Lame Yankees Lineup Loses Series Finale

The Yankees did all they could to hand the series to the Rays, and it worked. They played terribly over the weekend and lost Saturday and Sunday to a team that is the very definition of mediocre. Then again, that might be what the Yankees are, too. Lets get to it. 

A few more of you over the weekend set up your free account at my new Mighty Networks site called The Ballpark. I sure hope more of you do because you’re missing out on lots of great Yankees content if you don’t. We’ve also had some fun in-game chats at the site. This newsletter, the main Pinstripe People recaps, will still be sent in both places so you won’t lose that, but everything else publishing at The Ballpark, so please, click the link below and take a minute to create your account there. Thanks.

The moment I saw the lineup that Aaron Boone concocted for Sunday’s series finale against the ever-annoying Rays, I was hoping for a rainout because it was pretty clear the Yankees were punting the game.

Because it was the un-pitchable Will Warren’s turn in the rotation, they were already going to be fighting an uphill battle, but when you factor in the guys who were playing behind him, the Yankees basically had no chance of winning. Alas, after a half-hour delay and some rain during the game, they got it in. Thanks fellas.

For anyone who bothered to waste any of their time watching the series-losing loss, I’m sure you’ll agree that the Yankees could have done us all a favor and just forfeited before that three-hour shit show began.

Yeah, Boone’s boys made it interesting in the eighth by scoring three runs, but I never really believed they were coming back from a five-run deficit to win, and naturally, they didn’t. They are now 4-12 this season in games decided by two runs or less, and they are also 0-11 in games where they trail after six innings.

Man, if I had paid for a ticket at Yankee Stadium, I would have been pissed having to watch a game with Warren starting, and players like JC Escarra, Pablo Reyes, Oswaldo Cabrera and Oswald Peraza in the field. Not surprisingly, Warren was simply awful which is his default setting, and that foursome of hitters went a combined 1-for-11.

Anthony Volpe and Jazz Chisholm were out, Boone wanted to give Aaron Judge a half-day off as the DH so that meant Ben Rice was benched, and same for Austin Wells getting a break so Escarra caught. It was almost as if Boone said to himself, “Warren is pitching, we’re not winning, so screw it.”

In my world, every game counts, but this one apparently did not count for Boone.

Volpe hurt his shoulder Saturday, yet even though he finished that game, the x-rays were negative, and he was yucking it up in the dugout Sunday looking perfectly happy and healthy, he didn’t play. Boone certainly had an opportunity to use him late, but he didn’t, and that one decision led to a series of poor choices that might have prevented the Yankees from coming back to win. More on that down below in the recap.

Not starting Volpe meant automatic out Peraza was at short, which, OK, you can live with that because he’s every bit the glove man that Volpe is. I say that tongue in cheek because after Volpe made an error in three straight games, Peraza made one Sunday and it cost Warren an unearned run. But compounding matters, in Chisholm’s place, Boone made the inexplicable and indefensible decision to start the useless Reyes at second base.

Boone had just said Saturday that rookie call-up Jorbit Vivas was going to get a real chance to play in Chisholm’s absence. I sure hope that didn’t mean he’s platooning with Reyes, but that was the situation over the weekend. Reyes is going to be DFA’d as soon as DJ LeMahieu or Giancarlo Stanton returns, so why are they wasting time on this guy? Let the kid, Vivas, play.

He continues to play Cabrera because he has no other choice, and Escarra played because Wells can’t start every game. So yes, there was a bit of nuance to why this lineup was necessary, but what is bothersome is that days like this happen because Brian Cashman never fixed third base, he put together a weak bench which, for an injury-prone team like the Yankees, is malfeasance on his part, and the club has for many years done a poor job developing starting pitchers.

I remain consistent in my belief that this team is going nowhere because Max Fried can’t start every day, and Judge can’t bat second, fourth, sixth and eighth in the lineup every day.

Fried gets the ball basically once per week, and Judge only gets one crack every time through the order, and with so many stiffs surrounding him, even he won’t be able to carry the offense alone. Case in point: Those two are the early frontrunners for AL Cy Young and MVP, but the Yankees are only 19-15 despite their greatness. I cringe to think what’s going to happen when Fried has a hiccup, which will happen, and Judge goes into a slump, which will also eventually happen.

The only good news that came out of this weekend is that the Red Sox, Blue Jays and Orioles also all lost Saturday and Sunday, so the Yankees lead in the decidedly mediocre AL East remains two games over Boston. Maybe the Yankees can just out-ugly everyone in the division to get to the postseason.

May 2: Yankees 3, Rays 0

➤ No team wants to face Fried right now, especially the Rays who, for the second time this season, got absolutely muted by the ace lefty. Fried’s ERA dipped to 1.01 as he threw seven shutout, one-hit innings. Coupled with his start in Tampa on April 20, Fried has now thrown 14.2 innings against the Rays and given up no runs on three hits and four walks. Fried hasn’t allowed an earned run in his last three starts, he’s now 6-0 and the only start where he didn’t win, his Yankee debut against Milwaukee, the Yankees still won the game because they scored 20 runs.

➤ After Fried left, Devin Williams put up another 1-2-3 inning and looked really good doing it, so maybe the Yankees have found his comfort zone. Luke Weaver pitched a perfect ninth for the save, completing the one-hit shutout. Tampa’s only hit was a clean single by Jose Caballaro in the fifth inning.

➤ As for the offense, not great, which was a weekend-long trend. All three runs came in the fifth when Vivas - just called up from Triple-A and making his MLB debut - walked, Judge doubled and with two outs, Paul Goldschmidt hit a three-run homer to right. Otherwise, it was seven zeros for the Yankees who went 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position. But hey, on the nights Fried pitches, they can get away with that.

➤ Who is Vivas? Well, he’s the likely regular second baseman now that Chisholm will be out at least a month and probably longer with an oblique injury. Vivas is a 24-year-old Venezuelan who came to the Yankees in 2024 as part of the deal that also brought failed reliever Victor Gonzalez from the Dodgers. He is known as a slick fielder but he can also hit. His career minor league slash line is .273/.379/.412 for a .791 OPS. If he can do that in the bigs, he’s a keeper, especially since Jazz has basically been an automatic out most of the season.

➤We all know Cabrera is not the answer at third base, but for one night, he was pretty damn good. He made a few outstanding plays in the field to help move Fried’s outing along.

What they said in Friday’s clubhouse

• Boone on Fried: “Just the different ways he can beat you. Some of the innings he’s ripping off some good breaking balls, the other he’s adding and subtracting on his heater. He’s just so versatile out there.”

• Boone on Vivas: “I expect Jorbit to play a lot. He’s playing really well down at Triple-A. He’s been up a couple times, and I haven’t got him in yet. But we also know we have a good player there. He can really play second, and he can swing the bat. I felt like he was swinging the bat well in spring training, and he’s carried that into his Triple-A season so far. He’s good at second. I’m excited to see him play because I think he can help us.”

• Goldschmidt on his hot start: “I’m not trying to feel validated, I’m just trying to play well. It’s gonna be a long year, but I think as far as stuff that I changed with my swing, I haven’t really changed anything. I was just creating some bad habits (in 2024), and it was just trying to get back to some of the basics. So for me, the big part is really not paying too much attention to (my start), and just showing up and putting in the work and being prepared to help us win every day. If I do that, I know the numbers have the best chance to be as high as they can be.”

May 3: Rays 3, Yankees 2

➤ Well, this was certainly an annoying loss. Yes, all losses are annoying, but ones to the Rays - as many of you know - piss me off more than others. Especially this one as the Yankees took a 2-1 lead into the eighth, only to have Mark Leiter blow it, with help from Volpe.

➤ The day began with Clarke Schmidt whining about not feeling right with discomfort in his shoulder. It never ends with this guy so he was scratched from his start and reliever Ryan Yarbrough stepped in and gave the Yankees four solid one-run innings. Then it was one scoreless from Ian Hamilton despite two men reaching, and two scoreless from Fernando Cruz who continues to impress before Leiter entered and pissed away all that good work.

➤ The Rays offense is terrible, and there’s just no excuse for this outing by Leiter. He gave up a leadoff single to Christopher Morel; a stolen base to speedy pinch runner Chandler Simpson; a walk to Brandon Lowe at the end of a nine-pitch battle where he couldn’t put him away after being ahead in the count 1-2; and then a double steal so it was second and third with no outs. He whiffed Junior Caminero, but then gave up a ridiculous single to Curtis Mead, a .167 hitter, which tied the game. And then shortly after hurting his shoulder but staying in the game, Volpe booted a grounder by Caballaro that should have been an inning-ending double play, and that’s how the winning run scored.

➤ Now, three runs allowed shouldn’t be a killer, but it was in this game because the Yankees’ offense, once again outside of Judge, was helpless. The only runs against Rays starter Zach Littell were solo homers by Judge and Wells. Otherwise, there were just three singles and the Yankees had only one at bat with a runner in scoring position. That was in the eighth, men on first and third, and Judge failed to come through, grounding out.

What they said in Saturday’s clubhouse

• Volpe on his error: “Trying to make the play - turn two - before I secured the ball.”

• Schmidt on being scratched: “There was just a little extra soreness this last start. I told them I was good to go today. I actually left the field (Friday night) expecting to start today, and then Max went deep in the game and there was some maneuverability with the bullpen. I’m not the decision maker here. I go out there whenever they tell me to. But I’m thankful that it’s just a couple of days moving around; nothing in the grand scheme of things.”

May 4: Rays 7, Yankees 5

➤ Warren has now started seven times and the Yankees have lost five, and in one of the wins, against Tampa Bay two weeks ago, he lasted only 1.2 innings so he had nothing to do with the victory. He belongs in Triple-A, that’s all there is to it, but the problem is the Yankees have no one else they can replace him with because their system is devoid of major league talent. Warren does not have the stuff nor the command to compete at this level. He let a Rays’ slap-hitting offense get him for five runs (three earned) on seven hits and three walks in 4.2 innings.

➤ Once Warren was out, Tyler Matzek - who has been brutal in the three appearances he has made since coming off the injured list - came in and five of the nine men he faced reached base, though somehow no one scored. And then Boone brought in Carlos Carrasco who, as usual, was a batting practice machine and the Rays put up what proved to be two needed runs against him in the seventh.

➤ At least Carrasco - who was available to use because Schmidt will now be starting in his spot Tuesday (allegedly) against the Padres - lasted three innings which saved the bullpen heading into what will be a very challenging series. Still, those two runs were costly. As I said above, it was going to be next to impossible to win this game with the lineup and pitchers Boone used.

➤ Down 5-0, Bellinger hit a two-run shot in the sixth, his 200th career homer. And then, down 7-2 entering the eighth, the Yankees finally woke up as Judge doubled, Bellinger walked, Goldschmidt had an RBI single, and after a pitching change, Jasson Dominguez lined a single off the wall in right but all of that produced only one run. Still, the bases were loaded with no outs, and here came the big moment where Boone failed miserably. Rather than pinch hit for Escarra with either Wells or Rice, he let the rookie hit and he promptly tapped into a killer 1-2-3 double play. Vivas, who had entered the game as a pinch-hitter in the seventh, came through with his first MLB hit, a two-run single that made it 7-5, and then Boone finally used his head and sent up Rice for Cabrera. He walked, but rather than pinch hit Wells for Peraza, he let Peraza bat and he grounded out to end the threat.

➤ Why Boone didn’t pinch hit for Escarra boggles my mind. He’s a great feel-good story, but he can’t hit, and that situation screamed for a change. And Boone’s refusal to use Volpe played into all of this dipshit strategy, even though he said he might have used Volpe in the field in the ninth had the Yankees tied the game. If that was the case, why couldn’t Boone get his better hitters into the game at the appropriate times, knowing he’d have Volpe on defense if needed?

➤ The Rays had 16 hits, tying their season high, and the seven runs tied for their fourth-highest total. Incredibly, thanks to a lame 4-for-15 with RISP, they left 16 men on base. How silly was all this? Taylor Walls, a .151 hitter this year and a career .186 hitter, had four hits and scored twice.

➤ Judge’s double in the eighth extended his hitting streak to 13 games and his on-base streak to 30, but he did not have a good day as the DH. He killed a threat early by grounding into a DP, and then whiffed in the ninth.

➤ The Yankees are now 7-0 in games Fried starts, and 12-15 when anyone else starts.

What they said in Sunday’s clubhouse

• Judge: “It’s tough, but this team, we battle with the best of them. We got faith in everybody in this lineup, up and down. We know what we’re capable of doing. That’s why we were able to rally in the last couple innings. We gave ourselves a chance in the ninth, but we just couldn’t get that one guy on to see if we could get some magic going.”

• Boone: “That’s what (the Rays) do. You look at the arms they run out against you, starting and relief, you got to be able to win some low-scoring games, too. They held us down pretty well this series. Liked the way we battled today to work our way back in it with being really short today, but obviously a tough series where they were able to hold us down enough to get a couple.”

• Warren: “I feel like the whole day was a little up and down. They hit the ball where we weren’t, and then I think I had three free passes. They were taking advantage of every little thing we gave them.”

Next up are the San Diego Padres for three at Yankee Stadium, undoubtedly the best team the Yankees have seen to this point in the season. They come to town riding a four-game winning streak with a record of 22-11, and they have studs all over their roster - even with center fielder Jackson Merrill on the injured list. On the mound, they lead MLB with a team ERA of 2.75 including a bullpen ERA of 1.73.

Here are some of their top players to watch

➤ RF Fernando Tatis: He is one of the young superstars of the game and he leads the Padres with eight homers and has a slash line of .328/.399/.574 for an OPS of .973.

➤ 3B Manny Machado: At 32 he’s still an excellent player hitting .295 with 11 doubles and 14 RBI.

➤ 1B Luis Arraez: The three-time defending NL batting champ is hitting .306 with 12 RBI.

➤ RP Robert Suarez: He leads MLB with 13 saves and had a 0.60 ERA and a 0.600 WHIP.

➤ RP Jason Adam: In 17 games he has a 1.00 ERA, a 0.889 WHIP and averages 11.5 strikeouts per nine.

The pitching matchups are scheduled to be:

• Monday, 7:05, YES: Carlos Rodon (3.43) vs. Nick Pivetta (1.78), the former Boston pitcher who signed with San Diego as a free agent and leads the NL in fewest hits allowed per nine (5.3).

• Tuesday, 7:05, YES: Clarke Schmidt (5.52) vs. Michael King (2.09), the ex-Yankee who has become a star in San Diego after going there in the Juan Soto trade.

• Wednesday, 7:05, Amazon Prime: Max Fried (1.01) vs. Dylan Cease (5.61) who is struggling early, but is always capable of shutting down any lineup.