SU knows the Yankees will not win the next 145 games in a row so I am going to enjoy this winning streak while it lasts. A few things to keep in mind:
- As pointed out by Jeff, Chase Headley will not hit .400 this year. I must admit it’s shocking to see him get any hits after the last few seasons. In the past, it was jolting to ever see Headley or Brian McCann ever get a hit through the shifts.
- It’s important that Chris Carter be bad. I do not want Girardi to platoon him with Bird at 1st base. I know there are some Bird skeptics on the this blog but SU believes he is the real deal and will be a solid contributor who should play full-time. So far, Carter is cooperating.
- I know Matt Holliday hit a 458-foot home run last night but he is one wild swinger. He is a guess hitter. SU does not like him batting 3rd — too much feast or famine. Once Sanchez and Didi return, you can almost pick the players out of a hat to make the line-up – really won’t matter that much.
- Most importantly, unlike the last several seasons, this is a likeable team. The players seem to enjoy one another and the youngsters make a huge difference energy wise. Plus, the more I read about the kids down in Trenton, this could just be the beginning. I know the Yankees over-hype their prospects but the way I look at it, most of the good ones were obtained last year in trades so they are not home grown per se. Maybe that will be the difference and will allow them to avoid the Jesus Montero effect.
Carmelo Anthony and La La are separating:
https://hollywoodlife.com/2017/04/17/carmelo-la-la-anthony-break-up-separated-marriage-living-apart/
This means that Melo should be more open to possible trade destinations says long-time SU subscriber J. Levine. However, SU says he may still use the “NY schools” excuse to want to stay in NY for his 10-year old son. In the meantime, Porzingis is upset about the chaos in the organization. SU says get over that. He will stand to make a lot more money through endorsements in NY and hey, it can’t get any worse once they move Melo unless they bring in in Demarcus Cousins or Rajon Rondo. The fans will love you here and they are prepared to build around you. Man up.
Finally, a warning to Yankee YES Network viewers this week. Al Leiter is doing the color this series. Prepare to mute.
Sports Update Intergalactic 
Loving getting to watch Judge. With all the strikouts last year you couldn’t really see what he was. Watch him run the bases like he cares. He got that fan interference triple where someone like Robinson Cano would have been on first base. He got an infield RBI single yesterday. It was a tough play but you could almost see the SS surprised because he didn’t seem to rush the throw at all and Judge beat it out. Judge plays hard and it looks like he’s having fun. (BTW, this is the way to see players enjoying the game…not bat flips, etc.)
I guess I’m labeled as one of the readers who is “down on Bird.” I’m not. I like him and want him to do well. I just warned that the expectations that built up over the past year seemed to be inflated. People seemed to project him as a middle of the order guy (3-4-5 hitter) and I think that only works if there’s limited talent around him. To me he’s much closer to Eric Hosmer than Albert Pujols. And yes, you can win a World Series with an Eric Hosmer batting cleanup. But if you really want to build a team for sustained success, you can’t have Eric Hosmer as your cleanup hitter. You need more production out of the 3-4-5 spots than Hosmer can provide. And I think the same is true for Bird. I want Bird to be a very successful 5-6-7 hitter for the Yankees and I want them to be sure to fill the heart of the order with big time run producers.
I’ve written the same comment many times. LaLa is not the reason Carmelo Anthony hasn’t been traded. Carmelo Anthony is not an asset that other teams want. The best thing that is said about his game is that he “adds offense” but anyone looking at more than a box score would believe that this is the case.
“I honestly didn’t look at it too much. I just took my swing and started running.” – Aaron Judge about the huge homerun he hit last night
I sure hope this guy continues to succeed and it doesn’t impact the way he plays the game. He’s hitting with huge power but still running out every hit whether it goes to the infield, the wall or the bleachers. And he seems to be having fun. Yes, you can look like you’re having fun without stopping to watch your homeruns.
Gotta add another comment on Judge. The team has struggled a bit over the past few games. But how about Judge leading off the top of the 9th on Sunday. They were down a run and he quickly got two strikes against him. He then went with the next pitch and poked a single to the opposite field. How about that? A middle-of-the-order Yankees slugger, who hit a couple tape-measure homeruns during the previous few games, decided to protect the plate with a humble swing that started a rally in the 9th. They ended up falling short but Judge did his part.
Like everyone else, I was down on Judge after his appearance with the team last season. But he seems to have really changed his approach and doesn’t seem to be letting SportsCenter highlights go to his head or impact his swing.