Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to that new series. Good morning, everybody. Today is Friday, September 20th, and the Yankees wake up in Oakland with a magic number of six to clinch the American League East. The Orioles are taking on the Tigers. Tigers have been red hot. Tigers have been pushing to win the American League's final wildcard spot. Twins are kind of collapsing. And the Yankees might not luck out and play the twins this year. They might have to play the red hot Tigers, who, you know, they got the Cy Young Award winner in Tariq Scooble. So, you know, just got to play your best and hope that the matchups align the way you want them to. Much rather play the twins than the Tigers, for sure. But I don't think the Yankees are going to clinch this weekend. They would have to sweep the Oakland A's, and the Orioles would have to get swept by the Tigers. I do think the Orioles will get at least one of those games. They got Corbin Burns on the mound. Tonight, he's having a great year, 14 and 8, with a 3.06 ERA. And he's headed for a free agency. And he's probably going to get, you know, 30 plus million dollars a year. But if you look at his numbers, they're kind of similar to what Luis Heel has put up this year. That tells you the value that Luis Heel has put together. So, the Yankees should at least take, you know, two out of three, I would think, from the A's. And then you can probably clinch at home against the Orioles next week. And that will be satisfying to clinch against the A's. But we have to talk about a serious topic. We got to talk about Jason Dominguez's defense. Now, you guys know that I'm a major Jason Dominguez stand. I think the guy is going to be terrific, especially offensively. And he's shown some good things offensively. Lately, you had the home run a couple of days ago to dead center field. That was a beautiful piece of hitting. Yesterday, he had two hits, including an opposite field double. He's already got three stolen bases. He's running the bases pretty well. He's obviously not super comfortable in the outfield right now, especially in Seattle. But there was also that game when he got called up for the Little League game, where the Yankees play the Tigers. And there was a hesitation on the throw home that ended the game. So his D-war is plummeting. He hasn't had a whole lot of opportunities, but he hasn't done much to win over our confidence defensively. I think he will get better. I think it's growing pains. I think it's rookie mistakes. There does seem to be this issue where a lot of Yankees come up from the minor leagues, and they've got some significant part of their game that's just not ready. Volpe was not ready offensively last year. Defensively, he was obviously very good. He won a gold glove. You could argue that he wouldn't have won the gold glove if Wanda Franco didn't get arrested. But he was still one of the top defensive short stops in the league, and that's been true again this year. But his offense is still continuing to ramp up. Dominguez has had some issues judging the ball. And that can be an issue when you go to these triple-decker parks. You talk to anybody who's been a Major League outfielder in their life, and they say it's a tough transition to go from the minor leagues to the Major Leagues, because just the way that you read the ball off the bat is different with three decks. And then once the ball gets above the lights, it can be an issue. He also lost one in the sun. Yesterday, I joked that it was the conditions on Earth that were causing him trouble. But honestly, it's just he needs reps. He needs reps. I hope he's out there in the lineup again today. The Yankees might sit him. He's played, I think, every day this week. And I know that they want to get Stanton and Verdugo and all these guys, regular reps. Stanton has not looked good lately. You'd like to get him tuned up for the playoffs. So right now, my concern about Dominguez is low, but it's not zero. He's got to find a way to make some plays out there, especially the routine plays. And the only way you're going to do that is if you get reps. So let's hope they keep running them out there, and let's hope he improves. Well, yeah, I don't want them to keep running out there because Clay Holmes, he has been a major liability this season. He's got 13 blown saves. Let's say that you win, I don't know, five of those games. Well, guess what? That would put you on the brink of winning the AO East with one victory. I think that Clay Holmes needs to be left off the playoff roster. I just don't see a lot of confidence there. And I think good teams will eat him alive. I think the playoff pressure will eat him alive. He doesn't seem like a guy who responds well to pressure. He looks like a deer in headlights. And if I were the one constructing the roster headed into the playoffs, no way. Not a chance does Holmes make the playoff roster. Even if Jake Cousins is hurt and you need another arm, I'm going with somebody else. I just don't want Clay Holmes getting the ball, even in a three or four run lead situation. I just don't trust him at all. [MUSIC PLAYING] I live in fucking New York City. I cannot believe he had the ball to do it. Hey, Derek, what's going on? Love your show. Bobby, the bear down here in Atlanta. What's the latest on the two fellas? I want to know about Juan Soto's knee. Thank God it was a cushion out there instead of concrete. And also, what's up with Kaz? Is it just going to be a couple of days for his pecs to come back to normal way? Later, dude. No word yet on the severity of the injuries for either of them. Juan Soto said he was going to get x-rays. That's always worrisome, because you never know what x-rays are going to reveal. And Jake Cousins, with the pectoral, that could be a bit. I mean, when you pitch, your pectoral is highly engaged, especially the way he pitches. He kind of drops down a little bit. And you could see the pectoral being something that would get inflamed. And that can last a while. You hope that they give him a cortisone shot? Honestly, would not shock me at all if Juan Soto gets the day off. And I don't know if he necessarily hit cushion. I think that there's a little bit of concrete there that he ran into as well. And so he's going to wake up with a nasty bruise. He's probably going to be sore. He's probably going to be limping. My guess is that Juan Soto gets at least one day off, if not two. Right now, you have to think about the playoffs. You have to worry more about the postseason than getting these guys regular season at bats or reps on the mound. I don't expect Cousins to pitch for another week or so. We might see them try and run him out there towards the end of the season and see if he can be effective. But if he ends up hurt, then you're going to have to find another arm for that bullpen that can be effective because he's been one of the best strikeout pitchers in the Yankees relief corps. But Soto, man, let's just hope those x-rays come back negative. Listen, I'm about to play off roster. I think the Martian looks really good at the plate. I think it's a bat like you've been saying. But I think it's a bat that's been incredible. He is hitting the shit out of the ball. And I know the numbers don't really back it up. But he looks good at the plate. And I'm not too concerned about his defense. He's so athletic. And I think the Seattle is kind of a hard ball part to play in in the outfield. So I don't feel super concerned about it. My thought is I think I'd rather-- and the Yankees will not do this. I think I'd rather leave Purdue go off the playoff roster and bring Grisham because Grisham is such a plus defender. And half him come in maybe for a late game defensive substitution for Judge or the Martian or whoever may be in the last inning or so. I am very interested to see what the Yankees will do with the postseason roster. There's a non-zero chance that the Martian gets left off the roster if his defense doesn't improve. But like you said, really, really strong at bats. He has deep at bats. It seems like most counts go to 3-2. He's hitting the ball the other way. Left handed, he had that opposite field double. He had that loop single. He hit a home run to center field. So he's not one of these guys who's trying to pull everything and crush everything. Although I think if you come inside, he will crush the baseball. But yeah, the defense so far has been hideous. Hidious. And look, I love the guy. But you've got to make those plays. You've got to make at least both of those catches. And you've probably got to make that throw a little bit quicker that he had in that first game where he got called up. But rookie mistakes, this is why we wanted him up earlier so that he would get a chance to go through this stuff at the Major League level, get it out of his system so that it doesn't come up in a big playoff spot and sting ya. But I agree with you that Trent Grisham, probably the better choice as a fourth outfielder for the playoffs. But I also agree with you that I don't think the Yankees will do it. They'll go with Verdugo because he's more of a threat offensively. But right now, the Yankees still have work to do to ensure that they win the division. And I'm sure that's what they're focused on. This is Bob from Ohio, great show. A couple of thoughts. We'll think about Mulpey. Agree, he's really gone downhill the second half of the year. I think the Yankee Pins, I do the same thing. We tend to pick on who's ever our worst hitter. Like if D.J. Lumet, he was still playing. We'd all be harping on him. But I get it. He's had a bad second half. I think he's got a lot of potential for next year. Do I mind pinching for him now? I think that's a good idea, too. The other idea is we've been talking a little bit about Derek Cole, hoping that he, or thinking about the possibility that he might opt out. And one of the other options is the Yankees taking a tenth year. Another option that he just stays with a nine-year contract, that $36 million, I'm just curious about that. That would be a decent option. Sure, not opting out is definitely an option for Derek Cole, although I think he will. The way that I understand it is that he can choose to opt out and become a free agent. And if he does that, the Yankees have some period of time, I think it's 24 hours, maybe 48 hours, to offer him an extra year on his contract or to add an extra year on his contract. And he doesn't have to accept it, all the Yankees have to do is add that extra year, and he doesn't get to become a free agent. Now, in my opinion, and this might be a little bit controversial, if he opts out, I don't think the Yankees should offer that tenth year because, really, he's basically giving you a get out of jail free card for those final years of his contract where he's going to continue to battle injuries. He's going to wear down a little bit. He's going to become less and less effective. I think that if he opts out, you take that money and you invest it elsewhere, you spread it around, maybe you use some of it for Juan Soto, maybe you use some of it to shore up the bullpen. But if he opts out, you're basically signing a pitcher with a lot of mileage on his arm to a multi-year deal in his mid 30s. And that's not a smart thing to do. That's not something the Yankees would do if he were a free agent on the market. So if he opts out, I say you let him walk, let him go finish out his career on the West Coast. I'm sure the Dodgers will offer him some money. They've had some pitching issues this year, and I'm sure those pitching issues are not going away. I'm sure they would love to have them, but I am not paying for Garrett Cole if he opts out. Quick word from our sponsor and then a couple of more voicemails and then the Nostradaric prediction. Mornings are nuts, especially when you're doing a voicemail show like I do. No time for breakfast, but you still need to start your day right. What if a delicious, nutritious meal could be ready in just seconds? Support for Pins Drive territory is brought to you by HUEL. The world's number one complete nutrition brand, trusted by millions with over 400 million meals sold worldwide. Fuel your day with convenient, complete nutrition. Try it yourself with this exclusive offer, 15% off using the code FOWL at HUEL.com. Personally, I love the HUEL ultimate super greens powder. It's packed with 91 vitamins, minerals, and whole food ingredients. Their nutrition bars are great, savory pouches are amazing too. Give it a try, unlock a healthier, easier way to eat with HUEL's nutritionally complete meals. Focus on what really matters. Again, that's 15% off using the code FOWL at HUEL.com. Red Thunder, oh my God, that traumatized me, that brought back some memories. Clint Frazier was awful out there, and what made it worse was that he didn't really hit either. At least the Martian is swinging the bat, and if he continues to swing the bat, they're going to keep giving him opportunities to improve on defense, but look, there's this fine line that I have to run as a podcaster where I'm a fan of the guy, and I don't want to criticize him because he's young, he's a kid, he's got his whole career in front of him, but I also have to be truthful with my audience. I don't want to suck as a podcaster and not talk about an obvious glaring issue, and the fact is that he has been atrocious on defense so far. So hopefully he can get more comfortable and quickly, it seems like he's adjusted quickly to the minor leagues, like he moved quickly after the COVID shutdown, he just shot through the minor leagues like a rocket. So maybe you're right, maybe it's just getting used to the major league stadiums, but I'd be lying to you if I said I wasn't at least a little bit concerned. What's up, Derek and Sean from Connecticut. I just got a round off board that I just watched the reaction last night, and I heard you say inpatient fans you're going off on both of these. I think objectively the fan base as well as the front office has fallen in love with the local guy, grew up written for the Yankees, first round pick, the next therapeutic stuff. If you look at him the last two years, yes it's gold glove defense, but it's basically offensively Pete Cosmo. I think it's got to be an open competition next year. We give up on speaker for this, and that's going to be on cashmere as well. Thank you. Well, the Yankees really value his defense, and to have an open competition, you're going to have to have somebody who has equal or better defense. And like I said yesterday in the reaction, we've seen Anthony Volpe have stretches where he's incredible, and when he is getting on base and making things happen and hitting line drives and scoring runs, he's an incredible value to the team. The problem is that he has not been consistent with it. I think like you said, there is a bit of a raw, raw factor here, right? The organization wants him to succeed. They want all their young players to succeed, but there's a marketability with Volpe that maybe gave him a little bit of an edge, but you're right. He struggled offensively to live up to the hype and the fact that Oswaldo Cabrera, pinch hit for him the other night is kind of an overlooked thing, but I think it's rather big. It's the first chink in the armor that we've seen that the Yankees are not totally confident in his offense. So hopefully he gets it straightened out, but if he doesn't, there's nothing wrong with just a great defensive shortstop who's a league average or so hitter. The problem is he's been well below average in the second half. He's been one of the worst in baseball. You need him to just be a little bit better. All right. Quick Nostradaric prediction, and then I will be back after the game tonight. Terrence will be joining. We'll be talking about the matchup with A's. We'll talk about Garrett Cole, his first performance since intentional walk gate. And we'll see you then. Okay, today's Nostradaric prediction is that Aaron Judge will hit home run number 54. He's going back home. He's got family there in the Oakland area. I think he's going deep and also he's got Shohei Otani nipping at his heels for the Major League home run lead now just two behind after hitting three yesterday. So my prediction judge hits number 54 on the season. If you enjoyed this video, please drop a like and give us a subscribe. It helps other Yankees fans find the channel. We're also on all your favorite podcast platforms and social media. Join the community. Have some fun. We're here after every game. This is pinstripe territory. [MUSIC] [BLANK_AUDIO]
