Did Trading Sánchez and Urshela for Donaldson and IKF Weaken Yankees?

UPDATE: Yes, it did!

With the Major League Baseball team owners' lockout of the players having ended after 99 days, the Yankees made a trade. And I'm not sure if it was a good idea.

They sent catcher Gary Sánchez and 3rd baseman Gio Urshela to the Minnesota Twins. Sánchez consistently put up good power numbers, but while he was productive in 2016, '17 and '19, his overall hitting was terrible in 2018, '20 and '21. He was mercilessly booed by the Bronx faithful, and he'll be glad to get out of that. For those of us who still want him to do well, perhaps a change of scenery will do him some good.

For me, the problem is giving up Urshela. He gave the Yankees 3 good seasons. He may well be missed.

In return, the Yankees got 3rd baseman Josh Donaldson, shortstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa and catcher Ben Rortvedt. With Oakland, Toronto, Atlanta and Minnesota, Donaldson has been one of the best hitters in baseball since 2013. He had a 127 OPS+ last season. But he's 36 years old. He was an American League Most Valuable Player, but that was in 2015.

This looks like a classic Brian Cashman acquisition: A guy who would have been good to have a few years back, but not so much now. And before you tell me he was great last year, let me remind you of Chris Carter, who tied for the National League home run title with 41 in 2016, but had only 94 RBIs, and batted just .222, got signed by Cashman, played all of 62 games with the Yankees, batted .201, got released on July 10, 2017, and never played another major league game. He was just 30 years old.

And he was 6 years younger than Donaldson.

Also, Donaldson is a righthanded hitter, coming to Yankee Stadium. Cashman still hasn't figured out that Yankee Stadium is harder on righthanded hitters than it is on lefthanded ones.

Also, Donaldson was the player who blew the whistle on Gerrit Cole's use of "sticky substances." But Cole and Donaldson have met, and Cole says, "I'll be fine." Donaldson says, "I'm happy to be on the same team, and not have to strike out anymore." Manager Aaron Boone says, "It's buried, and a non-issue."

As for IKF -- I mean, let's get serious here, Yankee Fans aren't going to want to say that entire name -- he's from Honolulu, he turns 27 this month, and will play shortstop, as Cashman finally admits that Gleyber Torres belongs at 2nd base.

IKF never played for the Twins: They traded him to the Yankees just 1 day after acquiring him in a trade with the Texas Rangers. He won a Gold Glove in 2020, and stole 20 bases last season. But he is not a good hitter, having never topped 93 in OPS+ in his 4 major league season. And, given that 2020 was a COVID-shortened season, 2021 was his 1st-ever full season.

Rortvedt is not going to be the starting catcher. He has played a grand total of 39 games in the majors, all last season, and batted .169. For the moment, the starting catcher is Kyle Higashioka. Higgy, a good defensive catcher, with a 71 OPS+ last season. If he's your backup catcher, you're okay; if he's your starter, you're in deep trouble. By giving up Sánchez, as much trouble as he was having, the Yankees actually downgraded at the position.

And the Yankees could still use one more good starting pitcher, and Aroldis Chapman is still a shaky closer.

UPDATE: The answer is mixed. Donaldson has done nothing for the Yankees, while IKF has been a traditional "good-field-no-hit" middle infielder, and Urshela has gone to the Los Angeles Angels, and helped them. On the other hand, Sánchez struggled in Minnesota in 2022, was released, and was signed only to a minor-league contract for 2023 by the San Francisco Giants.

CC's Return, Holiday Spoiled

The good news: CC Sabathia returned from the Disabled List, at least a week sooner than expected, and started yesterday's 4th of July matinee at Yankee Stadium II, against the Toronto Blue Jays. The bullpen pitched 6 1/3rd scoreless innings. Aaron Judge hit another tremendous blast. And Chris Carter was designated for assignment again! (No, no, really, Brian Cashman means it this time!)

The bad news: The Jays were as pesky as ever, ruining CC's return and the holiday.

CC cruised through the 1st 2 innings as if nothing was ever wrong. Then, in the 3rd, as he so often has, he fell victim to "Onebadinningitis." He allowed 4 runs, and Joe Girardi decided it's better to be safe than sorry, and took him out.

Adam Warren, also returning from the DL, got the last out in the 3rd. Luis Cessa took over from there, and pitched very well from the 4th through the 8th. Chasen Shreve got the last out in the 8th, and the execrable Tyler Clippard actually pitched decently in the 9th.

But it was too late. The Yankees got next to nothing off Jays pitching. The Yankees only got 4 hits: Judge's 456-foot drive to center field in the bottom of the 4th, his 28th home run of the season; plus singles by Gary Sanchez, Chase Headley and Ronald Torreyes. Sanchez, Brett Gardner and, in his Yankee farewell (we hope) Carter drew walks. But those were the only Yankee baserunners.

Blue Jays 4, Yankees 1. (Not to be confused with Blue Jay 4, the callsign for U.S. Air Force Captain John Christopher on the Star Trek time-travel episode "Tomorrow Is Yesterday.") WP: J.A. Happ (3-5). SV: Roberto Osuna (20). LP: Sabathia (7-3).

To make matters worse, the Boston Red Sox won yesterday, so the Yankees are now 4 games behind in the American League East.

The series concludes this afternoon, with another matinee. Michael Pineda starts against Marco Estrada.

*

Hours until the Red Bulls play again: 7, tonight at 7:30, a "derby" against the New England Revolution at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Massachusetts.

Days until the Red Bulls next play a "derby": See the previous answer. They will next play the Revs a week from tomorrow night at Harvard Stadium in Boston, in the Quarterfinal of the U.S. Open Cup. (The Revs play all their games at the U.S. version of England's FA Cup there.) They will next play NYCFC on Sunday, August 6, at Yankee Stadium. They will next play the Philadelphia Union on Sunday, September 17, at at Red Bull Arena. And they will next play the D.C. Scum on Saturday, September 27, at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey.

Days until the U.S. national soccer team plays again: 3, this Saturday afternoon at 4:30, the start of the CONCACAF Gold Cup, against Panama, at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, home of the NFL's Tennessee Titans.

Days until The Arsenal play again: 8, a week from tomorrow, when they begin their preseason tour of Australia and Asia, with a game against A-League winners Sydney FC at Stadium Australia in Sydney.

Days until the next Yankees-Red Sox series: 9, a week from this Friday, at Fenway Park. 

Days until the Premier League season begins: 38, on Saturday, August 12. The Arsenal open at home to Leicester City. A little over 5 weeks. There is a chance, of course, that the TV networks could have Arsenal's match moved to the following Sunday or Monday.

Days until Rutgers University plays football again: 58, on Friday, September 1, home to the University of Washington. Under 2 months.

Days until East Brunswick High School plays football again: 65, on Friday night, September 8, home to Sayreville, a "derby." 

Days until the New Jersey Devils play again: 94, on Saturday night, October 7, home to the Colorado Avalanche. A little over 3 months.

Days until the New Jersey Devils next play a local rival: 101, on Saturday night, October 14, against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden in Midtown Manhattan. Their 1st game against the New York Islanders will be on Sunday, January 7, 2018, at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn -- and they'll have played the Rangers 3 times by then. Their 1st game against the Philadelphia Flyers will be on Saturday, January 13, 2018, at the Prudential Center in Newark -- and they'll have played the Rangers 3 times and the Islanders once by then. This is a weird schedule. But, at least, now we have it. The NBA usually doesn't release its new season's schedule until August.

Days until the Alex Rodriguez Contract From Hell officially runs out, and the Yankees can spend his salary on new players: 118, on October 31.

Days until the next election for Governor of New Jersey: 125, on Tuesday, November 7. Just 18 weeks until we elect Phil Murphy, defeat Kim Guadagno, and end Christieism forever. But only if you vote!

Days until the next Rutgers-Penn State football game: 129, on Saturday, November 11, at Beaver Stadium in State College, Pennsylvania.

Days until the next North London Derby: 136, on Saturday, November 18, at the Emirates Stadium. This game could be moved to the following day, for TV purposes.

Days until the next East Brunswick-Old Bridge Thanksgiving high school football game: 141, on Thursday, November 23, at 10:00 AM. Under 5 months, and thank God it's at home, at Jay Doyle's Green Grove, rather than at that purple shit pit on Route 9. Under 5 months.

Days until the next Winter Olympics begins in Pyeongchang, Korea: 223, on February 9, 2018. A little over 7 months.

Days until the next World Cup kicks off in Russia: 344, on June 14, 2018. Under 1 year, or a little over 11 months. Has Bruce Arena turned our chances around? Maybe. Or maybe, with the tournament on his soil, Vladimir Putin will tell his bitch Donald Trump to tell Bruce Arena to tank the games. Maybe not. Or maybe only if we end up playing Russia. I don't think Arena will listen. If he doesn't, I hope his life insurance is paid up, because Putin has had people killed for defying him.

Days until September 2018 roster call-ups, when we can finally start to expect seeing some of these wonderful "prospects" for whom Yankee general manager Brian Cashman threw away a chance at the 2016 Playoffs: 423. A little over a year, or a little under 14 months. Of course, Clint Frazier is already up, but we've hardly benefited. We could end up seeing another of them sooner than that, but since most of them are at Double-A Trenton now, if that, who's kidding who?

Days until the next Congressional election: 489, on November 6, 2018. Under a year and a half, or a little over 16 months.

Days until the Baseball Hall of Fame vote is announced, electing Mariano Rivera: 553, on January 9, 2019. A little over a year and a half, or a little over 18 months.

Days until the Baseball Hall of Fame vote is announced, electing Derek Jeter: 918, on January 8, 2020. A little over 2 1/2 years, or a little over 30 months.

Days until the next Summer Olympics begins in Tokyo, Japan: 1,123, on July 24, 2020. A little over 3 years, or a little under 37 months.

Days until the next Presidential election: 1,585, on November 3, 2020. Under 3 1/2 years, or a under over 40 months.

Days until Liberation Day: 1,663, at noon on January 20, 2021. A little over 3 1/2 years, or under 43 months. Note that this is liberation from the Republican Party, not just from Donald Trump. Having Mike Pence as President wouldn't be better, just differently bad, mixing theocracy with plutocracy, rather than mixing kleptocracy with plutocracy.

Why, Joe, Why?

The Yankees should have made it 2 straight over the Houston Astros at Minute Maid Park last night. But they didn't, because Joe Girardi was in full Girardi mode.

Never go full Girardi.

Didi Gregorius hit a grand slam in the 6th inning, his 10th home run of the season. In the 7th, Clint Frazier, one of the "prospects" for whom Brian Cashman threw last season away, making his major league debut and already having gotten his 1st major league hit, hit his 1st major league home run.

Years from now, they may say, "Ol' Number 30 could really hit. We knew it back in '17."

Or they could say, "He fooled us, like Hensley Meulens, and Steve Balboni, and Dan Pasqua, and Kevin Maas, and Gerald Williams, and Jesus Montero."

(I didn't include Shane Spencer, because he actually helped us win a World Series. Three, in fact.)

So the Yankees led 5-2 going to the bottom of the 6th, and 6-3 going to the bottom of the 8th. That means they won the ballgame, right? Wrong. Because Joe Girardi is an idiot who does not know how to manage a pitching staff.

Jordan Montgomery pitched into the 6th inning, and was doing well. He got the 1st out. Then he allowed a home run and a double. Unlike Douglas Adams' Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy science-fiction book series, Girardi must be the only guy with a book that says, "Yes, panic!" He looked in his damn binder, and it said, "Replace starting pitcher."

And it wasn't due to the damn pitch count: Montgomery had only thrown 87 pitches, 54 of them for strikes. He should have been good for at least 7 innings.

So Girardi brought on Chad Green. Green pitched well, finishing the 6th and getting through the 7th, with just 1 baserunner. Gee, if he was that effective, maybe Girardi should have left him in.

But because Joe Girardi is an idiot who does not know how to manage a pitching staff, he didn't leave Green in. He brought Dellin Betances in to pitch the 8th, when Green -- hell, maybe even Montgomery -- should still have been in.

Even if you buy the narrative from last season, Betances is supposed to be the 7th inning pitcher, Andrew Miller the 8th, and Aroldis Chapman the 9th. But because Cashman traded Miller for "prospects," including Frazier, Miller wasn't there for the 8th, and Betances illustrates "The Peter Principle": He rises to the level of his incompetence.

Betances got the 1st out in the 8th. Here's what happened thereafter: Walk, stolen base, stolen base, groundout getting that runner home (6-4 Yankees), home run (6-5 Yankees), walk, error, stolen base, walk.

Cliche Alert: Walks can kill you.

This time, we could have used Girardi panicking and pulling a pitcher after 2 mistakes. But he didn't. He waited until it was too late to bring Chapman in for the 8th inning. And Chapman allowed a double that brought home the tying and, as it turned out, winning runs.

Naturally, the Yankees didn't score in the top of the 9th. Aaron Judge popped up to 1st base. He was pinch-hitting for Chris Carter. Begging the question, What the hell was Carter doing in the game, and Judge not, at the start? The much-hyped Frazier -- you'd think he'd already done as much as Judge, with all the hype he's gotten -- also popped to 1st. And Brett Gardner singled to left -- and was thrown out trying to stretch it to a double. I admire his enthusiasm, if not his judgment.

Final score: Astros 7, Yankees 6. WP: Dayan Diaz (1-1). SV: Ken Giles (19). LP: Betances (3-3). But, again, the loss should be charged to Girardi -- this time, for his lineup and his pitching screwups.

In the immortal words of Nancy Kerrigan, "Why? Why? Why?"

The series concludes this afternoon. Luis Severino starts against Mike Fiers. Chris Carter is in the lineup again. And Girardi is still the manager. And it's away to the Astros.

I'm assuming this game is lost, unless and until it's won.

Probably a safe default position for every game Girardi manages for the rest of his life.

Yankees Mess With Texas, Clobber Astros

The Houston Astros have the best record in baseball, mainly due to their terrific pitching, The Yankees went into last night's opener of a 3-game series with them at Minute Maid Park having lost 12 out of their last 16, and reeling with injuries.

Cliche Alert, and cue John Sterling talking to Suzyn Waldman: "You know, Suzyn, you just can't predict baseball."

The Astros took a 1-0 lead in the 1st inning, but the Yankees tied it in the 3rd. The Astros took the lead back in the 4th, 3-1. But that would be it for them.

Then came the top of the 6th, and the Yankees unloaded the lumber. Didi Gregorius led off with an infield single. Chase Headley struck out, but Lance McCullers Jr. walked Austin Romine.

Astro manager Chad Hinch brought Michael Feliz in to relieve. This was a Girardi binder-style panic move, and I wouldn't have expected it from Hinch, who's a pretty smart guy. After all, he's 1 of only 5 managers ever to take the Astros to the postseason. The others are Bill Virdon (1980 and '81), Hal Lanier (1986), Larry Dierker (1997, '98, '99 and 2001) and Phil Garner (2004 and '05).

Ronald Torreyes greeted Feliz with a looping single that scored Gregorius. 3-2 Astros. Tyler wade struck out, but Chris Carter...

Yes, the Yankees' injury situation has led them to bring back Carter, who had been designated for assignment. And you thought we were free at last.

Carter brought the inning's 2nd infield single, scoring Romine and tying the game. Then Brett Gardner gave the Yankees the lead, singling home Torreyes. Then Jacoby Ellsbury singled, scoring Carter, and the runners took an extra base on an error. Then a ball four to Aaron Judge turned into a wild pitch, scoring Gardner. 6-3 Yankees.

There was more to come in the 7th. Hedy led off with a single. (That's "Headley!") Romine singled. Torreyes drew a walk to load the bases. Wade grounded into a fielder's choice, with the play going home to eliminate Headley. Carter struck out -- as he does. But the bases were still loaded, and Brett Gardner welcomed us to the deli, with a grand salami, his 15th home run of the season. 10-3 Yankees.

That's 2 big innings. Thank you, sirs, may I have another? Apparently, I may: Torreyes and Wade both walked to start the 9th. Carter, Mr. Consistently Inconsistent, went back to being good, nearly hitting one out, settling for a double that scored Torreyes. Gardner hit a sacrifice fly, scoring Wade, Gardy's 6th RBI of the game. An Ellsbury groundout brought Carter home to round out the Bronx Bomber scoring.

This was a rare game in which Joe Girardi used only 2 pitchers. He started Michael Pineda, and let him pitch 6 innings, allowing 3 runs, only 1 of them earned, on 7 hits, and (I love seeing this stat by a Yankee pitcher) no walks, with 3 strikeouts.

Having thrown only 91 pitches, Pineda could have pitched the 7th inning. And, at that point, the Yankees were only leading by 3 runs, hardly an insurmountable lead -- especially given that Minute Maid Park is nicknamed "The Juice Box," because of its corporate name and the fact that it's a bandbox. It was originally named Enron Field, and nicknamed Ten Run Field.

Girardi let Bryan Mitchell pitch the rest of the way. This was clearly a move designed to give Mitchell some confidence. He did not pitch badly: He went 3 innings, throwing 30 pitches, 24 of them for strikes. He allowed 1 run on 2 hits and no walks. Were those same proportions spread over 6 innings -- 2 runs on 4 hits and no walks, although it's hard to imagine a pitcher throwing only 60 pitches in 6 innings -- we'd call it a "quality start," and we'd be right.

Mitchell's performance, although good, demonstrates the oddity of the save rule. According to the rule, a pitcher is credited with a save if his team wins the game, he is their last pitcher, he cannot be credited as the winning pitcher, and 1 of these 3 guidelines is met:

1. He comes in with a lead of no more than 3 runs, and pitches at least 1 inning. Or...
2. He comes in with the tying run either on base, at bat, or on deck. Or...
3. "He pitches effectively for at least three innings."

That's the exact language: He "pitches effectively," and does so for at least 3 innings, which Mitchell did by pretty much any standard.

In other words, If the Yankees led 20-0 after 6 innings, and Girardi brought Tyler Clippard in to pitch the 7th, and let him also pitch the 8th and the 9th, and the final score turned out to be Yankees 25, Astros 24 -- an incredibly unlikely occurrence, but with Girardi, and with Clippard, we can't say it's impossible -- then, despite having allowed 24 runs in 3 innings, given the facts that the Yankees won the game, Clippard was the last Yankee pitcher, wasn't the winning pitcher, and the Yankees never lost the lead, meant that he could be credited with a save.

Granted, that's not what happened here. Still, the save is a bit of a weird category.

At any rate, it's a win, and a very impressive one, given the opponent and the fact that it was on the road. Yankees 13, Astros 4. WP: Pineda (8-4). SV: Mitchell (1). LP: Feliz (4-2). I love it when somebody messes with Texas.

The Boston Red Sox also won last night, and they won this afternoon as well. Currently, the Yankees are a game and a half behind the Sox in the American League East, but, with 3 games in hand, begin July still even with them in the all-important loss column.

The series continues tonight. Jordan Montgomery starts for us, Francis Martes for them.

Turning Point Game in Yankees' Favor?

Last night's opener of a 3-game home series with the Texas Rangers was the Yankee season thus far in a nutshell, and it may be a turning point in their favor.

Masahiro Tanaka started for the Yankees, and, flying in the face of his struggles, he laid down the best start any Yankee pitcher has had this season. He was actually trusted to pitch 8 full innings, to throw an even 100 pitches.

Then the closer, Aroldis Chapman, was brought in for the 9th inning, with the score tied, not a save situation.

I began to wonder if Joe Girardi had been fired -- or if he'd finally burned the damn binder. Either one would be fine with me at this rate.

Tanaka went 8 innings, allowing no runs on 3 hits and 2 walks, striking out 9. He was brilliant. It's as if someone had kidnapped him and tied him up in a basement, and had been impersonating him all season long, and he'd finally broken out and overcome the impersonator, and shown us the real thing.

The problem was, the Yankees weren't getting any runs, either. Against another Japanese pitcher, Yu Darvish, they wasted a leadoff single by Brett Gardner in the 1st inning, didn't get another baserunner until the 5th, wiped out a Gary Sanchez single when Didi Gregorius grounded into a double play, and the only other baserunner was Sanchez again in the 8th, hit by a pitch with 1 out, and then Gregorius and Chris Carter struck out.

Then came the 9th inning. Chapman struck Shin-Soo Choo out, but gave up a single to Elvis Andrus, hit Nomar Mazara with a pitch, and let Andrus steal 3rd base. With the dangerous Adrian Beltre up, Chapman threw a low fastball, and Beltre missed for strike 3 -- but Sanchez couldn't handle it. Passed ball. Andrus scored. 1-0 Rangers.

Chapman got Rougned Odor, the man with the worst name in baseball, to ground out, but all the air had been let out of the new Yankee Stadium.

With 1 out in the bottom of the 9th, Gardner came up against Ranger closer Matt Bush, and roped a drive to right field. It was measured at 343 feet. It was a genuine Yankee Stadium (any version) short-porch drive. But it counted just the same. Tie ballgame.

Girardi called on Chad Green for the 10th inning, but he didn't have it, and an error by Gregorius didn't help. Yankees Twitter was full of comments like, "I can't believe we're going to blow this game twice." Chasen Shreve was brought on, and he got the last 2 outs, including getting out of a bases-loaded jam.

Bottom of the 10th. Starlin Castro grounded to short. But Sanchez singled to center. Gregorius did the same, sending the normally slow Sanchez to 3rd with only 1 out.

The batter was Chris Carter. Because of course it was. Pretty much every Yankee Fan on Twitter knew he was going to strike out, instead of get the ball out of the infield to win the game. He did.

What no one seemed to know was that the 5-foot-8 (maybe), 155-pound Ronald Torreyes would loop one to center.

Cue John Sterling: "Ballgame over! Yankees win! Theeeeeeee Yankees win!" Yankees 2, Rangers 1. WP: Shreve (2-1). No save. LP: Bush (2-3).

With the win, the Yankees remain tied with the Boston Red Sox for the American League East lead, ahead by 1 game in the loss column.

*

So Girardi trusted his starter, instead of going reliever-to-reliever as his binder tells him. That's a step in the right direction.

He trusted his closer in a tie game. Also a step in the right direction, even if Chapman didn't have his best stuff last night.

And there was one more big development, which Yankee Fans have been demanding: Brian Cashman, the dumbest general manager in baseball, finally came to his senses, and designated Carter for assignment. That strikeout in the 10th was his last at-bat in a Yankee uniform.

The much-hyped Tyler Austin has been called up from Scranton. He only batted .241 in last season's callup (20-for-83), but with 5 home runs and 12 RBIs. He was batting .300 at Scranton, but Yankee Fans wanted him simply because he offered a ray of hope for replacing Carter. It was all about replacing Carter, and nothing about what Austin himself has actually done this far.

I approve, but, call me crazy, but, to me, actual major league performance is more important than hype about "prospects." We shall see about Austin.

But Carter, who led the National League with 41 home runs last season, makes it clear just how superior the American League is.

The series continues this afternoon. Luis Cessa starts for the Bronx Bombers, Austin Bibens-Dirkx for the Strangers.

How Many More Times... Treat Me the Way That Joe Do?

To paraphrase an old blues song (Howlin' Wolf, adapted by Led Zeppelin), How many more times... treat me the way that Joe do?

Joe Girardi couldn't help but mess up the bullpen last night, because of how he'd messed it up the night before, rendering Dellin Betances, his only pitcher both uninjured and a viable closer, unavailable.

The only way the Yankees were going to win last night's game with the Oakland Athletics at the Oakland Coliseum was if starting pitcher Luis Severino pitched a complete game, pitched well, and get the necessary run support.

He only went 6 innings, allowing 4 runs, 4 hits, 4 walks. So Girardi had to send Chasen Shreve out to pitch the 7th, and he allowed another run. So Girardi had to send Jonathan Holder out to pitch the 8th, and he blew a 6-5 lead.

Aaron Judge hit his 23rd home run of the season. Chris Carter hit his 8th. Judge, Starlin Castro and Ronald Torreyes each got 2 hits.

But because Aroldis Chapman was hurt (though it's still being said that he'll be activated tomorrow), and Brian Cashman traded Andrew Miller for some as-yet-useless prospects last Summer, and Girardi had rendered Betances unavailble, and even Adam Warren (of whom I am no fan) was unavailable due to an apparently minor injury, the Yankees scored 6 runs on the road and it wasn't going to be enough.

A's 7, Yankees 6. WP: Daniel Coulombe (1-1). SV: Santiago Casilla (11). LP: Holder (1-1). And, with the Boston Red Sox winning last night, the Yankees' lead in the American League East shrank to 1 game.

That's 4 straight losses because of Girardi's bullpen idiocy. Not 4 such losses all season: The last four games in a row ruined that way.

How many more times, Joe?

Hal Steinbrenner, how many more games are you going to let Binder Boy blow because he can't manage a pitching staff?

Maybe he's just waiting until we get back home to fire Girardi. I wouldn't. I'd say, "Here's your Samsonite, sucker, what's your hurry?" I'd pay for his separate flight back. Hell, I'd give him a "Bobby Bonilla contract," just to make him go the hell away!

The series continues at 4:05 (our time) this afternoon, with Masahiro Tanaka (who hasn't needed a good start this badly since the 2015 Wild Card game) starting for us, Jesse Hahn for the A's.

Fire Joe Girardi. Do It Today, Before He Blows It Again.

2:43 AM, Eastern Time. 11:43 PM, Pacific Time, which was the time where the game was actually played. That's what time last night's game ended.

As far as I'm concerned, if you're going to lose, at least have the decency to do it in the regulation 9 innings, instead of stringing us along.

Also as far as I'm concerned, Joe Girardi needed to be fired after the failed season of 2013. A case could have been made for firing him as far back as after the ignominious exit from the 2011 Playoffs. Nevertheless, here we are on June 16, 2017, and he is still fucking up the Yankees' pitching situation.

Jordan Montgomery started for the Yankees last night, in the opener of a 4-game series against the Oakland Athletics at the Oakland Coliseum. He did not have good stuff, allowing 3 runs in the 1st 2 innings, before settling down a bit, then allowing a 4th run in the 6th. Girardi brought Chad Green in, and he allowed another run in the 7th. He brought Tyler Clippard in, and he allowed another run in the 8th.

The Yankees closed to within 4-3 in the 6th, 5-4 in the 7th, and 6-5 in the 8th, thanks to the 7th home run of the season by Chris Carter -- who raised his on-base percentage to over .300.

Are you noticing a pattern here? Every time the Yankees had an inning in which they scored, Girardi changed pitchers, and lost another run. This is by-the-binder managing, and it is reckless as hell. It is just... plain... stupid. It does not work. It wastes pitchers.

Look, I understand taking Montgomery out. He didn't have a good game. I understand putting Green in. In spite of having allowed a run, he did throw 2/3rds of his pitches, 14 out of 21, for strikes. But Clippard has been horrible. Don't let that 2.30 ERA fool you: He has not gotten the job done.

Clippard was so bad last night! (How bad was he?) He was so bad, Girardi had to bring Dellin Betances in to get the last 2 outs in the 8th, because Clippard could only get 1 out with 14 pitches.

Somebody on Twitter told me last night that the pitching was "fine." No, it was not fine. They allowed 6 runs in the 1st 8 innings to the Oakland A's.

Not the 1972-74 World Champion "Swingin' A's" of Reggie Jackson, Joe Rudi, Sal Bando and Gene Tenace.

Not the 1988-90 Pennant-winning "Bash Brothers" A's of Mark McGwire, Jose Canseco, Rickey Henderson, Dave Henderson, Carney Lansford and the veteran but still powerful Dave Parker.

Not even the 2000-02 Division-winning A's of Jason and Jeremy Giambi, Miguel Tejada, Ben Grieve, Eric Chavez, Matt Stairs and Terence Long.

These are the 28-38, worst-record-in-the-American League, today's A's.

No, the pitching was not "fine" last night.

Nor was the hitting fine. The Yankees left the bases loaded in the 1st inning, stranded men on 2nd & 3rd in the 4th, stranded men on 1st & 2nd in the 6th, stranded a man on 2nd in the 7th, stranded a man on 1st with 1 out in the 8th, and stranded men on 1st & 2nd in the 9th. This game should never have gone to extra innings, and it wouldn't have, if the Yankees had gotten even 1 of those men home.

It still shouldn't have mattered: If Girardi had a goddamned clue about how to handle a pitching staff, none of those runs would have been necessary, because, at worst, the Yankees would have won 6-5 in 9 innings.

Betances was clearly gassed. And, having thrown 39 pitches last night, probably unavailable for tonight's game. He got out of a bases-loaded jam in the 9th to send the game to extra innings. With 1 out in the top of the 10th, Brett Gardner singled. Rob Refsnyder singled him to 3rd. Refsnyder took 2nd on fielder's indifference. Aaron Judge drew a walk to load the bases with only 1 out. Starlin Castro flew to right, and Gardner tagged up and scored. 7-6, the Yankees' 1st lead of the game.

Getting a run here was a must. As it turned out, getting 1 wasn't enough. With 2 outs, and men on 1st & 3rd, Matt Holliday struck out to end it.

Still, it looked like the Yankees were going to win. Until, that is, Girardi relieved Betances (which he had to do) with Giovanny Gallegos (which you should never do).

The words of Papa Bear from The Berenstain Bears come to mind: "Yes, that it was you should not do. Now let that be a lesson to you."

Gallegos got the 1st 2 outs. Things looked good. But then he gave up a single to Rajai Davis. Chad Pinder -- no relation to Branden Pinder, the horrible former Yankee pitcher, who would probably have been in this game had the Yankees not designated him for assignment due to injury after last season -- doubled, getting Davis to 3rd.

Girardi ordered Jed Lowrie intentionally walked, to set up the out at any base. Cliche alert: Walks can kill you. Khris Davis hit a bloop single to center, scoring the tying and winning runs.

A's 8, Yankees 7. WP: Liam Hendriks (3-1). No save. LP: Gallegos (0-1, now with a 7.15 ERA).

On Twitter, some Yankee Fans were blaming Castro, whose sac fly had given the Yankees the lead, for mishandling the blooper, for the defeat. That's kind of like blaming the security guards at the Empire State Building for King Kong taking Ann Darrow up there.

No, this game, the 3rd straight game lost by the Yankees, is the responsibility of our idiot manager, Joey Binders. After the game, he said:

We kept fighting back. We got behind then we tied it up, got behind, tied it up. We did it a bunch of times. It hurts because it's a matter of a couple inches that you lose that game by and it's frustrating. 

Yes, we lost that game by a couple of inches. The length of your brain. Or, perhaps, the width of your binder.

In addition, both Gary Sanchez and Aaron Hicks left the game due to apparent injuries. This after CC Sabathia was injured 2 nights before, in Anaheim. If they're both out, that's another pair of holes that Girardi and the equally execrable general manager Brian Cashman need to fill. Not including the holes in their respective heads.

The Boston Red Sox also lost last night, so the Yankees remain in 1st place by 2 games, by 3 in the loss column.

They'd be 5 games up. 6 in the loss column, if Girardi had simply used his eyes to manage, instead of that damn binder, over just the last 3 nights alone. That's not even counting his other fuckups this season.

Brian Cashman, Lonn Trost, Randy Levine, Hal Steinbrenner, Hank Steinbrenner, whoever might read these words, I implore you: Fire Joe Girardi. Do it today. Before he blows it again.

Or, as Samuel L. Jackson would say, "Enough is enough! I have had it with this motherfucking manager on this motherfucking ballclub!"

Sabathia's Injury More Worrying That Girardi's Latest Idiocy

The Yankees went into last night's game with the Los Angeles... aw, screw it. In Anaheim with a 6-game winning streak.

But you win games with good pitching and good hitting. The former, we got. The latter, not so much.

CC Sabathia started, and after 4 innings, had allowed 1 run (unearned) on 3 hits and a walk, with 4 strikeouts. So far, very good.

Then CC left the game. A painful hamstring. Oh no.

He'd pitched to a 0.99 ERA in his last 6 starts, including this one. If he's unavailable, especially long-term, that's a serious problem in the bid for Title 28. We already need 1 starting pitcher, since we can't be sure that Masahiro Tanaka is straightened out. We don't need to need another.

Joe Girardi gave the ball to Yeovany Gallegos. Yankee Fans everywhere said, "I can't look... " but he was fine, allowing just 1 baserunner in 2 innings. Adam Warren: Same, but he pitched a scoreless 7th inning.

A Brett Gardner single in the 5th brought home a run, and Chase Headley hit a home run in the top of the 7th, his 4th homer of the year. Going to the bottom of the 8th, it was 2-1 Yankees.

Unfortunately, instead of using his brain, Girardi used his binder, and brought Tyler Clippard in to pitch the bottom of the 8th. The 1st batter was Eric Young Jr. of Piscataway, son of Eric Young Sr. of New Brunswick. Each was one of the greatest athletes ever to come out of Middlesex County, New Jersey. Eric Jr. hit a home run to tie the game. Nice move, Girardi.

Headley got to 2nd base in the 9th, but was stranded. Girardi burned another pitcher by bringing in Jonathan Holder, but he got through it, and the game went to extra innings. The Yankees went down 1-2-3 in the 10th. Girardi burned another pitcher by bringing in Chasen Shreve. He barely got out of a jam.

Then came the top of the 11th. With 1 out, Gary Sanchez drew a walk. This is where we should have had the cliche alert that walks can kill you. Didi Gregorius doubled to deep right. Sanchez should have scored, but he couldn't. It was 2nd and 3rd with 1 out.

Headley was intentionally walked, so that the Angels could face Chris Carter. Chris Carter, who led the National League with 41 home runs last season. Chris Carter, who is batting .207 in the American League this season, on-base percentage .298.

He led the NL in homers last season. This season, Chase Headley is being intentionally walked to face him. Chase. Headley.

Carter could have made Angels manager Mike Scioscia look very foolish. All he had to do was get the ball out of the infield. A decent fly out would have gotten Ronald Torreyes home.

Oh yeah: Girardi was the manager who looked very foolish, because he didn't put Torreyes in as a pinch-runner for Sanchez until Carter came up. Why didn't he do that after Sanchez' walk? It would probably have won the game.

Carter popped up. So did Gardner. End of threat. Bottom of the 11th, Shreve proved that, yes, walks can kill you, especially leadoff walks. Walk, flyout, stolen base, groundout moves runner to 3rd, walk, and Young hurt the Yankees again with a grounder to short, and Gregorius had no play anywhere.

Angels 3, Yankees 2. WP: Kenyan Middleton (2-0). No save. LP: Shreve (1-1), although the loss should be charged to Girardi -- at the very least, to Clippard.

Losing CC is quite a worry. The Yankees have until his next scheduled start, on Sunday, to decide whether to put him on the Disabled List (retroactive to today). He says he feels better today. We'll see, but we may not want to see.

Sunday is also when Aroldis Chapman could come off the DL. He pitched a simulated game in Tampa yesterday, and was fine. Not that he would have made much of a difference last night, as Girardi would have either not pitched him at all (the "You don't pitch Mariano in a tie game" rule, which is in no book, except maybe the damn binder), or pitched him for 1 inning and then put out Shreve or some other lesser pitcher.

The series concludes tonight. Michael Pineda starts against Matt Shoemaker. Then, the Yankees go up the Coast to Oakland.

Loss to Sox Gives Yankees Big Decisions to Make

Last night, the Yankees began a 3-game home series against the Boston Red Sox. If you're going to have a bad game, against The Scum at Yankee Stadium is not the game in which to have it.

But it looks like Masahiro Tanaka doesn't have it at all anymore. Like Matt Harvey of the Mets, he was once, arguably, the best pitcher in baseball, let alone in New York, but now can't win to save his life.

He pitched 5 innings, allowing 5 runs on 5 hits, 3 of them home runs, although he did walk only 1 batter. His ERA for this season is now 6.55. It's not that he has no control, he's just getting hit hard.

The bullpen did its job: Between them, Tommy Layne, Chad Green (most of it, 3 1/3rd innings) and Chasen Shreve pitched 4 shutout innings, allowing only 1 hit and 1 walk. But the Yankee bats couldn't quite back him up.

At the top of the order, Brett Gardner and Gary Sanchez went 0-for-9 between them, although Gardner did draw a walk. After a great run late last season, Sanchez is now batting .248. Chase Headley went 0-for-3 with a walk, dropping his batting average to .225 and his on-base percentage to .300.

Chris Carter hit a home run in the 5th, his 5th of the season. But he's another guy who's really dropped off: He hit 41 home runs for the Milwaukee Brewers last season, to lead the National League; but, in the American League this season, he's batting .183 with a .278 on-base percentage.

Don't ever again tell me the NL is the better League: The AL is a lot harder.

Carter's home run was a grand slam, but it provided all the Yankee runs last night. The Yankees stranded a man on 1st with 2 out in the 1st inning and again in the 3rd, a man on 1st with 1 out in the 2nd and again in the 4th, a man on 2nd with 2 out in the 5th and again in the 7th, a man on 3rd with 1 out and 1st & 3rd with 2 out in the 8th, and blew men on 1st & 2nd with nobody out with a double play in the 6th. And, needing 1 run to send the game to extra innings, they went down 1-2-3 in the bottom of the 9th.

Final score: Red Sox 5, Yankees 4. WP: Drew Pomeranz (6-3). SV: Craig Kimbrel (17). LP: Tanaka (5-6).

With Chance Adams pitching very well at Triple-A Scranton, much-hyped prospect Gleyber Torres getting off to a good start while playing 3rd base there, and Greg Bird now there as he works he way through injury rehab, the Yankees have decisions to make soon. Adams to replace Tanaka in the rotation, at least for a while? Torres to replace Headley? Bird to replace Carter?

Meanwhile, we have 2 more games with The Scum this week. Tonight, CC Sabathia starts against Rick Porcello. I saw a stat a few minutes ago that says that CC is 5-0 this season after a Yankee loss. That's starting to sound like 1978 Ron Guidry. Except that CC weighs twice as much as Guidry: 320 as opposed to 160.

Then again, he pitches better when he eats well, so let the big dog eat, and let's get some runs! Beat The Scum!

Girardi Throws ANOTHER Game Away With Stupid Pitching Changes

Chalk up another loss to Joe Girardi's binder-inspired idiotic pitching changes.

True, you can't win if you don't get men on base and then drive them home. And, as they did last week in Kansas City, the Yankees had trouble doing that against the Royals' Danny Duffy and his slider. They got 8 hits and 4 walks, but the only runs came on solo home runs, by Aaron Hicks (in the 4th inning, his 8th of the season) and Chris Carter (in the 5th, his 4th).

Nevertheless, it gave Jordan Montgomery a 2-0 lead that he took into the 7th inning. Girardi actually left him in for the top of the 7th, probably because he hadn't thrown 100 pitches yet. He got the 1st out of the inning, then surrendered a home run to Lorenzo Cain. (Sounds like the name of a character in a Bob Dylan song -- Bob turns 76 today.)

Montgomery got the 2nd out. The next batter was Salvador Perez, who, like Montgomery, is righthanded. So Girardi's tendency to bring a lefty pitcher on to face 1 batter because the batter is a lefty did not apply. There was no one on base. Montgomery had made 1 mistake, but he'd quickly rebounded from it. He'd allowed only 1 hit besides that homer. He hadn't walked anybody. He'd struck 6 men out. He'd thrown 71 of his 98 pitches for strikes. He was not struggling. He was not tired. He was doing very, very well. There was absolutely no sane reason to remove Montgomery.

But that 2nd out of the inning gave him 98 pitches, and Girardi gotta Girardi. He removed Montgomery for Adam Warren. As you know, Bob, Adam Warren can't fucking pitch, especially with a 1-run lead. Warren gave up a single to Perez, and then a home run to Jorge Bonifacio. 3-2 Royals.

The stupidity, from both Girardi and his relievers, continued. Jonathan Holder allowed 2 runs, and Chasen Shreve allowed another. But it didn't make any difference, as the Yankee bats went cold. Royals 6, Yankees 2. WP: Duffy (4-3). No save. LP: Warren (1-1).

This loss isn't on Warren, because he's a known commodity. A known lousy commodity. This loss is attributable to Girardi.

This loss is also attributable to Brian Cashman, who traded Aroldis Chapman away for 4 players, the only 1 of which then in the majors was Warren, who had already failed as a Yankee once.

I keep getting told to believe in the "prospects" that Cashman got, especially since he got Chapman back. Well, Chapman isn't helping us while he's on the Disabled List. But Warren's lousy pitching, and Girardi's and Cashman's reliances on it, lost us this game.

Anyway, the Yankees caught a break, because the Baltimore Orioles lost last night, and they've already lost this afternoon. The Yankees go into the 3rd game of this series with the Royals with a 2-game lead over the O's, 3 in the all-important loss column.

Tonight, Luis Severino starts against Jason Hammel. And I want to see the Yankees score a bunch of runs. I also want to see someone burn that damned binder!

Tomorrow afternoon is the finale, with Masahiro Tanaka opposed by Miguel Almonte.

Come on you Pinstripes!

Homers Back CC, Yanks Crown Royals

Last night, the Yankees began a 3-game series in Kansas City against the Royals. CC Sabathia started. He'd begun the season with 4 straight good starts, but had since followed them with 4 bad ones. The Yankees needed the Big Fella to turn it around. He did. He took a shutout into the 7th inning, allowing just 5 hits and 2 walks, with 4 strikeouts.

He was backed up by home runs by Gary Sanchez in the 3rd inning (his 3rd of the season) and Chris Carter in the 4th (his 2nd). That gave him a 5-0 lead. Jacoby Ellsbury had an RBI single in the 7th, and a Matt Holliday fielder's choice brought another run home in the 8th.

Tyler Clippard pitched scoreless ball through the 8th. With a 7-run lead, there was no save situation, so the Yankees didn't need someone to step in for the injured Aroldis Chapman. Instead, pretty much any pitcher would do. Joe Girardi chose Jonathan Holder, and, while he did allow a run on 2 hits and a walk, there was no meltdown.

Yankees 7, Royals 1. WP: Sabathia (3-2). No save. LP: Jason Hammel (1-5).

The series continues tonight. Michael Pineda starts against Jonathan Vargas.

The Yankees go into the game still half a game, a full game in the loss column, ahead of the Baltimore Orioles in the American League East. The Boston Red Sox are 4 back, the Tampa Bay Rays 5 1/2, and the Toronto Blue Jays 8.

The Yankees still face approximately another month without Chapman. If they don't fall apart too much, and can stay within, say, 4 games of 1st place, they should be all right.

And it has to be the Division. After all, as we've seen, it's better to have the Division title than the Wild Card. Since the Wild Card was established in 1995 (well, 1994, but we know what happened that year), the Yankees are 21-8 in postseason rounds when they win the Division, and 1-5 when they don't. (The lone win being in the 2010 AL Division Series over the Minnesota Twins.)

Hopefully, by now, Girardi -- and general manager Brian Cashman -- have learned just how important winning the Division actually is.

Yankees Lose Opener and Optimism; Rubén Amaro Sr., 1936-2017

The Yankees had the best record in baseball in Spring Training: 24-9. The hitters were hitting well, the pitchers were getting the job done, the fielders were fine.

There was hope that, this time, we might not get off to a bad start, might look like contenders, might not need further rebuilding, might actually do something this season without waiting for all those "prospects" for whom general manager Brian Cashman threw away our Playoff chance last season.

And all that optimism from Spring Training didn't even get out of the 1st inning that actually counted.

It is true that the relievers that manager Joe Girardi used in the regular-season opener against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida yesterday - Tommy Layne, Adam Warren, Jonathan Holder and Chasen Shreve - pitched 5 1/3rd innings, allowing no runs on 5 hits and just 1 walk.

It is also true that Masahiro Tanaka, on whom we are counting to be the ace of a title contender, and who had looked great in March, had absolutely nothing. He allowed 3 runs in the 1st inning, 2 in the 2nd, and 2 more in the 3rd. It was the worst outing of his major league career.

Starlin Castro and the much-maligned Chase Headley each got 3 hits, including a bunt single by Headley that started a 9th inning comeback, loading the bases with nobody out, but the Yankees only got 1 run out of it, on a pinch-hit sacrifice fly by the newly-acquired slugger Chris Carter.

The Yankees' 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th hitters in the batting order, Gary Sanchez, Greg Bird, the newly-acquired Matt Holliday and Jacoby Ellsbury, went a combined 0-for-16 -- as the guy said in Bull Durham, "a big fucking donut hole for 16." Their only time reaching base was a walk drawn by Bird.

Rays 7, Yankees 3. WP: Chris Archer (1-0). SV: Alex Colome. LP: Tanaka (0-1).

Already, the Yankees are a game out of 1st place.

#GirardiOut #CashmanOut

After a day off today - which is absolutely unnecessary, since the stupid Rays play in a dome - the series resumes tomorrow night. CC Sabathia starts for the Yankees, Jake Odorizzi for the Rays.

*

Rubén Amaro Sr. died this past Friday. Born on January 6, 1936 in Veracruz, Mexico, Rubén Amaro Mora was the son of Santos Amaro, a Cuban right fielder nicknamed "Cangura" who starred in the Mexican League. Ruben was a shortstop, got a cup of coffee with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1958, and came back up with the Philadelphia Phillies in 1960.

In 1964, wearing the Number 20 that the Phils would later retire for Mike Schmidt, he was part of the team that looked like it was going to win the National League Pennant, but lost 10 straight games in late September to blow it. He did, however receive a Gold Glove that season.

Traded to the Yankees in 1966, with the intention of succeeding Tony Kubek, who retired due to a back injury, he collided with left fielder Tom Tresh in his 1st season with them, and was never the same. He played 3 seasons with the Yankees, and 1 more with the California Angels, 1969. He was later the Phillies' 1st base coach, and got a World Series ring with them in 1980. He later worked for the Baseball Assistance Team (BAT), helping indigent players.

"Number 12... Ruben... Amaro... shortstop... Number 12."

-- Bob Sheppard

His son, Rubén Amaro Jr. (known as RAJ), born in Philadelphia while his father played there, and a batboy while his father was a coach there, played as an outfielder on the Stanford University team that won the 1987 College World Series.

He played in the majors in the 1990s, and in 1993, did something his father was unable to do: Win a Pennant with the Phillies. He won another in 1995 with the Cleveland Indians. The son had a slightly higher lifetime batting average than the father: .235 to .234.

Rubén Amaro Jr.

Rubén Jr. later served in the Phils' front office, as assistant general manager under Ed Wade, then Pat Gillick, helping to build the team that won the 2007 NL Eastern Division title and the 2008 World Series. Gillick retired after that Series, and RAJ was promoted to general manager, winning another Pennant in 2009 and Division titles in 2010 and 2011.

Injuries caught up with them the next season, and he was unable to rebuild, and was fired in 2015. He is now the 1st base coach for the Boston Red Sox. Another son of Rubén Sr., Luis Amaro, played in the Phillies' farm system and is currently GM of a team in Venezuela's league.

Rubén Amaro Sr.

Rubén Amaro Sr. was elected to the Mexican Baseball Hall of Fame like his father, and died on Friday, March 31, 2017, in Miami, at the age of 81.

UPDATE: His final resting place is not publicly known.