About Yesterday Afternoon: The Yankees Lost to the Guardians 8-7 in 10 Innings
By Tim Kabel
April 15, 20024
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The Yankees lost a sloppy game to the Guardians yesterday. This was a game they should have won, but they found ways to give back the lead and ultimately, lose the game. The Yankees still have the best record in baseball at 12-4. They are in first place. They are off to a tremendous start. However, losing games that they should have won is not something that should become a pattern. That is something that could come back to bite them at the end of the year.
Quick Stats –
· The Yankees have won their first five series of the season.
· The Yankees lost their first one-run game of the year yesterday.
· Aaron Judge hit his 260th home run yesterday, tying Derek Jeter on the Yankees’ career home run list.
· Estevan Florial hit one home run in his Yankees’ career. He hit two home runs against them this weekend. Maybe, he should have been given more of a chance by the Yankees.
· On April 14th, 1955, Elston Howard made his Major League debut with the Yankees, becoming the first African-American player in the team’s history.
· Yesterday was bench coach Brad Ausmus’s 55th birthday. The Yankee should have given him a gift. Perhaps the chair in the manager's office.
Big Story –
The Yankees appear to be a very good team that could go very far in the playoffs this year. However, they can be beaten, just like any team. It's when they beat themselves that it becomes an issue. They played a mistake filled game yesterday and ultimately gave the victory to the Guardians. In the past, games like this became common. Last year they became too common; they need to be the exception rather than the rule. They need to be the clunker that happens once in a while, and that the team then tries diligently to avoid. In the Aaron Boone era, there have been far too many of these games. They have developed into a habit, which is one of the reasons the Yankees have never won a World Series, or even been in one, under Aaron Boone. I know he has a lot of supporters but, the facts are the facts.
Player of the Game –
Anthony Volpe had three more hits, a walk, an RBI and scored a run. He seems to be taking to the leadoff position like a duck takes to water, in the words of Forrest Gump.
Notable Performance –
Aaron Judge had two hits, including a three-run home run. He seems to be rounding into shape very nicely.
Better to Forget –
Anthony Rizzo made two errors in the game and has four in the first sixteen games of the season. Perhaps he is wearing his actual platinum glove into the field.
My Take –
The Yankees are off to a very hot start. A loss like yesterday's is not something to panic over under normal circumstances. Really, it's not something to panic over under any circumstances. However, this is not new territory. In 2022 the Yankees got off to a blistering start. They then fell back to earth and were essentially dreadful in the second half of the season.
Yesterday's loss is something that needs to be noticed. Attention needs to be paid to it so that it does not become one of many such losses.
There are some concerns with the bullpen. Having a bunch of pretty good relief pitchers, especially ones who are unknown or are reclamation projects is risky. They can be great, or they can be mediocre. They may need to retool the bullpen at some point. That does not mean everyone needs to go. Remember, they just lost Jonathan Loaisiga for their season. Tommy Kahnle will be back. Perhaps, Clayton Beeter could be a good fit there. Another thought would be to move either Luis Gil or Clarke Schmidt into the bullpen once Gerrit Cole returns. At this point, it is something to keep an eye on.
In the fifth inning, when things were unraveling for Nestor Cortes, he hit Tyler Freeman with a pitch. The replays indicated that the ball actually hit the knob of the bat. Aaron Boone did not even appeal it. In retrospect, he should have. Who knows what would have happened if Freeman were not simply awarded a base. He might have made an out. Boone’s attention to detail and consistency have always been issues. Not only that, but his inability to learn from mistakes is a major flaw. How can we expect the team to improve if the manager will not.
Overall, we have to be very happy with the performance of the Yankees. However, we were happy in 2022 as well. I don't know about you, but I don't remember any parades at the end of that season. A loss like yesterday’s is a red flag. Hopefully it is not the beginning of red flag epidemic. They can spread like dandelions in a lawn. We will have to get Scott from the Scott’s Lawn commercials to tear them out the way he tears out weeds if that happens.
Next Up –
Tonight, the Yankees open a three-game series against the Toronto Blue Jays at 7:07 PM at the Rogers Center (I wonder if it is named after Mr. Rogers. If not, maybe it's in his neighborhood). Luis Gil (0-0, 3.00 ERA) will face Toronto’s Chris Bassitt, (1-2, 5.06 ERA).
