Was Sunday a breakout win, or just a blip in the continuing collapse?

We'll learn tonight. It's Max "Shoulda Been a Yankee" Scherzer, and though his mere name terrifies, it's a chance to beat another ace - two straight? - and guarantee that we don't lose yet another series.

Takeaways from yesterday:

1. Maybe there is a boost from pompous Yankee pageantry. Over the years, I've found the Yankees to generally disappoint me on a) Father's Day, b) Old-Timers Day, c) my birthday and d) the annual number retirement ceremony. (Saturday, we played three 90s in the lineup at once; after numbers, should the Yankees start retiring letters of the alphabet?) Yesterday, though, the team seemed genuinely riled up. Maybe it was Boone bitch-slapping the table. Maybe it was Judge getting hit. Or maybe it was the memory of Paul O'Neill, filling the stadium with chants, more than an hour before the game.

Tonight, Yankee Stadium could house a pro-Mets crowd.

2. No win is complete without a Yankee injury. The latest is Scott Effross, our de facto closer. Shoulder stiffness. Tough break, but Crashman certainly had to know that, when he cut that deal, Effross was among MLB leaders in games thrown. Did we think he'd never tire? The Cubs had used him like a rented mule.

With Effross out, Boone surely will squeeze Ron Marinaccio until he pops. After that, who knows? A month ago, we had a wave of young arms at Scranton and Somerset. Now, we have press releases about Anthony Volpe and The Martian... 

3. Anthony Benintendi crushed that gamer HR yesterday - his fourth of the year. There is no reason why he couldn't pull a Johnny Damon and start hitting to that RF porch. Or do something. When the Yankees got him, Benintendi was hitting .320 - third in the AL. For us, he's hit just .211. 

Could yesterday be his Giambi moment? (Only days after we hoped Donaldson had his?) In a perfect world, Benintendi catches fire, hits .320 over the last month and forces the Yankees to re-sign him next winter. The guy only is 27. He could infuriate Boston fans for years. If only it could happen... (Spoiler alert: It won't.) 

4. It's great watching Oswaldo Cabrera's joyous spirit lift this team, but he played 2B mostly at Scranton, and I believe there is danger in thrusting him out there at SS in big games. Yesterday, he booted a grounder - recovered and threw out the slow-footed Alexandro Kirk - which could have been a disaster. The Yankees are playing pressure-cooker games, and Cabrera - now 3 for 19 - has started to lunge for pitches. I really like this kid. He could be our future 2B. But I don't think he's a SS, and as John Barth (literary reference ahead) once wrote, "If you think you're something you're not, it will keep you from becoming what you could be."

There. Suck on that, illiterate trolls.

Tonight, Scherzer. And who relieves the relievers?  Who saves the saver?