Andrew Rotondi of Bronx Pinstripes joined me to talk about the Yankees’ disastrous start, how nothing has seemed to change from last season and we went through over/under predictions for individual Yankees.
Well, that wasn’t the way I envisioned the Yankees’ season starting. The Yankees dropped two of three at home to the Orioles, who are expected to be one of the worst teams in the history of Major League Baseball, and they looked bad in every facet of the game on both Saturday and Sunday.
Opening Day might have just been a win over the lousy Orioles, but the Yankees used their power to get a lead, got five innings from their starter and then their bullpen closed out the game.
The feeling of Yankees baseball being back is truly indescribable. Knowing for at least the next six months (and it better be seven months) there will be baseball brings such an immense feeling of happiness, I’m not sure it can be matched by anything. (If my fiancée is reading this then that last sentence was simply a joke and an exaggeration.)
As far as Opening Day goes, you can’t have a better one than the Yankees had. Last year’s Opening Day win in Toronto was the gold standard for Opening Day wins and Thursday’s at least matched it.
The good Masahiro Tanaka showed up, something which hasn’t always happened in his Opening Day starts, in place of Luis Severino, the Yankees’ offense was overpowering, even without their starting center fielder and best leadoff option not named Aaron Judge and the bullpen pieced together 3 1/3 scoreless innings without Dellin Betances. The win was a product of the formula the Yankees have tried to win a championship with the last couple seasons: home runs get the lead, starting pitcher goes at least five and the bullpen closes it out.
The formula has come up short in back-to-back postseasons for the Yankees, but the way everyone talked about signs pointing to it being the Red Sox’ year early last season when they got off to a 17-2 start and won games every which way, there were a few small signs in Thursday’s 7-2 win over the Orioles pointing to this possibly being the Yankees’ season. When things like Judge and Giancarlo hitting back-to-back singles and Gary Sanchez is squibbing ground balls through the shift happen, you can’t help but think, This is the Yankees’ year.
Big picture, it was one win over the lousy Orioles, a team the Yankees shouldn’t lose to once out of their 19 games this season and a team who would probably sign up for their 47 wins from last season right now. (I have no idea how their roster is going to come up with one win let alone 47 and we might be looking at the worst team in the history of Major League Baseball.) But when you have been baseball-deprived for nearly six months and your season ends the way the Yankees’ did last year, Opening Day always feels more important and significant than it should.
We already knew the Yankees were on the short list of potential American League champions with the Red Sox and Astros, and Thursday did nothing other than prove they should be able to beat up on the many tanking teams in this year’s AL. With two more games against Baltimore this weekend, followed by three against Detroit and another three with Baltimore next weekend, there’s no reason the Yankees can’t go at least 7-2 in those nine games. They have to go to at least 7-2 in those games. The difference between winning the division and playing in the wild-card game last year came down to the Yankees’ inability to rack up wins against the crap throughout the league (and the four game sweep in Boston didn’t help).
There will be plenty of time to worry about the Yankees’ postseason plans and how they will navigate through the Red Sox and Astros in October. For now, the Yankees’ first goal is to win the division, something they haven’t done in seven years. Thursday’s win got them started in the right direction.
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My book The Next Yankees Era: My Transition from the Core Four to the Baby Bombers is now available as an ebook!
The grace period with these Yankees is over. This season is the first in the window of opportunity for this core to win.
No one expected the 2016 Yankees to be any good. And they weren’t.
They got off to a 9-17 start, and it was obvious they had to tear apart the team and play prospects, and by this time every fan wanted them to do just that. Free agency had been the Yankees’ strategy since the early 2000s and a way for the team to plug holes on their sinking ship. It worked at times as they were able to tread water, have winning seasons and reach the playoffs, but over the previous 15 years, they had won one championship. Eventually you need to start over. Eventually you need a new boat. The game had changed too much and the Yankees needed a new boat and Yankees fans wanted a new boat.
At the end of play on July 6, 2016, the Yankees were 41-43 and it looked like they would certainly be sellers at the deadline in three weeks, but ownership wasn’t on board. The Yankees then went on an 11-5 run through July 26, and were now in striking distance of a wild-card spot — only four games back — and ownership hadn’t budged on selling and giving up on the season for future seasons.
The Yankees then lost their next four games, one in Houston and a three-game sweep in Tampa Bay. It was the best thing to happen to the organization since the Astros, Indians, Expos, Orioles and Reds passed on Derek Jeter in the 1992 draft, allowing the Yankees to select him with the sixth-overall pick. The losing streak pushed the Yankees out of reasonable contention, ownership gave Brian Cashman the green light to trade his veteran assets and begin the transition into “rebuilding mode”.
Andrew Miller (Indians), Aroldis Chapman (Cubs), Carlos Beltran (Rangers) and Ivan Nova (Pirates) were all traded, and Alex Rodriguez and Mark Teixeira announced their retirements. Gary Sanchez and Aaron Judge were called up to become everyday players, and in the process, Brian McCann was relegated to backup duty, which would lead to his offseason trade to the Astros. The Yankees had finally decided to show off the depth in their farm system, and thanks to that four-game losing streak at the end of July, the depth only got deeper with the top prospects they received in return.
The 2017 Yankees weren’t supposed to be good either, picked by many to finish near or at the bottom of the AL East in what was certainly going to be a rebuilding season. But there ended up being no “rebuilding”. The Yankees seemingly hit on every prospect who reached the majors and the team went from preseason dud to postseason bound, winning 91 games and putting up a plus-198 run differential.
The 2017 Yankees overcame a 3-0 first-inning deficit in the wild-card game. They overcame an 0-2 series hole to the 102-win Indians to advance to the ALCS. They overcame another 0-2 series hole to the Astros to bring a 3-2 series lead to Houston for Games 6 and 7. Ultimately, they came one win shy of reaching the World Series for the first time in eight years.
For 2018, the Yankees essentially replaced Chase Headley, Starlin Castro and Jacoby Ellsbury with Giancarlo Stanton (the reigning NL MVP), Miguel Andujar, Gleyber Torres and the Aaron Hicks who was drafted in the first round. But once again, they came up short in the postseason.
The 2017 postseason loss wasn’t crushing. Rather it was an exhilarating ride, being back at a raucous Stadium seemingly every night in October and watching a young, homegrown core get within a game of the World Series. The 2018 postseason loss, on the other hand, was crushing. After once again winning the wild-card game, and taking a game in Boston, the Yankees became the favorite in what had become a best-of-3 with two games at the Stadium where they didn’t lose. Not only did they lose both, they were embarrassed in every facet of the game, especially managing, and their rival celebrated on their field en route to a championship season.
Because of the way the season ended and the team it ended against, 2018 is viewed as a disaster, and rightfully so. But if you go back to 2016, 2017 and 2018 were never supposed to be about the Yankees. They were supposed to be about the Indians and Astros and Red Sox and Cubs and Dodgers, and they were. The timeline Yankees fans were given and expected prior to Opening Day 2016 was always 2019, these Yankees just happened to arrive early. The 2017 and 2018 Yankees gave us two unexpected years of championship contention even if it didn’t end with a championship.
It’s nearly impossible to predict who will and won’t perform in the postseason, with the goal being to get there and then hoping things go your way. The Yankees are built to get there even if they exceeded the luxury tax only to not sign either of the two 26-year-old generational stars or the top pitcher on the free-agent market. The optimal way to get there and succeed is to avoid the wild-card game, which the Yankees have played in back-to-back seasons and three of the last four. That can’t happen again. No more coming up short in the regular season. No more one-game playoff to decide the team’s fate.
The grace period with these Yankees is now over. This season is the first season of the window of opportunity for this core to win a championship or championships. There’s no more consolation prize for coming within a game of the World Series or winning 100 games and then getting blown out by your storied rival. There’s no more excuses and no more “Next year”. These Yankees were expected to truly contend in 2019 and 2019 is now.
The championship grace period is over. It’s long over. This October will be 10 years since the Yankees last reached the World Series and last won it. From here on out, every season with this group which doesn’t end with a championship will be a missed opportunity.
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My book The Next Yankees Era: My Transition from the Core Four to the Baby Bombers is now available as an ebook!
Scott Reinen of Bronx Pinstripes joined me to talk about the Yankees’ worrisome starting rotation, expectations for Aaron Boone in his second season as manager and the team’s need to get off to a good start.
Scott Reinen of Bronx Pinstripes joined me to talk about how we got through the offseason, the Yankees’ decision to not sign any of the top free agents, the organization putting an end to the no-extension policy, the worrisome starting rotation, expectations for Aaron Boone in his second season as manager and the Yankees’ need to get off to a good start.
Keefe To The City Podcast intro song by American Idol winner Nick Fradiani.
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My book The Next Yankees Era: My Transition from the Core Four to the Baby Bombers is now available as an ebook!
‘Twas the night before Opening Day, when all through the city …
’Twas the night before Yankees Opening Day, when all through the city Yankees fans were praying the season wouldn’t be shitty; The Dugout and Billy’s were stocked full of liquor and beer; Knowing in a few hours at neither bar would you be able to hear;
Giancarlo Stanton nestled all snug in his bed, Telling himself he wouldn’t let the Stadium boo birds get in his head; All the new pitchers and players tried to get some sleep with all the hype, As tomorrow would be the first time they wear the Yankees pinstripes.
When suddenly on Twitter there arose a bunch of chatter, The entire Tri-state area sprang to the Internet to see what was the matter. Away to the computer I flew like a flash, Tripped over my dog’s water bowl and knocked over the trash.
My feed was full of tweets from the Yankees community, Reminding everyone this is technically the first season of this team’s window of opportunity. The loss to the Astros and the disastrous end to last year, Had made us all forget these Yankees weren’t even supposed to be there.
Three years ago, 2019 was the expected year the Yankees would once again contend, But they arrived two years early, despite Hal Steinbrenner not wanting to spend. After the Game 7 loss to Houston, Hal cut payroll by 50 million bucks, And then we had to sit there last fall as the Red Sox won and their fans chanted “Yankees suck”.
Sure, the lineup was already full with Stanton, Sanchez, Torres, Andujar and Judge But when it came to the best free-agent class ever, Hal wouldn’t budge. Ownership wouldn’t allow for Corbin, Manny or Bryce, Thinking their long-term deals would turn into Heyward, Pujols and Price.
So the front office brought back Gardy, CC, Britton and Happ, Scared away from the big names by the game’s fake salary cap. They did sign Ottavino and LeMahieu is certainly no scrub, Though they could have had one, if not two, 26-year-old superstars joining the club.
With Didi out from Tommy John to go along with his already-hurt wrist, Cashman filled shortstop with a player who will likely join him on the disabled list. Signing Tulo is the latest low-risk, high-reward move from the GM and his crew, And how’d that go with Brian Roberts, Chris Carter, Randy Winn and Stephen Drew?
Sure, without Machado and Harper, the Yankees can still win, Unless in the playoffs, Boone gives the ball to this year’s Lance Lynn. After 2018, it’s nearly impossible to trust the manager with moves in the pen, And if he didn’t learn his lesson from last October, there will be a first-round exit again.
With at least four relievers you would undoubtedly consider elite, If the Yankees have the lead after five, they’re nearly impossible to beat. That is if Boone has figured out who should get the ball and when, Thankfully, his comfort blanket in A.J. Cole is no longer an option to bring in.
Now, Judge! Now, Stanton! Now, Gleyber and Gary! Add in Andujar and Voit and the lineup is once again scary. From the netting in Monument Park to the short porch in right and over the wall, I’m not worried about the offense carrying the team if the starting pitching should fall.
The rotation is full of injury questions and depth is a concern, But what rotation goes through an entire season without several minor leaguers getting a turn? A lingering elbow tear, a knee problem, a shoulder and age are the issues, If Luis Cessa is given another chance to start, I’ll need several boxes of tissues.
This October will be 10 years since the Yankees last won it all, Enough is enough, there needs to be a Canyon of Heroes parade this fall. I expect the Yankees to win the last game of the baseball season, And if they don’t, their decision to be cheap better not be the reason.
One last time tomorrow, I will wish this offseason Hal had been more like his dad, The Boss, As Masahiro Tanaka stands on the mound and throws his final warmup toss. “Stepping up to the microphone is the voice of the New York Yankees,” I can hear Suzyn say, With John replying, “Why, Suzyn, I thank you,” as the 2019 season gets underway.
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My book The Next Yankees Era: My Transition from the Core Four to the Baby Bombers is now available as an ebook!
