KEEP HATING ON US

I like Cam Schlittler. I really do. The kid has electric stuff, and I think he's going to be a very good major league pitcher.

But every time he has a rough outing, my mind immediately goes back to March.

Remember that tweet? "Keep hating on us."

March.

Not October. Not after clinching a division. Not after winning a pennant. Certainly not after a World Series parade.

March.

That's the kind of tweet you fire off after accomplishing something meaningful. Instead, it came after a strong March performance. To me, that wasn't confidence. It was a young pitcher feeling himself a little too much after one good day at the office.

Fast forward to the end of June, and baseball is reminding everyone why it's a six-month marathon instead of a weekend sprint.

Schlittler had one of those nights against the Tigers. Detroit teed off, launching five home runs in a 9-3 beatdown at Yankee Stadium. Meanwhile, Tarik Skubal looked every bit like the ace he's become, carving through the Yankees with the poise you'd expect from someone who's actually earned the right to carry himself with swagger.

Schlittler will be fine. Great pitchers have bad nights. Every ace gets humbled eventually. That's baseball. But that March tweet? It still hangs around like an embarrassing Facebook memory you wish would stop popping up.

Because baseball has a funny way of cashing receipts. Of course, Schlittler isn't the biggest problem in the Bronx. That title still belongs to Aaron Boone.

The Yankees have now dropped six straight games, and somehow Boone continues to sound like everything is "right in front of us." At some point, "right in front of us" becomes "right behind us" in the standings.

Every Yankees fan knows the script by now. The regular season offers enough talent to stay competitive. Then October arrives, Boone makes one or two head-scratching decisions, and everyone spends the offseason wondering how the same movie got made again.

It's become baseball's version of Groundhog Day.

The roster has flaws, too. Anthony Volpe continues to provide too many automatic outs, the offense disappears for stretches that feel like entire weekends, and the pitching staff is learning that potential doesn't automatically translate into consistency.

As for Schlittler, hopefully this outing serves as a reminder that baseball has a long memory and an even longer schedule.

The season isn't won in March, no matter how good your spring training ERA looks.

Just ask the Yankees. A few weeks ago, they looked like one of baseball's best teams. Today they're sitting in second place, riding a six-game losing streak, and discovering that this game has a cruel sense of humor.

Maybe next time, save the victory lap until there's actually a trophy involved. Oh, and remember something. I will never truly rip on Yankee players, except for maybe kid shortstops who don't belong there. What bothers me the most about the Yankees is NOT the players, the front office that forgot what baseball is and has no grasp on how to make a great team.  That is who I am hating on Cam... if you must know.