New York Yankees win second straight north of the border

The New York Yankees defeated the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday night.  The game took place at Rogers Centre in Toronto, Canada and the final score was 4-2.  Masahiro Tanaka started for the Yankees and pitched great.  He didn’t look to have it early but really settled in and dominated.  Brandon Drury had two hits and two RBI, Didi Gregorius had two hits and Tyler Wade had two RBI to lead the offense. 

Tanaka pitched six innings giving up three hits and a run.  He walked none and struck out eight and earned his first win of the season.  Tommy Khanle pitched 1 1/3 innings giving up a walk and he struck out one, David Robertson pitched to two batters and retired them both and Aroldis Chapman pitched an inning giving up two hits and a run with three strikeouts and earned his first save of the season. 

Aaron Sanchez started for the Blue Jays and pitched 5 2/3 innings giving up eight hits and four runs with four walks and two strikeouts.  Sanchez took his first loss of the season.  Danny Barnes pitched to one batter and retired him, Ryan Tepera pitched a perfect inning with two strikeouts and Tyler Clippard pitched a perfect inning with a couple of strikeouts.  Roberto Osuna pitched a perfect inning. 

Brett Gardner had a hit and drew a walk, Gregorius had two hits and drew a walk and Neil Walker had a hit and drew a walk.  Billy McKinney got his first major league hit, Drury had two hits, two RBI and drew a walk and Wade had a hit and two RBI.  Drury, Gregorius and Wade each hit a double and Gregorius hit a triple.  The Yankees were 3-10 with runners in scoring position and left six men on base. 

Justin Smoak had a hit, Steve Pearce had a hit and Yangervis Solarte had a hit and an RBI.  Randal Grichuk had a hit and an RBI, Russell Martin drew a walk and Kevin Pillar had a hit.  Smoak, Pillar, Pearce and Solarte each hit a double.  Grichuk hit a homerun and the Blue Jays were 1-4 with runners in scoring position and left four men on base. 

In the second Drury hit an RBI double to give the Yankees a 1-0 lead.  In the bottom of the second Grichuk hit a solo homerun to tie the game at one.  In the fourth Drury hit an RBI single to give the Yankees a 2-1 lead.  In the sixth Wade hit a two-run double to extend the Yankees lead to 4-1.  In the ninth Solarte hit an RBI double to cut the lead to 4-2 and that would be the final score.  The Yankees have won the first two games of the series and season.  They will try and win their third straight and take the series on Saturday afternoon with CC Sabathia on the mound.   

The New York Mets smash the St. Louis Cardinals to win on Opening Day

The New York Mets defeated the St. Louis Cardinals on Thursday afternoon.  The game took place at Citi Field in Flushing, New York and the final score was 9-4.  Noah Syndergaard started for the Mets and he pitched well.  Yoenis Cespedes led the offense with two hits and three RBI. 

Syndergaard pitched six innings giving up six hits and four runs with ten strikeouts.  He picked up the win, his first of the year.  Robert Gsellman pitched a perfect inning with three strikeouts, Anthony Swarzak pitched a perfect inning with a strikeout and Jeurys Familia pitched an inning giving up a walk and he struck out one. 

Carlos Martinez took the loss pitching 4 1/3 innings giving up four hits and five runs with four of them being earned.  He walked six and struck out five.  Matt Bowman pitched 1/3 of an inning giving up three hits and three runs with a walk, Brett Cecil pitched 1/3 of an inning giving up a hit and Mike Mayers pitched an inning giving up two hits and he struck out one.  Jordan Hicks pitched an inning giving up a hit and he struck out one and Sam Tuivailala pitched an inning giving up a hit and a run with two walks and a strikeout. 

Brandon Nimmo had two hits and drew a walk, Cespedes had two hits and three RBI and Jay Bruce had a hit, an RBI and drew two walks.  Asdrubal Cabrera drew a walk, Todd Frazier had a hit and drew a walk and Adrian Gonzalez had two hits, an RBI and drew two walks.  Kevin Plawecki had two hits, an RBI and drew two walks, Amed Rosario had two hits and two RBI and Plawecki and Gonzalez each hit a double.  The Mets were 5-15 with runners in scoring position and left 11 men on base.  Bruce had a stolen base. 

Matt Carpenter had a hit, Jose Martinez had three hits and two RBI and Jose Molina had a hit, two RBI and drew a walk.  Paul DeJong had a hit, Carpenter hit a double and Molina and Martinez each hit a homerun.  The Cardinals were 1-4 with runners in scoring position and left three men on base.  Martinez committed an error. 

In the first Cabrera reached on an error to give the Mets a 1-0 lead.  In the second Molina hit a two-run

New York Yankees win in Toronto on Opening Day

The New York Yankees defeated the Toronto Blue Jays on Thursday night.  The game took place at Rogers Centre in Toronto, Canada and the final score was 6-1.  Luis Severino started for the Yankees and pitched well and Giancarlo Stanton led the offense with two homeruns and four RBI. 

Severino pitched 5 2/3 innings giving up a hit and no runs with three walks and seven strikeouts.  Severino picked up his first win of the season.  Chad Green pitched 1 1/3 perfect innings with three strikeouts, Dellin Betances pitched an inning giving up a hit and a run and Aroldis Chapman pitched a perfect inning with two strikeouts. 

J.A. Happ pitched 4 2/3 innings giving up four hits and three runs with two of them being earned.  He walked one and struck out five and took the loss.  John Axford pitched 1/3 of an inning giving up two hits and a run with a strikeout, Aaron Loup pitched an inning giving up a hit and a walk and Danny Barnes pitched an inning giving up two hits and a run with a strikeout.  Seung Hwan Oh pitched an inning giving up a hit and he struck out one and Tyler Clippard pitched an inning giving up a hit and a run with a strikeout. 

Brett Gardner had a hit and an RBI, Aaron Judge had two hits and drew a walk and Stanton had three hits and four RBI.  Gary Sanchez had a hit and an RBI, Aaron Hicks had two hits and Didi Gregorius drew a walk.  Brandon Drury had a hit, Neil Walker had a hit and Judge, Stanton, Sanchez and Walker each hit a double.  Stanton hit two homeruns and Gardner hit a homerun.  The Yankees were 1-6 with runners in scoring position and left seven men on base.  Severino committed an error. 

Josh Donaldson drew a walk, Justin Smoak drew a walk and Curtis Granderson had a hit and drew a walk.  Kevin Pillar had a hit and an RBI including a homerun.  The Blue Jays were 0-4 with runners in scoring position and left four men on base.  Donaldson had a stolen base and Granderson and Oh each committed an error. 

In the first Stanton hit a two-run homerun giving the Yankees a 2-0 lead.  In the fifth Stanton hit an RBI double to push the Yankees lead to 3-0 and Sanchez hit an RBI double to make it a 4-0 game.  In the seventh Gardner hit a solo homerun extending the lead to 5-0.  In the eighth Pillar hit a solo homerun to cut the lead to 5-1 and in the ninth Stanton hit a solo homerun making it 6-1 and that would be the final score. 

The two teams will play on Friday night in game two of their opening four game series.  Masahiro Tanaka will matchup against Aaron Sanchez. 

MLB Season Preview and Predictions

The Baseball season begins on Thursday afternoon.  It is the first time in years that all the teams will begin on the same day which I think is great.  I am going to do a prediction segment here which is always fun because how often are we right??  Especially since baseball is such a long season and has so many twists and turns but that is what makes it so great.  I will start with the local teams first, the New York Yankees and New York Mets. 

New York Yankees: Prediction is first place in the AL East.  They were the darlings of the world last year with the Baby Bombers well now they are all grown up and added reigning NL MVP Giancarlo Stanton.  They have the same five starters that ended last year one game away from the World Series and they still have that very good and very deep bullpen.  It is hard not seeing them winning the division and making another run in the postseason.  They are back to being the Evil Empire. 

New York Mets:  I am picking them 2^nd in the NL East and a wild card team.  I think the Nationals are too good for the Mets to overtake but they should make it back to the postseason.  Their season mainly hinges on the health of their starting rotation.  I think Jacob DeGrom and Noah Syndergaard will be healthy though and then if you get anything out of Matt Harvey, Jason Vargas, Zach Wheeler, Seth Lugo, Steven Matz then they really have something.  I think they improved the bullpen and like what they did by signing Todd Frazier and resigning Jay Bruce.  They have a pretty good team that if healthy can be a playoff team. 

AL Central-Cleveland Indians

AL West-Houston Astros

AL 1^st wild card-Boston Red Sox

AL 2^nd wild card-Anaheim Angels

NL Central-Chicago Cubs

NL West-Los Angeles Dodgers

NL 1^st Wild Card-St Louis Cardinals

NL 2^nd wild card-New York Mets

New York Yankees win final exhibitioin game

The New York Yankees defeated the Atlanta Braves on Monday night.  The game took place at Suntrust Park in Atlanta, Georgia and the final score was 5-1.  Sonny Gray started for the Yankees and pitched well and the bullpen was great.  Didi Gregorius and Giancarlo Stanton each hit homeruns for the Yankees. 

Gray pitched five innings giving up three hits and a run with no walks and seven strikeouts.  Gray earned the win.  Dellin Betances pitched a perfect inning striking out the side, David Robertson pitched a perfect inning and Jonathan Holder pitched an inning giving up a hit and he struck out one.  Ben Heller pitched 1/3 of an inning giving up a walk and he struck out one and Aroldis Chapman pitched to two batters and struck them both out. 

Brandon McCarthy started for the Braves and he pitched three innings giving up two hits and four runs with three walks and a strikeout.  He took the loss in the game.  Jose Ramirez pitched an inning giving up a hit, Arodys Vizcaino pitched an inning giving up a hit and a walk and he struck out two and A.J. Minter pitched an inning and struck out two.  Sam Freeman pitched an inning giving up a hit, Peter Moylan pitched an inning giving up a hit and an unearned run and he struck out two and Rex Brothers pitched a perfect inning with a strikeout. 

Aaron Judge had a hit and drew a walk, Stanton had a hit, two RBI and drew a walk and Gregorius had a hit, two RBI and drew a walk.  Aaron Hicks drew a walk, Shane Robinson had a hit and an RBI and Brandon Drury had a hit.  Tyler Wade had a hit, Judge and Robinson each hit a double and Gregorius and Stanton each hit a homerun.  The Yankees were 1-9 with runners in scoring position and left five men on base. 

Ender Inciarte had a hit, Isranel Wilson drew a walk and Ozzie Albies had a hit.  Tyler Flowers had an RBI, Nick Markakis had a hit and Cleuluis Rondon had a hit.  Albies hit a double and the Braves were 0-2 with runners in scoring position and left three men on base.  Freeman and Kazmar Jr. each committed an error.  In the first Gregorius hit a two-run homerun to give the Yankees a 2-0 lead.  In the third Stanton hit a two-run homerun to push the Yankees lead to 4-0.  In the bottom of the fourth Flowers hit an RBI ground out to cut the lead to 4-1.  In the eighth Robinson hit an RBI double to extend the Yankees lead to 5-1 and that would be the final score. 

The Yankees completed their exhibition schedule at 18-13 and will have a couple of days off before the season begins Thursday afternoon in Toronto.  It will be Luis Severino making the start against J.A. Happ.   

The New York Yankees end the grapefruit league with a loss

The New York Yankees were defeated by the Tampa Bay Rays in their final grapefruit league game.  The game took place at Charlotte Sports Park and the final score was 11-1.  Brian Keller started for the Yankees and didn’t pitch well.  The Yankees offense only managed four hits. 

Keller pitched 2 2/3 innings giving up eight hits and five runs with a walk and a strikeout and he took the loss.   Brady Lail pitched an inning giving up a hit and a run with a walk and two strikeouts, Adonis Rosa pitched 1 1/3 innings giving up five hits and four runs and Trevor Lane pitched an inning giving up a hit and a run with a walk and two strikeouts.  Raynel Espinal pitched an inning giving up a walk and he struck out the side and Andrew Schwaab pitched an inning giving up a hit and he struck out three. 

Tyler Wade had a hit, Diego Castillo had a hit and Trey Amburgey had two hits and an RBI.  Jorge Saez drew a walk, Castillo hit a double and the Yankees were 1-6 with runners in scoring position and left five men on base.  Wade had a stolen base. 

In the first Wilson Ramos hit a sac fly giving the Rays a 1-0 lead.  In the third Carlos Gomez hit a two-run homerun and Adeiny Hechavarria hit a two-run homerun to push the Rays lead to 5-0.  In the fourth Matt Duffy hit an RBI single and the score was 6-0 Rays.  Daniel Robertson hit a two-run homerun, Tristan Gray hit a solo homerun and Josh Lowe hit a solo homerun in the fifth to extend the Rays lead to 10-0.  In the sixth Jermaine Palacios hit a solo homerun and it was 11-0 Rays.  In the ninth Amburgey hit an RBI single to make it 11-1 and that would be the final score. 

The Yankees finished up their grapefruit league schedule and will fly to Atlanta to take on the Braves on Monday night.  They finished 17-13 in the grapefruit league and had a good camp. 

New York Yankees win both games of a split squad

The New York Yankees played two games on Saturday afternoon as they had a split squad.  They took on the Atlanta Braves at Champion Stadium in Orlando, Florida and they took on the Toronto Blue Jays at home in Tampa.  The final scores were 8-3 over Atlanta and 13-6 over Toronto. 

Luis Severino made his final tune up before his Opening Day start and he pitched well.  He went five innings giving up two hits and two runs with a couple of walks and two strikeouts.  In the game against Atlanta to follow was Chad Green who pitched an inning giving up two hits and a run and he struck out one, Adam Warren pitched 1 1/3 innings giving up a hit and he struck out three and Ben Heller picked up the win pitching to two batters and striking them both out.  Cody Carroll pitched a perfect inning with a strikeout. 

In the game against the Blue Jays at home David Hale started and he didn’t pitch that well.  He pitched three innings giving up seven hits and three runs, he did have three strikeouts.  Giovanny Gallegos pitched two innings giving up a hit and he struck out one and picked up the win, J.P. Feyereisen pitched 1 2/3 innings giving up four hits and three runs with a walk and Josh Rogers pitched 2 1/3 innings giving up a hit and he struck out one and picked up the save. 

In the game against the Braves Aaron Hicks had two hits and an RBI, Jeff Hendrix drew a walk and Gary Sanchez drew a walk.  Francisco Diaz had an RBI and drew a walk, Ryan McBroom had two hits, two RBI and drew a walk and Tyler Wade drew a walk.  Angel Aguilar had a hit, Gleyber Torres had two hits and an RBI and Billy McKinney had a hit and an RBI.  Shane Robinson had a hit, an RBI and drew a walk.  Hicks hit a double and a homerun and McBroom also hit a homerun.  The Yankees were 4-8 with runners in scoring position and left five men on base.  Hendrix was picked off. 

In the game against the Blue Jays Brett Gardner had an RBI, Zach Zehner had a hit and two RBI and Aaron Judge had a hit.  Rashad Crawford had two hits and an RBI, Giancarlo Stanton had a hit, two RBI and drew a walk and Jorge Saez drew a walk.  Didi Gregorius had a hit and two RBI, Abiatal Avelino had a hit and Miguel Andujar had a hit and drew two walks.  Estevan Florial had a hit, an RBI and drew a walk, Austin Romine had a hit, an RBI and drew a walk and Eric Kratz had two hits and three RBI.  Romine and Kratz each hit a double and Crawford hit two doubles.  Gregorius, Stanton and Zehner each hit a homerun and the Yankees were 4-11 with runners in scoring position and left nine men on base.  Andujar had a stolen base.