About Last Night: Mariners 1, Yankees 0 (10)

by Paul Semendinger

June 1, 2023

***

Well, that was deflating. Talk about a quiet way to close out a series. After the offense smashed and bashed for three games, last night, it came up empty. Unfortunately, the Yankees wasted an excellent pitching effort from Clarke Schmidt as they lost to the Mariners and their ghost runner 1-0.

Quick Stats:

• Clarke Schmidt: 5.2 innings, 3 hits, no runs, 7 strikeouts

• The Yankees managed just three hits last night, all singles.

• Gleyber Torres had a hit (extending his hitting streak to eleven games)

• D.J. LeMahieu had a hit

• Kyle Higashioka had a hit!

• The Yankees loaded the bases in the top of the 10th inning (with one out) but could not score

• Ron Marinaccio took the loss. He faced one batter, Cal Raleigh, who singled in the ghost runner to win the game

• The Yankees seem to like the number 10 right now:

  • May 27 - Lost in 10 innings

  • May 28 - Scored 10 runs, won the game

  • May 29 - Scored 10 runs, won the game

  • May 30 - Scored 10 runs, won the game

  • May 31 - Lost in 10 innings

Big Story:

There was the sense that the Yankees didn't put their best team out there last night. Imagine if someone told you that the starting outfield for the Yankees in a game would be Willie Calhoun (lf), Isiah Kiner-Falefa (cf), and Greg Allen (rf), you would expect them to not score many runs and lose. Add to that, the fact that Anthony Rizzo didn't play (Jake Bauers was at first base) and the lineup seemed very lacking. And it was.

During the game, we heard that "Anthony Rizzo can play if needed," yet he didn't play. In the top of the 10th inning, with the bases loaded and two outs, Franchie Cordero batted, not Rizzo. Cordero is batting .148 on the season. That pretty much proves that the Rizzo wasn't available. The Yankees, whether it is "gamesmanship" or whatever, have a terrible record when it comes to injuries and providing honest information. Whatever they publicly say about an injury cannot be trusted because so often it is either wrong or not true.

Player(s) of the Game:

Clarke Schmidt. Don't look now, but he's been pitching a lot better lately. How's this for improvement:

• April: 0-3, 6.84, 25 innings, 7 homers allowed

• May: 2-2, 3.52, 30.2 innings, 1 homer allowed

Notable Performances:

• Wandy Peralta: 2 innings, 1 hit, 3 strikeouts, no runs

• Clay Holmes: 1.1 innings, 0 hits, 3 strikeouts, no runs

Better to Forget:

• Oswaldo Cabrera is batting .195. He'll be in Triple-A by Friday.

• Jake Bauers is batting .214

• Anthony Volpe is batting .194

• Kyle Higashioka is at .218

• Jose Trevino is at .210

• Franchie Cordero is at .148

My Take:

Well, here we go. In the distance, I see the cavalry coming. After an off-day today, the Yankees, it seems, will be bringing back Giancarlo Stanton, Josh Donaldson, and Tommy Kahnle. This is what so many have been waiting for. "Once the big guys return..." Well, they are returning.

During the broadcast last night, one of the announcers said that the Yankees don't plan on using Stanton in the outfield for at least a few weeks. Hummm... Maybe they read what I write. Imagine that, even the Yankees don't feel that Stanton playing the outfield is a good idea. I spent all winter saying that. (Because it's not. It's an even worse idea if playing Stanton in the outfield means moving Aaron Judge out of right field.)

Since coming back from his own injury, Aaron Judge has been the DH seven times. Now that Stanton is back, that will not be able to happen. Judge will either be in the outfield or he will be on the bench (or Stanton won't play). It seems the Yankees are also very reluctant to play Judge in centerfield. I'm glad. You don't move your most valuable player. It seems they finally figured that out.

As for Stanton, I don't expect to see him mashing the ball. Remember, this is a player who batted .211 last year. I think his best days are behind him. I wish it weren't so.

Josh Donaldson also returns and will be, according to Aaron Boone, the starting third baseman. He was hitting .125 when he was injured. He had one homer. Last year he hit .222. He hasn't batted over .250 since 2019. I think it is clear that his best days are also well behind him.

If this is the rescue squad... YIKES!

Tommy Kahnle supposedly has a new pitch. He is supposedly ready to be an impact arm out of the bullpen. I hope so, but, realistically, he has thrown all of 13.2 innings since 2019.

If it was 2019, the Yankees would be bringing in some big time players. Alas! It's not 2019.

It seems that Oswaldo Cabrera will be sent to Triple-A with the roster moves. Remember when so many said that he was ready to be an impact player? We hear this all the time. Now we will just hear, "Well, he was over matched," but I do have to wonder if the way the Yankees handled him, playing him all over the place, in positions he never played before, might have contributed, at least a little, to his struggles (or better said, lack of performance). "Hey kid, while you're acclimating to big league pitching, we also need you to learn how to be an outfielder."

If he never makes it, the story will be that he just wasn't big league quality. The way the Yankees used him won't be talked about. He'll be just another failed prospect. Playing in the Major Leagues is hard. It's more difficult than any of us can imagine. These players develop very specialized skills - they are, in essence virtuosos, the best in the world, in certain areas. Cabrera was an infielder. When you take a player out of his area of expertise, it's no surprise when he struggles or fails. Corporations don't often take the hotshot new marketing guy and stick him in accounting and then the personnel office. ("He's smart. He can do it.") No, they usually leave their best assets in the positions where they demonstrated their skills. Not the Yankees. They love to take players away from where they're comfortable.

In the end, that might be a big reason, it might be THE reason that Oswaldo Cabrera is back in the minors. There are only so many hours in a day. If Cabrera was learning to play in the outfield, he was also not getting that time to learn to hit big league pitching.

I hope Oswaldo finds his swing and makes it back. I wish him luck. I hope the way he was handled is also a cautionary tale for the franchise. I see a certain Anthony Volpe who the Yankees keep moving all over the batting order. That can't be helping him. But when the player fails, it is rare that the team is looked at and criticized. It's always the player. "He wasn't good enough." The Yankees though might have been the contributing factor why he wasn't good enough.

If my theory is correct - much of the blame can go to the manager for the way he used the player. But, much blame can also go to the GM and the owner for failing to get an outfielder in the first place making it necessary for Cabrera to be used out of position for so long. There are costs, not only financial ones, for the decisions a team makes. No one will say that the Yankees' failure to get a left fielder this winter cost Oswaldo Cabrera his big league career, but it just may have played a role. It just may have been THE reason why he didn't make it.

The Yankees' track record with their prospects isn't good. Add Oswaldo Cabrera to the list of players who disappointed. I'm still waiting for names to be added to the list of the players who made it under Aaron Boone.

Next Up:

The Yankees are off today but will resume on Friday in Los Angeles against the Dodgers. Luis Severino will battle Clayton Kershaw. Game time is 10:10 p.m.