Bronx, N.Y., June 18, 2015; Yankees 9, Marlins 4 — It was a tale of two games in the Bronx Thursday night, or maybe two events. In the game, which more or less came to an end in the eighth inning, Yankee fans were once again reminded that this is not 2014. Certainly, this offense is scarily disappointing for long stretches, with some innings seemingly guaranteed to bring no promise of a score, and others set up for success crashing and burning before our eyes. But the 2015 Yankee club is resilient, and it showed that in the middle innings of a 9-4 win over the Marlins.

The Yanks had Marlins starter Mat Latos on the ropes in the first, scoring on three straight singles, the last Alex Rodriguez’s 2,998th career hit. He would stroke No. 2,999 later, and the manner of his inability to reach the next number would be pivotal in event No. 2. But in the first, a Carlos Beltran strike out with one down and the bases loaded killed a promising rally; as did a Chase Headley punch out with a run 90 feet away in the second; a Didi Gregorius strike out with two on in the third; and Brian McCann going down swinging facing second and third and one out in the home fifth.

Despite a happy ending, all this flailing about did leave poor CC Sabathia hanging with an effective start, where he retired the first nine Marlins, but was stuck in a 1-1 tie once Miami was able to plate their first baserunner after Dee Gordon tripled leading off the fourth. A hit, hit-by-pitch, and sac fly resulted in a fifth-inning score, and when Giancarlo Stanton crashed his 25th home run in the sixth, CC was down 3-1, even though he had held the visitors to five hits and no walks while striking out seven.

There would be no win for CC, but no loss either. Matos had skipped through trouble all game, but not in the sixth, where he got two quick outs. But Mason Williams’s second double and a Brett Gardner home run tied matters in an instant. And that was just the beginning, as McCann and Beltran came storming back off lefty reliever Mike Dunn in the seventh. Brian’s one-out single set it up, and Carlos drilled a full count homer for a sudden 5-3 lead. Chasen Shreve pitched the seventh (which would get him the win) and Justin Wilson struck out two to retire the Marlins in the eighth. It was all set up for the Wilson hold and a Dellin Betances save, but then Miami brought out righty reliever Sam Dyson to face the Yanks in the bottom of the eighth. Event No. 2 had arrived.

Judging a person’s motivations is a tricky business even up close. Trying to decide what a pitcher is thinking from the Yankee Stadium grandstand is a bald-faced guessing game. But I had impressions, and I’ll share them. Dyson got a first-pitch strike on Headley, but Chase fouled off two pitches and worked a seven-pitch walk, which brought A-Rod up, needing one hit to become the first to eclipse the 3,000 hit number since Derek Jeter did it a few years ago. Some felt Dyson wanted to ensure it would not be his name linked with Alex’s in 3,000-hit history, as David Price’s always will be with Jeter. Others felt the young righty was actually trying to hit Rodriguez with each of his four throws.

Dyson threw four straight very inside pitches, enraging a crowd that knew that with each errant throw, they were losing an opportunity to see history. He seemed to display disdain when home plate ump Ted Barrett threw him a ball to replace the game orb with one marked for the historic occasion before the at bat. And there certainly was no “seem” in the way he bounced the marked ball in past Barrett once Alex was walked. There were screams of “Asshole!” and then “You suck!” as Sam delivered the four pitches.

Whatever the motivation, after an out, McCann delivered an RBI single and, when Dyson unleashed a wild pitch to Beltran, Alex slid across home plate as the righthander stood there and watched, his inning crumbling before him. Rodriguez ignored him as he skipped to the dugout, but the hoots and screams were far from over. Even the scoreboard got into the act, seeming to spur the crowd on any time they quieted with everything from “CHARGE!!!” calls to playing, “If you’re happy and you know it …” A couple of singles and a sac fly, the latter two off yet another reliever, ensured that all four batters who reached against Dyson scored. Four earned runs, one out. Ouch.

That was pretty much it. Although Betances had warmed for the save, with a six-run lead, Chris Martin closed it out. One quibble, a big one actually, is that once Martin allowed a run from three singles, the last after a second out on a nifty play by Gregorius, Girardi had Betances warming yet again with his team up by five. This is the kind of overuse that put former closer Andrew Miller on the disabled list. Joe should know better.

It was uplifting that the Yanks showed their relative newfound resilience on the night that bobbleheads in the likeness of Thurman Munson were handed out. Widow and forever Yankee family superstar Diana Munson threw out the ceremonial first pitch, and the plethora of Munson shirts and memorabilia among the 38,000-plus in attendance bespoke the love Thurman will always receive among the pinstriped faithful.

And kudos to Alex Rodriguez, who has followed two games on the bench in Miami with back-to-back two-hit games, bringing his hit total to 2,999, a number he’ll try to add to against Justin Verlander and the Tigers on Friday. Which brings up the matter of exactly what Sam Dyson was up to in this game’s eighth inning. As mentioned, some felt Dyson was ducking history. Others thought he was trying to hit Alex. I think the latter group is closer. But from what I saw, the young righty is among the many disgusted with Rodriguez’s success following his multiple transgressions, and he was adamantly refusing to be part of it all.

Understandable perhaps, but he was rude and dismissive of Ted Barrett as he gave him the new ball, and even more so when he refused to toss the ball back after the walk, choosing to bounce it on the ground toward the Yankee dugout instead. He buried his team in a six-run deficit, and even considering things from his own self interest, he increased his era from 2.9 to 4.12 by setting himself up as judge in a situation in which he had absolutely no standing.

So he attempted (and utterly failed) to diss Rodriguez, and did himself, and his team, harm at the same time. But that is not all. He is fortunate that his team stays on the road, but the trip will end soon. If there is a city where the resurgent Rodriguez is even more beloved than New York, it is Miami, the place where the young Alex grew up. How do Miami fans except him back after, in New York,

Sam Dys on the Mound

BTW,TYW
YANKEE BASEBALL!!!