The NY Ciphers add another shutout to a remarkable spring of zeros

Thirty games into the thicket, our swishing and swooshing '24 Yanks are on a pace to record 30 shutouts - that is, to be held scoreless 30 times - a feat that conjures memories of Matt Nokes, Alvaro Espinosa and some of the great engines of haplessness in Gotham history. 

Of course, they'll need up their game to beat the all-time record for  shutouts, 33 by the 1909 St. Louis Browns, a 7th place team led by Hobe Ferris and Lou Criger - yes, THE Lou Criger, and don't forget Ham Patterson!

If these Yankees do achieve scorelessness immortality, last night's nine-inning cipher spree will take a special place in goose egg lore. 

At one point, the rather moribund Giancarlo Stanton - baseball's slowest baserunner since Smokey Burgess? - could not reach 2nd base on a line drive single to right. The ball handcuffed Giancarlo, who assumed his signature toiletless squat halfway between 1st and 2nd, and then was unable to waddle forward quickly enough to save the inning. To call Giancarlo "slow" is like describing the Atlantic Ocean as "moist."

Of course, there were other zero heroes - Aaron Judge, chasing a 3-2 pitch out of the strike zone, with runners on 2nd and 3rd, comes gloriously to mind - but Stanton's inability to move, added to all the other inabilities, wins the IIHIIFIIc participation trophy.

Five shutouts. You can sense them coming, as the missed opportunities mount. In the 9th, Oswaldo Cabrera belted a long fly - a dramatic, game-tying HR? And you could imagine The Master shouting, "IT IS HIGH, IT IS FARRRR... IT ISSSS..." Nope. It was caught, a warning track out.

The Super Ciphers are in 2nd place, a few percentage points behind Baltimore. The next three games will likely dictate whether we chase the O's or start looking over our shoulder, starving off the surprising Redsocks. Its May, and we already have five shutouts. 

This team may have found its destiny. Or, at least, its Ham Patterson.