Saturday, July 10, 2021

You Win Some, You Lose Some...

  

Photo Credit: Michael Wyke, AP

The state of the 2021 Yankees Season…

We are nearing the end of the first half of the MLB season and despite last night’s blanking of the Astros in Houston, a field that has troubled the Yankees in recent years, it has been a disappointment. I did not expect the Yankees do be this bad or the Boston Red Sox to be this good. I still do not think the Red Sox are great but now, they are 2.5 games better than the Tampa Bay Rays and 9 games better than the Yankees or the Toronto Blue Jays.

The Yankees can make up lost ground in the second half, but admittedly, I am not fully confident they can or will. There are players on the team that need to do their part. It sucks that Aroldis Chapman, so dominant early in the season, has become Tyler Clippard.  I am thankful for Chad Green and Jonathan Loaisiga to help close out games but long-term the Yankees need to get Chapman right or get a healthy Zack Britton to keep Green and Loaisiga in high leverage seventh and eighth innings. 

Gerrit Cole gets his chance for redemption today against his former teammates. Today would be a nice day for Cole’s return to superiority. He will be facing the Astros’ Zack Greinke so it should be a good pitcher’s game. Hopefully, the Yankee bats come alive against Greinke who has not really showed any signs of slowing down despite his age (37). 

Photo Credit: Getty Images

At what point does Yankees Management get held responsible for the under-performance of the team? I get it that the game is played by the players and not the manager, coaches, general manager, or owner, but motivating the players and maximizing performance does lie with Teams Boone and Cashman.  I have been supportive of Boone since he was hired, but this season has eroded some of the confidence I have had in him. It is tough to watch a guy like Alex Cora, whom I personally despise for his smugness and role in the cheating scandals in Houston and Boston, routinely get the most out of his players. He has shown a better aptitude for the job than Boone. I really hate to say that…I honestly do.

If the Yankees finish this season with less than 90 wins, Hal Steinbrenner needs to look awfully hard at the manager and general manager. At some point, the hard decision to make a change must be made. I know that Brian Cashman has been GM longer than some younger Yankee fans have been alive but that does not make him invincible or mean that he is the right leader for the 2022 season and beyond.  Roster construction has been heavily criticized in recent years by the fans, and I feel there are some merits in the arguments. There are obvious moves that we have seen the team should have made but for whatever reason did not. I am not referring to the screams to call up outfielder Trey Amburgey, whom Mike Axisa (rightfully) referred to as a Quad-A player this week, but the weaknesses of the team have been glaring yet not addressed. While the trade for Tim Locastro may not be one that I condoned at the time, I do like his presence on the team. I have no idea if he will be around for the long haul and it probably does not matter, but the Yankees need to recognize that Aaron Hicks is not the answer next year and Brett Gardner, despite last night’s heroics, is not the player he once was.  A long-term solution for centerfield is needed now.

The one player that does seem to be turning the corner is Jameson Taillon as he continues to distance himself from Tommy John surgery (August 2019).  I was down on him earlier in the season, but I recognize it was unfair. I really like the guy and I love how much he cares about this team and about winning. I know he has great potential, and I am glad he is a Yankee. A win on Sunday against Houston to close out the first half would be a wonderful thing indeed. 

Photo Credit: David Dermer, USA TODAY Sports

I care about the Yankees, and I want them to win, but unless this team can get hot and go on a long winning streak, we will have to watch teams we dislike in the playoffs while the lights of Yankee Stadium have been shuttered in October. I probably get less worked up about losses right now than I did earlier in the season when I felt like the team had a great chance to reach the World Series. The team needs to prove to me and to the fan base they want to win and will do what it takes to win the winnable games and minimize the losses with strong fundamental play, timely hitting and consistent pitching. Aaron Boone, you are on the clock. If this team cannot turn the corner, it is because you could not motivate them to do better, to play within the realm of their talent and passion.  If the Yankees do get hot in the second half and the Red Sox and Rays cool off, the current AL East standings could change significantly despite the current nine-game gap.  I remember how defeated I felt in the summer of 1978, despite Ron Guidry’s incredible dominance in each start, when the Yankees were 14 games behind in July. We all know how that one worked out. It can happen again.

I still do not know if the Yankees should be buyers or sellers at the trading deadline. If they are still limping along two weeks from now, it may be time to start looking at ways to improve the team for the 2022 season. Not ready to throw in the towel this month or next, but realistically, we should have a better idea of the team’s direction by the last week of July. 

For now, let us focus on winning the next two games, and then enjoy the break. It will be nice to watch some baseball in the Mile High City even if I must watch on TV (called Denver home for four years until moving back to California in 2020). I love Coors Field and it has long been one of my favorite parks. I have a ticket to see a game there later in the season and look forward to seeing it in person again. It is just too bad I cannot be there to enjoy the week’s All-Star festivities.

As always, Go Yankees!