And the legend begins of Wipeout Weissert, the Bay Shore Beaner...

Magic Number for Division: 31
For Wild Card: 29

Well, at least nobody saw it. There's that. 

It happened in the 7th inning of a 10-1 laugher on the West Coast, when most Yankee diehards were dry-humping their memory foams. Greg Weissert - the Fordham Flayer and still current save-leader at Scranton - made his MLB debut.

I hope Weissert has a sick sense of humor, because for the rest of his baseball life, he'll need one.

On his first two pitches, he hit Oakland batters, though it must be noted that he sandwiched this feat with a balk. 

Here's how it unfolded:

At this point, Boone brought in Cool Hand Lucas Luetge, and the few Yankee fans still watching surely achieved their greatest "Happy to see Luetge" epiphany. 

The game showcased the disparity between an AL contender and the 80-loss A's, worst record in the league, who started James Kaprelian - whom  we once surrendered to get Sonny Gray. He gave up 8 runs in 2.2 innings, running his ERA to nearly 5.00. (Turns out, Baltimore SS Jose Mateo might be the one that got away in that trade, though Mateo will soon likely be replaced by Gunnar Henderson, a 21-year-old considered the 2nd best prospect in baseball.)

One other thing happened yesterday: 

The Yankees lost Nasty Nestor to - wait for it - a tweaked gonad! Yep, he pulled his cabbage basket. I have a theory based on absolutely no evidence, but nowadays, who needs proof, so I'm running with it. (And yes, this theory does reflect the Viagra optimism of a four-game win streak:)

With three wins and an Oakland trip looming, I think the Yankee brain trust recognized that Cortez has been dangerously overpitched this season, and it wanted him to take a two-week tequila break before the playoffs. Barring a setback, they'll soon return Setback Severino. We're a shell of the powerhouse that roared through May and June, but with Giancarlo back, every slot in the lineup looks different. 

Any pitching injury that does not involve an elbow, shoulder or muscle tear is a weekend with Rudy at Mar a Lago. 

Besides, without Nestor's grumbling gonad, we wouldn't have gotten to hear about Wipeout Weissert, and still be smiling. Go forth and prosper, sir. It can only get better from here.