I wasn’t wild about the Players Weekend uniforms, although I would really have objected if I’d been a Dodgers fan and had to watch my team in all white; they looked like a cross between hospital orderlies and milkmen from the 1950s. But MLB has its weird traditions so black and white it was.
The good news is that the Yankees-Dodgers series turned out to deliver all the thrills we could have hoped for between two top teams. Yes, it would have been sweet if we hadn’t lost the middle game. But to have a Janer in Game 1 and then a tight contest and win in the finale was pretty damn great.
Judge is clearly back, which makes me very happy. He’s hitting homers and swinging the bat like the Judge we’ve come to know and love. LeMahieu continues to be Cashman’s best get in years. Gleybar is just a hitting machine. Mike Ford has filled in admirably. German, after a shaky start last night, settled down and pretty much shut out the Dodgers. And Paxton of all people pitched a really good game on Friday night.
The only bad news was Didi getting hit by a pitch on the shoulder. Last I read he had a contusion, but let’s see further tests. We really can’t afford to lose him. (I’ve said that before about players who got injured, and somehow it’s worked out.)
I hope the team doesn’t have a letdown in Seattle, because playing the first-place Dodgers at their Stadium must have been a high. Right now we’re tied with Houston for the best record and we can’t lose ground.
I’ll keep an eye on the scores, but for me these next two weeks are all about the U.S. Open, so I’ll be glued to tennis.
