The Yankees hadn't had a 4-game series at home where they never led at any time since 1908.
Think about how long ago that was. No Internet. No computers. No television. No radio as we now understand that term. There were movies, but they were silent, short, few had a real plot, and none of them were being made in Southern California. Most people had never heard of airplanes. Hardly anybody had an automobile: Ford had just introduced the Model T. Few American homes had a telephone.
Roosevelt was President -- Theodore. There were hardly any labor laws. No Social Security. No banking insurance. No antibiotics. No transplants.
None of the classic ballparks had yet been built. Ty Cobb was in his 3rd full season in the major leagues. Babe Ruth was 13. Joe DiMaggio, Ted Williams and Jackie Robinson hadn't been born yet. There was no NFL, no NBA, no NHL.
And the Yankees were still the New York Highlanders, playing at Hilltop Park in Upper Manhattan, and finished 51-103, the most losses they've ever had in a season.
They'd never had a 4-game series at home in which they never led once, for 113 years. Until last night.
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I'd already suggested that the Yankees had hit rock bottom on Labor Day, the 1st game of their 4-game home series against those pesky Blue Jays. Little did I know...
We figured, with Gerrit Cole starting the Tuesday game, we would win. But he pitched like he was injured. And he left in the 4th inning, because he was hurt, with a tight hamstring. It looks like he'll only miss one start. As if the Yankees can afford for him to miss one of his starts.
Ex-Met Steven Matz pitched very well, and only an Anthony Rizzo RBI single got the Yankees anywhere. Blue Jays 5, Yankees 1. WP: Matz (11-7). No save. LP: Cole (14-7).
Luis Gil started the Wednesday night game, and it was the worst game of his major league career. It almost had to be, since he hadn't allowed a run in each of his 2 previous starts. He allowed 3 in less than 4 innings.
The Yankees bailed him out with 3 runs in the bottom of the 5th, all on a home run by Brett Gardner. Let Gardy Bang. But 3 different relievers -- Clay Holmes in the 7th, Chad Green in the 8th, and Aroldis Chapman in the 9th -- each allowed a run. Blue Jays 6, Yankees 3. WP: Trevor Richard (6-2). SV: Jordan Romano (16). LP: Holmes (6-3).
And then, last night, Nestor Cortes started. He did all right, going 6 innings, allowing just 2 runs on 6 hits and no walks, with 5 strikeouts. But the Yankees trailed 2-0 going into the bottom of the 6th. Aaron Judge singled, and Anthony Rizzo hit a home run to tie it.
But Sal Ramano allowed a run in the 7th, Wandy Peralta had a bases-loaded walk in the 8th, and Andrew Heaney allowed... only 2 in the 9th? It seemed like a lot more. It turned 4-2 Jays -- to use the expression John Sterling stole from the great Pittsburgh broadcaster Bob Prince, "just a bloop and a blast" -- into 6-2 Jays.
The Yankees were down to their last strike, when Gary Sanchez and Luke Voit hit back-to-back home runs. For a moment, there was hope. But Gio Urshela struck out.
Blue Jays 6, Yankees 4. WP: Jose Berrios (11-7). No save. LP: Romano (0-2).
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So the Yankees have now followed a 13-0 run with a 2-10 run. I'm reminded of 1987, when the Milwaukee Brewers opened the season by winning their 1st 13 games, but had a 12-game losing streak in May. Had they merely split those 12 games, they would have won the AL East. If the Yankees had merely split these last 12 games, they'd be 6 games behind the Tampa Bay Rays in the American League Eastern Division, instead of 10. The Rays' Magic Number to clinch is down to 13.
As for the AL Wild Card race, the Yankees had held the lead for a while. Now, they're in a virtual 3-way tie for the 2 berths.
And now, we have to go to the Valley of Ashes, Flushing Meadow, to play The Other Team. This includes tomorrow's pregame ceremony honoring the 20th Anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.
If the Yankees can't take 2 out of 3 against the Mets, they should just forfeit the rest of the season. Because that would be a new rock bottom.
Rock basement? Whatever is beneath rock bottom, the Yankees don't seem to be hitting much else.
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