Suddenly working on a streak of their own, the Yankees won their fourth straight game (not including the suspended game from the day before) and three other notable streaks continued as well. Trailing 6-5 in the seventh, DiMaggio capped a four-run rally with a two-run single, bring the score to its final count, 7-6. It was his only hit of the game. Williams, for his part, singled twice, raising his streak average to a blistering .447. Neither of these accomplishments had yet been noted by the press, but it was reported that Yankee rookie first baseman Johnny Sturm was nursing an eight-game string. Manager Joe McCarthy had inserted him in the lineup just a day before the beginning of his streak, and reporters following the team were tracking his progress, waiting for the bubble to burst. They still weren’t on to the true story; eventually they’d figure things out.

There is a long profile on Ivan Nova by Jorge Arangure Jr. over at ESPN. Check it out.

[Photo Credit: AP]

Still the joint.

[Photo Credit: Alexey Nikishin]

David Lebovitz fixes a tasty-looking chicken salad.

In Living Color. Nifty redesign by John Turney over at Uni Watch.

Perhaps in anticipation of a new movie version of “The Great Gatsby” dig this photo gallery over at Gothamist.

Do the Steinbrenner’s want to sell the Yanks? This story suggests perhaps. Lonn Trust says the report is fiction.

Jon Heyman tweeted: steinbrenner: “i just read the daily news story. it is complete fiction. me and my family have no intention to sell the yankees  and expect it to be in the family for years to come.” (end of hal steinbernner statement)

[Image via Elevated Encouragement]

As requested the Score Truck screeched into the Stadium tonight before the Yanks take off for the west coast.

Curtis Granderson hit a home run in the first and Alex Rodriguez followed a couple of batters later with a two-run dinger. And Rodriguez was pumped.

He was even more amped when he crushed a solo shot to center field his next time up (and cursed himself when he grounded out with the bases loaded in his third at bat). The Yanks scrapped together a few more runs on a night when the Royals pitched, well, like the same old Royals.

Andy Pettitte was crisp, Mark Teixeira and Derek Jeter turned a thrilling double play, as the Yanks won a laugher, 8-3.

And Bronx Banter was full of heppy kets.

[Photo Credit: Al Bello/Getty Images]

Hear that? It’s the Score Truck, y’all.

Over at Lo-Hud, Chad Jennings asks: When is Alex Rodriguez going to drive in runs and hit for power again?

1. Jeter SS
2. Granderson CF
3. Teixeira 1B
4. Rodriguez 3B
5. Cano 2B
6. Swisher RF
7. Jones DH
8. Martin C
9. Nix LF

Andy’s on the hill.

Keep it movin’ boys. It’s gunna be a good night.

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

[Photo Credit: Pichaus and Tipa Tipa]

The Yankees and Red Sox entered Friday afternoon’s game at the Stadium in third and fourth place respectively, trailing the Cleveland Indians and Chicago White Sox by a handful of games. Like the Yankees, the Red Sox had been struggling; their record sat at en even 15-15. While DiMaggio had been putting hits together recently, Boston’s great slugger, Ted Williams, was doing the same. Both players entered the game riding identical eight game hitting streaks, and both kept their streaks alive.

In keeping with the similar states of the two teams and their stars, the game ended in a 9-9 tie, called on account of darkness. The game wouldn’t count in the standings (it would eventually me made up as part of a July 1st doubleheader), but the stats were good. RBI singles for DiMaggio and Williams were enough to keep them streaking, but not enough to earn a win for either team.

[Photo Credit: Associated Press]

Put the needle to the groove.

[Photo by Genevieve Naylor via If Charlie Parker…]

I come in the form of the mind-bender bartender…

A short by Cyriak Harris via the Atlantic.

Chick-chick-chicken week continues with this dry-fried chicken recipe from Fuchsia Dunlop.

Via the good folks at Serious Eats.

[Photo Credit: Deliciousness and Serious Eats]

Chris Jones profiles Bruce Jenner in the latest issue of Esquire:

Bruce Jenner has taken it upon himself to rescue his ridiculous extended clan by doing what none of its other members will ever do: He has elected to lose. The person in the house who has most earned his fame has chosen to accept the least of it. “I’m done with competition,” he says. He says that in response to a question about his helicopters, whether he might fly them in the professional events that have been cropping up around the country, but he means it about everything. Jenner has made decisions, now, here, during his own second life. He has made up his mind once again. His singlet is in storage because he wants it to be. He’s the one who locked his medal away in the safe.

“Going through what I went through,” he says, “being that obsessed, is not what I would consider a good, well-rounded life. You’re selfish with your time. You’re selfish with your thoughts. You don’t have to grow up. All you’re concerned with is scoring points.”

Jenner has learned that perfection comes in many forms. He has learned that a private mastery is just as satisfying as a public one. He has learned that a curse isn’t a curse if it’s a choice. And he has learned that there may be no greater love a father can give his children than to accept that his life really didn’t begin until theirs did.

“I spent a great deal of my life being ignored. I was always very happy that way. Being ignored is a great privilege. That is how I think I learnt to see what others do not see and to react to situations differently. I simply looked at the world, not really prepared for anything.”

Saul Leiter

Check out this incredible photo gallery

of Saul Leiter’s work

over at Online Browsing.

Posters

From Cannes.

Via If It’s Hip, It’s Here.

Photograph by Yukino Iwatsuki.

Arod and Teixeira teamed up to record the final out of the game. (Photo: AP)

It wasn’t the resounding breakout game most Yankees’ fans have been desperately anticipating, but on the strength of three runs, and Alex Rodriguez’ game ending throw, the Bronx Bombers finally managed to squeak out a much needed victory.

May has mostly been a gloomy month for the Yankees, but one bright spot has been the baby steps taken by Phil Hughes. In tonight’s game, the right hander broke out of the gate strong, but then fell victim to two old bugaboos. In the top of the third, Hughes left an 0-2 pitch over the plate to Humberto Quintero, who promptly lined an RBI double into the right field corner. Entering the game, Hughes had allowed opposing hitters to bat an astounding .293/.341/.537 (or 191% better than the league average) when ahead in the count 0-2, so Quintero’s run scoring hit was only the latest in a season’s worth of frustration born of poor location.

The Royals added to their lead in the fourth inning when Jeff Francoeur drove a 2-0 fastball into the left field seats. The long ball has been a season-long tormenter of the Yankees’ starting rotation, but no one has been more vulnerable than Hughes, who has been victimized at least once in each of his starts.  In 47 1/3 innings, Hughes has now allowed 11 home runs, giving him the third highest rate per nine innings among all qualified major league starters.

The negatives aside, Hughes did manage to hold the Royals to only two runs over six innings, which was important because the offense wasn’t quite ready to bust out. The Yankees finally got on the board when Robinson Cano launched a long home run in the fourth inning, but the winning rally was much more subdued. In the bottom of the fifth, the Yankees loaded the bases on a seeing-eye grounder, hit by pitch, and bunt single, setting the stage for another golden scoring opportunity. With the memory of last night’s failure with bases loaded still fresh in everyone’s mind, Derek Jeter fell behind in the count, but finally produced a run with a single that was flared into right. Would this be the hit that would jump start the Yankees’ struggling offense and put an end to their futility with runners in scoring position? Unfortunately, the answer was no. After Curtis Granderson’s ground out produced another run, Alex Rodriguez and Raul Ibanez each went down swinging to end the rally.

Although the Yankees may not have exited the inning with good feelings, they did come away with the lead. Keeping it, however, wouldn’t be easy.  Over the final three innings, Joe Girardi used five different relievers to record the last nine outs (such is life without Mariano), but his master plan almost hit a snag in the bottom of the ninth inning. With two outs, Alex Gordon, who had doubled, was at third when Alcides Escobar hit a grounder that Rodriguez fielded deep behind the bag. Arod’s only play was to desperately put his entire body into the throw, which hurtled across the diamond as Escobar raced down the line. The ball finally nestled into Mark Teixeira’s outstretched glove just ahead of the base runner, giving the Yankees a victory by the narrowest of margins, and, perhaps, a one-day reprieve from having to answer questions about not getting the big hit.

On this date in 2007 the Yankees were 20-24.  By May 29, they were 21-29.

Today, they are .500. Tied with the Red Sox (and a game better than the Tigers) but only 5.5 out of first.

1. Jeter SS
2. Granderson CF
3. Cano 2B
4. Rodriguez 3B
5. Ibanez DH
6. Swisher RF
7. Teixeira 1B
8. Martin C
9. Wise LF

Never mind the beautiful friendship, Rick, get us a goddamned win.

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

[Photo Via CrescentMoon06]

Here’s an interview with Sandy Morse over at New York magazine.

I worked for Sandy, as an apprentice film editor, on “Everybody Says I Love You.” She was–and is–a huge sports fan and we went to several Knicks games together. I last spoke to her about a year ago and didn’t know she’s working on Louis C.K.’s show (which I still haven’t seen).

Anyhow, dig in. She’s a thoughtful and bright and a wonderful editor. Also a great person.

[Photo by Brian Krijgsman]