Batting Cleanup: No Joy In Splitsville
Game 1: Yankees 3, Braves 1
A Win? What Is This?
Tuesday’s series opener was a relief and a frustration at the same time. The Yankees finally snapped their week long skid and picked up a 3-1 win over the Braves, despite continuing to struggle offensively. Was it the win that turned the season around? The more likely answer is that Mike Ford’s mustache was the spark that ignited the run to the World Series. Tell me I’m wrong. Tell Mike Ford’s mustache that I’m wrong.
The Wild Pitch That Turned the Season Around
Let’s start with that crucial eighth inning, the turning point in this game. Tyler Matzek came in from the Braves bullpen to walk Aaron Hicks. He subsequently surrendered singles to LeMahieu and Judge, loading the bases with no outs. For some reason, Phil Nevin did not send Hicks even though the Yankees hadn’t scored in like a billion years. Nate Jones came in to face Clint Frazier, who was coming in for Brett Gardner….oh what the hell, let’s just admire the pitch that changed it all!
A lead in the eighth inning for the Yankees of New York! It was a sight for sore eyes. And somehow, the Yankees almost didn’t score again after that (despite, as previously mentioned, having the bases loaded and no outs). Frazier and Torres popped out and it was only thanks to Mike Ford’s mustache that the third run scored on a walk. A Sanchez pop up ended the inning, but the damage was done. Two runs driven in on a wild pitch and a walk and the Yankees had a multi run lead for the first time in a week. It was glorious.
Yes, there are huge offensive questions with this Yankees team right now. Yes, Sanchez, Frazier and Torres all had garbage at bats in the eighth. Yes, they should have scored like ten runs there and left no doubt about the fact that the Bronx Bombers were back. Sometimes, though, it takes only one small inning to turn the season around. Consider this game from May 2012, where the Yankees had dropped to 21-21 and were in danger of going under .500 (and were also in last place, but in May - imagine that!)
https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/NYA/NYA201205220.shtml
For those who don’t want to take a step down memory lane, this game was against the Royals, who had beaten the Yankees 6-0 the night before. The Yankees, looking to stop their losing skid, eked out a one run win off the strength of a DeWayne Wise bunt single (that also turned the season around) and went on to win 95 games and the AL East. Although tonight’s game might have put a damper on this momentum, it’s fun to remember the little moments that save a season seeming as if it is going off the rails. I’m sure the Yankees feel at least a little better now than if they went to Cleveland carrying a seven game losing streak. Baby steps, everyone, baby steps.
Jamo Isn’t Crying
How good was Jameson Taillon in this game? He only went five innings, due to pitch limitations, but he showed the kind of stuff and intensity that makes it easy to realize why the Yankees acquired him. Taillon gave up one run, on back to back doubles in the third, and struck out five, but seemed in command the whole time. The 80 pitches were mostly stress free, besides the jam in the third, and Taillon kept the Braves off balance with a strong curveball working off his fastball, which hit 95 on occasion. Of the two offseason pickups for the Yankees rotation, Taillon has the greater upside and he showed his potential to be a number two starter besides Gerrit Cole in the New York rotation. He was undoubtedly the most positive aspect of this game. Run it back in five days, Jamo.
The Happiest Fella
Gio Urshela has consistently been a sparkplug in the Yankees offense since he was acquired in 2019. In a lineup full of big boppers (that apparently stopped bopping), Gio has provided a more contact oriented look from the lower part of the lineup. Urshela has battled .305/.353/.510 since 2019 and has consistently been a reliable bat in the lineup and a reliable glove in the field. For the 2021 Yankees, this is basically an MVP! On Tuesday, Gio carried the Yankee offense in the early innings, doubling and hitting a game tying home run in the fifth inning off of a cruising Charlie Morton. Morton was cruising and it seemed unlikely that this struggling offense could get anything going, until Gio crushed the first pitch he saw into Monument Park.
This absolute moonshot erased our collective fears of being shut out 1-0 and dropping another winnable game. The most happy fella indeed. As John Sterling said on the radio broadcast if you get hits, you’re going to be in this lineup and Gio has done just that for the last three years.
‘Pen Is Mightier Than The Sword
Boy, did the Yankees bullpen shove in this game. You know every pitcher had the fact that there was no margin for error on their mind and yet the best bullpen in baseball did not give up a run. Luetge, Green, Wilson, Losiaga and Chapman all took a turn and pitched lights out - just what this team needed. The difference between the Yankees bullpens of past years and this year is that rather than being strong at the top and soft at the bottom (bridge to Mo-where ring any bells?), this group is solid all the way down. Once the offense scores more than three runs a game, this bullpen could make things very tough for opposing hitters in closing out victories.
Game 2: Braves 4, Yankees 1
More of the Same
Last night might have turned the season around, but progress is not linear, as we all know. The Yankees dropped the second game of their two game set to the Braves 4-1 and it was just as frustrating of a performance as their previous rut had left them in. There weren’t many highlights, so let’s run through them quickly.
Klubot Shakes off the Rust
Tonight, we saw the first signs of the Corey Kluber the Yankees had envisioned when they signed him on a one year deal this winter. Kluber posted a solid start through his first four innings, maintaining his command of the zone better than he had in his previous outings. Unfortunately, he lost the zone in the fifth inning and was pulled early for Nick Nelson. As Kluber pitched, his command got worse and he ended up with four walks to only two strikeouts. It was progress for the Klubot, but he’ll have to pitch with more efficiency to go deeper into games and be the difference maker the Yankees are envisioning.
Whither the Offense?
In a shocking turn of events, the offensive struggles continued tonight for the Yankees. In the early innings, the wind knocked down some well hit balls by Aaron Hicks and Giancarlo Stanton. However, the same problems kept popping up - lack of plate discipline, missing hittable pitches, and failing to get on base. Ian Anderson pitched masterfully, but this Yankees lineup has been making the same mistakes against all pitchers. With the Yankees offense hitting like this, every run that their pitchers give up is stressful and each game seems over with the first run that the opposing offense scores. If the Yankees are going to keep hitting like this, they can forget about the postseason - this is not a sustainable way to play baseball.
The Yankees had a good chance in the seventh inning to put up some runs, but LeMahieu grounded to third to leave the bases loaded and waste another opportunity. As these opportunities pile on each other, it has to be in the head of every hitter right now. They need to find a way to turn this around and fast, before they dig themselves into an even deeper hole in the standings.
Blooped to Death and Other Assorted Notes
This was another impressive performance by Yankees pitching, minus the walks from Kluber and Nelson in the seventh. Cessa gave up a run in the seventh on some wonky broken bat hits but other than that, the bullpen did its job. They are certainly not the problem right now. (Also, look at these exit velocities on this “rally” by the Braves. Yankees have no luck at all right now).
Gio Urshela left the game with lower back tightness in the seventh inning - we’ll see what this amounts to, but on a cold day, it could just be a move made out of caution. I wouldn’t be surprised if he was sitting tomorrow in Cleveland though.
Clint had an RBI single in the ninth to pick up his first run batted in of the year. He also made a nice catch. Do you want to see it? You want to see it.
Nothing much else to say about this game - focus on the positives from Tuesday and the pitching related positives from tonight and move onto Cleveland. The four game set starts tomorrow and we’ll be back in the morning to preview it right here, so don’t miss it!
