By Mike Whiteman
May 4, 2024
On this day in 1931 in a game against Washington, Yankee manager Joe McCarthy wrote up a creative lineup:
Earle Combs, cf
Jimmy Reese, 2b
Babe Ruth, 1b
Lou Gehrig, rf
Tony Lazzeri, 3b
Ben Chapman, lf
Lyn Lary, ss
Bill Dickey, c
Lefty Gomez, p
No typo here, as an aging Ruth played first in an effort to ease the wear and tear on his body. Gehrig unfortunately made an error in right field as a part of a five-run sixth in a 7-3 loss.
The next day they were back in their usual positions.
https://www.baseballreference.com/boxes/NYA/NYA193105040.shtml
Quick Stats: The Yankees are 21-13 on the season. They are in second place in the American League East, a game behind the Baltimore Orioles. Big Story: We all were hoping that coming back to Yankee Stadium would put some bounce back in the Yanks' step and some zip in their bats. For eight innings, all they could do was muster two singles, five walks and zero runs. Things didn't look good. Thanks to a stellar effort by Yankee pitching, they were only behind 1-0 going into the ninth inning. Marcus Stroman cruised through five scoreless frames, but lost his touch in the sixth when he walked three batters, including one with the bases loaded. Ian Hamilton came on to get out without any further damage, and he along with Victor Gonzalez and Dennis Santana held Detroit scoreless the rest of the way. In the bottom of the ninth, Aaron Judge led off with a single, which was followed with a beautiful bunt single by Alex Verdugo. With Giancarlo Stanton facing the Tigers' closer Jason Foley and his hard sinker, even the most optimistic Yankee fans may have been bracing for the dreaded GIDP - Ground into Double Play. Except that Stanton ripped an opposite field double, scoring Judge. From my vantage point of watching the game on MLB TV, it sure sounded like the Yankee Stadium crowd just erupted. Anthony Rizzo then singled through a drawn in infield, scoring Verdugo and the Yanks had their first walk-off win of the season.
Yankees 2, Tigers 1. How about that. Player of the Game: I have to give this to the Yankee bullpen. Hamilton, Gonzalez, and Santana kept the game close to set up the ninth inning heroics. Notable Performances: Despite his rough ending, Stroman put in a solid outing. He has been a welcome addition to the pitching staff...The team flashed some leather last night, with Judge, Rizzo and Oswaldo Cabrera all making nice plays in the field. Better to Forget: The Yanks grounded into two more double plays. They lead all of MLB with 40 GIDPs. Per baseball-reference.com, the average team has 22. My Take: What a win! This was already the ninth comeback victory of the season. There's some grit on this team. I have to say how pleased I've been with Alex Verdugo. The enthusiasm of his acquisition in the offseason understandably paled in comparison to that of Juan Soto. He came with not the best reputation, and my expectations of him were low. Thus far, we've seen a really good all-around player, who will do anything to win. In Rizzo's words, he's "just a baseball player all the way around" How many of us thought the undoing of the 2024 Yankees would be the injury and extended loss of Gerit Cole? Well, going into the game last night the Yanks' 3.07 ERA was third in all of the majors. The bullpen has been a sizzling 2.45. A bit more offense would be welcome though. If the team is looking to upgrade, they may find some suitors even this early in the season, as there is word that the Marlins and Padres were on the verge of a deal involving two-time batting title winner Luis Arraez. What a long season this looks to be for Marlins fans.
Of course, it's a long season for all of the teams. In the course of the 162-game marathon, there are many ups and downs. Last night was really enjoyable, maybe the most exciting win of the young season. They Said It: "Amazing" - Anthony Rizzo's response to how it felt when Judge and Soto dumped a cooler of icewater on him during his post-game interview. Next Up: Clarke Schmidt (2-1, 3.19) takes the mound against Casey Mize (1-0, 3.08). Starting time 1:05.
