About Last Night: The Yankees Rallied to Beat the Pirates 7-5
By Tim Kabel
September 16, 2023
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The Yankees opened a three-game series in Pittsburgh against the Pirates last night on Roberto Clemente night, with an exciting come-from-behind win. To honor Roberto Clemente, all the Pirates wore number 21. So did Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton. All the Yankees had little number 21 patches on the left breast of their uniform Apparently, there is a movement afoot to retire Clemente's number throughout all of baseball. At this point, only Jackie Robinson's number 42 is retired by all Major League teams. In my opinion, it should stay that way but, that's a discussion for the offseason, which is fast approaching.
There are about two weeks left in the season and the Yankees are playing out the string. Wins and losses have not mattered for a while, and they certainly are not important now. Again, this is about development for next season. If the games mattered, we would not see Anthony Misiewicz, Zach McAllister, and Nick Ramirez pitching. I think it's safe to say that none of them will be major contributors to the team in 2024.
Unfortunately, Misiewicz suffered a terrible injury when he was hit in the head by a line drive off the bat of Ji Hwan Bae in the sixth inning. Hopefully he makes a speedy recovery.
Quick Stats -
The Pirates were 11-5 in their last 16 games before last night.
Giancarlo Stanton has fewer home runs than Gleyber Torres and fewer RBI than Torres and Anthony Volpe. That sort of defeats the purpose of having Stanton on the team. He is supposed to be a major source of power along with Aaron Judge.
Just when Yankee fans were headed to the therapist's couch over the news of Jasson Dominguez's torn UCL, along came the New York Jets to prove that things could always be worse. In something that could only happen to the Jets, they brought in Aaron Rodgers to great fanfare and at great cost to lead the team to the Super Bowl. 94 seconds into the season, he was finished for the year.
Last night was the first game since 1989 that neither John Sterling nor Suzyn Waldman was in the Yankees' radio booth for the game. They were replaced by Emmanuel Berbari and Justin Shackil, who will handle all the broadcasts this weekend. I guess the youth movement for the Yankees has extended into the broadcast booth as the combined age of Berbari (24) and Shackil (36) is less than the individual age of either Suzyn (77) or John (85). I guess we'll have to get used to Taylor Swift references as opposed to Elizabeth Taylor references. "That's baseball, Emmanuel" just doesn't have the same ring to it.
Gerrit Cole struggled through five innings last night but left the game in a position to win. He has 24 starts this season in which he allowed two or fewer runs, ranking third in team history in that category behind Jack Chesbro (28) in 1904 and Ron Guidry (26) in 1978. He has a chance to tie Guidry with two more starts.
The Yankees are 75-73 with 14 games left in the season.
As part of my review of the game, I listened to an inning or so of the radio broadcast. It was actually when Anthony Misiewicz was struck by the line drive. I thought the broadcasters were extremely professional and informative and did a very good job. The only thing is that it was a little hard to tell who was talking, but that will come with time.
Speaking of broadcasters, Jeff Nelson is a refreshing presence. While discussing Old Timers' Day with Michael Kay, he stated that there were some members of the past teams who were not in attendance. He then added that some of them were wearing orange jumpsuits and couldn't be there. The next inning, Michael Kay stated that his only criticism of PNC Park was that the restrooms were extremely far away from the broadcast booth. Nelson suggested that they be catheterized during the game so it wouldn't be an issue.
This was the Yankees' 29th comeback win this season.
On September 15th, 2008, Mariano Rivera recorded his 479th career save, moving him into second place on the all-time list.
The Big Story -
The Yankees won an exciting game with a 9th inning rally. They are now two games over .500 and have leapfrogged the Red Sox and are no longer in last place in the American League East. Although that is not the goal that they had at the beginning of the season, it is better than being under .500 and in last place. You have to work with what you have.
Gerrit Cole did not have a great day but showed why he is the ace by working his way through five tough innings. Aaron Judge had another solid game. All the young players contributed in some way, including Estevan Florial, who broke up a double play in the ninth inning that led to the Yankees' win. Of concern, Giancarlo Stanton came up with the bases loaded in the ninth inning and hit a weak pop fly to first base. This could be a major problem moving forward if things do not improve and he remains on the team.
Player of the Day -
Oswaldo Cabrera had three hits, a walk, and a stolen base and drove in a run. He has raised his batting average to the highest it has been since May.
Notable Performance -
Aaron Judge had three hits and drove in a run.
Better to Forget-
The sickening injury suffered by Anthony Misiewicz.
My Take -
People have always described me as an optimist. I am not a "glass is half full" type of person. I am a "the glass is half full, I'm not very thirsty anyway, the water is delicious, and I'm sure we will get more" type of guy. So, I am looking at the end of this season through that lens.
I am encouraged by most of the young players. No, they have not set the world on fire but there are positive signs. Oswaldo Cabrera has been hitting and playing much better lately and has been getting more playing time. Oswald Peraza is doing much better offensively and has adjusted very nicely to third base. Everson Pereira has been less impressive but, he has shown some flashes. Austin Wells has done very well defensively with offensive promise. Anthony Volpe is finishing a fairly solid rookie year and should only improve in the future.
There are also encouraging signs from the veterans. DJ LeMahieu has really turned his season, and hopefully his Yankees' career, around. Initially, I advocated trading him because his value may not be this high again. But, with the uncertainty of Anthony Rizzo's condition, LeMahieu could be too important to give up. Gleyber Torres has put himself in a position where the Yankees should seriously consider extending him and signing him to a long-term contract.
There were many articles and discussions held over the last week about exactly what type of procedure Jasson Dominguez will need and how long he will be out. It seems that the procedure might not be determined until the doctors actually have him under the knife. I think it is better to wait until he has the surgery so we can see exactly what procedure it was and what the doctors say about it. The young man seems very committed and dedicated to making a speedy recovery. So, that should not be an issue. We should have a much better idea of what we're looking at next week.
So far, the reviews of Sean Casey as hitting coach have been very favorable. DJ LeMahieu has given him a great deal of credit for his resurgence. He seems to be doing well with other players too. The Yankees should seriously consider bringing him back for next year.
The Yankees really need to to take a long, hard look at Giancarlo Stanton and his contract. They need to see if there is any way they can unload him on another team. They may have to exchange him for another player with a long contract. But it could be done.
There are multiple bright spots on this team heading into the off-season. There is certainly a lot of work to be done, and that is something we can discuss once the season is over. They are playing with excitement and enthusiasm, which is a good thing. The young players are fun to watch for the most part. So, let's just enjoy these last two weeks for what they are.
Next Up -
Tonight, the Yankees will play the second game of the three-game series against the Pirates at PNC Park at 6:35 PM. Neither team has named a starting pitcher.
