From Bryan Hoch:
Squeezing Fenway Park into the confines of an existing 1912-era street grid necessitated many unique quirks, like the 37-foot-tall Green Monster that looms over left field. It also meant that there would be areas where baseballs were not expected to land — at least, not until Aaron Judge arrived.
The Yankees’ superstar blasted a drive to a part of Fenway where longtime Bostonians swear they haven’t seen many soar before, a monstrous three-run drive off Red Sox reliever Zack Kelly. It was a prelude to an all-too-familiar outcome for the visitors, who coughed up the advantage in a 9-7 loss on Friday, the club’s 23rd in its past 33 games.
Forget everything else, including the fact that Luke Weaver, who has been great this season, was dogshit tonight (and likely should not have been allowed to start the 8th inning after giving up two runs in the seventh). The main thing that the Yankees have to take away from this game is that Clay Holmes just can’t be the closer anymore. He is a free agent after this season. Just let him go. Keep him on the team now, of course, but don’t have him close. How many times this year have the Yankees followed up strong performances by their bullpen to only see Clay Holmes come in and just suck? Well, at least seven times, as that’s how many blown saves he has. The only other closer with that many, Jalen Beeks, is no longer the closer, and he was the closer for the shitty Colorado Rockies, so, come on, if you’re trying to win a division, you can’t keep trotting Clay Holmes out there. Let him show you something in the 7th and 8th, and if he improves, maybe you let him close again. But not now.
Weaver is too valuable as a long man, so I guess the main thing is to acquire a closer, whether it be Tanner Scott or Carlos Estevez. But even if the Yankees don’t acquire a closer, it can’t be Clay Holmes anymore. I would easily (EASILY) prefer Tonkin or Cousins as the closer, and I don’t want either of those two guys closing either.
Meanwhile, though, the Yankee offense actually showed a little bit of something. When the Martian and Stanton are suddenly batting #4 and 5, this lineup will be much different looking.
Honestly, at this point, if the Yankees can’t acquire a guy like Jonathan India, with a high OBP, to lead off, the Yankees should just throw in the towel and start leading off Soto. The Dodgers lead off Ohtani, after all. Just bat Soto 1st, Judge 2nd, Martian 3rd, Stanton 4th, Wells 5th, Gleyber 6th, Volpe 7th, Rice 8th, and Waldo/LeMahieu 9th.
Soto is already going up there very willing to take a walk, so just LET him. Get him and Judge up to bat as soon as possible, and with the Martian (who had a good game in his AAA return) backing Judge up, Judge might get pitches to hit.
The interesting thing is that the Red Sox suck, too, they just suck less than the Yankees. July mercifully ends on Wednesday, and the Yankees’ tough schedule for July loosens up in August and September. I don’t mean that as an excuse at ALL, as if you’re a good team, you have to beat other good teams, but it is also fair to say that they have had an oddly tough schedule in June/July. It’s why they still have the best SRS in baseball (which sounds BIZARRE to say, right?), since their schedule has been so tough these last two months. It eases up in August (it would HAVE to), so if they can just win a SINGLE game in this series (it will have to be Saturday, as Sunday is a nationally televised game, and these losers always choke on national TV), they can then hope to just get a game in Philly and return to New York with hopefully some new players (and closer to getting Clarke Schmidt back, as well).
Featured image is Clay Holmes allowing the go-ahead run on a sinker hit right up the middle. Good job, dipshit.
This season sucks, but if it ends the terrible reign of Boone, I will accept the suck.
Firing Boone would be the best deadline move.
No words to express how much I agree with this. I’d completely accept this if it got rid of Boone.
The only problem is the following sentence:
BUT
IT
WON’T.
I was a Girardi fan, of course, but obviously, the same thing that got him not asked back here led to him getting fired by the Phillies, so clearly there might be a limit to his approach. HOWEVER, it is absolutely BONKERS how much better he was as a manager than Boone, and it is kind of funny how much Girardi has taken on this sort of, like, mystique, just by virtue of NOT being Boone, ya know?
Like, fans were ready to see Girardi go, and now, the dude trends every day on social media from fans wanting him back, almost certainly just because Boone is simply THAT BAD.
I now know that my ideal manager is the preserved head of Don Zimmer.
Brian, I think I agree with every word you wrote. The line-up, the approach, how transformative a few bats would be, how if you can’t get an actually good player (your Jonathan India, and you can be in charge of getting his hair cut), don’t throw away actually trade chips on mediocrities – everything.
…
Thank God I didn’t watch that game. Like a fool, I did glance at the score when they went from 4-3 to 7-4.
And yes, like you guys, I was sure they’d lose.
If the Yankees continue to suck enough to get Boone fired, if that’s possible, is we’ll have to kiss Soto goodbye. He wants to go somewhere with a future, not a past.
It’s possible they’ll suck enough that Soto will refuse to even consider comng back.
It’s not possible that they’ll suck enough to get Boone fired.
One little thing, for now Waldo has to play every day against RHPing. BTW if DJ is glued to the bench any chance he’d just retire?
Probably not. He’ll need to be DFA’d. Same with Verdugo.
I sure hope the Yankees go all in and trade the farm for Skubal and a struggling veteran on an expensive contract so they can lose to Cleveland in the first round.
So, Chris, instead you’d trust them to develop talent out of their minor leagues? 😉
No, he’s not giving up all that $$$$$.
Chase Hampton 3.2 IP, 1 H, 2 R (1 ER), 1 BB, 3 K —Low A
Austin Wells since 6/1 270/395/528
That’s acceptable.
Today’s a national game too
The pitching his been abominable. The bullpen has been dreadful. Does Blake’s Magic© even tell Boone that he needs to give Holmes some work? If he doesn’t, yikes. If he does, that means Boone ignores it. Either way, what a mess.
Craig Mish: Marlins and Yankees are in deep talks on a deal that would send Jazz Chisholm, Jr. to New York per source. Three prospects in return.
Why? The guy has a career OPS 749 and has 126 BB in 1623 PA, career OBP 309.
WHAT! I don’t like this.
:52pm: Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic tweets that the sides have agreed to a deal. Catching prospect Agustin Ramirez headlines the three-player return, according to ESPN’s Alden González
Cashman telllng Hal, look I did something. Hal, nods, nice, have you seen the receipts, $$$$!
Cashman the Saboteur©.
Oof, do not like this trade. Chisholm is interesting as an athlete, but significantly less so as a productive baseball player. I mean, he certainly improves the Yankees, but what wouldn’t at this point?
Not clear to me what problem Jazz Chisholm solves
Besides instantly having the best name on the Yankees
Can he play 3b? Or pitch the 9th?
Mid-season report on Agustin Ramirez.
https://x.com/jaseidler/status/1817287249412694165
Midseason 50 last week. Suffice to say it’s highly likely he’ll be the best prospect moved at this deadline
Damn them to hell.
I may come to listen and talk to you guys, but I hereby renounce this team.
I wrote three threads ago that I bet that’s who they get. (“Jazz”)
And how pointless it would be.
Jeez, they suck.
I may have to just quit baseball, it’s torture.
Or root for, say, the Reds. The Reds are kind of cool.
As I said above, it is Cashman being able to tell Hal that he did something. And Hal falling for it.
Unless they plan on moving Gleyber (or Vertigo) this makes no sense. He’s a league average hitter
God damn I hate these people.
Bebop wrote in this thread: “He wants to go somewhere with a future, not a past.”
That’s really eating at me. Why do I have to continue to root for this team just because I used to like them?
This is how I want to put it:
…
This Jazz Chisholm deal is the very definition of giving up value to add mediocrity.
Found it:
https://rlyw.net/yankees-com-yanks-lineup-shuffle-prompts-4-walks-to-judge-then-decisive-k/#comment-9343
Brian, how did you come up with that title for this thread BEFORE YOU KNEW THIS DEAL WAS HAPPENING?
The more I think about it the less I hate this move. I don’t love it, or even particularly like it, but if Chisholm is the 3B going forward, it does improve the Yankees. Of course, I expect the Yankees to do a weird thing and move Gleyber to 3B and make Chisholm the 2B.
If you’re going to give up value, give up more and get something really worth having.
Gleyber played 23 games at 3b in the minors. Could that be the plan? Or is the Martian expendable now?
IDK what the Yankees are going to do this year, but I think Chisholm is the 2B for the next few years.
Chisholm hasn’t played any 3B…
Jared Serna and Abraham Ramirez are the other two players.
https://www.mlb.com/news/every-2024-mlb-trade-deadline-deal
Randy Miller I’m hearing Yankees are in serious talks to acquire Rays closer Pete Fairbanks.
RAB Ehhh. Fastball velocity, strikeout rate, swing-and-miss rates are all way down this year. Always a price where it makes sense though.
Sounds about right
YESis showing the Flaherty walkoff game. Yankees had some good hitters then. Arod made some play in Xtras.
I don’t hate the Chisholm move, but yeah, for Ramirez, you’d like to have gotten India instead.
The fact of the matter, though, is that A. Austin Wells is the Yankees catcher of the present AND future, so it makes sense to deal Ramirez if you’re going to deal someone, B. Chisholm is under team control for the next TWO seasons. That’s a lot of control, and most importantly, C
The Reds aren’t trading India.
Where’s he going to play? They need to trade Gleyber or Verdugo, or move Gleyber to 3b where he played a little in the minors, or bury Dominguez in the minors.
Gleyber’s OPSing 1102 over the last 14 days and 850 over the last 28 days. Third base is the black hole. If he plays CF that makes Verdugo the odd man out when Stanton returns and it leaves no room for The Martian.
My very slightly positive view of the trade is definitely based on this, in some way, significantly cutting into playing time for DJLM and Cabrera. If they just put Chisholm into the OF… what the fuck is the point?
Sure but then Gleyber or Jazz have to play 3b
Yeah, I’m not thrilled about “punting” on 3B defense, but the offensive upgrade is almost certainly worth it.
“The Reds aren’t trading India.”
…
…until he goes to the Red Sox tomorrow for an injured player in A-ball.
…or more poetically yet, to the Devil Rays in a straight-up trade for Ramirez.
Shit, Estevez to Philly. He would have been great here.
Phillies got Estevez who would’ve been a good fit here. Maybe we can get Sheen.
O’s lose again. Last year it was the easiest Over of any O/U in years. This year I had serious questions about their pitching, starters getting injured, the bullpen. Boston to win the AL East if they get a good starter at the deadline.
Last year they definitely played a bit over their heads, but not so much that you would think they’d suck as much as the Yankees, and yet here we are. It’s really fascinating.
It is interesting that both teams have collapsed in similar ways at the same time.
You heard Fairbanks? Thought it was Scott.
The Chisholm deal is like the Stroman deal – they’re satisfied these days with solving a problem with “okay, not really great.”