About Yesterday: The Yankees Were Swept by the Red Sox

About Yesterday: The Yankees Were Swept by the Red Sox 6-2 and 4-1

By Tim Kabel

June 19, 2023

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The Yankees played a split doubleheader yesterday, wrapping up the three-game series against the Red Sox in Boston. They were swept in the doubleheader and in the series. They are now just six games over .500 and although they remain in third place in the American League East, they are only one-half game ahead of the Blue Jays. They are just about out of the division race at this point being 10.5 games behind the Tampa Bay Rays.

Talk about a lost weekend. The best game of the weekend for the Yankees was on Saturday, when they were rained out. Having to watch and recap all three games of this series should qualify me for hazardous duty pay. The fact that the doubleheader sweep occurred on Father's Day is rather appropriate when you consider that Mother's Day is the day when there are more phone calls made than any other day in America. On Father's Day, there are more collect calls made than on any other day in America.

Quick Stats -

• The Yankees entered the day with a .301 on base percentage for the team, which is third worst in the Majors. It dropped to .298 by the end of the day.

• Giancarlo Stanton entered the day batting .147 since his return from the IL.

• Going into yesterday's game, Clarke Schmidt had allowed three runs or fewer in his previous five starts. He continued the streak.

• When I saw Kaleb Ort on the mound, sporting his yellow and blue uniform, I thought I was watching Team Sweden. Don't you think the Red Sox should have, well, a little red in their uniforms?

• The Yankees are batting .199 in June, which is the worst in the Majors.

• I had to listen to part of the second game on the radio. I actually heard John Sterling say, “It's not good when you're broadcasting a game and you don't know why something happened.” I believe that is his official mission statement.

• This was the first time the Yankees were swept in a doubleheader in Fenway Park since July 31, 1976.

• The Yankees are now 9-14 when Aaron Judge is not in the lineup.

• Josh Donaldson walked in the fourth inning but was picked off. Apparently, he was so unfamiliar with the concept of being on first base that he forgot if you are as slow as molasses, you shouldn't take a big lead.

• On June 18th, 1977, Billy Martin pulled Reggie Jackson out of the game in the middle of an inning after he felt Jackson didn't hustle after a ball. This would have led to a fist fight in the dugout if Elston Howard and Yogi Berra had not intervened. The entire event was broadcast to the nation. That was a lot better than what we had to watch yesterday.

Big Story -

The Yankees have a lot of players on the IL. They are missing their best player and two very important members of their starting rotation. Well, such is life. Teams have to deal with injuries. The Yankees still have several players on the team who have excellent resumes. They have two former MVP's. They have a former World Series champion. They have a two-time batting champion. They have competent major leaguers up and down the roster. The Red Sox are not a great team. Yet, the Red Sox swept this series, and they are leading the season series five games to one. The Yankees are starting to sink and unless they start playing a more competitive brand of baseball, by the time Judge and the others get back, it may be too little, too late.

Players of the Day -

Gleyber Torres had three hits, including a home run, and two RBI on the day.

Notable Performances -

Jake Bauers had three hits on the day, including two doubles in the first game.

Better to Forget-

Ron Marinaccio, Wandy Peralta, and Tommy Kahnle pitched three scoreless innings in the second game. Otherwise, there wasn't much to write home about.

My Take -

Leadership is an amazing characteristic. It is hard to define but, you know it when you see it. After the doubleheader yesterday, the YES network broadcast the Yankeeography of Thurman Munson. One of the most important themes of the episode was his tremendous leadership and how even when he was playing in tremendous pain and taped from ankle to neck before the game, he played hard and never quit. That is leadership.

The manager of the team is its titular leader. When you have a team that's loaded with talent, and everyone is healthy, winning games can be fairly easy. It is a case of simply getting out of the way. However, when you encounter adversity, that's when you see how much of a leader the manager really is.

While Aaron Judge, Harrison Bader, Nestor Cortes, and Carlos Rodon are out, the team still has to play games. If the Yankees want to make the playoffs, they have to win as many games as possible. It is up to the manager to figure out ways to win games. It is up to the manager to figure out how to get the most out of his players.

I have been thinking a lot about the fact that Anthony Volpe had to get help regarding his swing and stance from his former teammate, Austin Wells. Volpe and Wells reviewed video on a day off and noticed that Volpe's swing changed from when he was hitting well. The fact that none of the Yankee coaches or the manager figured this out is a problem. It boils down to communication, leadership, and initiative.

My sister Penny, who has been watching the Yankees since the early 1950s and had a dog named Scooter, texted me last night and wrote, “The only things that Boone does well are chew gum, blow bubbles, and spit.” She hit the nail on the head.

The team is struggling. This is when they need the manager to step up and take charge. Boone does not seem to be capable of doing that. He appears to be disinterested, confused, and uncommunicative. He is inarticulate, dismissive, and defensive when he is questioned about the team's struggles. I have no idea how well he communicates with his players, but I have no reason to suspect that he devotes a great deal of time and energy to it. He just seems to float along in a cloud of smug oblivion from one day to the next. The team is looking to Boone for answers, but he doesn't have any. All he does is provide more questions. Things do not look good, and there is no reason to suspect it will change.

Next Up -

Tuesday, the Yankees open a three-game series against the Mariners at 7:05 PM at Yankee Stadium. Gerrit Cole (7-1 2.75 ERA) will face Seattle's George Kirby (6-5 3.24 ERA).