The Kids Are Alright as Yankees Sweep The Hated Astros

Well, that was quite a weekend for the Yankees. Where the hell has that been all year? The 2023 season might be lost, but sweeping a series against the hated Astros is always a wonderful thing, something none of us could have imagined would happen. It doesn’t make us forget all the playoff misery against that team, but this was fun. Let’s get to it.

Let me just start by offering this. Rookie Jasson Dominguez, who made a dynamic debut and looked very much like he could be the next Bronx Bomber, was dealt a disservice several years ago.

Whoever started calling him The Martian deserves a punch in the face. What a stupid nickname that is because it just makes no sense. If the 20-year-old Dominguez goes on to become the player Yankees fans have been dreaming of - a true home grown superstar in the mold of Aaron Judge - I hope someone comes up with a better nickname than that.

Sorry, had to get that one off my chest. Now, on to the good stuff.

Ever since the Yankees signed Dominguez as a 16-year-old out of the Dominican Republic for a whopping $5.1 million, the hype has been crazy surrounding this kid. We’ve all been waiting patiently for him to wind his way through the minors, though he only just began his pro career in 2021 when he was 18.

When he finally reached the big club Friday, he wasted no time saying hello to the baseball world. Justin Verlander tried to throw a 94 mph fastball past him and batting left-handed, the switch-hitting Dominguez drove it into the Crawford boxes in left field, the same place where so many Astros homers have landed during their half-decade dominance of the Yankees. That was quite a moment, one that touched off perhaps the best Yankees weekend of the year.

And then he did it again Sunday night, breaking a 1-1 tie with a two-run homer off another Yankee killer, Cristian Javier, to send the Yankees on to a sweep-completing 6-1 victory.

“I knew it was going to be a lot of different feelings, finally stepping on the field … my dream coming true right in front of me,” Dominguez said Friday through the Yankees always busy Spanish interpreter. “I was able to connect for that hit and it ended up being a homer, so my mind was flying away. I didn’t think I was going to get here so fast. Very happy though.”

Of course he’s here because the Yankees’ season is in the toilet. There’s no way he would have been called up after just nine games in Triple-A if they were still in the playoff chase. Same goes for catcher Austin Wells who singled in his first MLB at bat Friday, left fielder Everson Pereira, and infielder Oswald Peraza.

They’d all be in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre if the Yankees weren’t in last place in the AL East, but the future is now for this franchise. As I said in the last newsletter, these kids should play every day for the rest of the season. Give them a month’s worth of at bats, time in the field, getting used to to the routine in the clubhouse, so that next spring they’ll hit the ground running and be primed to win full-time roster spots.

There is no reason to play Kyle Higashioka at catcher; Wells and Ben Rortvedt should split the games. There’s no reason to play Isiah Kiner-Falefa who will be a free agent at the end of the year. The two positions he has played most lately, third and left field, should be manned by Peraza and Pereira and IKF can return to being a utility bench player for what might be his last month as a Yankee. And with Harrison Bader gone, center field should be Dominguez’s spot every day because needs all the experience he can get after playing just 123 games combined at Double-A and Triple-A.

The last Yankees to hit a home run in their first MLB at bat were Judge and Tyler Austin who did it back-to-back in a game against Tampa Bay in August 2016, and because Judge has been there and done that, he could appreciate what Dominguez did Friday.

“For him to go up there and his first swing, first ball he puts in play is a driven ball to the opposite field, that’s impressive,” Judge said. “Sometimes you see guys come up there and they’re a little anxious or a little eager so they’re pulling off the ball, trying to hit it as hard as they can. He just seems cool, calm and collected in the box. To see that out of a rookie, let alone at 20 years old, that’s pretty impressive. Especially coming here, loud ballpark, facing a future Hall of Famer. For him to go up there and do that on the first swing he takes in the majors leagues, it was amazing.”

What I also was happy to hear is that, at least according to Judge, the Yankees clubhouse - which has been about as happy as a wake the last couple months - was energized by the arrival of the kids. And that’s exactly what bringing talented kids up usually does for a team, but the Yankees have had that sensation far too infrequently in years past.

“We were jumping up and down like little kids when Dominguez hit that two-run homer,” Judge said. “We just felt a different energy on the bus coming to the field today. Just a little bit of excitement, a little bit of jitters. All in all a good day.”

All in all a good weekend, and don’t we all wish there would have been more like this one this season?

“Obviously, nothing’s gone how we wanted to this year, but we’re playing for a lot,” Aaron Boone said. “You never know what can happen. We just want to go out and play our best baseball, and hopefully make some noise this month. Who knows?”

Here are my observations on the three games against the Astros.

Sept. 1: Yankees 6, Astros 2

➤ Obviously an electric start to the opener as DJ LeMahieu led off with a home run, and after a Giancarlo Stanton two-out walk, up came Dominguez to homer on the second pitch he saw in the major leagues, which happened to be thrown by future Hall of Famer Justin Verlander. And then in the second inning, Wells lined a single to right off Verlander. Oh, we can only hope this is the start of something wonderful for these two players.

➤ The Dominguez homer was great, the lede to the story, but what I enjoyed most about this game is that the Yankees had their way with Verlander because usually it’s the other way around. They raked their long-time tormentor for all six runs on eight hits and a walk including the homers by DJ, Dominguez plus two more from Judge and Stanton. And this wasn’t some throwaway game for the Astros - they are in a three-way battle to win the AL West, and the wild-card chase is very close, too. They can’t afford to have one of their best pitchers throw a clunker against a non-playoff team.

➤ Carlos Rodon is starting to make strides, though it is irritating that he can’t give the Yankees any length. He needed 92 pitches to get through five innings, so Boone pulled him. He gave up both Houston runs, one on a solo homer by Jose Abreu and the other an RBI double by Kyle Tucker, but he allowed only one other hit and one walk. “It was his best stuff probably of the year,” Boone said. “I thought his fastball was electric. Another good step for him.”

➤ Really nice bullpen work from Randy Vasquez, Wandy Peralta and Jonathan Loaisiga who covered the final four innings allowing no runs on one hit and one walk. Loaisiga has been outstanding since his return as his season ERA is now 0.60.

➤ By the way, Judge’s home run was the 250th of his career and he reached that plateau in 810 games, fastest in MLB history, 45 games before Ryan Howard of the Phillies got there.

BOX SCORE

Sept. 2: Yankees 5, Astros 4

➤ With a lineup that included six players 24 years old or younger - the first time any Yankee lineup has looked like that since Sept. 11, 1969 which is mind-boggling when you think about it - the Yankees won their second series in a row, the first time they’ve done that since late June. That 1969 lineup against the Washington Senators featured Thurman Munson, Bobby Murcer, Ron Blomberg, Stan Bahnsen, Jerry Kenney and Tom Shopay.

➤ The kids all had a hand in this victory as they combined for six hits, four walks and four RBI. Peraza, who has been terrible at the plate, broke an 0-for-21 slide with an RBI single in the second and Oswaldo Cabrera followed with a bases loaded walk for a 2-0 lead.

➤ The Astros answered with two runs on a homer by Michael Brantley, and after a Judge homer in the third made it 3-2, Luis Severino gave up a go-ahead two-run shot to Yainer Diaz in the fourth before the Yankees put together what proved to be their decisive rally in the fifth. Judge walked, Dominguez reached on an error and Anthony Volpe walked to load the bases. Wells then delivered a tying sacrifice fly and Pereira - who like Peraza had really been struggling - lined a single to center for the winning run.

➤ It was the winning run because the Yankees bullpen was once again excellent. Severino took a step back with a 104-pitch slog that only got him through four innings. The Astros fouled off an incredible 41 pitches as Sevy just couldn’t put anyone away. However, after Sevy gave up four runs, the Astros never scored again. Jhony Brito pitched 3.2 innings of two-hit ball, Peralta got a big out in the eighth when he induced Tucker to fly out with a man on first, and then Clay Holmes, despite botching another play in the field, got through the ninth for the save.

➤ “It’s great; you’re playing against a great team in a great environment,” Boone said of the kids. “You see how competitive they’re being with their at-bats. Their athleticism is evident. I think it’s great experience for them.”

BOX SCORE

Sept. 3: Yankees 6, Astros 1

➤ I’m assuming many of you were unable to watch this game because if you have Spectrum cable or streaming, ESPN has been turned off due to a contract dispute. So all I had to go on was the highlights package, the one you can click on just below. I’m not sure how many of you actually click on the highlights in each newsletter, but they’re nice to have if you happen to miss a game.

➤ This was the Yankees’ first sweep at Minute Maid Park since Sept. 27-29, 2013, it was their first sweep of a series this season since July 21-23 against the Royals, and it was their first sweep on the road since May 19-21 in Cincinnati.

➤ A pair of three-run rallies did the trick. The first came in the sixth when Cabrera singled and scored on a LeMahieu double, and then Dominguez launched his home run to right to make it 3-1. And then in the ninth, Gleyber Torres - who missed the first two games with an injury - crushed a 435-solo home run, and that was followed by a Volpe single, a Wells RBI double, and a Peraza RBI double.

➤ Michael King made the start and if this continues, the Yankees may have one of their rotation spots figured out for next season. King was excellent as he pitched five innings and gave up just one run on five hits with no walks, helped by a double play in the second and Wells throwing out Mauricio Dubon trying to steal in the fifth. The lone run came in the first when he allowed two singles and a sacrifice fly to Tucker.

➤ The Astros never scored again, and they threatened only once. After two perfect innings from Tommy Kahnle, the score was still 3-1 when Loaisiga came in for the eighth and allowed singles to Jeremy Pena and Diaz with one out. But just when you got the sense trouble was imminent, especially with Jose Altuve at the plate, Loaisiga got the little gnat to tap one right back to him for an easy 1-4-3 double play to end the threat. Holmes then needed only nine pitches for a 1-2-3 ninth.

BOX SCORE

 ➤ Sept. 4, 1993: There have been more than 300 no-hitters thrown in the major leagues over the past 150 years, but there has never been one quite like Jim Abbott’s on this day for the Yankees.

He was born without a right hand, so when he no-hit the Cleveland Indians, yeah, that was quite a feat. “So many things have been nice in my career, and this is certainly at the top of them,” Abbott said.

Abbott’s career was already the stuff that movies are made of, and quite frankly, it’s a little strange that no one in Hollywood ever told his story. All there has been is a 2018 documentary entitled Set Apart: The Jim Abbott story which came out on the 25th anniversary of his no-hitter.

Despite his handicap, Abbott became a star baseball pitcher and football quarterback in high school in Flint, Michigan before attending the University of Michigan. He played baseball for the Wolverines and in 1987 won the Sullivan Award which is given annually to the nation’s finest amateur athlete. After winning a gold medal for the U.S. at the 1988 Olympics when baseball was a demonstration sport in the Games in Seoul, South Korea, he was chosen in the first round of the draft by the Angels.

He had perfected his pitching motion and it rarely ever caused a problem in the field. He would rest his glove on the end of his right forearm, and as soon as he threw the ball he’d flip the glove onto his left hand. If the ball was hit back to him, he’d quickly tuck the glove under his right arm, fish the ball out and throw wherever he needed. It was fascinating to watch.

Abbott made it to Anaheim in 1989 and over the next four years he went 47-52 before being traded to the Yankees after the 1992 season. In his first season with New York, he went 11-14 with a 4.37 ERA, and the no-hitter was obviously the highlight.

“I think no-hitters take a little bit of luck,” said Abbott, who had taken a no-hitter into the eighth inning in May 1993 against the White Sox before Bo Jackson broke it up with a single. “To be honest, I can hardly tell you the difference, other than a little bit more command on my breaking ball, between this start and the last one.”

He walked five and struck out only three, was helped by two double plays, and no Indian reached second base. In the ninth he retired Kenny Lofton, Felix Fermin and Carlos Baerga.

“I felt a little tired in the seventh inning,” Abbott said, “but in the eighth and ninth, with the crowd, I didn’t feel it at all.”

The Yankees returned home after an impressive but sadly too-little-too-late 7-3 road trip where they lost two of three to the Rays, won three of four from the Tigers, and took all three against the Astros. They are now 68-69 but remain in last place in the AL East, three games behind the fourth-place Red Sox. As for the wild-card race, they pulled a little closer but are still 8.5 games back with 25 games remaining. So, despite all the excitement in Houston, no, they’re not making it.

After a day off Monday they play Detroit three times, a Tigers team that swept the White Sox over the weekend and has now won four straight.

The pitching matchups are as follows: Tuesday at 7:05 on YES it’s Gerrit Cole (2.95 ERA) against a TBD for Detroit; Wednesday at 7:05 on YES it’s Clarke Schmidt (4.56) against Matt Manning (3.62); and Thursday at 7:05 on YES it’s Carlos Rodon (5.70) against Eduardo Rodriguez (3.11).