Yeah, I know it’s Thursday afternoon. I know it’s hot. But what the hell? It’s always a good time for buttermilk pancakes. 

I hadn’t seen this before–The John Sterling Project–but cannot be surprised that it was put together by our old chum, William.

Thanks, my dude.

[Photo Credit: Corey Sipkin/N.Y. Daily News]

What? I wasn’t going to mention Bird in the title?

The kid hit a pair of 2-run home runs  yesterday to boost the Yanks. Even better was Nathan Eovaldi. Guy’s stuff is so good–he threw 4 pitches yesterday at 101–it’s easy to be critical of him. He was perfect through 5, faltered in the 6th, and then showed some guts but coming back out and pitching a clean 7th. Shreve held the Twins down in the 8th and Betances put heads to bed to close it out.

It’s clear what the Yankees saw in Eovaldi and while he is not a finished product he’s improved, don’t you think?

Final Score: Yanks 4, Twins 3.

[Photo Credit: William Claxton]

It’s Eovaldi vs. Santana this afternoon on an uncomfortably warm day in the Bronx.

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

Never mind the haze:

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

Picture by Bags

Fried chicken sandwiches are all the rage these days. I had a delicious one at Allswell, a lovely spot in a tragically hip Brooklyn neighborhood a few weeks back.

Serious Eats shows us how to make ’em at home.

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