Singeton jacks from Austin Wells and Cody Bellinger put the Yanks up in Tampa hosting the Blue Jays on February 28, 2025, in an eventual 6-3 win. Staff ace Gerrit Cole looked strong going 3-1/3 with five strike outs, but a 16-pitch, two-double, one-run top of the third appeared to wear him out, a sign we were worried to see (a fear that would come back to bite). Jesus Rodriguez accounted for the final score with a two-run double in the home seventh. Continue reading →
On a glorious day in Clearwater, Florida, on February 27, 2025, Yankees young and old played with our heart strings through three-plus hours resulting in a 7-7 tie with the home-standing Phillies. Anthony Volpe tied matters at 2-2 in the top of the third with a two-run jack to left center, but middle relief faltered, and they stumbled into the eighth down 6-3. Then young infielder Alexander Vargas capped a four-run outburst with a three-run jack. But young righty Cole Zaffiro let loose with a one-out hit by pitch in the bottom of the ninth, and followed with three straight walks to tie the game. Agony. Ecstasy. Ugh. Continue reading →
First baseman Dom Smith led off the third inning of the February 25 night game in which the Yanks hosted the Cardinals with a home run; then one out later hits by Oswald Peraza, Jasson Dominguez, Cody Bellinger, Paul Goldschmidt, and Austin Wells, around a walk of Jazz Chisholm, put the Yankees up 6-0 in a 7-0 win. Continue reading →
With Tino Martinez throwing out the ceremonial first pitch and Carlos Rodon and Aaron Judge wearing high sox with their pinstriped unis, the Yankees vanquished the visiting Blue Jays 12-6 in their Spring home opener on February 25, 2024. Surprisingly, Rodon pitched into the third inning, netting five punch outs before surrendering a home run to Alejandro Kirk, and Juan Soto drew early raves with a three-run bomb in the fourth. The home team scored in five frames, while Toronto did most of its damage with a five-run seventh. Continue reading →
You hear it every year, why even look at stats and game results from Spring Training; I’m here to argue, because it’s just too much fun not to. Starting the 2024 campaign on the road in Lakeland to play the Tigers, Luis Gil got off to a decent start, striking out three in two frames, but Andy Ibanez reached him for a two run bomb. But the Bombers took over with three-run second and third innings, the first featuring a home run for new Yankee outfielder Trent Grisham. As is often the case, the game got uglier late, as the visiting Bombers tacked on four in the eighth and eight more in the ninth. more than making up for the four spot Detroit added in the bottom of the ninth of a 22-10 Yankee victory. Continue reading →
Visiting Detroit jumped on the Yankees for a 4-0 shutout on February 23, 2025. Andy Ibanez and Dillon Dingler chipped in for the first three rbi’s in the top of the fourth. Continue reading →
The home-standing Blue Jays took out the Yankees in the Dunedin 2025 Spring Training opener 6-4 on February 22, holding on to take the game after forging a 4-0 lead with single runs in the first four innings. Spencer Jones did thrill the Yankee crowd with a sixth-inning two-run home run, however. Continue reading →
The Yankees started their 2025 Spring session well, with a 4-0 win over visiting Tampa in GMS Field. New to the team, veteran first baseman Paul Goldschmidt stood out with three rbi’s. Continue reading →
Once the Yanks beat the Dodgers in the 1977 World Series after having returned to the Classic the year before vs. Cincinnati following a 15-year absence, Billy Martin was almost as untouchable as Joe Torre proved to be in 2000. But the Bombers slipped to fourth place in 1978, and rallied to win that Series under Bob Lemon after Billy was replaced. Martin returned in 1979 but a fourth-place finish doomed him, and Billy was fired again. On February 20, 1980, Billy was signed to manage his hometown Oakland A’s. Under Martin, they finished second in 1980, then first and second in the two halves of the split 1981 strike-interrupted season. But the Yankees would crush them in the first round of that season’s playoffs. Continue reading →
The Yankees paused to reload on February 19, 1957, shipping former Boston lefty can’t-miss prospect Mickey McDermott (he missed), along with hurlers Tom Morgan, Gary Coleman, and Jack Urban, outfielder Irv Noren, and infielders Billy Hunter and Milt Graff to the Kansas City Athletics for a package of players of their own. K.C. had a major-league team (now in Oakland) that at the time the Bombers mined regularly for young talent. The returning supporting cast was pitcher Jack McMahan and infielders Curt Roberts and Wayne Belardi, but the marquee names were righthander Art Ditmar, third sacker Clete Boyer, and lefty Bobby Shantz, who (here’s a twist) batted righty. Between them, Ditmar and Shantz gave the Yankees a four-year total of 77 wins with 50 losses, and 30 big saves. And Boyer contributed 95 homers, 397 rbi’s, and 27 stolen bases along with eight years of solid defense at the hot corner. Continue reading →
