Aaron Boone

MLB Insider projects what the Yankees will do with Aaron Boone and a potential extension

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New York Yankees, Aaron Boone

The New York Yankees have a big decision to make this off-season at the manager position. Aaron Boone and his contract are up with the Bombers, and after being knocked out of the postseason in the Wild Card game against the Boston Red Sox, the front office has to do some serious thinking of the future of the team.

Boone made his fair share of mistakes this past season, tipping his hand too often and making odd moves with little justification. For example, in the Wild Card game, Boone pulled relief pitcher of Clay Holmes, despite him pitching two near-flawless innings and tossing just 16 pitches.

Boone has come across as a poor in-game manager who lacks the discipline to either punish players for performing badly or rewarding them for a good play.

Boone has already indicated he’s not worried about the Yankees’ decision on a possible extension but did state his preference to stay with the club for the foreseeable future. The Yankees don’t like to turn over managers too frequently, but this scenario is interesting, given the fact they have been unable to come close to World Series with Boone at the helm.

Bryan Hoch of the MLB Network believes the Yankees will retain Boone as their skipper.

At the end of the day, the Yankees are spending far too much money on incredible players to lose in the WC against a Boston team they just rebuilt their core over the past two seasons.

The farm system seems to be coming up short, and players aren’t reaching their potential, which can boil down to coaching at times. The starting pitching rotation struggled with injury, which is out of Boone’s hands, as general manager Brian Cashman has found himself strapped for cash after dealing multiple gargantuan contracts that have hurt the Yankees’ financial flexibility.

Ultimately, the team is going to have to spend even more money this off-season to solve the shortstop position and acquire more starting pitchers. The Steinbrenner‘s must be sick at the idea of continuous spending to try and solve flaws that should be filled with young talent from the minor-league teams. Just looking over at the Tampa Bay Rays, you can see a team that trusts their young talent and gives them the appropriate reps to continue developing. Yankees have always been a team that fills holes through free agency, but that strategy can no longer cover up the massive issues on the roster.

New York Yankees: 7 that should go and who should replace them

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New York Yankees, Aaron Boone

After an early exit from the postseason yet again, the New York Yankees face a multitude of questions and decisions to be made before the start of the 2022 season. The biggest one is if the Yankees have it in them to create a shakeup that can turn this team into a World Series contender for real. If they can do that, some faces of the Yankees will have to go. So here is my assessment of the situation facing the Yankee organization in no particular order.

Brian Cashman:

Unless Hal Steinbrenner wants to shake up the whole organization, it is doubtful that he will part with Brian Cashman, but in over twenty years of leadership, he has brought the Yankees to only one World Series. For his supporters who want to bring up the early Championships of Joe Torre, those teams were not built by Brian Cashman. Stick Michaels and Joe Torre built those teams.

During his tenure, the San Francisco Giants have won the World Series three times, the Red Sox twice, and even the lowly Kansas City Royals and Washington Nationals have won.  If the Yankees part with Cashman, the name Theo Epstein comes to mind, but I think he wants to own a team, not be general manager of one. Beyond that, it’s anyone’s guess.

Aaron Boone:

Although the front office has shown support of Aaron Boone, I believe he has only a 50/50 chance of remaining the Yankee manager. After four seasons, he doesn’t seem to be the man that can bring this team to a World Series win. He doesn’t seem to be able to motivate players and has made many on-the-spot questionable moves. Should the Yankees decide not to renew his contract at the end of this season, there are a host of replacement possibilities.

With the Yankees’ failed experiment with a manager with no experience, they will not likely do that again in favor of a manager with experience. The first one that comes to mind is the consistently successful win-it-now manager Dusty Baker. It is not likely that Baker will be rehired by the Astros, even though he brought the team to 95 wins.

Others to consider are ex-Red Sox manager John Farrel and Mike Scioscia of the Angels. Many believe that Alex Rodriguez would make an excellent yet controversial manager of the Yankees. The only problem with that is he can make megabucks elsewhere rather than accept a low-paying manager job. Other possibilities are Bruce Bochy and Buck Showalter. The knock against them is that they are not the type of big analytics guys that Cashman will want.

My guess is that the Yankees will not do the right thing and replace this lack of a motivator manager who fails to reward players for excellent play nor hold them responsible for poor play.  He is just not the man for the job.

Gary Sanchez:

Just the fact that the Yankees’ most controversial player comes up at the end of every season as someone the Yankees should replace should be a signal that the guy has got to go. He hasn’t grown as a player or a catcher, and I don’t think you would want him teaching any upcoming Yankee catcher. His lack of defensive abilities and batting average says it’s time for him to go finally.

With the New York Yankees likely to have to put out money for a shortstop and center fielder, they likely will not spend big in favor of keeping Kyle Higashioka as a bridge to prospect, Austin Wells. Higashioka, although not the home runner Sanchez is, is a far superior catcher with better framing and a better contact hitter percentage.

Gleyber Torres:

Gleyber Torres is a failed experiment that has not grown as a Yankee; he has regressed as a failed shortstop and error-ridden second baseman. Probably the fault of the Yankee organization; I don’t see a long-term improvement in Torres, who is no longer the 22 year old with a bright future.

The New York Yankees have a bivy of possibilities to get themselves a new shortstop. Trevor Story has oft been mentioned, but I don’t see him as a good fit for the Yankees. Exciting possibilities for the Yankees that won’t break the bank include Javier Baez, Carlos Correa, and Jose Iglesias, a cheapy.

Aaron Hicks:

I said in an article yesterday I have no clue why the Yankees gave him a big-time contract extension. He is in the mold of Jacoby Ellsbury and Greg Bird. I think Yankee fans will agree that Jacoby Ellsbury was Brian Cashman’s worst acquisition, but my friends, here’s one for you, Ellsbury played in 27 more games with the Yankees in his four years than Hicks has in his six years. So for anyone that believes that Hicks will stay healthy and be dependable in the center, it’s a pipe dream; the Yankees should buy him out and rid themselves of him.

There are many options for the Yankees for the offseason, including players with options such as the more significant money Jackie Bradley Junior or Kevin Pillar. Both are excellent defenders and can offer more at the plate than Hicks.

Luke Voit:

If the New York Yankees choose to resign Anthony Rizzo as their first baseman, the sad fact is the Yankees have no use for Luke Voit. Voit like Hicks can’t stay healthy. He played in only 68 games this season, primarily due to a multitude of injuries. He has lost his power and runs the bases like the tractor pull at your local county fair. The Yankees have a glut as DH, so he has no use there either.

Likely, Voit will not be in pinstripes again next year, and there is no reason to replace him, assuming they re-sign Rizzo.

Brett Gardner:

I hate to even breach this subject because I love Brett Gardner and all he has done for the Yankees in his 14 years tenure with the Yankees, but he will turn 39 next year, and his time with the Yankees should be over. The fact is that he is no longer the player he once was. He is still an excellent defender, but his arm is not what it once was; he can’t steal bases and is a liability at the plate. This year he was supposed to be a bench player but ended up playing more than anyone expected. He did rise to the occasion during the last quarter of the season, but not well enough to warrant another year. Then, he can retire as a proud Yankee.

Not included in this article is hitting coach Marcus Thames who’s time with the Yankees should also be over. Please read my article on Thames here.

EmpireSportsMedia.com’s Columnist William Parlee is a member of the Society for American Baseball Research. Follow me on Twitter @parleewilliam.

Yankees: YES’ Michael Kay defends Aaron Boone and implies front office is the problem

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The New York Yankees’ 6-2 loss in the Wild Card game to the Boston Red Sox is still being talked about in the city and the country. Of course, the media is not an exception, and the coverage doesn’t stop because the game signaled the end of the Yankees’ season.

Even YES Network’s Michael Kay has strong opinions about what happened on the 2021 campaign for the Yankees, a year filled with disappointments, COVID-19 outbreaks, injuries, and all kinds of obstacles.

Speaking on the Rich Eisen Show (link to NJ Advance Media articl here), Kay referred to the future of Yankees’ manager Aaron Boone. Understandably, he has been under a lot of heat recently because of some of his decisions, his bullpen management, lineup construction, and, to some, his passivity.

Will the Yankees change the manager?

Some fans feel the Yankees need a change at the managerial position. Here is what Kay thinks about that:

“Do they sacrifice Boone to the baseball fan gods to give them something? If they did that, I think it would be disingenuous. He is doing the bidding of the front office. There are scripts that are written that he of course can deviate from somewhat, but it’s essentially from up top the way this game is played by the Yankees. So, if they get rid of Boone, and that’s what Yankees fans seem to want when they call into my show, if you get Boone 2.0, what difference does it make? Boone’s a great guy, he represents the organization very well. I think if they go with something different, like a (Bruce) Bochy, or a (Mike) Scioscia, or a (Buck) Showalter, then I think that indicates a seismic change, because there’s no way any of those three guys take that job and are still allowing the front office to be as influential on their decisions. I think they want information, those guys, but they’re going to make the final decision.”

If the Yankees decide to end their working relationship with Boone (his contract is up after the season, so technically, they don’t have to fire him), it’s highly unlikely they go to an old school manager like Showalter or Scioscia.

“So I think that’s what they have to decide. It’s not Brian (Cashman) that’s going to decide it. It’s going to be Hal Steinbrenner and his family. Is it time to change? They’ve won one title in 20 years. So I’m not quite sure what’s going down because I think that Brian Cashman thinks that Aaron Boone does a great job. And for what Brian wants in a manager, Aaron is doing exactly what he’s supposed to do. So maybe the information that Aaron is getting isn’t as good. That’s something to consider.”

New York Yankee Analysis: Big questions the Yankees must answer by March 31, 2022

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The New York Yankee season is over, falling short of another World Series win. The “Boss” George Steinbrenner, if alive, would say it’s another failed season. If you consider not winning the World Series failing, then he is correct. But there is a lot to be said about getting to a wild card berth, win or not. Many other AL teams can’t say that. But the one with the biggest payroll; more is expected of them. The Yankees have not had a losing season since 1992. But the last World Series they won was in 2009.

Manager Joe Girardi won the 2009 World Series. But after not repeating for the next eight years and amongst complaints about being too strict, the Yankees moved on from Girardi and hired Aaron Boone.  Boone has been mostly successful in bringing the team to 100 wins, 103 wins, 33 wins in a short season, and 92 wins this year. But, regardless of that success, he has never gotten the team beyond late-season failures.

With each passing year, New York Yankee fans, even the most ardent fans, have become less patient waiting for the Yankees to win. Some fans have given up and moved on to other teams and even other sports. This isn’t good for business and baseball, although a game is a business. Principle owner Hal Steinbrenner and company have to figure out how to turn this team around. Yankee stadium never had a sell-out crowd this season. That is lost dollars, lots of them.

After a very inconsistent season that certainly cost them a trip to the World Series, the New York Yankees have many questions that must be answered before they try this all over again. And this year, there are more questions to be addressed than usual. So let’s have at it.

Renew Aaron Boone’s contract?

In 2018 Aaron Boone was hired as the new Yankee manager on a four-year contract that was over last night. So the Yankee organization has to decide whether to renew his contract or move on from the one-time manager.

When Boone was hired, many Yankee fans said, “Aaron who?”. Boone was never a great baseball player and had never managed even a minor league team. Others have learned to dislike him; still, others think he has done a good job. Most managers in baseball were catchers who seemed to have a better understanding of all baseball operations—Boone, who spent most of his career with the Cincinnati Reds primarily as a third baseman.

Boone will receive most of the blame for this poor season, although much of that blame can be placed on the hitters themselves, as Boone can’t hit for the hitters or pitch for the pitchers. Many fans question his decisions and his lack of holding bad players responsible for their play. Boone, with his style, constantly praises the team when they lose. An excellent example of that is his praise of Gerrit Cole after last night’s wild-card loss saying he threw some good pitches.

However, one must be cautious in blaming Boone. Many believe that Boone was hired to be a mouthpiece for Brian Cashman, the Yankee front office, making the significant decisions and Boone following them, only to be allowed to make minor decisions on the field during games. However, even those skeptical of that theory admit that the Yankee office and analytics department have too much influence over how the games are played.

Examine the organizational philosophy?

With so many questions unanswered about why this team can’t win big year after year, is it time to examine how the whole organization is run? Under the present philosophy, whether Boone is brought back or not, they would only hire another yes man that would be subject to the highly analytics-based front office.

All baseball teams receive the same analytics; it differs in how they are communicated and how they are executed. A manager who uses those stats exclusively and ignores what he sees on the field or who is hot and who is not will lose a lot of games. Analytics are a guide, not a user manual.

Should the Yankees hire a Bruce Bochi, Buck Showalter, or the like, it would require an entire shakeup of how the organization runs. Neither of these guys are yes men and would be challenging to work with under the present makeup. But it’s fair to mention that Bochi’s management style has brought the San Francisco Giants to win 107 games this season for the most in baseball and with less talent than the Yankees.

Brian Cashman will have much to do with if the Yankees are willing to examine themselves. Cashman is the driving force for how the Yankees perform. But many times in the past, Cashman has been slow to act. Lingering questions with Gleyber Torres and Gary Sanchez are examples of that. Last season he failed to act to improve the team. This year got two lefties to balance the lineup that fans have been screaming about for years.

Exceed the luxury tax threshold?

Do the Yankees need to exceed the luxury tax threshold to win finally. No!. Spending a lot of money has not helped them much. Better run and better-managed teams have gone further season after season. The Oakland Athletics and the Tampa Bay Rays have done it on about 30% of the Yankees payroll.

Extend Aaron Judge’s contract?

This may be the most challenging question to address in this off-season. If the Yankees offer Judge a contract, it will be huge. The question is do the Yankees want to spend that much, and if they do, how badly will it tie their hands on solving the other team’s needs.

Judge turns 30 next year, and based on his injury record, signing a long-term contract with him is risky at best. This season is the first season he has been healthy since 2017. Between 2018 and 2020, he played in only 243 games.  So the question remains how much and for how long. It is doubtful that the Yankees will go more than six years, even though Judge has said he wants to retire a Yankee, according to Bryan Hock.

Aaron Judge’s value is at its highest and could draw the most if the Yankees were willing to trade him. The Yankees could get a quality pitcher, a shortstop, and a few choice prospects for him. However, whether an extension could be agreed upon would most likely be a Derek Jeter-like situation, taking less than he is worth.

How to fix the Yankee outfield?

During this season, the Yankees have had either a drought or glut in the outfield. Aaron Judge is a solid right fielder, and Joey Gallo will be with the team in left field through 2022. However, the Yankees don’t have a true centerfielder with any kind of future. Brett Gardner has been adequate in the position, but it becomes more doubtful that the 38-year-old will return each year. In addition, Aaron Hicks (yes, remember him?) has yet to prove he can stay healthy.

If they fix that, they still have Tyler Wade and Giancarlo Stanton options to add to the mix and give days off.

Obtain a real shortstop?

There is still the ongoing question about Gleybe Torre’s worth to the team. Late this season, the Yankees finally realized they made a mistake trying to make Gleyber Torres a shortstop. Torres is no longer a 22-year-old with a bright future; he has become tarnished goods. He will turn 25 in December and is coming off of two back-to-back poor seasons on defense and offense. The Yankees, to a degree, have overlooked his poor defense because he led the team in 2019 with 38 home runs, but since then, he has only 12 long balls.  What the Yankees should be most concerned about is his lack of growth.

The Yankees have moved Torres to second, where he has played better but not by much. That pushed a Gold Glove second baseman DJ LeMahieu, into being a utility player. Unfortunately, LeMahieu’s performance has not been as good since the move.  While the Yankees have one of baseball’s top prospects, Anthony Volpe, he probably won’t be big team ready for another year or two. With Torre’s continued poor play, the Yankees should at least inquire about options in free agency this offseason.

What to do with the catcher situation?

Oh boy, this question yet again. Gary Sanchez has been one of the most controversial Yankee players since he became the Yankees lead catcher in 2017. That was a year that was pretty good for the young man. But since then, he has not duplicated that performance and has often been criticized for his performance behind at backstop. He continues to be a less-than-average defender and has had a poor batting average.

Last year, he had a disastrous season, hitting only .147 and losing his starting status in favor of backup catcher Kyle Higashioka, a better defender. Sanchez is still around because when he is hot, he can hit the long ball and has a rocket of an arm preventing many stolen bases. He has hit more this year with an average of .204 but still strikes out too much. With the other questions facing the Yankees, it is doubtful they will move Sanchez.

What to do with the loose ends?

The Yankees have two obvious loose ends. One is whether to renew a contract with first baseman Anthony Rizzo and, if they do, what they will do with Luke Voit. I wouldn’t be surprised if Luke Voit is not with the Yankees next season. He could be used in a trade. With the glut at DH, his use to the club is limited. He also has not been able to stay healthy while with the Yankees.  If the Yankees choose to replace Gleyber Torres at short, he too will become a trading piece.

How to reinforce the pitching staff?

The New York Yankees certainly need to beef up the pitching staff. Jameson Taillon is under contract through 2022 and is arbitration-eligible as of today. Also, as of today, Corey Kluber is a free agent.  That leaves Gerrit Cole and Jordan Montgomery as the Yankees starting rotation. The organization will have to examine what place Luis Severino and Domingo German have going forward and if they need to replace Kluber if he doesn’t sign with the Yankees.

At the beginning of the season, the Yankees had one of the strongest bullpens in baseball. Unfortunately, as the season progressed, they lost much of their strength. Set up man Zack Britton underwent Tommy John surgery to keep him out until at least the end of the 2022 season. Justin Wilson and the Yankee’s best long reliever Luis Cessa went to the Reds in a salary dump. Darren O’Day, the sidearmer, had a shoulder injury followed by a hamstring strain that kept him away from the team for the rest of the season.

In a major disappointment this season for the bullpen, on July 31st Tommy Kahnle revealed that had a partially torn UCL and required Tommy John surgery. The Yankees outrighted him and he choose free agency. Just days afterward he signed a new contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Yankees picked up a few arms at the trade deadline, Andrew Heaney proved useless. These losses and moves left the bullpen short of components and overworked.

Not knowing if Deivi Garcia, Luis Gil, or Clarke Schmidt will be ready for the big time in 2022, the Yankees may have to go shopping to bolster the starting rotation and the bullpen. Unfortunately, any moves they make may have to wait until the end of spring training, when they can further evaluate their options.

 

Yankees have massive decision with Aaron Boone, but he’s not fretting it

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New York Yankees, Aaron Boone

The New York Yankees were knocked out of the postseason in a disappointing performance against the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday evening. Losing 6–2, starting pitcher and ace Gerrit Cole only lasted 2.0 innings, giving up four hits and three earned runs. At one point, Cole muttered the words “I’m out” as he proceeded to allow two men on base before Clay Holmes came in and finished off the 3rd inning.

Whether it be a byproduct of poor coaching or execution from the players, the Yankee should’ve never been in the situation, to begin with, as they lost strings of games that forced them to compete in the Wild Card. At the very least, they should’ve had home-field advantage instead of giving Boston an opportunity to win at home and tantalize a streaky Yankees team.

However, the Bombers have a few big decisions to make this off-season, and one boils down to skipper Aaron Boone, as his contract is up after the year concludes.

“I haven’t had any conversations about [my contract] with anyone, so we’ll see,” Boone said after the loss. “I love being here. I love going to work with this group of players.”

Of course, Boone would prefer to stay as the field manager for the Yanks, but given how poorly they performed at times this season and the amount of money they’re spending on some of their bigger players, they simply might want to go in a different option.

Boone mentioned after the game how the rest of the league has caught up to the Yankees, which is an interesting statement considering they haven’t won a World Series in over a decade and just missed the postseason.

“The league has closed the gap on us,” Boone said. “We’ve got to get better in every aspect. Because it’s not just the Red Sox and the Astros now in our league. Look at our division, the Rays are a beast, Toronto, there’s some teams in the Central that are better and better, teams in the West that are better and better, teams that have closed the gap on us.”

When you’re spending hundreds of millions on personnel, you must produce more than 92 wins in a season, and general manager Brian Cashman must understand that reality. If it were up to me, the Yankees would move on from Boone, but that’s a conversation the front office will have in the coming weeks.

Do you think the Yankees should get rid of Boone and bringing in a new manager? Comment here!

What does the future have in store for Yankees’ manager Aaron Boone? ‘Whatever happens, I’m at peace with’

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New York Yankees, Aaron Boone

The New York Yankees’ rocky 2021 season, one filled with disappointment, crushing losses, COVID outbreaks, and other crucial injuries, ended on Tuesday night in a fitting way: with a 6-2 defeat at the hands of the Boston Red Sox, ace Gerrit Cole struggling, and the offense once again failing to come through.

“Guys are crushed,” Yankees manager Boone said, per ABC News. “Tonight was another tough one to take. We have been through a lot of wars with guys in that room, and we have a lot of scars. … When it ends so abruptly, the ending is really cruel.”

Boone said something that raised many eyebrows: “The league has closed the gap on us. We’ve got to get better in every aspect. Because it’s not just the Red Sox and the Astros now in our league. Look at our division, the Rays are a beast, Toronto, there’s some teams in the Central that are better and better, teams in the West that are better and better, teams that have closed the gap on us.”

It’s shocking because there needs to be a gap for other teams to “close”. That “gap” doesn’t exist because the Yankees haven’t looked like the undisputed team to beat in the American League come playoffs time for quite a while now.

The Yankees haven’t taken the next step

Last night represented Boone’s fourth straight playoff exit, and one has to wonder if the organization will bring him back or if both sides are going to part ways.

Boone’s deal expires in 2021, so if the Yankees want to bring him back, it will have to be under a new deal. If, on the other hand, they decide to look elsewhere to fill the manager position, they won’t have to fire him, since his contract is up.

“I haven’t had any conversations about [my contract] with anyone, so we’ll see,” Boone said after the loss. “I love being here. I love going to work with this group of players.”

He has a 328-218 record with the Yankees over four years, but he hasn’t been able to take the next step, and some of his in-game decisions, lineup building, and bullpen management are starting to annoy more than a few fans.

“Whatever does happen, I’m at peace with,” Boone said. “I know that I can hold my head high.”

New York Yankees: 3 Takeaways from a bad end to a disappointing season

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New York Yankees, Aaron Boone

It’s all over for the New York Yankees as they lost the wild card game in Boston. A long and primarily painful season is now behind them as they bombed out in another postseason. The Yankees, with the most championships in all of the sports, haven’t won a World Series in twelve years. In that span, the phrase Bronx Bombers once meant a powerful team that slaughters its opponents now seems to mean a team the bombs out at the end of every season. The Yankees lost the wild card game 6-2 to the Boston Red Sox.

Gerrit Cole bombs big time

At the beginning of this season, having Gerrit Cole on the mound usually meant winning another game; that is no longer true, as evidenced in his last four games when he gave up 18 earned runs. That is not the signature of a pitching ace; it’s not even the sign of a mediocre pitcher. Steinbrenner and company paid huge bucks to acquire Gerrit Cole to come up big in big situations. Instead, he has failed and failed badly.

Last night in a winner-take-all ticket to an eventual World Series, Cole only lasted two innings giving up three earned runs, two of them homers, and walking two Red Sox. That’s a 13.50 ERA, hardly a stat that will win games. Cole, after the game, didn’t give any excuses like that mound wasn’t proper or my hamstring was bothering me; he simply said he didn’t make his pitches.

In his usual manner of protecting his players rather than holding them responsible, Manager Boone actually said I think he made some good pitches. If he meant that he threw a few pitches that weren’t hit out of the park, that is true, and if he wanted to suggest that Cole pitched well, he doesn’t understand baseball. At the very least, an ace should be able to keep a team in the game even if they don’t have their best stuff. Unfortunately, Cole did not do that last night.

Yankee bullpen gives up three runs

This season, the mostly good bullpen has suffered somewhat because the starting pitching hasn’t been stellar, causing them to be overused for most of the season. But, for whatever reason, the bullpen did not respond and lift the Yankees out of the hole that Gerrit Cole created. Instead, they gave up three more runs making it extremely difficult for a poor-hitting team to crawl out from.

Some of this is Cole’s responsibility; to expect any bullpen to get 21 outs scoreless is a tall order. After Cole was removed, manager Boone called in Clay Holmes to pitch two innings of one-hit ball. It will be questioned why he didn’t Boone leave him in longer when he only used  26 pitches. Luis Severino, returning from Tommy John surgery, replaced Holmes and gave one run in 1.1 innings of work. Jonathan Loaisiga, also coming back from a stint on the IL, gave up two more runs. Chad Green pitched 1.2 innings of scoreless ball, but it was too little, too late.

Hitting was a microcosm of the whole season

The New York Yankees have been plagued all season long by long stretches of no-hitting. Droughts that put them in a wild card showdown instead of a division win. Unfortunately, after crawling back to postseason contention, they went on another one of those droughts. Hitters four through nine last night went one for twenty putting all the weight on the lead-off hitters. Giancarlo Stanton and Anthony Rizzo hit home runs, but it wasn’t impactful with no baserunners ahead of them. The Red Sox had only one hit more than the Yankees, but there were runners on base when their sluggers hit.

The New York Yankees have only scored eight runs in their last five games. It was undoubtedly a very inopportune time to go on a hitting drought. Nevertheless, this is the season the Yankees have had, was so inconsistent that it caused them to miss another try at the elusive 28th World Championship. For the Yankees, it’s time to lick their wounds and when they get tired of the taste, try to figure out what went wrong and how to fix it before the start of the 2022 baseball season.

 

New York Yankees 10/2: Takeaways as the Yankees lose but reach magic #1

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New York Yankees, Giancarlo Santon

The New York Yankees were licking their wounds after a ninth-inning rally failed to save them from losing a game one 4-3 from the Tampa Bay Rays. But at the time, they had no idea that in the middle of the night, they would reduce their magic number to #1. The Seattle Mariners game didn’t start until 10 pm EDT and didn’t end until after 1 am in the east, but by the time they walked off the field, the Mariners had lost the game propelling the Yankees to that magic #1.

Last night’s Yankee/Ray contest was a typically hard-fought game on both team’s part. However, the game never got out of hand to the point that it was lopsided. The Tampa Bay Rays got on the board early, with Nelson Cruz sending one into the New York night. But Giancarlo Stanton blasted an RBI to leave the first inning tied at one apiece. The next seven innings would be scoreless for the Yankees.

After nearly three hours, the game was still close with the Rays having a one-run advantage, then came a very exciting and tense ninth inning for both teams. The Rays tacked on two runs. In the bottom of the inning, with the Yankees behind by three runs, the Yankees’ late rally garnered them two more runs, but it wasn’t enough.

Nasty Nestor still doing his job

Nestor Cortes Jr. took to the mound last night and did what he has been doing ever since the reliever was turned into a starter by necessity. He kept the Yankees in the game. After giving up a homer to Nelson Cruz in the first, he settled down and gave the Yankees almost five innings giving up just one more run while striking out five Rays.

Also, last night Domingo German returned from the IL after not pitching for two months. Boone called in German to pitch the eighth. German pitched a scoreless eighth. He went into the first out of the ninth giving up two earned runs while striking out three. Many fans were asking why Boone didn’t bring closer Aroldis Chapman in the ninth.

“He’s going to be in some difficult situations,” Boone said. “We’ve got to lean on everyone down there. The walks hurt to knock him out of the game, but I thought overall he threw the ball pretty well.”

“I just felt like, matchup-wise, it was good,” Boone said. “I thought Albert did a good job of getting Arozarena out and then he puts Franco on the ground there. He just found a hole with it.”

If the Yankees come up on the wrong side of things after this series, this decision will be questioned again.

Yankee bats stymied by Tampa pitchers

The New York Yankees, maybe more than some teams, have had a great deal of difficulty hitting off good pitchers, and that’s what they faced last night. At the end of the night, the Yankees only got five hits off Rays pitching until they got to Kittredge in the ninth. But it ended up too little too late. Only Stanton and Gardner had two hits in the game. Five Yankees were hitless.

Yankee magic number is now one

This morning, the New York Yankees sit firmly in the number one berth for home-field advantage in the wild card game by one game. The Red Sox are holding on tight for that second spot after winning their game against the Nationals last night. Toronto also won last night and is one game behind the Red Sox. With the Mariners’ loss early this morning, they will have to win both of their remaining games to stay in contention.

If the Yankees win today, they will be assured of the home-field advantage even if the Red Sox win another one. Today the Yankees face the Tampa Bay Rays at 1:05 pm EDT. Jordan Montgomery will be on the mound for the Yankees and Shane Baz for the Rays.

Saturday’s matinee will feature the matchup of veteran Jordan Montgomery against the young Shane Baz. Montgomery is a lefty that is 6-6 with an ERA of 3.49 and 159 strikeouts. “Monty” is the Yankee poster boy for getting little run support in his games. He is coming off two wins against the Texas Rangers and the Boston Red Sox. He has had only one bad outing this season. It was on September 10th when he gave up seven earned runs in just 3.1 innings of work. The Rays hitters have not been particularly successful of him, but he will have to watch out for Manuel Margot, who in 14 at-bats has a .357 batting average.

Twenty-two-year-old Shane Baz will be a mystery to Yankee hitters as they have not seen him pitch except on video. However, he made his major league debut on September 20th and has won both of his games against the Toronto Blue jays and the Miami Marlins. He has pitched a total of 10.2 innings. In his Toronto game, he gave up two home runs. In his Marlins start, he allowed three hits in his scoreless 5.2 innings.

 

 

The New York Yankees nine games will decide their season, if they fail who should go? Poll results

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New York Yankees, Aaron Boone, Brian Cashman

The New York Yankees have a day off today to reflect on their whole season and what lies ahead of them. The Yankees rose to the occasion this week and, with great urgency, swept the Texas Rangers, keeping them in the running for a wildcard berth. But what lies ahead is far more daunting and will decide the whole season. After the sweep, the Yankees now hold the second wild-card berth.

In the final nine games of the regular season, the Yankees will face the most challenging situation they have faced all season long. They will only face teams that are statistically better playing teams. Starting tomorrow, they hit the road to face the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park. It doesn’t get easier after that when they play the Blue Jays at Rogers Center in Toronto.

Finally, the last three games of the season will be played back at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx. The problem with this schedule is that the Yankees have not prevailed over these teams all season long and now must be able to do that if they have any hope of a 28th World Championship.

This season the Yankees have won 6 of 16 games against the Toronto Blue Jays. They have won only 7 of 16 against the Red Sox. They have won 7 of 16 against the Tampa Bay Rays. All three of these teams do not have the challenging last nine games that the Yankees have, making it even more difficult to succeed.

There are many things the Yankees can’t control. For instance, all three opposing teams could go on a nine-game losing streak, which is unlikely. However, the one thing the Yankees can control is how they play over the next nine games. If the Yankees win more games, then they lose the whole season could come down to the last three games at Yankee Stadium. The Yankees will be playing the Rays; the Red Sox will be playing the Blue Jays. The Yankees will also have to scoreboard watch the Oakland Athletics that are just 2.5 games back in the wild card standings.

With any team being able to beat any team on any given day and the unpredictable nature of baseball, one thing is for sure. Scoreboard watching will become a new art form in the coming days. Each and every game is so important to every team in contention. It sure will be exciting and hopefully rewarding for the New York Yankees.

If the Yankees fail to reach the postseason, there will be many questions to be answered. In the words of George Steinbrenner, if the Yankees don’t win a World Series, it is a failed season. However, I am not sure Hal Steinbrenner, Brian Cashman, and Aaron Boone share that same feeling. As exhibited by manager Boone’s constant praise of the team even when not winning. Boone says he is not worried about his future with the Yankees, but with the season on the line, you can’t but wonder, tucked back in his head if he may wonder if his job is on the line.

Recently I conducted a poll of several Facebook Yankee groups, asking who should be fired if the season does not end well for the Yankees. Getting the pulse of a large group of Yankee fans was eye-opening. The choices I gave were Aaron Boone, Brian Cashman, Gary Sanchez, and Gleyber Torres. I must say the results were not unexpected.

First, a little about the poll, it is certainly unscientific and doesn’t represent the view of all Yankees fans, only of those responding to the poll. There were 1,526 responses, with some only commenting and not voting. All of the responses from the different groups were similar. However, one group really targeted Boone compared to the others, and one group really didn’t believe Sanchez should remain the Yankee catcher. One thing that was universally true was that Yankee fans are not ready to give up on Gleyber Torres.

Aaron Boone: 38% of respondents want Boone gone at the end of the season. Some mentioned his lack of ability to motivate, while others criticized him for not being his own man. Some mentioned his inability to manage the bullpen. A few offered that he can’t win in the postseason. Some said to bring back Girardi or Showalter. Two said to give Phil Nevin a chance. (third base coach)

Brian Cashman: 23% think his time should be over. Several mentioned that Hal Steinbrenner tied his hands; others complimented him on giving the team what they needed this season.

Gary Sanchez: 24% think Gary Sanchez will not carry the team into the future and should be replaced. Some sighted his passed balls and inconsistent hitting, while others praised his arm. A few said he was clueless.

Gleyber Torres: 14% think Torres has had his chance but failed. But most that commented stated that he is still young and will improve.

Marcus Thames: 1% although not on the ballot, 12 respondents added him for his lack of getting a powerful team hitting.

Other comments said all of the above. A few said none of the above. Some had a defeatist attitude and said whatever they do, it won’t make a difference.

After reviewing all of the votes and comments, it leads me to believe that the Yankees win or not need a shakeup or even a complete overhaul top to bottom. However, some suggest the Yankees need a new owner.

The New York Yankees need to clean house in the offseason

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Heading into this last weekend, the New York Yankees were feeling pretty good. They had a dominant win on Friday night while the Blue Jays lost which put them a half game ahead for the second wild card spot.

The Yankees had Luis Gil and Gerrit Cole scheduled to start over the weekend so you felt pretty good as a fan that they’d win the series. Well, The Indians, who have been no-hit three times in 2021 alone, scored 22 runs in two games.

The powerful Yankees offense which flexed it’s muscles on Friday once again went cold and only mustered four runs total in those two games. Yes, that means that an under 500 club who has been no-hit three times outscored the Yankees 22-4 in two games over the weekend in the middle of a playoff race.

This series with Cleveland was this season wrapped up in one series for New York. One big step forward on Friday and two giant steps back over the weekend. Now, the Yankees have a less than 30% chance to make the playoffs according to the latest odds. Keep in mind, they were near 95% just a few weeks ago.

Yankees Need Change

Aaron Boone looked visibly frustrated after the game and called the two-games, “Terrible.” Outside of that response, we got the same cookie-cutter speech that we’ve seen all year. It was, ‘The players tried hard, the effort was good, the execution just wasn’t there.’

This Yankees team has all the talent in the world, but half the time, they play like they don’t have a care in the world. There is no fire with this team and they play like a team that’s massively up in the division race opposed to a team that’s fighting for their lives.

At the mid-way point in the season, Hal Steinbrenner blamed the players for the inconsistency. Yes, it is the players that are the ones who go out there every single day and play. However, it’s the little things that fall back on the manager and the coaches. The little things are what have killed them this year.

I hate to break it to Aaron Boone, but the effort has not been good with this team. The players don’t look like they try hard all the time. The only player you could say that gives it all in every single game and plate appearance is Brett Gardner.

There is no fire or motivation with this team and that falls back on Aaron Boone. Yes, the Yankees have dealt with injuries and Covid throughout the season. However, when you look at the players that have still taken the field, they shouldn’t be in the position they’re in.

Time to Refresh

A few years ago, the Yankees didn’t bring Joe Girardi back and brought in Aaron Boone. With Boone, you had a completely different managerial philosophy. You had an analytically driven team with a manager that cared more about protecting players feelings than saying it like it is.

Say what you want about Joe Girardi, but if he was managing the Yankees this year, you wouldn’t have had those cookie-cutter press conference responses and I guarantee you that players would be held accountable.

There is no accountability and that’s a massive issue. When there’s no accountability, the players have no reason to worry which has been a big problem for the Yankees. Gary Sanchez is the perfect example of this.

In the last couple of weeks, Sanchez made one of the worst plays I’ve ever seen as a catcher in a game against the Mets. I’m not exaggerating in saying that it might’ve been the worst play I’ve ever seen. Then over the weekend, he drops a crucial pop-up that leads to a seven run inning for Cleveland.

Think the Yankees catcher felt like he was going to get in trouble or benched for that? Absolutely not. When there’s no accountability, players let things like that roll off their shoulders. They know they will be given another chance.

Boone would rather give a million chances to Sanchez than bench him to send the message that this team needed. I’ll say this about Brian Cashman, he did his job this year at the deadline. He gave the Yankees more tools (Outside of the human garbage can Andrew Heaney) to win and they still couldn’t do it.

Boone might be the nicest guy in the world, but it’s time for a new look. They need someone with fire and not occasional fire towards the umpires. They need someone who will lay into his team if they are not playing up to their standards. It’s clear that Aaron Boone isn’t that guy.

Will they do anything?

My biggest fear is that Hal Steinbrenner will not do anything after this season. I have a great fear that they will come out and blame the players and not change anything with the Yankees staff.

Assuming they go on to miss the playoffs, there is no reason to keep Boone as the manager. Could it be slightly unfair considering the fact that he’s not playing? Maybe, but in professional sports, when the players don’t play up to their abilities consistently, the manager/coach is on the hook.

It’s time to send a message. The Yankees are now going to be 12 years removed from their last World Series championship. What they’ve done has clearly not worked and it’s time for some accountability. Enough is enough.