The names on the New York Yankees aren’t as readily recognizable, and sitting in last place in their division and likely missing the playoffs certainly aren’t familiar positions for the organization.

But Monday against the Tigers, the Yankees flashed some of their big bats and ability to pitch.

The Tigers, despite some great pitching from Reese Olson and some brief excitement in the ninth inning, lost 4-1 in the opener of the four-game series at Comerica Park.

The Yankees (63-68) came into the game playing less than .500 baseball and in last place in the American League East, losers of eight of their last 10 games.

The key turning point occurred in the seventh inning, just after the Tigers (59-72) failed to tie, or go ahead, in the sixth.

Yankees’ Aaron Judge and Gleyber Torres connected on back-to-back homers – the seventh time the Yankees have hit consecutive homers this season – off relief pitcher Beau Brieske giving the Yankees a 3-0 lead.

Hormel Foods is working with a humanitarian organization to send SPAM to Maui following the recent massive wildfire.

Hormel, which produces the canned pork product, is sending ‘The Convoy of Hope’ to Maui after the island was ravaged by the disaster, which resulted in over 100 deaths. Hawaii consumes an estimated 8 million cans of SPAM per year, the most of any U.S. state.

SPAM became popular in Hawaii during World War II when soldiers stationed in the Pacific were served the meat on the frontlines and remained popular in the area.

“Now is our time for all to help. We need to come together for Maui, it’s going to take years for them to rebuild.”

Joey Lucchesi has spent most of the 2023 season as a forgotten man,  but the left-hander is an additional pitcher who is under the Mets’ control for 2024 and capable of getting outs in the major leagues.

Friday night was an opportunity for the team to savor the best of Lucchesi, who pitched strong into the sixth inning in the Mets’ 7-1 victory over the Cardinals at Busch Stadium.

The Mets (57-66) won for the fifth time in six games, continuing their recent success against the NL Central. Facing the Cubs, Pirates and Cardinals over the last week-and-a-half, the Mets have gone 6-2.

Brandon Nimmo homered leading off the game for his 18th of the season, a career best. The Mets extended their lead to 2-0 in the third on Jeff McNeil’s RBI single. 

McNeil’s three-run homer in the seventh broke it open. After the Mets loaded the bases with nobody out and scored a run on Lindor’s RBI fielder’s choice, Alvarez stroked an RBI single that widened the lead to  4-0. McNeil followed with a shot over the right-field fence for his sixth homer of the season.