About Yesterday Afternoon: The Yankees Shut Out the Mariners 5-0

About Yesterday Afternoon: The Yankees Shut Out the Mariners 5-0

By Tim Kabel

May 24, 2024

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After losing the first two games of this series against the Mariners, the Yankees came back to split the series and were 5-2 on the homestand. They are now 35-17 and have the best record in the American League. They begin a nine game West Coast road trip today and should be able to accumulate more wins before coming back home. This is a good time to be a Yankees’ fan.

Before I go any further, I would like to address a concern. I write for SSTN because I love the Yankees and want to contribute in the best way I can. I'm not speaking for all the other writers or for the site but, I certainly welcome thoughtful commentary on anything I write. However, I respectfully ask that the people who do comment refrain from name calling. I really don't think I or any of the other writers deserve to be called stupid for something we wrote. Thank you. (Editor's Note - I share Tim's point. The name calling and such does not fly here. It's juvenile. People can disagree. But, they need to do so respectfully.)

Quick Stats – 

·       The Yankees are on a pace to win 109 games.

·       Anthony Volpe has a 16-game hitting streak.

·       Luis Gil, who is only on the team because Gerrit Cole is on the IL, is now 6-1 with a 2.11 ERA.

·       Luis Gil is 5-0 with a 0.59 ERA in May and is one of only three pitchers in Yankees’ history to throw at least six innings while allowing one or zero runs over five consecutive starts. The other two were Steve Kline in 1972 and CC Sabathia in 2011. 

·       The Yankees are 36-4 when Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton hit home runs in the same game. 

·       The Yankees’ starting pitchers have gone 11 straight games in which they threw at least five innings and allowed 2 or fewer runs, which is a franchise record.

·       Happy 68th birthday to Buck Showalter. My favorite Buck Showalter story was about the time when he was coaching for the Yankees and it was Old Timers’ Day. Mel Hall approached Buck and said, “Who are all these old f-ing guys on the field?” Buck stated that he knew at that moment that Mel had to go.

Big Story – 

The Yankees are on a tremendous pace at this point. They are about to wrap up the second month of the season, and already have 35 wins. As I have written many times before, I do not have confidence in Aaron Boone’s abilities as a manager and I cite 2022 as an example. That team seemed unbeatable, but then proved to be quite beatable. The 2024 Yankees need to accumulate as many wins as they possibly can as quickly as they possibly can so they do not have a highly competitive and stressful pennant run. That will give them the opportunity to align the starting rotation the way they want it and to rest players going into the playoffs.

It is similar to the mentality of stocking up on items when they are on sale and filling your pantry or your freezer. The Yankees need to fill their pantry with as many wins as they can now.

Player of the Game – 

Luis Gil had another dominant outing and is solidifying his spot in the starting rotation.

Notable Performances –

Aaron Judge hit his 15th home run of the season.

Giancarlo Stanton hit his 12th home run of the season.

Better to Forget – 

Victor Gonzalez and Nick Burdi managed to allow the Mariners to load the bases in the 8th inning, requiring Clay Holmes to notch a four-out save.

My Take –  

The Yankees are firing on all cylinders. They are winning games with great frequency and regularity. However, they are not perfect. Gleyber Torres is shaky defensively and is having an awful offensive season. He has shown a few sparks lately but, overall, he is not having a good year.

Although the bullpen is doing well for the most part, they have been shaky at times and frequently appear on the verge of collapse. This can't go on all season as eventually, the fact that the bullpen is comprised of castoffs and reclamation projects will begin to hurt the team. Tommy Kahnle returned this week and Lou Trivino is set to come back very soon as well. I would like to see the Yankees bring up Clayton Beeter, as opposed to Clayton Andrews, who does not belong on a Major League roster.

Part of the problem with having unproven and unreliable pitchers in the bullpen is that Aaron Boone becomes fascinated with them. Ian Hamilton was great last year but was not doing very well this year, before going on the Covid IL. Boone became fascinated with Nick Burdi in spring training and uses him a great deal. He probably uses him too much. My prediction is that Burdi won't be on the team by the end of the year.

The Yankees won yesterday 5-0. But in the 8th inning, the Mariners had the bases loaded. They were very close to getting back into the game. Yes, the Yankees did escape the situation but, they had to use Clay Holmes to get four outs, something Boone has stated he would prefer not to do. It is quite possible that the overall mediocrity of the pitchers in the bullpen combined with the way Boone misuses and mishandles them could become a major problem later in the season. Hopefully, the return of Kahnle, Trivino, and others will resolve this issue. 

Next Up – 

Tonight, the Yankees open a three-game series against the San Diego Padres at 9:40 PM at PETCO Park. Carlos Rondon, (5-2, 327 ERA) will face San Diego’s Yu Darvish, (4-1, 2.08 ERA). Why is there a San Diego, but not a San Dora?