Friday, April 30, 2021

THIS PROTECTION OF AARON JUDGE IS BIZARRE


Aaron Judge doesn't play very much. Between injury and days off for "rest", it's starting to become a bit strange. Are the Yankees hiding something? What's the deal?

Judge missed his second game against the Orioles.  But I gotta be honest, we weren't given a straight answer as to why.

The New York Post writes: 

"Aaron Judge will miss his second straight game on Thursday after leaving Tuesday’s win over the Orioles with what Aaron Boone called lower body soreness.

The Yankees have been especially vague about what is ailing Judge, and Boone had said on Wednesday he hoped to have the right fielder back for Thursday’s series finale at Camden Yards.



“He’s doing well. He’ll be available as a pinch-hitter and in a big spot [Thursday],” Boone said prior to Thursday’s game."

Just a few weeks ago, Judge was dealing with "general side soreness". I'm being honest here, when I played ball (and no I never played on a major league level), if I had soreness, I just knew that I probably pushed myself alittle more than normal, but guess what... I played. 

Judge isn't some $20 million a year player that needs to be protected. He's a young healthy player who we need to see at bats from.  And the fact that the Yankees aren't truly revealing anything honest about the situation is alarming. 

Hey Yankees... time for some true and honest answers. What is really going on?

Thursday, April 29, 2021

SEE YA NEVER, SANCHEZ!


What a nightmare. No one wants to remember anything about 2020 but it called and said that Gary Sanchez still sucks. It also pointed and laughed at us all and told Brian Cashman and the Yankee brass that they should've learned their lesson. We've been here before, and this really should be the end of it. 

Keywords there are SHOULD BE. How many times do the Yankees really need to make him sit and sulk on the bench before they realize this is a FAILED experiment? We've been here already, but thanks to the Yankees terrible player evaluation we are truly stuck with this guy. The Yankees once again have more faith and confidence in Kyle Higashioka and now Sanchez has lost his job a second time.


It's not even one month into the season and after the Yankees gave Sanchez a second chance he's already losing playing time to Higashioka. Fans should've started a pool called the "how long until Sanchez is benched again?" and I wonder how many winners we would have right now. The writing was on the wall last season. Shortened 60 game season or not, the Yankees started five of their seven playoff games with Higashioka behind the plate. 

Then over the winter they game Sanchez a second chance after he showed progress playing in the Dominican League. The Yankees went all-in with Sanchez because they thought they had to. With no MLB ready catching depth there were no internal options and their "strict budget" didn't include signing a reliable catcher or a realistic trade.


Is this enough to make the Yankees realize that Higashioka isn't just Gerrit Cole's personal catcher, he's EVERYONE'S catcher? The Yankees missed the perfect opportunity to say goodbye to Sanchez in December. They could've traded him or not offered him a new contract but they didn't. All because he's a young, cheap catcher they didn't want to give up on and they decided not to spend on anyone else. The Yankees gambled and lost, big time.

Aaron Boone said on Tuesday that Higashioka "just earned more playing time. I mean, simple as that." Another SOFT answer from a SOFT manager. We all know the truth though, Sanchez is a liability to this team and he shouldn't be here anymore.....it's as simple as that. 


  --Jeana Bellezza-Ochoa
     BYB Managing Editor
    Twitter: @nyprincessj

Wednesday, April 28, 2021

SIGH, SOCKMAN SENT TO SAN FRAN

Source: The New York Times

The news broke just before first pitch and the chatter on Twitter was fierce. But it was all true. I am sad to see Mike Tauchman go across the country as the Yankees appear to be covering for lackluster starting pitching with a middle reliever and a player to be named later.

Yankees pick up Wandy Peralta, a 29-year-old left-handed pitcher who is 2-1 with two saves and a 5.40 ERA in 8.5 innings of play this season. Peralta is the third left-hander in the Yankees' bullpen after closer Aroldis Chapman and Justin Wilson. Recall that Zack Britton is on the 60-day IL following elbow surgery and is expected back in June. The Giants appear to have gotten the better end of the deal as Tauchman has been a great pinch runner with his speed, plays all outfield positions and began training at first base after Luke Voit's injury. Voit is also expected back in June. 


"The Giants were in search for an outfielder with Mike Yastrzemski -- who like Tauchman also bats left-handed -- dealing with an oblique injury. Yastrzemski had an MRI on Monday, which revealed "a very mild oblique strain," according to manager Gabe Kapler," reported ESPN.

To fill the void left by Tauchman's exit, the Yankees recall Tyler Wade from their alternate site. Wade who can play both outfield and infield positions, has been a great defensive replacement in the late innings. Wade also puts some speed in the Yankee lineup but he simply cannot hit, which has been a liability for the Bombers. 

Source: NJ.com

Well, the Yankees beef up their bullpen but lose one of the good guys, and hard workers. He will be missed, particularly by my son, who always felt that the Sockman got a raw deal and little opportunity to play with Clint Frazier and Brett Gardner splitting time in left field. Good luck, Mike. I hope you do well out in San Francisco and you get a lot of playing time. I look forward to catching you when you play on the east coast against the Mets and the Phils and be sure I am rooting for you from the stands.



--Suzie Pinstripe
BYB Managing Editor
Twitter: @suzieprof

Tuesday, April 27, 2021

FRUSTRATED BOONE? HOW ABOUT YOU PLAY BETTER AND SHUT IT!


You know you're a terrible team when Matt Harvey beats you.

I'm beside myself. I've never seen a team this bad since the Yankees had Bobby Meacham, just being honest. We are terrible and it makes me queasy. I'm having a hard time watching. I root like I always do, but it's always followed up with a "Are you freaking kidding me?"  What has happened to my Yankees? What happened to consistent wins? What happened to small ball, manufacturing runs? I gotta tell ya, I'm kind of over Aaron Judge. Too brittle, not doing the job... he makes me kind of annoyed.

Last night Matt Harvey, the biggest waste of space in baseball showed up and beat the Yankees.  And that's when you know the Yankees are bad.  Harvey is no longer good... or is he? As the New York Daily News writes:


"Deivi Garcia may not be quite ready to help these Yankees to the playoffs, but maybe in July Matt Harvey will be. The one-time dominant Mets ace, who is here to rehabilitate his career, held off Garcia and the Bombers for six innings Monday night.

The Orioles won 4-2 in what was Harvey’s best start in years."

In years! You read that right.  I mean what are we doing? And Aaron Boone? He's a failed leader. Can we get rid of this guy already?  


The call over not crossing the plate in time is not a mistake, DJ DIDN'T CROSS THE PLATE IN TIME! It was a desperation attempt by Boone to try and scratch a damn run. The arguing is pathetic... you are clearly desperate! Daily News writes:

"Aaron Boone was ejected after arguing with veteran home plate umpire Will Little, who ruled that DJ LeMahieu, the second run, did not cross the plate before Judge was thrown out. Boone was angry that the umpires did not give him a chance to have the play reviewed. “It was too quick and I just felt like it was kind of bullying, frankly,” Boone said."



Here's an idea Boonie... how about your team just play better?

Every day I'm getting more and more fed up with this team.  We have no balls, no will to win... we have no leadership. We need to do better... we're the damn Yankees. 

Fix it Cash!
 



Monday, April 26, 2021

THAT AARON JUDGE RUMOR IS BACK AGAIN


The Yankees are climbing their way out of a horrific start to the season, and while it is nice to see we still have a way to go and the theories and rumors will still be flying. Now Aaron Judge is back in the news again and this time it's not due to an injury.

Last August we wrote YANKEE RUMORS: A FUTURE WITHOUT AARON JUDGE? after multiple sources started speculating that the Yankees future may not include Judge at all. It was an interesting take that considered a Judgeless Yankee team after 2022. Ken Rosenthal had an interesting idea that isn't on the table now but now Buster Olney is giving us another rumor HERE.

We all like rumors, but does this one mean anything? Okay so over the winter the Angels and the Yankees discussed Aaron Judge. Fine, maybe they did but even Olney said it was "the lightest of flirtations" and "perhaps a door-opener for other names." It's a nice blip in baseball news but literally every team does this. Does that mean we should get excited about a possible Jo Adell or Shohei Ohtani move to the Bronx? No, so anyone who would float the name of Mike Trout in this conversation would make me laugh hysterically.

It's just talk. Could it mean something? Maybe, but not the big blockbuster names we all drool over. If anything it's probably the door-opener for other players that Olney said could be a possibility. We know GM's all have these conversations. If anything maybe Angels GM Perry Minasian called Brian Cashman and it went a little something like this:

Minasian: "Hey Brian, is Judge available?"
Cashman: "We aren't looking to move him. If we were, it would be a very high price tag."


And that's probably it, or maybe Cashman gave a flat out "No" instead. I don't think this is serious buzzworthy news. Maybe it's nothing but a PR stunt for Buster Olney. I mean, if you want to read his post on it you can HERE but you have to be a subscribed ESPN Insider to even read it. 

I'm not going to read into this yet. Do I think there is a possibility of a Yankee team without Judge beyond 2022? Sure, but I don't think this Angels connection has anything to do with that at this point. It's a rumor without a lot of substance at this point but.....that's baseball.



  --Jeana Bellezza-Ochoa
     BYB Managing Editor
    Twitter: @nyprincessj

Saturday, April 24, 2021

AND JUST LIKE THAT...THE YANKEES WIN THREE IN A ROW

Source: USA Today

Three-in-a-row may seem like a silly, minor accomplishment but for the Yankees, it is the first time they have hit that milestone in 2021. The Yankees have had a difficult time warming up from a seemingly cold winter but they may have finally found their sweet spot and from here, all there is up! Hopefully!

In a Saturday night pitchers' duel, Gerrit Cole went 7 innings with 11 strikeouts to hold off the Cleveland Indians for the stellar bullpen who helped the Yankees to a 2-1 win. The Yankees had two solo home runs, one from Aaron Hicks and the other from Rougned Odor, which was just enough to inch out the Tribe.


The New York Post called the Yankee bullpen, "nearly unhittable" which has been the brighter side of the Yankee team in 2021. Keeping this streak alive is Jonathan Loaisiga who picked up his first Yankee save for 2021 as he closed the door on the Indians in a perfect 9th inning on Saturday night. Also noteworthy is the "awakening" of Yankee slugger Giancarlo Stanton who moved to the two-hole after hitting two home runs in the game Friday night. He was quiet on Saturday but he continued to have some good at bats and appears more confident in the box. “When he’s locked in, when he hits ’em like that, it’s just different than anyone I’ve ever seen,” said Aaron Boone as reported by the Post.


This afternoon expect to see Jameson Taillon on the hill for the Yankees in the series finale. This could be another first for the Yankees, who could sweep the Indians before heading to Baltimore. Monday night could be the season debut of Deivi Garcia as the Bombers take on three against the Orioles before returning back home at the end of next week to host the Detroit Tigers. 



--Suzie Pinstripe
BYB Managing Editor
Twitter: @suzieprof


YANKEES EYEING ANIBAL SANCHEZ, BUT WHAT ABOUT TY HENSLEY?


The Yankees rotation is struggling, and so when pitchers struggle, teams worry.  Not to get all nutty about this, but we do need guys that can get the job done at the top level, and there are plenty that will do it. If we know anything about the Yankees, they always try and do it on the cheap with spit and duct tape.  Right now they are looking at Anibal Sanchez.

WFAN writes:


"...the Yankees were one of several teams to watch Anibal Sanchez’s showcase workout in Florida on Friday. Sanchez held his workout at Florida International University in Miami, and according to Heyman, pitched at 90 MPH while hitting 92."

That's good. I mean look if someone like Sanchez can work for the Yankees and get them some wins, then dare I say why are the Yankees not eyeing a guy like Ty Hensley too?


If you saw his Pitch of Faith documentary, you know this kid has come all the way back from his obstacles and is literally the best he's ever been and you know what? 



He's still young.  Ty has been followed by BYB since 2012. We watched him all the way, and now with that DVS Baseball facility run by Justin Ordenduff, it's quite clear the Yankees should be taking a chance on him too. I've been reading plenty about DVS and it's really helping pitchers a lot. 

Hey, you want some stability? You want lightning in a bottle, Yanks? Sanchez looks good... but Ty Hensley will get you big time wins too. I have no doubt.

Happy Saturday everyone.


Friday, April 23, 2021

IF YOU'RE A MAJOR LEAGUER, YOU BETTER HUSTLE


A long time ago when Bleeding Yankee Blue was in it's infancy, a tool by the name of Peter Keating of ESPN the magazine thought it would be unique to try and throw an up and coming writing under the bus in a much bigger forum than my BYB audience... (ESPN) to shame me with my OPINION of why Robinson Cano needs to hustle his ass off as a millionaire role model for the New York Yankees.  He didn't reach out to tell me... he just did it. Hey, that's his right.... but thank god for the BYB audience. Because when it was published, our readers were all over it and let me know it happened.  


In my piece CANO: NO LEADER, NO DRIVE, I wrote "Maybe it’s him NOT fist pumping after a game or big play like Jeet does. Maybe it’s him just making it seem like it’s “too easy.” The energy is much different. Comparing the 2, Jeter and Cano, and I hate doing it… Cano looks like he’s padding numbers as opposed to leading a club to a championship."

I'm slamming a Yankee there, I fully admitted that back when I wrote it in 2013. But in 2013, not everyone was so sensitive. 


Back then you could write an opinion and have a mature banter back and forth on social media or in the comments section of your story.  But that's when that shady Keating wrote this in his article:



And with a difference of opinion from Keating, I'm fine with that... it's how he handled it that made me realize what kind of a sad journalist he is. Do you know to this day he has never responded to a single email, call, tweet? Nothing. That's spineless.  But more to it... he missed the point of what fandom is and why I wrote what I wrote. 

Fans WANT hustle. Fans WANT players playing hard. They pay good money to go to games and to see wins. They understand that teams will lose, but they get frustrated anyway. One thing they don't get? Dogging it.  Keating can act like an intellect all he wants, many of these journalists can. But the difference is these so-called established writers are really just bending over for these athletes because it helps them. They'll rarely slam players because they don't want to look bad in front of these organizations and not get future interviews and freebees when the team allows. And so, they kiss ass, they act like they care and they push their integrity aside and try to slam the little guy, the fan as being wrong and ignorant.  


But we're Bleeding Yankee Blue. We cater TO the fans. We don't care if a Yankee sucks, we're gonna tell you and if the Yankees win, we celebrate. That's because being a fan is special, either way. 

I'm not looking to get into the Yankee party. Our BYB team will never sway from our integrity and that's vital in journalism... in fact, dare I say, integrity in journalism is gone these days.

Fast forward to race, white privilege and no one getting along on any level in 2021. (Wow that escalated quickly.) 

Opinion these days gets you attacked, abused, yelled at. You can't have an opinion.  Now, before I go further with this, I need to state what opinion is, and what fact is.  There is a difference.


Facts are important. If you're gonna spew facts, make sure they're right. If you are listening or reading a commentator talking about something, make sure you can decipher if that person is offering opinion or FACT. Sometimes these commentators or "influencers" say things that aren't true.  That's bad. Aubrey Huff is a perfect person for that. He's a tool, lies and acts like what he says is fact, when, if you were to research his comments, there is usually no source attached and you can debunk it with actual research from legit sources.  

And then you have opinion, which, I respect. But it's when we dive into that line between journalism and fan that I have a problem.

Enter Jesse Spector and his attack of Andy Martino's assessment of Gleyber Torres. He claims, and this is so odd to me, that Martino made a racial attack against Torres. That not hustling for a man of color is different than for a white player.

I appreciate that, but I gotta tell ya, I don't agree. No, not because I'm white, but because I have a difference of opinion.

What I DO agree with is the unfair attack toward Torres. If you are gonna look at a check swing tapper to the mound and yell at a player for not running hard to first, you are pretty much an idiot.  These are professional athletes in the field. The percentage of him busting down the line and making on that play is probably 0.08%. Not Happening. So, if Spector is calling Martino out for that, good for him. 

Spector writes: "As it is, the Yankees have lost six of seven, are tied with the Twins for the worst record in the American League, and sit only half a game ahead of the Rockies for the worst record in baseball.

And it’s all Gleyber Torres’ fault, apparently.

Torres did not run hard on a check-swing tapper back to the mound, it’s true. You can understand his frustration, being 11-for-59 on the season with no homers and 15 strikeouts, while also struggling defensively at shortstop....

At the same time, it’s 17 games into the season. Torres is a two-time All-Star — and he’s only 24...

Or, for Andy Martino of SNY, Torres can be made the scapegoat. The idea here is that “It’s not a birthright to start games for the New York Yankees, even if you’re one of the most talented players on the team. It might be worth a shot for the front office to remind the entire group that these jobs must be earned on a daily basis.”

That’s right, the Yankees should send Torres to the minor league alternate site, and install Tyler Wade, an objectively worse player, at shortstop, in order to cure their slow start.

“The Yankees’ problems are not nearly all Torres’ fault,” Martino wrote. “But he’s optionable, struggling, and showing a lack of hustle.”

This is where I have a problem. Balance. 

I don't know if Andy Martino has called out white players for lack of hustle before, and to be honest, that should be Spector's focus of this article.  Spector is grouping ALL WHITE JOURNALISTS into a pot and basically suggesting that white journalists don't call out white athletes on hustle.  And that's my problem... All black people aren't the same... neither are all white journalists. I don't feel like that's too fair. 

Spector says: 


"Gardner’s “lack of hustle” in April of 2019 was described as “uncharacteristic” by the New York Daily News. Meanwhile, the San Francisco Chronicle’s reference to Posey was a caption, noting that Posey was “not booed … for his lack of hustle,” associated with a Sept. 15, 2019 column by Ann Killion headlined, “Why Giants’ Buster Posey still gets benefit of doubt in frustrating year.”

The other white players who have gotten tagged this way are Harper and Souza, both of whom were benched by managers explicitly for incidents where they didn’t go as hard as they could...

Is it really the case, then, where not hustling is an almost universally Latino issue, and when it isn’t, it’s highly likely to be a Black player not giving his all? Or is this an issue of perception from the heavily white media corps, not to mention the heavily white baseball executive and managerial contingent?"

And see what he does there? Couches it as a question, yet his headline says so much more:

"What it really means when white sportswriters talk about lack of hustle".

I read Jesse Spector. I love what he does, but I also feel like this is just as racist as what he's accusing white journalists of doing. Do I dislike the guy for it? Nope. It's a deep, important perspective that needs to be taught and explained. I just didn't like the bunching.  

But you know what it does? It opens my eyes. I will be mindful of how I react to hustle going forward. And you know what? Black, White, Latino... they're all ballplayers... they ALL should be called out if they're not busting down the line.  On a check swing tap back to the mound?... NO.  But on an infield hit to the shortstop or third baseman? ABSOLUTELY. 



I don't care if it's Brett Gardner, Robinson Cano, Bryce Harper, Gleyber Torres or Fred the Martian... if you have fans paying big money to pay your salary and you jog? You need to be called out... not racially... but as a chump athlete that thinks he made it because he's a millionaire on an MLB team.

Fans pay big money to see big things. It's what they expect. While human, this is the biggest stage in sports... they're ain't nothing racial about hustle.

Smart perspective Jesse Spector. Makes you think.

Thursday, April 22, 2021

SOMEONE'S GOTTA GO! HERE IS WHERE I WOULD START....


How long do we have to wait to "hit rock bottom" and just sit and accept failure? I was unimpressed with Brian Cashman's Zoom conference this week and I really hoped that Tuesday's win was going to be the start of heading in the right direction. Maybe I am just impatient but I am tired of waiting. Last night didn't give me any hope. Cashman may have faith in his people....but I don't. I'm not alone. It's time to make some unpopular decisions.

I'm over Marcus Thames. He's ineffective and not getting the job done. The Yankees have trusted Thames as their head hitting coach since the 2018 season and the Yankees have had their fair share of offensive struggles for a long time. We like the long ball for sure, but we should be better with consistent situational hitting....but we aren't. We just can't hit at all right now and it's unacceptable.


And that was a painful reminder last night. Wednesday's game was the 11th time in 17 games that the Yankees scored three or fewer runs. It was also the fifth game in a row(!) they've had five or less hits. Does it get anymore pathetic than that? Unfortunately it does. The Yankees haven't scored so few runs in their first 17 games since 1984. The hits just keep on coming...just not on the baseball field where we need them.

Oh, but don't worry Yankee fans , because Cashman has "a lot of trust in the people we have" and he wants us all to believe it. He's seen "a lot of magic along the way" and he wants to sell everyone a picturesque scene of butterflies and rainbows, apparently. You can read more about his vision HERE if you want but I call it a bunch of garbage. Where's the magic this season, Cashman? I only see a sinking ship and you and Hal Steinbrenner are enabling it.

Right now, you can START to save the ship by getting rid of Thames. It's not working at all. We need new life in this team. You said "we don't see us reacting to not believing in the staff we have" but you should be! It's not working. Waiting for a new day and for everyone to have an epiphany is just INSANITY. A 6-10 record has NO MAGIC and only epic failure. When do you say "enough is enough" and actually be a leader? The Yankees had a very short leash with both Jeff Pentland and Alan Cockrell but Thames has had MANY chances. And I don't want to hear anything about "loyalty" here. This is a business and right now this team is failing. Be a leader and make a change because that is what is best for this team.


Marcus Thames has to go. I've believed this for a while now, but now it is obvious. It can't be overlooked. We can all see it. Open your eyes, Yankees. It's time for some new life. It's time to set the tone and stop being SOFT and CODDLING people. You can start to make a change NOW by letting Thames go. 

Letting Thames go is the right answer, there's no reason to keep him. Cut the cord already! Thank you for your years of service as a player and a coach, Thames....but this isn't working and it's time to part ways. He should've been fired a while ago. It's not personal, it's just business. 


#BYEBYETHAMES   #YANKSNEEDANEWHITTINGCOACH   #SORRYNOTSORRY


  --Jeana Bellezza-Ochoa
     BYB Managing Editor
    Twitter: @nyprincessj

Wednesday, April 21, 2021

YANKEES GIFTED A WIN THANKS TO THE BRAVES

Source: AP Photo/Kathy Willens

I have been quite vocal about the Yankees' performance over the last three weeks of the season. Honestly, that's just it. It has been only a few short weeks since the 2021 season began. But the holes in this team's clubhouse are dense. From poor defense to lackluster offense, this team is struggling. It took the small ball and poor Braves' pitching to lift the Yankees to a 3-1 win over Atlanta and an end a pitiful five game losing streak.


"The days of Aaron Judge hoisting up Ronald Torreyes or “Savages in the batter’s box” feel like a different generation. The word that keeps resonating with me is “stale,” like there was a stay fresh date that has expired on this core. Maybe a binge of homers will change it or a benches-clearing incident like early in 2018 at Fenway when that seemed to stir a sleepwalking team toward 100 wins," wrote Joel Sherman of the New York Post. 

This Tweet by a reader continues to ring in my head as I watched the Yankees last night. "Can we all agree that the problem with the @Yankees IS Boone & the fact that he places so much emphasis on being a “power hitter” instead of the defensive side of the ball & being a skilled position player?" I would also like to add that Aaron Boone cannot manage pitching either. Not sure why Boone chose to take out Chad Green when he did last night after a great performance in relief in favor of Justin Wilson. It worked in the Yankees' favor but Green was terrific, as is most of the bullpen this season. They have had to pick up a fair share of innings due to the Yankee starting pitching appearing to be more like senior citizens, brittle and broken than pitchers for the most decorated ball team in baseball.  The only diamond of the starting pitching rotation is Gerrit Cole. The rest...sigh. We don't even have the consistency and grace of Masahiro Tanaka. I really miss him.

The Yankees really needed last night's win. And I am glad they got it. But it does not change anything about this team. They have talent but they need a manager that can lead that talent and make decisions based on more than just analytics and past practice. Sometimes you have to manage based on the situation, based on your knowledge of the game and based on your gut. And that means making difficult decisions, demoting players who are not performing and placing hitters in the lineup where they belong, not always dictated by the opposing pitching or data. 

The Yankees take on the Braves again tonight and then usher in the Cleveland Indians to round out the weekend before heading to Baltimore next week. These next five games are not only important but critical for the Bombers. Let's hope the Yankees snap out of this bad dream and start playing baseball the way they not only are expected but capable of playing. 




--Suzie Pinstripe
BYB Managing Editor
Twitter: @suzieprof

Monday, April 19, 2021

WHO IS TO BLAME FOR THIS CRAP ON THE FIELD?



The Yankees have 99 problems...And no, I am not pointing a finger at Aaron Judge right now. I have never been so bored and agitated watching a Yankee game at the same time. This is the lowest of the low for me. It's a sh*t show out on the field....nothing else to call it. 1997 is calling and even they are embarrassed by this team.

That says a lot. No one wants to remember that start but, here we are. We just got swept by the Rays.
It's all gone wrong and we need to stop being so soft and fix it. The pitching, offense, defense and the managing.... It's all a disaster! We are all tired of watching it on television and even worse what about the people that are PAYING to see it in person while leadership is just counting their cash. It's not just one person to blame here, it starts at the top and it ROLLS downhill and I mean ALL THE WAY down.


The Yankees didn't want to spend money so Brian Cashman went out and got reclamation projects hoping to find that spark and it just hasn't happened. Jay Bruce is literally a quitter (Thanks for nothing, Bruce!), Rougned Odor was a bizarre addition and everyone behind Gerrit Cole is a giant question mark. The Yankees can't even hit a lobbed beach ball at this point and we look worse than a little league team. That's the extremely short version of this debacle.

But Aaron Boone's team meeting Saturday was supposed to fix that I guess? I'm not buying it. This team is SOFT. They are far from savage, and even though I really believe that Aaron Boone is nothing more than a YES MAN and a mouthpiece he's not the only one to blame. The offseason experiment is not succeeding. Brian Cashman's winter looks like a failure at this point. It's early, but unless this mentality changes, the results won't change either.

This team is missing leadership all the way around. I can appreciate Boone's team meeting, but I don't think it accomplishes what we need. This is a SOFT team. I don't think he knows how to get the best out of his players. He's well-liked by the players but he doesn't know how to get the results
and light a fire under them.


And aside from Boone whether you think he is a major problem or not, this team is missing more leadership. Yes, the Yankees have Brett Gardner the veteran, but something is still missing. Aaron
Judge gave a little pep speech, read more HERE and I expect that from him. He's a great role model, even a great speaker but not a motivator. I miss the days of CC Sabathia, Derek Jeter and Jorge Posada. I miss those great Posada team meetings back in the day. We need that right now! It's still missing and you could see it yesterday with Aaron Hicks very catchable ball yesterday that he made NO effort to catch and then he botched a ground ball. It was a few feet in front of him, and this....is 100% true


It's unacceptable. This is a losing team and it won't change without major adjustments from within. I don't care that "IT'S ONLY APRIL" or "WE'VE ONLY PLAYED 15 GAMES" because this team isn't clicking and we can all see it. This team has lost its edge and it is SOFT. The Yankees need their balls back....NOW!

What changes would you make? Think big. Comment and tell us.




  --Jeana Bellezza-Ochoa
     BYB Managing Editor
    Twitter: @nyprincessj

Sunday, April 18, 2021

EMBARRASSING BASEBALL CONTINUES IN THE BRONX

Source: Associated Press

Sigh. I remember years ago when my father-in-law told me that he got suspended from school because his homework assignment was incomplete. He wrote about baseball and his essay simply said, "Game called on account of rain." That was the entirety his essay. Embarrassing, maybe. Unacceptable, definitely. In the case of the Yankees it is a little bit of both. And it is certainly not funny or something we would want to share across generations. There is something wrong with the Yankees and they better figure it out before fans put the team on suspension.


Ken Davidoff reported the brightside after Saturday's disappointing game,"Their fourth straight loss, 6-3 to the rival Rays in The Bronx, included no pinstriped errors, and Montgomery indeed made it into the seventh before petering out after one batter. Those were improvements on the 8-2 fiasco Friday night that prompted Aaron Boone to call a team meeting." 


So what were the goals of that team meeting? What were the call to actions? All Boone said was,“That’s for in there,” reported NJ.com. Really? Well that means my money stays in the bank and not at the ballpark this season since Boone doesn't think it is appropriate to share what the goals and outcomes of his team meeting was after the absolutely pitiful baseball his team has been playing. Ridiculous, just ridiculous.

Randy Miller of NJ.com reminds us that, "If you are desperate for some hope, well, the Yanks also began the 2019 season with a 5-8 record, then they went on to win 103 games. But that won’t help them turn this mess around, and it is a mess." 


I wish I had a true glimmer of hope but I don't. I can say I have enjoyed watching the San Diego Padres, the New York Mets and even the Philadelphia Phillies this season. But the Yankees are embarrassing and they are making me revert back to those early days when the Yankees didn't win despite having a talented team made up of guys like Dave Winfield and Don Mattingly. Those Yankee teams are forgettable. I barely remember who played during those grueling years post the 1978 championship. And I feel like this current bunch is just as forgettable particularly if this is the kind of season we have in store.

So Boone, you better have a plan and if you don't want to share it with the media or fans, then we better see it on the field. Because right now, the 2021 Yankees are an embarrassment to baseball and to the Yankee legacy. They are forgettable.




--Suzie Pinstripe
BYB Managing Editor
Twitter: @suzieprof


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