Being beaten by the Red Sox is bitter medicine for Yankees fans. Why did it happen?
I’ve been a die-hard Yankees fan ever since I could swing a bat and throw a ball. I’ve watched NY in every single World Series and every high-powered moment.
So, I hate to admit it.
As I sat and watched the ALDS against the Red Sox, it’s clear to me that Boston is a far better team.
While experts and fans look at the Yankees and see power bats, almost nobody mentions that hallmark of the game– ‘small ball.’ And two of the game’s best–the Red Sox and Astros–know how to play it. Both teams are aggressive in the batter’s box and the base paths. They bunt, steal, and use the hit-and-run. They take chances on a line drive, hoping to force an error.
The Yankees don’t specialize–and certainly don’t master–any of those things. And the Sox and Astros have something else that the Yankees need–strong starting pitching. Severino started out hot but, now, it seems that he couldn’t find the strike zone from 5 feet out. Tanaka is either hot or cold; it all depends on his splitter.
To compensate, the Yankees relied on the long ball. Yes, Torres and Andujar used to focus on making contact and getting on base, but they seemed to disappear in the second half of the season. And Boone, for his part, rarely played the sacrifice game to move runners over. The Yankees left are too many runners on base over the season.
Sanchez had a bad year {photo, The Runner Sports)
As for power, only Stanton had a 100-RBI season and Sanchez had an abysmal year–at the plate and behind it. Yes, his power numbers were ok, but his batting average was horrible and he allowed the most pass balls in the league.
On paper, the Yankees are a team with potential greatness, perhaps even a future champion. But there are three flies in the ointment. They don’t play small ball. They rely too much on the long ball. They lack managerial experience.
Those are the reasons why the Yankees don’t match up against the AL’s best. They are reasons why the Yankees are out of the playoffs.
Now this team faces a long off-season–with time to fix what’s lacking.
