One of the Worst Performances In Yankee History

Game 5 of the 2024 World Series: Dodgers 7, Yankees 6. One of the worst performances in Yankee history, a set of 4 innings that were worse than the first 3 games combined, as bad as those were.

It started out so well. Aaron Judge and Jazz Chisholm hit back-to-back home runs in the 1st inning, giving the Yankees a 3-0 lead. Alex Verdugo singled Anthony Volpe home in the 2nd, to make it 4-0. Giancarlo Stanton hit one out in the 3rd, making it 5-0. And through the 1st 4 innings, Gerrit Cole had allowed no runs, no hits, just 2 walks. He wasn't overpowering, but he was getting the job done beautifully.

And then came the top of the 5th inning. Yankee Fans who saw this inning will see it in their nightmares until they die:

* Kike Hernández singled to right.

* Tommy Edman hit a fly ball to center field, and Judge dropped it.

* Will Smith grounded to short, but Volpe can't make the double play. Bases loaded, nobody out.

* Cole struck Gavin Lux out.

* Cole struck Shohei Ohtani out. He got to within 1 strike of getting out of it with no runs.

* Mookie Betts grounded to 1st. But 1st baseman Anthony Rizzo was too far from the base to make the play. And so was Cole, so Rizzo couldn't throw to him. It was like Bill Buckner and Bob Stanley in Game 6 of the 1986 World Series, except that, this time, the 1st baseman did get the grounder. Stanley often gets blamed for not covering 1st, but Cole wouldn't have made it in time, either. This was not bad defense, it was just bad luck, and good hitting by Betts. Kike scored. 5-1.

* Freddie Freeman, who seemed to be out-hitting not just the Yankees but his own teammates, singled to center, scoring Edman and Smith. 5-3.

* Teoscar Hernández doubled to center, scoring Betts and Freeman. 5-5.

* Max Muncy drew a walk.

* And Kike batted again, grounding to short, and Volpe stepped on 2nd base to force Teoscar out, and finally end the inning. That's 5 runs on 4 hits (1 of them an infield hit), 1 walk and 2 errors.

It would have been understandable if the Yankees were shellshocked by this. But they loaded the bases in the bottom of the 5th -- but couldn't score. Somehow, Cole survived all this, and pitched a 1-2-3 6th inning. He went 6 innings, allowing no earned runs -- 5 unearned.

In the bottom of the 6th, Juan Soto and Judge walked, Chisholm grounded into a force play that eliminated Judge and moved Soto to 3rd, and Stanton flew to center to sacrifice Soto home. Rizzo drew a walk, but Volpe grounded out to end the rally.

It was 6-5 Yankees, and there was hope again. But the shadow of that 5th inning was too large: It didn't feel like all we had to do was get 9 more outs.

Cole and Clay Holmes got through the 7th. But manager Aaron Boone did not leave Holmes in to pitch the 8th, and Tommy Kahnle allowed singles to Kike and Erdman, and walked Smith. Again, bases loaded and nobody out. Boone brought the closer in, Luke Weaver. Lux hit a sac fly to center, scoring Kike. Ohtani was awarded 1st base on a very dubious catcher's interference call. And Betts flew to center, scoring, Edman. 7-6 Dodgers.

Dodger fans have ripped their manager, Dave Roberts, for the Dodgers' shortfalls over the last few years, with their only World Series win being in the "COVID Bubble" year of 2020. But with this "bullpen game," he outmanaged Boone -- or, rather, Boone let Roberts outmanage him.

The Yankees had men on 1st & 2nd with 1 out in the 8th, but didn't score. And they went very quietly in the 9th, with Walker Buehler striking Verdugo out swinging for the final out. The Dodgers had won the World Series in 5 games, despite Clayton Kershaw being injured and unavailable for the postseason. Freeman, of course, was named the Series Most Valuable Player.

For the Dodgers, a glorious moment, an 8th World Series win, 7 if you properly do not count the 1955 title in Brooklyn. For Roberts, total redemption, and putting himself in the conversation for election to the Hall of Fame once he retires. For Ohtani, a title that cements him as a baseball legend, though his own World Series performance was awful. For Freeman, who had previously won the Series with the 2021 Atlanta Braves, and Betts, who had previously won it with the 2018 Boston Red Sox *, possibly raised to the status of future Hall-of-Famer. (They might have gone on to make it, anyway.)

For the Yankees, a season of big moments, including the 1st American League Pennant in 15 years. And yet, it cannot be termed anything other than a failure. They scored just 7 runs in the 1st 3 games, won Game 4, took a big lead in Game 5 to forge some hope of the greatest comeback in baseball history... and then had the nightmare inning. Once again, the fundamentals were bad. The Yankees took out the fun, and left "da mentals."

To find a worse inning in postseason play, you have to go back to the 1929 World Series, Game 4, bottom of the 7th. It began Chicago Cubs 8, Philadelphia Athletics 0. The inning and the game ended A's 10, Cubs 8, and the A's won the Series the next day.

Of the 28 Major League Baseball teams that didn't get this far, most if not all of them would be content with what the Yankees did this season. But those of us who are Yankee Fans cannot be content with this.

Yes, the umpiring was bad. It was also bad in the ALDS against Kansas City, and in the ALCS against Cleveland, and we won, anyway. It shouldn't have been an issue this time. The Yankees had their chances, and blew them.

What can you do, except hope that team management will make the necessary changes for next season. But they won't, will they?

It Is Folly

One does not simply look at the Yankees' current record of 55-37, and presume that they're having a good season. It is folly.

From March 28 to June 14, the Yankees went 50-22, about as good as can be hoped for. Then, the annual injury crisis kicked in, and they've gone 5-15, the worst performance in baseball.

And it hasn't just been the injuries meaning that the pitchers haven't had the support they needed. The remaining pitchers haven't supported the remaining hitters, either.

This is not 1976, when the Cincinnati Reds were the Big Red Machine, and the Yankees were a World Series-worthy team coming off a physically and emotionally exhausting American League Championship Series. Nor is this 1990, when the Reds were a World Championship team -- with manager Lou Piniella, right fielder Paul O'Neill, and 2nd baseman Mariano Duncan, 6 years before O'Neill and Duncan helped the Yankees get back -- and the Yankees were a last-place team. But it sure seemed like it, as the Reds took 3 straight at Yankee Stadium II.

The Yankees lost the Tuesday night game, 5-4, because Luis Gil, while looking better over the 1st 3 innings, allowed a run in the 4th, and then allowed 4 in the 5th. The Yankees scored 3 in the 6th, and got a solo home run from Aaron Judge 7th. After that homer, they went 0-for-7.

Carlos Rodón was improved on Wednesday night, but it didn't matter. The Yankees had an inning-ending double play in the 7th, stranded 2 runners in the 8th, and had another double play in the 9th, and lost, 3-2.

On Thursday afternoon, a hot 4th of July, Marcus Stroman was okay for the 1st 4 innings. But the Reds scored 3 in the 5th, and 3 more in the 7th off Tim Hill (Who?) and Jake Cousins (Also, Who?). Ben Rice hit his 1st major league home run, and Austin Wells and Juan Soto also homered. But it was almost a repeat of what happened after Judge's homer on Monday: Soto's hit his homer in the 7th, and, after that, the Yankees went 1-for-8.

*

Sometimes, the Boston Red Sox coming in is just what the Yankees need. Not this time. On Friday night, Nestor Cortés bounced back with 6 strong innings, and the Yankees took a 3-0 lead in the 4th inning. That lead held going into the top of the 9th. Clay Holmes got the 1st 2 outs. But he allowed a single to Dominic Smith, and a home run to Masataka Yoshida, and the game was tied. The Yankees could do nothing in the bottom of the 9th, and the game went to extra innings. Ceddanne Rafaela hit a home run off Tommy Kahnle, which made it 5-3 counting the "ghost runner." Despite having Soto and Judge coming up, the Yankees failed in the bottom of the 10th.

This happened. At home. Against The Scum. It was arguably the worst loss of the season. A bounce-back was needed. Preferably, a bounce-back that would spark the team on a new run of success.

Ace Gerrit Cole still is not fully back from injury. He allowed 5 runs in less than 5 innings on Saturday afternoon. But Rice became the 1st Yankee rookie ever to hit 3 home runs in 1 game. One came in a 7-run 5th inning, another in a 4-run 7th inning. Yankees 14, Red Sox 4. Tim Hill, one of the aforementioned "Who?"s, was the winning pitcher.

Someone online said that Rice is what we hoped Greg Bird would be. Time will tell if he actually is a viable star, or a flash in the pan.

That felt like the kind of bounce-back win that would spark a new streak, 7 in a row, 10 out of 12, 15 out of 20. No such luck. Gil pitched very well over the 1st 6 innings. But the usual Yankee move of pulling a starter too early didn't happen, and he was left in for the 7th, and he allowed a home run. Still, 1 run over 7 innings is acceptable -- if your hitters hit.

They didn't. Here's all the Yankee baserunners in the game: A single by Trent Grisham in the 3rd, eliminated on a double play; a single by Oswaldo Cabrera in the 6th, eliminated on a double play; in the very next at-bat, a double by DJ LeMahieu, followed by a strikeout by Rice; a double by Soto in the 7th, left stranded; and a walk by Cabrera in the 8th, also stranded.

Relievers Luke Weaver and Michael Tomkin each allowed a solo home run, and the Yankees lost, 3-0. 1-5 on the week. Folly.

*

It is July 8, with the regular season 57 percent played. The Yankees are 55-37. They are 3 games behind the Baltimore Orioles in the American League Eastern Division, 4 games in the all-important loss column. The surging Red Sox are 7 1/2 behind the O's, the Tampa Bay Rays 13, the Toronto Blue Jays 16.

If the current standings end up being the final standings, the Yankees will have the 4th seed in the AL Playoffs. But can we really count on that? From March 28 to June 14, the Yankees played at a 112-50 pace. Then, the annual injury crisis kicked in, and they've played at a 41-121 pace. That can't go on.

When the Yankees score at least 5 runs, they are 42-5. When they don't, they are 13-32. Not having Giancarlo Stanton, Anthony Rizzo and Jasson Domínguez available has really hurt. Having Gleyber Torres (mostly) available, but not getting the job done, and having 2 catchers who can't hit, has compounded things.

Without that kind of lineup protection, Alex Verdugo and Anthony Volpe have gone into slumps. Really, it's been just Judge and Soto doing the business. Everybody else has been failing. Everybody else has been folly.

Here's the latest on the significant players out due to injury, in descending order of believed availability:

* Gleyber Torres: Day-to-day. He and his .297 on-base percentage should be ready to go tomorrow night.

* Giancarlo Stanton: He resumed hitting on Tuesday. He could be back right after the All-Star Break.

* Scott Effross: The pitcher is currently in minor-league rehab. It would probably be best to leave him there until returning from the All-Star Break.

* Clarke Schmidt: He has resumed throwing. He probably won't be back before August 1.

* Jasson Domínguez: He was mere days away from returning from his last injury when he was stricken with a new one. He may be available by August 1.

* Cody Poteet: Of course, the pitcher meant to take the place of the injured Schmidt gave us a little taste of talent, and then got hurt himself. He may be available by August 1.

* Ian Hamilton: The relief pitcher has been rehabbing, but not yet officially throwing. It would be a shock to see him back before August 1.

* Anthony Rizzo: He has been transferred to the 60-Day Injured List. He might not be back before September call-ups. Given that he is only signed through this season, he may never play for the Yankees again.

* Jonathan Loáisiga: He had Tommy John surgery. Hopefully, see you in 2025.

The All-Star Break couldn't come at a better time for the Yankees -- if it were coming now. Instead, it comes next week. In between, we have today off, then 3 games in Tampa Bay, and 3 in Baltimore. Then, the All-Star Break. Judge and Soto have been selected by the fans as American League starters. Texas Rangers manager Bruce Bochy, manager of the defending World Champions (and also, as it turns out, of the host team this year), selected 1 other Yankee for the AL team: Holmes. I guess he hasn't been paying attention.

Soto Injury Shows Just How Precarious Yanks' Position Is

Halfway through last week's homestand, the New York Yankees were on an 8-game winning streak, and on a pace to go 114-48, the same as in the legendary season of 1998.

Then came the announcement of forearm pain for Juan Soto, and the decision to hold him out of the 2nd half of the homestand, and possibly longer.

And, as Yankee Legend Yogi Berra would have said, it was déjà vu all over again.

First, there were 3 games at Yankee Stadium against the Minnesota Twins, a team over .500, but one the Yankees usually handle. On Tuesday night, Luis Gil pitched 6 innings, allowing only 1 hit. The bullpen allowed only 1 more. Gleyber Torres and Giancarlo Stanton hit home runs, and the Yankees won, 5-1.

On Wednesday night, Carlos Rodón went 6, allowing 2 runs on 3 hits. Aaron Judge went 1-for-5 with a bases-loaded triple. He also had an RBI on a groundout, and another on a walk. Think about that: One hit, 5 RBIs. The Yankees won, 9-5, as reliever Dennis Santana was shaky.

The Thursday night game was more of a struggle. It was 7-2 Yankees after 4, including a home run by the so-far light-hitting Trent Grisham. But Marcus Stroman fell apart in the 5th inning, and the bullpen had to hold it from there: 4 relievers, 4 1/3rd innings, no runs, 4 his, 2 walks. The Yankees won, 8-5.

*

But Soto had to leave the Thursday night game. Manager Aaron Boone said Soto would get the weekend series with the Los Angeles Dodgers off, except maybe for pinch-hitting duty. Suddenly, the lineup, which had usually been:

Anthony Volpe, Soto, Judge, Alex Verdugo, Stanton, Anthony Rizzo, Torres, catcher (Austin Wells or Jose Trevino), DJ LeMahieu (working his way back from injury; became Volpe, Verdugo, Judge, Stanton, Rizzo, Torres, LeMahieu Grisham, catcher.

Big difference in this much-hyped series, which was being called a possible World Series preview. And none of the games was on YES, let alone WPIX-Channel 11: Friday night, Apple+; Saturday night, Fox; Sunday night, ESPN.

On Friday, over the 1st 7 innings, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the off-season's prime acquisition from Japan, held the Yankees to a double and a walk by Judge, Torres reaching on an error, an single by Grisham, a walk by Torres. With 2 out in the 8th, and Anthony Banda on the mound, Volpe and Verdugo singled, Judge drew another walk to load the bases, and Stanton hit a long drive. But it conked out, and, instead of being a dramatic grand slam, it was just a long, inning-ending, rally-killing out.

Cody Poteet, filling in for the injured Clarke Schmidt, did his part, taking a 2-hit shutout into the 5th, while the bullpen kept the Dodgers off the board. It was 0-0 after 9 innings. A soccer game with similar performance would have been hailed as a superb game, and both teams would have walked away with a point and their heads held high.

But this was not soccer, it was baseball. And it was Rob Manfred baseball, with the ghost runner starting each extra inning on 2nd base. Neither team scored in the 10th. But Ian Hamilton gave up a walk to Freddie Freeman and a double to Teoscar Hernández in the top of the 11th. Judge singled Volpe home in the bottom of the 11th, but Stanton struck out, and Volpe popped up. Dodgers 2, Yankees.1

So the 8-game winning streak was over. We couldn't feel too bad about the loss, as it was against a very good team, and the pitching had done very well, including keeping Shohei Ohtani off base. Mookie Betts has a nagging injury, and did not play in this game. Still, there was that nagging feeling that, even if it was only one appearance as a pinch-hitter, Soto could have done something.

The Saturday game, most of the way, was more of the same. Nestor Cortés did not have good stuff. Hernández homered in the 2nd inning. Ohtani singled in the 3rd. In the bottom of that inning, Judge responded to (aside from Soto) his main contender for the title of best player in baseball with a tremendous home run. But Enrique "Kiké" Hernández (no relation to Teoscar) hit one out in the 5th. Teoscar drove in another run in the 5th.

Still, it was only 4-2 Dodgers after 7, and the thought was, if we can get something going, maybe Judge can do something -- or Soto, if he pinch-hits.

Unfortunately, Boone brought Tommy Kahnle in to pitch the 8th. Betts did play in this game. Cliché Alert: Walks can kill you, especially the leadoff variety. Kahnle walked Betts. He got Ohtani to ground to 2nd, but Torres, he of the million-dollar bat, the two-bit glove and the five-cent head, made an error. Kahnle struck Freeman out, but walked Will Smith, baseball's premier slap hitter. (Sorry, the joke was too good not to use.) Teoscar came up again: Grand slam. 8-2.

It got no better. Dennis Santana got the 1st 2 outs in the 9th, then allowed single, walk, double, and 3 straight walks, the last with the bases loaded, before getting out of it. Judge hit a long, but meaningless, home run in the bottom of the 9th -- a tribute, perhaps, to Alex Rodriguez, part of the Fox broadcast team, along with Derek Jeter and A-Rod's fellow cheater, former Red Sox blob David Ortiz? -- and it ended 11-3 to the Los Angeles Baseball Team. (After the game, Santana was designated for assignment.)

Despite the bullpen meltdown, it was only 6-3 Dodgers over the 1st 18 innings of this series. Now, Soto's hole in the lineup looked positively cavernous. It was looking like, without him, this would be the same old Yankee team of 2004 to 2023, except for 2009: Unable to get the runs home when it really mattered.

Gil started last night, and allowed only a double (to Teoscar) and a walk over the 1st 4 innings. Oswaldo Cabrera was put back at 3rd base, and he homered to lead off the bottom of the 3rd. Later that inning, back-to-back doubles by Verdugo and Judge made it 2-0 Pinstripes.

After that, though, Gil struggled for the 1st time all season. He gave up an RBI double to Betts in the 5th and another home run to Teoscar in the 6th, and it was 3-2 L.A. But in the bottom of the 6th, Verdugo and Judge had back-to-back singles, and Grisham, batting .086 going into this game, made it 5-3 New York with a home run.

The Dodgers pulled a run back in the 8th, but Judge responded with yet another titanic home run. (He didn't quite hit it to the spot where the Titanic sank, but far enough.) Clay Holmes did his best Aroldis Chapman impression in the 9th: He got the 1st 2 outs, then allowed back-to-back singles, before getting a game-ending strikeout. Yankees 6, Dodgers 4.

The Yankees didn't need Soto in the series finale. They sure could have used him in the 1st 2 games.

*

We've played 67 games. That's 41 percent of the regular season. The Yankees lead the American League Eastern Division. The Baltimore Orioles are the only team close to us, 2 1/2 games back, but only 1 in the all-important loss column. The others are all .500 or worse: The Boston Red Sox trail by 12 1/2, the Toronto Blue Jays by 13, and the Tampa Bay Rays by 14.

The Dodgers now lead the National League Western Division by 8 games. However, the only team in Major League Baseball with a better record than the Yankees is the Philadelphia Phillies, who split (and nearly swept) 2 games with the New York Mets in London this weekend.

The same concerns are there: Torres is batting .230, and can't field any position. Stanton and Rizzo are both batting .224, and both strike out too much. LeMahieu, now back from injury, is batting only .219. He turns 36 next month, and he looks finished. The catchers, Wells and Trevino, are still batting only .228 between them.

However, things are looking up on the injury front. It looks like Soto will not have to go on the Injured List. Gerrit Cole has looked good in his 2 rehab starts. And Jasson Domínguez is tearing up AAA ball in his rehab appearances, and looks ready to go. If Soto can't play, maybe "The Martian" can step in.

The Yankees begin a tough roadtrip tonight: 4 games in Kansas City against the Royals, then up to Boston for 3 against The Scum. Although the Auld Enemy aren't as strong as usual, a statement by the Yankees would be very helpful here, especially if Soto -- or Domínguez, or, dare we dream, both -- can return, added to Judge and the others, to help once again make Fenway Park a little green pinball machine.

The Yankees Grind My Gears

Over their last 180 games, the Yankees are. Barely more than a .500 team. 91-89.

I can hear Aaron Boone now: "But they're grinding! They're savages in that box! They're not far away!"

Sorry, I forgot to say "Cliché Alert."

Hearing Boone say they're "grinding" makes me think of coffee. Actually watching them makes me want a stronger drink.

Gerrit Cole started the finale of their series away to the Colorado Rockies, and went 6 innings, allowing 1 run on 2 hits and 1 walk, striking out 11. But in so doing, he threw 102 pitches, and Aaron Boone didn't have the guts to break Brian Cashman's rule and leave him in there longer. Thus did the bullpen musical chairs begin.

The Yankees led 3-1 when he left, and Wandy Peralta pitched a perfect 7th inning. But Boone didn't leave him in, either, bringing Tommy Kahnle in to pitch the 8th, and he loaded the bases. Boone brought Clay Holmes in, and he gave up a grand slam. It was 5-3 Rockies.

A 9th-inning comeback was necessary. Billy McKinney led off by being hit by a pitch. That would be a dumb thing for a pitcher to do to start an inning, but the pitcher was Daniel Bard, who used to pitch for the Red Sox, so you never know. Gleyber Torres grounded to 3rd, but Rockies 3rd baseman Ryan McMahon threw the ball away. McKinney came all the way around to score, and Torres wound up on 2nd. 5-4.

Giancarlo Stanton flew out, advancing Torres to 3rd. Anthony Rizzo drew a walk. Oswald Peraza was sent in to pinch-run for Rizzo. Boone put the delayed double steal on: Peraza stole 2nd, but the Rockies didn't take the bait, and Torres had to stay put. DJ LeMahieu was intentionally walked to set up the double play.

They got it, but not how they intended. Harrison Bader hit a line shot to left. It was caught, but Torres was able to score. And then Peraza was thrown out at 3rd. Unwritten Rule of Baseball: Never make the 1st or last out of an inning at 3rd base. Corollary question: Why make any out at any base?

At any rate, the game was tied, and Ian Hamilton pitched a scoreless 9th. Extra innings. Neither team could score in the 10th. In the top of the 11th, Oswaldo Cabrera singled home ghost runner Anthony Volpe. One thing led to another, and Peraza, who had stayed in the game, singled home a run. It was 7-5 Yankees. All they had to do in the bottom of the 11th was get 3 outs without allowing more than 1 run.

Boone brought Nick Ramirez in to pitch. This was a stupid thing to do. He gave up a leadoff home run to Nolan Jones. With the ghost runner, this meant tie ballgame. Then he got 2 outs, thus pitching to the minimum 3 batters. No reason to bring in another reliever, though. But Boone did, bringing in Ron Marinaccio, and he gave up a walkoff homer to Alan Trejo. It was his 1st homer of the season, and only the 6th of his career.

Rockies 8, Yankees 7. WP: Gavin Hollowell (1-0, his 1st major league win, having made his debut only 2 weeks ago). No save. LP: Marinaccio (4-5).

The Yankees blew a 2-run lead in the 8th, and another in the 11th. "Grinding"? After this game, the only that's grinding is my gears.

Tonight, the Yankees begin a series away to the Los Angeles Angels, featuring Shohei "Not Better Than Babe Ruth" Ohtani and Mike "Not Comparable to Mickey Mantle" Trout. Luis Severino starts against Griffin Canning. Yeah, another one of those families that turned a last name into a first name, making their son's full name sound like the name of a law firm.

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.

One-Nil to the Pinstripe Boys

Yesterday, my Summertime blues led me to raise a fuss and raise a holler over the Yankees being unable to win games when they score two runs, or one: Their record in such games this season was 1-24.

It's almost as if they actually read that post.

Luis Severino started against the Texas Rangers. He has been shaky since coming off the Injured List. This time, he went 6 innings, allowing 5 hits and 2 walks, but no runs. He walked 2 batters in the 1st, and a single nearly scored Nathaniel Lowe, but right fielder Jake Bauers threw him out at home plate. He kept the shutout through 6 innings, and Tommy Kahnle pitched a perfect 7th. 

But it doesn't matter how good your pitching is if you don't score. The Yankees went down 1-2-3 in the 1st inning, Giancarlo Stanton singled with 1 out in the 2nd, but was stranded. With 1 out in the 3rd, Anthony Volpe drew a walk. Jake Bauers grounded out, advancing Volpe to 2nd. Gleyber Torres drew a walk. And Harrison Bader singled, but Volpe had to hold up. The bases were loaded for Anthony Rizzo, and he struck out.

Billy McKinney, doing his best Aaron Judge impersonation, hit a home run with 1 out in the 4th. It wasn't "One-nil to The Arsenal," it was "One-nil to the Pinstripe Boys." I don't think anyone in the crowd of 46,018 expected that score to hold up. The Yankees went down 1-2-3 in the 5th inning. Rizzo singled with 1 out in the 6th, but was stranded. They went down 1-2-3 in the 7th.

Aaron Boone sent Wandy Peralta out to pitch the 8th. He allowed back-to-back singles, and the new rule, designed to avoid what used to be known as LOOGys (Lefty One Out Guys), forced Peralta to face a 3rd batter, but he struck him out. Then Boone sent Clay Holmes in, and he got out of the jam. The Yankees went down 1-2-3 in the bottom of the 8th.

A 1-0 lead is nerve-wracking enough in the closing minutes of a soccer game. In a baseball game, especially in the new Yankee Stadium, which, for all our protestations of "Death Valley" in left and center field, does favor hitters, a 1-0 lead will, as our old friend Phil Rizzuto used to save, give us agita.

Boone sent Ron Marinaccio out to finish the job. He gave up a single to Jonah Helm. He walked Mitch Garver. Oh no, this is it, isn't it?

No, it wasn't: Marinaccio struck Ezequiel Duran out, he struck Leody Taveras out, and he got Marcus Semien to pop up to 2nd, where a very nervous-looking Torres caught it. Done and dusted. One-nil to the Pinstripe Boys.

Yankees 1, Rangers 0. WP: Severino (1-2). SV: Marinaccio (2). LP: Jon Gray (6-3). Yankees' record when scoring fewer than 3 runs this season: 2-24.

The series concludes this afternoon. The good news: Gerrit Cole starts for the Yankees. The bad news: Nathan Eovaldi starts for the Rangers. No player more symbolizes the failure of Brian Cashman than Eovaldi, whose Yankee tenure was messed up by how his injury was handled, and then he was released, and then he was picked up by the Boston Red Sox, and he went on to be the winning pitcher in 2 postseason elimination games against us. This game could end up being typical of the season -- depending on how we follow it up.

Brito, Homers Get Yankee Job Done vs. Mariners

Last night was another injury-forced "hole in the rotation" game for the Yankees, the middle game of a 3-game home series with the Seattle Mariners.

Into this hole stepped Jhony Brito. He has been inconsistent, looking like the next great hope of the Yankee rotation one game, and looking like just another feeble attempt to fill that hole the next.

This time, he got the job done, going 5 2/3rds shutout innings, allowing only 2 hits and a walk. He only threw 81 pitches, and was taken out immediately after that walk, with 2 outs and no other baserunners.

There was absolutely no reason to take him out, but Aaron Boone did it anyway. Fortunately, Jimmy Cordero got the last out in the 6th inning, and pitched a scoreless 7th.

Anthony Volpe led off the bottom of the 3rd with a walk, and Jake Bauers hit a home run. Homers were added by Billy McKinney in the 4th and Volpe in the 7th. It was 4-0, and the Yankees were cruising.

Then Boone's musical chairs with the bullpen, no doubt ordered by Brian Cashman, nearly cost the Yankees the game. The unreliable Wandy Peralta was brought in for the 8th, and he allowed a home run. 

Michael King had to be brought in to finish the inning. He got in trouble in the 9th, and a run was allowed before Tommy Kahnle finished it off.

Yankees 4, Mariners 2. WP: Brito (4-3). SV: Kahnle (1). LP: Luis Castillo (no, not that one;  fortunately, this one was bad enough, 4-6).

The series concludes tonight. Domingo Germán starts against Bryan Woo. He won't also be hitting, so we can't say, "Woo's on first."

Returners' Home Runs Not Enough, Yanks Lose to Dodgers

The Yankees and the Dodgers have faced each other in the World Series 11 times, the most common such matchup. When the Dodgers were in Brooklyn, they beat the Yankees in 1955; but the Yankees won in 1941, 1947, 1949, 1952, 1953 and 1956. The Dodgers moved to Los Angeles in 1958, and beat the Yankees in 1963. The Yankees won in 1977 and 1978. The Dodgers won in 1981. It hasn't happened since, although each team reached its respective League Championship Series in 2009 and 2017.

(In the NBA, the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers have faced each other in 12 NBA Finals, the 1st when the Lakers were still in Minneapolis. In the NFL, the most common matchup in NFL championship games is the New York Giants and the Chicago Bears, 6, though both teams being in the NFC means that it hasn't happened since 1963, and, barring realignment, can never happen again. The same goes for the most common Stanley Cup Finals matchup: The Montreal Canadiens have faced the Boston Bruins in 7 Finals, but now, can only face each other before the Finals.)

Last night, the Yankees began a 3-game series with the Dodgers, at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. Luis Severino started for the Yankees, and he had nothing. The Dodgers tagged him for 6 runs in the 1st inning, including home runs by Mookie Betts and Max Muncy.

Josh Donaldson and Giancarlo Stanton were both activated from the Injured List. The former hit a home run in the 2nd inning, the latter in the 4th. Other than that, Dodger ace Clayton Kershaw was on his game. A lot of Yankee Fans were on hand to cheer Stanton's homer, and only a few of the Dodger fans booed them. Besides, that only made it 7-2 Dodgers.

Tommy Kahnle was also activated from the Injured List, and he pitched a scoreless 5th inning. Ryan Weber pitched the 6th, and he gave up Betts' 2nd home run of the game. Donaldson also hit a 2nd, in the 9th, but it didn't help much. Dodgers 8, Yankees 4. WP: Kershaw (7-4). No save. LP: Severino (0-1).

The series continues tomorrow night, at 7:15 PM our time (4:15 theirs). Gerrit Cole starts against Michael Grove.

The Definition of Ambivalence

There's an old joke: The definition of "ambivalence" is seeing your mother-in-law drive off a cliff... in your new Cadillac.

The Yankees opened the postseason last night, hosting the Minnesota Twins at Yankee Stadium II, and won 10-4. James Paxton had his worst start in over 2 months, allowing 2 runs and not getting out of the 5th inning. But home runs by DJ LeMahieu and Brett Gardner highlighted the Pinstriped attack. Tommy Kahnle got the win in relief.

From the 3rd to the 7th inning, the Yankees' linescore was 30223. That's the ZIP Code for Griffin, Georgia, 45 miles south of downtown Atlanta.

The Houston Astros won the opener of the other American League Division Series, while the National League Division Series are both tied at 1-1: Last night, the Washington Nationals beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, continuing Clayton Kershaw's reputation as the Alex Rodriguez of pitchers (brilliant in the regular season, coming up small in the postseason), and the Atlanta Braves beat the St. Louis Cardinals.

So the Yankees have 10 wins to go to win the World Series. I should be in a great mood, right?

But the Devils, boys, the Devils.

They opened their 38th season of play (37th if you don't count the canceled 2004-05 season) last night, at home to the Winnipeg Jets, and got off to a brilliant start. Nikita Gusev scored his 1st NHL goal late in the 1st period. In the 2nd, this was followed by a stunner from Blake Coleman, one by Sami Vatanen, and another goal by Coleman. With just a shade to go in the 2nd period, the Mulberry Street Marauders were 4-0.

But, as they say in English soccer, we bottled it. Four-nil, and we fucked it up. Dmitry Kulikov scored with 11 seconds left in the 2nd, and "Uh-oh..." The Jets ended up scoring 4 goals in 12 minutes and 47 seconds of on-ice time. And then the Devils lost the shootout. So it goes in the books as a 5-4 Winnipeg win.

This was the most embarrassing Devils loss since January 26, 2014, when we went into Yankee Stadium and blew a lead against the New York Rangers in front of a national television audience.

My alma mater, East Brunswick High School, also lost, 42-7 to Montgomery of Somerset County, a school that barely had a football program until recently. My Bears are now 1-3.

In 2 hours, Rutgers kick off. And then the Yankees have the Triple Threat: A Saturday afternoon game, on Fox (well, FS1, but that's still Fox), against a pitcher they've never seen before. Oy vey.

*

Hours until Rutgers University plays football again: 2, today, at noon, home to the University of Maryland. It will be the 1st game under interim head coach Nunzio Campanile. It could be a winnable game. Who knows, maybe "Coach Nunz" will turn out to be the permanent guy.

Hours until Arsenal play again: 21, tomorrow, 9:00 AM New York time, home to Dorset team Bournemouth. Then comes an international break, an "Interlull."

Hours until the New York Red Bulls play again: 30, tomorrow, at 4:00 PM, away to the Montreal Impact. It will be the regular season finale.

Days until the New Jersey Devils next play a local rival: 4, this Wednesday night at 7:30, against the Philadelphia Flyers, a.k.a. The Philth, at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia. The season's 1st game against the New York Rangers, a.k.a. The Scum, will be on Thursday, October 17, at the Prudential Center. The 1st game against the New York Islanders will be on Thursday, January 2, 2020, at the Barclays Center.

Days until East Brunswick High School plays football again: 6, Friday night at 7:00, home to J.P. Stevens of Edison. The rivalry of the late 1970s and all through the 1980s is no more. It's just another game now.

Days until the U.S. national soccer team plays again: 6, Friday night at 7:00, against Cuba, part of the CONCACAF Nations League, at Audi Field in Washington. They will play Canada at BMO Field in Toronto the following Tuesday night.

Days until the Red Bulls next play a "derby": Unclear. They have made the Playoffs, but the seedings are not yet established. Each of their 4 regional rivals have qualified for the Playoffs: New York City FC, the Philadelphia Union, D.C. United and the New England Revolution. Most likely, the Red Bulls and DCU will get the 5th and 4th seeds in the Eastern Conference, although not necessarily in that order. The 1st Round will be played on October 19 or 20, which would be in 14 or 15 days.

Days until the next Rutgers-Penn State football game: 56, on Saturday, November 30, at Beaver Stadium in State College, Pennsylvania. Just 8 weeks.

Days until my 50th Birthday, at which point I can join AARP and get discounts for travel and game tickets: 74, on December 18, 2019. A little over 10 weeks.

Days until the premiere of the final Star Wars film, Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker: 76, on December 20, 2019.

Days until the Baseball Hall of Fame vote is announced, electing Derek Jeter: 108, on January 21, 2020. Under 4 months.

Days until the 1st Presidential voting of 2020, the Iowa Caucuses: 121, on Monday, February 3. Under 4 months. The New Hampshire Primary will be 8 days later.

Days until the next North London Derby: 203, on Saturday, April 25, Arsenal's 1st visit to the new Tottenham Stadium, adjacent to the site of the previous White Hart Lane. Under 7 months. It is currently scheduled to be on the 16th Anniversary of the 2nd time that Arsenal won the League at White Hart Lane -- but also the last time Arsenal won the League anywhere. Of course, for TV reasons, the game could be moved to another date, probably the next day.

Days until the next Yankees-Red Sox series begins: 216, on May 8, 2020, at Yankee Stadium II. A little over 7 months. Yes, the 2020 MLB schedule has already been released. 

Days until Euro 2020 begins, a tournament being held all over Europe instead of in a single host nation: 251, on Friday, June 12, 2020. A little over 8 months.

Days until the next Summer Olympics begins in Tokyo, Japan: 293, on July 24, 2020. Under 10 months.

Days until the next East Brunswick-Old Bridge football game: Presumably, given the 2019 schedule, 342, on Friday night, September 11, 2020, away at the purple shit pit on Route 9. A little over 11 months.

Days until the next Presidential election, when we can dump the Trump-Pence regime and elect a real Administration: 395, on November 3, 2020. A little over a year, or under 13 months.

Days until a fully-Democratic-controlled Congress can convene, and the Republicans can do nothing about it: 456, on January 3, 2021. Under a year and a half, or under 15 months.

Days until Liberation Day: 473, at noon on January 20, 2021. Under a year and a half, or under 16 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.

Days until the next Winter Olympics begins in Beijing, China: 853, on February 4, 2022. Under 2 1/2 years, or a little under 28 months.

Days until the next World Cup is scheduled to kick off: 1,143, on November 21, 2022, in Qatar. A little over 3 years, or under 38 months. The charges of corruption against Qatar may yet mean that they will lose the tournament, in which case it will be moved to a nation where it would not be too hot to play it in June and July.

Days until the next Women's World Cup is scheduled to kick off: As yet unknown, but probably on the 2nd Friday in June 2023, which would be June 9. That would be 1,343 days, a little under 4 years, or a little over 44 months. A host nation is expected to be chosen on March 20, 2020. Since 2 of the last 3 host nations have been in Europe, North America (Canada) hosted in 2015, and Asia (China) hosted in 2007, my guess is that it will be in either Asia (Japan, possibly Korea, but not China) or Oceania (Australia, possibly a joint bid with New Zealand).

There Was One Germán "Bomber" On the Mound

"Pitching is 75 percent of baseball." -- Connie Mack
"Connie Mack lied." -- Billy Martin

I don't know for sure that Mack originated that saying. I do know that Billy was told Mack had originated it, and that he was told this in 1985, when the Yankees were challenging those pesky Toronto Blue Jays for the American League Eastern Division title, and the Yankees were one good starting pitcher short, producing Billy's response. The Yankees ended up losing to the Jays by 2 games.

From 1985 to 1993, the Jays won 5 American League Eastern Division titles (and probably should have won at least 1, possibly 3, more), and the 1992 and 1993 World Series; while the Yankees had close calls for the AL East title in 1985, '86, '87, '88 and '93, but won nothing, including losing the Division to the Jays in '85 and '93.

Since then, though, the Yankees have reached the postseason 20 times, winning the Division 14 times, the Pennant 7 times, and the World Series 5 times; while the Jays have reached the postseason twice, in 2015 and 2016; won the Division once, in 2016; and are still looking for their 1st Pennant since Joe Carter touched 'em all in 1993.

The secret to each team's success -- and failure? Having enough pitching -- or not.

With the Yankees' rotation this season struck by several injuries, the emergence of Domingo Germán has been huge. Last night, in the 2nd-half lid-lifter and the opening of a 3-game Yanks-Jays series at Yankee Stadium II, he went 6 innings, allowing no runs on 3 hits and no walks, striking out 7 -- right in the "You can't ask for much more than this" file.

To the tune of "She'll Be Coming 'Round the Mountain," English soccer fans, when England plays Germany, sing a song referencing World War II:

There were 10 German Bombers in the air.
There were 10 German Bombers in the air.
There were 10 German Bombers
10 German Bombers
10 German Bombers in the air.

And the RAF of England shot one down.
And the RAF of England shot one down.
And the RAF of England
RAF of England
RAF of England shot one down.

There were 9 German Bombers in the air...

And so on, until there's no German Bombers. Forgetting, of course, that it was the Royal Air Force of the United Kingdom, not just England, which has about 82 percent of the population of the country. The RAF had Welsh, Scottish and Northern Irish pilots in it, too -- not to mention exiles from Nazi-occupied nations such as France and Poland, and even a few Americans who volunteered to enter the war, even when their country wouldn't, as yet. They wouldn't have survived as a nation long enough for the U.S. to get in without those other pilots, including those other British pilots and the foreign pilots.

Well, there was one Germán Bomber on the mound -- a Bronx Bomber, albeit a pitcher, and that's pronounced Hair-MON, the Spanish way, not JER-man. And he "shot the Blue Jays down."

He only threw 78 pitches, and Tommy Kahnle only threw 10 pitches in getting through the 7th inning without a run, so Germán probably could have done that, too. It's due to his recent injury that Aaron Boone didn't risk him any further, and the bullpen did get the job done, so, this time, taking a cruising starter out so soon wasn't a big problem.

Perhaps even more encouraging was Chad Green, who pitched the 8th and the 9th, throwing just 29 pitches, and allowing only 1 baserunner. He'd been fine pitching the 1st 2 innings of games, but shaky as a reliever. The fact that he could come into this game without a large lead, and give none of it up, was a good sign.

For the 1st 4 innings, Aaron Sanchez was equal to the task, holding the Yankees scoreless. In fact, the 5th inning was the only one in which the Yankees scored. But, as occasionally happens to the Yankees, the Jays were struck by "onebadinningitis." Brett Gardner led off with a triple. DJ LeMahieu got him home with a groundout. Aaron Judge singled, Aaron Hicks doubled, Gary Sanchez was hit by a pitch to load the bases with just 1 out, and Edwin Encarnacion hit one to the wall in left-center, a double that cleared the bases.

That was it, but it was enough. Yankees 4, Blue Jays 0. WP: Germán (11-2). No save. LP: Sanchez (3-13).

The Tampa Bay Rays and Boston Red Sox also won last night, so the Yankees remain 6 1/2 games ahead of the former and 9 ahead of the latter.

The series continues this afternoon, which happens to be LeMahieu's 31st birthday. (It's easy to forget he's not one of the "Baby Bombers": He's been in the majors since 2011, and was a 2-time All-Star, a 3-time Gold Glove, and a 2016 National League batting champion for the Colorado Rockies.) It will also be Luke Voit's return from the Injured List. As Phoebe Buffay (Lisa Kudrow on Friends) would say, "Which means yay!" J.A. Happ will start against his former team, against Clayton Richard.

Yanks Ride Rollercoaster to Save Finale In Cleveland

Yesterday's finale of the Yankees' roadtrip to Toronto and Cleveland was the 2010s for the team, in a nutshell, in every way but the final result.

The Yankees jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the top of the 2nd inning, including a 430-foot home run by... Brett Gardner? Gardy occasionally goes yardy, but rarely hits them that far. At any rate, it made things much easier for "starting pitcher" Chad Green, who pitched 2 scoreless innings. Nestor Cortes followed with 3 of his own. It was still 5-0 Yanks going to the bottom of the 6th, and things were looking good.

Now, a manager not under the thumb of Brian Cashman might have let Cortes pitch the 6th inning. After all, when you've got a 5-run lead, you can take chances. This would have been a good time to see if he could pitch a 4th inning.

Instead, Aaron Boone sent Tommy Kahnle in to pitch. For the most part, Kahnle has been good this season. Not yesterday, though: He allowed 4 runs, including 2 home runs, to make it 5-4. Boone sent Adam Ottavino in to pitch the 7th, and he allowed a game-tying home run to Jake Bauers. As they would say in English soccer, "Five-nil, and you fucked it up!"

Just when you might have begun thinking, "This is the Yankees' worst game of the season this far," they said, "Hold my beer... "

With 1 out in the top of the 9th, Luke Voit singled. Gary Sanchez doubled, but Voit, not exactly built to be among the swiftest of men, could only get to 3rd base. Gleyber Torres was walked to load the bases and set up a play at any base. It didn't work: Clint Frazier, who really could have used a confidence-booster, got one, a pitch he was able to drive far enough to center field to score Voit with a sacrifice fly.

So, send in the closer for the bottom of the 9th, right? Right: Aroldis Chapman. Unfortunately, once again, he made it interesting. Too interesting. He gave up a single to Jose Ramirez. He walked Roberto Perez. Tying and winning runs on base.

Bauers tried to bunt the runners over, but popped it up. DJ LeMahieu had been sent in to replace Voit at 1st base, for defensive purposes, and he caught it. Kevin Plawecki hit the ball a long way to left field, but Gardner caught it. It looked like the Yankees would get out of it.

The next batter was Francisco Lindor. He grounded to short. Didi Gregorius -- remember, it was only his 3rd game of the season after being out with injury -- mishandled it, and Ramirez scored the tying run. Chapman struck Oscar Mercado out, but the damage was done. Extra innings.

The Indians' manager, Terry Francona, our "old friend" from the Yankees-Red Sox battles of the 2000s, sent Oliver Perez out to pitch the top of the 10th. Yes, the same Oliver Perez who first thrilled Met fans, then drove them up the wall. Gio Urshela flew out to center. But Cameron Maybin hit a double. LeMahieu grounded to short, and it looked like the double would be wasted. But Aaron Hicks drove one to the wall in left center, and Maybin scored.

Chapman now stood to be the winning pitcher. Was that fair? Maybe not. But Boone brought Stephen Tarpley in to pitch, and he struck out the side.

Whew. A rollercoaster of a game ends Yankees 7, Indians 6. WP: Chapman (1-1). SV: Tarpley (1). LP: Perez (1-1).

*

So here's how things stand, 10 weeks into the 26-week regular season: The Yankees and the Tampa Bay Rays are tied for 1st place in the American League Eastern Division, both at 40-24. The Boston Red Sox are 7 games behind, 8 in the loss column. The Toronto Blue Jays are 17 1/2 back, and the Baltimore Orioles are 20 1/2 back.

Domingo German has been placed on the injured list. But Masahiro Tanaka returns from paternity leave, after his wife had a baby. He will start the opener of a 2-game series at home to the Mets tonight, with Jason Vargas going for The Other Team. Tomorrow night, it will be James Paxton against Zack Wheeler.

I had thought this was going to be as in the last few years of Yanks-Mets action: 2 games in The Bronx, 2 games in Queens (not necessarily in that order). It's not: The Yanks' games at Citi Field won't come until July 2 and 3 -- after the trip to London to play the Red Sox. If the Yankees fall into a slump right before that, it's going to be a hell of a few days.

Sanchez and Bullpen Beat Red Sox

It would be nice if the Yankees were beating the Red Sox in spectacular fashion. But as long as the Yankees are beating the Sox, does it really matter how?

After a 9-1 start to the season, Domingo German has now had 2 bad starts in a row. Last night at Yankee Stadium, he went just 3 2/3rds innings, allowing 3 runs on 6 hits and 2 walks, although he did strike 8 batters out.

This time, instead of being a very brief starter, as he has been used recently, Chad Green had to be the emergency reliever. He finished the 4th inning, and pitched the 5th. It took both Tommy Kahnle and Adam Ottavino to finish off the 6th. Jonathan Holder pitched the 7th, Zack Britton the 8th, and Aroldis Chapman the 9th. And yet, while that makeshift bullpen allowed 5 hits and 2 walks, there were no further runs.

Just as they did the night before, Yankees fell behind 1-0 in the 2nd inning before taking the lead. This time, it was in the bottom of the 2nd, and singles by Gio Urshela and DJ LeMahieu brought home 3 runs between them.

With Luke Voit aboard in the 5th, Gary Sanchez hit another home run. This one, his 18th of the season, a 403-foot blast to the opposite field, proved that he's back against more than just the Baltimore Orioles.

The bullpen kept things quiet from that point onward. Yankees 5, Red Sox 3. WP: Green (1-2, because the starter did not go 5 innings). SV: Chapman (17). LP: Rick Porcello (4-5). The Yankees have now taken 2 straight from the Red Sox, despite, on both occasions, falling behind and not having their starting pitcher go 5 innings.

The Yankees remain in 1st place, 2 1/2 games ahead of the Tampa Bay Rays, and 9 1/2 ahead of The Scum. In the all-important loss column, it's 2 and 10 games, respectively.

Is this reason for complacency? Not by a long shot. This was only the 57th game of the season, and we know what the Red Sox -- both management and players -- are capable of. We cannot presume that they are out of the race for good, as long as there's still a mathematical chance.

The series concludes tonight, in the ESPN Sunday Night Baseball showcase, with CC Sabathia going for his 250th career win against David Price.

Three games against the Sox, 3 night games. TV wants its prime time ratings, never mind what the fans want -- and, weather-wise, it looks like it's going to be a nice day. Whether it will be a nice night remains to be seen, and since when is any day with a Yankees-Red Sox game "nice"?

The result, as we have seen, can be very nice. But the game? Rarely.

*

Days until the next Women's World Cup kicks off: 5, this Friday, in France. The U.S. team is 3-time and defending Champions.

Days until the New York Red Bulls play again: 6, this Saturday night at 7:30, against the Philadelphia Union, at Talen Energy Stadium in Chester, Pennsylvania. They beat Real Salt Lake 4-0 last night.

Days until the Red Bulls next play a "derby": See the previous answer. The next game against New York City FC will be on Sunday night, July 14, at Red Bull Arena. The next game against the New England Revolution will be on Saturday night, August 17, at Red Bull Arena. The next game against D.C. United will be on Wednesday night, August 21, at Audi Field in Washington. The next game against the Union will be on Sunday night, September 22, at Red Bul Arena.


Days until the U.S. national soccer team plays again: 16, on Tuesday, June 18, against the South American nation of Guyana, at the brand-new Allianz Field in St. Paul, home of Minnesota United, in the opener of the 2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup.

Days until the next Yankees-Red Sox series (after the current one) begins: 27, on Saturday, June 29. Under 4 weeks. This is the 2-game series at the London Stadium, home base of the 2012 Olympics, and home field of soccer team West Ham United.

Days until Arsenal play again: 43. A little over 6 weeks. Following their debacle on Wednesday night, losing the UEFA Europa League Final 4-1 to fellow Londoners Chelsea, the Gunners' next game will be in America.

Days until Arsenal play in America: 43. On July 15, they will visit the Denver suburbs to play the Colorado Rapids. On July 17, they will visit the Los Angeles suburbs to play Bayern Munich. On July 20, they will visit Charlotte to play AS Roma. And on July 23, they will visit the Redskins' stadium in the Washington suburbs to play Real Madrid.

Days until the next North London Derby: Unknown, as both Premier League matches, and a League Cup match, have been played this season. The next season starts on August 10, which is 69 days from now. Under 10 weeks. But the PL never puts a Derby on the opening weekend. The Gunners and Spurs usually play each other in N5 in October or November, and then in N17 in February or March.

Days until Rutgers University plays football again: 90, on August 31, home to the University of Massachusetts. Under 13 weeks.

Days until East Brunswick High School plays football again: Unknown, because the 2019 schedule hasn't been released yet. Usually, the next season begins on the 1st Friday in September, which would be September 6, which would be 96 days. It has been announced that East Brunswick and its arch-rivals, Old Bridge, will no longer play each other on Thanksgiving Day. In fact, many of the local Thanksgiving rivalries have been moved back to the opening night, September 6. Whenever the Big Green play the Purple Bastards, it will be under a new head coach, because Bob Molarz, in charge for the last 6 seasons, has resigned.

Days until the New Jersey Devils play again: Unknown. Traditionally, a new NHL season begins on the 1st Thursday in October, which would be October 3, which is 123 days from now. A shade over 4 months. The new schedule is usually released around June 20 or so. We shall see.

Days until the New Jersey Devils next play a local rival: Unknown. But the Devils never open against either the New York Rangers, a.k.a. The Scum; the New York Islanders; or the Philadelphia Flyers, a.k.a. The Philth.

Days until the next Rutgers-Penn State football game: 181, on Saturday, November 30, at Beaver Stadium in State College, Pennsylvania. A little under 6 months.

Days until my 50th Birthday, at which point I can join AARP and get discounts for travel and game tickets: 199, on December 18, 2019. Under 7 months.

Day until the premiere of the final Star Wars film, Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker: 201, on December 20, 2019.

Days until the Baseball Hall of Fame vote is announced, electing Derek Jeter: 233, on January 21, 2020. Under 8 months.

Days until the next Summer Olympics begins in Tokyo, Japan: 418, on July 24, 2020. A little over a year, or under 14 months.

Days until the next Presidential election, when we can dump the Trump-Pence regime and elect a real Administration: 520, on November 3, 2020. Under a year and a half, or about 17 months.

Days until a fully-Democratic-controlled Congress can convene, and the Republicans can do nothing about it: 581, on January 3, 2021. About a year and a half, or about 18 months.

Days until Liberation Day: 598, at noon on January 20, 2021. Under 2 years, or under 20 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.

Days until the next Winter Olympics begins in Beijing, China: 978, on February 4, 2022. Under 3 years, or just over 32 months.

Days until the next World Cup is scheduled to kick off: 1,268, on November 21, 2022, in Qatar. A little over 3 1/2 years, or under 42 months. The charges of corruption against Qatar may yet mean that they will lose the tournament, in which case it will be moved to a nation where it would not be too hot to play it in June and July.