Giancarlo Stanton

New York Yankees: Did Giancarlo Stanton hit the longest home run ever?

by

New York Yankees’ Giancarlo Stanton is unarguably the best power-hitting player in baseball. But, the simple answer to if he hit the longest home run, is no he didn’t. It’s tough to answer the question because many measurements took place before Statcast, making the determination quite accurate and easy. Many of the records discussed here are based on witnesses, rumors, and knowing the measurements of the park where the home runs were slammed.

It should be noted that homers hit at the Colorado Rockies home, Coor’s field, will go much further than in other parks that are closer to sea level. Coors Field is at a lofty 5,200 feet where the air is very thin. Not surprisingly, the longest home run ever hit was in 1987 at the then Mile High Stadium. Joey Meyer, in a game between the minor league Denver Zephyrs and the Buffalo Bisons, hit a towering blast that went 587′ and was recorded on video.

When mentioning home runs, one must discuss Mickey Mantle because many believe he hit the longest home run. Mantle is often credited with a 734′ homer during 1963 in the old Yankee Stadium. The long ball hit off the facade keeping it from going out of the park. It hit so hard that it bounced back onto the field. The only problem with the validity of that shot was that Yankee Stadium’s farthest reach was left-center at 408′. To believe the 734′ figure, you would have to agree that the stands are 326′ deep, which they are not.

All tolled Mantle is said to have had six long balls that were over 600′, but most of those were contested by fellow players and fans. His longest home run was probably the one against the Washington Senators at Griffith Field, it measured 565′. That home run was documented and coined the “tape measured home run.”

  • Here are some of the other home runs, some are disputed:
  • Josh Gibson, Homestead Grays catcher – 580 feet, Yankee Stadium
  • Babe Ruth, Boston Red Sox outfielder – 550-587 feet, Plant Field
  • Reggie Jackson, Oakland Athletics outfielder – 539 feet, Tiger Stadium
  • Willie Stargel, Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder – 535 feet, Olympic Stadium
  • Adam Dunn, Cincinnati Reds first baseman – 535 feet, Great American Ballpark
  • Jim Thome, Cleveland Guardians first baseman – 511 feet, Jacobs Field
  • Glenallen Hill, Chicago Cubs outfielder – 500+ feet, Wrigley Field
  • Nomar Mazara, Texas Rangers outfielder – 505 feet, Globe Life Park
  • Giancarlo Stanton, Miami Marlins outfielder – 504 feet, Coors Field, the former two were measured by Statcast.

Here are the longest home run blasts during the 2021 season: Click on the links to see the actual home run video.

Please note that five of the ten longest hit home runs in 2021 were at Coor’s Field, home of the Colorado Rockies. Baseball analysts generally agree that balls at Coor’s Field go 5-10% further than at other fields.

Interestingly the hardest-hit ball of the 2021 season was not hit out of the infield. Giancarlo Stanton lined a ball off the bat at 122.2 mph. That ball was lined into the second baseman’s glove resulting in a double play. Stanton has hit five of the year’s hardest-hit balls.

New York Yankees: Does any fan think the Yankees have 5 Silver Sluggers?

by
New York Yankees, Gary Sanchez

When the Silver Slugger Award finalists were announced, the New York Yankees found that five Yankees were on that list. Really? Is there any Yankee fan that deep down thinks that Gary Sanchez, Joey Gallo, and DJ LeMahieu should receive those awards? There are three other teams that have five finalists. There is obviously something wrong with the selection process.

Obviously, the other two New York Yankees on the list, Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton deserve being on that list and being named a Silver Slugger. The other three not so much. Let’s take a look at the record.

Gary Sanchez had a batting average of .204, with 23 home runs and driving in only 54 in 383 at-bats. He had a wRC+ that is below league average and showed a scarcity of production for a catcher. The only reason for possible consideration is his home runs that are third among AL catchers, that are not known for hitting home runs. But when you average all the production his inclusion on the list is unexplainable.

DJ Lemahieu is a good baseball player there is no argument in that. But batting one hundred points lower than last season and only hitting 10 home runs while hitting into a multitude of double plays hardly qualifies for being a finalist. His wRC+ is just average and ties with Jed Lourie for sixth in the AL for 2nd baseman. Also, consider he played at second base less than half of the season.

Maybe the strangest selection is Joey Gallo. Gallo hit a paltry .160 for the New York Yankees. He played a great left field for the Yankees but that is not what he was nominated for, his finalist selection was for DH, in the same category as Giancarlo Stanton, Shohei Ohtani, Nelson Cruz, and Yordan Alverez. Really? Did anyone notice that he was a DH only 14 times for the Yankees this season? What were they thinking? At least Gleyber Torres wasn’t selected in the SS category.

If I was to relent on any of these three; it would be DJ Lemahieu, and not for what he was a finalist for, but for his overall good play and his good defense at all infield corners, when called upon. If he was to be a finalist in anything, it should be utility player, a category that does not exist.

This is not the first time this awkwardness has cropped up. In 2019 LeMahieu won the award at second base, when he only played there 75 times. 92 times; he played at first or third base. In 2015 Nelson Cruz won the award as an outfielder even though he only play 80 games in the outfield. In 2018 J.D. Martinez won the award twice, for both an outfielder and a designated hitter, despite playing just 57 games in the field that year. I think you get the picture.

There are solutions to be found. One is to create some new categories, like utility player or part-time DH. this would solve the problem of multi-positional players. It would lead to more authentic selections.

Many in the industry believe the selection system is flawed, and that they have a roadmap to fix it. Right now, the winners are voted upon by Major League managers and coaches, who are unable to vote for players on their own teams to select the finalists. That is fine, but allows too many human factors into the process. Many years ago the Gold Glove awards were experiencing the same flaws. They have mostly solved the problem by integrating stats into the formula. They now name the finalists with 25% of the conclusion based solely on stats. A decade ago Rawlings linked together with the Society for American Baseball Research to produce a process that considered the SDI (SABR Defensive index) for advanced metrics. This did not overtake the vote but made the difference in the selection process.

In the Silver Slugger situation Louisville Sluggers who sponsors the award can use the Gold Glove Rawlings roadmap the fix the annual awards and stop the embarrassment. All that is needed is for MLB and Louisville Sluggers to make the leap into the 21st century.

Yankees: Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton silenced the critics in 2021

by
v

For years, New York Yankees’ fans have recognized Aaron Judge’s talent to play baseball, but always complain that he is incapable of staying healthy for a full season. Before this year, the last time he played something close to a full campaign was in his breakthrough year, in 2017, with 155 participations.

Likewise, Yankees’ fans were even rougher on Giancarlo Stanton. Not only they ridiculed him for being injury-prone, but a portion of fans were critical on his production and his ability to provide big, timely hits.

It’s safe to say that those concerns have been erased somewhat. Perhaps not fully erased, but both men showed that they can stay healthy and be productive for a full year.

Judge played 148 of 162 games with the Yankees in 2021, or 91 percent; and Stanton took part in 139 contests this season, or 85 percent. Having both men playing most of the games is huge for the Bombers’ chances in 2022, because those two were the ones who carried the team all year long.

By weighted Runs Created Plus, or wRC+, three Yankees regulars were above-average performers (a wRC+ over 100) on offense: Anthony Rizzo, with 113, Stanton, at 137, and Judge, with 148.

The Yankees’ top two producers by far

Judge and Stanton were a tier and a half above everybody else, and this is something the Yankees will need to fix during the offseason. But having those two sluggers healthy and producing is a very good start.

Judge slashed .287/.373/.544 with 39 homers and 98 RBI. Perhaps more importantly, he improved his strikeout rate to 25 percent, and provided some huge hits, like the game-winning single against Tampa Bay in Game 162 to force a Wild Card game against the Red Sox.

Stanton hit .273/.354/.516 with 35 blasts and 97 RBI, and had a huge series against the Red Sox in the next-to-last weekend of the season. He was also the one bat to show up for the Yankees in the Wild Card game, with two balls hit to the Green Monster and a late homer.

As long as both men are healthy, they should be the top two offensive producer for the Yankees for the foreseeable future, provided that the team is able to extend Judge’s stay beyond 2022.

New York Yankees: 3 Takeaways from a bad end to a disappointing season

by
New York Yankees, Aaron Boone

It’s all over for the New York Yankees as they lost the wild card game in Boston. A long and primarily painful season is now behind them as they bombed out in another postseason. The Yankees, with the most championships in all of the sports, haven’t won a World Series in twelve years. In that span, the phrase Bronx Bombers once meant a powerful team that slaughters its opponents now seems to mean a team the bombs out at the end of every season. The Yankees lost the wild card game 6-2 to the Boston Red Sox.

Gerrit Cole bombs big time

At the beginning of this season, having Gerrit Cole on the mound usually meant winning another game; that is no longer true, as evidenced in his last four games when he gave up 18 earned runs. That is not the signature of a pitching ace; it’s not even the sign of a mediocre pitcher. Steinbrenner and company paid huge bucks to acquire Gerrit Cole to come up big in big situations. Instead, he has failed and failed badly.

Last night in a winner-take-all ticket to an eventual World Series, Cole only lasted two innings giving up three earned runs, two of them homers, and walking two Red Sox. That’s a 13.50 ERA, hardly a stat that will win games. Cole, after the game, didn’t give any excuses like that mound wasn’t proper or my hamstring was bothering me; he simply said he didn’t make his pitches.

In his usual manner of protecting his players rather than holding them responsible, Manager Boone actually said I think he made some good pitches. If he meant that he threw a few pitches that weren’t hit out of the park, that is true, and if he wanted to suggest that Cole pitched well, he doesn’t understand baseball. At the very least, an ace should be able to keep a team in the game even if they don’t have their best stuff. Unfortunately, Cole did not do that last night.

Yankee bullpen gives up three runs

This season, the mostly good bullpen has suffered somewhat because the starting pitching hasn’t been stellar, causing them to be overused for most of the season. But, for whatever reason, the bullpen did not respond and lift the Yankees out of the hole that Gerrit Cole created. Instead, they gave up three more runs making it extremely difficult for a poor-hitting team to crawl out from.

Some of this is Cole’s responsibility; to expect any bullpen to get 21 outs scoreless is a tall order. After Cole was removed, manager Boone called in Clay Holmes to pitch two innings of one-hit ball. It will be questioned why he didn’t Boone leave him in longer when he only used  26 pitches. Luis Severino, returning from Tommy John surgery, replaced Holmes and gave one run in 1.1 innings of work. Jonathan Loaisiga, also coming back from a stint on the IL, gave up two more runs. Chad Green pitched 1.2 innings of scoreless ball, but it was too little, too late.

Hitting was a microcosm of the whole season

The New York Yankees have been plagued all season long by long stretches of no-hitting. Droughts that put them in a wild card showdown instead of a division win. Unfortunately, after crawling back to postseason contention, they went on another one of those droughts. Hitters four through nine last night went one for twenty putting all the weight on the lead-off hitters. Giancarlo Stanton and Anthony Rizzo hit home runs, but it wasn’t impactful with no baserunners ahead of them. The Red Sox had only one hit more than the Yankees, but there were runners on base when their sluggers hit.

The New York Yankees have only scored eight runs in their last five games. It was undoubtedly a very inopportune time to go on a hitting drought. Nevertheless, this is the season the Yankees have had, was so inconsistent that it caused them to miss another try at the elusive 28th World Championship. For the Yankees, it’s time to lick their wounds and when they get tired of the taste, try to figure out what went wrong and how to fix it before the start of the 2022 baseball season.

 

New York Yankees Recap: Yankees don’t hit and Cole bombs in the wild card, Yankees go home

by

Tonight, with the whole season on the line, the New York Yankees faced the Boston Red Sox in the 2021 AL wild-card game. Although the Red Sox won more games in the regular season, causing the game to be played at Fenway Park in Boston, the last time the two teams met, the Yankees swept the Red Sox. They wanted just one more win tonight to get to the divisional series against the Tampa Bay Rays. Unfortunately, it was not to be the hitters didn’t hit, and the pitchers didn’t pitch well. The final score was the Boston Red Sox 7 and the New York Yankees 2. Tonight starts the long offseason of discontent.

The Yankees tried to put their best foot forward by sending their ace Gerrit Cole to the mound to face the Red Sox Nathan Eovaldi, a  former Yankee pitcher. Cole was 16-8 with an ERA of 3.23 and an incredible 243 strikeouts.  Cole has pitched to the Red Sox four times this season, with the Yankees losing two games.

The Red Sox sent Nathan Eovaldi to the mound to hold down the Yankees. Eovaldi is a former Yankee pitcher (2015-16, 23-11). With the Red, Sox Eovaldi has been 20-15 with an ERA of 4.11. This season he is 11-9 with an ERA of 3.75. The Yankees and Eovaldi have met in the postseason once before. In 2018 in game three of the divisional series, he pitched seven innings in the 16-1 Yankee loss, the Yankees’ most lopsided loss in their postseason history.

Eovaldi is coming off a September 29th win over the Baltimore Orioles when he gave up only four hits in a scoreless effort, striking out 7. Still, on the 24th, he lasted only 2.2 innings against the Yankees giving up seven earned runs in the Yankee win. Over the 2021 season, Eovaldi has a 2-4 record against the Yankees.

In the game, Anthony Rizzo led off the first inning against Eovaldi and ground out to first. Aaron Judge flew out to right for the second out. Then, Giancarlo Stanton singled to the monster. Joey Gallo struck out when he couldn’t hold up. At the bottom, Kyle Schwarber led off and flew out to Gardner in centerfield. Kiki Hernandez popped out to Torres at second. Rafael Devers walked. Xander Bogaerts homered to left-center, driving in Devers for the Red Sox two-run lead in the first. Alex Verdugo flew out, but the damage was done. Red Sox 2 Yankees 0.

Gleyber Torres led off the second inning by flying out to right field. Brett Gardner struck out. Gio Urshela singled to the right side. Kyle Higashioka struck out to leave Gio stranded. At the bottom, Hunter Renfroe struck out. Kevin Plawecki doubled to the centerfield wall. Bobby Dalbec struck out. Christian Arroyo struck out stranding one. Red Sox 2 Yankees 0.

The third inning was led off by Andrew Velazquez, who flew out to left field. Rizzo struck out swinging. Judge flew out to the right-center wall to end the half. Schwarber led off the bottom and homered to right field.  Hernandez singled. Devers walked, and that knocked the Yankee ace out of the game. Xander Bogaerts faced Clay Holmes and struck out. Verdugo hit into a double play to end the inning, but the Red Sox picked up another run. Red Sox 3 Yankees 0.

Giancarlo Stanton led off the top of the fourth and struck out swinging. Gallo flew out to center field. Torres flew out to center as Eovaldi had his way with Yankee hitters. At the bottom, Renfroe faced Holmes still on the mound for the Yankees and singled up the center. Plawecki hit into a double play for two outs in the inning. Dalbec flew out to far-right to end the inning. Red Sox 3 Yankees 0.

Brett Gardner led off the fifth inning by striking out. Urshela flew out. Higashioka struck out to end another Yankees scoreless inning. At the bottom, Christian Arroyo against new Yankee pitcher Luis Severino ground out to second. Schwarber ground out to first. Hernandez flew out to Judge in right as Severino put down the side in order. Boston 3 New York 0.

The sixth inning was led off by Rougie Odor pinch-hitting for Anthony Velazquez, and Odor went down on three pitches.  Rizzo homered into the right-field stands. Judge beat out a roller to short for a single, knocking Eovaldi out of the game. Stanton facing new pitcher Ryan Brasier and doubled with Judge in a baserunning mistake trying to reach home, was out at the plate. Gallo popped out to third, but the Yankees got on the board with the Rizzo homer. At the bottom, Devers struck out. Bogaerts walked. Verdugo doubled with Bogaerts scoring from first. Renfroe, against new pitcher Jonathan Loaisiga walked. Travis Shaw pinch-hitting for Plawecki struck out. Dalbec struck out to end the inning. Boston 4 New York Yankees 1.

Glyber Torres led off the seventh inning against Tanner Houck and flew out to center. Gardner stuck out swinging. Urshela struck out for another 1-2-3 inning for Red Sox pitching. Arroyo led off the bottom and ground out to third. Schwarber, who homered in the game, walked.  Hernandez walked, and that was it for Loaisiga. Chad Green came in and faced Devers, who flew out to Gardner with the runners staying put. Bogaerts walked for the third walk of the inning. With the bases loaded and two outs, Verdugo doubled with a run scoring and Verdugo out at second. Red Sox 6 Yankees 1.

In the eighth inning, with the New York Yankees down by five runs, Gary Sanchez pinch-hitting for Higashioka lined out to center. Odor flew out to center. Rizzo, who scored the only Yankee run, struck out to end the half. At the bottom, Renfroe struck out. Christain Vazquez, in his first at bat, went down on strikes. Dalbec ground out to third. Red Sox 6 Yankees 1.

The New York Yankees, with lack licks on the line in the top of the ninth, Aaron Judge ground out to short. Then, Giancarlo Stanton homered around the Pesky Pole in right. Next, Gallo flew out to the warning track in right field. Finally, Gleyber Torres flew out to right to end the season for the New York Yankees.

The wild card final score was the Boston Red Sox 6 and the New York Yankees 2. The winning pitcher was Nathan Eovaldi, and the loser was Gerrit Cole.

 

 

 

 

New York Yankees 10/2: Takeaways as the Yankees lose but reach magic #1

by
New York Yankees, Giancarlo Santon

The New York Yankees were licking their wounds after a ninth-inning rally failed to save them from losing a game one 4-3 from the Tampa Bay Rays. But at the time, they had no idea that in the middle of the night, they would reduce their magic number to #1. The Seattle Mariners game didn’t start until 10 pm EDT and didn’t end until after 1 am in the east, but by the time they walked off the field, the Mariners had lost the game propelling the Yankees to that magic #1.

Last night’s Yankee/Ray contest was a typically hard-fought game on both team’s part. However, the game never got out of hand to the point that it was lopsided. The Tampa Bay Rays got on the board early, with Nelson Cruz sending one into the New York night. But Giancarlo Stanton blasted an RBI to leave the first inning tied at one apiece. The next seven innings would be scoreless for the Yankees.

After nearly three hours, the game was still close with the Rays having a one-run advantage, then came a very exciting and tense ninth inning for both teams. The Rays tacked on two runs. In the bottom of the inning, with the Yankees behind by three runs, the Yankees’ late rally garnered them two more runs, but it wasn’t enough.

Nasty Nestor still doing his job

Nestor Cortes Jr. took to the mound last night and did what he has been doing ever since the reliever was turned into a starter by necessity. He kept the Yankees in the game. After giving up a homer to Nelson Cruz in the first, he settled down and gave the Yankees almost five innings giving up just one more run while striking out five Rays.

Also, last night Domingo German returned from the IL after not pitching for two months. Boone called in German to pitch the eighth. German pitched a scoreless eighth. He went into the first out of the ninth giving up two earned runs while striking out three. Many fans were asking why Boone didn’t bring closer Aroldis Chapman in the ninth.

“He’s going to be in some difficult situations,” Boone said. “We’ve got to lean on everyone down there. The walks hurt to knock him out of the game, but I thought overall he threw the ball pretty well.”

“I just felt like, matchup-wise, it was good,” Boone said. “I thought Albert did a good job of getting Arozarena out and then he puts Franco on the ground there. He just found a hole with it.”

If the Yankees come up on the wrong side of things after this series, this decision will be questioned again.

Yankee bats stymied by Tampa pitchers

The New York Yankees, maybe more than some teams, have had a great deal of difficulty hitting off good pitchers, and that’s what they faced last night. At the end of the night, the Yankees only got five hits off Rays pitching until they got to Kittredge in the ninth. But it ended up too little too late. Only Stanton and Gardner had two hits in the game. Five Yankees were hitless.

Yankee magic number is now one

This morning, the New York Yankees sit firmly in the number one berth for home-field advantage in the wild card game by one game. The Red Sox are holding on tight for that second spot after winning their game against the Nationals last night. Toronto also won last night and is one game behind the Red Sox. With the Mariners’ loss early this morning, they will have to win both of their remaining games to stay in contention.

If the Yankees win today, they will be assured of the home-field advantage even if the Red Sox win another one. Today the Yankees face the Tampa Bay Rays at 1:05 pm EDT. Jordan Montgomery will be on the mound for the Yankees and Shane Baz for the Rays.

Saturday’s matinee will feature the matchup of veteran Jordan Montgomery against the young Shane Baz. Montgomery is a lefty that is 6-6 with an ERA of 3.49 and 159 strikeouts. “Monty” is the Yankee poster boy for getting little run support in his games. He is coming off two wins against the Texas Rangers and the Boston Red Sox. He has had only one bad outing this season. It was on September 10th when he gave up seven earned runs in just 3.1 innings of work. The Rays hitters have not been particularly successful of him, but he will have to watch out for Manuel Margot, who in 14 at-bats has a .357 batting average.

Twenty-two-year-old Shane Baz will be a mystery to Yankee hitters as they have not seen him pitch except on video. However, he made his major league debut on September 20th and has won both of his games against the Toronto Blue jays and the Miami Marlins. He has pitched a total of 10.2 innings. In his Toronto game, he gave up two home runs. In his Marlins start, he allowed three hits in his scoreless 5.2 innings.

 

 

Yankees News, 9/29: One player who has brought the Bombers back to life, Judge, Taillon injuries

by
yankees, giancarlo stanton

The New York Yankees are making waves in the Wild Card ever since adopting a pet turtle named Bronxie. With the turtle roaming the clubhouse and sparking confidence within the Yankee players, they have been unstoppable as of late. With the post-season in mind, the Yankees have taken a healthy two-game lead over the Boston Red Sox for the first place spot in the WC. Just last week, they were sitting below the Wild Card, and now they lead with a cushion as the Red Sox fell to the Baltimore Orioles on Tuesday.

The Yankees have five games left in the regular season, but they aren’t out of the woods yet as Boston or Seattle could go on a winning streak. Boston is finishing up a series against Baltimore with two more games, having lost their last four contests; Boston is playing themselves right out of the playoffs.

However, a big reason the Yankees are playing well is slugger Giancarlo Stanton, who has been an absolute menace at the plate lately. Over his last five games, Stanton has recorded 10 hits over 28 bats, including four homers and 13 RBIs. His performance hasn’t been against lowly teams either, taking on Boston, Toronto, and Texas.

“We’re playing for keeps, we’re playing for a lot, and I think G is embodying that right now,” manager Aaron Boone said.

“Like I say all the time, he’s a unicorn,” Boone said of Stanton. “We just kind of shake our heads sometimes.”

Even Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoya was taken aback by Stanton’s three-run blast in the 7-2 victory over Toronto on Tuesday.

“I don’t know how you can hit a ball like that,” Montoyo said. “That ball was almost in the dirt, and he went and hit it out.”

The Yankees have also relied on another slugger, Aaron Judge, who hosts a .287 average this season. He recorded two hits and two RBIs in the victory but has been dealing with a slight injury, dislocating his pinky over the weekend.

“I felt like it was going to be OK,” Boone said, “but to see him go out and have immediate success and hit the ball like he did, that was certainly encouraging.”

Aside from Judge, starting pitcher, Jameson Taillon re-aggravated his ankle injury after pitching just 2.1 innings on Tuesday. He was replaced by Michael King, who gave up two hits and one run over 2.2 innings pitched. The bullpen was solid, helping get the Bombers out of any trouble, but Taillon leaving the game is undoubtedly a big problem with the postseason just around the bend.

“I could tell right away that he had re-aggaravated it,” Boone said of Taillon. “It was a quick decision for me to get him out of there.”

Hopefully, the Yankees can get some of the more prominent players healthy in the coming days, as Luis Severino has been working his way back diligently from consistent injuries over the past two years. He pitched one inning in the win, striking out one batter and not allowing a hit. Severino has looked solid so far, so if he continues to impress, he could earn a start down the road.

New York Yankees 9/29: 4 takeaways from the Yankee win over the Blue Jays

by

The New York Yankees were in Toronto, Canada, last night for the first game of three against the Toronto Blue Jays in a three-game series that may decide if they go to the postseason or not. The Yankees miraculously swept the Red Sox in a three-game series with their rival. The Yankees have won their lasts six games in a row. Coincidentally ever since Nestor Cortes Jr. bought the Yankees a pet turtle that they named “Bonxie” the Yankees have won. Bronxie or more likely Anthony Rizzo,  Giancarlo Stanton, Gio Urshela led the Yankees to their seventh win in a row. The score was the Yankees 7 and the Blue Jays 2.

Bad luck for Taillon, but Michael King picks him up

Jameson Taillon has been rehabbing from a strained tendon in his ankle for 22 days missing four of his normal starts. The ankle problem affected his delivery and ability to pitch effectively. But last night, he made his return off the IL to pitch game one of a three-game series with the Toronto Blue Jays in this crucial run for the postseason. Unfortunately, things didn’t go well for the righty. At the bottom of the third inning, Danny Jansen struck out looking. But after that out, Taillon signaled the medical staff and left the game apparently with another ankle problem. Michael King came into the game to replace him.

So far this morning, the status of that injury is unknown, other than they know he reinjured it. It’s a bad break for Taillon because this late in the season, it has probably ended his pitching for the rest of the season, and should the Yankees reach the postseason. Taillon had so been looking forward to pitching in the postseason.

The Yankee bullpen is stellar

When Jameson Taillon left the game, apparently reinjuring his ankle Michael King was called in to replace him. King pitched the end of the third inning, the fourth and fifth allowing only an additional run. Clay Holmes, Chad Green, and Luis Severino combined for three scoreless innings. At the bottom of the ninth inning, in a non save situation, Wandy Peralta came in to close out the win.

At this point in the season, the New York Yankees need the bullpen to be good if they hope to play in the postseason. The bullpen was stellar, giving up just one run in 6.1 innings. Most encouraging was the close by Peralta. Also, it seems that in recent games, when Chapman pitched, his confidence seemed to be back, and his dominance resurrected. Yankee pitching only allowed 3 hits in the game.

Is there any stopping Giancarlo Stanton?

Obviously, Giancarlo Stanton will not keep hitting a home run in every game, but his August and September had been nothing short of amazing. His recent run can only be described as both shocking and fantastic. Stanton has now hit a home run in every one of his last four games in a row. That has seldom been done in baseball. The only Yankees to hit four or more home runs in consecutive games are Babe Ruth (1930), Lou Gehrig (1931) Joe DiMaggio (1937), Yogi Berra (1956), Roger Maris (1961), Don Mattingly (1987), and Alex Rodriguez (2007). That is some Yankee royalty to join and  Stanton may not be done; he hit 6 straight in 2017 with the Marlins.

In the top of the fifth inning, Anthony Rizzo put the New York Yankees ahead 3-2 with a single driving in Gio Urshela; it would be a lead that the Yankees would not relinquish. Then in the top of the seventh, Giancarlo Stanton came to the plate with two on and crushed one into the second deck of left field at Roger’s Center. It was his fourth homer in four games for Stanton, making him hitting .500, 8 for 16 with 13 RBIs over the span. Stanton also doubled in the game.

Aaron Judge in the third inning also homered for his 37th of the season. When both Judge and Stanton homer in the same game, the Yankees are 17-1. Gio Urshela tacked on a homer of his own at the top of the ninth.

The Yankees advance in the wild card race

With the Yankee win, the Red Sox loss last night, the Yankees are now two games ahead of the Red Sox for the coveted home-field advantage in the one-game winner takes all contest. But there is a new wrinkle to be considered. Well, not really I have been reporting on it for the last ten days. The Seattle Mariners have been creeping up in the standings. With their win last night, they are now just a half-game behind the Boston Red Sox.

While the Red Sox have gone 6-4 in their last ten games, the Mariners have gone 9-1. The Yankees in the same period have gone 8-2 and have won their last seven in a row. With the loss last night, the Toronto Blue Jays are now one half-game behind the Mariners, with two more games against the Yankees.

Notes: Tonight, Yankee ace Gerrit Cole looking for his 17th win of the season, will face Jose Berrios in game two of the Toronto series. Corey Kluber will face Toronto co-ace Robbie Ray in the finale. Tonight’s game will be televised on SNET in Canada, WPIX and its affiliates in the New York area, and ESPN out of market only.

 

 

The New York Yankees may look back at Stanton’s Boston weekend as the reason they made the postseason

by
New York Yankees, Giancarlo Stanton

Unless the New York Yankees fall apart this week, they seem destined for postseason play. One of the prime reasons for that is undeniably outfielder and DH Giancarlo Stanton. Both he and Aaron Judge have carried the team on their backs this season. But in the crucial most recent Red Sox three-game series at Fenway Park, Stanton’s offense exploded and led the Yankees to sweep the Red Sox on their own field.

As the days go by with only six games left to the regular season, and if the Yankees make it to postseason play, they can look back at this series as the reason why after such an inconsistent season, they made it big so late in the season. Some reporters and Yankee watchers say it may have been the best series the Yankees ever played at Fenway Park in recent history.

This past weekend Giancarlo Stanton may have caused the Yankees to have their best three games series ever against the Red Sox in their own home park. In three games and 12 at-bats, he had 7 hits, a double, and three home runs while walking once. His hits resulted in 10 RBIs for the Yankees while the Red Sox only scored 9 runs in the three games combined. All of that combines for an unbelievable OPS of 2.032. You could say the series sweep belonged to Stanton.

Giancarlo Stanton’s 10 RBIs in the New York Yankee traditional Red Sox rivalry history books stack up pretty high. He is only the second Yankee to do that. In 1954 Micky Mantle accomplished the feat, but that was at Yankee Stadium; Stanton is the only one to do it at Fenway Park. It may be a surprise to many Yankees fans, but Stanton has been one of the most successful Yankee hitters against the Red Sox since he joined the team after 2017, when he was the NL MVP.

According to New York Yankees Stats on Twitter, this is Giancarlo Stanton’s record at Fenway Park: Giancarlo Stanton with Yankees at Fenway Park .395/.451/.691 (1.142) in 91 PA with 7 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, and 21 RBI. That’s the best OPS by any Yankee all-time at Fenway Park with a minimum of 50 plate appearances. Add that to Red Sox games at Yankee Stadium, and he has 10 home runs with the Yankees against the Red Sox with 48 plate appearances.

In the first game of the series, Stanton went an impressive 3 for 5  in the Yankee 8-3 win. But in the last two games, he upped his game. In the second game, he had a late-inning Grand Slam to turn the game from a Yankee deficit into a Yankee lead. That Slam was a signature for Stanton as no one in baseball hits a ball harder off the bat than he. It traveled 452′ into the Boston night. To finish up his impactful weekend on the field that once housed Babe Ruth, he on Sunday also hit another home run for two more RBIs leading to a 6-3 victory for the Yankees and the weekend sweep giving them back the home-field advantage in the wild card.

Stanton played very well for the Yankees in his first year, with the team being an All-Star and MPV nominee. But following that season, it all went south for Stanton through no fault of his own.  During 2019 and 2020, he only played a total of 41 games combined due to a myriad of injuries. It was so bad the Yankees fans lost faith in him, calling him the “glass man.” This is the first season he has been healthy, yet the injury concerns lingered with manager Boone only using him as a DH in the first half of the season. Finally, in the weeks that followed the All-Star game, Boone decided to use him in the outfield again, where he has performed as well as any Yankee outfielder. That move coincided with Stanton’s offensive power. Since August 12th, he has hit .289 with 17 home runs in 38 games, the one home run in every 2.2 games.

If Giancarlo Stanton continues to play this way in the last six games of the season starting tonight, there is no telling what the New York Yankees can do. The postseason may very well be in the future for the Yankees and quite possibly a World Series appearance and win for their 28th World Championship. Only time will tell if that happens, but his performance against the Red Sox, this sweep will go down in Yankee history.

 

New York Yankees: 4 takeaways from “Who’s your daddy” sweep of the Red Sox

by
New York Yankees' Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton.

The New York Yankees, entered last night’s game at Fenway Park, looking to sweep the rival Red Sox as they looked for the home-field advantage in the wild-card race. The age-old rivalry was in full force as they looked to shame their rivals with a sweep this late in the season and knock them out of the number one spot in the wild card. In that effort, they sent Jordan Montgomery to the mound at Fenway to face the supposed ace, Eduardo Rodriguez. At the end of the night, the Yankees had achieved their goal. The Yankees won 6-3.

“Monty’ did what he needed to do

Yankee pitcher Jordan Montgomery who has suffered from a lack of run support all season, continued that trend last night. He didn’t have the luxury that Cortes Jr. had Thursday night when the Yankees scored three runs in the first inning. He got no run support through his first four innings of work. Finally, he got some in the fifth. Nevertheless, Montgomery did his job holding the Red Sox to just one run.

Following Montgomery, the amazing Clay Holmes came in and pitched a clean sixth, striking out the side in order. Joely Rodriguez fumbled in his outing, being completely wild and giving up two runs. Chad Green pitched 1.2 scoreless innings. Aroldis Chapman closed out the game with this not-so-familiar dominance.

Stanton/Judge led the Yankees to sweep

Last night in the top of the eighth inning Aaron Judge hit a double that put the Yankees ahead of the Red Sox. After the Yankees’ best defenders dropped two balls and Tyler Wade was caught stealing, LeMahieu walked. Anthony Rizzo doubled for the Yankees extra-base hit, with LeMahieu moving to third. Aaron Judge faced the new Red Sox pitcher Adam Ottavino with two on and one out and doubled, scoring two runs for the Yankees, taking the lead once again.

Giancarlo Stanton crushed another home run over the green monster in the eighth, driving in Judge for another two runs in another highlight of the night. Stanton joined Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, and Micky Mantle as the only Yankees to hit 3 home runs in one three-game series at Fenway Park. For Stanton, that was joining baseball Royalty. Stanton has been white-hot since August 3rd with a .289 average and hitting 18 home runs.

Red Sox shamed by Yankees late-season run

The Boston Red Sox must have been scratching their heads at the end of last night’s shame game outcome. The Yankees shamed the Red Sox in their last meeting at their own home field. The Yankees pulled out an eighth-inning win in the final game of the series for the sweep. However, the Red Sox still has the bragging rights for taking the season from the Yankees.

To add to the humiliation, In this three-game series, Giancarlo Stanton acted like a one-person team as he drove in 11 Yankee runs all by himself. The Red Sox in the three-game series only scored 9 runs total.

Yankees own the #1 wild card berth

With the win, last night the New York Yankees now own the number one berth in the wild card race knocking the Red Sox out by one run in the loss column. But the fact of the matter is that the Yankees can’t over celebrate that feat; they have a lot of work to do to hold on to it. The Red Sox and the Toronto Blue Jays, who are just one game behind, have an elementary schedule in the last week of the season; the Yankee have the most challenging schedule.

The Red Sox play the Baltimore Orioles and the Toronto Blue Jays. Then, the Blue Jays play the Red Sox and the Orioles. Then, the Yankees have to play the Toronto Blue Jays at Roger’s Center starting tomorrow and finally the Tampa Bay Rays to close out the season at Yankee Stadium. The bottom line is that the Yankees will have to play their hearts out, win almost every game if they have any hope of reaching the AL Championship series, and even more to obtain their long-awaited 28th World Championship.