The Martian has landed... in Scranton

First off, on this Labor Day, I got nothin' to say about the Yankees. Nothin.' They're dead to me. Can't hold a lead. Can't catch a routine fly. Can't hit when it matters. And they're cheap to the bone.

They won't call up Jasson Dominguez until it's clear that he cannot come to bat enough times to affect his rookie status for 2025. It's a cheap trick, (and I don't mean the band.) By leaving him to fester in Scranton, they'll squeeze an extra year of contractual control over The Martian. They will show him who's boss, and they will give Juan Soto a reminder of how conniving this organization can be, when a season is on the line.  

If the Yankees can't win a regular series - I mean, a home series against a certified tomato can - how can we expect them to win a world series?

Well, the answer is, we shouldn't expect anything. Yes, this team will make the playoffs - because of its opening two months, which were otherworldly. Ever since, Brian Cashman has simply treaded water. They'll play in October, and maybe they'll get lucky. Trouble is, at some point in the playoffs, they'll take a lead into the late innings... and the roof will fall in. 

Seriously, 

we've seen this movie played out for 15 years. We sleep in the house, and it turns out to be really haunted, after all. In the  end, the walls crush us, and Cashman - the real demon - goes back to work, summoning us again for next year.  

Nope, we should be following Scranton. To the right are the team leaders over the last 15 days - a 1B, an OF and a utility infielder. Rumfield, 24, has never made the prospect lists. (Guy is 6'5" though, looks good coming off the bus.) The Martian is stuck in limbo. Durbin is also 24; he's only 5'6",  a scrapper. Any one would help the Yankees... if he could pitch. 

Nope, this is a Labor Day without a lotta hope. If you're talking about the Yankees, I got nothin.'  Wait, no, I take it back: How 'bout that Jorbit Vivas!

Does anybody here wanna win the AL East?

Another day, another opportunity, another tomato can, another chance to pull away... another loss.

Are we sensing a pattern here? 

The Cards come to NYC in a nosedive, mired at .500 and fading from the NL playoff race. We win game one and prepare to take the series, maybe even sweep a decidedly weaker team.

And then we provide answers to these existential questions:

Will Warren?
No, he won't.

Mark Leiter?
I give him a D.

Phil Bickford?
To the rim. 

Ten takeaways from yesterday's farce:

1. When Soto and Judge together go 2-for-9, we lose. Nothing else matters. We simply lose.

2. Will Warren has gone from being walloped in Scranton to being walloped in NYC, a tough year that might lead to better things in 2025. But I sense he's thrown enough pitches this season. 

3. The most important rehabbing Yankee is Clarke Schmidt. The month of September is no time to be using the bullpen option every fifth day.

4. That Alex Verdugo is suddenly playing well begs a question: Is this happening because he is finally being threatened with replacement? If so, maybe Boone's unwavering support might have been better tempered with a jolt of criticism.

5. The Martian homered yesterday for Scranton. He went 2-4. It's time to bring him up. There is no reason to play Verdugo in LF.

6. Holy crap, if he keeps hitting, Austin Wells could be the AL Rookie of the Year. In the last 30 days, he's leads all AL catchers in hitting (.324) and HRs (well, actually, he's tied, with five.) 

7. Lately, our best hitter lately has been - gulp - Anthony Volpe. (.326 over last 15 days.) Our best months came with Volpe leading off. Just sayin...

8. I cannot escape the feeling that  Oswaldo Cabrera, at least from the left side, has finally figured out MLB pitching. It doesn't show in his average. But he's hit a lot of line drives, right at people. I really hope Cashman doesn't trade him next winter.

9. So long, Ben Rice. Go to Scranton and start catching again.

10. Today, it's Nasty Nestor. We could lose another series to a cupcake. But the key to the rotation remains Gerrit Cole. He must  step up. 

Riddle me this: How many runs will Warren give up before Boone takes him out?

 How deep of a hole will Will put us into?

How many runs will Boonebrain leave him in for?

Will Will inspire Boone to field his lamest lineup?

Can our crack bullpen staff give up even more runs than Will?

Will Clark Schmidt ever return to save the Yankees?

Will Verdugo go 0-4 while Cabrera gets splinters?

Can Volpe win the Goldtone Glove?

Tune in to the next episode!

Same Batshit time (for home day games)! 

Same (or at least one of the several) Batshit channel!

What's the debate? It's time for The Martian to land.

A rather ridiculous debate has emerged over whether the Yankees should promote Jasson Dominguez from Scranton and install him as the everyday LF for the month of September.

This is nuts. 

Do it, Yankees. 

WTF are you waiting for? Make the move.

The call is simple. After 135 games, Alex Verdugo - our one-year-rental in LF - has simply failed. It doesn't matter that, last night, the guy fanned three times in three at-bats. Verdugo has floundered all season, including the Immortal Belly Flop against Baltimore, a moment that will forever define his brief stopover in the Bronx. 

Make. The. Move.

Yes, the last time we saw the 21-year-old Dominguez was in that devastating loss in Williamsport, before a Pepsi generation of Little Leaguers, when he double-pumped on a fly ball and let the winning run score. Yeah, he blew it. And some  will argue that the Yankees should play cheap, limiting The Martian's ABs to squeeze another year of contractual control over him. 

That's what the Rays would do. Last I checked, we were still the Yankees, the top team in Tampa. 

Bring. Him. Up.

Listen: I hate to bash Verdugo. I have Boston friends who wrongfully called him a clubhouse toxin, who suggested he'd self-immolate in NY, like a drummer in Spinal Tap. Didn't happen. He has proven to be a fine teammate, and - in fact - I think he will handle being benched, in part because a) he surely knows what a disappointment he has been and b) he has no choice.

Before last night, Verdugo had enjoyed a recent uptick. But the numbers don't lie: He's hitting .232 with just 11 HRs and an on base percentage below .300. Plus, there's the ridiculous excuse being troweled out on his behalf: He was allergic to - gulp - his batting gloves. Blow me. That's a Henry Cotto Ear Tampon level excuse. How do you get blisters hitting .232? 

It's time for the Yankees to play an outfield for the ages: The Martian, Judge and Soto. Yeah, I'm diving face-first into the swimming pool of hype, and it's possible that there is no water. But we won't know whether Dominguez is truly an impact player until we throw him into the froth. It's time for him to sink or swim.  And if he goes 0-for-25, there'd still be time for Verdugo to reappear in Act III. Crazier things have happened. 

Sunday, the rosters expand. Folks, it's time for The Martian. 

Game Thread ~ "What our World - Needs NOW is . . an ice cold can of JUJU - ONLY GOOD JUJU!" Cheers

 

Juan Soto is slumping. Now is the time Yankee fans must pick him up.

Juan Soto - the greatest young hitter in baseball - is 1 for his last 26 - mired in the first lengthy slump of his Yankee career. Tonight, when he steps to the plate, I suspect hope the fans will launch a resounding chant across the stadium, something to the effect of "PLEASE STAY... PLEASE STAY... PLEASE STAY." 

And I sure hope he listens... not just for the sake of the Yankees, but for his immortal soul. 

Soto is a two months away from the biggest decision of his life - whether to sign with the Yankees or whomever bids the most, like a prized heifer. If he chooses the latter, he will step into a future Yankiverse where he will forever be linked to one name.  

In fact, instead of a loud chant, tonight the fans should greet Soto's presence by whispering that name, just loud enough to be heard. 

Robbie Cano... Robbie Cano... Robbie Cano...

Yep. Somewhere out there, barely twinkling in the night sky, is the alt-universe where the Yankees in 2013 resigned Robbie - either by offering him another year, or convincing him to take less money. (Don't snicker: Aaron Judge made such a decision. So did Gerrit Cole. Think they regret it?)

As you all know, 2014 was the year when Cano jogged off to Seattle for a few extra thin dimes atop an unfathomable pile that reached to the moon. Ever since, he's been "Joggy Cano." 

Frankly, he's dead to us. 

The record shows Joggy put up decent numbers for his first four years in Seattle - four meaningless years when the Mariners finished 3rd, 4th, 2nd, and 3rd in the AL West, while the Yankees competed (and failed) in postseasons - going through a raft of 2B replacements that included Brian Roberts, Stephen Drew and the cast of "Lost." 

Add Cano to those Yankee lineups - that is, eliminate Starlin Castro, et al - and it's not hard to imagine a team getting that one extra hit that takes them to the world series, or maybe the Canyon of Heroes. 

Add Cano to that roster, and it's not hard to imagine Giancarlo Stanton in 2018 remaining a Marlin, or maybe going to the Redsocks, because the Yankees didn't need another high end slugger.

Make Cano a lifelong Yankee, and it's not hard to imagine his plaque in Monument Park, or Cooperstown, two places I doubt he'll see in our lifetimes. 

Nope, he loped off to Seattle so Jay-Z could launch his sports agency, which was gonna take America by storm. From there, Cano became the mercenary, a human dollar sign, always being judged by the money he was being paid. 

For right or wrong - (and a certain billionaire owner also deserves a shit sandwich here ) - Cano walked away from the greatest career opportunity in American sports - to be a lifetime Yankee. 

From there, he bounced like a football through the final stages of a desperate career, from drug suspensions to seasons below the Mendoza Line  - with the Yankees never bringing him back, not even for catcalls. 

And on this site, right or wrong, he shall forever be Joginson Cano.

Listen: Juan Soto is not facing an existential crisis, (as DJ, Verdugo, Holmes and Rodon are.) Yank fans have seen enough to recognize a great player, who the franchise absolutely must keep. If he accepts more money from another team - even the Mets - he will forever piss off the largest and most loyal fan base in baseball. In New York, that can translate into some extremely harsh media attention, especially in a pennant race when a guy is 1-for-his-last-26.

I truly hope that - for Soto's own soul - come Nov. 1, when the offers start coming, he concludes that money is not the only thing that matters. And I hope that Food Stamps Hal makes an offer equal to or better than anything else out there. Soto needs to wear a Yankee hat into the Hall of Fame. And tonight, as we chant PLEASE SIGN, there should a whispery echo of "Robbie Cano, doncha go..." 

I am at a loss for words...

 ...just as the Yankees are at a loss for baseball skills. 

Hence, I will resort to pictures: one Yankees dumpster hat for each consecutive loss.

The Yankees are a lousy team in a league of mediocrity

In a blind world, the one-eyed man is king. 

So go the 2024 Yankees, a team destined to disappoint, if not humiliate - a team that raises hope and snuffs it out, right before our barely seeing eyes, a team that remains in first place because the competition is basically terrible. 

Insert wretch here.

Three days ago, I ridiculously postulated  that three games in DC against the 6th worst team in baseball would boost the Yankees like a BLV sandwich- that's bacon, lettuce and Viagra -and a chance to widen their lead over Baltimore as September arrived. 

Well, shoot me.  

I won't be spouting such nonsense again. 

This we know about the '24 Yankees: 

They play to the level of every opponent, regardless of talent or skills. 

They have a second-baseman playing 3B, another second-baseman playing 1B, and their regular second-baseman should be a DH, if playing at all.   

They feature a lineup of hitters who do not adjust their swings, depending upon a game situation. It doesn't matter if the moment absolutely requires that a ball be put into play. They just swing away, as always, untethered by the need. 

Their bullpen can blow any lead, at any time, in any circumstance. The pitcher bombed today will go to Scranton tomorrow - and be back next week.  

They might just squander the greatest season by a hitter in modern history. And this will be their second time.

They have allowed the contract issues of Juan Soto to fester into a distraction, if not a crisis, being mentioned on a daily basis - all because the owner, who has botched so many past deals, now regularly poormouths on the matter. 

They entered August facing a schedule of cupcakes and tomato cans. They now stand at 14-and-13 for the month. They gained nothing. 

Yep. Shoot me. Hopefully, I have learned my lesson.

The Endless Spring.

 

Ah, where to begin with yesterday's dumpster dive? 

(The photo above was taken in an actual, Soho dumpster a couple weeks ago. It seemed to me like a bad omen, somehow.)

Last night's non-effort against the Washington Nats included so many elements of what is wrong with this Yankees team—and what has been wrong for years now—that it was almost magnificent in its ineptitude.

Let's start at the top. 

Nothing better exemplifies the inanity of Brian Cashman's vision for this Yankees team than its infield play last night.  

Not only did Gleyber "Headless" Torres commit his league-leading, 15th error at second—matching his entire total from last year, with over a month of play still to go!—but at the same time, a perfectly able second baseman, Jazz Chisholm, committed his 6th error in 18 games at third base, a position he is trying to learn on the fly in the midst of a pennant race.

All while Oswaldo Cabrera, who has outhit and outfielded Torres this season, remains on the bench.

Or Chisholm could have been in the outfield, in place of Flopsie Vertigo (And am I the only one who thinks that Vertigo resembles Clint "The Red Menace" Frazier?  Talk about omens!). 

We have learned that Flopsie has an excuse, though: it seems that he was allergic to his batting gloves, which gave him blisters on his hands. Ah, yes, yet another unsolvable problem for the Yankees' crack medical team. 

One can picture the day when Verdugo meets Joe DiMaggio or Ted Williams in hell, and they explain:

"Blisters, son? You're supposed to have blisters on your hand, from all the extra batting practice you take. Especially when you're hitting .223." 

(No word yet if Flopsie's outfielder's glove was causing him to have hallucinations during that ninth inning in Baltimore.)

Then there was José Trevino, two years ago a Gold-Glove winner who led the AL in percentage of baserunners caught stealing, and who now can barely play his position or throw out anyone.

Think he's hurt, guys? Do tell us. And why again is it that 24-year-old Austin Wells can't start almost every game for a month, just as he's come into his own as a hitter?

Then there was our star, Flouncy Cole, in full flouncy mode, managing to give up not only .168-hitting Joey Gallo's 13th ribbie of the season, but also blasts to a pair of unknown rookies with 13 and 34 major-league games between them, respectively (if not respectably).

Then there was Patrick Corbin, the Nats' broken ace, who has gone 31-69 with a 5.60 ERA in the five seasons since he helped Washington to a World Series title...but 2-0, 2.30, in 5 starts against your New York Yankees (including shutting us down in the festive, IIHIIFII...C Stadium outing last year).

Think that might call for some extra videotape watching and counseling from our brilliant manager and coaches? Think they even talked about how Corbin serves up batting practice to the rest of the majors but can always get us out? Please don't be ridiculous.

Then there was Glassman Cantrun, managing a hit only when there was nobody on base, while going 0-2 when Judge was on...

ENOUGH! I'm depressing myself compiling this litany of listlessness. 

You'll remember that many years ago, there was a documentary called, The Endless Summer, which followed a couple of beach bums as they went surfing around the planet. As we approach September, with all of a one-game lead, the Yankees continue to play as if they were in endless spring. 

As if they were in a training camp that will never end, with somebody trying out this position, and somebody else resting up for the regular season, and nobody—nobody—on the team or in the dugout or above all the front office—nobody, save for our two superstars, one of them soon to be a Met...thinking or working, or trying all that hard.

You can call it baseball, if you want. But to me it looks as if we have the bums, and they're just looking for a beach.

How much longer will the Yankees go with Verdugo and LeMahieu?

All you need to know about the 2024 Yankees happened last night in the haunted hills of the bootless and unhorsed Northeast. 

In a heat-domed Scranton, Jasson Dominguez - aka "The Martian" - went 2 for 4 with a triple and a run. On the season - that's 47 games on three minor league levels levels - the 21-year-old OF is hitting .315 with 8 HRs and 14 SB. For the last five years, he has been the Yankees' most hyped prospect, the most publicized future star since - well - Jesus Montero, aka "The Ice Cream Sandwich." 

Meanwhile, at Double A Somerset, 35-year-old Anthony Rizzo went 2 for 2 with a HR and an RBI. He's now 2 for 6 - hitting .333 - in a rehab assignment, following his second straight season of underachievement and breakability. He's been down so long that 2022, when he hit 32 HRs for the Yankees, seems like a dream. 

At the MLB level, the Yankees last night served up Alex Verdugo and DJ LeMahieu, batting 8th and 9th respectively, in LF and 1B. Both went 1 for 4 and saw slight increases in their meager BAs. In the 9th, Verdugo singled to keep hopes alive. LeMahieu followed with a pop fly, crushing them.  

On the season, Verdugo is hitting .223. LeMahieu boosted his average to the magical .200. Both are miles below their career numbers.

Listen: Nobody talks about the jailbreak... until the jailbreak.

Until it happens, the Yankees won't discuss benching either Verdugo or LeMahieu. But MLB rosters expand Sept. 1, and - holy shit, summer's over! That's this weekend.

If a change does come, it will accompany massive happy talk and dollops of praise, as the YES machine attempts to mask two brutal realities: 

Both Verdugo and LeMahieu are facing existential career crises. 

Verdugo is on the verge of being cut by his third MLB team - the Dodgers, Redsocks and now Yankees. His next stop, free agency, will likely plant him with a minor market somewhere in the Heartland, where everybody watches football, on a one-year deal to try and redeem his lost luster. You don't get many more chances, especially on baseball's largest stages.

At 36, LeMahieu seems to have simply run out of gas. The Yankees will pay him exorbitantly for two more years. But unless he starts hitting, his fine career is on borrowed time. You see it on his face in every at bat. 

Tonight, the Yankees play the Nats in the rubber match of a three game set, while Baltimore battles the Dodgers. The Yankees cannot afford to lose ground, while playing one of MLB's worst teams. 

Whatever happens, either the Yankees start getting production from the bottom or their batting order, or changes are coming. 

I'VE BEEN SAYING THIS FOR YEARS

An Above Average Haiku Tuesday ~ "HEY - how about a chin strap for Volpe?" Edition

 

Has anyone noticed how Boston is dropping like a stone? And other takeaways from a DC night

For a while now, the Redsocks have been extra obnoxious - even for their hissy-pissy standards - since running wild in July and nearly sending Jose Trevino into therapy.  If I have to hear any more crapola about their youth tsunami - (btw, the next Jeter, Marcelo Mayer has been shut down for the season with a creaky lumbar) - I'll chant "Youkilis-Youkilis-Youkilis!" to summon Lauren Boebert from the groping darkness. 

Boston is on the verge of being bypassed by our hateful pals in Tampa - (still a game below .500.) Life is sweet when the Redsocks have lost five straight.

Other ruminations following last night's win over a lineup with not one name I'd ever heard before. 

1. Yesterday, the Yankees signed Duke Ellis, who once pitched a no-hitter while on LSD off the scrap heap. Interesting. The guy can fly. This year, between Triple A and the White Sox, he's stolen 51 bases, been caught 4 times. Four. Keep in mind, those 51 bases came without Duke hitting a lick. He must run every time he gets on. Second and third. 

Imagine him as our 10th inning "ghost" runner, and hey, maybe we'll win one. Could he be our post-season Dave Roberts? Way I see it, at worst, in a close game, this guy pinch running will terrorize the pitcher. I like this move. 

2. Last night, nearly all our offense came from the bottom of the lineup. What a concept. If the Yankees get production from Volpe, Verdugo, Jazz and DJ - and add Austin Wells, one of the AL's most promising young catchers - and who knows? For the last month, you could feel pitchers exhale after getting through Soto/Judge/Stanton. If the bottom five can hit, there is no reason why we can't win this division. 

Seriously. No wild card race. We must win the division and take home field advantage. That, or nothing.

3. Nasty Nestor Cortez pitched courageously last night, striking out three batters in the 6th with runners on second and third. He remains a streak pitcher and potential secret weapon in October. Nestor's shrinking ERA - 3.89 - ranks 22nd in the AL, just after Marcus Stroman (3.88) among qualifiers. 

Nobody's gonna win the Cy Young this year. But with Clarke Schmidt returning - fingers crossed - we should be able to keep a fresh rotation through September.

4. Jittery moment last night when Anthony Volpe's head bonked into the shortstop's knee while stealing second. How could you NOT remember Anthony Rizzo's concussion last season, which still threatens his career. 

Volpe is always outrunning his helmet, even on routine grounders. Last night, it almost cost him. This is one of those tidbits that make you say, WTF? For example, Verdugo's hands have been blistered because it turns out that he's allergic to his batting gloves. Are you kidding me? Really? 

Why can't the Yankees fit Volpe with a helmet that sticks? Last night was a nice Yankee victory. If they had lost Volpe to a concussion, it could have been a travesty. WTF? 

With Baltimore playing the Dodgers, this is the week for the Yankees to pull away in the AL East.

Shut your ears. I must utter blaspheme. 

I shall do this because - as first and foremost, a truth-teller - I cannot speak about the Yankees in any other way. 

One of the secrets to happiness is to appreciate when the cotton is tall, when your underwear fits and when - to put it bluntly - fucking life is fucking good. 

Today, the Death Barge has a two-game lead in the loss column over Baltimore, whose predictions of dynasty may have been overblown. We can bemoan Clay Holmes, but O's fans must watch Craig Kimbrel - five years past his prime - who has six blown saves and an ERA approaching 4.00. All those last place finishes, all those number one picks, and they apparently forgot to draft a closer.

It is time to accept positives about the Yankees, regardless of the juju implications. We cannot live in fear. Come on, people, sing along: When you walk through the storm, hold your head up high, and don't be afraid of the dark. Climb every mountain, ford every stream. To  dream the impossible dream, to fight the unbeatable foe...

Tonight, the Yankees could start pulling away in the AL East.

They play three games in DC against the Nats, the 6th worst team in baseball, if you care about wins and losses. Meanwhile, Baltimore plays the Dodgers in LA, one of those West Coast road trips from Hell. This is our week, our perfect moment, to create separation within the division. 

(OF COURSE, WE KNOW WHAT'S REALLY GOING TO HAPPEN: WE'LL BE SWEPT, PAINFULLY SWEPT, WITH BLOW OUT LOSSES, MAYBE A HORROR SHOW BLOWN SAVE, AND WITH A KEY INJURY OR TWO. THIS IS WHAT THE MODERN YANKEES ALWAYS DO, YEAR AFTER YEAR, PLAY A TOMATO CAN AND LOSE. WHY WOULD WE EXPECT ANYTHING DIFFERENTLY?) 

Forgive me. I instruct the jury to ignore that outburst. Back to the drunken, unbridled optimism...

We're at a crossroads. September is a week away. That could signal the end of the Alex Verdugo experiment. ight now, Verdugo has seven days to go on a Ruthian Judgeian hitting spree that forestalls the arrival of The Martian. 

Yesterday, for Scranton, Jasson Dominguez went 2-4 with a double, his small sample BA now .305. Verdugo got two hits against the Rockies, and he homered earlier in the series. He's hitting .229 on the season - a lifetime .272 hitter who, at age 28, should be at his peak. It's been sad watching Verdugo struggle. It shows in his baby face, which seems to have aged by 20 years. But The Martian is coming, the Yankees have invested far too much in his to NOT clear his  path, and when the rosters expand in September, he'll almost surely be taking Verdugo's place at the table. 

Likewise, the Yankees will add pitchers to their bullpen, a crying need for the last month. Most notably, Clarke Schmidt should return, as a starter or reliever, whichever the Yankees most need. (Considering Will Warren's dismal start the other day - two balks in one inning - Schmidt is probably destined  for the rotation.)

But the Yankees must do business in DC. A sweep would be nice. But just winning the series could improve their bulge over Baltimore. This is our time. We better not blow it. 

Guys who should be on the Yankees roster but aren't

All of these guys should be playing for the big team, imo. Slot Durbin at SS, maybe at least light a fire under Volpe's ass, maybe replace him. Vertigo should be benched. DJ, too. 

I like Grisham and Rice but they just aren't good enough--in Rice's case, yet (I hope). Grisham was doing better when he played a lot more, but if they can't give him the games, forget it. And we have at least two bullpen guys who should be replaced, easy. Marinan, Manischewirz, Hammy, Effross, Burdi, Trivino, Kahnle, Gil might work as the bullpen. Maybe Weaver if they can give him a decent rest. 

Aside from Schmidt, we're fucked for any replacement starters. There's Cole then throw the dice.

I assume everyone here is as smart as or smarter than me, so maybe there are better ideas. Fuck if I know.

Of course, aside from the guys coming back from injuries, we can't count on Cashman to do anything else. He'll bring up Jasson September 1st, but will he play much? Not if he looks like he did on Little League day. We may yet see Greg Allen.

Bring these guys up:

• Ron Marinaccio
• Anthony Misiewicz 
• Caleb Durbin
• Spencer Jones 
• Jasson Domínguez

Rehabbing (and not fast enough, but not too much longer for most):

• Nick Burdi
• Scott Effross
• Ian Hamilton
• Clark Schmidt
• Anthony Rizzo
• Lou Trivino
• Jon Berti (though I could wait with him, tbh)

Once again, Yanks flounder against a flounder

By now, it should be obvious: The Yankees won't pull away from Baltimore in 2024. 

Whenever the winds seem to gather behind us, something shifts beneath our feet, and it doesn't matter who we're playing. We lose. Often, horribly.

But neither can the O's pull away in the AL East. Yesterday, while we were crapping the bed, they won their second straight against Houston, formerly the hottest team in baseball. 

It will probably go this way into the last week of September, when we host the O's for three games.  

In the meantime, there are pressing matters.

1. Yesterday, the Yankees once again used practically their entire staff in a fumbling, stumbling loss. We don't have a bullpen guy who can throw four innings and save the staff. And it's getting worse.

After 56 innings pitched, Michael Tonkin is starting to look spent, and we're seeing why Mark Leiter Jr. was so easily available in a deadline trade. Right now, the Yankees have three relievers within Aaron Boone's circle of trust - Luke Weaver, Jake Cousins and Tommy Kahnle, with a flashing "X" over Clay Holmes.  Everyone else is a crooked number, waiting to happen. And if somebody, anybody, emerges, it remains to be seen whether Boone will simply burn him out. Who pitches those last three innings against Baltimore? The answer, sadly: Whoever happens to have the hot hand. 

2. Alex Verdugo homered yesterday. He sure needed it. Nobody has looked more lost, more agonized, more hapless. He's been so bad that the YES announcers had given up searching for hopeful signs - a good swing, a smart take, whatever. Of course, they beamed with joy over the HR, pronouncing it a hopeful sign!

Meanwhile, Jasson Dominguez went 0-4 at Scranton with a walk and a K. He's batting .298 in a very small sample size. 

Left field is up for grabs. Someone - either Verdugo in the Bronx or The Martian at Biden Town - has got to start hitting. These grounders to 2B cannot go on. And if neither gets hot, the Yankees should consider shifting Oswaldo Cabrera into the outfield. Somewhere, somebody has to fill that dead zone, which is keeping  the Yankees from having the best outfield in baseball.

Why Flopsie is today's quintessential Yankee.

 

Hate to even bring up his name on this Yankees holy day—first Old Timers' Day, July 4th, 1939, to celebrate/commemorate Lou Gehrig—but why is Flopsie Vertigo still in the starting lineup?

After a decent hitting start to this season—in a park where, no doubt, Brian Cashman figured that he would be just boffo as a lefty, no need for that pricey Cody Bellinger—Flopsie looked about to break out, following his big night in Boston on June 14th. That evening he homered, doubled, and drove in 4 runs, upping his average on the season to .266.

Not exactly world beating—even for Verdugo's constantly disappointing career—but enough.

After that...it all went south.

Flopsie's average has dropped 40 points in the 54 game since. In that whole time—with Aaron Judge and Juan Soto ahead of him in the lineup—he's had 38 hits, including just 1 home run and 12 RBI, and 30 strikeouts. This is almost a clinic in non-clutch hitting—or non-hitting in general.

Why is this so? 

Hey, maybe it's just a slump. Maybe Vertigo is worn down tending to the child that he and his wife just had. That might just account for why he's so bad at home—a nauseating .208/.275/.310, as opposed to a merely miserable, .243/.300/.391 on the road.

Hey, it happens. Should we castigate Flopsie for just being a caring dad??? (Maybe fatigue also accounts for his vertigo in the outfield in The Game That Shall Live in Infamy against Baltimore.)

But then there's this: even in the throes of his month-and-a-half batting and fielding slump, Verdugo has still kept playing relatively well against the Red Sox.  

In his 9 games against Boston this year, he's hit .310, with an .850 OPS. What's more, against the OTHER former team with whom he flopped, the Dodgers, Verdugo batted .357 with an .857 OPS. 

The evidence seems to suggest, as with so many of your New York Yankees this year, that when Alex Verdugo is motivated, he can play very well—and that he only gets motivated when he feels like it.  

Why the devil this guy should play another inning for us, save as a pinch-runner, pinch-hitter, or late-game leg-saver when we have Jasson Dominguez available, is beyond me.  

Rockies and Nats. Break out the bats. Colorado/DC, let's each take three.

Danger Will Robinson. It's time we dealt with this sudden influx of unbridled optimism. 

Must I remind you of The First and Greatest Rule of Juju, which states: 

Nothing is ever gained by speaking positively about your team. 

Always, always, always...  be sour and dour. Don't be afraid to kick the puppy. That way, if they lose, you were right all along. If they win, bravo! your surgically administered reverse juju worked.  

That said, here are some facts that pose a grave danger to our vast and impenetrable Midnight Blue Curtain of Gloom.

The Yankees currently have: 

1. The best record in the American League, and in the AL East.

2. The best player in all of baseball.

3. The best hitting duo in all of baseball.

4. A clear path for their best prospect. (The Martian went 2-5 last night for Scranton, with a HR and a double. Meanwhile, Verdugo is now down to .226. It won't be long.)

5. Five straight games against two certified tomato cans. (After Colorado and DC, the Cardinals, Rangers and Cubs.)

6. A staff soon to be fortified by the return  of their best pitcher throughout the spring. (Clarke Schmidt threw 3 innings last night at Double A. He gave up one run.)

7. A stable lineup with their preferred starters at the corners. (Jazz Chisholm played last night; Anthony Rizzo rehabbed at Double A.)

8. The possibility that Giancarlo Stanton is heating up. (HR last night.)

9. That worrisome wort on your butt is starting to shrink. 

10. The UFOs watching us from their ocean bottom base are Yank fans.

Okay, the last two are traps. I was testing you. Hopefully, you caught them. And most importantly, now is not the time to let up with our unwavering load of misery. Abandon hope, everybody. I'm absolutely sure they'll lose today. (Game time 2:05 p.m.) 

Game Thread ~ Rodon vs the Slog Monster. Who will WIN?

 

Yankee recipe for victory: Soto, Judge and don't need a closer

Honestly, we shouldn't complain. 

Not about Boone, not about Cashman, not about Hal - not about any of the wonk kewpies who run this organization, this ongoing mess, which rules our days and nights.  

Today, the Yankees have the 2nd best record in all of baseball. 

They lead the AL East by two games in the loss column. 

If the season ended now, they would enjoy the home field advantage through the ALCS. 

So, why are we so squeamish, so terrified, so defeatist, when we peer into the road ahead?

Well, it's simple. 

The Yankees are a two-man team that can be pitched around, and they cannot close a tight game. 

Every one of us knows that opposing teams seldom pay a price for walking Judge. And we all dread taking a one-run lead into the 9th, because we know that, at any moment, even with two outs and nobody on base, the switch can get flipped, and the season can fly out the window.

It's a reality that Yank fans have lived for the last five years, ever since Aroldis Chapman transitioned from baseball's most intimidating closer into a sweat-dripping turnstile who raised the hopes of every team we faced. 

We have gone through closer after closer, but we have  never replaced Mariano Rivera, and we probably never will. (The same can be said of Jeter. Despite all our efforts, and all our hypes, replacements always fall short.) 

Over the last three days, the Yankees beat one of MLB's best teams, 2-1, in a three-game series. Twice, behind Judge and Soto, we bashed in their miserable skulls. But in that one excruciating loss, every gremlin in the box escaped, as the Yankees could neither score a runner or hold the lead. 

So, here we are - sitting uneasily in the rarified air of 1st, behind the Dodgers, a team that has outspent us by $17 million this year, according to Cot's Baseball Contracts. (The Mets lead all of baseball in spending, at $338 million; that's $35 million higher than the Yankee payroll.)  Realistically, we should not complain. 

But each of us knows the massive flaw in the center of this roster. Eventually, it will be the end game for 2024. It is the reason why this team has so much trouble against tomato cans. It's the reason we will fail in October.  

If Judge and Soto don't hit, the team won't score. 

And God help us if the bullpen must hold a lead. 

We should enjoy this moment. We are the best team in the AL, on paper, for now. Trouble is, it just feels so fragile, so tenuous and, most troubling...  so temporary.