Yankees are a Situational Waste of Time
The New York Yankees’ defeat in Cincinnati is a microcosm of a season of wasted efforts due to situational ineptness. The month of June has seen this on display game after game. Whether it's bad decisions, lack of focus, or managerial and organizational mishaps, the Yankees have dropped more than their fair share of games that should have translated to victories. The Yankees are still leading the A.L. East, but the margin is a single game over the team that uses their park, the Tampa Bay Rays.
The offense went into a dry spell recently, failing to score in 29 consecutive innings. It was during this stretch that they got some of the best starting performances of the season, but wasted all of them. Max Fried 2.05 ERA, Carlos Rodon 2.92 ERA, and Clarke Schmidt 2.84 ERA stabilized the starting rotation. The bullpen is the situational matchup, and Aaron Boone has proven in close games that he cannot outmanage the opposing team for the most part. He leaves in relievers that show they are not effective and often brings in the worst options in the key moments.
Boone doesn't believe in momentum. He sits down with hot hitters according to the analytic calendar. He does nothing using feel. If a batter goes three for four the night before, he sits them down because it's his day to sit. The only exception is Anthony Volpe, who will never sit as they continue to try to prove he is serviceable. Clark Schmidt threw a no-hitter through seven with a nine-run lead. Boone did not even try to let him go for it, which robbed him of a possible trademark moment. However, J.T. Brubaker gives up the hit instead. Carlos Rodon this past evening is on 89 pitches only and dominating for six innings with a three-to-zero lead. Boone takes him out, and the lead is forfeited, and the team ends up going extra innings and loses.
The Yankees saw an inspirational play from Aaron Judge leaping near the fence in foul ground to snag a ball, yet struck out with the game tied and the bases loaded when a hit was most needed. Paul Goldschmidt showed athletic prowess, stretching to catch and tag Rece Hinds in the same motion despite a horrible throw from Jazz Chisholm Jr. He flew out later in extra innings. Jazz placed the cherry on top by challenging the umpire's pitch call and got himself thrown out. This is once again a case of a decision that caused his team to lose his services and, in extra innings, deprived them of his game-breaking speed and bat that could have turned the game in their favor.
The Yankees have proven that they cannot read the room. The championship teams do the small things well. The Bronx Bombers started the year with home run displays. However, it was in the little details where they improved. They would move runners over, score on groundouts, move from base to base quickly, and beat teams with the strategic single or walk. Once June began, they seemed to forget all the things that led to their positive start. Boone is the ultimate strategic failure, and his team reflects this. If this does not change, they will continue to waste great efforts only to see games slip away in numbers that may cost them the goal of returning to the World Series.