ADVANCING TO THE ALCS COMES DOWN TO ONE THING FOR THE YANKEES: AARON BOONE

The Yankees have the tools to advance, but if Aaron Boone is calling the shots and over-tinkers, you can forget this season.

The Royals are marching into the ALDS like a scrappy underdog ready to take down the big, bad Yankees. And why not? The Royals have already defied the odds, rising from a 106-loss season to claw their way into the playoffs, leaving baseball fans wondering if Cinderella’s glass slipper fits a cleat. Meanwhile, the Yankees are stumbling into the postseason after a leisurely five-day break, trying to shake off the cobwebs while their manager, Aaron Boone, sharpens his tinkering tools like he’s prepping for an IKEA furniture assembly—except with even worse results.

If history tells us anything, it’s that the Yankees under Boone are world-class experts at snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. The last time they had this kind of layoff, they lost five of their first seven games after the All-Star break, and, shocker, they’re now set up for the same rust-induced disaster. Yankees outfielder Alex Verdugo even admitted the downtime is "like another All-Star break," which is code for, “we’re about to come out flatter than a pancake.”

To shake off the impending doom, Boone is calling in the minor-league cavalry for live pitching practice. Because, apparently, when your big-league squad leads the American League in home runs, the logical solution is to have them face pitchers from Scranton who are about two bus rides away from unemployment. Brilliant!

Boone insists it’s all about finding that elusive balance between rest and staying sharp. Unfortunately for Yankees fans, "balance" isn’t really his strong suit. Last season, multiple teams with first-round byes—Braves, Orioles, Dodgers—flamed out in spectacular fashion, and the Yankees seem determined to follow in their footsteps. The “Bronx Bombers” may have bashed 237 home runs this year, but in the playoffs, they often swing like they’re trying to hit piñatas blindfolded. This time around, they can't. They need to do better.

Let’s not forget the Yankees' regular-season domination of Kansas City, going 5-2 against them and practically treating Kauffman Stadium like their personal playground, outscoring the Royals 27-12 in four games. Sure, Aaron Judge and Gleyber Torres had some fun, but October isn’t June, and when Aaron Boone is in charge, postseason magic tends to vanish faster than a dollar bill in Times Square.

Now, let’s talk Royals. A year ago, they couldn’t win a game if their lives depended on it, and here they are, fresh off knocking out the Orioles, becoming the first 100-loss team to win a playoff series the very next year. They’re riding high on momentum, and if there’s anything the Yankees should fear, it’s a team that’s already broken the odds and has nothing left to lose. Plus, the Royals’ speed and sneaky pitching could make the Yankees’ five-day spa vacation look like a very bad idea.

The real wildcard in this series isn’t the Royals’ lineup—it’s Boone himself. His playoff strategy is like watching someone play chess by flipping the pieces at random. In short series, he’s notorious for overthinking, over-managing, and just plain over-doing it. The Yankees would be better off if someone locked him in the clubhouse with a bucket of sunflower seeds and told him it was Game 4 of the ALDS.

At the end of the day, the series boils down to this: Will the Royals, hot off their fairy-tale run, exploit the Yankees’ rust and Boone’s inevitable blunders? Or will the Yankees finally figure out how to not trip over their own superstar lineup? If Boone stays out of it, the Yankees might just survive. But if he starts tinkering, it’ll be another October meltdown in the Bronx. Same story, different year.