Posted by: Patrick
Updating a previous story, from the official site:
... Frank Torre, the older brother of Joe Torre, is recovering in a New York hospital after undergoing kidney transplant surgery. The organ was donated by his daughter.
"Frank got through his surgery -- that's step one," Torre said. "My sister called me at 3 o'clock New York time and said his surgery just ended. The doctor went in and told them that the kidney seemed to start functioning right away. He's in recovery."
Joe Torre expects his brother to be out of the hospital in a week to 10 days.
"His daughter is doing well," Torre said. "Hopefully, it improves that way."
"Frank got through his surgery -- that's step one," Torre said. "My sister called me at 3 o'clock New York time and said his surgery just ended. The doctor went in and told them that the kidney seemed to start functioning right away. He's in recovery."
Joe Torre expects his brother to be out of the hospital in a week to 10 days.
"His daughter is doing well," Torre said. "Hopefully, it improves that way."
Posted by: Jason
For his second major league start, Phil Hughes faced a dangerous Texas lineup that is currently second in the American League in home runs (30). Most importantly, his start began a crucial May stretch for the Yankees in which they have the opportunity to climb back in to the division race.
If he felt any pressure, he didn't show it. His demeanor on the mound was stoic. He fits in perfectly to the Yankees' culture of professionalism. Oh, right, the pitching: A 90-94mph well-controlled fastball, straight changeup (I thought he was still working on the change?) and a silly curveball. Silly, that is, to watch Texas batters harmlessly flail away at it.
Hughes was masterful, the embodiment of Jim Kaat's maxim: "Show me inside, outside, up, down and a 10 mph change of speed, and I'll show you a 20 game winner." Every Rangers hitter was guessing, and poorly. You probably remember Phil's K (looking) of 1B Teixeira with that 80 mph pitch (a change, I think) that started in and tailed back to the inside corner. The look on Teixeira's face was a preview for the rest of the AL.
Unfortunately, the "hamstring monster" that has stalked the Yankees this year decided to bite the young pitcher in the 7th. According the latest, he's out 4-6 weeks. Until mid-June, we will console ourselves with memories of tonight's evidence: Phil Hughes is for real.
The offense? Much healthier, thanks to Kameron Loe's non-sinking sinker. The game was decided in the 2nd, 3rd and 5th with multiple Yankees in on the action. Alex, Jorge and Robinson combined for 10 hits. Melky and Hideki had key early RBIs.
I don't think I mentioned that the Yankees quickly gained one game in the standings after some rookie heroics from Travis Buck at Fenway Park last evening...Does Billy Beane actually require players to have a wild haircut and facial hair to play for Oakland?
It's fantastic to see Bobby Murcer in the YES booth. Welcome back.
Wednesday night, it's "The Lefty" against Robinson Tejeda.
If he felt any pressure, he didn't show it. His demeanor on the mound was stoic. He fits in perfectly to the Yankees' culture of professionalism. Oh, right, the pitching: A 90-94mph well-controlled fastball, straight changeup (I thought he was still working on the change?) and a silly curveball. Silly, that is, to watch Texas batters harmlessly flail away at it.
Hughes was masterful, the embodiment of Jim Kaat's maxim: "Show me inside, outside, up, down and a 10 mph change of speed, and I'll show you a 20 game winner." Every Rangers hitter was guessing, and poorly. You probably remember Phil's K (looking) of 1B Teixeira with that 80 mph pitch (a change, I think) that started in and tailed back to the inside corner. The look on Teixeira's face was a preview for the rest of the AL.
Unfortunately, the "hamstring monster" that has stalked the Yankees this year decided to bite the young pitcher in the 7th. According the latest, he's out 4-6 weeks. Until mid-June, we will console ourselves with memories of tonight's evidence: Phil Hughes is for real.
The offense? Much healthier, thanks to Kameron Loe's non-sinking sinker. The game was decided in the 2nd, 3rd and 5th with multiple Yankees in on the action. Alex, Jorge and Robinson combined for 10 hits. Melky and Hideki had key early RBIs.
I don't think I mentioned that the Yankees quickly gained one game in the standings after some rookie heroics from Travis Buck at Fenway Park last evening...Does Billy Beane actually require players to have a wild haircut and facial hair to play for Oakland?
It's fantastic to see Bobby Murcer in the YES booth. Welcome back.
Wednesday night, it's "The Lefty" against Robinson Tejeda.
05/01: Yankee Youngster DEALIN'
Posted by: James
That's right, Mighty Matt DeSalvo put up another 5 and two-thirds of shut-out ball tonight. He only gave up 2 hits but keeps showing control issues, racking up 5 walks and 5 strikeouts. I wish the guy nothing but the best after the nightmare that was his 2006 season. (If Hughes is out for a few starts (and I'm praying that's all that it is), I'm thinking that DeSalvo makes Hughes' start.)
Oh, and there's a kid named Hughes who had been pitching a no-hitter through 6 and a third innings down in Texas. He had thrown 83 pitches (the rest is moot) already but he's showing no signs of fatigue just yet...but it'll be interesting to see long they let him go.
UPDATE: INJURY! They just took him out. Hughes threw a pitch to Texiera and from the sounds of it, he tweaked something in his leg. No word on severity yet. That sound you just heard - the collective gasp of all of Yankee fandom. If this team didn't have bad luck, it would have no luck.
Oh, and there's a kid named Hughes who had been pitching a no-hitter through 6 and a third innings down in Texas. He had thrown 83 pitches (the rest is moot) already but he's showing no signs of fatigue just yet...but it'll be interesting to see long they let him go.
UPDATE: INJURY! They just took him out. Hughes threw a pitch to Texiera and from the sounds of it, he tweaked something in his leg. No word on severity yet. That sound you just heard - the collective gasp of all of Yankee fandom. If this team didn't have bad luck, it would have no luck.
05/01: 2005 vs. 2007
Posted by: James
I've seen (and heard) a lot of fans mentioning how the Yankees have been in bigger holes than they are in this year. Most of those people are of course referring to 2005 when the Yankees started the season with a very illustrious 11-19 record.
At this point (after 23 games), the two seasons line up nicely. The Yanks currently stand at 9-14 and 6.5 games back of the division leading Red Sox (131 RS, 125 RA, 12-11 Expected Wins and Losses) . In 2005, the Yankees were 9-14 and 6.5 games behind the division leading Orioles (119 RS, 126 RA, 11-12 ExW&L).
Still, here's one big difference between 2005 and this season. As bad as the Yankees were that year, the starting pitchers were still giving the team innings. Courtesy of Baseball Musings, here's the 2005 line: 7-11, 140 IP, 175 Hits, 37 BBs and 106 Ks with 92 RA (78 Earned). Still, while the ERA is bloated, the peripherals weren't hideous: 5.01 ERA, .389 winning percentage, 6.6 Ks per 9, 2.4 BB per 9, 1.29 HR per 9 and a 2.76 K/BB. Comparatively, the 2006 line over the same number of starts is quite a bit worse: 4-8, 109 IP, 137 Hits, 42 BBs and 60 Ks with 80 RA (72 Earned). The peripherals are pretty scary too: 5.94 ERA, .333 winning percentage, 5.0 Ks per 9, 3.5 BB per 9, 1.57 HR per 9 (thanks Chase) and a 1.43 K/BB. Technically, since Karstens started the game where he broke his leg, Jeff's numbers are in these totals, not Kei's.
I guess with the amount of unproven pitching the Yankees have thrown on the mound this year, these results shouldn't be surprising and looking at them now, you see why the Yanks are where they are right now. I mean, it's remarkably basic to say but to start climbing their way back up, the team has to get better, longer starts on a consistent basis (and a little bit of luck). In 2005, the Yankees had guys named Wang, Chacon and Small (see what I mean about luck) come in and log quality innings and provide some big time wins. This year, if this season is to turn around in time, it'll have to be guys named Wang, Mussina and Pavano (heh) doing the same thing as they get healthy and Hughes, et. al. filling the gaps when needed. In 5 months, we'll know whether they were up to the task.
At this point (after 23 games), the two seasons line up nicely. The Yanks currently stand at 9-14 and 6.5 games back of the division leading Red Sox (131 RS, 125 RA, 12-11 Expected Wins and Losses) . In 2005, the Yankees were 9-14 and 6.5 games behind the division leading Orioles (119 RS, 126 RA, 11-12 ExW&L).
Still, here's one big difference between 2005 and this season. As bad as the Yankees were that year, the starting pitchers were still giving the team innings. Courtesy of Baseball Musings, here's the 2005 line: 7-11, 140 IP, 175 Hits, 37 BBs and 106 Ks with 92 RA (78 Earned). Still, while the ERA is bloated, the peripherals weren't hideous: 5.01 ERA, .389 winning percentage, 6.6 Ks per 9, 2.4 BB per 9, 1.29 HR per 9 and a 2.76 K/BB. Comparatively, the 2006 line over the same number of starts is quite a bit worse: 4-8, 109 IP, 137 Hits, 42 BBs and 60 Ks with 80 RA (72 Earned). The peripherals are pretty scary too: 5.94 ERA, .333 winning percentage, 5.0 Ks per 9, 3.5 BB per 9, 1.57 HR per 9 (thanks Chase) and a 1.43 K/BB. Technically, since Karstens started the game where he broke his leg, Jeff's numbers are in these totals, not Kei's.
I guess with the amount of unproven pitching the Yankees have thrown on the mound this year, these results shouldn't be surprising and looking at them now, you see why the Yanks are where they are right now. I mean, it's remarkably basic to say but to start climbing their way back up, the team has to get better, longer starts on a consistent basis (and a little bit of luck). In 2005, the Yankees had guys named Wang, Chacon and Small (see what I mean about luck) come in and log quality innings and provide some big time wins. This year, if this season is to turn around in time, it'll have to be guys named Wang, Mussina and Pavano (heh) doing the same thing as they get healthy and Hughes, et. al. filling the gaps when needed. In 5 months, we'll know whether they were up to the task.
Posted by: Patrick
This is my weekly recap of the performance of the YanksBlog.com teams in the Yankees Bloggers Fantasy Baseball League.
Last Week
Whenever you hit .236 with a 6.10 ERA and a 1.72 WHIP, it's never gonna end well. But, that's what I did against Dave's (Pride of the Yankees) team and they administered the beating of the week, crushing me by the score of 9-1. The only category I managed to win was stolen bases (5 to 3). My offensive leader would be Jeff Francoeur, who hot .444 with 6 runs, 2 home runs and 7 RBI. Second baseman Chase Utley was the man on Dave's side, hitting .444 with 7 runs, 2 homers, 10 RBI and a stolen base.
Dave swept the pitching side, including 6 wins (2 each for Dan Haren and Dontrelle Willis) and 10 saves (3 each for Armando Benitez and Al Reyes) and Akinori Otsuka had 1 of both. Haren was dominant in his 2 starts, striking out 12 with a 1.88 ERA and 0.91 WHIP. I managed 1 freaking win all week, thanks to Scott Kazmir. He was also the only pitcher on my staff (yes, including relief pitchers) who had an ERA under 3.00. Dave had 5 of those.
This week on Family Feud, James beat Seamus, 6-4. Offensively, neither team was that good as 34 runs, 6 homers, 27 RBIs, 6 SBs and a .271 average were the lead totals. James was led by Brian Roberts (6 runs, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 2 SB, .357 AVG) and Chipper Jones (5 runs, 2 HR, 6 RBI, .354 AVG) while Seamus had Vernon Wells (9 runs, 1 HR, 5 RBI, 3 SB, .458 AVG). Seamus' offense was the better of the 2, winning 3 out of 5 categories.
But, the pitching side gave James the edge. His 6 saves, 33 K's, 2.21 ERA and 1.10 WHIP were all good enough to win the respective categories. His 1 win lost to Seamus' (the YanksBlog.com teams couldn't buy a win this week - our 3 teams had 4 total wins!), but that wasn't enough to catch James. Ted Lilly got James his 1 win with Jared Weaver and Todd Jones picking up W's for Seamus. Although winless, Jake Peavy was excellent fro James on the week, striking out 16 with a 0.00 ERA and 0.71 WHIP. Jose Valverde was his saves leader with 3 while Bobby Jenks had 2 and Billy Wagner had 1 (Seamus' lone save came from Todd Jones).
Top 3 teams in the league:
1. Mike (River Ave. Blues) (28-11-1)
2. EJ (Pinstripe Potentials and Pending Pinstripes) (23-15-2)
3. Ben (River Ave. Blues) (21-18-1)
This Week
James (4th, 20-18-2) vs. Patrick (10th, 14-23-3)
Seamus (8th, 16-23-1) vs. EJ (2nd, 23-15-2).
Last Week
Whenever you hit .236 with a 6.10 ERA and a 1.72 WHIP, it's never gonna end well. But, that's what I did against Dave's (Pride of the Yankees) team and they administered the beating of the week, crushing me by the score of 9-1. The only category I managed to win was stolen bases (5 to 3). My offensive leader would be Jeff Francoeur, who hot .444 with 6 runs, 2 home runs and 7 RBI. Second baseman Chase Utley was the man on Dave's side, hitting .444 with 7 runs, 2 homers, 10 RBI and a stolen base.
Dave swept the pitching side, including 6 wins (2 each for Dan Haren and Dontrelle Willis) and 10 saves (3 each for Armando Benitez and Al Reyes) and Akinori Otsuka had 1 of both. Haren was dominant in his 2 starts, striking out 12 with a 1.88 ERA and 0.91 WHIP. I managed 1 freaking win all week, thanks to Scott Kazmir. He was also the only pitcher on my staff (yes, including relief pitchers) who had an ERA under 3.00. Dave had 5 of those.
This week on Family Feud, James beat Seamus, 6-4. Offensively, neither team was that good as 34 runs, 6 homers, 27 RBIs, 6 SBs and a .271 average were the lead totals. James was led by Brian Roberts (6 runs, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 2 SB, .357 AVG) and Chipper Jones (5 runs, 2 HR, 6 RBI, .354 AVG) while Seamus had Vernon Wells (9 runs, 1 HR, 5 RBI, 3 SB, .458 AVG). Seamus' offense was the better of the 2, winning 3 out of 5 categories.
But, the pitching side gave James the edge. His 6 saves, 33 K's, 2.21 ERA and 1.10 WHIP were all good enough to win the respective categories. His 1 win lost to Seamus' (the YanksBlog.com teams couldn't buy a win this week - our 3 teams had 4 total wins!), but that wasn't enough to catch James. Ted Lilly got James his 1 win with Jared Weaver and Todd Jones picking up W's for Seamus. Although winless, Jake Peavy was excellent fro James on the week, striking out 16 with a 0.00 ERA and 0.71 WHIP. Jose Valverde was his saves leader with 3 while Bobby Jenks had 2 and Billy Wagner had 1 (Seamus' lone save came from Todd Jones).
Top 3 teams in the league:
1. Mike (River Ave. Blues) (28-11-1)
2. EJ (Pinstripe Potentials and Pending Pinstripes) (23-15-2)
3. Ben (River Ave. Blues) (21-18-1)
This Week
James (4th, 20-18-2) vs. Patrick (10th, 14-23-3)
Seamus (8th, 16-23-1) vs. EJ (2nd, 23-15-2).
Posted by: Jason
...in recent memory for the Yankees Universe.
In the next 12 games the team plays SEA and TEX 6 times each. It is not inconceivable to imagine the team going 9-3 in that stretch. 9-3 in the next 12 lifts the team's record to 18-17 and effectively restarts the season.
Extract yourself from the media maelstrom about who to blame for the last 9 games.
It's time for what matters: Baseball.
In the next 12 games the team plays SEA and TEX 6 times each. It is not inconceivable to imagine the team going 9-3 in that stretch. 9-3 in the next 12 lifts the team's record to 18-17 and effectively restarts the season.
Extract yourself from the media maelstrom about who to blame for the last 9 games.
It's time for what matters: Baseball.
Posted by: David
The Yankees lost the rubber game of the series vs. the Red Sox on Sunday afternoon at Yankee Stadium, 7-4.
The Red Sox jumped out early when Yankee killer David Ortiz deposited a Wang pitch into the upper deck in right field for a 1-0 lead. The Red Sox would add another run later to push ahead at 2-0.
The Yankees fought back to take the lead thanks to two consecutive walks and a three run homer from Doug Mientkiewicz. However, the lead was short lived as Alex Cora hit a two run homer to the bleachers in right center to give the Red Sox a 4-3 lead. They would add another and then put the game out of reach when Manny Ramirez hit a two run homer to right to extend the lead to 7-3.
The Yankees would score one run but couldn't stage a rally in the eighth when A-Rod grounded into a double play and then in the ninth when Jon Papelbon shut them down for his eighth save.
The Yankees are off tomorrow and finish April with a record of 9-14, 6 1/2 games behind the Bosox and in last place in the AL East. They go on the road on Tuesday to Texas for a three game series before returning home on Friday to face the Mariners.
The Red Sox jumped out early when Yankee killer David Ortiz deposited a Wang pitch into the upper deck in right field for a 1-0 lead. The Red Sox would add another run later to push ahead at 2-0.
The Yankees fought back to take the lead thanks to two consecutive walks and a three run homer from Doug Mientkiewicz. However, the lead was short lived as Alex Cora hit a two run homer to the bleachers in right center to give the Red Sox a 4-3 lead. They would add another and then put the game out of reach when Manny Ramirez hit a two run homer to right to extend the lead to 7-3.
The Yankees would score one run but couldn't stage a rally in the eighth when A-Rod grounded into a double play and then in the ninth when Jon Papelbon shut them down for his eighth save.
The Yankees are off tomorrow and finish April with a record of 9-14, 6 1/2 games behind the Bosox and in last place in the AL East. They go on the road on Tuesday to Texas for a three game series before returning home on Friday to face the Mariners.
Posted by: Jason
Several Yankees were massively clutch on Saturday, helping the team break the losing streak at 7 and set up a possible momentum building game on Sunday.
We now know that Jeff Karstens's leg was broken after taking a Lugo leadoff line drive in the 1st. He bravely continued, pitching through what must have been significant pain. After surrendering a single to Youkilis, Karstens's day was over and the recently demoted Igawa faced David Ortiz with men on first and second, no outs. I was convinced that at least a 2-0 Red Sox lead was a certanity.
The Kei Igawa who could not keep his pitches down...The Kei Igawa who the Yankees Universe had relegated to Scranton...got the fearsome Ortiz to ground into a double play. He walked Ramirez and then struck out Drew to end the top 1st. Thus began a thrilling, improbable pitching performance in which Igawa dominated a powerful lineup. 0 runs, 2 hits, 6 strikeouts.
Igawa told us through an interpreter that he pitched exclusively from the stretch because it improves his control...it also improved his velocity, as he was 90-92 on the fastball.
The Yankees offense was by and large stymied by the familiar Wakefield knuckle ball. Stymied, that is, until Jorge centered a knuckler that hung for a moment as if it was on a tee: Gone, plating Jorge and Hideki, 2-0. Bottom 6: With Jorge on 2nd, Cabrera's seeing eye bloop hit a few inches fair and jumped into the stands, a ground rule 2b. 3-0 for the home team.
The Yankees much maligned bullpen came alive. With 2 men on in the 7th, Bruney relieved Igawa and overpowered Mirabelli, Hinske and Lugo. Farnsworth gave up a run in the 8th but settled down to minimize the damage, including a great series of pitches to strike out Ramirez.
Rivera returned to 9th inning form, allowing a bloop single by Varitek then shutting down the next three batters. Count me among those who don't worry about Rivera.
I found an interesting postgame quote by David Ortiz, which slighted Igawa's performance:
"...Nothing special. He (Igawa) was throwing a lot of hittable pitches, but we were just not hitting it."
Wow, that rare display of frustration indicates that they really wanted that game. With Wang facing Tavarez Sunday, I understand why.
We now know that Jeff Karstens's leg was broken after taking a Lugo leadoff line drive in the 1st. He bravely continued, pitching through what must have been significant pain. After surrendering a single to Youkilis, Karstens's day was over and the recently demoted Igawa faced David Ortiz with men on first and second, no outs. I was convinced that at least a 2-0 Red Sox lead was a certanity.
The Kei Igawa who could not keep his pitches down...The Kei Igawa who the Yankees Universe had relegated to Scranton...got the fearsome Ortiz to ground into a double play. He walked Ramirez and then struck out Drew to end the top 1st. Thus began a thrilling, improbable pitching performance in which Igawa dominated a powerful lineup. 0 runs, 2 hits, 6 strikeouts.
Igawa told us through an interpreter that he pitched exclusively from the stretch because it improves his control...it also improved his velocity, as he was 90-92 on the fastball.
The Yankees offense was by and large stymied by the familiar Wakefield knuckle ball. Stymied, that is, until Jorge centered a knuckler that hung for a moment as if it was on a tee: Gone, plating Jorge and Hideki, 2-0. Bottom 6: With Jorge on 2nd, Cabrera's seeing eye bloop hit a few inches fair and jumped into the stands, a ground rule 2b. 3-0 for the home team.
The Yankees much maligned bullpen came alive. With 2 men on in the 7th, Bruney relieved Igawa and overpowered Mirabelli, Hinske and Lugo. Farnsworth gave up a run in the 8th but settled down to minimize the damage, including a great series of pitches to strike out Ramirez.
Rivera returned to 9th inning form, allowing a bloop single by Varitek then shutting down the next three batters. Count me among those who don't worry about Rivera.
I found an interesting postgame quote by David Ortiz, which slighted Igawa's performance:
"...Nothing special. He (Igawa) was throwing a lot of hittable pitches, but we were just not hitting it."
Wow, that rare display of frustration indicates that they really wanted that game. With Wang facing Tavarez Sunday, I understand why.
Posted by: Patrick
From SI.com:
Everything else aside, I don't know if we want someone who tried to buy the Red Sox to own the Yankees.
Via PSD via nj.com.
With age creeping up on George Steinbrenner and his team's succession plans seeming unsettled, it was only a matter of time before someone surfaced with interest in buying the Yankees. And the first new name to be heard in quite awhile is an old name: the Dolans, owners of Madison Square Garden, the Knicks, Rangers and cable-TV behemoth Cablevision.
Industry insiders say the Dolan family, which nearly closed a deal on baseball's most historic team nine years ago, has made periodic runs at the franchise since then. Those same insiders say the Dolans are again showing signs they'd like to be first in line should the Yankees come up for sale. The Dolans retain interest in expanding their sporting empire in a big way, and the Yankees are not only in their backyard, but also right up their alley.
Industry insiders say the Dolan family, which nearly closed a deal on baseball's most historic team nine years ago, has made periodic runs at the franchise since then. Those same insiders say the Dolans are again showing signs they'd like to be first in line should the Yankees come up for sale. The Dolans retain interest in expanding their sporting empire in a big way, and the Yankees are not only in their backyard, but also right up their alley.
Everything else aside, I don't know if we want someone who tried to buy the Red Sox to own the Yankees.
Via PSD via nj.com.
Posted by: David
The Yankees looked flat and arguably lackluster on Friday night as they lost their seventh straight 11-4 in the opener of the weekend series against the Boston Red Sox.
The Red Sox took an early 2-0 lead thanks to a Kevin Youkilis homer off of Andy Pettitte. The Yankees rallied for four runs to take the lead at 4-2 but then Pettitte gave it right back the next inning with runs scoring on a bases loaded walk and a wild pitch.
The Red Sox added two more to take a 7-4 lead and Mariano Rivera (who needs work) was called to pitch in the bottom of the eight inning with the Yankees losing. He wasn't any better, allowing four runs and getting only one out. With Boston extending the lead to 8-4 and Rivera loading the bases, Torre pulled Mo after 21 pitches and brought on Mike Myers. Myers allowed all the inherited runners to score and Boston eventually won 11-4.
Julio Lugo killed the Yankees last night with four hits including a home run and David Ortiz chipped in as well.
Today the series resumes with a FOX nationally televised game of the week with Karstens facing off against knuckleballer Tim Wakefield.
From my perspective the Yankees really need to be read the riot act, because their performance has been simply awful.
The Red Sox took an early 2-0 lead thanks to a Kevin Youkilis homer off of Andy Pettitte. The Yankees rallied for four runs to take the lead at 4-2 but then Pettitte gave it right back the next inning with runs scoring on a bases loaded walk and a wild pitch.
The Red Sox added two more to take a 7-4 lead and Mariano Rivera (who needs work) was called to pitch in the bottom of the eight inning with the Yankees losing. He wasn't any better, allowing four runs and getting only one out. With Boston extending the lead to 8-4 and Rivera loading the bases, Torre pulled Mo after 21 pitches and brought on Mike Myers. Myers allowed all the inherited runners to score and Boston eventually won 11-4.
Julio Lugo killed the Yankees last night with four hits including a home run and David Ortiz chipped in as well.
Today the series resumes with a FOX nationally televised game of the week with Karstens facing off against knuckleballer Tim Wakefield.
From my perspective the Yankees really need to be read the riot act, because their performance has been simply awful.
