The USTA decided to let the fans back in for the 2021 US Open and it was a great event. Really the best that SU can ever recall. The women’s final featured an 18- and 19-year old, and the winner was actually a qualifier who had to win an extra 3 matches to just get into the tournament. That never happens in major championship tennis. SU’s thoughts:

1. Women’s tennis thrived without the presence of Serena Williams who in SU’s view sucks up all the oxygen in the room. “Is she healthy? What is she thinking? How is she moving? ” She’s coming up on 40 now and the reality is that it’s hard to see her staying healthy for 7 rounds to win another major. The women’s game has a lot of great young talent and the game will survive.
2. SU is a big Djokovic fan and he struggled through what was a tough draw. Brooksby, the 20-year old American with the unusual game, Berritini in the quarters who is a top 10 player, Zverev in the semis who is the hottest player in 2021 and then Medvedev in the finals. I thought yesterday, the fact that he had spent 50% more time on the court this tournament than Medvedev totally showed almost right from the beginning of the match. Medvedev decided he would not miss in rallies, and looked to put as little pace on his shots as possible early in the rallies. He kept the ball deep and dared Djokovic to be the aggressor. But he moves very well and the only way Djokovic was going to win was to endure 20 – 30 shot rallies one after the another. To SU, he clearly did not have the energy for that and you could tell by the number of times that he played serve and volley on his serve. He almost never does that but he was just looking to shorten points as much as possible – especially with Medvedev receiving from the back wall of the court.
3. I don’t know if you caught it, but in the last changeover of the match, when the fans were chanting Djokovic’s name, he started crying in his chair and covered his face with a towel. That’s because this is a guy who never, ever really has the crowd behind him. He plays in the era of Federer and Nadal, and fans have always viewed him as the interloper and the bad guy. This is especially the case in New York where fans cheer his service faults. SU thought his reaction was very revealing as he clearly values the crowd’s support and has always wanted it. Well, he finally had it in the finals but in a losing effort. He seemed genuinely moved in his post-match comments.
4. Djokovic had a great run and managed his way through the pressure of what he was striving for with the Grand Slam until the finals. Credit to him. I also think he will start to enjoy more crowd support now as he enters the final years of his career and will be having tougher matches against the next Gen players.

Meanwhile, the Yankees and Mets played a couple of compelling games these last two days albeit in 4-hour increments. Both teams are flawed and will most likely not make the playoffs. But it was refreshing to see the fireworks last night with Lindor and Stanton and the benches clearing. Finally, some emotion from the Yankees. SU can no longer blame Boone. You have starters who only go 3+ innings start after start, and your bullpen is down Britten and Loaisiga now. Chapman is unreliable and Chad Green has amazingly given up 13 home runs this year – for a relief pitcher! Each one is more crushing than the one before. The Mets are only 3 games out of the wild card but so many teams are in front of them. The Yankees are now out of the wild card and while their schedule is favorable, it’s hard to see them getting their act together to make it.

SU must give props to Stanton who along with Judge are carrying the team. Did you hear A-Rod kill Joey Gallo last night time after time? Basically said that there was never a reason to pitch to Stanton with Gallo next in the line up. Of course, he is right and it makes you wonder why the line up has Gallo hitting behind Stanton? Note to Boone children who we know make out the line up each game.

SU is done with Sanchez (can’t hit or field), Gleyber (can’t hit or field), and Odor (a strike out waiting to happen). Enough of the .200 hitters. How is this ever a winning formula? But I am happy to be proven wrong and see the team win 15 of 20 games with an easy schedule down the stretch.

Finally, the NFL season has arrived and SU bought the Red Zone Channel for the first time ever. Whoa. If you do fantasy football, that is a rush and a bit overwhelming. SU will definitely need to ease into this. But what an upgrade over watching either the Giants or Jets!!

Thoughts about the US Open or the Yankees? The floor is open.

First of all, a happy and healthy New Year to our intergalactic, Jewish SU subscribers.

SU enjoyed the recent hot streak of the Yankees but clearly performance is now “reverting to the mean” as David Cone likes to say for 2021. It’s interesting to focus on what went right in the 13-game winning streak, and what is now going wrong (as in what they did the entire first half of the season) as we move into September:

1. When they were winning, the big boppers were all hot for some of that time. Judge, Stanton and even Voit (for a week) fueled those wins.
2. Also importantly, it was the contact hitters in the lower part of the order who did a lot – timely hits, getting on base, moving the runners (what????) and playing good defense (oh, yeah). Velazquez played excellent shortstop while Gleyber was out, and hit just as well. Tyler Wade had a hot streak in there, too. Boone did his best to cool things by playing Jonathan Davis but by and large, this was a more balanced line-up.
3. The starters provided some length so that the bullpen would not get over-used. But now Britten is out for the year, Loaisiga is out for a couple of weeks (huge loss) and Chapman is well, not entirely comfortable. A 5-inning start creates big problems, and this guy Heaney is historically bad.
4. Judge and Stanton have cooled temporarily. We hope? Judge will hit again but Stanton is known to go a month with no production.
5. Joey Gallo has been consistent – strikes out 50% of the time. It’s remarkable but he says his approach is unique and he will stay with it. The hope is that Boone puts him down in the order to continue his consistency out of harm’s way. But he seems very reluctant to bat him lower than 5th.
6. Urshela has an issue with his hand or wrist. He is making very uncharacteristic errors. But Odor is no better (SU is done with him) and Boone won’t play Wade anymore.

Bottom line: SU can very easily see the Blue Jays catching them for the Wild Card. They are a young, hungry team with a great offense. The Yankees are terrible vs. the AL East this year, and Baltimore has really hurt them. The Red Sox are not world beaters but SU sees them finishing ahead of the Yankees. This has not been an enjoyable season. Remember, the Yankees were picked to be in the World Series this season.

Meanwhile, amazingly, the Mets are right there. If their closer, Diaz, was a bit more consistent, they actually might be in 1st place. The series this weekend with the Yankees is huge. Atlanta has come back down to earth. This will be fun.

Finally, the US Open has been amazing this year with great matches and the arrival of a slew of youngsters on both the men’s and women’s side. My man Djokovic is still hanging in there and SU says he saves his best performances for the later rounds as the quality of opponent gets better. But he will likely need to beat Berritini, Zverev and then Medvedev in order to win and that is a tall order. However, in winning the French Open, he beat Berritini, Nadal and Tsitsipas in order so it can be done.

So, let’s pretend that you are Aaron Boone and you have to make out the line-up for the team. You are excited that Brian Cashman, finally, gave you some left-handed hitters to put in your line-up, and you like the idea of alternating righty/lefty hitters in the batting order. SU is with you on that. It’s a good idea.

But you have this one guy, Joey Gallo, who is hitting .199 for the season and even worse for the Yankees. I believe it’s .135 and .091 with RISP. Clearly, last night and today, Boone has delegated the line-up responsibility to his children as Gallo is hitting 2nd. Boone may be rotating this activity across his children, and they may all really like Gallo. I mean, what is the case for batting Gallo 2nd?

He is the 3-outcome hitter: strikeout; walk; and the occasional home run. As the Yankees head down the stretch, every game is big and their hitters are not all performing at peak capacity. As a fan, you have confidence in Judge (all year), Stanton (the last few weeks until you don’t) and Rizzo. LeMahieu can also get a hit. After that, anything is a bonus. Sanchez hit 9th last night – well-deserved and he earned it – and that is a good spot for him in my view going forward. The question is why put Gallo right in the middle of your only productive hitters vs. 7th or 8th?

Now, he may hit 2 home runs today and everyone will say, “SU, you are an idiot.” I can take it – it’s part of the job (and hey, I am not getting paid for this). But at least as a Yankee, he has been awful so far, and what are you seeing that makes you think this is a good idea in the key #2 hole where Judge and Stanton usually hit? I do not get it – at all. This is a left-handed Dave Kingman (who hit higher than Gallo for average by the way) and i am sure he never hit 2nd in his career.

If you want a left-handed bat in there, put in Gardner then. SU is not high on Odor – he gets a hit a week, and this reputation for “big hits” with the Yankees is a bit overblown in my opinion. Or put Velazquez in there as he has an idea of what he is trying to do with men on base.

Please explain.

and you’re not as bad as you look when you are losing.” That is the old adage in sports and SU is a big believer in that. The Yankees won 13 games in a row after a lackluster first half of the season, and all of a sudden they were world beaters that were threatening the Rays for the Division title. Now, they have lost 3 close games and are 7 games back and the Division title is no longer in play. What to think?

1. The Yankees have a great record in 2021 in 1- and 2-run games. It’s not sustainable and this losing streak is all close games.
2. The Yankees have players who run hot and cold. Yes, there are some who have been very consistent like Judge (and Joey Gallo, of course) but more of the players are like Stanton and Voit. The problem with Voit is that Boone sat him so many games in the last week that he has now cooled (good job there).
3. Boone is a great communicator but he seems to have no feel for in-game decisions. Kluber sailed through the first 3 innings last night although he seemed to hang a number of curve balls. In the 4th, it was hit after hit and you could see that he had lost it. Maybe after the long layoff, he had hit his limit at 45 – 50 pitches? Take him out? Nah. Better to give up the grand slam. Going forward, do you risk pitching him again when it will take some time for him to potentially regain his form from earlier in the season? Or do you go with the guys who have been very consistent for a month? As the division is now out of reach, maybe you can keep rolling him out there now but if German returns with any effectiveness, we will see.
4. One thing is for sure: Heaney should never pitch. And in a close game last night?
5. Gallo now .105 with RISP for the Yankees. SU gets the analytics and his on-base percentage but the reality is that in a rally, the best you can hope for is a walk. The guy strikes out 40%+ of the time. Please bat him 7th and while you are at it, put Sanchez 8th.

Here is my fear: a wild card game against the Red Sox and Chris Sale starts for Boston followed by Eovaldi. Season over.

Did you see Andy Murray’s comments yesterday after losing to Tsitsipas in 5 sets? Tsitsipas took a 20-minute bathroom break to change his clothes after the 4th set (and to potentially get some coaching from his dad) and Murray was hot happy. Murray is also a big advocate of the players getting vaccinated and Tsitsipas is not vaccinated and will not do so (SU comment: he’s an idiot). However, apparently, about half the men’s players are not vaccinated at the US Open – amazing. Of course, all of the workers there are required to be vaccinated as are the fans. Anyway, Murray was very blunt with the media after the match and said he had lost respect for Tsitsipas. SU has never been a big Murray fan as he is always grousing on the court and yelling at his box, but he plays hard and cares. He’s a good guy off the court and speaks his mind. Apparently, the other men’s players don’t like Tsitsipas either. It’s good for the sport as you need less hugging and kissing and more edginess here and there.

Zverev is the hottest player coming into the tournament and he is the subject of sexual abuse charges from his former girlfriend that the ATP Tour has not addressed. SU is rooting for Djokovic but he has a tough draw. The cooler weather will help him and he may even get some love from the NY fans with Federer and Nadal out of the tournament.

Finally, what’s going on with the Mets and the “thumbs down” signs led by Javy Baez? Sandy Alderson will not stand for it and the fans won’t be happy either. SU says in New York, you can get the money but you have to perform or you will be booed. If you don’t want that, take less money and play in Baltimore or some other city. SU always thought the Met fans were not quite as tough as Yankee fans but apparently not the case? Let’s see if this rallies the team to make a late season run. They have a favorable schedule.

If you watched last night’s Yankees – Oakland game, you saw what was a dreadful game for the home plate umpire. For both teams. Aaron Boone was actually ejected after watching Judge and then Gallo get called out on pitches that were each a few inches off the plate in the first 2 innings.

SU asks this question: does the home plate umpire go back and review the electronic record of his game after-the-fact and make adjustments? He missed almost every close call all game long – especially on the corners and on the low pitches. Look, everyone has a bad game – I suppose even umpires. The question is do they make an adjustment the next time they are calling balls and strikes? Or are they stubborn and keep to what they know?

The solution is simple: electronic umpiring. The ump would still be there to call any close plays at home plate during the game. And, by the way, SU’s theory, backed up by no data, is that umpires on any base are well below 50% in calling the close plays correctly. Not their fault – so many things to look at and now at 2nd base, you have the issue of the runner losing contact with the base for a milli-second and being called out as the fielder has his glove on the player throughout. It’s frustrating and not the reason for replay but it is what it is for now.

We have the review process and while that may take too long at times, it is a good system to get the close calls correct. Look at tennis now. In the majors, they are going to 100% electronic line calling and there is no room for questioning by the players. So much better. Plus how can a linesperson call a 135 mph serve down to the millimeter from 50 feet away? Baseball needs to change the system as soon as the technology is good enough.

The Yankees stole a win last night. Up 6-0 early, the game was tied up quickly and SU says these are the type of games that winning streaks usually end on. SU was not happy to see Voit on the bench again as he is the hottest hitter right now on the team – and in the AL. Rizzo broke a 2 for 31 slump with a double but Voit needs to play every day while he is hot. The reality in baseball is that players don’t stay hot for that long. Voit hasn’t started since last Saturday. Is the goal to cool him off? Is it more important to get Rizzo going at the expense of cooling off Voit? SU knows Oakland is a massive outfield and they don’t want to tire Stanton out. Fine. Then sit Rizzo once in a while as well. You play the hot hand until he’s no longer hot. You don’t freeze the player to cool him.

Kluber starting on Monday and Heaney goes to the bullpen. Kluber will be on a pitch count so that’s fine. Heaney can come in for him. Getting Kluber right for a post-season run is a good move. Gleyber Torres is starting a rehab assignment and that is a tougher choice for SU. He has really not been good for 2 seasons now and Velazquez is a major upgrade defensively at shortstop. Plus they are winning big with Velazquez. I would give Velazquez the starts as he is hitting and certainly bring him in for defense late in games if they go with Gleyber. But Boone will put Torres in and let him have his 50 at bats to try and get going. You don’t mess with karma – think this one through, Aaron.

Going into last night’s game, the Yankees had lost 21 of the last 28 games in Oakland. These games will not be easy. SU says they must go all out to win the division as a Wild Card game vs. Boston will be too stressful.

Finally, SU took in a Met game this week with long-time subscriber, E. Steele. I think Citi Field is a better venue than Yankee Stadium. Better food offerings/court, more open and a better setting. Yankee Stadium has good leg room at the seats (every important for SU) but the seats slope away from the field and the noise drifts upwards. The Mets have lost so many low scoring games by 1 run the last few weeks. 24,000 fans for a Giants game – not what you want. Clearly, the faithful are throwing in the towel. But they have a favorable schedule coming up and the NL East is not good. Make your run now and put some pressure on the Braves.

Yankee fans are used to it by now. The relievers in the 5th through 8th innings are generally good but whoever is in the 9th, it’s time to buckle up and strap in. And it doesn’t seem to matter who that guy is.

One thing became clear last night – “crystal” clear as Jack Nicholson said in A Few Good Men. Aroldis Chapman is no sure thing right now, and cannot locate his fastball for a strike. Last night, his confidence in the fastball seemed to decrease with every pitch. Paul O’Neill was all over it. SU says it doesn’t help that Chapman takes about 2 minutes between each pitch – not sure if that is his issue or the inability of Sanchez to clearly flash the signs. My guess is that Sanchez kept calling for the fastball and Chapman was shaking him off.

In the final at bat, O’Neill’s call was spot on with Freddy Freeman up. Peralta kept throwing change ups and O’Neill basically said that Freeman would have to look to hit to left field as he had to protect against the fastball. Sure enough, Freeman hit a long fly to left field for the final out – which by the way took a long time for Gallo to get to it.

The question for Yankee fans is this: can you trust Chapman anymore in the 9th inning for this season? SU may be criticized for looking at the glass half empty with an 11-game winning streak. But Boston is right there and Oakland and now Seattle are in striking distance for the wild card. Tampa Bay is equally hot these days and a 4.5 game lead will not be easy to overcome. If the Yankees are the wild card and play Boston, as a fan, if the game is close in the 9th inning, can you live with Chapman potentially ending the season for a 3rd straight year?

SU says the answer is no – we will not let that happen. The answer for Boone is to start grooming Loaisiga to be the closer in September and use Chapman in low stress situations (not sure what that is to be honest as he creates stress but you get my drift). No closer is perfect but he seems to be the best choice for the 9th inning right now.

Also, Joey Gallo may indeed hit a hot streak in September – I suppose it’s possible – but why do you have him sandwiched between Judge and Stanton now – your 2 hottest hitters? As a fan, you only hope for a walk from him. Put Rizzo in there and move Gallo down to 7th or 8th in the line up.

It looks like Urshela is close to returning. I am done with Odor. He does hit the occasional home run and I give him credit for learning to play 3rd base but no way does anyone leg out a routine grounder to 3rd base last night against any other 3rd baseman.

Four in Oakland and then 3 in Anaheim. The Yankees do not play great in either of those parks historically. The starters have been really good for a long time now. Love the meaningful games in September and October. SU was certainly not expecting this just a month ago. Enjoy the ride.

SU asks: how do you explain Stanton, the Generational One? He, literally, went most of the month of July hitting off balance, swinging at balls low and away in the dirt (you know what I mean here) and being almost an automatic out. Lots of strike outs with men on base (a right-handed Joey Gallo who does this the entire season) and looking lost at the plate. But then, he gets red hot – which he is now – and is balanced, sees the sliders coming – and carries the team for a week or two.

He has been this way his entire time with the Yankees. SU says it must be incredibly frustrating for his managers who have to endure the cold periods with the hope of a hot streak on the horizon. From what we can tell, Stanton is a hard worker all the time and cares about his performance. SU finds it interesting that over the course of a long career, he hasn’t been able to figure out how to be a more consistent hitter. Of late, he seems to have responded to playing the outfield more regularly and perhaps that will help him extend the hot streak. Something to watch for.

Luke Voit needs to start tonight’s game. Rizzo seems a bit out of sorts since coming back from his bout with COVID and may need some time to get back in the groove. The Yankees don’t have enough hot hitters to not have Voit in there. Btw, I must say it’s amazing how hot and cold their hitters run. Odor is now slumping and he may be pressing with Urshela ready to come back. SU feels that is an upgrade for the team and Odor can fill in here and there. The bigger issue is going to be when Gleyber Torres returns as Velazquez brings energy, good feelings and great fielding at shortstop. He has made a number of big plays that Torres would never make, and Gleyber’s offense this year has not been missed. SU notes that the team’s most recent hot streak has occurred with him out.

Things are going the Yankees’ way right now. Great catch by Gallo in left last night (apparently, he views himself as a defensive player first and a hitter next – SU agrees 100%!) and Sanchez powered a hit through the shift for insurance runs. But we know the baseball gods are fickle and there is a reason that teams don’t play at a .750 clip for months and months. SU will take it one game at a time.

Big decision this week for Aaron Boone on his starting line-up in a National League ballpark. No DH and he will have to decide between Rizzo and Voit at 1st base. About a week ago, it was a no-brainer decision as Rizzo has been great at the plate and in the field in his short time with the Yankees. However, Voit has gone off and is likely the hottest hitter in baseball for the past week. Rizzo is a gold glover at 1st base while Voit has a glove. The Braves are starting 2 right-handed pitchers which makes Rizzo the better choice if that is your criteria. SU says go with Voit one of the games to stay sharp and hot. But I also predict Boone will go with Rizzo and use Voit as a pinch hitter.

The other choice is who to play in the outfield? Gardner was nailed on a pitch last Friday night and may still be a bit banged up. Stanton should be out there with Judge for both games and you can do what you want with Gallo who sat last Saturday. SU would sit Gallo and put him in for defense late in the game. Time to earn his at bats and you don’t get rewarded for striking out 3 times a game day after day (after day).

The Braves are one of baseball’s hottest teams. A good test for the Yankees on the road. Get ready for some mindless Boone double switches just to show that he can do them. Strap in. SU says a split is fine but the big series is in Oakland in a ballpark where the Yankees do not play well. Every game counts – Boston, Tampa Bay and and Oakland are all here for the duration.

What a difference a month makes! Check out the comments from yesterday’s SU. SU subscribers are excited about the Yankees and are (finally) enjoying the 2021 season. Of course, SU is as well but there are still 6 weeks to go and this will go right down to the last series in September.

A few challenges for Aaron Boone to navigate:

1. What do you do when the injured players return? Now, truth be told, so many guys have gone down with injuries and COVID this year that they may never be fully healthy and that will make this go more smoothly. But Urshela will come back soon and so will Gleyber Torres. Odor is now a fan (and SU subscribers’) favorite and he may actually be the odd man out of the line-up. Velazquez has injected energy into the line-up and is a great story. He is also a better fielder than Gleyber and a switch-hitter. Luke Voit wants in and has earned his at bats. But as we saw last night, the contact hitters make the team perform better – amazing how putting the ball in play allows good things to happen? Do not underestimate Boone’s ability to screw up the line-ups and just put in all big boppers.
2. For SU, Joey Gallo can only thrive in a line up like this one. He is not a guy that you can count on. I mean, does he ever hit a single? He can bunt against the shift and should do that more often. But he seems to strike out 3 times a game. Great arm though. Bat him 7th and expect nothing. Do not put him in the 3 or 4 hole – makes no sense to SU.
3. SU checked the upcoming schedules for the Rays, Red Sox and the Yankees (you see? We do it all for you). The Red Sox have the easiest schedule down the stretch, and the Rays have some tough games and finish in Houston. The Mets are going to be factors – they play both the Yankees and the Red Sox. The Yankees are done with the Rays – did not know that. Everyone plays Baltimore and the Yankees have not done as well as they need to against them this year. Yankees finish on the road in Toronto and Boston. Not at all easy here.
4. The bullpen will continue to be a daily unknown, and Boone will have to push the right buttons. SU says the most important thing is to not let Chapman work out of trouble in the 9th. Don’t hesitate to pull him.
5. Next week will be interesting for the Yankees. On the road against the red hot Braves and then 4 in Oakland where they usually do not play well.

Bottom line: love the meaningful games, love the energy on the field and in the dugout and love the balanced line-up (who would have thought that might be a problem this year?). I will enjoy the ride but they are not a lock.

SU subscriber, M. Susser, had this comment yesterday and wants to hear from you:

“Regarding Torres- I think similarly to many of the slumping Yankees who are now excelling (see Judge, Stanton, DJ, and even Torres right before his IL stint)- he was pressing because everyone around him was slumping and the stress mounts to carry the load. The post-July 6 Yankees are doing it together (and even stealing bases in the process- leading the league since the All Star break) and no one single player has to carry the burden of hitting one out every at bat. This version of the Yankees will be highly beneficial and play to Torres’ strengths (see 2018 Yankees when Torres thrived and was just ‘one of the guys’).”

Is Torres still part of the solution? Can he regain his form from a few years ago? Do you go with Velazquez and take the defense over offense?

OK, SU must admit it: the Yankees have exceeded expectations by sweeping the Red Sox. I would have been happy with winning 1 out of 3 games. The team is playing with renewed energy and enthusiasm. Both have been lacking for most of the season until the acquisitions of Rizzo and Gallo.

Now, given all of that success – and they are on quite a roll – the Yankees have to know that they need to continue playing at a high level the rest of the way. The goal needs to be winning the Division and catching Tampa Bay. SU does not feel like they are cut out to win a Wild Card game. No doubt, they will need to pitch Cole down the stretch and he most likely won’t be available for that game. The bullpen is too terrifying to watch in a 1-game playoff. Half of Boston’s games are against sub-.500 teams and the Yankees probably have a tougher schedule including 4 games with Oakland next weekend on the road.

SU must admit I was surprised by Luke Voit’s comments to the media that he was equally deserving of playing time as Rizzo. He cited his numbers from last season and his votes in the MVP voting. Now, the reality is that the only reason Rizzo is here is that Voit can’t stay healthy. Rizzo needs to play every day – period. Boone will most likely rotate every player down the stretch for the occasional day off – see LeMahieu sitting today. SU says watch out for the Oakland series though with a big outfield to cover. Gardner will start all of those games and that means you will see Voit sitting most of that series. For me, Rizzo is clearly the better player and has to play every day at 1st base for his glove. Time will tell if Voit takes his benching quietly. His comments were very, very un-Yankee-like.

The one player that no one is missing right now is Gleyber Torres. He just hasn’t done enough the last 2 seasons to really make you wonder/care about when he will return. Velazquez is a great story and a much better fielder. No way Gleyber makes that play in the 9th inning last night. Britton looked like Britton last night for the first time in weeks. He can be a key guy – especially if Chapman can’t regain his form. But time will tell – that was just one game.

Bottom line: job well done vs. Boston. But there cannot be any let-up as this team cruised to mediocrity for so long that every game down the stretch will be important. Be prepared to buckle up in the 9th inning with this bullpen.