NEW YORK – In the city that never sleeps, both drowsy New York baseball teams could use a jolt of – well, something.
At least the Yankees have built some momentum coming off a brutal 1-5 road trip by sweeping three games from the Royals, although Kansas City is threatening to match the 1962 Mets’ 120-loss pace.
In other words, it’s incumbent on the Yankees to sustain this winning streak.
With a two-game set against the Mets (46-53) beginning Tuesday night at Yankee Stadium, the Yankees (53-47) are facing their fourth straight series against a sub-.500 opponent before their schedule toughens considerably.
And both clubs are currently outside the playoff picture, with more uncertainty looming in the Mets’ situation as of Aug. 1 MLB trade deadline approaches.
Assessing the upcoming Bronx version of the Subway Series, the Yankees’ Anthony Rizzo said the Mets were “a team that wants more, and so are we.”
Mets-Yankees pitching probabilities
Tuesday, 7:05 p.m., YES/TBS: RHP Justin Verlander (4-5, 3.47) vs. RHP Domingo German (5-6, 4.52).
Wednesday, 7:05 p.m., YES: LHP Jose Quintana (0-1, 3.60) vs. LHP Carlos Rodon (0-3, 7.36).
Bottom line: Could this be Verlander’s last start with the Mets, one week away from the trade deadline?
It’s an interesting subplot to a matchup against German, who – you might have heard – tossed a perfect game since the last Subway Series.
The inconsistent German will be pitching on six days of rest, coming off a July 18 loss at Anaheim against the Angels, yielding five runs in six innings but striking out nine.
Rodon has had three clunkers since finally coming off the injured list, mainly due to back discomfort.
But his last start – a 4.1 inning, six-run mess at Anaheim – was made worse when Rodon blew a kiss to taunting fans near the Yankees dugout.
That wasn’t a good look for a starter who signed a six-year, $162 million free agent contract to join the Yankees and all the scrutiny and responsibility therein.
Yankees injury updates
Could Aaron Judge be a week or so away from returning to the lineup?
It seems possible, although not certain, since there’s still no official target date in his recovery from a torn ligament in his right big toe.
Pain management will be an issue going forward, so a cortisone shot is expected at some point as Judge nears a return. Sunday, he faced live pitching for the first time since the June 3 injury.
Manager Aaron Boone suggested that Judge will dictate the next steps, whether it’s more live batting practice, or simulated at-bats leading to a minor league rehab assignment.
Jonathan Loaisiga pitched to Judge, which was the right-hander’s first live outing since early May surgery to remove a bone spur near his right elbow.
“It’s not going to get any harder than that, facing Johnny Lo in that first live session,” Boone said, adding that Loaisiga’s command and lively arsenal in a 16-pitch session was very encouraging.
“That looked like (Loaisiga) in the playoffs, almost,” Boone said.
After another live session Wednesday at Tampa, Fla., Loaisiga is due to begin a minor league rehab assignment this weekend. He could be back in the Yanks’ bullpen by early August.
Gleyber Torres exited Sunday’s game with hip tightness, and it wasn’t fully known whether he’d be available to play Tuesday. No tests were scheduled, and Torres already reported some improvement.
Making his first rehab start Sunday, lefty Nestor Cortes (rotator cuff strain) tossed 2.1 innings and yielded one run at Class AA Somerset.
Cortes is likely to require two more rehab starts before he rejoins the Yankees’ rotation by early August.
Yankees by the numbers
In going 4-for-4 in Sunday’s 8-5 win against Kansas City, Anthony Rizzo snapped a 45-game streak without a home run dating May 20.
That was the second longest such streak of Rizzo’s career. He went 46 games without a homer over the 2011 and 2012 seasons with the Padres and Cubs.
With a two-run homer in Sunday’s first inning, Gleyber Torres extended his hitting streak to a career-high 13 straight games, the longest by a Yankee this season.
The Yankees have won 12 of 15 games that Torres has homered this season, and he has three homers in his last five games and a .377 batting average (20-for-53) during his current hitting streak.
Giancarlo Stanton has six homers and 13 RBI over his last 11 games. DJ LeMahieu is batting .318 (14-for-44) over his last 12 games since July 6, with four doubles and a homer.
Reliever Clay Holmes has not allowed a run in 27 of his last 30 appearances, with a 4-0 record and nine saves. His 0.91 ERA over that span (since May 6) is the second lowest among MLB pitchers (minimum 25 IP), behind only Baltimore closer Felix Bautista’s 0.54 ERA.
The young, talented and relentless Orioles took over first place in the AL East, winning three of four games against the Rays at Tampa Bay.
This weekend, the Yankees arrive in the Inner Harbor for a three-game series, their final regular season appearance this year at Camden Yards.
With a Thursday off date, expect Yankees ace Gerrit Cole to start Friday’s opener on one extra day of rest, which would also allow Cole to oppose the Rays on regular rest in his next turn, at Yankee Stadium.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Subway Series 2023: What to watch as Yankees host Mets in the Bronx