayday"), to prevent it being mistaken for some similar-sounding phrase under noisy conditions, and to distinguish an actual mayday call from a message about a mayday call.

Should the Yankees be issuing a distress signal on this May Day? Because, while they are still above .500, at 15-14, they are in last place in the American League Eastern Division, they are not hitting, they are going through their annual injury crisis, and they are coming off their worst game of the season.

Nestor Cortés started for the Yankees against the Texas Rangers, in the finale of a 4-game series at Globe Life Field in Arlington. He got out of the 1st inning. Maybe he shouldn't have. Cliché Alert: Walks can kill you. After getting a flyout, he allowed walk, walk, single, grand slam home run. "Nasty Nestor" gave up 2 more home runs in the 5th, got replaced by Albert Abreu, and he also gave up a home run in that inning. Abreu walked 4 batters in the 6th. When that inning was over, it was 14-1.

The Yankees, again, didn't hit. Neither of their runs came on a hit: Their 1st run, in the 3rd inning, came on a groundout. Their 2nd run, in the 9th, came on a bases-loaded walk. Aaron Hicks got 2 hits, raising his batting average to .159. Isiah Kiner-Falefa got 2 hits, raising his to .200. Other than that, the Yankees got just 4 hits.

Rangers 15, Yankees 2. WP: Martín Pérez (4-1). No save. LP: Cortés (3-2).

The Yankees and the Boston Red Sox are now both 15-14, 8 games behind the Division-leading Tampa Bay Rays. An optimist would say they've gotten through their usual bad start and their usual injury crisis reasonably well. A realist would say, "What the hell is wrong with you, optimist?"

The team batting average is .226. This is the team that Brian Cashman has built.

The Yankees return home, to begin a series with the Cleveland Guardians. Domingo Germán starts against Cal Quantrill.

If the Yankees Can't Beat the Twins...

Nestor Cortés usually gets good run support from the Yankees. Not last night, at Target Field in Minneapolis. And it might not have mattered if he had gotten it.

He was staked to an early lead, as DJ LeMahieu singled a run home in the top of the 1st inning. But he gave up 2 runs to the Minnesota Twins in the bottom of the 3rd. A groundout and an error tied the game in the 4th, but that would be the best the Yankees could do.

Cortés gave up a 2-run homer in the 6th, and that was it for him. Ron Marinaccio gave up another before getting out of that inning.

Twins 6, Yankees 2. WP: Joe Ryan (5-0). No save. LP: Cortés (3-1). This clinched the Twins' 1st win in any series over the Yankees since 2001. Brandon Buxton, who hit one of the home runs, said of the last time it happened, "I was 6!"

The Yankees have had a lot of success against the Twins over the last 25 years. But if they can't beat the Twins anymore, there's a problem.

The team simply isn't hitting. Last night, Anthony Volpe got 2 hits, which raised his batting average to .211. Willie Calhoun, who shouldn't be playing at all, got 2 hits, and that raised his average to .192. Aaron Hicks got a hit, and that raised his average to .129. Franchy Cordero fell to .160, and Oswald Peraza to .158.

This is unacceptable. And we're already 7 games behind the Tampa Bay Rays in the American League Eastern Division.

The series concludes this afternoon. Domingo Germán starts against Kenta Maeda.

Ghosts of Cashman Screw-ups Past Haunt Yanks In Minnesota

The Yankees' week-long road trip to Minnesota and Texas did not get off to an auspicious start last night. Especially since they were faced by 2 of the ghosts of Brian Cashman screw-ups past.

Sonny Gray started for the Minnesota Twins at Target Field. Not surprisingly, given that their lineup included Aaron Hicks, but not Giancarlo Stanton, the Yankees couldn't hit him. DJ LeMahieu got 2 hits, but the rest of the lineup combined for only 4. Even the 1 run the Yankees scored, at the very end, came on a fielder's choice by Oswaldo Cabrera.

Jhony Brito started for the Yankees, and while the rookie has been a nice surprise thus far, he didn't have it last night, being taken out in the 3rd inning.

And in the 4th, reliever Greg Weissert gave up a home run -- to Joey Gallo, another ghost of Cashman screw-ups past.

Twins 6, Yankees 1. WP: Gray (3-0). No save. LP: Brito (2-2).

Right now, Gallo is batting .243. That's not good, but compare it to these names in last night's Yanker lineup: Aaron Judge, .244 (remember, he was threatening for the batting title, and thus the Triple Crown, last September); Cabrera, .211; Jose Tevino, .208; Anthony Volpe, .194; Isiah Kiner-Falefa, .176; Franchy Cordero, .174; and Hicks, .107. Nope, that's not a typo: 3 hits in 28 at-bats equals one-oh-seven.

And that doesn't include these guys, who didn't get into last night's game: Oswald Peraza, .200; Kyle Higashioka, .194; Willie Calhoun, .136; and Josh Donaldson, who was at .125 when he went on the Injured List, presumably long-term.

The series continues tonight. Nestor Cortés starts against Joe Ryan.

A "Really Good, Gutsy Win" for Yanks, Despite Umpires

The Yankees concluded a 3-game series away to the Cleveland Guardians yesterday afternoon. Manager Aaron Boone, knowing he had a hole in his starting rotation, made the mistake of putting Clarke Schmidt into it. For the 3rd time in this young season, Schmidt proved unequal to the task, going 4 innings, allowing 3 runs.

Not that it was all his fault. In the bottom of the 1st inning, Josh Naylor hit a looper to center field, and, at first, it looked like Aaron Hicks caught it, then threw to 2nd base for a double play, which would have ended the inning with the score 0-0. That was the call the umpires initially made.

Then, a replay was shown on the giant left-field scoreboard at Progressive Field, and it showed that Hicks had actually trapped the ball. The Cleveland fans roared, and the umpires met to look at an instant replay themselves.

Now, by all rights, that should absolutely be allowed. If one umpire thinks another made a mistake, they should be able to confer, and use replay get the call right.

But that's not the rule in Major League Baseball. The rule is, the manager of the team that the incorrect call hurt has 15 seconds after the conclusion of the play to tell the umpires that he wants to challenge the call. Whether you think that rule is just or not, it is in place.

And Indians manager Terry Francona -- also the manager of the Boston Red Sox when they cheated their way past the Yankees to win the 2004 and 2007 World Series, not that I know of any way he is responsible for any of the cheating -- did not appeal within 15 seconds.

So Boone came out of the dugout to defend his team. This is one thing he is really good at. (Remember the "savages in that box" rant?) Essentially, he was telling the umps to follow their own rule.

Instead, they threw him out of the game for arguing, looked at the replay, and reversed the call. Which was the right thing to do, morally -- but the wrong thing to do, ethically. Rules are rules, and if the umpires won't follow their own rules, then what good are they?

Things got worse for the Yankees after that: After Schmidt struck Andrés Giménez out, Josh Bell singled to bring a run home. In the 3rd inning, Ahmed Rosario took Schmidt deep. It was 3-0 Cleveland.

Later, in the 5th inning, 2nd base umpire Larry Vanover was hit in the face by a relay throw from Giménez. It appeared to be a complete accident. He was taken to the Cleveland Clinic, where he was being checked for a concussion and other injuries.

"He's going to be at the hospital for the rest of the night maybe," plate umpire Chris Guccione said. "I'm glad he was able to walk and get to the hospital. That was scary. Very hard to focus after that after you see a colleague get hit."

The umpires should never ben the story of the game -- either through incompetence, corruption, or injury.

Fortunately, the game would not end with the umpires having an unfortunate effect on the result. With 1 out in the top of the 5th, Oswaldo Cabrera, Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Kyle Higashioka all singled, making it 3-2 Cleveland. It was on Higashioka's single that Giménez made the throw that hit Vanover.

Franchy Cordero tied the game with a home run in the 7th. Ron Marinaccio pitched a scoreless 5th for the Yankees, Michael King a perfect 6th and 7th, and Wandy Peralta a scoreless 8th. With 1 out in the 9th, Giancarlo Stanton reached 2nd on a throwing error. Gleyber Torres was sent in to pinch-run for him. After Cordero struck out, Cabrera, singled Torres home with the go-ahead run.

Clay Holmes came out to pitch the bottom of the 9th. He got a groundout, then hit a batter. He got a fielder's choice to get the lead runner, then walked the next 2 batters. Memories of Aroldis Chapman filled the air. But Holmes brought back a different memory of Chapman by striking the next batter out to end it.

Yankees 4, Guardians 3. WP: Peralta (1-0). SV: Holmes (4). LP: Emmanuel Clase (1-1). Boone called it "A really good, gutsy win right there." Like a lot of what he said, it was a platitude. He could even have issued a Cliché Alert. However, let it be known that a saying becomes a cliché by containing some truth.

The Yankees come home, beginning a long homestand tonight: 4 games against the Minnesota Twins, 3 against the Toronto Blue Jays, and 3 against the Los Angeles Angels. Tonight's starting pitching matchup is set to be Jhony Brito against Joe Ryan.

Rhubarb with the Red Bulls and Brito Brings It

Happy Easter. Last night, upon her request, I took my septuagenarian mother to her 1st professional soccer game. The New York Red Bulls played the San Jose Earthquakes at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey. Although the score remained 0-0 until relatively late, she found the action rather entertaining.

At 52 minutes in, there was a head-to-head collision between a player on each team. Shortly thereafter, there was some pushing and shoving. Having once again, on our way in, bragged about having been taken by her mother to Ebbets Field as a little girl, something not possible for me, Mom saw the pushing and shoving, and mentioned the term that Brooklyn Dodger broadcaster Red Barber used for such an event: A "rhubarb." I called it "extracurricular activity." Given her love of France and its language, I should have called it a "contretemps."

Certainly, what followed was "against time": 18 minutes of no action. The officials conferred with the players and the opposing managers. No one could figure out why play was stopped, even though, as it always does in soccer, the clock kept moving. At each end of the stadium, there are big screens, which look like television screens, but they don't play the TV broadcasts. Some stadiums and arenas have the TV broadcasts at the concession stands, and some pipe the radio broadcasts into the restrooms, but the Red Bulls don't do either of those things. So everyone in the crowd was just guessing.

I had to take my phone out and go on Twitter, and found out that the game's broadcast crew had said that there had apparently been a racist remark made by one of the Red Bull players to one of the Earthquake players. Since I don't have the full details, it would be irresponsible to comment further.

After the game, Major League Soccer released a statement saying that they would investigate, but didn't name the players involved. The Red Bulls also released a statement, saying that they would fully cooperate, and, "The New York Red Bulls do not condone any form of harassment or discrimination."

Play finally resumed in the 72nd minute. The Earthquakes scored in the 80th. I had never before seen, either live or on TV, more than 10 minutes of stoppage time (or "injury time") awarded. This time, it was 21 minutes. And, in the 107th of the intended 111 minutes, Tom Barlow scored for "Metro," and it ended 1-1.

Mom spent her formative years across the Passaic River, in Newark, Belleville and Nutley. She says she wants to go again, but that we're taking the train instead of driving. A wise decision.

*

At the same time, the Yankees were playing. No controversy there, unless you count that of Brian Cashman assembling a starting rotation with lots of injury-prone guys. Fortunately, Jhony Brito was every bit as good in his 2nd start for the Yankees as he was in his 1st. Brito was bringing it, going 5 innings, allowing 1 run on 3 hits and 2 walks. Between them, Michael King, Wandy Peralta and Clay Holmes went 4, allowing no runs on 1 hit and 2 walks.

That kind of pitching deserves offensive support. And when most Yankee Fans saw that Aaron Hicks was starting in left field -- batting 7th instead of 9th, adding insult to injury -- we figured, such support was not coming.

But, Cliché Alert: Walks can kill you, especially the leadoff variety. With the Yankees trailing 1-0 going into the top of the 4th, Anthony Rizzo led off with a walk. Giancarlo Stanton popped up, but Gleyber Torres drew a walk. Oswaldo Cabrera nearly hit one out, but it wasn't quite far enough. Hicks was up next, and from Albany in the north to Atlantic City in the south, from Montauk in the east to Scranton in the west, we were sure that the opportunity was wasted. Except Hicks stroked one up the middle, and Rizzo scored the tying run.

Then came the 5th. Rookie Anthony Volpe led off with a triple. DJ LeMahieu doubled him home. A wild pitch got DJLM to 3rd. Aaron Judge got him home with a sacrifice fly. Rizzo grounded out. And Stanton sent the O's a message: "So, you wanna move that left field fence back? Hold my beer." Hit hit one 436 feet.

That made the score Yankees 4, Orioles 1. And it stayed that way until the end. WP: Brito (2-0). SV: Holmes (2). LP: Cole Irvin (8).

The series concludes this afternoon. Nestor Cortés starts against Tyler Wells. Then the Yankees head off to Cleveland.

Whew! Yankees Beat Guardians to Advance to ALCS

Finally, the October Yankees looked like the June Yankees. They beat the Cleveland Guardians tonight, 5-1 at the new Yankee Stadium, winning the clinching Game 5 of the American League Division Series. This is the 58th time that the Yankees have been 1 of the last 4 teams standing in a Major League Baseball season.

Everything clicked. We got the hitting, including a 3-run home run from Giancarlo Stanton in the 1st inning, a solo homer from Aaron Judge in the 2nd, and an RBI single by Anthony Rizzo in the 5th. We got the pitching, including 5 strong innings from Nestor Cortés, then 2 scoreless innings from Jonathan Loáisiga, a scoreless 8th inning from Clay Holmes, and a scoreless 9th inning from Wandy Peralta. We got good defense, with the exception being a misjudgment of a popup that led to the kneecaps of Aaron Hicks and Oswaldo Cabrera, that led to Hicks being taken out of the game, and maybe out of the rest of the season.

We also got the fan reaction. After Sunday's "rocking the baby" celebration in mid-home run trot, Josh Naylor went 0-for-4, and received chants of "Who's your Daddy?" One fan even rocked a doll -- a Chucky doll.

Winning is a team effort, and so is losing. Tonight, the team put the winning effort together.

I suspected I would be using a few "four-letter words" tonight. Turned out, the four-letter word I ended up using was this one:

And I'm sure I'm not the only one. Bring on the Chicken Fried Cheats, the Red Sox South, the Houston Asterisks!

Judge Does Not Get Closer, But Cole & Yanks Do In Win Over Sox

First, the bad news: Aaron Judge remains stuck on 60 home runs; and, because the game was on Apple+, most Yankee fans couldn't watch this game.

Now, the good news: Since Judge didn't hit his 61st home run of the season last night, Yankee Fans can now see it when it actually happens. And, more importantly, the Yankees won, beating the Boston Red Sox at Yankee Stadium, and got closer to clinching the American League Eastern Division title.

Alleged ace Gerrit Cole started last night. It was a typical game for him, as he gave up a solo home run in the 1st inning and a 3-run home run in the 6th, and was brilliant in between. The Yankees got a home run from Aaron Hicks in the 3rd, and an RBI single by Hicks and an RBI double by Gleyber Torres in the 5th. But the Alex Verdugo homer in the 6th tied the game at 4-4.

Cole struck out 8 batters. He now has 244 on the season, 4 short of Ron Guidry's single-season Yankee record. Barring injury, he will get 2 more starts. He will break the record. I almost don't want him to, because he's no Guidry.

Nothing like a 2-out rally. With 2 out in the bottom of the 8th, Harrison Bader drew a walk. Cliché Alert: Walks can kill you. Bader stole 2nd, and was singled home by Jose Trevino. Jonathan Loáisiga allowed 2 singles in the 9th, but got out of it to end the game. 

Yankees 5, Red Sox 4. WP: Loáisiga (5-4). No save. LP: Matt Strahm (3-4). It was the Yankees' 5th win in a row. The Tampa Bays beat the Toronto Blue Jays. They are now tied for 2nd in the AL East. The Yankees' Magic Number to eliminate each of them, and clinch the Division, is now 4.

The series continues this afternoon. Domingo Germán starts against Nick Pivetta.

Also, last night, my alma mater, East Brunswick High School in Central New jersey, lost to hated Old Bridge, 24-7. I guess it was too much to ask for two teams that I love to beat their arch-rivals in one night.

Gopher Ball City

The Yankees aren't making it easy, especially with their alleged ace having a hungry gopher. That means he gives up home runs, a.k.a. "gopher balls." Fortunately, yesterday, Brian Cashman's strategy of "Beat them by bombing them out of the yard" worked.

Begging the question, "What would happen if 2022 Gerrit Cole pitched to 2022 Aaron Judge?" Cole pitched to the 2022 Milwaukee Brewers in the finale of the series at American Family Field, and gave up 4 runs in 5 innings, all on a pair of home runs.

But the Yankees hit their own. Oswaldo Cabrera hit one in the 2nd inning. In the 3rd, Aaron Judge and the much-missed (due to injury) Anthony Rizzo went back-to-back. Judge's homer was his 58th of the season, ending what was, for him, a long drought.

Cliché Alert: Walks can kill you, especially the leadoff variety. Although, with Judge leading off the bottom of the 5th, maybe giving him "the old unintentional intentional walk" was the right idea. There's an old saying in baseball, but it's so rarely used these days that I can't issue a Cliché Alert for it: "It's better to give the big man four balls for one base than one ball for four bases."

But Rizzo followed this with a single. Gleyber Torres flew out, but it moved the runners over. That ended up not mattering, because Josh Donaldson drew a walk to lead the bases. Giancarlo Stanton hit a grounder to Brewer 2nd baseman Kolten Wong, who botched it, bringing Judge home and tying the score. Cabrera singled home Rizzo to give the Yankees the lead. Isiah Kiner-Falefa lined out, by Kyle Higashioka singled home Stanton. It was 7-4 Yankees.

Cabrera led off the top of the 7th with a double. IKF grounded out, which moved Cabrera to 3rd. Higgy grounded out, which got Cabrera home. Then came another pair of back-to-back homers, by Aaron Hicks and Judge. Judge's drive was an absolute blast: Before the TV cameras could even switch to following the ball, they caught Brewer pitcher Luis Perdomo throwing his hands up in frustration. He knew it was gone. It was Number 59, and it put the Yankees up 10-4.

Judge is now on the cusp of history. Only 2 players have ever hit 60 or more home runs in a season without cheating. And, like him, they were right fielders for the Yankees: Babe Ruth with 60 in 1927, and Roger Maris with 61 in 1961.

Of course, they were lefthanders, aiming for the short porch at the pre-renovation stadium, 296 feet down the line; he's a righthander, and, despite all the stupid jokes -- and if the new Yankee Stadium is a "little league field," how come other teams don't find homering there so easy? -- he's hitting into Death Valley in left and center field. Of course, Ruth didn't need a short porch, whereas Maris hit 39 the year before and 33 the year after, and never reached any of those totals in his other seasons. But for that one year, he was the best player in the game.

Back to the present. The Brewers made it 10-6 with a home run off Clarke Schmidt in the top of the 8th. With 1 out in the top of the 9th, IKF singled. Higgy flew out, but Hicks singled. For a moment, it looked like Judge might have hit Number 60, but it fell just short and bounced off the wall, scoring both runners.

On YES, Michael Kay said, "He's the only man alive that can give you a two-run double and you're disappointed!" I'm not disappointed. I'll take a two-run double anytime, from Judge or anyone else.

But the closer situation for the Yankees is still up in the air. To hold a 12-6 lead in the bottom of the 9th, Aaron Boone sent Wandy Peralta out to pitch, because he hates me and he wants me to sweat. Peralta allowed 3 straight singles. Having faced the minimum 3 batters, Boone took him out, and replaced him with Clay Holmes, who immediately allowed a ground-rule double. He got a flyout, then walked a batter. Bases loaded, tying run at the plate, only 1 out.

Holmes got out of it with a strikeout and a groundout, but it was a rough road to get there. These 2 teams combined to turn Milwaukee into Gopher Ball City yesterday. Yankees 12, Brewers 8. WP: Cole (12-7). No save: Even the situation that Peralta put Holmes in wasn't a save situation. LP: Hoby Milner (3-3). With the Toronto Blue Jays losing yesterday, the Magic Number to clinch the American League Eastern Division is 11.

The Yankees have today off, and have come home. The remaining schedule is as follows:

* Tomorrow and Wednesday nights, home to the Pittsburgh Pirates.

* Thursday and Friday nights, Saturday afternoon, and Sunday night on ESPN, home to the Boston Red Sox. Maris hit his 61st against the Sox, and I wouldn't mind it at all if Judge did the same -- although, at the rate our pitching is going, we made need it sooner.

* The following Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday nights, away to the Toronto Blue Jays. There's a good chance that one of those games could be the Division clincher.

* The following Friday night, Saturday and Sunday afternoon, home to the Baltimore Orioles.

* And the following Monday night, and Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons, away to the Texas Rangers, makeup games from when the Spring Training lockout postponed the 1st week of the regular season.

Spectacular Collapse Still In Progress

"Bad Boy Mowers"? More like, "Bad Boy Left Fielder."

There are Yankee Fans online who want the Great Collapse to be complete: Not just blowing the entire 15 1/2-game lead that the Yankees had on July 8, but missing the Playoffs completely. Only such a collapse would cause team owner Hal Steinbrenner to fire general manager Brian Cashman and field manager Aaron Boone, and bring in competent people to fill both jobs.

In the words of the immortal Michael Corleone, "Who's being naive, Kay?" That won't do it:

 * Boone will never be fired, because he's doing exactly what Cashman wants him to do.

* Cashman will never be fired, because he's doing exactly what Hal wants him to do.

* And Hal will never sell the team.

Last night, at home, the Yankees the last series of the regular season against the Tampa Bay Rays, the team closest to them in the American League Eastern Division. This series shouldn't have mattered. Now, it does. And it was just like the previous game, against the Minnesota Twins: They fell behind, tried to come back, and couldn't. It could go down in history as "The Aaron Hicks Game."

Frankie Montas started, and, yet again, this season's key pitching acquisition of Cashman's proved he is not good enough, going 5 2/3rds innings, allowing 4 hits on 9 runs and 4 walks. Lucas Luetge and Ryan Weber went the rest of the way, allowing no runs on 2 hits and no walks, but it was too late.

It wasn't all Montas' fault: The hitters didn't do their jobs, either. Again, Boone/Cashman batted Aaron Judge leadoff. Again, he faced a strike 2 that was no strike, and then swung and missed on a bad pitch for strike 3. When is Boone/Cashman going to let the best slugger in baseball bat 4th, like he's supposed to?

In the top of the 4th, with 2 men on, Wander Franco hit a ball down the left-field line, and Aaron Hicks mishandled it, and seemed to stop. He seemed not to notice that the ball was fair. He also seemed not to notice that there were 2 outs, meaning the baserunners were running on the pitch. Both runners scored, making it 4-0 Rays.

And Hicks is batting just .211. Fans began chanting, "Jo-ey Gal-lo!" These same fans had previously booed the hell out of Gallo, whose batting average was .159 when he was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers (he's batting .191 with them), but was, at the least, a good fielder. When Yankee Fans prefer Joey Gallo to you, you know you've pissed them off.

It was still 4-0 Rays before the Yankees got on the board in the 7th. Oswald Peraza drew a walk. After 2 outs, 1 of which advanced Peraza to 2nd, Judge singled him home, although it looked at first as though Peraza was out at the plate. Boone challenged the call, and it was overturned by replay. But that was all the Yankees would get in the inning.

With 1 out in the bottom of the 9th, Kyle Higashioka hit a home run. With 2 out, Judge drew a walk. The tying run was at the plate. It was Gleyber Torres. Now, Yogi Berra used to say, "In baseball, you don't know nothin'." But Doris Kearns Goodwin says, "There's always these omens in baseball." You know how you just know something is going to happen? Well, I just knew Torres was not going to come through. Well, almost: He gave it a ride, but it wasn't quite long enough, and it was the last out.

Rays 4, Yankees 2. WP: Drew Rasmussen (10-4). SV: Shawn Armstrong (2). LP: Montas (5-12).

The Rays close to within 3 1/2 games of the Yankees, just 2 in the loss column. Forget catching the Astros for best record in the AL: Right now, the Yankees' best chance at winning the Pennant is somehow hanging on for the Division title, and then hoping the Astros lose their Division Series. Because the Yankees would have to win at least 1 game in Houston -- and they're not going to do that.

The Mets' blowing of their National League East lead is complete: They are now half a game behind the Atlanta Braves, 1 game in the loss column. And yet, nobody is talking about how this big-spending team with their big-talking fans has put themselves in position to be such a spectacular failure -- because the Yankees' failure, while perhaps not more shameful, is, by its size, more spectacular. And it is still in progress.

The fans have had enough. It was Derek Jeter Hall of Fame Night, and in his speech, Jeter thanked both Hal and Cashman. Both of them were booed. Jeter responded, "I see you guys are ready for the Playoff push." It wasn't a call to stop, only an acknowledgement.

The series continues this afternoon. Jameson Taillon starts against former Yankee Corey Kluber. To adapt a phrase we're hearing from London these days, God save the Yanks. It looks like no one else will.

Yankees Complete Rain-Forced Sweep of Twins

Maybe the Yankees have snapped out of it. Yesterday, they had a good-old fashioned doubleheader sweep.

Okay, the fact that it was forced by the previous day's rainout wasn't old-fashioned, and the 12-inning struggle to win the opener wasn't exactly "good." But the fact that they only used 2 pitchers in the nightcap was close to being "old-fashioned."

Gerrit Cole started, and lasted into the 7th inning, allowing 1 run on 5 hits and 2 walks, striking out 14. That gives him 218 on the season, 30 short of Ron Guidry's team single-season record. So much has been made of Aaron Judge's run at Roger Maris' 61 home run that Cole breaking Guidry's record has gone unnoticed. He could have up to 4 starts left, so he would have to average 8 to break it. Lucas Luetge went the rest of the way, without allowing a run.

Judge did not hit another homer in the nightcap. But in the 4th inning, Isiah Kiner-Falefa hit a grand slam, turning a 1-0 Minnesota lead into a 4-1 New York one. It was his 3rd homer of the season.

It was hit off Joe Ryan. Despite his name, he wasn't wearing Number 30 or Number 34 like Nolan Ryan is known for. He was wearing Number 41, the number associated with Tom Seaver. Good thing for the Yankees that he didn't pitch much like either of them.

A Cliché Alert wasn't really necessary, as the Yankees were already leading in the 8th. Nevertheless, in that inning, they staged a 2-out rally, loading the bases on walks, and then Aaron Hicks cleared the bases with a double, forging the final score: Yankees 7, Twins 1. WP: Cole (11-7). SV: Luetge (2). LP: Ryan (10-8).

That's 4 straight wins, just when the season seemed to be slipping away. With 25 games left in the regular season, the Yankees are 5 games ahead of the Tampa Bay Rays in the American League Eastern Division, and 6 1/2 ahead of the Toronto Blue Jays. In the (Cliché Alert) all-important loss column, they lead the Rays by 4 and the Jays by 6. The Magic Number to clinch the AL East is 22. However, they are 5 1/2 games, 5 in the loss column, behind the Houston Astros for home-field advantage through the AL Playoffs.

The series with the Twins concludes tonight. Thankfully, Nestor Cortes has been activated from the Injured List, and will start against former Yankee Sonny Gray. Then, the Rays come into The Bronx for a series that could decide the Division title. Come on you Pinstripes!

Yankees Leave Oakland With Unsatisfying Split

The Yankees splitting a 4-game series against the Oakland Athletics at the Oakland Coliseum usually wouldn't be a bad thing. But this split was frustrating, since they took the 1st 2 games and had, despite getting only 1 hit in 11 innings, good chances of taking the 3rd as well.

But the 4th game was a washout early on. Not a "wash," a "washout." So this split was very unsatisfying.

Clarke Schmidt started, because the placing of Nestor Cortes on the Injured List due to either a real injury or "load management," plus the injury to Luis Severino, who may finally make his 1st minor-league rehab start on Friday, leaves the Yankees with a hole in the rotation, because Brian Cashman doesn't care about giving the Yankees enough competent starting pitchers. Schmidt is a somewhat competent reliever. He is not a competent starter.

He proved that again by allowing 4 runs in 4 1/3rd innings: 2 runs each in the 1st and 3rd innings, and that was the ballgame right there. The bullpen was great, with 3 new acquisitions, Anthony Banda, Greg Weissert and Luke Bard, allowing no runs, no hits and 2 walks the rest of the way. Cliché Alert: But the damage was done.

With 2 out in the top of the 5th, Aaron Hicks, of all people, started a rally, with a single. He advanced to 2nd on a wild pitch. And Kyle Higashioka, of all other people, singled him home. Hicks also drew a walk in the 7th. When was the last time he reached base twice in a single game?

Other than that, this is all the Yankees got last night: Walks by Josh Donaldson and Oswaldo Cabrera in the 2nd, singles by Giancarlo Stanton and Anthony Rizzo in the 6th, and Andrew Benintendi reaching on an error in the 8th. Once again, the bats just did not answer the call.

A's 4, Yankees 1. WP: Adrián Martínez (3-3). SV: A.J. Puk (4). LP: Schmidt (5-3).

The Toronto Blue Jays also lost, but the Tampa Bay Rays and the Houston Astros both won. So the Yankees' Magic Number to clinch the AL East remains 28, and they're 3 1/2 games behind the Astros for home-field advantage in the Playoffs.

Tonight, the Yankees begin a new series, against the Los Angeles Angels, at Angel Stadium of Anaheim, once known as simply Anaheim Stadium. Frankie Montas starts against José Suarez. 

Maybe It's All Part of the Plan

Maybe it's all part of the plan. Play the games where you just don't get enough hits and just don't score enough runs now, in August, when you've got a big lead in the Division, so it doesn't hurt much, so you don't have them during the Playoffs in October. Get the bad games out of your system.

Does Brian Cashman look like a guy with a plan? No, he looks like a two-faced joker. But the Yankee bat-men aren't answering the bat-signal.

Even Aaron Judge isn't looking so super.

The Yankees started a homestand last night, against the Tampa Bay Rays, and continued to look pathetic. Don't blame Gerrit Cole: He allowed only 1 run over 6 innings. He pitched like an ace.

But when you hit so poorly that a starting pitcher for the other team goes from 0-7 to 1-7, then you have to change something. The Yankees did change something. Gleyber Torres, who was 0-for-his-last-22, was put in the leadoff position. This would not seem like a good plan, but it worked, as he got two hits. In the bottom of the 1st inning, Torres singled, and Anthony Rizzo doubled. But, in between, Judge grounded into a double play. Afterward, Josh Donaldson struck out, again.

In the 2nd inning, Jose Trevino singled, and Isiah Kiner-Falefa was hit with a pitch. Then Aaron Hicks struck out, again, to end the inning.

Judge singled in the 3rd, but, otherwise, Ryan Yarbrough struck out the side. In the 4th, Hicks deepened the ire of Yankee Fans. In the top half, he displayed a fly ball that led to the Rays' 1st run. In the bottom half, Miguel Andújar and IKF singled, but Hicks grounded into a double play.

The Yankees didn't have another base runner until the 8th, when, again, Torres led off with a single, and Judge grounded into a double play. In the 9th, what was still a game within reach fell apart due to the bullpen. Wandy Peralta blew it again, walking 2 batters, leading to Lou Trivino allowing 2 singles and a hit batsman, deepening the hole. Donaldson walked to lead off the bottom of the 9th, but, unlike the top half, there would be no Cliché Alert, as the Yankees went down meekly.

Rays 4, Yankees 0. WP: Yarbrough (1-7). No save. LP: Cole (9-5).

That's back-to-back shutout losses, and 21 losses in our last 31 games. That wasn't part of the plan, but it is a result of the plan.

The series continues tonight. Nestor Cortes starts against Jeffrey Springs. Let's see if things go according to plan.

A Hero One Day and a Bum the Next

"That's baseball: You're a hero one day, and a bum the next." -- Babe Ruth 

The Yankees played the 3rd game of a 4-game weekend series against the Boston Red Sox last night, with the momentum of 2 hard-hitting wins behind them.

Jordan Montgomery was once again a victim of insufficient run support, and you simply can't do that at Fenway Park and expect to win the game. He went 5 2/3rds innings, allowing 2 runs, including a home run by former Yankee prospect Rob Refsnyder, on 5 hits and a walk. He was backed by a leadoff home run in the 5th inning by Aaron Hicks.

In the 6th, the Yankees got a single from Gleyber Torres, an RBI double from Anthony Rizzo, and an RBI single from Josh Donaldson. It was 3-3 after 9 innings. With an "MVP!" chant saluting him from the many Yankee Fans in attendance, Aaron Judge doubled home ghost runner Jose Trevino. Rizzo doubled Judge home. It was 5-3 Yankees.

But Rizzo made a big mistake, and tried to steal 3rd base, and was caught. Then Giancarlo Stanton struck out. He was 0-for-4 with 3 K's on the night.

Having already used Michael King and Clay Holmes, the latter blowing a save for the 1st time all season, and not wanting to risk Aroldis Chapman in thwt ballyard, Aaron Boone sent Wandy Peralta out to pitch the bottom of the 10th. The ghost runner was Jarren Duran. Refsnyder struck again, although his single wasn't long enough to get Duran home. Peralta got Christian Vazquez to fly out, and that didn't get Duran home, either.

Then came a name you would never have expected in a Red Sox uniform. Jeter Downs. Yes, he's a shortstop, 23 years old, born in Colombia but raised in Miami. He singled Duran home. Peralta got the dangerous Xander Bogaerts to hit a grounder to 3rd, which looked like a game-ending double play. But Donaldson dropped it. His only play was to 1st, and the grounder moved Refsnyder to 3rd and Downs to 2nd. And Alex Verdugo singled them home with the tying and winning runs.

Red Sox 6, Yankees 5. WP: Jake Diekman (4-0). No save. LP: Peralta (2-2). The Yankees were 1 out away from taking 3 of the 1st 4 in Fenway. It would have been a good series even without the last game. But Donaldson, the hero the previous 2 nights, was the goat last night.

The Red Sox and their fans celebrated like they just won the World Series.

The win brings them to within 15 games of the Yankees.

The series concludes tonight, on ESPN. Jameson Taillon starts against Nick Pivetta. Let there be heroes for the Yankees, and keep the potential for bumhood to a minimum.

Yanks Overcome Devers to Beat Sox

My concern following the Yankees' 16-0 demolition of the Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday night was that they had used up so many hits and runs that night that they wouldn't be able to beat the Boston Red Sox in this 4-game series in Boston.

So far, my concern has not come true. Last night, in the series opener, the Yankees scored 5 runs in the top of the 3rd. It began when Joey Gallo drew a leadoff walk. Yes, Joey Gallo. Cliché Alert: Walks can kill you, especially the leadoff variety. DJ LeMahieu grounded out, but Gallo advanced to 2nd. Gleyber Torres singled him over to 3rd, then stole 2nd. Matt Carpenter popped up, and Giancarlo Stanton drew a walk to load the bases. Josh Donaldson hit a grand slam. Aaron Hicks made it back-to-back home runs. The Yankees led 5-0.

That should have been enough for an ace pitcher, but Gerrit Cole did not pitch like an ace. He went 6 innings, allowing 5 runs. This included 2 home runs by Rafael Devers.

With 2 outs in the top of the 5th, with the score 5-2 New York, Hicks tripled. Jose Trevino popped up. It should have been caught by 2nd baseman Trevor Story. Instead, he lost track of it, and let it drop. Since it never touched his glove, it was counted as a hit instead of an error, so it was an RBI double. That made it 6-2 Yankees.

But in the bottom of the 5th, Devers' 2nd home run made it 6-5. Cole settled down, and pitched a 1-2-3 6th, then was taken out. Wandy Peralta pitched a perfect 7th, and got the 1st out in the 8th. So why replace him at that point? Michael King finished the 8th with no damage. And Clay Holmes pitched a 1-2-3 9th.

Yankees 6, Red Sox 5. It's the Yankees' 60th win of the season, putting them on a pace for a record 117. More important, it's a win over The Scum. WP: Cole (8-2). SV: Holmes (16). LP: Josh Winckowski (3-3).

The Yankees now lead the Tampa Bay Rays by 14 1/2 games, the Red Sox by 15, and the Toronto Blue Jays by 15 1/2.

The series continues tonight. Don't bother looking for this game on YES, or Channel 11, or ESPN, or Fox, or TBS. It's only on Amazon Prime. In other words, "Pay-Pay-TV." In other words, it's John & Suzyn on the radio tonight. Nestor Cortes starts against Connor Seabold.

Who? He's already 26, from Southern California, but this will be only his 4th major league appearance, all starts. He's 0-1 with a 7.31 ERA and a 1.971 WHIP. He's a "Quadruple-A player." So, naturally, pitching against the Yankees at Fenway Park, he's going to pitch the game of his life, probably with help from the umpires, or some form of internal cheating. We know the Red Sox.

Or maybe he'll pitch the game of his life, and the Yankees will win, anyway. Or maybe the Yankees will turn Fenway into a pinball machine again, and treat him like the enemy that, by dint of wearing that uniform, he is. Come on you Bombers!

I Hope They Saved Some Runs for Fenway

There were a lot of Yankee Fans in Pittsburgh for this series.

It seems as though, every time the Yankees head into Fenway Park to play the Boston Red Sox, their previous game is one where they unload the lumber and score a lot of runs, and use up all their hitting, and fall flat in that little green pinball machine in the Back Bay, when they should be taking advantage of the fact that it's the best hitter's park in the major leagues.

Last night, they did it again. After barely hitting at all in the opener of a 2-game series at PNC Park, the Yankees made the Pittsburgh Pirates' pitchers pay.

Luis Severino started, and pitched shutout ball for 6 innings, allowing only 4 hits and no walks. The Yankees then got 1 scoreless inning each from Wandy Peralta, Aroldis Chapman (sure, when there's no pressure on him) and Albert Abreu. This was the kind of performance you would hope for on a night when the Yankees' own hits were few and far between.

It sure looked that way until the 5th inning began, with no score. But, Cliché Alert: Walks can kill you, especially the leadoff variety. Although they rarely lead to the amount of damage we saw the Yankees inflict last night.

Joey Gallo -- yes, Joey Gallo -- drew a leadoff walk. Isiah Kiner-Falefa singled. Kyle Higashioka struck out, but DJ LeMahieu singled Gallo and IKR home. Aaron Judge hit a double, but LeMahieu was thrown out at the plate. And when Matt Carpenter struck out to end the inning, there was a sense of foreboding that the run that DJLM was unable to score might matter later on.

Instead, that sense of forboding was vaporized by back-to-back home runs from Josh Donaldson and Gallo in the 6th. Higashioka led off the 7th with a homer. The game was put away in the 8th, against Manny Bañuelos, whom the Yankees had sold to the Pirates just 3 days earlier: IKF singled, Higgy walked, DJLM walked, and Judge hit a grand slam. Aaron Hicks doubled, and Bañuelos was replaced by Chris Stratton. He walked Giancarlo Stanton and Gleyber Torres, and gave up a sacrifice fly to Donaldson. 10-0 Yankees.

Josh VanMeter moved from 2nd base to pitcher to start the 9th. Some position players can actually pitch. Van Meter... couldn't, at least not last night. IKF singled. Higgy flew out. DJLM singled. Marwin González singled. Hicks hit a grand slam. The YES Network broadcasters hadn't finished showing replays of it when Stanton made it back-to-back home runs. Torres singled. VanMeter got Donaldson to ground out, but walked Gallo. That's right: In 1 game, Joey Gallo had a home run and 2 walks. IKF got his 2nd single of the inning. And Higgy singled home Donaldson, before VanMeter mercifully got DJLM to ground into a force play to end it.

Those last 5 innings had a linescore of 22156. That's a ZIP Code for Springfield, Virginia, in the suburbs of Washington, D.C.

Yankees 16, Pirates 0. WP: Severino (5-3). No save. LP: Mitch Keller (2-6). It was the 2nd time this season the Yankees had scored at least 16 runs, and the 13th that they'd scored at least 10.

That's 16 runs, 22 hits, and 8 walks. The Yankees now have to play 4 games against The Scum, at Scumway Park in Scumtown. If the Yankees lose any of those games by just 1 run, I'm going to wonder what 1 run from last night's shellacking in Pittsburgh could have made the difference.

Currently, the Yankees lead the American League Eastern Division by 14 games over The Scum, and also by 14 games over the Tampa Bay Rays, 14 1/2 over the Toronto Blue Jays, and 20 1/2 over the Baltimore Orioles. The Magic Number to clinch the Division is 67.

So the Yankees would seem to be in great shape. But you know what games at Fenway can do to us. Especially if the Red Sox have found a new way to cheat. Or an old one that they think won't get caught this time.

Here are the projected pitching matchups, with all games starting at or around 7:05 PM:

* Tonight, the only game of this series that will air on YES: Gerrit Cole vs. John Winckowski.

* Tomorrow night, on Amazon Prime Video: Nestor Cortes vs. a Sox pitcher not yet chosen.

* Saturday night, on Fox: Jordan Montgomery vs. a Sox pitcher not yet chosen.

* Sunday night, on ESPN: Jameson Taillon vs. Nick Pivetta.

The fact that the Sox' starting rotation is still in flux this close to the start of this series, a key one for them to get back into the race if not one for the Yankees to knock them out of it, is a good sign. But this is Fenway: Anything can happen, and has. In the immortal words of Obi-Wan Kenobi, "You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy. We must be cautious."

And if you're going, to any of these 4 games, for crying out loud, control yourself: It's better to be an uninjured quiet person than a hospitalized partisan.