1. How could Spencer Jones not be the team’s starting center fielder over Trent Grisham at this point? Here’s what I wrote about Jones before Tuesday’s game:
Jones is a better offensive and defensive alternative to Grisham, but I highly doubt the Yankees (who treat Grisham like Ken Griffey Jr.) are ready to make that determination. It takes a lot more than 118 games of piss-poor defense and being five percent worse than league average at the plate for the Yankees to pull the plug on someone they love internally. Jones has a better batting average, a better on-base percentage, a better slugging percentage, a better OPS, a better OPS+, has accumulated more WAR than Grisham and is actually above league average as a hitter, and the Yankees will choose not to accept that when Aaron Judge returns. Add in Jones’ overall speed (he’s the fastest Yankee) and his superior defense to Grisham, and there is no debate as to who should play when Judge returns.
All Jones did in Tuesday’s 7-3 win in Anaheim was hit a first-inning, two-run home run, draw a walk and drive in a third run with yet another base hit against a lefty. Jones is up to .245/.320/.451 on the season and is 13 percent above league average offensively. Since his call-up at the end of July, he has an .827 OPS. He’s riding a five-game hitting streak and has hits in eight of 10 and 15 of 20. His home run was his fourth in his last 13 games.
2. Grisham went 1-for-5 in the game and did have an RBI single for his first hit since last Wednesday, bringing his OPS back to an even .700 for the season. He remains six percent worse than league average on the season. He was 16 percent worse than league average from 2021-24, then 23 percent above league average last season and back to six percent worse this season. I wonder who the real Grisham in: the player who was a below-league-average hitter for his career before 2025 and again in 2026 and who never hit more than 17 home runs in a season, or the player who hit 34 home runs last season?
3. Ben Rice has only reached base once in his two-game audition in the leadoff spot, but I like him. Leave him there against righties. How about this lineup against righties?
Ben Rice, DH
Aaron Judge, RF
Luis Garcia, 1B
Cody Bellinger, LF
Spencer Jones, CF
Jazz Chisholm, 2B
George Lombard Jr., SS
Ryan McMahon, 3B
Austin Wells, C
5. Jazz Chisholm had a three-hit game for the second time in a week and is 15-for-33 over the last week and a half. It’s crazy that even after this hot streak, he’s still below league average as a hitter this season. That’s how bad he was all year before this streak.
6. Jose Caballero was so good to start the season before landing on the injured list in May, and he’s been so bad really since then. He went 0-for-5 with three strikeouts on Tuesday, his fielding has been poor (though he has had to move around the entire field) and his plate appearance quality is just not good. He thinks every called strike is a ball, takes hittable pitches all the time, swings at garbage and wastes challenges either out of emotion or because he doesn’t know the zone.
7. I wish the Yankees weren’t grinding out wins against the American League-worst Angels. But so far this season, the Yankees are 3-3 against the Angels and their three wins are two ninth-inning comeback wins and then Tuesday, a game in which a four-run lead became a one-run lead and was still a one-run lead into the eighth inning. These are the scores of the six games this season:
Yankees win 11-10 (trailed 10-8 in bottom of ninth)
Yankees lose 7-1
Yankees win 5-4 (trailed 4-3 in bottom of ninth)
Yankees lose 11-4
Yankees lose 10-1
Yankees win 7-3 (4-3 game in eighth)
8. The Angels have outscored the Yankees 45-29. The Angels have scored the third-fewest runs in the AL and have allowed the sixth-most runs. They suck. And for some reason the Yankees have struggled with them.
9. The Angels’ ability to score runs against the Yankees should change on Wednesday with Cam Schlittler starting, but it may not be easy for the Yankees to score with Reid Detmers going for the Angels. Detmers owns a 0.59 ERA in 15 1/3 career innings against the Yankees.
10. It’s a game the Yankees have to win if they want to keep the division dream alive, whether the Rays win or lose their series finale against the Mets. The Yankees can’t lose another game to the Angels. They can’t lose the season series to the Angels. Not this Angels team.
Last modified: Sep 3, 2026
