The New York Yankees‘ crisis seems to have no end. One only needs to look at their recent results, with a painful 4-1 loss to the Minnesota Twins that further complicates their potential path to the Major League Baseball postseason. Currently, the team sits third in the American League East and is also in the Wild Card race.
In reality, the outlook is far from encouraging. A year after competing in and losing the World Series to the Dodgers, the chances of returning to that stage seem slim.
Is time running out for Aaron Boone? An analyst weighs in
Before Wednesday’s loss, Chris “Mad Dog” Russo joined Jon Heyman and Joel Sherman of the New York Post and didn’t hold back. He was direct in his criticism of the manager, players, and the team’s front office.
Russo harshly criticized Yankees general manager Brian Cashman for the trades that brought in names like David Bednar and Jake Bird, noting that better options were available on the market.
“How did the Yankees, who needed a bullpen in the worst way, how did they not get Mason Miller or the kid from Minnesota (Jhoan Duran), who went to the Phillies? I don’t understand,” Russo said.
“These are the Yankees,” he continued. “The Phillies thought the ninth inning was important. And (Padres general manager A.J.) Preller got freaking Miller. I know he gave up the third-best prospect in the sport. The Yankees got a bunch of relievers.
“One guy is now in the minor leagues. We understand that Bednar was good in Texas, but I mean, Bednar last year for the Pirates was awful. Was atrocious. And I know he was good against (Texas). He had a good second outing there, but I was confused.
“The Yankees needed the bullpen in the worst way,” Russo noted. “And they got beat to the two best relievers by the Phillies and the Padres? That surprised me, to be fair with it. And I know they didn’t want to give up (George) Lombard, the shortstop, I get that.
“And they are a bad fundamental baseball team,” Russo added. “Their base-running is bad. I think the interesting thing to me, I know (Aaron) Boone, they just gave him a two-year extension. Is he in any kind of trouble? If the Yankees flame out two games or they don’t make the playoffs at all? Could you see Hal (Steinbrenner) making a decision?”
Aaron Boone is looking to remove this player from the Yankees and his move could bring positive results as his team battles its own demons
According to FanGraphs, the Yankees have only an 85.2% chance of qualifying for the postseason.
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