As far as I'm concerned, if you're going to lose, at least have the decency to do it in the regulation 9 innings, instead of stringing us along.
Also as far as I'm concerned, Joe Girardi needed to be fired after the failed season of 2013. A case could have been made for firing him as far back as after the ignominious exit from the 2011 Playoffs. Nevertheless, here we are on June 16, 2017, and he is still fucking up the Yankees' pitching situation.
Jordan Montgomery started for the Yankees last night, in the opener of a 4-game series against the Oakland Athletics at the Oakland Coliseum. He did not have good stuff, allowing 3 runs in the 1st 2 innings, before settling down a bit, then allowing a 4th run in the 6th. Girardi brought Chad Green in, and he allowed another run in the 7th. He brought Tyler Clippard in, and he allowed another run in the 8th.
The Yankees closed to within 4-3 in the 6th, 5-4 in the 7th, and 6-5 in the 8th, thanks to the 7th home run of the season by Chris Carter -- who raised his on-base percentage to over .300.
Are you noticing a pattern here? Every time the Yankees had an inning in which they scored, Girardi changed pitchers, and lost another run. This is by-the-binder managing, and it is reckless as hell. It is just... plain... stupid. It does not work. It wastes pitchers.
Look, I understand taking Montgomery out. He didn't have a good game. I understand putting Green in. In spite of having allowed a run, he did throw 2/3rds of his pitches, 14 out of 21, for strikes. But Clippard has been horrible. Don't let that 2.30 ERA fool you: He has not gotten the job done.
Clippard was so bad last night! (How bad was he?) He was so bad, Girardi had to bring Dellin Betances in to get the last 2 outs in the 8th, because Clippard could only get 1 out with 14 pitches.
Somebody on Twitter told me last night that the pitching was "fine." No, it was not fine. They allowed 6 runs in the 1st 8 innings to the Oakland A's. Not the 1972-74 World Champion "Swingin' A's" of Reggie Jackson, Joe Rudi, Sal Bando and Gene Tenace. Not the 1988-90 Pennant-winning "Bash Brothers" A's of Mark McGwire, Jose Canseco, Rickey Henderson, Dave Henderson, Carney Lansford and the veteran but still powerful Dave Parker. Not even the 2000-02 Division-winning A's of Jason and Jeremy Giambi, Miguel Tejada, Ben Grieve, Eric Chavez, Matt Stairs and Terence Long. These are the 28-38, worst-record-in-the-American League today's A's.
No, the pitching was not fine last night.
Nor was the hitting fine. The Yankees left the bases loaded in the 1st inning, stranded men on 2nd & 3rd in the 4th, stranded men on 1st & 2nd in the 6th, stranded a man on 2nd in the 7th, stranded a man on 1st with 1 out in the 8th, and stranded men on 1st & 2nd in the 9th. This game should never have gone to extra innings, and it wouldn't have, if the Yankees had gotten even 1 of those men home.
It still shouldn't have mattered: If Girardi had a goddamned clue about how to handle a pitching staff, none of those runs would have been necessary, because, at worst, the Yankees would have won 6-5 in 9 innings.
Betances, clearly gassed -- and, having thrown 39 pitches last night, probably unavailable for tonight's game -- got out of a bases-loaded jam in the 9th to send the game to extra innings. With 1 out in the top of the 10th, Brett Gardner singled. Rob Refsnyder singled him to 3rd. Refsnyder took 2nd on fielder's indifference. Aaron Judge drew a walk to load the bases with only 1 out. Starlin Castro flew to right, and Gardner tagged up and scored. 7-6, the Yankees' 1st lead of the game.
Getting a run here was a must. As it turned out, getting 1 wasn't enough. With 2 outs, and men on 1st & 3rd, Matt Holliday struck out to end it.
Still, it looked like the Yankees were going to win. Until, that is, Girardi relieved Betances (which he had to do) with Giovanny Gallegos (which you should never do).
The words of Papa Bear from The Berenstain Bears come to mind: "Yes, that it was you should not do, now let that be a lesson to you."
Gallegos got the 1st 2 outs. Things looked good. But then he gave up a single to Rajai Davis. Chad Pinder -- no relation to Branden Pinder, the horrible former Yankee pitcher, who would probably have been in this game had the Yankees not designated him for assignment due to injury after last season -- doubled, getting Davis to 3rd.
Girardi ordered Jed Lowrie intentionally walked, to set up the out at any base. Cliche alert: Walks can kill you. Khris Davis hit a bloop single to center, scoring the tying and winning runs.
A's 8, Yankees 7. WP: Liam Hendriks (3-1). No save. LP: Gallegos (0-1, now with a 7.15 ERA).
On Twitter, some Yankee Fans were blaming Castro, whose sac fly had given the Yankees the lead, for mishandling the blooper, for the defeat. That's kind of like blaming the security guards at the Empire State Building for King Kong taking Ann Darrow up there.
No, this game, the 3rd straight game lost by the Yankees, is the responsibility of our idiot manager, Joey Binders. After the game, he said:
We kept fighting back. We got behind then we tied it up, got behind, tied it up. We did it a bunch of times. It hurts because it's a matter of a couple inches that you lose that game by and it's frustrating.
Yes, we lost that game by a couple of inches. The length of your brain. Or, perhaps, your binder.
In addition, both Gary Sanchez and Aaron Hicks left the game due to apparent injuries. This after CC Sabathia was injured 2 nights before, in Anaheim. If they're both out, that's another pair of holes that Girardi and the equally execrable general manager Brian Cashman need to fill. Not including the holes in their respective heads.
The Boston Red Sox also lost last night. The Yankees remain in 1st place by 2 games, by 3 in the loss column.
They'd be 5 games up. 6 in the loss column, if Girardi had simply used his eyes to manage, instead of that damn binder, over just the last 3 nights alone. That's not even counting his other fuckups this season.
Brian Cashman, Lonn Trost, Randy Levine, Hal Steinbrenner, Hank Steinbrenner, whoever might read these words, I implore you: Fire Joe Girardi. Do it today. Before he blows it again.
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