Here’s Mike Axisa on the Yankees’ top pick in the draft. 

[Photo Credit: Simon Willims]

We’d seen this before. The offense not able to score. The bullpen trying to hold on to a slim lead. With the tying run on second base and one out in the 9th, David Robertson kicked a ground ball that was headed to center field. It looked to be a sure base hit. The game was going to be tied. But the ball knocked off Robertson’s foot and shot over toward first base. Mark Teixeira took a great angle to it and fielded it cleanly. Robertson sprinted to first and Tex flipped the ball to his pitcher for the second out. It was one of those plays that usually never turn out well for the fielding team. This time it did. Robertson struck out the next hitter and the Yanks had a 2-1 win.

Six strong from Tanaka. He wasn’t dominant. The A’s battled him with some long at bats. But Tanaka was good enough. Betances in the 7th, Warren in the 8th, and then Robertson in the 9th.

With a little bit of luck.

[Picture by Bags]

The Yanks turn to Masahiro Tanaka once again to stop a losing streak. This afternoon, they hope to avoid being swept by the A’s.

Beltran is back.

Brett Gardner LF
Derek Jeter SS
Jacoby Ellsbury CF
Mark Teixeira 1B
Carlos Beltran DH
Yangervis Solarte 3B
Brian McCann C
Alfonso Soriano RF
Brian Roberts 2B

Never mind the rain:

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

[Painting by Wayne Thiebaud]

The Yanks had a 4-0 lead after Jacoby Ellsbury hit a 3-run home run but then the A’s scored 7 unanswered runs as they beat the hapless Yanks, 7-4. But the game was overshadowed by the news that Don Zimmer passed away. The Forrest Gump-like baseball character had a memorable run in New York during the Joe Torre years. He was something else.

Here’s Vin.

[Photo Credit: Linda Cataffo]

Time for the Yanks to get a win. Enough of this losing shit. I know they’re playing the best team in the league but still, they should have won last night. Now, go out and get a “w” tonight, fellas.

Brett Gardner LF
Derek Jeter SS
Jacoby Ellsbury CF
Mark Teixeira 1B
Brian McCann DH
Yangervis Solarte 3B
Brian Roberts 2B
Ichiro Suzuki RF
John Ryan Murphy C

Never mind the odds:

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

Man, and Hiroki pitched such a nice game, too. But then reality bite Dellin Betances in the 8th and Adam Warren in the 10th as the best team in the American League beat the Yanks, 5-2.

Quelle dommage, man.

“I think they’re frustrated,” Joe Girardi said. “I don’t notice them coming to the ballpark and having a different approach than they would have if they scored six or seven runs the night before, but I think they’re frustrated when they don’t come through. I think that’s the nature of the business, and that’s the competitive nature in guys. I think our pitchers have done a good job handling it. I don’t think we’ve seen them really get away with what they do, and they’ve given us opportunities to win games.”

[Photo Credit: Gordon Parks]

The A’s are in town for 3 games. The tough Oakland A’s. Our man Hiroki’s on the hill.

Brett Gardner LF
Derek Jeter DH
Jacoby Ellsbury CF
Mark Teixeira 1B
Yangervis Solarte 2B
Alfonso Soriano RF
Scott Sizemore 3B
John Ryan Murphy C
Brendan Ryan SS

Supposed to storm tonight.

Never mind the lightning:

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

[Picture by Bags]

Well I guess it’s about time for another Where & When.  The last couple of games have been pretty interesting if I do say so myself, here’s hoping I can keep that ball rolling (as opposed to what the Yanks defense did last night) with his, as it turns out, rather dour entry to the canon.  I dedicate this one to our rather illustrious Gloomy Guses of the Banter:

I’m going to spare you a whole lot of drama on this one, because unless you’ve got a real eye for details you’re likely not going to get a clue within this picture of where this can be.  It’s in New York, in a place that would become very well known and lit up with activity starting a few years after this picture was taken (in fact, it was sort of already lit up at this point, but not nearly as much as it would be in the ensuing years).  In the direct center of this picture, a person who would become world renown and whose works would become synonymous with the neighborhood was born in a room in the building to the left of the lamp post. The picture was taken about nine years after his birth. Also, relative to what yesterday’s game ultimately was, the region would change it’s name in a few years and in time begin a tradition that endures to this day.

I’m tasking you with naming this region and the year this picture was taken.  I know it’s a long shot, but if you consider the clues I’ve given you, you won’t suffer as much.  Bonuses to whomever determines (my logic for one) the name of the person I refer to being born in the building I pointed out, the name of that building in particular and how this is relative to the people I dedicated the game to today (in jest, naturally).  It’s a long season as we fairly predicted it would be, so we gotta keep each other up until reinforcements arrive (and hopefully not by postponing the future yet again).  Root beers, cream sodas, floats and brownies, all that.  You know the routine, let’s do this like Leeroy Jenkins.

PEACE!!! >;)

[photo credit: MCNY Blog]

Marc Myers on the making of “Whole Lotta Love.” 

Ah-hem:

[Painting by Antoine Renault]

Alan Taylor’s terrific In Focus blog features the 1964 New York World’s Fair. 

Yanks vs. King Felix. They didn’t stand a chance, right? Well, Hernandez wasn’t in top form and the score was tied at 2 going into the 7th inning. But the Yankees made bad plays in the field (et tu, DJ?) and by the end of the inning the M’s had a 4-run lead. They’d add another 4 and won, 10-2. Really, the less said about this one, the better. But if you want the gory details, Chad Jennings’ got ’em for  you. 

[Photo Credit: Horacio Coppola]

It’s Phelps vs. King Felix in a make up game at the Stadium.

Brett Gardner LF
Derek Jeter SS
Jacoby Ellsbury CF
Brian McCann C
Yangervis Solarte 3B
Alfonso Soriano DH
Ichiro Suzuki RF
Brian Roberts 2B
Kelly Johnson 1B

Never mind the crown:

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

[Photo Credit: Dennis Stock/Magnum Photos]

Dig this post over at Cinephilia and Beyond. It hips us to a great BBC 4 radio show, Desert Island Discs. Check out interviews with Michael Caine, Stephen Frears, Mel Brooks, John Huston, Elia Kazan, Bob Hoskins and many more.

And it was a good home coming for Phil Hughes and Eduardo Nunez as the Twins beat the Yanks, 7-2 today at the Stadium. Hughes’ fastball was a steady 93 mph through eighth innings. He also hit 94, even 95 mph at times. It was a harder fastball than we’ve seen from him in years. Hughes only had one bad inning, when he allowed a couple of runs, but it looked good enough to sink him.

Delin Betances relieved Chase Whitely and struck out 5 of the 6 batters he faced. Man, has he ever been impressive. Adam Warren pitched a scoreless 8th, setting the stage for David Robertson in the 9th, Yanks holding a 2-1 lead. But Robertson gave up a game-tying home run, couldn’t get out of the inning and was replaced with the bases loaded. And wouldn’t you know it but Nunie doubled with the bases juiced to put the Yanks away.

Hughes got the win. Good for him. Yanks lose a game it looked like they were going to win. Drag.

[Picture by Bags]

Welcome back, Phil Hughes.

Brett Gardner LF
Derek Jeter SS
Jacoby Ellsbury CF
Brian McCann C
Yangervis Solarte 3B
Ichiro Suzuki RF
Brian Roberts 2B
Kelly Johnson 1B
Zoilo Almonte DH

And now:

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

[Picture by Bags]

Mmmm, mmm, good.

Painting by Edward Hopper.

Masahiro Tanaka has become that guy for the Yanks in 2014. The stopper. He allowed an unearned run in the first inning yesterday and then shut the Twins out for the next seven. The Bombers had the bases loaded and nobody out in the bottom of the first, failed to score, and runs were hard to come by all afternoon. They broke a 1-1 tie in the bottom of the eighth, thanks to a double by Brian McCann, and, after a rain delay, David Robertson got the save.

Final Score: Yanks 3, Twins 1.

[Painting by Jimmie James]

Tanaka time.

Brett Gardner LF
Derek Jeter DH
Jacoby Ellsbury CF
Mark Teixeira 1B
Brian McCann C
Alfonso Soriano RF
Yangervis Solarte 2B
Kelly Johnson 3B
Brendan Ryan SS

Yanks play today, they win today.

Never mind the clouds:

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

[Photo Credit: Joao Drumond via MPD]

Been thinking a lot about Jeter these days and one thing that came to mind recently is that I don’t recall seeing him make too many mistakes over the course of his career. Mistakes being different from errors. He’s made those. And we can debate whether or not his penchant for sacrifice bunting over the years is an error or a mistake. What I mean by mistake is that you rarely see him make a bad play.

He made one last night. 

In the 5th inning, with Brett Gardner on second base, Jeter hit a line drive to right field for a base hit. It reached the right fielder on one hop, which was not enough time to allow Gardner to score. Gardner was held at third. At the same time, Jeter rounded first and drew a throw, getting himself in a rundown in the hopes that Gardner could score.

I’m not sure Gardner is the right kind of baserunner for that kind of high-wire act. He’s fast but he’s not cagey and doesn’t have great instincts (we’ve seen this played out with him as a base stealer). And so in the middle of Jeter’s rundown, Gardner got in a rundown and didn’t score. By the time Gardner was tagged out, of course, Jeter was on third.

“It’s my job in that situation, if you think there’s a play at the plate, you’ve got to go and try to go to second base to trade an out for a run,” Jeter explained. “Gardy wasn’t going, so it’s not my job to think what’s going to happen. I’ve got to make sure he’s going. Good play by them, but I assumed he was going. I shouldn’t assume.”

Yanks lost, 6-1. 

[Photo Credit: Brad Penner/USA Sports]

Brett Gardner LF
Derek Jeter SS
Jacoby Ellsbury CF
Mark Teixeira 1B
Brian McCann DH
Brian Roberts 2B
Ichiro Suzuki RF
Yangervis Solarte 3B
John Ryan Murphy C

It’s Nuno.

F what you heard:

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

[Photo Via: BlazePress]