This series was…something.
Although I gave the Tigers praise in my series preview article, there is no real reason for this series to be as close as it was. Despite the Tigers trending in the right direction with their youth movement, there is still work there. And a team loaded with power at the plate should be able to score more than nine runs in a series here. Monday was a gift win, plain and simple. Without the first-inning fielding error from Tigers pitcher Tyler Alexander that allowed the Yankees to obtain an early 2-0 lead, the game could have easily been at minimum 2-2 going to extras. Thankfully it wasn’t, and at the end of the day, a win is a win no matter how you have to get it. No help from Gerrit Cole, of course, as the Yanks’ ace couldn’t get out of the second inning and left the game with nearly 60 pitches under his belt. Not ideal from your $30 million a year starting pitcher. Support in the form of almost all but three bullpen catchers held Tigers slugging to just three hits for the rest of the afternoon and eight punch-outs. Anthony Rizzo likely had the most productive game here, going 0-2 for three walks. That isn’t saying much. In this game, Isiah Kiner-Falefa came out of his shell, too, going 2-3 with a run scored and a walk. Aroldis Chapman earned his second save of the season as well.
Wednesday’s contest was slightly more interesting, as Anthony Rizzo would hit the game’s lone home run for either side, driving in two runs. Kiner-Falefa would have a respectable showing, going 2-4 with a run scored on top of an RBI. Luis Severino took the hill for this one, and though he let up seven hits, he was only charged with one earned run and two walks. Additionally, he would obtain three strikeouts. Not a bad start, but we could all hope it will get better moving forward (I’m kidding, it HAS to get better). After an inning of work, Chad Green ultimately took the win, and Aroldis Chapman would pick up his second consecutive save, bringing the season total to three. Miguel Cabrera on the Tigers side decided to flirt with history as he eyed down hit number 3,000 headed into this series. He would finish the night 3-4 and sit on 2,999 hits going into Thursday’s matinee in Comerica Park. Could you just imagine if the Yankees would intentionally walk him at any point during the game? (spoiler alert).
Going into the last game of the series tied one apiece, the Yankees are looking to move further up in the American League East. And right on queue, the run production was nonexistent as they would be blanked 3-0. Though the team combined for seven hits, there was never any clue they could generate threatening momentum to get in the game. This game was only sitting 1-0 until the bottom of the eighth, and the Yankees had left the top half of the inning after failing to convert a single run with a bases-loaded, no outs opportunity. Jordan Montgomery threw a fantastic start, going six, allowing the lone run in the second inning, fanning five, and walking two on three hits. Monty has had a relatively successful season after falling off in 2021. Having a strong left-hander in the rotation for the Yanks’ can help make sure something like Andrew Heaney doesn’t happen again this coming August.
Remember that “Imagine the Yankees intentionally walked Miggy in this game” from earlier? Well, they did, and Detroit fans let manager Aaron Boone have it. With the roar of boos coming from the stadium, you would have thought this game was in the heat of a playoff matchup. Less than happy is an understatement. The move was understandable; however, seeing that Miggy has just lit up Yankees pitchers the day before, you are trying to win games, and Miggy is the last person in Detroit, you probably want to see with two on no and outs.
From a pitching perspective, the Yankees’ had a great series. The bullpen showed up ready to work, and the Yankees got length out of their starters not named Gerrit Cole. From an offensive perspective, the runners left stranded, and failure to convert in big spots continues to haunt the clubhouse. It will be interesting to see if and when the Yankees figure this out and begin to hit again, but until then, let’s be thankful the Yanks’ are even above .500 at this point.
