FROM "ALL MY CHILDREN" TO "WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS"

For Yankees fans, emotions are running high. I’m guilty of this, as well. My tweets during the 6 game losing streak were less than flattering, only solidifying the fact that, as hard as I may try, I cannot write about baseball without a flood of emotion, good or bad. It’s not easy to watch your team losing over and over again. No matter how you slice it, losing just isn’t fun.

I’ve been reading and listening to all of the “experts” speculate as to why the slump has happened. It could be one of many reasons. This hasn’t been a stellar 7 days for the New York Yankees. 1 for 7 with the win against the Rays last night...lousy. That’s it. With more drama than an episode of “All My Children”, fielding errors galore, bad calls from the bench, and bats cooler than an iceberg, I’d venture a guess that morale in the clubhouse may mirror the morale of the fans about now.(photo: TV Guide)
During my own little frustrated tirade, it dawned on me. This was the Yankees team that was dubbed as the “underdog” by anyone who sat within 5 feet of a hot stove. The off-season was all a-twitter (pardon the pun) with stories of how the team wouldn’t even make it off the ground. They had the “Core Four” in the nursing home, and the rest of the team back at Little League Training Camp.

Let’s reflect on the beginning of this season, shall we? Far from “Underdogs”, the Yankees were kicking butt, taking names, and found themselves in first place, putting to rest that the Yanks would be unable to perform in the championship style that we’ve all become accustomed to. As a matter of fact, I can recall some notable Mets fans jumping ship from Queens and heading over to the Bronx. For the first time in a long time, we watched with nothing but confidence that not only would we would play well, but hold our place at the top all season.

Well, by now we all know that The Yankees no longer hold the top spot in the AL East. We’re 3 games out of first place in the middle of May. Actually, not too bad for a team that wasn’t even supposed to rank at all, is it?As for the clubhouse drama, I can tell you what I know about group dynamics. Almost always, especially when there is a re-grouping and changing of roles, there is conflict. The conflict, once resolved, then becomes a motivating factor for unity, and then, finally, cohesiveness. I would look for our Yankees to be a more tightly-knot group in the near future, which is not only good for team morale, but also, it’s good for the morale of the fans. Ultimately, it makes champions out of underdogs, and that you can take to the bank, or World Series…I guarantee it.

--Christy Lee, BYB Staff Writer
Follow me on Twitter @ChristyLee127



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