WHY CAN'T THE YANKEES BEAT UP AMERICAN LEAGUE RIVALS?

It's Mother's Day. Unfortunately, the Yankees are not home, they are in Tampa, which means that the game is at Tropicana Field which also means that my blood pressure is higher than normal. The Yankees play well against tough teams, but when they play AL East teams, they seem to cave. Why can't the Yankees beat up American League rivals? Your guess is as good as mine.

"On Saturday, the top two hitters in the Rays lineup combined to go 5-for-7 with three doubles, two home runs, five runs and six RBIs to even the series ahead of Sunday’s rubber game," reported the New York Post. This after the Yankees played a nail biter against their nemesis on Friday night that led to a 2-0-win Yankees win. 

Their bats went quiet, and the bull pen got lit up by the Rays hitters on Saturday. "The Yankees (26-15) got a three-hit day from Anthony Volpe, but only two other hits from the rest of the lineup," reported the Post. And who came to life? Yandy Diaz and Randy Arozarena. As the Post says, "ganging up on the Yankees." 

Their offense goes off against the Astros, but it is silenced against the Baltimore Orioles. They somehow have the magic touch when the Yankees play against them. According to ESPN, "The Yankees, featuring two of the sport's biggest stars in Juan Soto and Aaron Judge, are expected to contend again. The Orioles might have their best team since the 1990s with an exciting young core and new ownership group invigorating the fanbase." And it was the Orioles that took the early season series against the Yankees (3 out of the 4 games).  They will face the Orioles again at Yankee Stadium in June. But my fear is that they have the same kind of outcome. 

According to ESPN, "The New York offense, a bit feast-or-famine thus far, has already been shut out four times in 27 games. It has scored fewer than five runs in 12 games and is in middle of the pick in runs per game. Judge finally got his season batting average above .200 on Sunday. The pitching staff, meanwhile, is tied for the second-best ERA in the majors despite not having Gerrit Cole and losing Jonathan Loáisiga for the season."

The Yankees need to figure out how to pull it all together. With Cole likely back in June, and the bull pen hopefully getting some arms back as well, the Yankees need to right the ship with American League East teams this June when they play Boston, Baltimore and Toronto. 

As my son says to me all of the time, the Yankees need to "pummel teams." Like they did with Houston. And this means taking down AL East teams and reminding them who is boss. We can start with a series win today, Mother's Day, against the Rays. Then, we go out to red hot Minnesota and do the same. It is about winning series, convincingly, repeatedly, overtime.  

--Suzie Pinstripe
BYB Senior Managing Editor
Twitter: @suzieprof

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.

YUP... THE ASTROS ARE CLOWNS, PHIL HUGHES

 The Houston Astros lost last night. America is happy.

Quick note. The Rays beat the Asstros 4-2 last night to advance to the World Series.  Pretty awesome. Randy Arozarena hit his 7th post season home run. Pretty good stuff.

I had to take a shot at Carlos Correa this morning just because he's a bitch.

And it looks like Phil Hughes has done his own trolling, even subtle, it doesn't matter... it does the job.

Cheaters blow. And you know what? Baseball Fans? We don't forget.

UP NEXT: THE ALDS, THE RAYS & THE BUBBLE!

It feels good to beat Cleveland, really good. It was a short dramatic series and I'm just glad it's over. Game One was an explosion of offense and game two had its own drama with Mother Nature meddling with the start of the game. MLB really messed the start of yesterday's game up. 

There's nothing like calling a rain delay when it ISN'T raining and then starting the game when it's pouring. Not sure who exactly messed that up but that's just bizarre. At least when the bad weather finally passed and the game got started it was entertaining. I was glad to finally get the win and move on but....you know what that means, right?

The RAYS are waiting for us. Yeah, those guys. The new pain in our butts that really made us look stupid during the regular season. The Rays also just made a sweep of the Blue Jays. Both of us are running on momentum....but I am willing to bet that they feel even better than we do right now.

Maybe it is weird that I am not upset about the Rays winning the AL East this season. Maybe if this weren't a shortened 60-game season it would hurt a little more. They can have the division title....I am more bothered that they beat us during the regular season series 8-2. The Rays have been beating us all season, so playing against them in the postseason is a scary thought. We already know what the Rays are capable of but....did you see them against the Blue Jays?

Here is what the Yankees should study up on:

1. The Rays outfield is dangerous in the field and in the box

During the offseason, the Rays traded for outfielders Manuel Margot and Hunter Renfroe and both guys did some damage against the Blue Jays. Margot hit a two-run home run in game one, and Renfroe hit a Grand Slam yesterday. They also have another outfielder on the bench named Randy Arozarena who also had four hits in eight at-bats and two of those were doubles.

2. The Rays have power arms in the pen

The Rays have a good closer and they have good arms to bridge to their closer. There's not one person that Kevin Cash will rely on, but many. The Rays have used 13 different pitchers this season to close out games. The 12 different pitchers they used during the regular season tied a major league record. The Rays know what to expect at the end of our games, but Kevin Cash could literally throw just about anyone at us.

3. Strong, steady starters are waiting

Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow both pitched good games. Snell held the Blue Jays to one hit and no runs and Glasnow struck out eight over six innings. They also have Charlie Morton who did not have to pitch, and is dealing with some recent shoulder inflammation. If Morton is in fact healthy and pitches effectively, the Yankees will have their hands full with three good pitchers. 

The Yankees will need Gerrit Cole and Masahiro Tanaka to be dominant and keep the Rays off balance. As good as their pitching will be, ours needs to be better and our bats need to the do their part. The Rays lost to Gerrit Cole last year in games 2 and 5 of the ALDS, we need that trend to continue. Cole is the key, and Tanaka's proven postseason record is crucial to our success.

The Yankees offensive showed up against Cleveland, but it can't go to sleep against the Rays. The difference between the Indians and the Rays is night and day...and the Yankees will need to rise to the occasion. They need to play better than the team that was 2-8 in the regular season series. 

The bubble is waiting for us in San Diego, and so are the Rays. This won't be easy....but it can be done. What do you think the Yankees need to do to beat the Rays? Comment and tell us.

--Jeana Bellezza-Ochoa

BYB Managing Editor

Twitter: @nyprincessj