1. The Yankees played a good team over the weekend, so if you didn’t watch, you know how it went: they lost two of three and dropped another series. The Phillies blasted the Yankees’ bullpen for a 12-5 win on Friday and rocked Marcus Stroman for a 9-4 win on Saturday before the Yankees managed to salvage the third game by somehow getting to Zack Wheeler for four runs. The Yankees played one error-free game in the series, and guess which one was it was? The one they won. What a coincidence.
2. Going back to May 30, the Yankees have played 10 series against teams with a winning record. Here is how those series went:
Lost two of three to the Dodgers
Lost two of three to the Red Sox
Swept by the Red Sox
Lost two of three to the Reds
Lost two of three to the Blue Jays
Lost two of three to the Mets
Swept the Mariners
Lost two of three to the Cubs
Lost two of three to the Blue Jays
Lost two of three to the Phillies
The Yankees went 1-9 in the 10 series with an 11-17 record. Over that time, they have watched their eight-game lead over the Blue Jays turn into a 5 1/2-game deficit (and it’s really 6 1/2 when you account for the head-to-head tiebreaker).
3. The Yankees have been a bad team for a long time. They were 42-25 after sweeping the Royals on June 12. Since then, they have gone 15-23 and blew a massive division lead. They are now clinging to a 1 1/2-game lead for a playoff berth (though it’s really 2 1/2 games since they hold the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Rangers).
4. Things have been going poorly for the Yankees for nearly two months and now they will be without Aaron Judge for at least 10 days (and possibly more) and when he does return he will only be allowed to be the designated hitter at first. That means for Giancarlo Stanton to play, he will have to play the outfield. That means the Yankees’ defense (which is already a well-known embarrassment) will get even worse.
5. The Judge injury annoys me because not only does it hurt the Yankees’ chances of winning, it creates a built-in excuse for Aaron Boone’s job security if the season ends poorly (and all signs point to the season ending poorly), the same way Judge’s long absence in 2023 served as an excuse for the Yankees’ 82-80 disappointment. No single player in baseball should have as a great of an impact on a team as Judge does, and his absence shouldn’t serve as an excuse for anyone keeping their job if the season spirals out of control (which it has been doing since the end of May). The Yankees were in a bad place while Judge was healthy and playing. They are in a much worse place now.
6. The Yankees finally addressed third base after neglecting to do so in the winter or for 2024 or 2023 or 2022. The last time the Yankees had a solid everyday third baseman was when they had Gio Urshela there from 2019-2021, and he wasn’t supposed to be there, Miguel Andujar was. After trying Josh Donaldson, Oswaldo Cabrera, DJ LeMahieu, Jazz Chisholm, Oswald Peraza and Jorbit Vivas there over the last three-and-a-half years, the Yankees now have Ryan McMahon for this season and the next two.
7. When I wrote about McMahon recently, I wrote that he wasn’t worth trading for because I never thought Hal Steinbrenner would agree to take on his whole salary in order to lessen the prospect cost. I figured the Yankees would have to give the Rockies a real prospect in order to get the Rockies to eat some of McMahon’s money, like the Yankees did to get Anthony Rizzo and Joey Gallo four years ago. Instead, Steinbrenner agreed to take on McMahon’s contract, which is essentially double at the moment because of the Yankees’ luxury-tax penalties.
8. McMahon had a nice first weekend as a Yankee, going 3-for-6 with a double, walk and two RBIs. It’s enjoyable to see him make challenging plays with such ease at third and it’s comical to see his arm make throws from the left side of the infield to first compared to Anthony Volpe. Maybe the pinstripes will enhance McMahon’s performance the way they have for so many over the years. At least the Yankees know who their third baseman will be for the rest of 2025 and 2026 and 2027.
9. Giancarlo Stanton hit two more home runs over the weekend. Cody Bellinger went 1-for-the series. Volpe went 3-for-12, which is about as good as it gets with him. Austin Wells went 1-for-4 with a couple of walks. Jazz Chisholm went 4-for-12. Paul Goldschmidt went 2-for-10 with a walk. Ben Rice went 1-for-9 with a walk. Jasson Dominguez went 2-for-7 and Trent Grisham went 2-for-12 with a walk.
Will Warren was OK, Stroman was bad and Carlos Rodon was blah. The bullpen was an unmitigated disaster and Boone was his usual nonchalant, everything-will-be-fine self. Except everything isn’t fine, hasn’t been fine in two months and is unlikely to be fine over the next two weeks.
10. The Yankees’ next two weeks are daunting. They were going to be that way with Judge, and without him, the next two weeks have the potential to sink the season.
The Yankees play four games at home against the Rays, who are sitting at .500 and three out of the last wild-card spot. (The Yankees could destroy the Rays’ season with a big week here, but we all know that won’t happen.) Then it’s three in Miami against the Marlins, who are red-hot and 20-9 over the last month. Then it’s three on the road against the Rangers, who are 27-15 over the last six weeks and trying to chase down the Astros in the West. Then it’s three at home against the Astros. Thirteen games in 14 days, many of them without Judge, and possibly all of them.
While the Yankees’ schedule from late August through the end of the season is favorable, they have to survive the end of July and rest of August to get there.
Last modified: Jul 28, 2025
