Is the Binder About to Choke Away the Playoffs?

Over the weekend the New York Yankees were left with a lot of “what if’s” and a lot more questions than answers as the team lost three games of four against the Toronto Blue Jays. What if Brett Gardner had taken that extra base on the wild pitch before Brian McCann’s game-tying single in the first game of the double-header. What if Luis Severino didn’t suffer a cut to his calf that no one seems to know how or when it happened and actually had control of his pitches Friday night? What if Joe Girardi’s binder didn’t manage scared and potentially choke away the playoffs for the club?

How about these; What if Joe Girardi hadn’t pinch run for Alex Rodriguez in that same inning while he was on first base and the bases were loaded? Well if he hadn’t the Yankees would have had Alex up with the game on the line and not Dustin Ackley. What if Girardi hadn’t once again pinch ran for Brian McCann once again with the game on the line? The Yankees wouldn’t have been without Mark Teixeira due to injury and their two other best hitters in McCann and Rodriguez because of asinine, in my opinion, punch running opportunities.

What if so many times this season Girardi didn’t go to Dellin Betances and/or Andrew Miller with 5+ run leads thus making them unavailable for the next game or the game after that? Also, what if the last Masahiro Tanaka start before his shutout on Sunday against the Toronto Blue Jays Girardi had used Betances when the game was close or ties rather than running out Caleb Cotham, James Pazos and whoever else he ran out there that subsequently wasted a gem and cost the Yankees a win?

And by the way, #WheresRefsnyder?

Now I’m not calling for Girardi’s job or Brian Cashman’s head here, I’m not, but if so many want to play the “what if” game then I am going to play the devil’s advocate game. The problem is not Joe Girardi, he showed as a manager of the Miami Marlins that he could be a great manager and use his head, the problem is that damn iPad that he carrier around that used to be a three-ring binder that is merely labeled “the binder.” Ditch the binder and go back to using your head, baseball IQ and instincts Girardi. We liked you better that way.