The Yankees finished off a three-game sweep of the Phillies, have won five straight and head home to begin the easiest schedule in the majors over the next month.

Here are 10 thoughts on the Yankees.

1. I thought the Phillies were supposed to be good? The Yankees went into Citizens Bank Park and swept a three-games series from the team with the best record in the majors. They beat up on Cy Young candidate Zack Wheeler on Monday, got to the Phillies’ bullpen on Tuesday and then got a career-high, six-RBI game from DJ LeMahieu on Wednesday, as he drove in every Yankees run. The Yankees won in a 10-run blowout and then won back-to-back one-run games after having just one one-run win since May 29.

2. Not only did the Phillies get swept at home, but they allowed the Yankees to win a game started by Nestor Cortes for the first time since June 18. Wednesday’s 6-5 win was also the Yankees’ first road win started by Cortes since June 2.

“I was just ready to make my start today, and that’s what I worked for,” Cortes said about his name being involved in trade speculation. “Hopefully, I can put up a string of good starts going forward.”

Cortes will have a great opportunity to put together that string as the Yankees’ schedule is about to get as easy as a major-league schedule can get with three-game series against the Blue Jays, Angels, Rangers, White Sox, Guardians, Rockies and Nationals. Outside of the series with the Guardians, August is full of wins.

3. The Yankees were finally able to win a game started by Cortes because of LeMahieu. LeMahieu hit a grand slam in the second inning for his second home run of the season to give the Yankees a 4-0 laed, and then with the Yankees clinging to a 4-3 lead in the sixth, he smoked a two-run double to the gap in right-center

“It’s been tough for me, but today felt good,” LeMahieu said. “My teammates have my back in supporting me. To come through and see how excited they are, it’s a good feeling for sure.”

Back on July 21, LeMahieu said, “It hasn’t given me much hope the last month or so. As long as I’ve played this game, whatever challenges have presented itself, I’ve always come out of it one way or another.” Since then, LeMahieu is only 4-for-19, but two of those four were home runs and another was a double. Maybe this is him coming out of it? I sure hope so, as on July 22, I wrote:

I love LeMahieu. I was all for re-signing him after 2020 for what he did in 2019 and 2020. He deserved to be re-signed. After posting a .922 OPS in his first two seasons with the Yankees, he has a .702 since. He suffered season-ending injuries in 2021 and 2022, played through injuries last year and missed a large portion of this season because of injuries. It fell apart quickly for LeMahieu after 2022 and while there have been moments over the last three-plus years where he looks like himself, they are only moments, nothing consistent or frequent. On a team full of unplayable names, he is the most unplayable of them all. But because of all of those other unplayable names and because he’s owed about $41 million through 2026, he’s going to keep getting opportunities to prove his career isn’t over.

I want nothing more than for LeMahieu to return to his old self, regain the starting second base role and send Gleyber Torres to the bench. That’s the dream.

4. After re-signing LeMahieu to be their second baseman for the next six years, he was forced off the position when Torres couldn’t handle shortstop. The Yankees catered to Torres and LeMahieu started being a third baseman and first baseman regularly. Then when the Yankees traded for Jazz Chisholm Jr., they played him in center field for a game and then third base the last three games — a position he has never played before. Why? To cater to Torres.

On Wednesday, Torres batted leadoff. He went 0-for-5 with a strikeout. In his first chance at being a leadoff hitter this season (March 28-April 9), he went 10-for-50 with a 11 strikeouts, hitting .200/.281/.240. His slash line for the season is down to .231/.306/.357. For his career, he’s a .237/.282/.356 hitter in the leadoff spot. Please stop trying to make him a leadoff hitter. (Please also stop using Alex Verdugo and his .298 on-base percentage as the leadoff hitter.)

5. After Cortes was removed, Luke Weaver pitched an inning and gave up a run. Tommy Kahnle got two outs and Mark Leiter Jr. allowed his first run since June 19. The only reason Leiter allowed a run was because Torres couldn’t handle ball hit at him that every major-league second baseman should be able to handle.

6. Then it was time for Clay Holmes. A day after blowing his eighth save opportunity of the season, Holmes allowed a leadoff single to Kyle Schwarber and it looked like Here we go again. Instead, Holmes was able to get Austin Hays on a flyout (he narrowly missed hitting a walkoff home run) and got a double play off the bat of the struggling Bryce Harper. A seven-pitch save from Holmes? Add another humiliating moment to the series for the Phillies.

7. Brian Cashman spoke to the media about the trade deadline and the roster for the rest of the season.

“I liked what we had before we made the moves, and I know we’ve improved since these moves,” Cashman said.

There’s no one in the world who liked what the Yankees had before the moves. Before acquiring Chisholm, the team had lost 24 of 35 games. If Cashman liked the team so much, he wouldn’t have made any moves.

8. “I think we have a really good team already, and it’ll get better over the course of time when certain guys come back from the IL,” Cashman said. “With the imports, we’ve made it better.”

The team is really good now. (That’s also because they have won five straight games, so the feeling and perception around them has changed drastically since Trent Grisham had an 0-2 count against Kenley Jansen on Saturday night.)

The only player I’m excited about “returning” is Jasson Dominguez. Dominguez would make the lineup deeper and better and would mean the bench for Verdugo. Unfortunately, barring injury, I don’t think Dominguez will be called up until rosters expand on September 1.

9. “He’s a legitimate force when he’s healthy and all the rust is knocked off,” Cashman said of Dominguez. “It’s exciting to know that’s an opportunity that’s there, but I have no idea past that. We like what we have currently, and it’d be nice to know that’s sitting there if we need it.”

Cashman definitely has an idea, and that idea is September 1. That gives Dominguez more time at Triple-A to get healthy from his oblique and develop, and it gives more time for Verdugo to play himself out of the starting lineup. A Yankees lineup with Dominguez over Verdugo (if Dominguez stays healthy and hits at Triple-A) and LeMahieu over Torres (if LeMahieu can continue to hit the ball in the air) is a real possibility.

10. The Yankees have Thursday off before hosting a Blue Jays team that has given up and traded away pieces off of their 26-man roster within the last week. The Blue Jays are counting down the days until Game 162 with a focus on next year and are the perfect team for the new-look Yankees to beat up on over the weekend. The dog days of summer and the stretch run is here, and so is the easiest schedule in the majors over the next month.

The Yankees won their fourth straight game since acquiring Jazz Chisholm Jr., and it was his home run that propelled the Yankees to a 7-6, 12-inning win over the Phillies.

Here are 10 thoughts on the Yankees.

1. I love Jazz Chisholm Jr. How could you not? The Yankees are 4-0 since acquiring him and 3-0 with him in the lineup. All he’s done since putting on a Yankees uniform is hit, going 6-for-15 with four home runs, eight RBIs, a walk, a stolen base and a .400/.438/1.200 slash line.

“This is what I live for,” Chisholm said. “I love the lights. I love the big crowds. I love everything like that. It’s super exciting and I’m enjoying it.”

2. When Chisholm was a Marlin, the large crowds were few and far between. Now he’s playing in front of full stadiums every night and he’s putting on a show. His three-run home run on Tuesday night turned a 4-2 deficit into a 5-4 lead. The blast was so effortless and led to him becoming the first player in Yankees history with four-plus home runs in his first three games with the team.

“That’s sick, to be part of the history of the New York Yankees,” Chisholm said. “It’s one of the sickest things anybody in baseball could hear.”

Not only has he been exceptional at the plate, he has played third base the last two games, a position he has never played before, and has flawlessly fielded everything hit to him.

“It looks like he’s been playing there his whole life,” Aaron Judge said. “He brings great energy.”

For the fourth straight day, Chisholm was the story as the Yankees won their fourth straight game for the first time since June 9-12. The game almost didn’t end with a win, though, following another blown save from Clay Holmes.

3. The Yankees held their 5-4 lead from the Chisholm home run until Holmes entered in the bottom of the ninth. It was never going to be an easy ninth with just a one-run lead for Holmes and his 5.16 ERA since May 20 since it’s never easy with Holmes because he relies on balls in play to consistently record outs and struggles to put away hitters with two strikes. When you rely on balls in play, bad things can happen, and bad things happened yet again with Holmes on the mound.

Holmes couldn’t put away JT Realmuto with an 0-2 count and he was able to roll a slow grounder to third to lead off the inning with a single. Nick Castellanos hit a double play ball to third, but the Yankees couldn’t turn it fast enough to erase the baserunner. Bryson Stott followed with a single on the ground to right field to move the runner to third before a wild pitch from Holmes allowed the tying run to score. Holmes got another ground ball to end the inning, but Gleyber Torres (who unfortunately survived another trade deadline as a Yankee) dropped the transfer to turn a double play for the second straight day. Eventually after an intentional walk, another single on the ground and finally a groundout, Holmes ended the inning.

4. “He threw the ball great,” Aaron Boone said. “I know that’s not a popular thing … but that’s tough luck right there.”

No, it’s not a popular thing, considering Holmes allowed the game to be tied on a wild pitch and has blown seven of 28 save opportunities this season. But it is and it isn’t tough luck. Holmes’ goal is to get ground balls. Again, when the ball is put into play bad things happen, and relying on those ground balls to both be hit hard enough to field and also be hit right at fielders is a parlay that Holmes keeps losing.

Here is what I wrote on Monday:

Is it too early to start a Jake Cousins for Closer petition? Cousins is the only Yankees reliever capable of consistently getting strikeouts and given Clay Holmes’ performance since mid-May, it’s completely acceptable to want someone else in that role. I don’t think the Yankees should have a set closer, but since they are going to, it should be someone other than Holmes, even if he did his job on Saturday night.

5. If not Cousins, maybe Mark Leiter Jr. will unseat Holmes. Leiter arrived to the game after its start and found himself making his Yankees debut in the 10th with the automatic runner on. He pitched a scoreless frame as the third member of his family to pitch for the Yankees.

“It’s a great legacy for my family,” Leiter said. “To get a chance to put on the pinstripes is pretty awesome.”

6. Will Warren also got his chance to wear a Yankees uniform for the first time as he was thrust into making his major-league debut against the majors’ best record after Gerrit Cole was scratched. Warren looked overmatched early, allowing a run in the first and three more in the second, but settled down to pitch 5 2/3 with no runs allowed over his final 4 1/3 innings.

7. Cole was scratched late with what the Yankees initially called “general body fatigue” as Cole said he wasn’t able to bounce back from his most recent start the way he normally does.

“Look, I’m still [seven] starts into this season for me,” Cole said. “Everyone else is in the middle of it all. I feel different than other people.”

I would think Cole would be more rested and have less fatigue considering he’s only seven starts into the season and it’s the end of July. He would typically make the seventh start of his season in early May. (In true Yankees fashion, Boone later said Cole has been dealing with a stomach bug recently, which didn’t match up with what the Yankees announced and Cole said.)

8. Whatever it is, fatigue, stomach bug, hangover, I don’t care as long as it’s not related to his elbow. If Cole needs more time to get ready for his next start, that’s fine. The free fall and collapse has momentarily stalled and the Yankees have a little room to breathe now with a five-game lead in the loss column on a playoff spot. The Yankees need Cole to be healthy and himself in October. Right now, he may not be healthy and clearly wasn’t himself against the Mets last week.

9. But knowing Luis Gil is at a point in terms of innings he’s never been at and knowing Cole has been shaky and now experiencing this odd general fatigue, wouldn’t you think the Yankees should have made a move for a starting pitcher at the trade deadline? The team is dangerously close to praying Clarke Schmidt returns and pitches the way he did before getting hurt and even more close to having to start both of their two inconsistent lefties in playoff games.

10. Before this six-game road trip against the Red Sox and Phillies I wondered if the Yankees could go winless, be out of a playoff spot and fire Boone by the end of day on Wednesday. That didn’t happen, but that’s dark things were for the Yankees less than a week ago. It’s wild what a few wins will do. It’s also wild to think about where the team may be if Trent Grisham didn’t come through down 0-2 against Kenley Jansen on Saturday night. Thankfully, he did, and thankfully the Yankees are back on track for the first time in six weeks with the schedule about to soften for all of August.

The Yankees won back-to-back games and a series for just the second time since mid-June. After beating the Red Sox 11-8 on Saturday and 8-2 on Sunday, the Yankees have stabilized their collapse for the time being.

Here are 10 thoughts on the Yankees.

1. With two outs, trailing by one run and Trent Grisham in an 0-2 count against Kenley Jansen on Saturday night, it was hard to like the Yankees’ chances of tying the game, even with the tying run on second base. Down to their last strike, the Yankees were on the verge of losing a fourth straight game and watching what was a 13-game lead in loss column for a playoff spot on June 14 fall to just one game. But Grisham battled back, fouling off a pitch and taking back-to-back cutters that nearly grazed the bottom of the zone before hitting a game-tying double off the Green Monster. The Yankees went on to win the game 11-8 in 10 innings for their best and most important win of the season.

2. Eight innings before Grisham improbably tied the game, the Yankees had staked Marcus Stroman to a three-run, first inning-lead. Alex Verdugo singled (it should have been a double, but he didn’t run out of the box thinking he hit a home run) and Juan Soto and Aaron Judge followed with back-to-back home runs. Five batters into the bottom of the first, Stroman had erased the early 3-0 lead. He ended up putting together his worst start of the season (3.1 IP, 9 H, 5 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 0 K, 1 HR), allowing 10 baserunners in just 3 1/3 innings and not getting a single swing-and-miss on any of his 60 pitches.

Stroman has given the Yankees one quality start (June 22 against the Braves) in his last nine starts going back to May 31. In that time he has pitched to a 5.28 ERA with opponents hitting .291/.373/.514 off him.

3. A few hours before Stroman laid an egg at Fenway Park, the Yankees traded for Jazz Chisholm. The slightly-above-league-average career hitter (102 OPS+) wasn’t going to come and single-handedly save the Yankees’ sinking ship, but he was going to make them better, faster and more versatile, something that the old, slow, station-to-station team desperately needs. The shortstop-turned-second baseman-turned center fielder is still only 26 and is under contract through 2026.

The trade for Chisholm was both a trade for now as well as 2025 and 2026. Gleyber Torres is a free agent after this season as is Alex Verdugo, and DJ LeMahieu is now unplayable. Chisholm makes the 2024 Yankees better and gives the roster some stability going into next season and the one after.

Since Torres’ benching at the beginning of July and with the trade deadline approaching, the impending free agent having a miserable season is hitting .321/.410/.509 in his last 14 games and 62 plate appearances. It’s almost as if having consequences for poor play and needing to be accountable for your performance work as motivational tools.

The same goes for Verdugo. With talks he would go to the bench for Chisholm or Jasson Dominguez or be traded, Verdugo went 7-for-15 with five runs and three doubles over the weekend. Maybe Verdugo is finally going to get back being the league-average hitter he has been for his career, or maybe he’s just a great Fenway Park hitter. (Likely the latter.)

“Get a couple of guys at the trade deadline that are going to freshen it up in here,” Verdugo said, “and we’re excited man.”

I hate to break it to Verdugo, but there’s a very good chance he will be traded for one of the “freshen”-it-up guys. Because even with the recent upticks in performance from Torres or Verdugo, I do think one or both of them should be traded before Tuesday’s deadline. The Yankees are going to need to replace names on the major-league roster to create roster space for the return of Giancarlo Stanton, eventual call-up of Dominguez and potential returns for Anthony Rizzo and Jon Berti.

4. Brian Cashman has opened admittedly to trying to trade Torres at past deadlines and that was before Torres had 55 games left in his contract. However, the Yankees will likely buy into Torres’ recent rebound, thinking he will finish the season strong and play well in the postseason, when in all likelihood, the moment the deadline passes he will revert back to being an absolute nothing at the plate and a disaster on the field and on the bases. (Just two weeks ago, Cashman sat in the visitors’ dugout at Tropicana Field and said Torres was the Yankees’ second-best hitter last season and they are “waiting for him” to be that player again.) On Sunday night, it was Torres’ two-run single in the first inning that extended the Yankees’ early lead from 1-0 to 3-0, but of course he had to get thrown out trying to advance to second to end the inning. He always has to negate a positive in some way.

I have long said Torres is a losing player, and he is. On Sunday, Aaron Boone said he would like both Torres and Chisholm to take balls at third base to get acclimated with the position since the Yankees don’t have an everyday third baseman.

Here is how the newly-acquired Chisholm responded:

“I went out there and played center field for the first time last year. It was pretty difficult at first, but I feel like I can go and play anywhere and help my team win. Especially a winning team, if they’re asking me to go somewhere and help them win, I’m definitely going to do it.”

Here is how Torres responded:

“I don’t like it. I’m a second baseman. I play second.”

The Yankees reportedly had concerns about Chisholm’s personality before trading for him, and yet, they continue to roster and play Torres, who they apparently have no personality issues with. Again, Torres is a losing player.

5. Torres came up as a shortstop. He started playing third base in 2017 to set himself up for an eventual call-up because Chase Headley was so bad, but then Torres blew out his arm at home plate and missed the rest of the season. He made his major-league debut as a second baseman in 2018, and played the position through 2019. Then in 2020 he was moved to shortstop through mid-September 2021 until the Yankees finally gave up on him there and moved him back to second. He only plays second because he couldn’t handle short, and he’s barely capable of playing second. I would like for nothing more than for him to no longer be a Yankee by 6 p.m. on Tuesday.

6. The Yankees haven’t lost since trading for Chisholm, sitting at a perfect 2-0. To make room for Chisholm on the roster, the Yankees designated J.D. Davis for assignment. To continue with the tradition of Yankees who provided little-to-no value getting released or designated for assignment, here is Old Timers’ Day 2034:

Michael Kay: “This next Yankee was only in pinstripes for a short time. After being released by the Giants in March 2024, the last-place A’s gave up on him in June of that year, but the Yankees were waiting with open arms. He appeared in seven games as a Yankee, at times serving as the cleanup hitter and protection for Aaron Judge. He went 2-for-19 in those seven games with nine strikeouts, grounded into two double plays and posted a .385 OPS. Please welcome back, J.D. Davis!” (Stadium organ plays.)

Five days ago, Boone was asked about using Davis as protection for Judge and benching Ben Rice. Boone said, “This is a guy that recently has had a good amount of success.” Boone also gave this nonsensical, ridiculous answer when asked about playing Davis over Rice for a second straight day:

“Yeah, I mean, also want to get where you’re trying to leverage situations. I think you look at Manaea too, pretty small sample like you look at his career, it’s pretty stark the other way. So you kind of peel the onion back a little bit and is that what he’s going to be moving forward? We’re not trying to predict what happened yesterday. We’re trying to what happened moving forward, and the reality is we brought J.D. Davis, especially when Rizz went down, to be this kind of, and this is a guy that recently has had a good amount of success. So, but also trying to get young players in positions to where they can be successful as well. And to have, you know, leverage situations as the game unfolds too.”

On Tuesday and Wednesday, Boone and the Yankees thought Davis was worthy of hitting cleanup and being a starter. By Saturday afternoon, he was no longer worthy of being on the team. It makes complete sense.

7. After taking a month off from earning his $800,000-per-start paychecks, Carlos Rodon shut down the Rays last Monday (7 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 10 K, 1 HR) and then held down the Red Sox on Sunday (6.1 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 7 K, 2 HR). Rodon is still giving up way too many home runs, having give up at least one in each of his last seven starts and 12 overall in that time, but it’s nice to see him stop his season ERA from climbing with each consecutive start.

8. Is it too early to start a Jake Cousins for Closer petition? Cousins is the only Yankees reliever capable of consistently getting strikeouts and given Clay Holmes’ performance since mid-May, it’s completely acceptable to want someone else in that role. I don’t think the Yankees should have a set closer, but since they are going to, it should be someone other than Holmes, even if he did his job on Saturday night.

9. Judge and Soto continue to do their jobs (a combined 8-for-23 with eight runs, a double, three home runs, nine RBIs and nine walks over the weekend), as does Austin Wells. Wells is hitting .269/.354/.487 since April 27. An .841 OPS with great defense for a catcher for three months? Take your time healing, Jose Trevino. Take all the time you need.

10. The mood as a Yankees fan today is much different than it would have been had Grisham not battled back to save the game on Saturday night against Jansen. Two straight wins and just the second series in in more than six weeks has me feeling like the Yankees are on a 12-game run. It’s a dangerous feeling because the roster still needs vast upgrades by Tuesday at 6 p.m. and because three games with the Phillies over the next three days await. Momentarily stopping the free fall that began on June 14 is enjoyable, but stopping it completely is what’s needed.

The Yankees played a game, which means the Yankees’ season loss total increased by one.

Here are 10 thoughts on the Yankees.

1. On Friday afternoon, I found myself wondering if the Yankees were to lose all six games against the Red Sox and Phillies over the next six days, would Aaron Boone still be the manager next Friday? The Yankees’ season has free fallen to the point where losing six straight to those two teams is a realistic result. Six straight losses would mean an eight-game losing streak, and it would mean the Yankees no longer hold a playoff spot.

2. The opposing starters for those six games would be Brayan Bello, Kutter Crawford, Tanner Houck, Aaron Nola, Zack Wheeler and Christopher Sanchez. The worst of the six starters the Yankees would face would be Bello, who is having a down year after a breakout season a year ago. If the Yankees couldn’t win the series opener at Fenway Park against Bello, the six-game road trip could unravel into an unfixable disaster.

3. The Yankees didn’t win that game. They lost 9-7 despite holding a three-run lead with eight outs to go. Their two “most trusted” relievers in Luke Weaver and Clay Holmes imploded and allowed five runs between the seventh and eighth inning and the Yankees lost another game and lost another game to the Red Sox.

4. The loss dropped the Yankees to 2-5 against the Red Sox this season. It was their third straight loss overall. It was their fifth loss in seven games since the All-Star break. It was their 13th loss in 19 games in July. It was their 24th loss in 35 games since June 13. On June 14, the Yankees held a 13-game lead in the loss column for a playoff spot. After Friday’s loss, it’s down to two games.

5. Nestor Cortes was awful again. He couldn’t make it through five innings (4.2 IP, 9 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 5 K) for the third straight start and fourth time in his last five starts. He put 12 runners on base in 4 2/3 innings, and yet, he didn’t think he pitched poorly, saying, “I threw a lot of good pitches.” He then went on to blame “soft contact” for the loss. He sounded a lot like Luis Severino talking about exit velocity after Alex Bregman’s home run in Game 2 of the 2022 ALCS. Why aren’t any of the Yankees accountable for their performances? Why are they always making excuses based on soft contact, exit velocity, catch probability and domed stadiums having the roof open? Maybe it has something to do with the way they hear their manager speak?

6. Two starts ago, Cortes put 10 baserunners on in 4 1/3 innings. Boone said, “He pitched well.”

Last start, Cortes put 10 baserunners on in 4 1/3 innings again, and Boone said, “I thought the profile of the stuff was there.”

On Friday, Cortes put 11 baserunners on in 4 2/3 innings, and Boone again said, “I thought he threw the ball well.” Cortes thought he pitched well. Boone thought he pitched well. I guess a 7.71 ERA and 2.355 WHIP is pitching well. Who am I to argue?

During the All-Star break, Cortes tweeted the following:

“Everyone talks down about the yanks but they wanna be us. It’s a privilege to wear pinstripes. Every year we are in contention. I’m blessed to be able to compete for a playoff spot and always be contenders at the end.“

I hoped and prayed a Red Sox fan had hacked his account and posted that message, but no, it was Cortes himself. And when you hear him speak after each miserable start it’s obvious he’s as delusional as anyone in the Yankees clubhouse, including his manager. Since that tweet, here is Cortes’ line: 9 IP, 17 H, 10 R, 10 ER, 4 BB, 6 K, 3 HR, 1 HBP, 10.00 ERA, 2.333 WHIP. Yes, everyone wants to be the Yankees.

7. Weaver is slowly turning back into the Luke Weaver the Royals waived, the Mariners let go, the Reds released and the Mariners let go again. The Luke Weaver who has a 4.93 career ERA.

After pitching to a 0.00 ERA from Opening Day through May 19 thanks to impeccable control (four walks in 20 innings), good fortune (line drives turning into double plays) and exceptional defense behind him, Holmes has been atrocious since. Since May 20, he has put 35 baserunners on in 20 2/3 innings and has pitched to a 5.66 ERA and 1.645 WHIP. Opposing batters are hitting .315/.361/.461 against him.

8. “It’s hard obviously, but I’m not going to keep talking about how hard it is and tough,” Boone said, apparently unwilling to discuss his team’s collapse.” “We’ve gotta close out games, and I’m absolutely confident we will.”

“This is when you find out a lot about your team, a lot about your individual players when you go through it,” Boone said, “who’s tough enough to withstand it.”

Well, this is the third straight season the Yankees have endured a mid-June-on collapse, and considering the roster is virtually the same, we know no one who was on the team the last two years is tough enough to withstand it.

9. “We’re in compete mode,” Boone said, “and I thought we competed really well tonight.”

I need to know what “compete mode” is. And if the Yankees are in “compete mode” now, what mode were they in prior to being in this mode? Were games before Friday’s not important? Did they not count the same? What was different about Friday than Wednesday or last week or last month that the Yankees entered “compete mode” on Friday?

If the Yankees “competed really well” and still allowed nine runs and lost by two runs then I think it’s time to pack up the bats and balls for the year. If “competing really well” is only good enough to get the Yankees their latest late-game collapse and latest season-crushing loss then how can anyone possibly think the season is going to turn around?

10. Boone refrained from saying, “It’s right in front of us,” after his team’s latest loss. He used the phrase on Wednesday, had Thursday off and then didn’t use it on Friday, so if the Yankees lose on Saturday, get ready to hear it again.

Instead, Boone went with a new one: “There’s definitely an end in sight and we’re gonna get there.”

Yes, there is. It’s looking like the end for the 2024 Yankees will be Game 162 of the regular season with no postseason baseball for a second straight year. That’s what in front of the Yankees right now if they keep playing the way they have since mid-June.