Masahiro Masterful, Bomber Bats Stay Hot In 5-0 Route of Mariners

On an absolutely beautiful afternoon in Seattle, the Yankees won their second straight series with their sound victory over the Seattle Mariners. Masahiro Tanaka delivered the win today with seven exceptional innings of shutout baseball, lowering his ERA to 3.11 while improving his record to 11-4 with his series clinching victory. Taking the ball and the loss for Seattle was fellow Japanese right-hander Hishashi Iwakuma, who fell to 14-9 while getting knocked around the ball park all afternoon. Tanaka was a tremendous, Sanchez was on base four times and the Bomber bats stayed hot as the Yankees close out their road trip with a 4-2 record.

The Baby Bombers were at it again as they opened it up against Iwakuma in the first two frames of the contest. The red hot Baby Bomber Gary Sanchez made some history by becoming the first Yankee ever to hit nine homeruns in his first 19 games by Launching an absolute bomb to left in the first inning to give the Yankees an early one run lead. And then in the top of the second, Aaron Judge was drilled by a way-ward fastball, advancing to second on an Aaron Hicks single to right. The next batter Baby Bomber Tyler Austin grounded a single into left that scored Judge to open their lead up to two.

More quality at-bats from the Yankee offense led to the manufactured third run of the game in the top of the fourth. Aaron Hicks stayed hot with a single, advancing to second when Tyler Austin hit a sharp ground ball to the third baseman Sean O'Malley , who tried to get the lead runner at second, but did so unsuccessfully as all runners were safe. The big man from last night Ronald Torreyes laced a single to left, loading the bases with one out. Brett Gardner plated Hicks with a sacrifice fly to right that made it a 3-0 ballgame.

Iwakuma was pulled to begin the seventh for flame throwing right-handed reliever with the best name in baseball, Arquimedes Caminero. Brett Gardner started the seventh with an infield single, advancing to second on a Didi Gregorius sacrifice bunt. With first base open, the Mariners decided to intentionally walk may be the hottest hitter on the planet Gary Sanchez. The next batter Mark Teixeira lined a single to left. Scoring Gardner and widening the Yankee gap to 4-0. The RBI was Tex's 29th of the season in over 350 at-bats. By comparison, Sanchez now has 16 RBI in just over 70 at-bats on the season; a true statistical testament as to the unbelievably amazing start for the rookie and the abysmal swan song for the seasoned vet.

For the second straight game, yankee fans were treated to another tremendous outing from their starter as Tanaka was simply masterful this afternoon. Tanaka pitched in only five three-ball counts in his seven brilliant innings of shutout baseball, allowing six hits, issuing his first walk in 34 innings and striking out five. Clippard recorded two outs and was pulled when allowing a two-out single to Robinson Canó. Delin Betances came on and got out of the two on two out jam, notching his 106th strikeout in 59.2 innings by fanning pinch-hitter Mike Zunino. After the Yankees added another run in the top of the ninth on a Starlin Castro sacrifice fly, Betances worked a scoreless ninth as he locked down the Yankees second consecutive series victory. In fact, with his strike out of Zunino worked a scoreless ninth as he locked down the Yankees second consecutive series victory. And because the tying run was in the on deck circle when Betances struck out Zunino, he was credited with the rare four out, five run lead save.

The Pinstripers fly home tonight and have the day off tomorrow. Friday, they welcome in division rival Baltimore Orioles for a three-game weekend set, with first pitch scheduled for 7:05 PM/EST.

Are You the Biggest New York Yankees Fan in the World?

Wix.com wants to know who the biggest fan of the New York Yankees is in the world. Is it you? Are you willing to make a video professing your fandom and passion for the team in order to be crowned the biggest Yankee fan inside Yankee Stadium next month when the team plays host to the Los Angeles Dodgers? Keep reading.

Here is how you enter the contest:

Make and post a video showing how you are the biggest Yankees fan.

Upload the video to Wix’s Facebook Page and comment on the contest post.

Include the hashtag #BiggestYankeesFan

The deadline to do this is 11:59 pm ET on Monday, September 5^th. If you want to include a Greedy Pinstripes reference in your video we wouldn’t be mad. Just as long as you win. Enter, it should be fun!

Winner will be announced on Wednesday, September 7^th and will be honored on Tuesday, September 13^th in the Bronx when the Yankees play host to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

For more information visit wix.com/Yankees. Good luck all!

Brian Cashman Making Good on the Justin Wilson Trade

I have to eat a little bit of crow today because I was one of those fans, writers and Monday morning quarterbacks that were killing Brian Cashman when he made the head-scratching decision to send relief pitcher Justin Wilson to the Detroit Tigers for RHP’s Luis Cessa and Chad Green. Well hindsight being 20/20 and all the New York Yankees did pretty well in the trade and got just what they wanted out of the deal, true starting pitching options for the team going forward.

Having a great bullpen is one thing but if you don’t have an arm or two that can eat innings to save the bullpen and pitch well enough to hand the bullpen the lead what do you really have? Also, where would the Yankees be right now and this season without Cessa and Green? Probably dumpster diving for a starter well past his prime, that’s where. Think Chris Capuano.

Now have Green and Cessa been aces in waiting? Well aside from Green’s last two starts, no, but they were never donned future aces in waiting either. In fact most teams only have one ace on the staff and the rest of the team is filled out behind that ace. Cessa and Green are likely #3 - #5 starters based on projections but isn’t that and all six years of team control worth more than any relief pitcher? Especially when that relief pitcher is not a closer? I have to say the answer is yes, especially after seeing the two young guns pitch lately.

No matter what you say or think six years each of a 4^th and 5^th starter, worst case scenario, is still better than a few years with a left-handed specialist reliever. Every day of the week. Kudos to Cashman. 

Game Thread: New York Yankees @ Seattle Mariners 8/24

Here we go ladies and gentleman, afternoon baseball in Seattle as the New York Yankees face off with the Seattle Mariners one last time this week inside Safeco Field. In the finale of this three game set of two teams chasing the second Wild Card playoff spot in the American League we will be treated to a little bit of international flare as the Yankees send Masahiro Tanaka to the mound to face off with fellow Japanese-born right-hander Hisashi Iwakuma. The game will be played at 3:40 pm ET inside Safeco Field and can be seen on the YES Network and MLB TV.

The Yankees are off tomorrow before beginning a series with the Baltimore Orioles this weekend so if you want to be there live to see Gary Sanchez hit another 14 home runs or so click the Yankees Tickets link at the top of the blog. Also be sure to give our Twitter account @GreedyStripes a follow or like us on Facebook to interact with us during each and every Yankees game left this season.

Tanaka vs. Iwakuma with the entire country of Japan watching. No pressure. Go Yankees!

Severino Has Been Bad but Yankees Not Helping his Confidence

I’m not one to equivocate or beat around the bush, Luis Severino has been flat out bad this season. He hasn’t shown me many glimpses of brilliance to build upon and there are no signs of snapping out of this funk he’s in. I don’t know if it’s mechanical, an injury he’s hiding or if it’s all mental at this point and truth be told I don’t think the Yankees know what is going on either. The Yankees organization continues to show up an inability to develop starting pitching and it’s mainly because the way they like to tinker and change things. It messes with you and they are messing with Severino right now not only mechanically but in the confidence department as well. It’s blatantly obvious and it’s blatantly obvious that it needs to stop. Now.

The Yankees have sent down Luis Severino multiple times this season to work on things and the latest set of homework he was given was to work on his changeup. Severino told reporters that the Yankees, and specifically manager Joe Girardi, told him to work on the changeup regardless of the results in the game. In his latest start he lasted 5.2 innings and gave up four runs with 10 K’s while throwing the changeup but after the game Severino was clearly not happy about it.

The Yankees know Severino has to have a third pitch if he’s going to succeed in the Major Leagues and while his fastball and slider are great he has to have the changeup to keep everyone off balance. Severino admitted it was difficult to command the pitch at times and even said that he didn’t necessarily like throwing a lot of changeups. One AL scout who was at the game spoke to reporters and even said he doesn’t look comfortable, nor does he look confident, throwing the pitch. Instead of making him throw the changeup has the team considered scrapping the pitch for another pitch?

The kid is 22-years old. The sky is the limit for the young right-hander and he’s not too old of a dog to not learn new tricks. Teach the kid a new pitch because it doesn’t seem like the changeup is going to work for Severino if Severino doesn’t want to throw it. It’s human nature.

Game Preview: New York Yankees @ Seattle Mariners 8/24

The New York Yankees and the Seattle Mariners one last time. One last time for these two clubs inside Safeco Field and one last time for the Yankees to be so far away from home on the east coast. In the finale of the three-game set this afternoon the New York Yankees will send Masahiro Tanaka to the mound, Happy Tanaka Day Yankees family, to square off with country mate Hisashi iwakuma for the Mariners. Japan should be watching.

Tanaka threw an absolute gem last time out against the Angels throwing 7.2 innings of shutout baseball while striking out nine without walking a batter. Tanaka’s K numbers are up lately and if he can keep them up the Yankees can keep rewarding him with victories in his starts.

Iwakuma has given the Mariners length and stability lately as the team chases the 2^nd Wild Card spot in the American League. Iwakuma will make his 26^th start of the season this afternoon and has gone seven innings or more in three of his last four starts while posting an 8-2 record in his last 10 starts.

The game will be played at 3:40 pm ET inside Safeco Field and can be seen on the YES Network and MLB TV. If I go get my kids pretty quick, don’t hit traffic and do about 95 MPH on the way home I should get home by the 5^th inning. I’m seriously contemplating it because I miss my Yankees. Between being sick and all these west coast games I have been severely slacking on my watching and my tweeting so if you see someone coming up behind you pretty quickly, it’s me. Please move. Go Yankees!

Weekly Prospects Check In: Justus Sheffield

Everyone talked about the acquisitions of Clint Frazier, Dillon Tate and Gleyber Torres by the Yankees at this year’s August 1^st trading deadline but not enough is being said by the other top piece the Cleveland Indians sent along for Andrew Miller in Justus Sheffield. Sheffield has switched organizations and come over to the Yankees like a man possessed. He is pitching extremely well down in Tampa with Torres and Jorge Mateo playing up the middle behind him and more and more people need to start taking notice.

Another week in the books for Sheffield and here is what he brought to the table for his new team. 

Year	Age	Lev	Aff	W	L	ERA	G	GS	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	WHIP	H9	HR9	BB9	SO9
2016	20	A+	CLE-NYY	9	5	3.20	22	22	112.2	101	42	40	6	44	110	1.287	8.1	0.5	3.5	8.8
2016	20	A+	CLE	7	5	3.59	19	19	95.1	91	40	38	6	40	93	1.374	8.6	0.6	3.8	8.8
2016	20	A+	NYY	2	0	1.04	3	3	17.1	10	2	2	0	4	17	0.808	5.2	0.0	2.1	8.8

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table

This Day In New York Yankees History 8/24: Yankees Hats Start a Gang War

Unknown to the New York Yankees their hats may have contributed to an uptick in gang violence in East Harlem, New York. On this day in 2007, a day after protests concerning the gang related items, New Era announced that it will remove the "offensive" hats that bears the colors and symbols of the rival gangs the Bloods, the Crips, and the Latin Kings. Two white hats had been wrapped in red and blue bandannas made by New Era and appeared to represent the Bloods and the Crips. A black Yankees hat with the interlocking NY also had a crown symbolic of the Latin Kings.

Also on this day in 1985 Don Baylor ties a major league record in a Yankees uniform when he is hit by a pitch for the 189th time in his career.

Finally on this day in 1951 Mickey Mantle was recalled from the minor leagues and for the first time in his career wore his #7 jersey. The Yankees would win the game and Mantle would go 1-4 in the 2-0 victory over the Indians. Mantle had previously wore #6 before being demoted six weeks ago and his jersey was given to infielder Bobby Brown.

Sensational Sabathia Silences Seattle Sluggers, Squares Series at One

Tonight, the New York Yankees evened up the series with the Seattle Mariners, receiving an absolutely phenomenal outing from their big left-hander C.C. Sabathia. Carsten Charles shut down a Mariners offense that lit the Yankees pitchers up for three homeruns a night ago, improving to 8-10 with his gutsy game-two performance. Taking the ball and the loss for Seattle was the struggling young right-hander Taijuan Walker(4-8, 4.14ERA), who was just recalled after being sent down to make adjustments in his delivery and also for what his manager Scott Servace referred to as a lack of passion for the game. Well, Walker pitched from the stretch the entire game, looked very passionate, but still got lit up by the potent Pinstriper offense, especially by one Mr. Ronald Torreyes.

The Yankees got some assistance from the Mariners defense as they broke the scoring Open in the top of the second. With two outs, Aaron Judge reached base on a fielding error by third baseman Kyle Seger and advanced to second when the next batter Aaron Hicks followed with a walk. The red-hot Ronald Torreyes, or "Toe" as Joe Girardi calls him, smoked a double over the head of leftfielder Guillermo Heredia to score Judge and give the Bombers a one run lead.

Although Sabathia pitched a perfect first two frames, the Yankees return the favor of the Mariners miscue with one of their own as Seattle tied the game in the bottom of the third. After making a tremendous catch for out number two, Aaron Judge mis-played a rocket off the bat of Leonys Martin, allowing the centerfielder to make it to third with a two-out triple. Shortstop Ketel Marte then plated Martin with a ground ball single up the middle to knot the game up at one.

Ronald Torreyes continued to make his case for more playing time as he recorded his second hit in as many at-bats, lacing a leadoff double in the top of the fifth. And then Toe came around to score when the next batter Jacoby Ellsbury launched his sixth homerun of the season, a bomb to right that put New York back on top by a 3-1 score.

Mark Teixeira made an appearance tonight and helped his good friend C.C. out with a leadoff double in the top of the sixth. After Brian McCann grounded out, advancing Teixeira to third, Judge hit a sac-fly to center that extended the Yankees lead to three. Two batters later, Walker would be pulled when he couldn't get Torreyes out as the utility man smacked a sharp single off the glove of third-baseman Kyle Seager.

C.C. Sabathia was utterly brilliant tonight, tossing seven innings of one run ball while allowing just three hits. only one walk and seven punchouts. Tommy Layne worked a scoreless eighth, and despite Didi Gregorius's ninth inning RBI ground-rule double that made it a 5-1 non-save situation, Delin Betances came on and shut the door in the ninth to preserve the series-tying win.

These two teams will be back at it in about 13 hours from now for the rubber game of the three-game set, with first pitch scheduled for 3:40 PM/EST.