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Trade Deadline Rumors: Eovaldi, Hand, Moustakas, D’Backs

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Nasty Nate in your area. (Rich Schultz/Getty)

We are now three weeks away from the 2018 non-waiver trade deadline and the Manny Machado rumors have arrived. It feels like a foregone conclusion the Yankees will do something before the deadline. I’m not sure what, exactly, but I’d bet on adding a starting pitcher. Anyway, here’s the latest batch of trade deadline rumors.

Yankees scouting Eovaldi

The Yankees were among the teams with a scout on hand for Nathan Eovaldi’s most recent start, reports Marc Topkin. Eovaldi took a perfect game into the seventh inning against the Mets on Sunday and finished the afternoon with one hit allowed in seven shutout innings. He struck out nine. On one hand, that’s undeniably excellent. On the other hand, it was the Mets, so yeah.

Eovaldi, now 28, has a 3.35 ERA (4.16 FIP) with very good strikeout (24.3%), walk (3.3%), and ground ball (48.8%) rates in eight starts and 48.1 innings back from his second Tommy John surgery. He’s on a cheap ($2M) one-year contract and it is all but certain the Rays will trade him before the deadline. Tampa has Eovaldi using his cutter more, which could explain his effectiveness. The Yankees know Eovaldi well, if nothing else. He’s worth a longer look outside a rumor roundup setting. Stay tuned.

Yankees interested in Hand

According to Jon Heyman, the Yankees are among the teams with interest in lefty reliever Brad Hand. Hand is signed affordably through 2020 with a $10M club option for 2021. The Yankees have a very strong and deep bullpen already, but there’s always room for another quality reliever. Swap out Chasen Shreve for Hand and the bullpen would be even better.

Hand is probably the top reliever on the trade market right now and the price tag figures to be very high given his performance and contract. He’s not too dissimilar from Andrew Miller circa 2016. The Yankees had interest in him at last year’s deadline and adding another reliever does make some sense. Adding Hand won’t solve the rotation issues but he would make the Yankees better, and that’s the name of the game, getting better. Especially in a division race this tight.

Yankees, Blue Jays still discussing Happ

According to Buster Olney (subs. req’d), the Yankees and Blue Jays are “continuing conversations” about left-hander J.A. Happ. The two sides are said to be “haggling over the price tag.” I guess the Yankees have not been scared away by Happ’s recent performance. It’s not just his dud against the Yankees over the weekend. In his last four starts Happ has allowed 20 runs and 38 baserunners (and six homers) in 22.2 innings. He has a 4.44 ERA (3.97 FIP) for the season.

The Yankees are not prone to small sample size (over)reactions. They’re a big picture organization. That doesn’t mean they’ll ignore Happ’s recent struggles, but if they’re comfortable with the medicals and their scouts and analytical folks think this is just a bump in the road, they could pursue Happ anyway. The trade deadline pitching options don’t look all that appealing right now. Happ, even with his recent struggles, may be the best bet the rest of the season. I’m not surprised the Yankees are still involved.

Yankees considering Moustakas for first base

Just put anyone at first base how hard could it be. (Dilip Vishwanat/Getty)

The Yankees are considering longtime Royals third baseman Mike Moustakas for first base, reports Jon Morosi. This sounds more like an idea the Yankees are kicking around rather than a “the two teams are talking” rumor. Moustakas has played a handful of games at first base this year — he’d never played a position other than third prior to this season — and he’s on a cheap ($6.5M) contract.

Greg Bird is maybe kinda sorta starting to hit a bit — he is 7-for-29 (.241) with five walks (.371 OBP) in his last eight games and his at-bats have been much better — but he’s still hitting an underwhelming .203/.324/.398 (100 wRC+) overall. Moustakas is hitting a slightly better .251/.308/.464 (106 wRC+) overall, including .207/.270/.393 (77 wRC+) since the day Bird made his season debut. Plus he hasn’t played much first base at all. Like I’ve been saying, if Bird isn’t hitting by the All-Star break, go get a first baseman. An actual first baseman, preferably.

D’Backs, Rangers, Phillies scouting Yankees

The Diamondbacks, Rangers, and Phillies all had scouts watching Triple-A Scranton over the weekend, reports George King. The Reds and Royals continue to scout the Yankees as well. Most of the RailRiders’ best players (Brandon Drury, Clint Frazier, Tyler Wade) were in the big leagues at the time, but Billy McKinney is still down there, and over the weekend pitching prospects Justus Sheffield, Josh Rogers, and Chance Adams all started for Scranton.

The Rangers stink and are going to trade Cole Hamels before the trade deadline, so it makes sense that they’ve got eyes on the Yankees. What about the D’Backs and Phillies? They’re contenders! They’re not just contenders, they’re in first place! I suppose Arizona could be doing due diligence in case they collapse and decide to trade Patrick Corbin? Unless the Phillies make a young starter like Nick Pivetta or Zach Eflin (or Aaron Nola!) available, I’m not sure they match up well with the Yankees for a trade.

Yankeemetrics: Nightmare Slugfest in Texas (May 21-23)

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(USA Today)

”I feel sorry for the baseballs”
The Yankees opened their series in Texas in historic fashion, as the offense went bonkers and put on an insane power-hitting show in a 10-5 win over the Rangers.

The final tally was five homers and five doubles, and when combined with the offensive explosions from their previous two games in Kansas City, produced these staggering stats:

  • First time in franchise history that they hit at least four homers in three straight games.
  • First team since the 1963 Twins with four or more home runs in three straight road games, and the first team since the 1961 Braves to do that on the same road trip. Those two teams, by the way, featured three of the top-25 home run hitters of all-time: Hall-of-Famers Harmon Killebrew (Twins), Eddie Mathews (Braves) and Hank Aaron (Braves).
  • First time in franchise history that the Yankees recorded at least eight extra-base hits in three straight games.
  • Only three other teams have done that in baseball history: 1935 Senators, 1999 Indians, 2003 Red Sox. And the best thing we can say about those three clubs is … I’ll just leave you with this clip:

And finally, putting it all together for our Obscure Yankeemetric of the Series: Yankees are the first team in MLB history (or at least since 1908) with at least eight extra-base hits, including four homers, in back-to-back-back games.

And that might not have even been the best #FunFact from this game

Gleyber Torres kicked off the dinger party with a 418-foot blast to left-center field, but he was just getting warmed up at that point, as he went deep (425 feet deep, to be exact) again in the sixth for his first career multi-homer game.

He became the second-youngest (21 years, 159 days) Yankee ever to hit two or more homers in a game, sandwiched between two hackers named Mickey Mantle (20 years, 296 days on August 11, 1952) and Joe DiMaggio (21 years, 212 days on June 24, 1936). And he’s also the third-youngest second baseman with a multi-homer game, trailing Harmon Killebrew (1956) and Bobby Doerr (1939).

Aaron Hicks capped off the homer parade with a two-run shot in the ninth inning. Combined with their five-homer outburst on Saturday in Kansas City, it was their second five-homer game in three days. That last time they pulled off that feat on the road was June 28, 1939 in both games of a doubleheader at Philadelphia’s Shibe Park against the A’s.

(AP)

Doomed by Domingo
For the second night in a row the Yankees were handicapped by a mediocre starting pitching performance, but on Tuesday they couldn’t match Monday’s record-breaking offensive fireworks, and suffered a 6-4 loss to the Rangers.

The hole that Domingo German dug was simply too deep even for this peak 2018 version of the Bronx Bombers, as he allowed six runs before getting pulled in the fourth inning. The wheels came off for him in the second frame, during which the Rangers lead swelled from 3-0 to 5-0 without getting a hit, thanks to three wild pitches, two walks and a plunking. German is first Yankee starter to have three wild pitches in an inning since Roger Clemens on September 8, 2002 against the Tigers.

His final line is something you probably couldn’t even re-create in a video game: 3 2/3 innings, six runs, three walks, four hits, three wild pitches, two homers, hit batter. It also forced us to give out a second Obscure Yankeemetric of the Series.

German is the first Yankee pitcher ever to throw three wild pitches and allow two homers while facing no more than 20 batters in a game. And when you add in the six earned runs he coughed up … only one other pitcher in MLB history has managed to do all that in outing of 20 or fewer batters faced: Senators righty Jim Duckworth against the Twins on August 29, 1963. Duckworth (-3.4 career WAR in 267 innings) is probably not a guy you want to be mentioned in the same sentence as.

(Getty)

The offense did try to rally, spearheaded by a third-inning home run off the bat of Gleyber Torres. At 399 feet, it was somehow the shortest of the seven homers he’d hit in his career through Tuesday. Following his two-homer spectacle on Monday, it still produced another batch of #GleyberGood fun facts.

He was the youngest Yankee to homer in back-to-back games since a 20-year-old Mickey Mantle in July 1952. Even more impressive, at 21 years and 160 days old, he was the youngest player in franchise history with at least three homers in a two-game span, and also the youngest in MLB history to do that as a second baseman.

(USA Today)

#TooManyHomers
It was deja vu all over again for the Yankees, who for the second straight night suffered from an awful starting pitching performance and lost a slugfest to the Rangers, 12-10. This loss, however, was far more painful, as the Yankees blew 4-0 and 10-5 leads and were on the verge of winning their ninth series in a row.

It was the first time in a decade they suffered such a heart-breaking loss, in which they coughed up multiple leads of at least four runs in the same game. The last time it happened was a 10-9 loss on May 27, 2008 against the Orioles.

Didi Gregorius put the Yankees up early with a two-run blast off Rangers southpaw Doug Fister in the opening frame. It was his first homer since April 27, snapping a 75 at-bat homerless streak. That should have been a good omen for this Yankees team, which, prior to Wednesday’s game, led the majors with a 24-3 record when scoring first.

But CC Sabathia couldn’t hold the 4-0 lead, coughing up five runs in the bottom of the fourth, with four of those runs scored via homers by lefties Ronald Guzman and Nomar Mazara. It was just the second time in his career that two lefty batters went deep against Sabathia in the same inning — Johnny Damon and Casey Kotchman homered in the third inning of a 5-1 win by the Rays on August 12, 2011.

The Yankees rallied from that mini-implosion, erupting for six runs in the fifth, and the big blow was a three-run homer by Gleyber Torres. Onto the bullet-point recap for the scorching-hot rookie! At 21 years and 161 days old, he is the ….

  • Youngest Yankee ever to homer in back-to-back-to-back games.
  • Youngest in MLB to pull off the feat since a 20-year-old Giancarlo (Mike) Stanton for the Marlins in September 2010.
  • Third-youngest AL player to go deep in three consecutive games; only guys younger than Torres were Babe Ruth in 1916 (21 years, 128 days) and Ted Williams in 1939 (21 years, 0 days).

It was also the Yankees’ third homer of the night, as they established a new franchise record with their fifth straight game hitting at least three home runs. Incredibly, all five games have been away from the Bronx. They are just the fourth team in MLB history to hit three or more homers in five straight road games, joining the 2017 Cardinals, 1996 A’s and 1996 Orioles.

(AP)

The home run derby continued a couple batters later when Aaron Judge destroyed a 92-mph fastball, sending it 471 feet and way over the center-field wall for the third-longest homer of his career. He is the only MLB player with three homers of at least 470 feet since the start of last season.

And that gave the Yankees 21 homers in their last five games, matching the Major-League record for the most homers in a five-game span, set by the 1977 Red Sox and 1999 Reds (Aaron Boone had three homers during that streak!).

Alas, all those homers were for naught as the Yankees still lost despite putting up double-digit runs and hitting a quartet of longballs. Howevahhhhhhh …

If you need something to feel good about, and you’re into weird coincidences, there’s this stat: The last time the Yankees lost a game in which they scored at least 10 runs and hit at least four homers was a 12-10 loss to the Rangers in Texas on August 23, 1998. That season turned out okay, right?

5/21 to 5/23 Series Preview: Texas Rangers

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Every Bart is bigger in Texas. (Lindsey Wasson/Getty Images)

After taking two of three in Kansas City, the Yankees get to face another last-place team as they travel to Texas.

The Last Time They Met

The Yankees took two of three from the Rangers in Texas on September 8-10. Some notes from that series:

  • Masahiro Tanaka and the Yankees coughed up a 5-1 lead in the series opener, losing handily, 11-5. Tommy Kahnle and Caleb Smith struggled in relief.
  • Luis Severino dazzled in Game 2 but left trailing 1-0. However, the Yankees rallied for three runs in the final two innings for a narrow 3-1 win. Tyler Austin had the go-ahead 1B in the ninth.
  • Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez each hit two monster homers in the series finale and the Yankees obliterated the Rangers, 16-7.

For more information, check out Katie’s Yankeemetrics post on the series.

Injury Report

The Rangers’ disabled list is filled to the brim, so here’s are the highlights (lowlights?):

  • Elvis Andrus is on the 60-day DL with a fractured right elbow.
  • Adrian Beltre is on the 10-day DL with a left hamstring strain.
  • Cole Hamels missed his last start with neck stiffness but is scheduled to pitch on Tuesday.
  • Tim Lincecum is on a rehab assignment after dealing with blisters.
  • Lefty starters Matt Moore and Martin Perez are both on the disabled list with right knee soreness and right elbow discomfort, respectively.

Their Story So Far

The Rangers come into this series at 18-30. That’s good for last place in the American League West and has them a good 7.5 games behind fourth place in that division. This team is a shell of the squad that seemed in line to rule the AL just a half decade ago.

The team is 26th in pitching fWAR and has a 4.73 team ERA while they’re even worse offensively, putting together a .229/.299/.384 (80 wRC+) batting line and 0.7 fWAR from their position players. They strike out more than anyone and are in the bottom third in walk rate. Welp.

Lineup We Might See

With Beltre and Andrus out, the team has shuffled its lineup a bit. Joey Gallo has played out of position in left field, where he’ll likely be for most of this week’s series. Their regular batting order:

1. CF Delino DeShields
2. DH Shin-Soo Choo
3. 3B Isiah Kiner-Falefa
4. RF Nomar Mazara
5. SS Jurickson Profar
6. LF Joey Gallo
7. 2B Rougned Odor
8. C Robinson Chirinos
9. 1B Ronald Guzman

It’s a Cole world out there. (Bob Levey/Getty)

The Starting Pitchers We Will See

Monday (8:05 PM EST): RHP Masahiro Tanaka vs. RHP Bartolo Colon
Bartolo Colon is good again! The former Yankee will turn 45 years young on Thursday, but he’s pitching just as well as he did a half dozen years ago. He’s going for a milestone in this one as he is one victory away from his 243rd win, which would tie him with Hall of Famer Juan Marichal for the most by a Dominican born pitcher. This has been a major career goal for the ageless wonder known as Big Bart.

Colon was downright bad last season, sporting a 6.48 ERA over 143 innings with the Braves and Twins. But he’s rebounded and has a 2.82 ERA in 51 innings with the Rangers. How has he done it? He’s issued just four walks and has a 0.843 WHIP. He’s gonna throw the ball over the plate with his upper 80s fastball and dare you to hit it.

Last Outing (@ SEA on May 16) – 7.2 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K

Tuesday (8:15 PM EST): RHP Domingo German vs. LHP Cole Hamels
The Yankees just happened to get the Rangers’ three best starters this series and Hamels is likely their best. He’s certainly their highest paid with his seven-year, $159 million deal running through this season. He’ll be a popular trade deadline candidate and the Yankees have already been mentioned as a potential suitor.

At 34, Hamels has lost a bit on his fastball and has adapted by using his cutter more often. Last season was his worst since 2009 and he got off to a rough start this year. He’s put together four straight solid starts, including seven one-hit innings vs. the Astros last time out. His 25.1 percent strikeout rate is a career high and his 9.3 percent walk rate is a career worst.

Last Outing (@ HOU on May 11) – 6.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 5 K

Wednesday (7:05 PM EST): LHP CC Sabathia vs. RHP Doug Fister
Hamels’ fellow 34-year-old follows him up as Doug Fister gets the call on Wednesday. Fister signed a one-year deal with the Rangers after spending his 2017 season with the Red Sox as a reclamation project. Over the past four seasons, he’s been a part of five different organizations.

He’s pitched to a 3.43 ERA, though that’s not as good as peripherals indicate. His strand rate is 13.1 percent higher than last season, when he had a 4.88 ERA. His K-BB rate has gone from 11.5 to 9.3 percent and his soft contact rate is down. He’s kept the ball on the ground, which is reminiscent of his best years with the Tigers, but he’s been lit up by some of the AL’s better offenses this year.

Last Outing (@ CHW on May 17) – 7.0 IP, 6 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K

The Bullpen

While the offense is probably the team’s biggest weakness, the relief crew gives it a run for its money. Of their top five leaders in appearances, only lefty Jake Diekman has an ERA under five. Closer Keone Kela and key reliever Alex Claudio each have 5.06 ERAs slightly better than their peripherals while Kevin Jepsen has been lit up.

Jesse Chavez has been solid in multi-inning relief and Jose Leclerc and Tony Barnette have been fine in middle relief. After closing last season, Matt Bush is down in Triple-A. Brandon Mann finally made the majors after 15+ years in the minors.

Barnette, Claudio and Chris Martin each pitched an inning yesterday, so the bullpen is rested heading into the series. Martin just returned from the disabled list.

Yankees Connection

Outside of Colon, the only other former Yankee on the current roster is Martin. Martin pitched 24 games for the 2015 Yankees and had most recently played in Japan before joining the Rangers this season.

Ronald Herrera, who briefly appeared on the Yankees’ last season before the Rangers claimed him off waivers this offseason, is on the 60-day disabled list.

Who (Or What) to Watch?

While Colon will get all the attention in this Rangers rotation, the other two starters in this set are more likely to catch attention at the trade deadline. Fister displayed how he can handle the AL East last season while Hamels is more of a known quantity.

How will Fister and Hamels handle the Yankees? An impressive showing would be a feather in either man’s cap when it comes to their deadline resume.

Thursday Links: Gregorius, Loaisiga, 2018 Mock Draft

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(Presswire)

Later tonight the Yankees will look to complete the three-game sweep of the Red Sox and win their ninth straight game overall. They already have one nine-game winning streak this season. Now they’re one win away from a second nine-game winning streak, and it’s only May 10th. Pretty awesome. Here are some links and notes to check out prior to first pitch.

Yankees tried to get Gregorius through Rangers

During a recent YES Network interview (video link), Brian Cashman said that during the 2014-15 offseason, the Yankees tried to get Didi Gregorius through multiple teams in a three-team trade, including the Rangers. Cashman couldn’t find a direct match with the Diamondbacks, so the Yankees engaged other teams and basically said “if you can get us Didi, we’ll give you Shane Greene.” The Rangers, who wanted Greene, couldn’t make it work but the Tigers did.

Gregorius, even while mired in an 0-for-18 slump, is currently hitting .291/.382/.622 (159 wRC+) with ten home runs this season. He’s emerged as a true heart and soul player for the Yankees. At this point, no matter what happens from here on out, I think it’s safe to say the Gregorius deal will go down as one of Cashman’s best trades. Doesn’t matter whether they got him from the Tigers or Rangers or straight from the D’Backs. Didi replaced Derek Jeter seamlessly and he quickly became a cornerstone player on a contending team.

Loaisiga has “taken a big step forward”

Last night right-handed pitching prospect Jonathan Loaisiga, my preseason No. 17 prospect, made his second start with Double-A Trenton, striking out eight in five innings of one-run ball. The 23-year-old has a 1.50 ERA (1.59 FIP) with 31.4% strikeouts and 2.5% walks in 30 innings across six starts with Trenton and High-A Tampa this year.

Keith Law (subs. req’d) was at last night’s game and said Loaisiga has “taken a big step forward” since he saw him last year. From Law:

Loaisiga pitched at 94-96 mph in his five-inning outing, with some downhill plane to it, and even bumped a single 97. His slider was sharp at 85-87, and he threw a more curveball-shaped breaker at 82. He’d been mostly curveball last year, so I think these are two distinct pitches, with the slider either new or just massively improved … His changeup came in at 86-89 and some had splitter-like bottom, while others turned over more like a straight change, but all three pitches were comfortably above-average and flashing plus … There are some reasons to question his ultimate role, including the delivery and his size, but that’s a starter’s arsenal and more than enough feel and control right now to project him there.

The Yankees signed Loaisiga out of a tryout camp a few years ago, after the Giants released him due to injuries, and he’s since overcome Tommy John surgery to work his way onto the 40-man roster. I think Loaisiga has top 100 prospect caliber stuff, though his injury history may keep him off the midseason lists, which is fine. Who cares. Prospect lists mean nothing anyway. Loaisiga is legit though. What a find by the Yankees.

Baseball America mock draft v2.0

The crew at Baseball America (subs. req’d) released their second mock draft earlier this week and, like everyone else, they have the Tigers selecting Auburn RHP Casey Mize with the No. 1 pick. The Yankees hold the 23rd overall pick. Here is their latest mock selection:

23. Triston Casas, 1B, American Heritage School, Plantation, Fla.
It’s sounding like the Yankees want to go after a hitter at No. 23. The major league team currently has some of the biggest sluggers in baseball so maybe they’ll try and replicate the success of Aaron Judge with Triston Casas, who has an imposing frame, a patient approach and serious raw power. Georgia catcher Anthony Seigler might start to be in play in this range as well, as scouting director Damon Oppenheimer has seen him multiple times.

Baseball America had the Yankees selecting Casas in their previous mock draft as well, though that was released several months ago as an early draft preview. The interesting nugget here is the Yankees apparently want a position player in the first round. For what it’s worth, former Yankees staffer Kiley McDaniel said in a recent chat he’s also heard the Yankees want a bat. Hmmm.

The farm system is heavy on pitching right now, though I doubt the Yankees are looking to draft for need in the first round. Hard to project what you’ll need three or four years down the line, you know? Assuming this reports are true, chances are the Yankees just like the available position player talent more than the available pitching talent in the weeks leading up to the draft.

Yankees trade for Seahawks QB Russell Wilson (for real)

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(Presswire)

The Yankees now have the best quarterback in New York.

According to Jerry Crasnick, the Yankees have acquired Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson from the Texas Rangers for future considerations. This isn’t a joke. The Rangers controlled Wilson’s baseball rights and they traded him to the Yankees.

Here is the statement the Yankees released after the trade:

“We’ve admired Russell’s career from afar for quite some time,” Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman said.  “This is a unique opportunity for us to learn from an extraordinary athlete who has reached the pinnacle of his profession. 

“After talking to a number of our players, there is a genuine excitement in having Russell join us for a short time in camp. We are all looking forward to gaining insight into how he leads teammates toward a common goal, prepares on a daily basis for the rigors of his sport, and navigates the successes and failures of a season.”

Wilson, 29, has no plans to retire from football to pursue baseball, but, as the statement says, Wilson will show up to Spring Training at some point. The Yankees say Wilson will participate in pregame workouts and watch games from the dugout. I imagine he’ll also be a guest speaker and meet with young players, things like that.

Wilson released a statement earlier today:

“I want to personally thank the Texas Rangers for giving me the chance to experience professional baseball again. Growing up taking grounders, hitting BP, and throwing deep post routes early in the mornings with my dad and brother is where my love of sports came from, and those memories stick with me every morning I wake up. I remember how excited I was when Texas selected me in the Rule 5 Draft in December 2013. During my two springs in Arizona with the Rangers, I was reminded just how much I love the game of baseball.

“While football is my passion and my livelihood, baseball remains a huge part of where I came from and who I am today. I’ve learned so much on the baseball field that translates to my game physically and mentally playing quarterback in the NFL. I thank the Rangers and their great fans for making me feel at home and a part of the family! While I embrace the chance to be a New York Yankee, I will forever be grateful to have been a part of a world class organization like the Texas Rangers.”

Back in the day the Rockies selected Wilson in the fourth round of the 2010 draft and he played two years in their farm system, hitting .229/.354/.356 with five homers in 93 Single-A games as a second baseman. He continued playing college football at the same time and was later drafted by the Seahawks, and he’s been in the NFL ever since.

The Rangers selected Russell in the minor league phase of the 2013 Rule 5 Draft and brought him to Spring Training as a guest speaker a few times. Now the Yankees will do the same.

Yankeemetrics: Bronx Bombers invade Texas (Sept. 8-10)

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(AP)
(AP)

Terrible Tanaka
If you were to bottle up the Yankees 2017 season and play it out over the course of a nine-inning game, you probably would end up with what happened on Friday night. The 11-5 loss perfectly captured this rollercoaster campaign.

A quick recap: the Yankees offense burst of the gate with five runs on eight hits in the first four innings, jumping out to a 5-1 lead, but then were totally blanked the rest of the game, with zero hits and zero runs in the final five frames. The pitching staff suffered its own collapse, too, allowing the Rangers to score 10 unanswered runs and cruise to the blowout win.

While this loss might not be as heart-breaking as others, it still ranks as one of the most embarrassing and contributes to this depressing stat: The Yankees now have five losses in games they had a lead of at least four runs, their most since 2006 (when they had six of them). It’s also one more such loss than they tallied in the 2015 and 2016 seasons combined.

After more than two months of the Good Tanaka churning out solid outings – he entered the game with a 2.77 ERA over his previous 12 starts – the Terrible Tanaka took the mound in Arlington and was pummeled. He coughed up seven runs on eight hits before getting pulled in the fifth inning. Yet in typical Jekyll-and-Hyde mode, Tanaka also flashed dominance as seven of the 12 outs he recorded were strikeouts.

The first big blow was a towering blast by Nomar Mazara in the second inning, the 30th longball Tanaka has given up the year. He is the ninth pitcher in franchise history to reach that mark, but none of the others averaged at least a strikeout per inning like Tanaka is doing this season. [/shrug]

The frequency of these disaster Tanaka starts underscores how much of an outlier the 2017 season is for the four-year veteran:

  • Fourth start with at least seven runs allowed, which matches the same number he had over 75 starts from 2014-16.
  • Seventh start that he failed to complete five innings; that’s four(!) more than he had in his first three seasons combined

As we pile on the mess that Tanaka produced Friday, its only fitting we give him our Obscure Yankeemetric: He is the first Yankee ever to allow at least seven earned runs, eight-plus hits and throw two wild pitches in a game while facing no more than 20 batters.

(AP)
(AP)

Super Sevy
As they’ve done all summer, the Yankees bounced back from one of their most horrible losses with one of their most inspiring wins of the season. Fueled by a late offensive surge and backed by a dominant pitching performance from their young ace, the Yankees won 3-1 with the lone Rangers run coming on their only hit of the gamein the fifth inning. It was their fourth game this season allowing no more than two hits, their most such games in a season since 1998.

The offense was M.I.A for the first seven innings as the Yankees seemed headed for another boring loss, until they finally put together a rally in the eighth and ninth innings. Tyler Austin played the unlikely hero role as his bases-loaded RBI single in the top of the ninth broke a 1-1 tie.

Despite limited playing time, has proved he can deliver in the clutch. Austin has a 1.599 OPS in “Late and Close Situations” (at-bats in the seventh inning or later with batting team tied, ahead by one, or the tying run at least on deck) since getting called up to the bigs last year, the highest among all players over the last two seasons (min. 15 PA).

While the bats were in a deep slumber for much of the game, Luis Severino kept the game close with perhaps his most outstanding performance of the season. He allowed one hit and struck out 10 over seven masterful innings, adding to his Cy Young resume and legacy as one of the best young pitchers ever to wear the pinstripes. Lets go bullet-point style to recap his awesomeness:

  • Second Yankee to give up one or fewer hits in an outing of at least seven innings against the Rangers, joining Catfish Hunter, who threw a one-hit shutout on May 31, 1975 in Texas.
  • 15th start with no more than one run allowed, the most of any pitcher in the majors this season.
  • The 23-year-old is the youngest pitcher in franchise history to have 15 one-or-zero-run starts in a season, and the first Yankee of any age to do it since Mike Mussina in 2001.
  • Sevy is the second-youngest Yankee to give up no more than one hit while striking out at least 10 batters in a game; the youngest was a 22-year-old Al Downing, who threw a 10-strikeout, 1-hit shutout against the White Sox on July 2, 1963.

Severino has pitched brilliantly in the second half of the season (2.07 ERA since the break), and befitting of his incredible toughness and grit, has done his best work on the road over the past two months: 5-0 with a 0.89 ERA and 48 strikeouts in six starts away from the Bronx since July 15. He has pitched more than six innings and allowed one earned run or fewer in each of those outings, the longest such streak of road games in a single season by any Yankee pitcher. Ever.

(Getty)
(Getty)

Two many homers
When the Yankees bats are healthy, happy and clicking on all cylinders (facing a below-average pitching staff helps too) you get an offensive explosion like Sunday’s 16-7 rout of the Rangers.

They bashed their way to victory, with two of the the Baby Bombers — Gary Sanchez and Aaron Judge — each going deep twice while etching their names in the record books multiple times. The last time that two Yankees as young as Sanchez and Judge had matching two-homer performances in the same game was September 23, 1973 against the Indians (Ron Blomberg and Otto Velez!).

Sanchez sparked the offensive fireworks with a first-inning laser shot to left field, and went deep again in the eighth, a 461-foot mammoth shot, for his 29th and 30th homers this year. His 30 homers match the single-season franchise record for a player whose primary position was catcher, set by Jorge Posada (2003) and Yogi Berra (1956, 1952). Sanchez is the youngest Yankee to reach the 30-homer milestone in a season since a 24-year-old Don Mattingly in 1985.

Those two bombs were also his 49th and 50th career homers (in his 161st big-league game), as he joined Mark McGwire and Rudy York as the lone players in MLB history to reach 50 dingers before their 162nd major-league game. And it was his seventh career multi-dinger game, a feat that only McGwire reached this early into his MLB career.

Together with Aaron Judge, they became the second set of Yankees age 25 or younger to hit 30-plus homers in the same season — Joe DiMaggio and Joe Gordon also did it in 1940.

Judge had a record-breaking afternoon, too, drawing his 107th walk of the season in the second inning, which set the modern era (since 1900) rookie mark. Two frames later he hit a solo dinger to center, his 40th home run of the season.

With that blast Judge joined a group of franchise legends to hit 40 homers in their age-25 season or younger: Mickey Mantle (1956), Joe DiMaggio (1937), Lou Gehrig (1927) and Babe Ruth (1920). Judge added his 41st home run in the sixth inning, a gigantic 463-foot blast that made him and Sanchez the only pair of teammates to each crush a 460-foot-plus home run in the same game this season.

And finally there’s this little historical nugget that sums up Judge’s unprecedented combo of patience and power: He is the first Yankee right-handed batter ever to hit 40 homers and walk 100 times in a season.

9/8 to 9/10 Series Preview: Texas Rangers

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Gallo. (Ron Jenkins/Getty Images)
Gallo. (Ron Jenkins/Getty Images)

The Last Time They Met

The Yankees played host to the Rangers from June 23 through June 25, and dropped two of three. That series was in the midst of the Yankees roughest stretch of the season, when they went 7-18 in their last 25 games of the first half. Some notes:

  • The first game was incredibly tense, with the teams trading zeroes for the first 8 innings. Elvis Andrus scored on a passed ball to give the Rangers a 1-0 lead in the top of the ninth, but Brett Gardner tied it up with a home run in the bottom of the frame. Ronald Torreyes was the next hero up, with a walk-off, two-out single in the bottom of the 10th.
  • Masahiro Tanaka’s start in that game shouldn’t be understated, though – he went 8 scoreless, allowing just 3 runs and 2 walks, while striking out 9.
  • Texas won the second game 8-1, and the Yankees offense was shut down by Austin Bibens-Dirkx for 7 innings. That was also Tyler Clippard’s third straight abomination of an appearance, in which he allowed 3 hits, 4 runs, and 2 walks in a single inning. Moving on…
  • Michael Pineda had an awful start in game three, allowing 7 runs in 4 innings. Two start later he would leave the game early, only to be diagnosed with a torn UCL shortly thereafter. The Yankees lost that game 7-6.

Check out Katie’s Yankeemetrics post for more fun facts.

Injury Report

Adrian Beltre, the latest entrant to the 3,000 hit club, was placed on the 10-day DL on September 3 with a hamstring strain, so he won’t be available for this series; there are some rumblings that he may be done for the season. Relievers Matt Bush and Keone Kela are on the disabled list, as well, and neither is expected to be back for this series.

Nomar Mazara left the team’s last game with quadriceps tightness. No announcement has been made, regarding a stint on the DL, but he’s questionable for tonight’s game.

Their Story So Far

The Rangers are currently 70-69, and within a couple of games of the second Wild Card spot. Their +42 run differential is good for 10th in the majors, which is something of a testament to how unlucky they’ve been this season. That run differential leads to a Pythagorean record of 73-66, which would have them in the driver’s seat right now. Of course, that ignores several mitigating factors – but they have been a bit snake-bitten this season.

Despite floating around .500 throughout the season and remaining within striking distance of the playoffs, the Rangers elected to sell at the trade deadline. They sent Yu Darvish to the Dodgers and Jonathan Lucroy to the Rockies, and caught a bit of flack for the returns. Darvish yielded Willie Calhoun (a top-75ish prospect with a big bat and no position) and not much else, and Lucroy was essentially given away for a player to be named later.

The Lineup We Might See

The Rangers lineup has been in a state of flux for much of the season, due to both injuries and poor performance. They also utilize a couple of platoons. With a couple of righties starting today and tomorrow, though, this is what we’ll probably see:

  1. Delino DeShields, LF – .280/.357/.382, 4 HR, 28 SB
  2. Shin-Soo Choo, DH – .263/.365/.415, 18 HR, 12 SB
  3. Elvis Andrus, SS – .304/.345/.494, 20 HR, 24 SB
  4. Nomar Mazara, RF – .259/.334/.439, 18 HR, 2 SB
  5. Carlos Gomez, CF – .251/.339/.462, 17 HR, 13 SB
  6. Joey Gallo, 3B – .211/.336/.561, 37 HR, 7 SB
  7. Mike Napoli, 1B – .196/.290/.437, 29 HR, 1 SB
  8. Rougned Odor, 2B – .213/.255/.410, 28 HR, 14 SB
  9. Robinson Chirinos, C – .259/.367/.536, 16 HR, 1 SB

With CC Sabathia taking the mound on Sunday, Choo will likely be on the bench, with Napoli shifting to DH and Will Middlebrooks (.429/.429/1.000 in 7 PA) taking over at first.

The Starting Pitchers We Will See

Friday (8:05 PM EST): RHP Masahiro Tanaka vs. LHP Martin Perez

We are only seven years removed from Martin Perez being one of the most highly-touted pitching prospects in the game, when he peaked as Baseball America’s 17th overall prospect. He was only 19 then, and he was an ace in the making. He’s still only 26, but he has yet to look the part, posting a 4.43 ERA (99 ERA+) in parts of six seasons. Perez has made 27 starts of 4.87 ERA (96 ERA+) ball this year, with a well below-average 14.2% strikeout rate. And, as young as he is, it’s difficult to look at his lack of progress and expect much more going forward.

Perez is a four-pitch guy, featuring a low-to-mid 90s four-seamer, a low-to-mid 90s sinker, a low-80s slider, and a mid-80s change-up. He’ll sprinkle in a curveball every now and again, but he’s largely shelved it over the last few months.

Last Outing (vs. LAA on 9/3) – 6.0 IP, 9 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 4 K

Saturday (1:05 PM EST): RHP Luis Severino vs. RHP Andrew Cashner

The Rangers signed Cashner to a 1-year, $10 MM deal fairly early in the off-season, which was viewed as a head-scratching move by some. It was a low-risk deal, to be sure, but he was a pitcher with a scary injury history coming off of a bad season, and the Rangers were looking to compete. That deal looks fantastic in hindsight, as Cashner is currently 5th in the AL with a 142 ERA+, and 6th with 4.4 bWAR. He missed a few starts with injuries, as per usual, but he has been quite good when he steps on the mound – and he now seems like a lock for a qualifying offer.

Cashner is a five-pitch guy, though he varies his arsenal from outing-to-outing. He throws a mid-90s four-seamer, a low-90s cutter, a high-80s cutter, a mid-80s change-up, and a low-80s curve.

Last Outing (vs. ATL on 9/4) – 6.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 5 K

Sunday (3:05 PM EST): LHP CC Sabathia vs. RHP A.J. Griffin

Reviewing Griffin’s stat line is a fine reminder of just how elevated offensive levels are this season. His 5.09 ERA is good for a 92 ERA+, whereas last year’s 5.07 ERA translated into an 89 ERA+; and he pitched for the Rangers in both seasons. Griffin is a flyball pitcher (just 27.5% grounders this year) with below-average strikeout numbers in a hitter’s park. That’s not a great recipe for success.

Griffin is a three-ish pitch junkballer. He mostly throws a high-80s four-seamer, a low-80s change-up, and a high-60s curveball. He’ll also flash a mid-80s cutter, but that’s more of a show-me pitch than anything else.

Last Outing (vs. LAA on 9/2) – 5.2 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 6 K

The Bullpen

Closer Matt Bush and set-up man Keone Kela are both on the DL as of this morning, so the bullpen isn’t in great shape right now. And the bullpen wasn’t particularly strong to begin with, checking-in within the bottom third of the majors in ERA, FIP, K%, BB%, bWAR, fWAR, and WPA.

Tony Barnette has served as the closer since those two went down, and he’s 2-for-2 in save opportunities. He has a 4.91 ERA (95 ERA+) in 51.1 IP. Jason Grilli (6.46 ERA in 39.0 IP) is the set-up man for the time being, with Jose Leclerc (4.32 ERA in 41.2 IP) and Alex Claudio (2.33 ERA in 69.2 IP) also chipping in in the late innings. Tyson Ross was moved to the bullpen at the end of August, as well – he allowed 3 hits and 2 runs in 0.2 IP in his first relief appearance.

Who (Or What) To Watch

The Rangers currently have two hitters with 25-plus home runs and a negative fWAR, in Mike Napoli and Rougned Odor. That’s not necessarily something to watch, but it’s endlessly fascinating to me. They’ve combined to hit .205/.270/.422 in 1050 PA thus far.

I compared Joey Gallo and Aaron Judge last time around, and they’ve trended in opposite directions since then. Gallo is batting .236/.402/.649 (168 wRC+) with 18 HR since they last met; Judge, on the other hand, is at .209/.380/.412 (112 wRC+) and 12 HR. Perhaps Judge can take this opportunity to get his mojo back…