My Thoughts Heading Into the 2018 Postseason

Yes, the American League and National League Wild Card Games are postseason games. Major League Baseball says so and so does Baseball Reference. It doesn’t matter if you say so or think so, so keep that in mind before leaving the smart-ass comments in the comments section, on Twitter, and in my email. Thanks in advance.

The New York Yankees postseason push begins tomorrow night in the Bronx when the team plays host to the Oakland Athletics in a one-game playoff. The loser goes home and the winner travels to Fenway Park to take on the Boston Red Sox, the owners of the best record in the American League here in 2018. What are my thoughts heading into the postseason? I am confident. In fact, I am as confident as one can be who roots for a team that is about to have to play in a one-game do-or-die playoff game. Why?

The Yankees are built for a one-game playoff better than most, if not all, teams across Major League Baseball. The Yankees starters don’t have to give the team much length with such a deep, talented and now rested bullpen behind them. That’s why I never stressed much on whether it would be JA Happ, Masahiro Tanaka or Luis Severino starting in the game, because it didn’t matter. At the first sign of trouble the Yankees would/could bring in a battery of David Robertson, Chad Green, Dellin Betances, Zach Britton and Aroldis Chapman to potentially close out any game they need to. In a perfect world that is five or more shutout innings if every arm listed goes one inning. Green can go multiple innings, as can Robertson and Betances, while Britton and Chapman have as well in the past. That’s a whole lot of zeroes for the opposing team in my opinion.

The Yankees offense, albeit home run reliant sometimes, is explosive and it has been firing on all cylinders since the returns of Aaron Judge and Didi Gregorius. With the aforementioned bullpen and pitching situation across a one-game playoff the Yankees may only need one run to win, or they may go out there and score 15 runs for all we know. No lead for Oakland will be safe, especially in the Bronx, and it will be the Athletics, not the Yankees, who feel like they are further behind than they truly are with every run that the Bronx Bombers score.

The Yankees have been here before, much of the core from last season is here with a few new veterans thrown into the mix, while the Athletics have not been. The A’s are a great team, but there is a different intensity playing in August and September than there is in October, and Oakland has yet to experience that as a whole. One mistake can win or lose your season for you.

Assuming the Yankees get past the Athletics in the Wild Card round of the playoffs the team would travel to Boston to take on the Red Sox. Boston won the season series 10-9 here in 2018, but the Yankees recently took 2-of-3 from the Red Sox in Fenway Park over the final weekend of the season. Sure, the Red Sox had nothing left to play for except to maybe keep the Yankees from hosting a Wild Card game or from winning 100 games on the season, but New York held their own for much of the season regardless, both at home and in Boston. Truth be told I think the Yankees could beat the Red Sox in a seven-game series, but the five-game series benefits New York much more than it would the Red Sox. Having a reliable arm like JA Happ or Masahiro Tanaka potentially pitching twice in the series with Luis Severino and CC Sabathia pitching once each in the potential series I can’t say that I don’t feel confident about being able to win every single night in the series. Especially with that offense and especially with that bullpen. Speaking of bullpen’s, Boston’s bullpen sucks, so that can only help.

If the Yankees go further than the ALDS I will have much more to say, so I won’t get too far ahead of myself now just in case. I feel confident in this team as I have all season long, and I will remain confident in this team no matter where the playoffs and the schedule may take them. I love this team, and I don’t think any team in the American League wants to face the New York Yankees right now… and that is a great feeling as a fan.

Severino Starts the AL Wild Card Game for the Yankees

Aaron Boone has made the decision on who will start the American League Wild Card Game for the New York Yankees and it will be Luis Severino. Severino finished his 2018 season with a 19-8 record and a 3.39 ERA with 220 strikeouts and will get the nod despite being knocked out in the first inning of the Wild Card Game last year inside Yankee Stadium against the Minnesota Twins. Severino will look to rebound from a terrible second half and from a terrible AL Wild Card Game start in 2017 tomorrow night in the Bronx.

JA Happ, Masahiro Tanaka and Lance Lynn will join a nine-man Yankees bullpen for tomorrow night's game.

Yankees Statistical Leaders Through 162 Games

The Yankees Offense

At Bats:

Giancarlo Stanton – 617

Games:

Giancarlo Stanton – 158

Hits:

Miguel Andujar – 170

Doubles:

Miguel Andujar - 47

Home Runs:

Giancarlo Stanton - 38

RBI:

Giancarlo Stanton - 100

Batting Average:

Miguel Andujar - .297

Aaron Judge - .278

The Yankees Pitching

Wins:

Luis Severino – 19

Losses:

Sonny Gray – 9 

ERA:

Starters:  JA Happ – 2.69 ERA

Bullpen:  Aroldis Chapman – 2.45 ERA

Strikeouts:

Starters: Luis Severino – 220 K’s

Bullpen: Dellin Betances – 115 K’s

Saves:

Aroldis Chapman – 32

Shutouts:

Luis Severino – 1

Masahiro Tanaka - 1

All stats courtesy of Baseball Reference

My Thoughts on the 2018 Yankees So Far…

The New York Yankees have finished their 2018 campaign with an impressive 100-62 record. While many Yankees fans scoffed at anything positive pertaining to the team this year, which sounds crazy when you look at their final win/loss record, I have to say that I have been extremely impressed with the club this year, and here is why.

The Yankees had a rookie manager with a rookie bench coach this season in Aaron Boone and Josh Bard. Now while I do tend to agree that Boone and Bard had very little to do with the day-to-day outcome of the games, I cannot argue that the pair influenced more games than they probably should have. And no, I don’t believe it was always Boone who was making the pitching change choices, not with veterans like Larry Rothschild and Mike Harkey on the club’s payroll. Talent wins over all things in most cases, and they did for the most part here in 2018 as well. 

Anyone who expected Giancarlo Stanton to replicate his MVP season from 2017 lives in a delusional world that probably revolves around MLB The Show. Any free agent that comes from a smaller market team to the Bronx always struggles to find their own in New York the first season. Alex Rodriguez did, Jason Giambi did, and so many others. The fact that Giancarlo did what he did in New York this season makes me all the more excited for the 2019 version of the team. 

Injuries decimated this team. Sure, injuries can decimate any team and it is on the GM to have the reinforcements to survive, but the Yankees had many impactful injuries this season. Losing a consistent starter like Jordan Montgomery early on in the season forced months of Jonathan Loaisiga, Domingo German and others to take the mound while the losses of key contributors on and off the field like Didi Gregorius, Aaron Judge and others certainly didn’t help in the standings. The fact that the Yankees won 100 games and the first Wild Card slot despite them all is impressive to me, and it should be to you as well. 

Before the season started many fans and writers were clamoring for a big pickup because the “Yankees couldn’t win with two rookies in the infield.” Not only did the team win with Miguel Andujar and Gleyber Torres in the infield, they excelled with both in the lineup. Both have been major contributors and have been at the core of the Yankees success here in 2018… just as they were supposed to. 

We all must remember that the team was still supposed to be rebuilding here in 2018, not competing for a World Series. The team is way ahead of schedule and that is due to the fact that Brian Cashman built from within, made major trades to bring in prospects and key pieces along the way without sacrificing the farm, and the team has gelled together over the past two seasons. The “win or it’s a disappointment” year is 2019, so anything we get here in 2018 we should be grateful for. I know I am grateful for this team, what about you?

Hello… 162 Games For Nothing

Good morning Yankees family and welcome back to the blog. Yes, the title of the post is accurate. The New York Yankees just played in 162 games for nothing. Well, not for nothing. The fact that the team is hosting the AL Wild Card Game and not traveling to Oakland for tomorrow night’s game means something, and the fact that they could have avoided this one-game playoff game scenario altogether is also something worth mentioning, but those things cannot be changed now. The outcome of the last 162 games cannot be altered. Aaron Boone’s questionable pitching change decisions and his favorable use of AJ Cole is now all water under the bridge. All the griping, complaining, and frustrations now mean nothing. The last 162 games mean nothing as the postseason is now a new season.

Every slate is clean. Everyone goes back to 0-0. Everyone still standing has a shot at glory. Win tonight and this game means nothing. Win three more and the ALDS means nothing. Just keep winning until there are no more games left to win. Then the only thing that will matter is the Canyon of Heroes parade.

Oh, and baby. I love you! We get to watch playoff baseball together again tomorrow!! That was so exciting last year and will be equally as exciting this year. I just know it. I loves you!!

This Day In New York Yankees History 10/2: Don Mattingly The Hit Man

Don Mattingly was the one bright spot for the New York Yankees in the 1980's and early 1990's and on this day in 1986 set a new team record for hits in a season with 232. Mattingly passed Earl Combs team record which was set in 1927 and would finish the season with a league leading 238 hits.


The reigning and defending World Series champion New York Yankees played the Boston Red Sox in a one game playoff on this day in 1978 in Fenway Park. We all know what happened, Bucky F'in Dent happened.


The Yankees are known for winning World Series championships but many fans forget that New York had plenty of years where things didn’t exactly go as planned. On this day in 1966 the Yankees would beat the Chicago White Sox 2-0 but would still finish a half game behind the Boston Red Sox for last place in the American League. New York finished with a 70-89 record and fell 26.5 games behind the Baltimore Orioles. This was the first Yankees club to finish in last place in the American League since 1912.


Speaking of winning World Series on this day in 1936 the Yankees would beat the Giants in Game 2 of the World Series by the score of 18-4. That was then and still is now the largest lopsided victory in the history of the Fall Classic.


Finally on this day in 1932 and on this day in Yankees World Series history the team won their 12th consecutive World Series game as they swept the Chicago Cubs. This would mark the third consecutive World Series sweep the Bombers would achieve.

Yankees Achieve 100th Win of the Year...

Photo Credit: Getty Images (Omar Rawlings)

For a meaningless game, Saturday’s game featured huge milestones…

Congratulations to the 2018 New York Yankees for their achievement of 100 victories. It is something they have not done since the championship year of 2009 and it is not something that many teams do each year. It usually means that you win the division but the Boston Red Sox were just a little better this time around.  

The Yankees also busted the MLB record yesterday for Team Home Runs. When Gleyber Torres hit his two-run shot in the 4th inning off Red Sox pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez, it gave the Yankees one more than the previous record of 264 set by the Seattle Mariners. Giancarlo Stanton added the 266th of the year with his 38th dinger in the 7th inning. For Stanton, he also had two RBI’s to give him 100 for his new team, matching the team’s win total when the Yankees closed out the 8-5 victory.  But I have to give a big... 

RED SOX SUCK! 

...for their fan who threw Stanton's home run ball back onto the field and hit Giancarlo as he rounded second.  

Miguel Andujar set the new Yankees’ rookie record for doubles with two yesterday to increase his season total to 46, eclipsing the old mark of 44 set by Joltin’ Joe DiMaggio back in 1936.That’s special company when you can rub shoulders with Yankee legends. If Shohei Ohtani wins the AL Rookie of the Year, it won’t detract from the brilliant season Andujar has enjoyed. He deserves the hardware as much as Ohtani, but all things considered, I’d rather have a World Series trophy. Andujar has a chance, Ohtani does not.

In taking the first two games of the three-game series with the Red Sox, the Yankees have prevented Boston from reaching 110 victories which I personally appreciated. Today’s game is probably about as meaningless as a spring training game, but it is a day the Yankees can enjoy and get ready for Wednesday’s Wild Card Game in the Bronx against the Oakland A’s.  

I look back to Boston’s sweep of the Yankees in early August as the defining moment for the AL East. It gave the Sox the momentum and the separation they needed from the Yankees to propel them to the AL East championship. If the Yankees could have at least split that series, I think the race to the finish would have been much tighter.  

Within the last couple of weeks, I had my doubts if the Yankees would be able to hold the lead in the Wild Card standings and thought they could potentially lose home field advantage for the game to the hard charging Oakland A’s. I apologize for the ‘glass is half empty’ approach. Thankfully, the Yankees have picked up some momentum over the last week and grabbed the pole position earlier this week. The A’s did pick up their 97th win of the year yesterday against the Los Angeles Angels, 5-2, which boggles my mind. They are truly a team that came out of nowhere but are loaded with lethal bats and a deadly bullpen. The A’s have a chance to avenge the famous Derek Jeter “Flip Play” which erased the A’s Jeremy Giambi in the 2001 ALDS.

Photo Credit: Getty Images

I like the 2018 Yankees and their chances but I’ll temper any excitement until the conclusion of Wednesday’s game. Anybody can win one game. Heck, the Baltimore Orioles, even with 115 losses, could beat the Boston Red Sox in one game. I know, the stakes are much higher in the post-season and guys elevate their game, but in the span of nine innings, anything can happen. If the Yankees can beat the A’s, then I feel they have a great shot moving forward. It will mean a quick return to Boston for the next round if it happens.  

I honestly do not know which pitcher I’d go with to start Wednesday’s game. I like the job J.A. Happ has done since he joined the Yankees. I look at his last game against the Red Sox when he gave up four runs as really just a bad pitch to Steve Pearce who didn’t miss it for a grand slam. I am sure that Aaron Boone would have pitched that inning differently in the playoffs and Happ would not have faced Pearce. On recent performance, I’d have to go with Happ, but I can’t discount the argument David Cone made on yesterday’s FOX telecast of the game, “Severino is your Ferrari”, “you can’t keep your Ferrari in the garage”. Sevy has been the ace for the last couple of years and despite his stretch of struggles this summer, he’s still the leader of the staff. So, I’d probably go with Sevy but I can’t really argue against Happ if Boone decides to go that direction. I thought Masahiro Tanaka might the one rounding into form for the one-game ‘do or die’ playoff but his last start showed me that we don’t need his propensity for allowing home runs in a game against a team filled with sluggers like the A’s. Khris Davis hit his 48th of the year yesterday, proving that if you throw him a mistake, the ball will go very, very far. I’d prefer not seeing Tanaka face guys like Davis, Matt Chapman, Matt Olson and Stephen Piscotty. So, in my mind, Tanaka is not an option when your season is on the line. Nevertheless, the Wild Card game is an ‘all hands on deck’ situation so any signs of trouble for the starter should be a quick signal to the pen.  

I was a little disappointed with the forgettable performance of Yankees reliever Jonathan Holder yesterday. This has been a breakout year for Holder who has been relied upon as one of the bullpen’s key performers. Holder was given the ninth to finish off the game, in relief of Sonny Gray who had done a fine job for a couple of innings. The Yankees had a comfortable 8-3 lead, but Tzu-Wei Lin walloped Holder’s first pitch for a ground rule double to left. Brock Holt followed with a homer to right to close the gap with the Yankees to three runs. Sam Travis was next and he singled to center. With Aroldis Chapman warming in the pen, Holder finally got the first out when he struck out the past-his-prime Brandon Phillips. Chapman had to come in and close out the game, picking up his 32nd save in a game that should not have been a save situation. Hopefully this was just an isolated poor outing for Holder. The Yankees need him for middle relief in October if the team advances beyond the Wild Card. Chapman did walk a batter to bring the tying run to the plate, but I am glad to see the Cuban Missile is rounding back into form. He is still not where he needs to be, but I like the insurance card (Zach Britton). A combo of a healthy Chapman and an elite closer like Britton is a solid recipe for success.

Credit to the Yankees for their accomplishments this year. To win 100 games for a team that seemed to struggle for extended periods this year shows that they are a very talented group when healthy. In looking at the National League, it’s not easy to make the playoffs, let alone win 100 games. There are two dead heats entering the last day of the season with ties atop the NL Central and NL West. The NL Central co-leaders, the Chicago Cubs and Milwaukee Brewers, have the most wins in the NL at 94. For the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Colorado Rockies, today’s games could either mean winning the division or heading to Los Angeles for a tie-breaker game tomorrow. The loser of the tie-breaker would then head to Milwaukee or Chicago depending upon who loses the NL Central. The Brewers and Cubs would play a potential tie-breaker Monday in Chicago. Very complicated. I am glad the Yankees don’t enter the final regular season game with so much uncertainty and potentially chaotic travel schedule over the next couple of days.    

Buck Showalter probably manages his last game today. His team has lost three consecutive games and stands at 46-115. They’re facing the Houston Astros at Camden Yards so today they’ll probably see Houston’s backups and minor leaguers. Hopefully it means one final victory for Buck before he goes. His managerial record is 1550-1517-1 for a .505 winning percentage. In my mind, he helped prepare the 90’s Yankees for its run of success even if he never saw the fruits of his labor. Farewell, Buck. I hope this is not the end of the road, but just the closure of another chapter before a new one begins. Maybe the Angelos Family surprises me and decides to keep Buck around but I seriously doubt it. 

Also, farewell to David Wright of the New York Mets. I don’t care for the Mets but I recognize Wright was a special player and it’s too bad his final years were filled with injuries. He is one of the game’s better ambassadors and I am hopeful he stays in the game for his post-playing career. Major League Baseball needs more guys like David Wright.

Photo Credit: Getty Images (Jim McIsaac)

Maybe it’s just me, but it seems like the Yankees were just assembling in Tampa in Spring Training. Pitchers and catchers in camp, awaiting the arrival of the position players including new Yankee Giancarlo Stanton.This has been a very fast year. Although the bullpen management has driven me nuts at times, I think Aaron Boone has done a good job as the team’s manager. So many of those bullpen decisions are driven by Brian Cashman’s analytics team so it’s hard to place all of the blame on Boonie. I like the calming effect his personality has on the clubhouse, not too much unlike former Yankees manager Joe Torre. I know that many Yankees fans have anointed the team’s former manager as Saint Girardi, forgetting his faults. But entering Wednesday’s game, win or lose, I am glad Aaron Boone is the manager of the New York Yankees.

Photo Credit: Associated Press

A loss on Wednesday does not end the hopes of this team. They’ll be back, stronger than ever, in 2019, and I think they’ll overtake the Boston Red Sox next year. The Sox benefited from career years from multiple players but I don’t think they’ll catch lightning in a bottle again next year. The Yankees can have a say in ending Boston’s highly successful season with a win on October 3rd. A perfect ending and a beautiful beginning for the Yankees if they can survive the Wild Card game and defeat the Red Sox. The Yankees, right now, can beat anybody. That’s not a boast, but a fact. Let’s prove it on the field.

Go Yankees!

Game Thread: New York Yankees @ Tampa Bay Rays 9/27

And just like that it is game time here inside Tropicana Field between the New York Yankees and the Tampa Bay Rays. In the finale of this four-game set the Yankees will send CC Sabathia out to the mound to face off with Jamie Schultz of the Tampa Bay Rays. The game will be played at 1:10 pm ET inside Tropicana Field down in Tampa/St. Pete and can be seen on the YES Network, MLB Network and on Twitter! You can also follow along with the game on MLB TV, with the MLB At-Bat app and by tuning into the Yankees radio broadcast on WFAN with John Sterling and Suzyn Waldman.

Follow us on Twitter, @GreedyStripes, and “Like” us on Facebook, The Greedy Pinstripes, to keep up with us and the Yankees all season long. Enjoy the game, notch another win in the record books, and go Yankees!!

Predicting the Wild Card Game Starter

New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone is being pretty secretive on who will start the American League Wild Card Game for the New York Yankees on October 3^rd, but I think I figured out who will start the game and I am prepared to share my prediction with you this morning on the blog.

The game is played on Wednesday, October 3^rd and the game will more than likely take place in the Bronx at this point with New York holding a slim lead and the potential tiebreaker advantage over the Oakland Athletics. With that said the game is officially seven days away.

Luis Severino pitched on Tuesday night against the Tampa Bay Rays which all but counts him out of the running to start the Wild Card game. I guess the Yankees could pitch him on seven days rest, but it seems like the team is more than likely banking on a Wild Card Game victory and having Severino come back in the ALDS after essentially skipping a turn through the rotation.

JA Happ last pitched on Sunday against the Baltimore Orioles, meaning his next turn through the rotation (including the bullpen game on Monday) would be Saturday the 29^th against the Boston Red Sox. Without much maneuvering that would leave Happ available on just three days of rest for the Wild Card Game in the Bronx, presumably. Not ideal, and probably not going to happen.

Masahiro Tanaka pitched last night and could pitch the game on Wednesday with six days of rest, something he has done exceptionally well throughout his career. Tanaka knows the bright lights of Yankee Stadium and knows what it is like to pitch a game in the Bronx in the postseason and specifically in the Wild Card “win-or-go-home” type atmosphere. To me it makes the most sense for him to make the start on October 3^rd for the Yankees, so he is my prediction. It explains the Yankees bullpen game on Monday and it puts New York not only in the best position to win the Wild Card round, but to compete and win the ALDS against the Boston Red Sox as well.

Game Preview: New York Yankees @ Tampa Bay Rays 9/27

The New York Yankees and the Tampa Bay Rays will finish off their four-game set this afternoon with the finale of the series inside The Trop. In the game this afternoon the Yankees will send CC Sabathia to the mound to face off with Jamie Schultz of the Rays. One more game, hopefully one more win, and one more step towards hosting a Wild Card Game in the Bronx. Let’s get to it.

Sabathia won his first start in his last six tries last time out against the Baltimore Orioles allowing just two runs in six innings of work. The victory against Baltimore was Sabathia’s 245^th of his career. Sabathia has not been sharp this month pitching to a 1-3 record with a 7.02 ERA in four September starts.

Schultz will start another presumable bullpen game this afternoon for the Rays. Schultz pitched a perfect ninth inning against the Yankees on Monday that included strike outs of Adeiny Hechavarria and Aaron Judge. Where's Tyler Glasnow?

The game will be played at 1:10 pm ET inside Tropicana Field down in Tampa/St. Pete and can be seen on the YES Network, MLB Network and on Twitter! You can also follow along with the game on MLB TV, with the MLB At-Bat app and by tuning into the Yankees radio broadcast on WFAN with John Sterling and Suzyn Waldman.

Enjoy the game, follow @GreedyStripes on Twitter, and go Yankees!!