After a four-game losing streak last night, the New York Yankees delighted fans worldwide with a big 11-5 win over the Los Angeles Angels. They showed fans and detractors alike that they can be the Bronx Bombers of old. The big question is can they maintain that energy and success?
Don’t let Jameson Taillon fool you
Jameson Taillon earned the win last night in the Yankees 11-5 win over the Los Angeles at Yankee Stadium. It was his third win of the season against four losses in fifteen starts. But don’t be fooled. Taillon didn’t win the game the Yankee lineup did. Taillon gave up all the runs the Angels would score. Taillon is still the lousy pitcher he has been all season. With the Yankees only scoring about 3 runs per game, giving up five runs would normally be a loss for any starting pitcher.
Jameson Taillon was a better-than-average pitcher for the Pittsburgh Pirate before his series of injuries. He had two Tommy John surgeries. But with him working his way back, the New York Yankees thought they could take a chance on him to be a number three or four starter for their revamped Yankee rotation. Now halfway through the season for Taillon, that seems like a pipe dream. He has shown some bright spots this season, only to go out and erase them in the next outing.
The good pitching news from last night is not Taillon; it’s Nestor Cortes Jr. that stepped in and saved Taillon last night. Cortes Jr. has proven that he is a dependable option for Aaron Boone whenever he is needed. Last night he pitched 1.2 innings of one-hit ball. In his last 8.1 innings of relief, he has allowed only three hits and no runs. Call-up Albert Abreu closed out the game for the Yankees, pitching two hitless innings.
Yankees score a season-high 11 runs
The New York Yankees that have been playing all season did not show up last night; the “Bronx Bombers” we all know and love performed last night like Yankee fans have not seen all season long. There were several high points last night. One is scoring a season-high 11 runs. Every Yankee scored last night, and the Yankees hit three home runs in the game.
It was a hit fest for the New York Yankees last night. Gary Sanchez, Aaron Judge, and Miguel Andujar all hit home runs in the game. In addition, Sanchez, Luke Voit, and Miguel Andujar all had extra-base hits. The Yankees also never let up the pressure on the Angels. LeMahieu, Judge, Andujar, Sanchez, Voit, and Gleyber Torres all had two out RBI’s.
Turnaround or giant tease?
The morning after, many New York Yankee fans wonder if last night finally signaled a turnaround for the Yankees. Others may be wondering if it was just a giant tease that has seen the Yankees take a step forward and then two steps back. The Yankees have, for the most part, have had a roller-coaster season with more downs than ups.
At the start of the season, most industry analysts predicted with the Yankee’s strong lineup and newly revamped pitching rotation that they would be the team to beat all the way to the World Series. However, Yankee fans and analysts alike have been totally puzzled by the exact opposite. The Yankees appear to be a lifeless unenergetic team that can’t get out of its own way, often failing on baseball’s basics. If you believe that the Yankees will stop hitting into double plays, stop making running errors. And that the team will all of the sudden start hitting across the lineup, then the Yankees have now turned it around. If you are like so many sports sites, even New York ones, you believe the Yankees are done for it.
Last night New York Yankee general manager Brian Cashman for the first time, threw the Yankees under the bus while showing his continued support of Boone and the coaches.
“I know they urgently want to get on track, but I also know that we suck right now, as bad as you can be,†the general manager said Tuesday. “Trying to knock ourselves out of that is the effort, but until we get online and start playing high again, it’s gonna look bad. It plays bad and it stinks to high heavens. Right now, we gotta own that. I gotta call it like I see it: It’s pretty bad right now.â€
Just one week ago, the New York Yankees had crawled back to just four games out of first place, but now a week later, even after last night’s game, the Yankees are back to 7 1/2 games out, with only the Baltimore Orioles playing worse ball. I am not going to join the bandwagon saying that the Yankees are through this season. They still have time to turn it around, but they must start doing it now, and in a big way, anything less will disappoint.
Tonight the New York Yankees will face the pitching and hitting sensation Shohei Ohtani, that many compare to Babe Ruth. If Domingo German and the Yankees can win this game, it will go a long way to say that a turnaround may be in the offing.