HoraceClarke66: Tribute to a Lightweight

 Mark Malusis, in what was really a very nice tribute to Derek Jeter last night on SNY, began by allowing that Jeter was never as flashy or ran up numbers as big as those compiled by “Miguel Tejada, Nomar Garciaparra, Alex Rodriguez…”

 
Indeed. As we all know now, despite years of prevarications and pretense, all three of those miraculously bulked up individuals were juicing. As were, if we are to believe M. Jose Canseco, about 80 percent of major-league players during his playing years.

 Even allowing for Mr. Canseco’s usual exaggerations, it was quite clear that huge numbers of ballplayers were filling their bodies with all sorts of illegal, performance-enhancing drugs—pitchers as well as hitters—and even, after a short time, for your New York Yankees.

 You could see it in how they looked, and how they performed. It was, as the great Paul Simon wrote, the age of miracles and wonders—and not least the long-distance call. 

 Not so much for Derek Jeter, of whom there has never even been so much as a whisper that he was one of the dopers. Nor, it appears, at a distance of 23 years, was it true of any of the players on the 1998 Yankees, the greatest team that ever played the game—although they had to play plenty of juicers.

 Malusis referred as well at one point in his commentary to “the Derek Jeter of 1996, not when they really started to load up on superstars in 1998.” But that’s the interesting thing, too: they really didn’t have a lot of what we would now call “superstars” on that team—just terrific ballplayers playing terrific baseball as a team. 

Only Jeter, back-up Tim Raines, Manager Joe Torre, and The Great One from the 1998 Bombers are in the Hall of Fame, and only they are likely to get there. Which raises some interesting questions.

 Bernie Williams once asked teasingly if—since he didn’t juice—he deserved to be in the Hall, having had to play (and win!) against so many guys who did?

 The answer, in a better world, would be “Yes.” It should definitely be yes for Jorge Posada, who was prevented from being the best catcher in the American League for ten years only because of the presence of a juicing I-Rod. It might even be true for Paul O’Neill and Tino Martinez, going up against legions of juiced pitchers. 

Just how great they might have been on a level playing field is ultimately unknowable—one of the saddest legacies of doping.

 But a core truth remains:  The fact that Derek Jeter—and the others—did not juice—did not flash the big muscles or the big stats—makes them all the greater. 

Read it and weep: Yankee hitting stats over the last 15 days

Clearly, no reason to give Tyler Wade a chance.

You little wretches are this close...

I just spent a chunk of precious Thursday morning time--time I could have spent watching the new Star Trek: Lower Decks, or celebrating today's birth anniversary of the great Neil Hamilton, who played Commissioner Gordon on Batman, or even getting work done--I just spent that time deleting comments that have nothing to do with Yankees, baseball, or just hanging out with people who like, or like to make fun of, a lot of the same things.   

You have no idea how close you are to the return of moderated comments. No idea.

Do not engage the trolls. If you engage the trolls, I'll assume you are a troll and your comment will be deleted. And if I have to spend another Lower Decks-worth of time deleting comments, I will not hesitate to launch the moderated option. Just try me. 

Soon, the question echoing across the Yankiverse will be a simple one: Will management be held accountable for the debacle of 2021?

Back in March, (what was it, a billion years ago?), when the Yankees pretended to be the swinging dicks of the AL East, a few isolated voices questioned the righty-imbalanced lineup and aging bullpen. Nobody wanted to hear it. 

Back in July, when the floundering Yankees desperately sought lefty bats and a fortified bullpen, a few voices questioned the wisdom of draining the farm system for salary dumps and short-term rentals. Nobody wanted to hear it. 

When you own the primary media outlet in charge of measuring your success, there can be no such thing as accountability. And that, my friends, is the sad story of the hubris-choked New York Yankees.

Aside from a 13-game stretch in August, an outlier on the season, 2021 has brought us the most frustrating Yankee team in modern history. 

It will be remembered for its injuries, its strikeouts, its rally-killing double plays, its failed experiments, its disastrous trades, its catastrophic meltdowns in the final innings and its underperforming stars.

This team will be remembered in the way that we now recall the 14-year barf of the late 1980s and early 1990s - the Danny Tartabulls and Mel Halls, who live in our memories the way Clint Frazier and Miguel Andujar will haunt future Yankee trivia contests.

We have watched Tampa - at a fraction of the Yankee payroll - dominate us on a regular basis. We have watched Boston rise, fall and rebuild - to win multiple championships. We are now watching Toronto crush us in a dress-rehearsal for October. Next year, it will be Baltimore. Every other franchise builds with youth. The Yankees seek to buy success. The famous "Core Four" used to be homegrown Yankees. Now, if such a thing existed, it would consist of imports. 

Soon, the question once again will be upon us: Will the front office skate? Will the Yankees scapegoat their puppet manager and a few targeted players, while the architect of this calamity - Brian Cashman - remains in charge?

I pose this with a grudging respect for Cashman. He has built some decent teams, albeit also-rans. But the Yankees are suffering through the worst world series drought in their history, while spending $200 million a year, a figure their owner thinks is enough. But it's not. 

Cashman cannot face a true reckoning from sportswriters whose jobs depend on getting their phone calls returned, or from the YES Network, which is owned by the Yankees. Nor will Hal Steinbrenner ever fire him. 

But when this season ends - in the way we all know it will - Cashman must do the right thing. 

He must resign.

New Thread - No abuse -baseball only

 OK Mr. Bosch you got it. I'm watching anyway. I can moderate. 

So No One Noticed?

 Gerritt Cole left early last night.

A bit of a hammy twinge, I hear.

More innings for Kriske Kritter, then?

HoraceClarke66

 From the boss desk of Hoss...

ZacharyA, our new stats wizard, with an amazing one last night:  these past two games were the first time that your New York Yankees have played two consecutive games without a walk or an extra-base hit, since June of 1962.

 That’s simply jaw-dropping—especially since walks and extra-base hits are supposed to be 2 of the 3 True Outcomes. (Not to be confused with the Seven Pillars of Wisdom or the Nine Ways to Enlightenment. And we remain plenty adept at the last one.)

 I heard another all-but-unbelievable stat during the whole 15 minutes I watched of last night’s excrescence. It was that Judge, Stanton, and Gallo, the three leading home-run hitters on the team this season (including Joey’s time in Dallas), had gone 1-35 in the preceding three losses.

 One-for-thirty-five! 

 That also seemed preposterous. Though it’s now 2-43, since Gallo did not play last night and Stanton managed an entire single against Steve Matz. 

 I would like to ask Zach, though I don’t want to stretch his logarithms to the breaking point, if he knows of any other time in the Yankees’ history, when:

 —In a close race in September, say no more than five games up or down for a postseason spot…

 —…the Yankees’ three leading home run hitters…

 —…went 2-43 in 4 consecutive games.

 I guess it’s possible, though it’s hard to believe it.

 Ruth-Gehrig-Meusel/Lazzeri? Gehrig-DiMaggio-Dickey? DiMaggio-Keller-Gordon?  Mantle-Berra-Skowron? Mantle-Maris-Howard? Jackson-Munson-Nettles? Bernie-Tino-O’Neill? A-Rod-Jeter-Matsui?

 Look, I know I’ve been overly hard on Judge and Stanton this year. (Let’s not even discuss the other guy.) And in past years, too. But lo and behold, they’ve turned in very nice seasons, and if half-a-dozen of their teammates had played half as well, we’d be getting someplace.

 But let’s face it: these guys never were and never will be the superstars we need. Judge might score 80 runs this year? Giancarlo with a shot at 60? Both might, barely, get to 85 ribbies?

 Hey, that’s swellsy. They both played well, and were even able to remain on the field a lot. But that ain’t superstar material. It’s not even, really, star material.

 I know, I know. Baseball, even more than most sports, is a game of streaks. Players streak, teams streak. Then they cool down.

 But the best find a way not to freeze up. To find a way to go, say, 5-5 after that 13-game win streak, not 2-8 (Looking at you, Derek Jeter, you beautiful Hall-of-Famer, you.).

 When the going gets tough, the tough get going. The assorted pantheon of Yankees greats we venerate we do so because they came up big when all the chips were down. They picked up the team and carried it in its worst moments.

 I haven’t seen anyone in this bunch doing that save for Gerrit Cole, and now he’s hurt.

 When the going gets tough, the not-so-tough go missing.

A note about comments on this blog

Dear Readers,

Lately, we've had trolling in the comment sections, and it's not easy, balancing a community forum with an occasional asshole.

But when it comes to free speech, I believe the remedies are always worse than the problem. 

Research tells us the best way to deal with trolls is to ignore them. It's not always easy, because they will call you names and, if you don't respond, they'll do everything possible to rattle your cage. That's because they are generally not well. Think about it: They're sitting at home, picking fights online. Yeesh. So it's not your fault. You just happen to be in their line of fire. Don't let them get to you.

On that note, I want to welcome all readers - Yankee haters, too - to tell me what a moron I am, and how stupid and unreadable my posts are. I'm good with that. Here's how it works: I get my say, and you get yours. 

But please, be nice to each other. 

And if somebody attacks you, here's my request: 

Do nothing. Do not respond. Do not react. Just ignore them. I will try to delete offensive comments, though it won't happen instantaneously. If somebody starts hurling obscenities and personal attacks, frankly, we should feel collectively sorry for that person. It's gotta be awful, being so angry. But we should not give them the attention they crave. If anything, they deserve our sympathy.

Listen: These are hard times to be a Yankee fan. The team is collapsing in slow motion, while its greatest modern player - aka Derek Jeter - occupies our memories. I don't blame someone for wanting to lash out. But let's cool it down, okay? When a team collapses - like this one is doing - we need a space to heal, not to fight.

But you can still rant about Cashman. That's gotta be something, right?

Hmmm... "Derek Jeter" is trending on Twitter. What could THAT be about?

 

HoraceClarke66: What to do about the jacket?

 From the keyboard of HoraceClarke66...

The Blue Jays—a team that has wildly underperformed and played like chowderheads for so much of this season, as our Peerless Leader so ably detailed for us—have apparently come up with a solution for their lethargy:  a jacket.

Or a men’s sports coat, as they used to be called.

For all of you who already felt that the incessant gesturing, preening, swaggering, and grandstanding that ensues when somebody so much as legs out a Baltimore chop these days was already excessive…well, teams have now taken it to new depth.

 A case in point was the Red Sox giving a home-run hitter a ride in a laundry cart, or something. Now the BJs, formerly of Buffalo, have come up with a “home run jacket” they put on anyone who hits a dinger, the back of it festooned with the names of all sorts of different places and countries—Toronto being, of course, the only multicultural team in the major leagues.

 Back in the day, Bill Veeck, Jr.’s Chicago White Sox came up with a similar gimmick, introducing the very first, “exploding scoreboard.” 

 Fresh from the thrill of winning their first AL pennant in 40 years (and promptly dropping the World Series to a mediocre Dodgers team), the ChiSox for 1960 decided to add insult to injury by installing a scoreboard that emitted all sorts of flashing lights, bomb-like noises, and imitation fireworks whenever one of the Pale Hose went deep.

 On June 17^th, 1960, Casey Stengel’s last great Yankees team ventured out to Comiskey Park for a four-game series. Repeat the feat fever was running high on the South Side of Chicago, as the local crew was in the midst of a wild, five-team pennant race with the Yanks, Orioles, Tigers, and Indians.

 Going into the series, Chicago was in fourth place, ut just 3 ½ games behind the first-place Orioles. The Yanks were second, just 1 ½ games out. But despite the Bombers’ inexplicably dismal, third-place finish in 1959, everyone knew they were the team to beat.

 The Sox had visions of winning four straight, and sweeping into first. Veeck as in Wreck had the scoreboard primed to go.

 Instead, in the first game, Clete Boyer homered. The scoreboard, of course, stayed silent for this blast by a visiting player. 

 But Casey Stengel and his team lit homemade sparklers—provided by Bob O. Fishel, the Yankees PR director with a sneaky sense of humor—and paraded around in the dugout. When Mantle homered a few innings later, they did the same thing.

 The next day, Mantle, Maris, and the Moose all homered. More sparklers, more dancing around while the scoreboard—and the crowd—stayed quiet. They swept the series and soon found themselves in first, where they remained for most of the rest of the year.

 I know, I know. Times have changed. Now professional athletes making $20 million a year must celebrate their every tiny flicker of achievement.

 But I still think something as outrageous as the BJs’ jacket deserves a response. Once upon a time it might have been a fastball into the ribs of the next three hitters or so, but I realize that’s frowned upon today. Besides, those BJs are bigger and younger than our guys, and would probably beat them up in any brawl.

 But still. A little pride is called for, no? Like Casey’s boys had—not this characterless lump of a team we follow today. 

 

Photo quiz, to remind us of when we had a great team ... name these Yankees

OK, something to distract us from Cole's injury and the sinking ship that is the 2021 New York Yankees.

A friend got me these nesting dolls about 20 years ago, honoring the "1998 National Champions" New York Yankees. "Made in Russia" is painted on the base.

So, today's quiz ... name the Yankees supposedly pictured here, left to right.

Here's a closer look at the smaller ones (as if that would help).

I'll chime in with the answer a little later in the comments.

 

In a season of Yankee disappointments, the greatest insults may be yet to come

All season, we feared the moment when Gerrit Cole finally became a true Yankee... that is, when he got hurt. 

He'd face a tweak, a strain, a tear, a sprain - something would pop - and he would march solemnly to the dugout, not to return.

Last night, amid the Stepford horror of yet another listless defeat, it happened: Cole called out the coaching entourage and abruptly disappeared, along with - perhaps - any real Yankee hopes for this wretched, hellhole of a season. (Aside from 2004, have we ever suffered more at the nepotistic hands of this lost franchise?) 

Cole had become our One Great Hope: He'd win the Wild Card and propel us into the Divisional Round, a five-game series where, well, anything could happen. Now, we face a new reality, a new set of insults to the fans:

1. The Yankees routinely lie to us about injuries. They dismiss the problem, claiming the player will barely miss a game. Then, a week later, he hits the IL. Today, they say Cole might not miss a start. Does anybody believe this slop? Whatever they say, it's just rancid spin, which is what Yankee management does best.

2. If Cole misses two starts, he will then experience the traditional Yankee re-entry slump, which it seems every player endures. Currently, we are suffering through the returns of Gio Urshela, Gleyber Torres and Corey Kluber. (It's getting hard to differentiate between slumps and "normalcy" for Luke Voit. )

3. As the race tightens, the Yankees may lose the flexibility of Cole pitching the Wild Card game. He might have to win the season finale, just to get us there. Thus, the Wild Card could a bullpen game - which feels like a looming disaster. (And, of course, we wonder not just who starts the game, but who finishes it?)  

4. With Cole gone, our top starter might be - gulp - Nestor Cortez. It's been a joy to watch Nasty Nestor rise in the ranks, but when will the music stop? And tonight, they're doing exactly what they vowed not to do: They're injecting Luis Gil into a pressurized pennant race. Didn't they send him to Scranton to avoid such stresses?

5. If the Yankees blow this series - (and who here expects them to win the next two?) - booing at home will become a factor. Certainly, some players deserve it. But it's Yankee management that designed this team, and which then traded an arsenal of talent in an attempt to salvage it. 

The Yankee propaganda mills claim we kept our best prospects, so nothing was lost in the trade deadline makeover. They expect us to believe that the other teams are stupid, that they have no scouts, that they were outsmarted by the wily Yankee front office. In a season of insult, that may just be the biggest of them all. 

Post Cole Injury Thread

 Figured we need a change of something. This is getting ridiculous.

HoraceClarke66: "I believe that we can't win!"

 You know, I never much liked that “I believe that we will win!” chant that started, I think, with the U.S. women’s soccer team. To me, it always made the chanters sound too much like they were trying to convince themselves.

 But soccer, right? What do I know?

 I suggest my variant, above, for our current edition of the New York Yankees baseball club, which is about to get clubbed indeed by an actual good-hitting team, after failing miserably against the tomato cans of Anaheim and Baltimore. 

 The most immediate trouble is that the pitching is, after a long and mostly valiant season, coming undone at last. Aroldis Chapman:  Worst Yankees reliever ever?

 But this Yankees team is so weirdly bad in so many ways that it behooves one to take a minute and really inspect the glorious awfulness.

 On the Joey Watch, Gallo—like so many Yankees this year—finally had his moment of bliss…and promptly returned to his decaying orbit of suckitude. .134, with just 15 more plate appearances to become the worst hitting Yankee regular in our boys’ 119 seasons.

 But hey, there are so many baffling under-performances on this team, why stop at Flailing Joe?

 Great game by the Sanchize yesterday, 2 homers and 6 ribbies, which gets him up to…49 RBI on his 97-game season so far. More than 1 entire ribbie every 2 games! I remember years when Munson used to drive in 49 runs in a series.

 And The Gleyber. It’s simply mind-warping to look at this guy’s continuing slide.

 

 Among other things, he has added a new dimension to his game: 10 double-plays, in the 102 games he has played this year! Quite a feat for a middle infielder who is far from pushing 30.

 The man has become a weird sort of nullity. He has not hit a home run since July 21^st. In his 89 PA since then, he has all of 10 RBI, too, and only 5 doubles (plus 16 strikeouts and 3 DPs). At the same time, he has raised his BA from .241 to .255, and his OPS from .667 to .677.

 It reminds me of nothing so much as Chase “Steady State” Headley, who used to go entire months, it seemed, without his hitting stats changing in any way. (But in fairness Steady State, at least, played at least a decent third base.)

 What’s it all about, Gleybie?

 Damned if I know—and damned if anybody in the bizarre-o managing and coaching staffs of this team seems to know. The Mysteries of the Bronx continue. But deep in my heart, I know one thing:

 I BELIEVE THAT WE CAN’T WIN!

 Sing it with me now!

 I BELIEVE THAT WE CAN’T WIN!

For the 2021 Yankees, all our fears are coming true

The Amazing Kriske
(via Mustang)

We knew it would be the injuries. (Fun fact: It's always the injuries.) And yesterday, we got to witness, firsthand, the drop-off point from Jonathan Loaisiga. We lost our best reliever and replaced him with The Amazing Kriske. What did we think would happen? (Only Kriske knew!)

We knew it would be the slumps. In this case, it's Gleyber Torres and Gio Urshela, both hurrying back too soon, neither resembling a MLB infielder. The Yankees won 13-straight games without them. Now, with the order restored, with the sparkplugs stashed deep onto the bench, we face the Correction - returning players shaking off the rust. What did we think was going to happen?

We knew it would be the strikeouts, the bane of all homer-happy lineups. In the last week, it seemed as though every opposing starter flirted with a no-hitter in the early innings. Against Baltimore, we couldn't solve pitchers with ERAs over 6.00. And every potential rally brings the likelihood of a K or a DP ball. We are that kind of a team. What should we have expected?  

We knew who Joey Gallo was. We knew what he was. He's currently batting .131 and striking out 50 percent of the time. But we knew what we were getting. Last year, Gallo hit .181. His lifetime average is .206. I realize BA is an outdated stat, but, frankly, when it comes to free-swingers like Gallo, I think it's all you need to know. Batting average was the reason Dave Kingman isn't in the Hall of Fame. When a guy is hitting .190, he is a millstone. Gallo is doing exactly what we should have expected. Another strikeout machine was the last thing this lineup needed, especially if it makes the post-season.

Yesterday, Toronto overturned the Yankee boat to display all the gaping holes in the hull. It did not look like a fair fight. A young, ascending team beating up on old men. Compare the lineups, and you'll cringe.

1b: Guerrero over Rizzo.
2b: Semien (37 HRs) over LeMahieu.
ss: Bichette (.291) over Gleyber.
3b: Draw (Biggio v Urshela, no maybe not Gio's current version)
c: Sanchez over Jansen.
lf: Gurriel beats Gallo.
cf: Dickerson over Gardy.
rf: Judge over Hernandez (but not by much: Hernandez has 25 HRs and is hitting .292)
dh: Springer over Giancarlo. 

They're a stronger team. They're a stronger team. And unless someone steps forward - hello, Mr. Cole? - they will overtake us. 

Kriske Kritter...Seriously?

 Who in the universe thinks it was ever a good idea to bring this guy to the major leagues?

The Rooting Conundrum or What Do We Do Now?

Borntorun’s comment in the previous thread “I never rooted against the team, but I have never loathed and despised a manger as much as I do Boone.” Sums up the challenge of being a Yankee Fan for the rest of 2021.

Is it possible to root against a team that you’ve loved and followed for your entire life? Can one openly root for a team that you despise, such as the Red Sox, if it makes for a brighter future?

A couple of years ago the New York Giants played the Washington Redskins in a meaningless game standings wise. However, the winner would… win, and the loser would get to draft Chase Young. Think Dick Butkus.

Knowing the stakes, and as much as I wanted the Giants to lose, I still couldn't bring myself to root for the Redskins. (Fuck the Redskins excuse me... fuck the Washington Football Team) The Giants, of course, stupidly won the game and still suck.

Fortunately, the stakes are not as clear cut with the Yankees. And, because not making the playoffs does not guarantee that Boone (and Brain) are removed it becomes even more muddled.

At one point I wrote here that I would root against them but had to retract it because:

1) The other participants in the blog pointed out that, despite our level of disgust it is wrong to root for the Red Sox, Jays etc. Ever.

2) I tried it and it just doesn’t work.  Seriously, try saying this out loud, “I hope they put in Heaney.”

Develop Knowing Indifference

I recommend developing Knowing Indifference. There are no good or bad outcomes. If they win, we watched them win. If they lose, they are closer to elimination and hopefully rebirth. Therefore we can relax.

By developing Knowing Indifference, you can still get to watch the games but will no longer be upset by flagrant examples of managerial stupidity or by watching players do the same things wrong over and over again.  

They put in Chapman? “Hmmmn... that doesn't seem wise. Yep. That was a bad choice.” Joey Gallo is batting second again despite... well despite being Joey Gallo. Oh, he went 0-4 and they lost. Yeah. Oh well. Perhaps they will trade him in the off season. 

Take comfort in the validation of your superior understanding of the team. You know that you know better than them. Doesn’t that feel good?

You will no longer get angry when they make mind blowingly dumb moves like not starting Gil or using Mr. Haney as a reliever.  

By the way, WHO USES A PITCHER WHO ALWAYS SUCKS IN HIS FIRST INNING AND TAKES AT LEAST TWO INNINGS TO SETTLE DOWN AS A RELIEF PITCHER?!! WHAT KIND OF MORON MANAGER MAKES DESCISIONS LIKE THIS?!!!!!

Breathe. Breathe. Go to your Yankees Chambliss HR happy place. Breathe.

Sorry. As I was saying. Developing Knowing Indifference is the ticket to the rest of 2021. Maybe they will make the wild card. Maybe not.  Maybe they will make it all the way to the Canyon of Heroes. BUT WHAT ARE THE ODDS OF THAT?!!!!!!!

Breathe.  Use your Mantra. Hi-de-ki-Mat-su-i. Hi-de-ki-mat-su-i. Hi-de-ki-Mat-su-i.

It doesn’t matter. This too shall pass. Like a sinker with a guy on third thrown to Gary Sanchez!

No matter how they finish we’ll be fine. Or not. It doesn’t matter. See? It works. 

In a year of false-bottoms, the Yankees find a new low.

Humiliation assumes many forms. But the worst-case scenarios usually come at the hands of lovers.

You put everything into a relationship - your heart, your soul, your mental presence - and you think, "At the very least, I'll get a wild card."

Then they dump you.

Essay question: Does anyone out there see the 2021 Yankees winning in October? Is there a way to picture this team riding down the Canyon of Heroes? Speak up. Lay it out. I can use a brainwashing. Because - yeesh - I sure don't see it. This weekend, all our foibles converged into a Cat-5 disappointment - against baseball's worst team, no less! Here's the reality: We were lucky to win one game.

We not only lost the series to Baltimore, but we lost our best reliever, Jonathan Loaisiga. Now hosting Toronto for four games, we can honestly say that the Yankees have no sure bet out of the bullpen. We can give the ball to El Chapo and see what happens. He might save one out of two. But by now, we should have a means to close games. We simply do not.

We should be past waiting for Gleyber Torres to evolve into a star SS. It just didn't happen. Yesterday, he botched a routine grounder, which led to two runs, which led to the humiliation. Torres joins a long list of disappointments - Frazier, Andujar, Britton, Voit, Gardy, even Deivi Garcia down in Scranton - whose failures have come to define 2021.   

We've reached a place Yankee fans know well: The final stretch of a dismal season, as a high-priced lineup scrambles to salvage its pride - and a few management jobs. (This we know: Brian Cashman will never be held accountable for this malaise. He might as well be a member of the Supreme Court. He has a lifetime appointment.) For two weeks, the Yankee-owned media congratulated Yankee management for its courage and genius. Basically, we traded our future for a 13-game streak, which is now correcting itself, as we should have known it would.

Today, Toronto - a team we have secretly feared all season. Another Tampa. So tell me, how can we sustain hope for this team? Did they bottom out against Baltimore? Well, a trademark of the 2021 Yankees has been their series of false-bottoms: You tell yourself that it can't get worse, it just can't... and then it does. Humiliation assumes many forms. Get ready for a rough ride, everybody. The 2021 Yankees aren't done with us yet.

With Doctor Aroldis and Mister Chapo, Yanks run into mighty O's buzz saw

Once again Saturday, we learned never to trust the corrupt and lying mainstream media. 

According to the "experts," Baltimore is baseball's worst team, 50 games below .500, and going nowhere. 

We know otherwise. The O's look solid at every position - with the "M&M&M boys" - Mullens, Mountcastle, Mateo, Mancini and McKenna  - ripping pitching staffs. And speaking of pitching - wow! - how about that Chris Ellis! The YES barkers claimed he was a scrap-heaped former Ray with a 6.24 ERA. Well, five no-hit innings, baby! The guy is Max Scherzer. Damn. We're lucky to have won a game.

That's right - damn lucky to have won Friday night, running our winning streak to two. 

And thanks to our classic horror duo - Doctor Aroldis and Mister Chapo - we never know who will pitch the ninth. 

It's looking like the Death Barge will need to beat Boston in that final September series. And if we make the one-game Wild Card, we know who Aaron Boone will send out in the ninth. We just don't know who will show up. 

What Will Aaron Say ?

 In post game press conferences,  Boone is always asked, " how is it that the Yankees do so well in tight games?"

He always talks about the team's confidence.

Today we lost a game by one run ( and voided a multi-pitcher based no hitter )

What will he say about "confidence?" 

In Chappy, for example?

Or in our ability to achieve this year's dream;  the Wild Card Play-In Game?

Who is going to tell Joel Sherman that we just lost to the Orioles?

Okay, we can exhale. The terror scenario of losing to Baltimore has been exorcized... for now.

Yank Aaron scored on Jumbo Gia's single, the Death Barge beat the TomatO's, and - by my count, anyway - America actually went a day without a national catastrophe. 

No new flooding. No new fire. No new Constitutional crisis, military debacle or A-list celebrity divorce. (Our daily No-Disaster streak now stands at - gulp - one...)

And - most germane to this site - the Yankees survived. Yeesh. I watched nine innings channeling Malcolm McDowell in A Clockwork Orange, eyes pried open, lashed to a chair, convinced that we'd lose. To blow game one would supercharge Baltimore's confidence levels to a degree that - even 50 games below .500 - they could still eat our lunch... in our own home park. Then, when Stanton finally drove in the game-winner, I was terrified that Judge's passenger pigeon slide (seen above, launching, while twisting) was a surefire gonad-tweaker. 

The Yankees are fluctuating in mid-air, like Judge's slide. They win 13 straight, lose four straight, now take two in a row. Our wild card rivals - (exception: Tampa, whose management we must poach) - are treading water on 6-4 rolls. But last night, we simply had to win.  And we did. Yeesh. Does everything have to be so stressful? Can't we just win 15-0 someday?

One last note: A friend emailed yesterday wondering what happened to the IT IS HIGH Zoom game - when we'd come together through the information superhighway to watch a game together and rant. To be honest, I'm not sure how it would work, or how I would set up something. It looks like a fiasco, eh?

But, hey, what's the world without another fiasco?

Should we try to set one up in September, just to see what Armageddon looks like, up close? 

Joel Sherman says the Yankees must go 6-0 against Baltimore. Is he jinxing us, or what?

 Joel Sherman says, to chase down Tampa, the Death Barge needs to win all six of its remaining games against Baltimore. 

Well, du-uh? 

Okay, prediction time.

Because we absolutely need to win all six... I predict we go 3-3. 

You?

“It’s spooky. The power is out, so it’s all dark. My phone rings. It’s Suzyn. She says, ‘John is stuck on River Road in Edgewater.’ Now for years I’ve seen how bad it gets flooded on River Road in Edgewater, and with the kind of rain we had (Wednesday) night, I can only imagine. So I said, ‘Suzyn, I’m on the way. I more or less know where John lives. I’ll figure out where he’s at and I’ll see what I can do.’"

We covered this already, but - wow - hats off to alt-Yankee announcer Ricky Ricardo, who two nights ago answered the call. I've loved this guy since the first time I heard his homer-holler for Aaron Judge: 

"A home run for Aaron Judge... who is GUILTY!... of putting the Yankees ahead one to nothing!"

Frankly, with due respect to Gleyber Torres' ongoing rehab, nothing else mattered in the Yankiverse yesterday. Ricardo answered the call. He ploughed through high waters in a blacked out neighborhood and rescued an 83-year-old man, who had no place to go. He could have phoned the police. Fukinay. He answered the call.

Can you imagine what we would be saying and feeling today, if this story didn't have such a happy ending? The entire season would have been defined by one night. 

So, tonight, it's Baltimore. I hope they bring Ricardo onto the YES broadcast, along with John and Suzyn. I hope they tell the story. He answered the call. He answered the call!

We can't go on without mentioning, as commenter Anonymous pointed out at 4:12 PM yesterday, that Suzyn and Ricky saved John's life in the Ida flood

If you haven't seen this, it's the only 7-minute video in history that's worth your time: 

https://twitter.com/WFAN660/status/1433501226469969922

Switching gears, fans of the New York Football Giants are raving about their chances

The team has signed three players - including nearly an entirely new offensive line -from the scrap heap. Plus, look at history!

In 2017, they started at 2-11.

In 2018, they started at 1-7.

In 2019, they started a 2-11.

Last year, they started at 1-7.

THIS COULD BE A 2-11 YEAR!

Cole saves the day (as will be expected in the Wild Card playoff)

Thanks to our ace, Gerrit Cole, the Death Barge's losing streak ended at four last night. 

And thanks to our dear friends, the Baltimore Orioles, this holiday weekend shapes up as a chance to solidify our tenuous hold on the home field advantage for the 2021 Wild Card. 

That one-game playoff - now 29 games off - could pit Cole against Boston's Chris Sale, a certifiable Yankee nightmare in his previous incarnation, before elbow surgery. Excuse me if I don't jump for joy at the prospect of facing Sale in a one-game gauntlet. 

As for last night:

1. I think we saw Boone's October bullpen closing protocol. (For now, anyway.) Jonathan Loaisiga pitched the eighth, and in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make, El Chapo. It was always going to be the Chapster, who will either show command - in which case we have a chance - or our demise will resemble the fall of the Afghani government. Last night, Aroldis threw a 1-2-3 ninth, his first since August 23 against Atlanta. In his last six outings, he has thrown two perfect innings. I don't mean to hang an impossible task on Chapman - no pitcher is always perfect - and nobody will ever accuse him of phoning it in. He's a valiant warrior, throwing his hardest, even when it's clear he has nothing. Still, it's hard to imagine the guy holding up through a wild card, a divisional playoff, a championship series and a world series. Nope. We needed a Zack Britton for that level of fantasy. And Britton is gone.

2. When the post-season awards come around, the Japanese Babe Ruth will obviously take most of the hardware. But Aaron Judge should be one of the MVP front-runners. He has 30 HRs, and his next hit will vault him over .300 in that obviously meaningless statistic: batting average. He is a gold glove RF (who needs to play CF in the stretch, especially with Brett Gardner stumbling; Gardy went 1-4 last night, increasing his BA to .214.) Now and then, I ponder the worst case scenario: Judge tweaks something. He cannot be replaced. Judge has elevated his game, one of the best in baseball, and Shohei Ohtani wasn't the only great one on the field last night.

(I write the above to indemnify myself against the things I will say next time Judge goes 0-4 with three Ks.) 

3. Three game against the O's, then four against Toronto and three vs the Merry Mets. In our last 29 games, we have 13 against tomato cans - (Cleveland, Baltimore, Texas, Minnesota) - and finish with the big three: Jays, Redsocks and Rays (though some of those games might won't matter.) If we can take 9 of 13 against the tomatoes, 2-3 against the Mets, and go 7-6 against the contenders, we'll play the one game Wild Card at home. That's what we need. (And Boston currently has no lights-out closer, plus, it's facing a team Covid epidemic.) 

There is no divisional race. Our one chance is the Wild Card. And Gerrit Cole must pitch it. 

HoraceClarke66: Joey, Joey, King of the Whiffs, Child of a Double-Play

From HoraceClarke66:

Just to riff on El Duque’s excellent lead-off piece this morning, Joey Gallo is looking at something far worse than plunging below the Mendoza Line.

 As of today, our import from Texas is hitting all of .144 as a Yankee. If this keeps up, he will break a mark I frankly never expected to see threatened: Gary Sanchez’s .147 average as a regular last season.

 I mean, this is all-time bad. It’s not that .144 would be the worst in modern times. It would be the worst for a Yankee, ever.

 Potzkying around in stats from the days when your New York Yankees were your New York Highlanders, back in the deadball era when men were men and they were mostly trying to hit a dissolving sphere of mush in the twilight hours…I can’t find any regular who ever hit lower.

 Thus far, Joey’s .144 has come in 30 games and 129 plate appearances. Sancho’s record last year was in 49 games and 178 plate appearances. In other words, the mark is there for the taking.

 Oh, I know, I know. Batting average is such an old-fashioned, misleading statistic.

 Joey G. hits for power, and…and…and draws a lot of walks!

 But as ZachA pointed out, his power has also been well below what it was in Arlington. Gallo’s slugging average has dropped from .490 with the Rangers this year to just .346 as a Yankee—well below the team average of .402.

 His OBP went from .379 to .310 with our boys—below the team average of .326.

 That’s right: as a Yankee, Gallo is badly underperforming the rest of the team even in the things he’s supposed to excel at.

Hey, I like Joey Gallo. He hustles, plays a very good outfield, and doesn’t have a snit fit when the fans are so gauche as to boo him (Though his restraint may be put to the test when our pinstriped heroes return.)

But the idea that Joey could be some sort of equivalent to Curtis Granderson or even Graig Nettles for the game today, hitting for power if not average, drawing walks and playing a fine defense…has, I think, been put to rest.

If this continues, the Yanks would be foolish to give him a big free-agent contract in the offseason—which would mean another four minor leaguers surrendered for nothing.

How Will The Season End?

Not well. I think we can all agree on that. 

However, inspired by the "How many wins will the Yankees have at the end of the year?" contest (and don't you all wish you could lop 10 games off your totals right now? I know I do.) I invite everyone to tell us your best guess on how the season will actually end. 

Will it be an El Chapo meltdown in the 9th inning of the Play-In game?  

Will Joey Gallo throw his back out while stretching in the batters box with the bases loaded and the 2nd Wild Card spot on the line? (And, even though he is signed for next year - never play for the Yankees again.)  

Will Boone inexplicably rest Judge for the Play-In game because it's his time for a day off?  

Maybe we will just lose so many games in the next four weeks that we finish behind Toronto.

Here's mine...  We sweep Tampa on the final weekend of the year and win the division but those insidious Rays send a party bus of Covid infected hookers to the Yankees hotel and the entire team is forced to skip the ALCS. Houston wins by forfeit. 

---

I can't offer a case of booze like some of our compatriots but I can offer a case of head lice.  I will freeze dry them and send them to you in a baggie. All you have to do is add water. Just like Sea Monkeys! 

So...  Whose nightmare will become our reality?  

How will the season end? 

Market correction: Dogecoin Yankees run hell streak to four

Let's be honest: We saw this coming.  

Down the stretch, we knew the Yankees weren't a 13-0 dream team. Maybe 8-5, or even 9-4... not 13 and 0. 

The winning streak was a mirage, a hallucination. In truth, we were Dogecoin, Theranos, the democratic government of Afghanistan... Andrew Cuomo's 80 percent popularity.

We knew a market correction was coming, and it would not be pretty.

So last night, in a loss to a tomato can, the Death Barge hit into five DPs and went a soul-crushing 1-10 with runners on base. Wow. The good news is that our bullpen didn't blow a big lead in the ninth. By losing, we didn't have to pitch a ninth. 

So now, the lingering question: How far will we plummet? Some factors:

1. Jameson Taillon may have hit his wall. He's now thrown 127 innings - four times what he had pitched in the last two years. Last night, he couldn't survive the fifth, yielding six earned runs. Two weeks ago, he looked like our No. 2 playoffs starter. Now, yeesh... do we even have a No. 2?

2. Gio Urshela remains in rehab: Last night, one for four with two Ks and three LOB. His batting average has fallen to .262, and - ridiculously - he's been playing SS, over Wade and Velasquez, the sparkplugs of our recent streak. Surely, the Yankees must ease him back into the lineup. But right now, when he comes to bat, you feel the air leaving the stadium.  

3. Okay, I know batting average is an outdated, old-codger stat, but it still pops up on the Jumbotrons. Today, Joey Gallo stands at .203, which is flat-out, fucking unacceptable. I mean, the Mendoza Line has not been rescinded. Meanwhile, the disappeared Tyler Wade is hitting .284, and - yeah - I get it that they are distinctly different players, and Gallo's game is power - but good grief... somebody has to occasionally hit a single. Don't look at Brett Gardner, who at .213 is so ready for retirement that he should only play the Early Bird Specials. Also, Gary Sanchez is at .213. Listen: A guy should hit his weight. And they are not. 

4. The Yankees are lucky his streak has happened on the West Coast, so their fan base cannot boo them in person. Otherwise, the Mets wouldn't be the only NY team with an unruly relationship with its followers.

5. Tonight, it's Gerrit Cole. If ever there was a question about his value as an ace... here it comes. He needs to end this streak. 

I just want to make sure I have this straight...

So we are back to rooting against them because if they fail to make the one game play in there's a chance that Boone (and, please, please, please, Hal) will not be back next year. 

Works for me.