Never mind Nuthin’:

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

Picture by Bags

It was close for awhile there yesterday. Then Ivan Nova gave up a grand slam and that was more than enough for David Price, who pitched a sweet game as the Jays beat the Yanks, 6-0. Toronto is now just two-and-a-half back. That makes today’s game especially important for the Yanks. Yes, they’ve got Masahiro Tanaka going, but he hasn’t been great lately, and well, this feels like one of those lost weekend’s don’t she?

This has the makings of a long weekend. But that’s cause I’m never much on confidence when it comes to my sports teams. I still remember those horrible late-season series vs the Jays in the mid-’80s. Screw those guys and screw these Jays, too. Upstarts. Fuckos. Douche Knots. They are a perfectly agreeable team to dislike–even though I like a bunch of their players (Martin, Donaldson, Price, Tulo). Their manager looking like a tin-cup-spitting-bar-stool-sitting hard ass pal of Brian Dennehey’s. Goddamn crotchy fucking goat.

The  Yanks had done reasonably well against Price and that’s a concern. Figure he’s due for a good one against them. Only hope Nova is up to the task.

Ah, never mind my gloom–it’s a gorgeous day here in New York:

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

Picture by Bags

Maybe I should stop doubting Nathan Eovaldi. He pitched a swell game last night. Gave up a solo home run to Josh Donaldson in the first on a 99 mph fastball on the black and that was it, as he pitched into the 7th inning. Really nice job. Shame his boys couldn’t help him out s’more, but Eovaldi’s benefitted from a ton of runs this season so I suppose it all evens out.

R.A. Dickey, the dastard, pitched well too, and the game went into extra innings tied at 1. Andrew Miller pitched a nifty 9th inning on only 6 pitches but he did not return in the 10th to face the heart of the Blue Jays line up. First guessers just ahead of second-guessers on this move by manager Joe Girardi for sure.

Instead, the young right-hander, Branden Pinder–nice slider, powerful fastball–replaced him. Pinder got Donaldson to look bad swinging at a couple of sliders and then threw a third one which Donaldson lined to center field. Good thing Didi Gregarious was positioned to catch it–though the ball almost took his glove off. Pinner got a called strike one on Jose Bautista with the slider, another called strike on a fastball inside and then tried to get another fastball by one of the better fastball hitters in the game. The location was off and Bautista hit the ball over the fence in left field.

That’s all the Jays needed as they won, 2-1.

Third straight 2-1 game the Yanks have been involved in. A difficult loss for sure, especially at the hands of that made-for-TV-bad guy, Bautista. David Price goes today for the Jays and the Yanks have held their own against him, which is what I’m afraid of.

Could be a long weekend for the Bombers which is a drag for the rest of us because it is diamond-in-the-back-sunrooftop beautiful here in New York.

Picture by Bags

The Mighty Mighty Blue Birds are in town this weekend; next weekend, the Yanks go up to Toronto. Be interesting to see what shakes out. From the looks of it, there should be many runs scored.

I’ve doubted Nathan Eovaldi many times this season only to be pleasantly surprised. Tonight, with Toronto’s Gashouse Gorillas on a roll, I just can’t see him doing well. Again, hope I’m wrong.

R.A. Dickey, another infuriating knuckleballer, goes for the Jays. Hey, so long as the Yanks don’t get swept, we’ll be able to digest.

Never mind the Heebie Jeebies:

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

[Picture by Diebs]

Another 2-1 game, this time the Yanks won, thanks to a go ahead home run by Jacoby Ellsbury. The story of the night, though, was CC Sabathia, who not only pitched with determination and force but who was more animated than I ever remember seeing him. There he stood, sweat pouring off him like he was Zero Mostel under the hot stage lights. The stuff was sharp and he got into it with the home plate ump–aw, sensitive. When CC stuck out David Ortiz with the bases loaded to end the fifth, he let out a yell that we could feel uptown. Onions! And pride. A terrific way to enter what should be a tough weekend series against the red hot Jays.

Just a little bit of Flavor.

[Photo Credit: Rich Schultz/Getty Images]

We love CC around these parts even if he’s struggling. Even if he’ll never be an Ace again.

Not sure how much he’s got left, but I do know how much of a boost it’d be to the team if he could be even decent down the stretch.

Dream big, right?

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

Never mind the standings:

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

Picture by Bags

Luis Severino has a plus fastball and at times last night he had a sharp-breaking slider and a decent change. He didn’t pitch deep into the game–and was done a disservice by Chase Headley who made another throwing error–but he made a good impression in his debut. The Yanks were stymied by Steven Wright–the other Steven Wright, though it is fitting that a guy with that name is a knuckle ball pitcher. And they had the tying and wining runs on base in the 9th when pinch-hitter Brian McCann flew out to center field to end the game. Near miss and bummer of a loss since the O’s and Jays both won.

Speaking of Steven Wright I once saw him in the lobby of the Brill Building. This was 25 years ago. He got out of the elevator, wearing an old Red Sox cap. I just looked at him and said, “The Red Sox?” And in that monotone voice he looked at me, deadpan, and said, “Well, I’m from Boston.”

Which made sense.

[Photo Credit: Anthony Gruppuso/USA TODAY Sports Images]

Tonight, the Yanks counter with a pitching prospect of their own. Luis Severino makes his big league debut.

No pressure.

And don’t forget to have fun.

Meanwhile, Brian McCann is gimpy and won’t play tonight. Also, good news: Garrett Jones is back. I like that Garrett Jones and was bummed to see him go. Think if these 2015 Yanks are gonna do something, he’s going to have a little cameo role.

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

Never mind the nagging injuries:

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

Painting by Roger Eliot Fry.

For a good while tonight there wasn’t much scoring and then…

…well, then, our boys took care of that, thank you very much.

In the end, it was a familiar story for the 2015 Red Sox, another beating.

The Yanks unloaded in the 7th, scoring 9 runs, more than enough to put the Sox away, 13-3.

All this after an odd bit of strategery from ol’ Joe G.

[Image Via: Tavis Coburn]

Ackley’s hurt and so is Big Mike. Enough to be worrisome, of course.

It’s Tanaka Time as the Yanks return home to face the Red Sox. Henry Owens, one of their pitching prospects, makes his first start in the majors tonightski.

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

Never mind those chirpin’ birdies gainin’ on ya:

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

The Score Truck has been rumbling through the streets recently, and the Yankee bats were out in force again on Sunday afternoon in Chicago, piling up twelve runs against the White Sox to wrap up another series win and a successful 6-4 road trip.

Jacoby Ellsbury got things started when he jumped on the second pitch of the game from Chicago’s Jeff Samardzija and drove it into the stands just to the left of dead center field. Samardzija seemed to settle down as he retired nine of the next eleven Yankee hitters after that, but then the fourth inning happened.

It all started innocently enough. After striking out Mark Teixeira for the first out of the inning, Samardzija fooled Brian McCann enough to induce a weak pop up to the left side. McCann slammed his bat down in disgust, but the ball was headed towards the Bermuda Triangle between left field, center field, and shortstop, and it fell into the grass for a single. Carlos Beltrán followed with a four-pitch walk, and then Chase Headley singled to load the bases with one out.

Stepping up to the plate was Didi Gregorius. If they had an award for Comeback Player of the Year within the year, Gregorius would win it in a landslide. After hitting .206 in April, Gregorius hit a robust .317 in July to bring his overall average up to a more-than-respectable .260. He’d end up hitting .438 on this ten-game road trip, and it’s gotten to the point where I actually expect him to come through in important situations. So I wasn’t surprised at all when he poked a single into left center to plate McCann and Beltrán (with a nifty slide) to give the Yanks a 3-0 lead.

Next up was Stephen Drew (don’t look now, but the average is almost up to .200), who naturally singled to load the bases again for the top of the order. An Ellsbury sacrifice fly to the wall in center field pushed the score to 4-0, but with two outs and runners on second and third, Brett Garnder’s at bat felt huge. Sure, the Yanks already had a four-run lead, but a base hit in this spot would bury the ChiSox, and Gardy provided just that as he shot a single to the second baseman’s right, throwing two more shovels of dirt on the Sox and bringing the score to 6-0.

Those six runs would have been enough, but the Bombers weren’t done. They’d add three more in the next inning on a Teixeira home run (his fifth in the last four games) and a two-run double from Drew, then three more in the seventh on a two-run triple from Drew and an RBI groundout from Ellsbury for an even dozen runs.

But as impressive as that offensive performance was, the story of the game was Ivan Nova. We know that this Yankee team will score runs (the OPS numbers of the top five hitters in the lineup look like this: 729, 824, 918, 958, 789), but with Michael Pineda recently landing on the DL, Masahiro Tanaka showing signs of regression, and CC Sabathia being CC Sabathia, suddenly we’re counting on an awful lot from Nova, Nathan Eovaldi, and a kid who still hasn’t thrown a pitch in the major leagues.

All Nova did on Sunday was dominate the White Sox hitters with a strong fastball, a confident breaking ball, and a diving sinker. The only hint of trouble he faced in the early going came in the third inning, and it wasn’t of his doing. After Adam Eaton singled with two outs, he stole second and advanced to third when McCann’s throw squirted into center field. The score was still only 1-0 at the time, so Eaton carried an important potential run with him, but Nova quickly extinguished the threat with a strikeout, one of seven he’d pile up on the afternoon.

Nova did yield a run in the sixth on a walk, a fielder’s choice, and a ground ball base hit, but he did so with a nine-run lead. He seemed a bit irritated, but he recovered nicely to strike out Avisail Garcia on three pitches (three swings and misses) to end the inning and put a cap on his six-inning performance. Final score: Yankees 12, White Sox 3.

So things are good in the Yankee Universe. They’ll bring their six-game division lead back to Yankee Stadium for three games against the hapless Red Sox, and they won’t have to travel out of the Eastern time zone until a potential playoff game in someplace like Houston, Kansas City, or Anaheim. Better still, only 24 of their remaining 58 games will be played on the road, and three of those road games are against the Mets at Citi Field. While teams all around the league have retooled and traded prospects for a shot at the brass ring, the Yankees just might be in better position than any of the other contenders as we head into August and September… and October.

It’s good to be Yankee, and it’s good to be a Yankee fan. Some things never change.

A win today and the Yanks’ll go 6-4 on the road trip; lose, and they’re 5-5.

They look to get some length from Mr. Nova.

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

Never mind the room service:

Let’s Go Yankees!

Picture by Bags

And on Saturday night, the Yanks got their asses kicked in Chicago.

The Yanks are in for a fight these last two months of the season and I suppose that’s how it should be. Let’s see if they’ve got enough grit and good fortune to get their asses to the ALDS. Brian Cashman held on to his prized young talent as the trade deadline came and went.

Last night, our boys beat the bejesus out of the White Sox in Chicago by the tune of 13-6, thank you very much. Mark Teixeira hit a grand slam early and then one later. Alex was 2-2 with 3 walks and 4 runs scored. Brendan Ryan and Carlos Beltran had 3 hits, Chase Headley, John Ryan Murphy, and Chris Murphy Young (everyone wants to be a Murphy sometime in their lives) all had 2.

Next.

[Photo Via Aberrant Beauty]

Not much doing for the Bombers today. They did let Garrett Jones go, which is a drag cause I always liked him–my ideal of what the average Elmore Leonard hero looks like.

Yanks in Chicago tonight.

Jacoby Ellsbury CF
Chris Young LF
Alex Rodriguez DH
Mark Teixeira 1B
Carlos Beltran RF
Chase Headley 3B
John Ryan Murphy C
Brendan Ryan 2B
Didi Gregorius SS

Let’s hope they get back in the groove.

Never mind the deadline:

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

Picture by Bags

Got to love baseball. Riding high on Tuesday, dumpsville come Thursday. Not only did the Yanks blow a winnable game last night in Texas–about which the less said the better far as I’m concerned–Michael Pineda is hurt, and the Blue Jays got David Price–to go with Tulo.

The talk now is that they are making a push for Craig Kimbrel or Aroldis Chapman which is certainly interesting, and indicates the Yanks are aiming for a killer bullpen and not an expensive starter (I’d guess that Adam Warren would go back to the rotation should a trade go through).

Anyhow, it was a long, mostly forgettable day.

Let’s hope today gives brighter news.

Gotta figure the Yanks are going to do more than bring in Dustin Ackley.

We wait, we wonder.

Meanwhile, the Yanks’ve got a game tonight.

Never mind checking Twitter:

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

[Photo Credit: Tom Pennington]

Michael Pineda, hurt. David Price to the Jays.

Brian Cashman, your move.

Picture by Bags

Sorry Yankee fans, I should have realized no team is above superstition. Tanaka was in trouble for his entire outing and did his best to keep the game in reach, but the Yankees didn’t have the wingspan in this one and lost 5-2. Beyond the box score, the Rangers made the big news of the night acquiring Cole Hamels for some shiny prospects and Matt Harrison.

After jumping out to a 2-0 lead and showing signs that the deluge of runs from the previous night was no fluke, the tap ran dry. And that lead didn’t last long. Tanaka struggled in the second in a way we rarely see – at the mercy of the hitters.

The two key batters of the inning were Choo and De Shields and they both beat our guy. Choo smacked a drifting splitter, the second dead-fish splitter of the at-bat to tie the game and DeShields snagged the lead when he reached out for a 1-2 fastball off the plate. That one was tougher to swallow because it wasn’t a bad pitch. Probably needed to be elevated a little more.

Give the 2015 Yankees credit, their recent play suggested they could win this game right up until the end, even though they never really got it going again after the second. An easy loss to shake off as they can still take the series with a win Thursday.

As we rush to meet the trade deadline, the Yankees options are dwindling. I bet they make a major push for Price, but if the Dodgers want him, they have the better players to offer. So the Tigers will work the Dodgers up to the last minute and only turn to the Yankees if they come up empty-handed. I’ve always admired Price, so I hope he ends up a Yankee, but I don’t have my hopes up.