Wednesday, August 17, 2022

Will the Yankees' Collapse Bring Aaron Judge's MVP Run Down With It?

As some of you may have noticed, I've never been a big believer in this Yankees team.  Yes, blowing a 15 1/2-game lead is a disgrace I'd like to see them avoid, but...with Brian Cashman at the helm, all things are possible. Except, I guess, a World Series.

But I digress!

My main fear now is that the Yankees' collapse—just getting started, my friends—will bring down Aaron Judge's MVP prospects with it. Not sure if he's pressing too much or what—understandable, now that he's pretty much the only hitter left in the Yanks' lineup—but The Big Fella is currently 1 for his last 14, a single single, with 7 Ks, no walks, and 2 double-plays.

Unsurprisingly, sportswriters—the same Knights of the Keyboards who can't figure out a criteria on whether or not juicers should get into the Hall of Fame—have never really defined what should make an MVP.

Usually it's the player deemed (often erroneously) to be having the best season. But there's also a "winner" element attached to it. Very fewer players have made it if their team isn't even contending (looking at you, poor ol' Ralph Kiner).

It seemed that, this season, despite vociferous protests from the Sabremetricious and the salesmen at MLB, that Judge might ride to the award not only on his splendid season, but also on the Yankees' winning ways. Well, scratch that last part.

Which leaves...another crown for MLB's favorite, international road show and carny attraction? The Greatest Player What Ever Was, Period, hitting .255 as a DH and beating some second-rate team on the mound every week or so?

Hey, could be. Shohei Ohtani has now won 10, count 'em, 10 whole games. If the Yanks continue to deteriorate—and if Judge's game continues to fall apart—well, then he's no longer "a winner," and loses that claim to the MVP.

It would be a major bummer. Will it also speed his departure?



 

91 comments:

Joe of AZ said...

I'm FINALLY started to read some articles suggesting that Cashman is being more closely scrutinized depending on what happens with this team

Publius said...

"Me or him" Judge should say, and publicly, to Hal re Cashman.

Hazel Motes said...

Joe -- Can you provide links to some of those articles? Would be interested to see them . . . . Thanks.

Hazel Motes said...

Doug K. brought up an interesting point in a previous thread: Assuming Florial gets regular playing time and more than a token number of plate appearances and makes a strong impression, then what was the point of trading a valuable lefty starter for Harrison Bader? Doesn't Bader--who can field and run when he's not wearing a therapeutic boot but can't hit--then become superfluous, another of Cashman's follies? And given Florial's array of talents--which also include strong defense and speed--why did Cashman even feel impelled to make this trade at all? Any thoughts on this?

Joe of AZ said...

https://elitesportsny.com/2022/08/17/estevan-florials-yankees-promotion-puts-brian-cashman-under-microscope/

A little underwhelming but...the first hint of scrutiny

ranger_lp said...

From Jack Curry:

Florial, Cabrera and Marinaccio added to the roster from AAA. Holmes (back) goes on the IL. Andujar and Locastro return to AAA.

ranger_lp said...

Yankee starting lineup:

1. Andrew Benintendi (L) LF
2. Aaron Judge (R) RF
3. Gleyber Torres (R) 2B
4. Anthony Rizzo (L) 1B
5. Josh Donaldson (R) DH
6. Oswaldo Cabrera (S) 3B
7. Jose Trevino (R) C
8. Estevan Florial (L) CF
9. Isiah Kiner-Falefa (R) SS

JM said...

Barney--Cashman is terrible. Always has been.

Hazel Motes said...

Joe of AZ -- Thanks for posting the link to that piece on Cashman, who normally enjoys nothing but the usual obsequies from the daily team writers lest they jeopardize their access to the buffet in the press room. I was hoping that this guy was going to report that Cashman was receiving intensified scrutiny from the Yankee hierarchy, but there's no hint of that; Hal and Randy don't seem to care much about the baseball operation as long as their accountants are happy.

DickAllen said...



As usual, Booooone can't see what is happening right in front of his face:

Gleyber, the former savior, (9 hits in his last 60ABs and heading farther south), batting third.

The worst part of that? He's the best the Yankees have got right now, thanks to The Intern, who will likely be given a 3-year extension as a Christmas present.

Fucked. Totally fucked.

The Yankees are on their way to clinching their annual wild-card berth.

JM said...

Did we lose yet?

Rufus T. Firefly said...

JM,

No, but working on it.

Rufus T. Firefly said...

Dick,

Hopefully it will be a *home* wildcard game...

BernBabyBern said...

The Yankees should have consulted us on which sound bites to use for the John and Suzanne talking bobblehead they are giving away on Friday. .... That bobblehead could be my favorite Yankee Stadium giveaway since I got a Bobby Murcer bat on bat day in 1973. But why is Susan dressed like Evel Knievel on the bobblehead?

Seb said...

Game over

JM said...

Siri, how far did you hit German's pitch?

Celerino Sanchez said...

There is more scoring in soccer games, than Yankee games

Rufus T. Firefly said...

Bern,

That's Suzyn's signature July 4th outfit. She's worn it for years on the 4th and this year (when the asshole schedule makers had the Yankees off) she said she wore it to the Roberto Clemente museum in Pittsburg.

Of course it's *trying* to look like her outfit and not doing it very well. And neither of their faces actually look like them.

Any idea on what the what the sound bites are? I'd assume a win warble for John, but what about Suzyn's?

JM said...

German shoulda been traded when after the domestic abuse incident. Not on principle alone, but because he's fucked up.

Publius said...

Tampa wins division. Yanks lose to Toronto or Boston on the first weekend in October. Cashman fired. Yes, please.

Publius said...

The New York Yankees are the worst team in major league baseball

BernBabyBern said...

John looks like a generic game show host, and Suzyn kind of looks like Rhoda from the Mary Tyler Moore show with a bad haircut. ... I'd love to hear what they say. Better yet, I think we need to get one and find out to reprogram it with el Duque's clip collection -- using John and Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run" duet would be epic.

BernBabyBern said...

How we could go from so good to such a shitshow is mind-boggling.

Beauregard Jackson Pickett Burnside said...

Has anyone else heard the recent term “Quiet Quitting”?

https://www.wsj.com/articles/if-your-gen-z-co-workers-are-quiet-quitting-heres-what-that-means-11660260608

Basically it means you go to work, get paid, and do as little as possible.

Aside from Judge and his season long Mets job interview, I think more than a few Yankees have quietly quit.

JM said...

Torres erupts. 4-2.

Beauregard Jackson Pickett Burnside said...

Seems the going price for a John and Suzyn bobblehead on eBay is $250.

If it didn’t say John Sterling on it I’d assume they could use it next year for his replacement. It looks THAT much like him.

Publius said...

Corey Kluber not getting yanked in the 6th after giving up a 2 run HR tells us all we need to know about the 2022 Yankees. They are, literally, the worst team in baseball. TB would have yanked him against every other lineup in MLB.

Publius said...

I hope Judge "quietly quits" and tells Hal, it's me or Cashman.

JM said...

Four pitch walk. But what a spin rate.

JM said...

Sad team. Everyone is so so tired.

Publius said...

Maybe Giancarlo Stanton ought to cut short his annual summer vacation and earn his salary. Just an idea.

AboveAverage said...

whither delay

Publius said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
JM said...

The rain might work in our favor. Tampa could become as disinterested as the Yankees.

Publius said...

Jordan Montgomery will pitch for contending Cardinals teams for the next 10 years. They'll win at least 1 world series. The Yankees won't win any. Brian Cashman thought a strike throwing lefty starter who gets out major league hitters was expendable. Brian Cashman thought Jordan Montgomery's value as a baseball player was equal to, or less than, an injured glove first outfielder.

Res ipsa loquitor.

Publius said...

Stanton's relaxed attitude toward playing baseball deserves much more comment, and criticism. Cashman is a fool, but Stanton's annual summer vacation I'd the proximate cause of current troubles. Stanton is a malingerer. The catchers play every fucking day. The DH takes two months off every year. Fuck that guy.

JM said...

Yeah! Let's string the bastard up! No good varmint!

But seriously, yes.

JM said...

They walked judge. Would not pitch to him. Wow.

JM said...

Then Torres sucks fucking wind.

Hazel Motes said...

Was that a homerun in any other MLB park? I doubt it.

JM said...

That's why Rizzo belongs here. It's his park.

JM said...

360. I dunno how that measures up.

JM said...

Lowe comes up on ESPN GameDay as B. Lowe. Nyuk nyuk.

DickAllen said...

Pinch hit Hicks?

And he strikes out?

Thanks Booooone?

BTR999 said...

Not the smartest move having Hicks PH

H e is broken like Gallo before him. Boone remains the worst field manager in the game.

Seb said...

Boone the momentum killer.

BTR999 said...

Now we lose in E/I after struggling to come back.

Hazel Motes said...

Not only flagrantly dumb pinch-hitting Hicks there because Hicks is Hicks, but also because now he has only one player on the bench heading into extra innings.

AboveAverage said...

here comes the FLOOD

DickAllen said...

This is the Chapman I’ve come to know and hate

AboveAverage said...

PERSPIRATION

AboveAverage said...

HEY SIRI?

DON'T HURT US

AboveAverage said...

ITS OVER

DickAllen said...

Drip drip drip

AboveAverage said...

NO FINGER NAILS LEFT (IN THE COUNTY)

AboveAverage said...

IT IS OFFICIALLY THE END OF DAYS

Hazel Motes said...

I guess he shoulda gone with the splitter after all, Paulie.

Seb said...

At least he didn’t forget to smile.

AboveAverage said...

He always smiles in these situations

We are done

AboveAverage said...

Shut down the blog - time to go home.

JM said...

Fucking fuck fucked fuckhead.

AboveAverage said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Doug K. said...

I wanted to say "unbelievable" but actually it's all too believable. There's nothing left to say.

BTR999 said...

Crapman reverts to form
Maybe the team’s got a 3-run rally in its bones?
Don’t be absurd…

AboveAverage said...

Time to shut down the blog - time to go home

AboveAverage said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Seb said...

A fucking miracle guys !

JM said...

What? Who?

Doug K. said...

Actually unbelievable works!

JM said...

Scmuckleson? Cheapo grand slam?

AboveAverage said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
JM said...

I'm gobsmacked

AboveAverage said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
ranger_lp said...

Wow…

AboveAverage said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
JM said...

ESPN is verrrrrrry slow to put up the story of this game, and video of the slam.

Hazel Motes said...

It took two short-porch fence scrapers to get this done.

Stang said...

Nobody removed your posts, AA. As I explained the other day, the Blogger robot is arbitrarily--and temporarily--deciding that certain accounts are spam or bots or something. Possibly based on frequency of posting. It sucks. Anyway, I have a link to restore your posts.

Doug K. said...

What Donaldson said in the post game interview...

"blah blah blah"

What he meant...

"Seeing the kid playing third instead of me gave me focus."

Stang said...

Posts restored, AA.

AboveAverage said...

gave him focus?


they should grant Donaldson an unconditional release after this game and send him packing

thanks for your participation

you sucked and continue to

and don't remove posts on future blogs that you may participate in

AboveAverage said...

great thanks Stang - now it will seem as though I'm obsessed with reposting

It is frustrating though when your trying to be spontaneous and everything is removed

Stang said...

This was a big Yankee win.

BTR999 said...

I dozed off for a bit and had a crazy dream we had a walk off grand slam by someone named Ronaldson or something like that…just a dream I guess

Stang said...

We're all obsessed, AA, or we wouldn't be here. Sad!

Stang said...

borntorun99, that reminds me of the time Lois Lane dreamed she was married to Superman.

AboveAverage said...

You have created the maximum number of comments for today, please try again tomorrow.

AboveAverage said...

STANG - that was a first - I've encountered a limiter :)

HoraceClarke66 said...

So, just got in guys. How'd the game go tonight?

Stang said...

We lost.

Hazel Motes said...

Now Boone and Cashman--the recency-bias dunces--will have Donaldson playing every day, batting third, for the rest of the season. Yankee fans would have been better off if he had hit into a triple play.