Yanks End 1st Half With Sweep In Washington

Although 96 games means nearly 60 percent of the regular season is done, the All-Star Break is the official halfway point, and the Yankees closed the official 1st half with a series away to the Washington Nationals.

Ryan Weathers started on Friday night, and allowed 1 run on 6 hits and no walks. He was backed by home runs from Ben Rice in the 1st inning and Jasson Domínguez in the 4th, and left with a 2-1 lead in the 6th. But Tim Hill allowed back-to-back home runs in the 7th, so, in spite of the Nats going with a bullpen game, the Yankees trailed 3-2 with 1 out in the top of the 9th.

But Domínguez singled, and Jazz Chisholm and Austin Wells hit home runs. David Bednar pitched 2 perfect innings for the win. Yankees 5, Nationals 3.

Cam Schlittler started on Saturday afternoon, and allowed home runs to the Nats' 2 best hitters, James Wood and Curtis Mead, in the 1st inning. After that, he was brilliant, lasting into the 7th inning. But, despite the Nats again going with a bullpen game, the Yankees trailed 2-0 with 1 out in the 8th.

Then came a home run by Ryan McMahon, a walk by Rice, a home run by Trent Grisham, and a home run by Paul Goldschmidt, the 387th of his career. That made the Yankees 4-2 winners, and Brent Headrick the winning pitcher.

Will Warren started on Sunday afternoon. RBI singles by Chisholm and Wells in the 5th inning staked him to a 2-1 lead. And he'd only thrown 83 pitches. But Aaron Boone panicked, and brought Hill in, and he blew the lead. It was 3-2 Nats with 2 outs in the top of the 8th.

Then Max Schuemann singled, Grisham drew a walk, and Rice hit a triple to bring them home. They added a run in the 9th, and won, 4-2. Ryan Yarbrough was the winning pitcher.

So the Yankees managed to get a 3-game sweep on the road, even though they trailed late in all 3, and none of their starting pitchers ended up as the winning pitcher.

*

So here's where the Yankees stand at the All-Star Break:

* They are 54-42, for a winning percentage of .563. Over a 162-game span, that works out to a record of 91-71. That should be enough to make the Playoffs, but it probably won't be enough to in the American League Eastern Division.

The Tampa Bay Rays lead the Division by 3 games over the Yankees, 10 over the Boston Red Sox, 11 1/2 over the Baltimore Orioles, and 12 over the Toronto Blue Jays. In the all-important loss column, the Rays lead the Yanks by 4, the Sox by 10, and the O's and the Jays by 12.

* If the current standings hold to the end of the season, the Yankees would be the 4th seed in the AL Playoffs. In other words, they would make the Playoffs, but not win the Division, putting them in a bad position to win the Pennant. In other words, for the Brian Cashman Era, the usual.

* They have achieved this despite the usual rotten luck with injuries. At no time this season have they had 3 of their planned 5 starting pitchers available: They began the season with Gerrit Cole, Clarke Schmidt and Carlos Rodón on the Injured List; and they go into the All-Star Break with Schmidt, Rodón and Max Fried on it. Hitting-wise, they began the season with Domínguez, Anthony Volpe and Oswaldo Cabrera on it; now, Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton are on it; and, in addition to the preceding, Goldschmidt and Wells have spent significant time on it.

* Rice, Judge, Goldschmidt, Grisham, Cody Bellinger have been productive. McMahon, Max Schuemann, Amed Rosario, José Caballero have been nice surprises.

* On the other hand, Stanton has barely played. Volpe, Domínguez, Wells and, so far, highly-touted prospect Spencer Jones have been letdowns.

* Schlittler is 9-5, with a 2.05 ERA and a 0.944 WHIP, both of which lead the AL. Before getting hurt, Fried was 4-3, 3.21 and 1.005; Rodón was 4-2, 3.30 and 1.252. Filling holes in the rotation, Warren is 7-4, 4.03 and 1.363; and Weathers is 3-7, 4.15 and 1.239. So Warren has a good record, while Weathers has a good WHIP.

* On the other hand, both Warren and Weathers are too high in ERA, and Weathers has a bad record. Cole came back too soon: He's 3-4 and 4.04, although his WHIP is 1.204.

* The bullpen has been a mixed bag. Bednar has 18 saves, Yarbrough 2, and 1 each for Fernando Cruz, Camilo Doval and Paul Blackburn. ERAs for relievers with at least 30 innings pitched: Headrick 1.55, Blackburn 2.22, Cruz 2.25, Bednar 2.70, Yarbrough 4.14, Hill 4.50, Jake Bird 4.50, Doval 4.58. WHIPs: Blackburn 1.089, Bednar 1.100, Hill 1.111, Headrick 1.187, Yarbrough 1.216, Cruz 1.225, Doval 1.358, Bird 1.367.

Hill is typical of this. He has a great WHIP, but a horrible ERA for a reliever. He has given up 7 home runs, more than any Yankee pitcher except Weathers, Warren, Schlittler and Cole, all starters. And he has hit 4 batters, more than any Yankee pitcher except Bird, with 5. And if you count hit batsmen as baserunners for which he's responsible, his WHIP rises to 1.222, which is very good for a starter, not so much for a reliever.

* Injury updates: Fried threw live batting practice on Saturday, and will make a rehab start on Friday, so he should be back before July ends. Rodón threw today, and is set to throw every day this week, which is encouraging. Stanton has resumed running, and is expected to return later in the month. Schmidt is having bullpen sessions, and is expected to begin facing hitters this month, which suggests an August return. Judge is set for a re-imaging during the Break, so we still don't know when he's coming back. This is also true of Luis Gil.

The All-Star Game will be tomorrow night, at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. Judge was elected as a starter, but isn't playing. Rice, who will be in tonight's stupid Home Run Derby, Bellinger and Schlittler were named as reserves.

In case anyone cares, the only Met on the National League team is Juan Soto, who was elected as a starter. As always, every team, no matter how bad, is entitled to at least 1 player on their League's team, although if that 1 player is injured, a replacement from the same team can be chosen. And, although it usually works out so that every player gets used, that is not required: Only that starting pitchers go at least 2 innings, and starting hitters at least 3, with exceptions, of course, for injury.

Yankees Afflicted with "Senioritis"

The Yankees treated the last 2 games before the All-Star Break like the last couple of days before school lets out for the Summer, as if they sort-of mattered, but sort-of didn't.

Except the games counted just the same. Having "Senioritis" doesn't work in July when you've still got games through the end of September.

Manager Aaron Boone gave his All-Stars the day off. For Masahiro Tanaka, this didn't matter, as he wasn't going to be pitching today, anyway. For Gary Sanchez, Gleyber Torres and DJ LeMahieu, it mattered, as they were replaced by Austin Romine and Breyvic Valera (pictured), with Sanchez DHing and Edwin Encarnacion put at 1st base.

I know what you're thinking: "What the hell is a Breyvic Valera?" He's a Venezuelan infielder who didn't crack the major leagues until he was 25. That was 2 years ago, with the St. Louis Cardinals. He divided last season between the National League Champions, the Los Angeles Dodgers, and the worst team in the majors, the Baltimore Orioles. Total major league plate appearances coming into this game? 86.

How did the Yankees get this scrub? The Yankees claimed him off waivers from the San Francisco Giants, who'd bought him from the Orioles. That makes 4 different major league organizations in less than 2 full years. As I called him a moment ago, he's a scrub.

James Paxton started the series, and official 1st half, finale for the Yankees against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. He gave up 2 runs in the 1st inning, and the YES Network put up a graphic that showed that his 1st inning ERA this season is 10.20, but after that, it drops to 2.72. Throw in the fact that he's a lefthander, and he's the new Greg Cadaret. As Dick Smothers would say, That was not a compliment.

Overall, Paxton pitched well, going 6 innings, not allowing any runs over the last 5, allowing 7 hits and no walks, and striking out 11. Tommy Kahnle, Adam Ottavino, and the previous game's goat, Chad Green, each pitched 2/3rds of a scoreless inning. So the Yankees got the pitching they needed.

But Charlie Morton started for the Rays. He drove the Yankees crazy for the Houston Astros in the 2017 American League Championship Series. He didn't get out of the 6th inning this time, but that's because he'd hit the 100-pitch mark, and Rays manager Kevin Cash is as much of a coward about pitch counts as Brian Cashman. Still, he struck out 10 Yankees.

Brett Gardner hit a solo home run in the 2nd inning. Valera and Romine singled to start the 3rd, but were stranded. Gardner doubled in the 4th. Aaron Hicks drew a walk in the 5th. Sanchez singled in the 6th. That's all the Yankees got in the game: 6 baserunners.

Encarnacion, Brian Cashman's latest "Chris Carter," is now batting .216. Which happens to be Valera's lifetime batting average.

Rays 2, Yankees 1. WP: Morton (10-2). SV: Emilio Pagan (5). LP: Paxton (5-4).

*

So, as we head into the All-Star Break, here's how things stand:

* American League Eastern Division: The Yankees lead the Rays by 6 1/2 games, the Boston Red Sox by 9, the Toronto Blue Jays by 24 1/2, and the Baltimore Orioles by 30 1/2.

* AL Central: The Minnesota Twins lead the Cleveland Indians by 5 1/2, the Chicago White Sox by 12 1/2, the Detroit Tigers by 26, and the Kansas City Royals by 27.

* AL West: The Houston Astros lead the Oakland Athletics by 7 1/2, the Texas Rangers by 9, the Los Angeles Angels by 12 1/2, and the Seattle Mariners by 20.

* National League East: The Atlanta Braves lead the Washington Nationals by 6, the Philadelphia Phillies by 6 1/2, the Mets by 13 1/2, and the Miami Marlins by 19 1/2.

* NL Central: The only Division with a real race at the moment, and what a race, with all 5 teams within 5 games. The Chicago Cubs lead the Milwaukee Brewers by half a game, the St. Louis Cardinals by 2, the Pittsburgh Pirates by 2 1/2, and the Cincinnati Reds by 4 1/2.

* NL West: The Los Angeles Dodgers lead the Arizona Diamondbacks by 13 1/2, the San Diego Padres by 14, the Colorado Rockies by 14 1/2, and the San Francisco Giants by 17 1/2.

* If the current standings end up being the final standings, the Yankees would have home-field advantage against any team in the postseason, except for the Dodgers.

* The AL Playoffs would be (the lesser-seeded team listed first) Cleveland vs. Tampa Bay, winner to face the Yankees, and Minnesota vs. Houston. The NL Playoffs would be Philadelphia vs. Washington, winner to face Los Angeles; and Chicago vs. Atlanta.

The All-Star Game will be tomorrow night, in Cleveland. The Yankees resume on Friday night, home to Toronto.

One piece of good news: Except for 2 more games in late September, the Yankees won't have to play in that stupid St. Petersburg dome again this season.

Yanks .500 at All-Star Break, Jeter Married

When the Yankees won the opener of their 4-game series against the red-hot Cleveland Indians, currently in 1st place in the American League Central Division, at Progressive Field, it looked like a good sign.

Then they played the next game. Chad Green got clobbered, allowing 4 runs in the 1st inning, 2 in the 3rd, and another in the 5th before Joe Girardi threw the binder aside and said, "This poor lad has suffered enough," and took him out. The bullpen was little better

Brian McCann hit his 14th home run of the season, but that was the only highlight as far as the Yankees were concerned. Indians 10, Yankees 2. WP: Corey Kluber (9-8). No save. LP: Green (1-2).

*

CC Sabathia started the Saturday game, and the Big Fella wasn't much of an improvement on Green, allowing 5 runs in less than 6 innings. It was 1-0 Indians after the 1st, 4-3 Indians after the 3rd, 5-3 Indians after the 5th.

Didi Gregorius hit his 11th home run of the season -- which would have been about average for an entire season for his predecessor as Yankee shortstop, ol' What's His Name -- and Brett Gardner hit a triple that gave the Yankees a 6-5 lead in the top of the 6th. But the Indians tied it in the 7th.

The game went to extra innings, which is terrifying, given Girardi's bullpen management tendencies. With 2 outs in the top of the 11th, Carlos Beltran singled, and McCann doubled him home. Aroldis Chapman, already in the game, closed it out. Yankees 7, Indians 6. WP: Chapman (3-0). No save. LP: Tommy Hunter (2-2).

*

Masahiro Tanaka started the Sunday game, but wasn't at his best. Despite being staked to a 4-0 lead in the top of the 2nd inning, thanks in part to Jacoby Ellsbury's 4th home run, and a whopping 11-1 lead in the top of the 5th, he melted down in the bottom of the 5th: Double, strikeout, RBI double, single, RBI single, groundout, 2-run error, 2-run homer.

That made it 11-7 Yankees. Girardi brought Nathan Eovaldi, and he got the last out in the 5th, and stayed in the rest of the game, allowing no runs and only 1 hit (albeit 3 walks). He was the winning pitcher (7-6), with no save, while Carlos Carrasco was the losing pitcher (5-3).

The Yankees took 3 out of 4 on the road. Ordinarily, that's pretty good. But after the 1st half of the season that the Yankees have had, it doesn't seem like enough.

*

So, here we are at the All-Star Break, 14 weeks into a 26-week season. The Yankees are .500, 44-44, 7 1/2 games behind the Baltimore Orioles in the American League Eastern Division, 8 games in the loss column. They are 5 1/2 games behind the Toronto Blue Jays for the 2nd AL Wild Card seed, although only 4 in the loss column.

As I've discussed before, it takes, on the average, 93 wins to win the AL East. There are 74 games to go. For the Yankees to get to 93 wins this season, they would have to go 44-30, a .595 pace -- over a full 162-game season, that would get you 96 wins.

Doesn't sound especially hard for a good team. But the Yankees have been so inconsistent this season, a 96-win pace over the last 74 games doesn't sound too likely.

And so, we pause, for the All-Star Game, tomorrow night, at Petco Park in San Diego. And then... the Boston Red Sox come to town. Sweeping The Scum would be a good way for the Yankees to launch a strong 2nd-half run.

*

Derek Jeter and Hannah Davis got married in St. Petersburg last night. So Derek learned from the mistake of Joe DiMaggio: Wait until after you retire to marry a fabulous blonde. Joe D married actress Dorothy Arnold while he was still playing, and it fell apart. He married Marilyn Monroe after he retired -- and it fell apart faster.

Well, Hannah isn't Marilyn: Nobody's throwing film scripts at her, hoping to capitalize on her appearance. But Derek isn't Joe: He's got a more modern perspective on things, and won't demand that his wife be a housewife first and anything else second.

I see the Jeters invited former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Given his height, or rather his lack thereof, I wonder if he was the ring-bearer.

Good luck to the happy couple.

You Are What Your Record Says You Are

So here we are at the All-Star Break, with 11 weeks left in a 26-week season, and the Yankees are at .500, 47-47.

Bill Parcells, who coached in New York (well, New Jersey) with the Giants and Jets, likes to say, "You are what your record says you are." And the Yankees' record says they're a .500 team.

This includes the Yankees' loss in their series finale in Baltimore last night, a game shortened by rain to the minimum amount to count, 5 innings.

Really, that sums up the Yankees' season: Like the game, the season has effectively been cut short by things beyond their control.

Brett Gardner led off the game with a home run, his 9th of the season. Think how much money you could have made betting that, at the All-Star Break, Brett Gardner would have more home runs than Robinson Cano.

But that was it. Chase Whitley, who started off so well for us, allowed 3 runs in the 4th inning, and had to be relieved. David Huff cut off the Oriole attack, but it was too late. The umpires called the game after 4 1/2 innings with the home team ahead. If the visiting team is ahead, or it's tied, the "official game" cutoff is 5 full innings.

Orioles 3, Yankees 1. WP: Kevin Gausman (4-2). No save (nor would there be in a game where the starter went the distance and the distance turned out to be only 5 innings). LP: Whitley (3-2).

*

Here's the American League Eastern Division standings:

Baltimore Orioles 52-42
Toronto Blue Jays 49-47, 4 back, 5 in the loss column
New York Yankees 47-47, 5 back
Tampa Bay Rays, 44-53, 9 1/2 back, 11 in the loss column
Boston Red Sox, 43-52, 9 1/2 back, 10 in the loss column

Elimination numbers: Rays 57, Sox 59, Jays 63, Yanks 64. In other words, any number of O's wins and Yanks losses the rest of the way, adding up to 64, and the Yanks can't win the Division.

The Yankees trail the Seattle Mariners -- Cano's new team -- by 3 1/2 games, 3 in the loss column, for the 2nd AL Wild Card berth.

If the current MLB standings hold to the end of the season, this is how the Playoffs will go down:

Seattle Mariners in one-game Playoff at Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, winner faces Oakland Athletics, with A's having home-field advantage in Games 1, 2 & 5 of the Division Series.

Baltimore Orioles vs. Detroit Tigers, with Tigers having HFA.

Atlanta Braves in one-game Playoff at San Francisco Giants, winner faces Los Angeles Dodgers, with Dodgers having HFA. (This would be the 3rd genuine Giant-Dodger Playoff, following 1951 in New York and 1962 in California, although there have been season-ending series where either team had to win to advance, and had to face the other in the process.)

Washington Nationals vs. Milwaukee Brewers, with Brewers having HFA.

*

"You are what your record says you are." What the Yankees' record says is, "I'm not going to lie to you, it doesn't look good."

I will watch the All-Star Game opening ceremonies. I may even watch the game, after Derek Jeter takes his leadoff at-bat in his 14th and final ASG.

However, I will not watch the Home Run Derby tonight. A one-dimensional, made-for-TV thing that advances baseball not at all. It's a bigger joke than the NBA All-Star Weekend Slam-Dunk Contest has ever been.

The Good, the Bad, and the Painful

We are at the All-Star Break, and the American League Eastern Division standings look like this:

Boston 58-39
Tampa Bay 55-41, 2 1/2 (2)
Baltimore 53-43, 4 1/2 (4)
NEW YORK 51-44, 6 (5)
Toronto 45-49, 11 1/2 (10)

In layman's terms, the Yankees are 7 games over .500, and 6 games out of 1st place, though only 5 in the all-important loss column. They are 3 games out of the AL's 2nd Wild Card slot.

Of the other 29 teams in the major leagues, 18 have a worse record, 14 are further out of 1st place in their Division, and 17 are further out of a Wild Card slot.

Certainly, the Yankees have underachieved, even considering their injuries. But the Toronto Blue Jays, preseason favorites in the AL East, are 4 games under .500. The San Franicsco Giants, the defending World Champions, are 8 games under. The Philadelphia Phillies, perennial contenders until last season brought them injuries on the same scale that the Yankees now have, needed to win their last 2 and 7 of their last 10 just to get to .500 at the Break. The Arizona Diamondbacks are leading the National League West, and yet they're only 5 games over .500 -- they'd be below the Yankees in the AL East. The high-payroll, high-hype Los Angeles teams? The Dodgers have won 7 of their last 10, and they're still at only .500; while the Angels are 5 games under.

Is knowing that the Yankees could be a lot worse off a comfort? It should be... but since we Yankee Fans measure achievement differently, it isn't.

*

Friday night, there was a rain delay after 4 innings, and Joe Girardi brought Hiroki Kuroda back for the 5th once it resumed. A shock. But only for that 1 more inning. But, between them, Kuroda (1st through 5th), Preston Claiborne (6th), Boone Logan (7th, incredibly), David Robertson (8th) and some guy named Mariano Rivera (9th) pitched shutout ball. Between them, they allowed no runs, 8 hits, 2 walks, and struck out 12.

None of which would have mattered if the Yankees hadn't scored, either. And, in 8 out of 9 innings, they didn't.

But Luis Cruz led off the 5th with a single, Chris Stewart bunted him over, and Brett Gardner singled him home. One-nil to the Pinstripe Boys. Ichiro Suzuki grounded out, moving Gardner to 3rd. Robinson Cano singled him home. 2-0 Yankees.

That was it, but that was enough to win that one. WP: Kuroda (8-6). SV: Rivera (30). LP: Ryan Pressly (2-2).

*

Saturday's game wouldn't be so productive. Phil Hughes pitched into the 8th, struck out 10, walked only 1, allowed only 5 hits -- but 3 were home runs, and the Yankees couldn't counter.

With 1 out in the 1st, Ichiro doubled and Cano singled, making it 1-0 Yankees, but Vernon Wells then grounded into a double play. Austin Romine singled with 1 out in the 3rd. Wells singled with 1 out in the 4th, and with 2 out Zoilo Almonte singled. Romine walked and Gardner singled in the 5th. Lyle Overbay walked with 2 out in the 6th. Travis Hafner doubled with 1 out in the 7th. Ichiro led off with a single in the 8th. Almonte led off with a single in the 9th. All stranded.

Twins 4, Yankees 1. WP: Samuel Deduno (5-4). SV: Glen Perkins (21). LP: Hughes (4-9, and that really does not reflect how well he's pitched lately).

*

The Yankees were never really in yesterday's game. CC Sabathia was really undone by his defense. The Twins got 2 in the 2nd, 3 in the 3rd and 3 in the 4th, and the Yankee bats couldn't compensate. Ichiro homered in the 7th, his 6th of the season, but that was about it.

Twins 10, Yankees 4. So much for "Can we play you every week?" WP: Kyle Gibson (2-2). No save. LP: Sabathia (9-8).

We got 2 runs on Friday, and it was enough to win; we got 4 runs on Sunday, and it wasn't even close.

*

So, now, the All-Star Break. Four days off, except for Cano and Rivera, who will be in the All-Star Game tomorrow night at Pity Field. Cano and David Wright, captain of the host team, a.k.a. The Other Team (Small club in Flushing, you're just a small club in Flushing), will be opposing captains for the Home Run Derby. (And if you care about the Home Run Derby, then you need to sort out your priorities.)

Then, on Friday night, we ship up to Boston to play The Scum. Derek Jeter should be back; Alex Rodriguez could be back, depeneding on whether the Daily News is right about him being suspended for 150 games without actually testing positive for anything, or whether they've gone into full, New York Post-style full-of-shit mode.

This season has had moments of the good, the bad, and the painful. Anybody who knows how it's going to end is just guessing.

I'll tell you this: Even taking 2 out of 3 in Scum Town will be a big boost.