About Yesterday Afternoon: The Yankees Crumbled the Rockies 10-3

About Yesterday Afternoon: The Yankees Crumbled the Rockies 10-3

By Tim Kabel

August 26, 2024

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The Yankees clubbed the Rockies yesterday afternoon.  Juan Soto, Aaron Judge, and Giancarlo Stanton went back-to-back-to-back with home runs in the 7th inning. The Yankees had two more home runs, including one in the first inning by Aaron Judge and one in the eighth by Gleyber Torres. That barrage combined with the adequate pitching of Marcus Stroman and the solid work by the bullpen was sufficient to beat the Rockies. The Yankees took two out of three this weekend and remain in first place. It would have been nice to see the Yankees win more games than they did against the White Sox, Tigers, and Rockies. At least it's better than what they were doing a month ago.

Quick Stats –

·       Aaron Judge hit his 50th and 51st home runs of the season. The Yankees still have five games left in August. How many will he hit for the season?

·       Aaron Judge became the 5th player in Major League history to have three or more seasons of 50 or more home runs. He joined Babe Ruth, Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, and Alex Rodriguez. Only Judge and Ruth are untainted by the use of PED's. Unless of course, you count hot dogs in the case of the Babe.

·      The Yankees are gearing up for the playoffs. Prior to the game, the Yankees designated Michael Tonkin for assignment. Since this is the fourth time that has happened to Tonkin this season, it was truly a question of when and not if the Yankees would release him. They replaced him on the roster with Phil Bickford. That is like changing the air freshener in your car instead of getting new tires, or a tune up or an oil change before a cross country trip.

·       When Soto, Judge and Stanton hit their home runs back-to-back-to-back, it was the first time the Yankees hit three straight home runs in an inning since September 17th, 2020, when Brett Gardner, DJ LeMahieu, and Luke Voit did it against the Blue Jays.

·       Aaron Judge and Juan Soto have hit home runs in the same game twelve times this season. Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton have hit home runs in the same game twelve times this season. All three of them have hit home runs in the same game four times this season. This sounds like a word problem in Algebra class. What time does the second train reach Chicago?

·       On August 25th, 2011, the Yankees became the first team in Major League history to hit three grand slams in a game with Robinson Cano, Russell Martin, and Curtis Granderson hitting the home runs in a 22-9 victory over the Oakland A's.

Big Story –

The Yankees are a confounding team. They are 12-9 in the month of August. A lot of those games were against weaker opponents. This was the time for the Yankees to make hay. They failed to do so. Yes, they are in first place, but only by a game and half. The season is winding down the playoffs will be here before you know it. The Yankees need to win as many games as they can now to increase the likelihood that they will win the division and not have to go through the wild card round of playoffs. Tonight, they start a three-game series against the Nationals in Washington. At the very least, they need to win this series. Whether they will or not is anybody's guess.

Player of the Game – 

Aaron Judge hit two home runs and drove in three runs. He just keeps on rolling.

Notable Performances –

Juan Soto, Giancarlo Stanton, and Gleyber Torres all had two hits, including a home run.

Better to Forget -

Jose Trevino was hitless and failed to throw out a runner stealing a base. Since his return from the IL, he has one hit. Yet he continues to split the catching duties with Austin Wells, despite Aaron Boone’s assurance that it would not happen. Look for Trevino to catch at least two of the three games against the Nationals because left-handed pitchers wll be throwing for Washington in all three contests.

My Take –  

I watched the Old Timers’ Day event on Saturday. You can't call it a game because there is no game. For some reason, they no longer play the game. They introduced everyone and then there was a bizarre question and answer session hosted by Joe Girardi and Suzyn Waldman.

Although there was no game, I was struck by how good that 2009 team really was. I don't think I appreciated it as much in the moment as I do now. That is especially true when I compare that team to the current incarnation of the Yankees.

If you compare the two starting lineups realistically, only Aaron Judge and Juan Soto would be starting over their 2009 counterparts. Jorge Posada would be the catcher. Mark Teixeira would play first base. Robinson Cano would play second base. Derek Jeter would be the shortstop and Alex Rodriguez would play third base. In the outfield, it would be Judge and Soto alongside one of Johnny Damon, Nick Swisher, or Brett Gardner. Hideki Matsui would be the designated hitter.

Not only was the difference that lopsided, in reality, Nick Swisher, Johnny Damon, Brett Gardner, and Melky Cabrera would all start over Alex Verdugo.

The 2024 Yankees have aspirations of winning a World Series. When you look at the 2009 team, you realize what a stacked lineup they had. This year's team has Aaron Judge and Juan Soto. Occasionally they have Giancarlo Stanton. If he is riding a hot streak, he can be dominant; if he is not riding a hot streak, he is little more than an automatic out. The rest of the lineup is mediocre at best. Jazz Chisholm, Jr. just arrived, and he shows a tremendous amount of potential. Austin Wells really started to take off while Trevino was on the IL but, Trevino is back now and Wells’ playing time is severely truncated. Ben Rice is trying to find his way and is the latest in a long line of young players mishandled by Aaron Boone. Gleyber Torres has been hot of late but overall, he's very streaky and his season has been a disappointment. Anthony Volpe is struggling to find consistency. DJ LeMahieu is a mere shadow of a shadow of his former self. Alex Verdugo has been a major disappointment.

Unless the Yankee begin to receive consistent production throughout the lineup, it is highly unlikely that they will make it to the World Series, let alone that they would win it.

Next Up 

Tonight, the Yankees will open a three-game series against the Washington Nationals, at 6:45 PM at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C.. Nestor Cortes, (7-10, 4.00 ERA) will face Washington’s Mitchell Parker (7-7, 426 ERA).