Daily Report – 7/22/26
Yankees
If this weekend taught us anything, it’s that the Dodgers control Major League Baseball, and it’s going to require massive changes before they get dethroned. The Yankees, the supposed favorites to come out of the American League, couldn’t score more than two runs in any of their three games against Los Angeles this weekend.
After wasting key scoring chances in Friday’s 2-1 loss, the Yankees’ exhausted bullpen had to be perfect on Sunday night. The Yankees won the second game of Sunday’s doubleheader 2-1. But that final score reveals everything that has gone wrong for them.
The Yankees consistently struggled to rack up hits with runners in scoring position against the Dodgers. On Sunday night, they hit 2-for-10 with runners in scoring position. In the fifth inning, they stranded the bases with nobody out. Yet, they won the game.
So, on one hand, the Yankees’ bullpen deserves to be praised. Nobody has stepped up more than Brent Headrick, who has held teams scoreless in a league-best 42 of 50 relief appearances. On the other hand, the Yankees’ offense simply isn’t producing right now, and the excuses are getting old.
It isn’t justifiable to argue that the loss of Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton is solely to blame for the Yankees’ woes. The Red Sox don’t have Trevor Story or Roman Anthony, but they’ve won 14 consecutive games. Not to mention that the Yankees still have plenty of strong bats in their lineup, including Ben Rice and Cody Bellinger.
Somehow, on Monday, the Yankees teed off on Braxton Ashcraft for eight runs, two more than he had allowed in any of his 19 previous starts this season. Now that Rice, Bellinger, and Goldschmidt have emerged from their late-June slumps, the lineup is starting to perform a little better.
The Yankees can also thank Jazz Chisholm Jr. for their last two wins. Between the eighth inning on Sunday night and the third frame on Monday, Chisholm homered in three consecutive appearances. Yesterday, he hit two home runs and drove five runners home as the Yankees defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates, boasting the league’s second-highest scoring offense, 8-5.
After Sunday’s second game, Chisholm was candid with the media when asked how he felt about his season. “I’ve sucked,” he said. “I’ve sucked all season. The numbers speak for themselves.”
This season, Chisholm owns a .228 batting average and a .726 OPS, his lowest numbers since his shortened 2020 campaign. Last year, he hit a career-high 31 home runs in 130 games. He’s only on track to hit 23 homers this season, but he does have four in his last seven games. Since July 10, he is 8-for-27 (.296) with 9 RBI and a 1.111 OPS.
According to Katie Sharp, Chisholm leads the Majors with three go-ahead homers in the eighth inning or later this season, which is why the Yankees lead the league with 10 clutch go-ahead homers and 16 wins when tied or trailing by the eighth inning.
After yesterday’s win, Chisholm claimed he isn’t trying to be anybody other than himself. He understands that he is not Aaron Judge. Nevertheless, when his teammates heard him criticize himself, they encouraged him. “Sometimes, they’ve seen me dragging a little bit lately,” Chisholm said. “They were just like, ‘Bro, let’s not forget who you are. You’re the greatest in the world. You are Jazz Chisholm.’
“I always think I have confidence, but I just feel like I didn’t fully believe in myself at a point in time.”
Bingo! That is exactly why the Yankees’ bats have been so quiet for the last month, especially during the team’s seven-game losing streak a few weeks ago. They don’t lack focus, despite Judge’s claim; instead, they lack confidence. They don’t believe in themselves because they haven’t achieved anything without their captain.
At least, not yet.
Amid his team’s challenges, José Caballero has maintained his approach at the plate. Ever since the league implemented the pitch clock rule three years ago, Caballero has consistently taken advantage of one key aspect: The batter and the pitcher must make eye contact by the eight-second mark.
To mess with a pitcher’s timing, Caballero waits until the last second to make eye contact. Gerrit Cole wagged his finger at Caballero for this a few years ago, and earlier this season, Caballero’s antics toppled Jacob deGrom.
In the bottom of yesterday’s eighth inning, Dennis Santana chirped and blew kisses at Caballero, prompting the benches to clear.
“The whole league should know who I am, what I do in the box,” Caballero said. “They should be aware of it. And for you to be mad at something the league implemented, he shouldn’t be mad at me. He should be mad at someone else. […] If you’re not used to it, you should practice.
“If you get frustrated, I’m winning.”
One way to stimulate confidence is to have something extra to play for. Today, the Yankees have to defend Caballero’s honor in their split-admission Bronx doubleheader. For the first time ever, Gerrit Cole and Max Fried are both healthy at the same time, and they will each start a game today.
Here’s what else I’m watching:
The division standings are tightening up. Don’t look now, but the Red Sox are 4.5 games behind the Yankees for second place, and today, they will try to win their 15th straight game for the first time in 80 years. Meanwhile, the Yankees sit two games behind Tampa Bay for the division lead.
The trade deadline is less than two weeks away, and several reports have indicated that the Yankees are highly interested in acquiring All-Star closer Mason Miller from San Diego. They have also checked in on several catchers, including Hunter Goodman, Ryan Jeffers, and Shea Langeliers. Jeff Passan said that a trade for Jeffers is the likeliest to occur, but Langeliers is my top candidate.
Max Fried will be limited to 60 pitches tonight. Also, Aaron Boone indicated on Monday that Giancarlo Stanton was nowhere near returning, but he corrected himself today. He said Stanton is actually doing quite well, and will return in a “reasonable amount of time.”
At 1:05 PM, in the first game of today’s doubleheader, RHP Gerrit Cole (3-5, 3.93 ERA) will start for the Yankees against RHP Mitch Keller (6-7, 5.14 ERA) (YES, Gotham Sports).
Then, in Game 2 at 7:05 PM, LHP Max Fried (4-3, 3.21 ERA) will toe the slab for New York against RHP Bubba Chandler (3-8, 4.77 ERA) (YES, Gotham Sports).
Schedule
1:05 PM: NYY vs. PIT, Game 1; YES, Gotham Sports; SP: RHP Gerrit Cole (3-5, 3.93 ERA) vs. RHP Mitch Keller (6-7, 5.14 ERA)
7:05 PM: NYY vs. PIT, Game 2; YES, Gotham Sports; SP: LHP Max Fried (4-3, 3.21 ERA) vs. RHP Bubba Chandler (3-8, 4.77 ERA)
