As Tampa returns to the race, the 2023 Yankees' first upheaval is now underway

 Tin soldiers and Nixon's coming... Three blowouts and Stanton's healing, we're finally on our own...

Last night, witnessed only by the sleepless and Seattle, the Death Barge again rolled over a young stud pitcher, its soon-to-be-overhauled lineup popping on every front. 

Ten runs in each of the last three games, the baseball equivalent of those atmospheric rivers that flooded California this winter. 

So, whadda we know?

1. The tweak that could have saved Aaron Hicks' Yankee epoch - at least for now - came a week too late. Of course, Harrison Bader supplied it. He's back on the IL, his regular place, and Yank fans must wonder if this guy is simply wound too tightly to last. 

We're nearly a year into Bader and still don't know what we've got. Is he an all-star?  A china doll? Will he ever see a full season? Is he worth a big contract? 

Either way, Hicksy is now an Oriole, and this we know: The juju gods love to bring ex-Yanks back to life and have them haunt us - at least once, anyway. Then the zombies degrade. The Yankees next face Baltimore on July 3 - a four-game series in the Bronx. Not sure he'll still be there. 

I don't blame Hicks for joining Baltimore - he'd take any opportunity that arises - but he's no Cedrick Mullen (who tweaked a gonad). Remember: If he gets hot, he'll get hurt. He was Bader, before Bader.

2. Last night in Double A, Jackie Donaldson, Giancarlo Stanton and Tommy Kahnle suited up for Somerset. Each will soon join the mother ship. (By the way, sent down to Scranton was Ben Rortvedt - meaning Kahnle won't get to pitch to Rortvedt, creating the Battery of Unnecessary Consonants.) 

None of these light fixtures will solve the Baderian hole in CF - (almost comically, Franchy Cordero is up) - though the suddenly superhuman Isiah Kiner-Falefa will probably play there for a week.  

Either way, don't expect to see Estevan Florial, who has been found GUILTY of having no options left. If the Yankees bring him up, they can't send him down. Thus, he'll languish in Scranton through eternity, or the trade deadline, whichever comes first. 

3. Anthony Volpe homered last night, icing the game. Not sure Volpe needed a HR; sometimes, a desperate batter hits one and starts thinking he's Aaron Judge. It speaks volumes that Volpe went 1-for-five, and his batting average rose.

For better or worse, the Yankees must stick with Volpe, as long as he fields the position. Once upon a time, I remember a kid named Dustin Pedroia struggling in his rookie season, until one night he broke out against us. Volpe doesn't need an occasional HR. He needs to get on base. If he proves to be a washout - even if Oswald Peraza replaces him - the Yankees will be lost in the desert for another three years.  

4. Tonight, we face George Kirby, the ace of Seattle's young staff, who was picked in the first round of the 2019 draft, 10 slots ahead of Volpe. He's from Rye, NY, and grew up wanting to be a Yankee. (I have a friend who knows him.) If the Mariners hadn't chosen him, who knows? he might now be a Yankee, instead of Volpe. (Actually, nah, scratch that; somebody else would have grabbed Kirby; he was a consensus pick.) 

Meanwhile, Clarke Schmidt pitches against Kirby. In each of his last two starts, Schimidt has gone five innings, given up 2 or 1 runs - decent outings. Dare we hope? Ten runs would be nice.