Monthly Archives: August 2015

They want to touch me. I never let them.

Painting by Kelly Reemtsen

Painting by Boris Ivanovich Kopylov.

Good lookin’ to Pacific Street Films and Cinephilia and Beyond for getting this PBS documentary on Martin Scorsese back out there. I remember when it first aired. I videotaped it and watched it over and over. 

Excuse me for losing faith but when Alex Rodriguez came to the plate with the bases loaded in the bottom of the 7th inning last night, I didn’t think he’d strike out or pop out, I thought he’d hit into a double play. Rodriguez is in a slump and was 1-27 going into the at-bat. Never mind the lack of hits, the swings haven’t been that good the past week. I wasn’t trying to reverse jinx him by anticipating the double play, I just didn’t have confidence he’d put a good swing on the ball. Well, shows what I know. After taking a cutter outside for a ball, Rodriguez put a fine swing on a fastball, low–but not low enough–and outside–but not outside far enough–and hit a grand slam. Nobody in big league history has hit more of them than Rodriguez.

The Yanks had been trailing 4-1. Now, they had a lead. They scored 3 more times in the 8th and beat the Twins, 8-4.

They’re all important wins and this was no exception. Looked like they were done after CC Sabathia fell apart in the 7th inning. Seems as if the Big Guy hits a wall later in games and can’t recover. But the late comeback gave us another reason to appreciate these 2015 Yankees who have given us a good deal of pleasure so far.

[Photo Credit: Elsa/Getty Images]

Night Visions by Martin Lewis, found at the always-stellar This Isn’t Happiness.

Yanks need a big game from the Big Fella on a hot summer evening in the Bronx.

Jacoby Ellsbury CF
Brett Gardner LF
Alex Rodriguez DH
Brian McCann C
Carlos Beltran RF
Greg Bird 1B
Didi Gregorius SS
Stephen Drew 2B
Brendan Ryan 3B

Never mind the dog daze:

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

Picture by Bags

Last night’s game was long and strange and it took awhile to shake off the disquieting feeling that settled shortly after Bryan Mitchell was struck in the face with a line drive in the second inning. Turns out he’s okay–and we can only hope the same is true for Mark Teixeira who left the game not long after he fouled a ball off his knee–but the image of him being hit was hard to shake.

Wait, they still had to play the game?

It was a slog and the Yankees trailed several times. Big hits from Brian McCann and Carlos Beltran kept them in it, and they won it in the 10th on an error by our old chum, Eduardo Nunez. Go figure.

Final Score: Yankees 8, Twins 7.

Get the papers, get the papers.

[Photo Credit: Adam Hunger/USA Today]

My father was a champion shvitzer. Held the Upper West Side Crown for sweating profusely 16 years in a row.

I remember calling him up on days like today.

“Hey, Pop, how you doin’?”

“MOIST” he’d say. Or: “WET.”

He’d sure be drippin’ today cause it’s hot n humid here in town as the Yanks host the Twins.

Jacoby Ellsbury CF
Brett Gardner LF
Alex Rodriguez DH
Mark Teixeira 1B
Brian McCann C
Carlos Beltran RF
Chase Headley 3B
Didi Gregorius SS
Stephen Drew 2B

Bryan Mitchell gets the start.

Never mind the nightclubs:

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

Picture by Bags

More tomato love.

Be Cool.

[Photo Credit: Bunny Yeager]

The Wife and I visited Governor’s Island on Saturday and ran into The Jazz Age Lawn Party.

Painting by George Billis via This Isn’t Happiness.

Carlos Beltran lost a ball in the sun with two men out in the 3rd inning. The ball dropped in for a double. Couple of hanging sliders later the score was 3-0. That was all the scoring the Blue Jays did but it was enough as they beat the Yanks, 3-1. Another well-pitched game on both sides. Again, with precious little hitting for the Yanks, who nevertheless return home in first place.

[Photo Credit: A. Aubrey Bodine]

Luis Severino makes his third start.

Jacoby Ellsbury CF
Brett Gardner LF
Alex Rodriguez DH
Mark Teixeira 1B
Brian McCann C
Carlos Beltran RF
Chase Headley 3B
Didi Gregorius SS
Stephen Drew 2B

Never mind prosperity:

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

[Photo Credit: Christopher Frank Beitz]

As in “Tanaka” who pitched a complete game on Saturday afternoon in Toronto as the Yanks beat the Jays, 4-1.

He was in control all game with the exception of the 5th inning. The Yanks had a 1-0 lead when a base hit and a couple of walks loaded the bases for Josh Donaldson. Game of inches? You bet. Because Donaldson just missed hitting a grand slam–he got under a 2-0 pitch. Instead of a fat 4-0 lead, his fly ball out to left was good to score a run, but then Tanaka struck out Jose Bautista and retired Edwin Encarnacion on a soft line drive to second base.

Yanks tacked on a few runs–including a long dinger by Mark Teixeira–and the win ensures they’ll leave town in first place no matter what happens today.

We’ll take it. Yes, we will.

Picture by Bags

The Yankees got on base against David Price on Friday night but could not plate a run off the man. Meanwhile, Ivan Nova had one inning that went screwy on him, but otherwise out-pitched his counterpart. Still, as the 8th inning began, the Yanks trailed 3-0. A very loud Toronto crowd enjoyed themselves and why shouldn’t not?

A run-scoring double to the gap by Chase Headley finally got Price out of there and then Carlos Beltran pinch-hit for Chris Young with runners on second and third, one out. Aaron Sanchez, 15 years Beltran’s junior replaced Price. The first two pitches he threw were clocked at 97 mph–high and out of the zone. Still, Beltran swung, waving at them both. Sanchez threw another high fastball, this one too high and too inside and then came back with yet another heater. This one was 97 mph too but it wasn’t out of the strike zone, it was right over the plate. And Beltran did not miss it.

His 3-run homer put the Yanks ahead by a run. Delin Betances, who threw a lot of pitches and didn’t look wonderful on Thursday in Cleveland, came on to pitch the 8th and was blazing–killer fastball, nasty breaking ball.

His partner Andrew Miller pitched the 9th and goddamn it was an adventure. With one man out, he walked Chris Colabello and then gave up a hard-hit single to Kevin Pillar. A wild pitch greeted Ben Revere putting the tying run at third and the winning run at second.

Miller composed himself and struck Revere out like he was supposed to but then had to contend with Troy Tulowitski. And you had to figure it could go either way. Seemed like everybody in the park was standing and when a team is on a wining streak like the Jays have been, well, I figured he’d get a base hit and win the game. I muted the TV and watched in silence, pacing back-and-forth in my living room.

The at-bat had plenty drama. The count went full, of course, all three balls came on fastballs that were outside. The rest were sliders, fast ones, slower ones, backdoor, inside and low, and Tulowitski kept fouling them off, one after the other. On the 12th pitch of the at bat he foul tipped a slider, bearing in on him but up. Brian McCann held onto the ball and the Yanks had the game.

A thriller goes the Yanks. Hot damn.

Final Score: Yanks 4, Jays 3.

Today, they’re back at it and the Jays can leapfrog right back into first.

Let’s hope for more good things.

Never mind the Toronto Turf:

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

Picture by Bags

The Yanks are up in Toronto this weekend where they’ll try to tame the surging Jays.

Jacoby Ellsbury CF
Brett Gardner LF
Alex Rodriguez DH
Mark Teixeira 1B
Brian McCann C
Chase Headley 3B
Chris Young RF
Didi Gregorius SS
Brendan Ryan 2B

Never mind the glare:

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

Hang the fuck up and call back tomorrow.

I can’t give it away on 7th Avenue. Aka, Stuck in the middle with you.

Okay, it wasn’t smooth either. Nathan Eovaldi didn’t pitch deep into the game, Dellin Betances pitched more than one inning, Alex Rodriguez is pressing, and Greg Bird didn’t get a hit, but a win is a win. Jacoby Ellsbury and Brett Gardner had good games, as did Stephen Drew and Brian McCann hit a big home run. The Yanks will take it as they move on to Toronto.

Final Score: 8-6.

Picture by Bags