THE YANKEES PLAY THE RAZZING GAME & ARE WINNING

I'm not saying the Yankees weren't poking the bear... I'm saying it wasn't as calculated as the Rays thought... but now it's game on.

Everyone who has seen Albert Abreu pitch knows the guy doesn't have great control.  The fact that yesterday's bench clearing brawl all happened because Randy Arozarena thought Abreu did it on purpose is silly.  The truth is the Yankees are fighting for their life, not for first place and when that happens, teams often fall apart. The Yanks are in a spiral, mentally as well as physically. Yesterday's game against the Rays was simply about survival, not winning.  

If you don't know what I'm talking about read this from ESPN:

"Benches and bullpens emptied twice in the eighth inning after one of five hit batters, but no punches were thrown, and the Yankees lost their eighth straight series rubber game....

"I think it was on purpose," Arozarena said through an interpreter. "If you look back at [the] previous series, he's hit me before. I've been hit in previous series before that. They hurt Yandy [Diaz] the other day, they hit [Isaac] Paredes in the head, so I think it probably was an issue for them."

Benches cleared TWICE in the Rays-Yankees game 😳

(via @BallyRays) pic.twitter.com/VRkva1Zj4A

— Yahoo Sports MLB (@MLByahoosports) August 27, 2023

But when it comes to Abreu and his control, CBS Sports writes this:

"Abreu is not blessed with good control -- he's walked 13.3% of the batters he's faced this season -- though Sunday was the second time he's hit Arozarena this season, and the third Rays player he's hit this year overall. If you keep plunking players on the same team, that team is not going to be happy. "

Now look, getting hit is part of the game. You're gonna hit a guy in the stomach, the ass, go for it, but the truth is Abreu was just trying to pitch.  Hey, maybe he looked at Arozarena and said, "I hate this prick", but whatever... again for the Yankees it's about survival. They literally can't fight their way out of a paper bag. It's terrible.  To make matters worse... the Rays keep chirping about it.

Brandon Lowe of the Rays was quoted as saying this:

"Looking at it in a different view, it's a last-place team... We don't need to worry about it. We need to focus up on what we need to do down the stretch. If they lose a guy, it's not going to be quite as big of a deal as if we're losing one of our guys. We're focused up on kind of a bigger picture."

But you are worrying about it, Brandon.  Arozarena worried about it and so are you! How about STFU?

Look, the Rays are rarely in a position like this where they can rip on the Yanks. They are rarely in a position where they actually have a shot at winning and I applaud them, but you're worried about Albert Abreu.  Are you kidding?

The best quote came from gamer Ian Hamilton of the Yanks who wants more Rays:

"You understand their anger?" Hamilton said. "I understand it. But at the same time, if they want to come over here, they can come over here, I guess. Wish we had another game against them."

This isn't over folks. We're in their head. And at this point of the season for the Yankees who are playing for nothing... maybe the razzing game is the way to go.