CLEVELAND, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – The Yankees came to town Thursday in last place in the AL East and tied for the worst record in the American League.
They were off to their worst start since 1991.
Their lineup Thursday night included five consecutive hitters – Mike Ford (.143), Gleyber Torres (.186), Aaron Hicks (.154), Rougned Odor (.120) and Clint Frazier (.175) – hitting below .200
“Our goal would certainly be to have them not bust out until maybe Monday,” Francona said prior to the Indians 6-3 loss in the series opener. “I know what you’re saying. When they do, look out. All the things I say about our guys, how they [get to] their level, as cold as they get, they get that hot. You certainly don’t want that to happen against you.”
Torres went 3-5 with a strikeout and run scored to push his average up to .219 while Odor was 2-5 and drove in a pair of runs in the seventh to give the Yankees the lead and bump his average to .167.
The five combined to go 7-21 with three walks, three RBI and two runs scored in Thursday night’s Yankees win, a potentially ominous sign.
New York’s 11 hits tied a season-high in a 9-inning game this season and the nine walks tied their most free passes in a game since 2019.
Triple the fun – Franmil Reyes collected his first career triple in the bottom of the third inning after driving a ball up the ally off the wall in left center.
Reyes went 1,134 plate appearances without a triple.
Happy Birthday – Thursday was Francona’s 62nd birthday.
Francona has battled multiple ailments over the last year that kept him away from the ballpark most of last season but he’s bounced back and has been able to enjoy doing what he enjoys most – managing.
“I do enjoy that part,” Francona said. “I can’t wait for when it’s completely back to normal and you can have somebody sitting in your office and put your arm around them and talk to them. Now it’s like you have to have a summit meeting or you have to do it on Zoom. Even with you guys, it’s not the same. I like the interactions with people. I’ll really be happy when that is the case.
“I’m probably more successful at times than others, but I’m trying to enjoy every day. When we’re winning, I usually do it. When we’re losing, I usually don’t. That may not change.”
Familiar face – Former Indians Cy Young winner Corey Kluber is back in town. However, he is not scheduled to pitch this weekend.
“I already said 'hello' to him,” Francona said. “He was over talking to the trainers, so I popped in and said 'hello' to him. It was nice to see his face. Shaven. Clean-shaven face.”
Kluber is 0-2 with a 5.40 ERA in four starts with the Yankees this season that has seen him strike out 14 and walk 11.
Quotable – “Shoot, I’ve been [in Cleveland] nine years now, and I can barely remember last week. It was different people [back then]. I got enough going on upstairs in my brain without overloading.” – Francona, who managed the Red Sox for eight years and won a pair of World Series in Boston, on if any rivalry with the Yankees still exists for him.
Up next – Series continues Friday night with a battle of left handers – Logan Allen vs. Jordan Montgomery at 7:10.
