AMERICA'S FAN

Everyone knows at least one. They are everywhere unfortunately. They live all over this country! They are in cities and towns far and wide! The thing that they have in common…I mean other than the ridiculous stories they gives us as to why they are how they are…is that they know, deep down, that they are full of S&%#!

I’m referring to the fans that like the Dallas Cowboys, the Los Angeles Lakers, the Duke Blue Devils and, sadly, the New York Yankees. 

These full tilt, front running asshats can live in Massachusetts, Texas, Ohio…New Jersey (like that McPherson guy on the WFAN).

“Oh, well I like them because my Dad was a Tony Dorsett guy and so I just followed suit…”

“Well, we didn’t get Sixers games because we didn’t have cable, so I just saw the Lakers a lot…”

“My aunt lived in Charlotte, and I got to go to a game at Cameron when I was 7 so…”

“I always loved Reggie Jackson…so even though I’m from Forrest Lawn, Illinois…yeah, huge Yankee fan, buddy.”

These people are either Gung-ho and show up in jerseys everywhere…or when the team is in the playoffs and they caught a game or two a few months earlier. Either way, they suck.

O’Hara! What is up with you today, kid? What’s with the rant?

I watched the end of the year Yankee word salad presser, and I realized…the Yankees deserve those types of fans now. They deserve each other in fact. 

We’ve become the Lakers, Blue Devils and Cowboys…the Yanks are the Kardashians now!! They are famous for being famous!!! Grit? To the modern day Yankees, that’s just a something you serve up for breakfast down south. Heart? The Wilson sisters rocking Barracuda on the stadium PA system is the only time you hear it in the Bronx. Where have you gone, Paul O’Neill? Our fan base turns its lonely eyes to you…oooo. What’s that you say, Mrs. Robinson? The Warrior is up in the YES booth with Coney? 

WELL, TELL HIM TO CHOKE HOLD HAL AND DEMAND THAT HE IS MADE HITTING COACH AND EXECUTIONER! Make Jorge Manager!! Make A Rod GM!! Jeff Nelson can be bullpen coach! Give us SOMETHING to believe in!

I mean the front office drags old dynasty Yankees out to the ballpark every other day for some retired number ceremony, bobblehead day or to toss out a 1st pitch…hired them while you’re at it!!

Listening to Hal, Cashman and Boone is just as bad as bumping Maroon 5!  I can’t listen to it and am STUNNED when others do! That Adam levine’s voice could crack paint…. but this love (of the Yankees) HAS taken it’s toll on me.

Arrogant leadership pushing a model that fails and telling everyone they just don’t understand is truly insane. Brian Cashman is NOT a good GM. He has NEVER been. That is a FACT! He was a strap hanger under Stick Michael. 

 The Core was the foundation. They won on that formula. When Michaels left, the Boss did Boss things and prolonged the winning with the checkbook while making 1980’s moves – Kevin Brown, Randy Johnson, Carl Pavano etc…. Cashman got “his ring” in 2009 when he was able to buy Tex, CC, AJ and Swish with a core still very much intact…. he didn’t do ANYTHING but buy the world with George’s last big shopping spree. He couldn’t carry Theo’s golf clubs…AND HE KNOWS IT!

Hal isn’t his dad…he ain’t even his sister. He’s a guy who doesn’t know or like baseball. He’s the Jeremy Strong character from HBO’s Succession.   Watch it and tell me I’m wrong!!

Boone? Aaron is a good guy. I was lucky enough to meet him and hangout for a bit back in 2011. He is a class act…but so was my uncle Jack and he shouldn’t be the skipper of the Yanks either after all these years. Remember GI Joe? Girardi?  He was let go after winning a title and growing the Baby Bombers up (with a young Aaron Judge) and we were told they needed a new voice….Aaron Boone’s voice is as stale as the one you hear on the 6 train…”Stand clear of the closing doors please.”

Well, it’s more like a closing window…on Judge and Cole…the Yankee way…and the patience of a fan base.

Hey Hal! Get bent!

--Mike O'Hara
BYB Contributor




I wrote this while listening to the Pistols…they have the pulse of TRUE Yankee fans…

YANKS MARCHING

In the mid 90’s the “Jam Band Movement” hit this country like the British Invasion of the early 1960s. Suddenly songs elongated from around 3 and a half minutes to 15 minutes of vamping, flourishes, solos and breakdowns. Some of it was ok…at first. However, it wore out its welcome quicker than your typical jam band tune.

Most of those puka shell necklace wearing outfits - Rusted Root, Widespread Panic, Dispatch and Big Head Todd & The Monsters – have drifted into the ether. There is one band that, in many ways, have become the New York Yankees of Jam Band music…THE DAVE MATTHEWS BAND.

Much like the Bronx Bombers, this crew packs them in on the road. They have a massive, loyal following. Even causal music fans are familiar with their act…the way someone who’s never watched baseball knows who the Yankees are. Unfortunately, the comparisons aren’t all a good thing.

I recently saw David and his gang…twice…in 3 weeks’ time. The first time in Camden just across the bridge from Philadelphia (I bet someone I was with that no matter what we’d hear a E A G L E S! spelling chant…you never disappoint, Philly…. awful.)

The second show was in the Insurance Capital of the World…Hartford, CT. What was the takeaway? Well, I still like many of Matthews’ songs. Dave and his band are very talented and the rush of memories of past shows made nostalgia hit like the contact high hanging in the air like a sad, hippie quilt. The other thing I left with is how formulaic it has all become. Sure, the set list is different each night but the rest…the rest is just the same old song. Dave is quirky. He offers up a few, “Thank y’all very, very much. We hope you’re having a nice time.” He may toss in a political nugget or dance like a Muppet with his loose leg hops and struts. Then we are treated to DMB’s Free Bird. A song as tied to a Dave Matthews show as New York, New York is to Yankee Stadium.

It’s catchy. Everyone knows the words…or has made up their own. It’s a great ending song…but it’s canned. The band walks off and gives us the 7-minute rest period before returning for the encore. It was fine. I enjoyed the show…but not as much as I once did.

The Yanks are the DMB. HUGE! DYNASTIC! CHAMPIONSHIP PROVEN! EXCITING...in the 1990s. Back when Stick Michaels was the “Tour Manager”. 

The club is now like the shows I saw. They dine out on old stories. They still bring in the audiences. They make you nostalgic with Paul O’Neill Nights, Bernie Bobble Heads or letting us watch Nelly groove one to Nick Swisher so he can go yard.

Brian Cashman is the record exec using yesterday and loyal fan base to hold down a job he does poorly. 

He knows the formula gets us just “good enough”…but that’s it? We do the same song every year and get the same story when it goes upside down at season’s end. We leave the ballpark in the Bronx the way I left the Dave Matthews shows…I’m a fan…but not like I was. 

Sure, they’re still the Yanks. He’s still Dave Matthews…and even to a punker like me the dude is worth seeing. But it’s not new…it’s not evolving. 

Look, we have Judge. We do have great pitchers. And Dave has put out a new song here and there that is solid…but it’s touring the old stuff to let older-ish folks from the 90s feel like high school and college kids again. It’s not about winning new fans or bringing in a championship. The formula is there…so the dollars will follow…until they don’t. 

So, take these chances…place them in a box…until a quieter time…lights down you up and die.

I’ll always like Dave and his talented band. I will always love the New York Yankees…but the shows pale to the 90s versions.

--Mike O'Hara

Bleeding Yankee Blue Contributor

THE FALSE REALITY OF WHAT MAKES CASHMAN GREAT

Something is seriously wrong with Aaron Boone.

But the Yankees don’t just have a manager problem. They have a general manager problem too. And before the Brian Cashman defense squad starts printing Hall of Fame plaques, let’s revisit a little thing called history — something Aaron Boone clearly treats like optional reading.

The Yankees dynasty wasn’t born the second Cashman sat in the GM chair. That’s revisionist history wrapped in pinstripes.

The foundation of the dynasty was built by Gene Michael — “Stick” Michael — from 1990 through 1995. He was the stubborn architect who refused to trade away the young core when everybody else wanted shiny new toys. No Derek Jeter deal. No Mariano Rivera deal. No Andy Pettitte tossed away for some fading veteran. Stick protected the future while the rest of baseball played checkers with Yankee prospects.

Then came GM Bob Watson in 1996. The pieces were already in place. The engine was built. Watson helped guide the Yankees to a championship while the Core Four era officially arrived.

By the time Brian Cashman took over in 1998, the Yankees were essentially a luxury sports car with the keys already in the ignition. From 1998 to 2000, they dominated baseball — but pretending Cashman created the dynasty from scratch is like giving the guy who watered the lawn credit for building Yankee Stadium.

That’s why many people around baseball — and many Yankees fans — view 2009 as Cashman’s one undisputed championship. Why? Because that team had George Steinbrenner and his fingerprints all over it. And how did the Yankees win that title?

By opening the vault like a casino owner on New Year’s Eve.

CC Sabathia.
A. J. Burnett.
Mark Teixeira.
Nick Swisher.

The Yankees didn’t “develop” their way to that title. They went on a shopping spree that looked like George Steinbrenner had discovered unlimited credit. And to Cashman’s credit, it worked. But since then? A whole lot of headlines, analytics buzzwords, and October disappointment.

Which brings us to the recent Brandon Tierney-Aaron Boone exchange — a conversation that accidentally exposed why Boone always sounds like the last guy in the room to realize the fire alarm is real. Brandon Tierney was wrapping up the interview and talking about the Yankees’ roster depth and urgency this season when Boone decided to launch into a full infomercial for Cashman.

Boone called Cashman a Hall of Famer.

Tierney, probably wondering if he accidentally switched studios and wandered into a Yankees PR meeting, before politely pushing back.

Because here’s the reality: Hall of Fame executive? Based on what exactly? One championship in the last 16 years? An endless parade of expensive contracts that aged like milk in July? Constant playoff exits? A roster-building philosophy that too often feels like fantasy baseball run by a hedge fund intern?

That’s not greatness. That’s surviving in New York while owning an unlimited budget. Cashman is not a hall of fame GM.

Boone, of course, doubled down.

“He’s great at it, BT. He’s really good at it,” Boone said.

And that’s when Tierney hit the brakes.

“Great’s a little bit of a stretch. 2009’s been a minute, Booney.”

Correct. Completely correct.

The Yankees haven’t been starving for resources. They haven’t been rebuilding in a small market. They haven’t been operating with limitations. This is the Yankees. The standard isn’t “pretty good.” The standard is championships. Parades. Rings. October dominance.

Instead, Yankees fans have gotten aging rosters, bloated payrolls, analytics experiments, and postseason exits that arrive faster than Boone’s postgame line about how “the guys battled.” And Boone just kept talking — which is usually where Boone gets himself into trouble. He talks like a guy trying to finish an essay five minutes before class. More words don’t make the argument smarter.

Tierney ended the segment perfectly: “Go get a win.”

Exactly. Not 700 regular-season wins. Not another Wild Card appearance. Not another analytics seminar about launch angle efficiency. Win a championship.

That’s the job. If Cashman wants Hall of Fame talk, win another title. If Boone wants praise as a Yankees manager, stop managing October games like they’re spring training experiments in Tampa.

Until then, Boone can keep defending Cashman all he wants. Maybe he’s brainwashed. Maybe he’s loyal to a fault. Maybe he genuinely believes what he’s saying.

But one thing he definitely isn’t?

Right.

SEND RYAN WEATHERS BACK TO WHEREVER THE HELL YOU GOT HIM!

Let’s stop pretending the Brian Cashman master plan is anything more than a recycling bin of bad ideas dressed up as “strategy.”

First, it was the victory lap—mission accomplished!—after bringing in David Bednar, Jake Bird, and Camilo Doval… a trio that has turned late innings into a nightly horror show. And we were knocked out of the playoffs. Season over. Now we’re supposed to believe in the latest science experiment: Ryan Weathers, a guy who throws hard but hands out runs like it’s Halloween candy.

And somehow, the Yankees’ marketing machine keeps rolling these guys out like they’re headline acts instead of cautionary tales. It’s not roster building—it’s gaslighting with graphics.

Let’s call it what it is: this team hasn’t spent like the Yankees in years. They’re patching together a supposed contender with duct tape, crossed fingers, and whatever spare parts Cashman finds in the bargain bin. This isn’t the Bronx Bombers—it’s a clearance rack.

Remember 2009? That wasn’t luck. That was a front office actually acting like the New York Yankees. CC Sabathia, A. J. Burnett, Mark Teixeira, Nick Swisher—they went big, and guess what? It worked. Shocking concept.

Now? It’s a patchwork roster orbiting Max Fried, Aaron Judge, and Cody Bellinger, hoping gravity alone keeps the whole thing from drifting into irrelevance.

This team isn’t good—it’s marketed to look good.

Ryan Weathers in pinstripes is the perfect example. The game starts, and even a kid can see it coming: “Weathers is pitching? That’s a loss.” Imagine being a Yankee fan and saying that? What the hell. When the fans can predict the outcome before the first pitch, what exactly is the front office doing—other than pretending everything is fine?

Five innings. Five runs. Four home runs. But sure, let’s celebrate the strikeouts. Because nothing says “ace” like getting shelled while occasionally missing a bat.

And here’s the bigger issue: you cannot expect a lineup to claw back every single night because your pitcher decided to implode in the first inning. That’s not resilience—that’s exhaustion. It’s bad baseball.

Six losses in the last seven games after a hot start tells you everything. This isn’t a slump. It’s regression to the mean of a mediocre roster.

Meanwhile, Oswald Peraza was out there last night for the Angels actually competing, creating pressure, forcing mistakes—doing everything his team should be doing. But by the time he makes an impact, the damage is already done. Good for him. Sticking a finger in Cashman's eye.

And in the dugout? Aaron Boone looks like a guy trying to solve a puzzle with half the pieces missing. No urgency, no adjustments, and a bullpen strategy that feels like it’s being picked out of a hat.

You cannot expect Aaron Judge to carry this entire operation on his back every night. That’s not a plan—that’s a wish.

But don’t worry—the hype train is already moving. Anthony Volpe is being packaged like a savior, a franchise messiah ready to rescue the Bronx. What they’re not highlighting? A rough Double-A showing with 2 strikeouts that don’t exactly scream “immediate solution.” And for context, he batted against Zach Wheeler, an established major league pitcher.  So that just proves to me, he's not qualified to be on a major league field.  Pathetic.  

This is what the Yankees have become: a brand selling nostalgia while delivering mediocrity.

At some point, fans have to stop buying it—literally and figuratively. Because right now, the loudest thing in Yankee Stadium isn’t the bats.

It’s the disconnect.

VERDUGO THE DAWG!

There's nothing better than playing against the team you used to play for and dominate!  Alex Verdugo went huge last night against the Red Sox and the Yanks won 8-1.

Verdugo was 3-5 with 4 RBIs.  The Sporting News writes:

"... even if the Red Sox's pitching staff was fine, they were unable to do anything offensively. They struck out 14 times while recording just five total hits (nobody had multiple). Their lone run game came from an Enmanuel Valdez RBI double in the fourth inning."

CBS Sports writes:

"According to the YES Network broadcast, Verdugo is the second player to go deep in his first at-bat as a visiting player at Fenway Park after having 2,000 plate appearances with the Red Sox. The first was Ellis Burks. He did it in 1993 with the Chicago White Sox.

Verdugo drove in another run in the fifth inning with an opposite field double off the base of the Green Monster. He picked up his third hit, an RBI single, in the ninth inning." 

All in all, the Yankees were dominant, but Verdugo came to destroy his former team.  I don't care what anyone says, Verdugo is the energy the Yankees need... the Swisher of this team all these years later.  It's awesome!

Yanks beat Sox 8-1.  Keep going boys!

TINO & SWISHER CALL OUT MLB'S BAD UMPIRING & I'M HERE FOR IT!

I've been thinking a lot about Aaron Judge and his recent game ejection. One of the biggest names in baseball who plays the game the right way and with no ego tossed by another bad umpiring call. The umpire controversy is not going away and not getting better. In fact, it's getting worse.

Almost two years ago, I wrote about MLB's experimentation outside of traditional umpiring in RUMOR: ROBOTS ARE COMING TO A MLB STADIUM NEAR YOU. MLB is still experimenting with an electronic strike zone in Triple-A this year where hitters and pitchers can challenge balls and strikes. Even if that isn't the answer, something has to be done about the controversy that has passionate fans everywhere riled up. Even some of our Yankee favorites think change is long overdue, read more HERE.

Anytime Nick Swisher and Tino Martinez have anything to say, I am going to listen intently. I appreciated Tino's passion when he called Judge's ejection "terrible. Aaron Judge never loses his temper, and he didn’t in that situation either. He walked away; he wasn’t in the umpire’s face. He walked away like he should’ve done, and he put him out, which was a little too much by the umpire." As passionate as Tino was Swisher took it a step further and said "He didn't say anything. He said, ‘You were s***, you've been bad all day,’ which was true. I watched the game." 

So MLB is at an impasse, and Rob Manfred needs to do something. When you have veterans like Max Scherzer who have influence with the MLBPA and respected former players vocalizing how they feel, it can't be ignored. It needs to be fixed!

It won't be an easy fix, but I think the "ranking" of these bad umpires with consequences is a good place to start. Fans know there is a human element to this game. Nothing will be perfect, bad calls will be made, but it doesn't have to be so frequent. Those who have good stats and accuracy, get to stay at the big-league level. Those who don't perform, get sent down to the minors. That is how you get more credibility back in this game. It weeds out the undesirables like Angel Hernandez and C.B. Bucknor (amongst others) out of important games.

If it were only that simple though. The umpires have their own union just like players have the MLBPA. Unions are very powerful, and the umpire's union is no exception. Obviously, unions are going to act in what they feel is in the best interest of their workers AND it's not like there is a big supply of MLB umpires. 

No matter what, there needs to be some sort of accountability for the sake of this game. While Manfred sleeps at the wheel, MLB's credibility suffers. I hate turning on a baseball game and seeing the same bad umpires all the time, so I appreciate Tino and Swisher's candor. 

Something's gotta give.... before I write about this again in another two years and it's worse. What's it going to take?

--Jeana Bellezza-Ochoa

BYB Senior Managing Editor

Twitter: @nyprincessj

SOTO LEAVES HIS MARK ON BALTIMORE'S EUTAW STREET

I got a text message from a fan Tuesday night that said, "We already look second class against Baltimore." My response, "It's too early for that talk." And with that comment Juan Soto launched a 471 foot 2-run shot into Eutaw Street. "It's Juanderful", as John Sterling would say. So despite Baltimore being well, Baltimore and taking the first two games of the series, the Yankees keep things exciting with Soto.

Source: David Dermer/AP Photo

"For those who don’t know, Eutaw Street is the festive area that’s located between Camden Yards and the B&O warehouse. Every home run ball that completely clears the right-field wall and lands on the street gets a mini plaque on the spot where the ball lands. Didi (Gregorius) is the first Yankees player to hit a homerun on Eutaw Street since Curtis Granderson did it back in 2013," reported Elite Sports NY. Didi did it in 2019 with a 417-foot home run. In fact, Granderson, Gregorius and now Soto are in great company with other Yankee lore including Jason Giambi (three plaques on the street), Paul O’Neill, Robinson Cano, Johnny Damon, and Nick Swisher. Soto's blast is the 11th by a Yankee. 

Besides this huge home run last night in Baltimore, Soto has been absolutely on fire. According to MLB.com, "He was doing historic things from the first series of the season. Soto became the first player in the expansion era (1961) to record a go-ahead RBI in the 7th inning or later in three of his first four games with a team, and the first to do so in three of his four with the Yankees, specifically, since RBI became official in 1920, according to the Elias Sports Bureau."

We have watched him be selective at the plate, choosing the right pitches to hit. He make hard contact when he does swing, among the best in the majors. And he hits the ball in the air. According to MLB.com, "Soto is hitting .521 and slugging 1.083 on fly balls and line drives, and has always had similar numbers on such batted balls. By hitting fewer grounders, he’s positioning himself for those positive outcomes even more. The culmination of all of this: he isn’t just hitting the ball in the air more overall, but also when making hard contact. 66.7% of his hard-hit batted balls have been fly balls and line drives."

The Soto party is very popular in Yankee Stadium, of course, but even on the road, Soto has more fans than not. Sure he gets boos, but honestly, it is hard to boo for a guy that has a smile and disposition like he has. Now Soto has left his mark, permanently in Baltimore. And his plaque will soon replace the ball that he muscled out there on Tuesday night. 

--Suzie Pinstripe
BYB Senior Managing Editor
Twitter: @suzieprof

CASHMAN HAS NO CHOICE, HE HAS TO DO BETTER

Frankie Montas. Joey Gallo. Carlos Rodon. Just 3 names that make you want to pull your hair out.  Cashman made those moves, and those players did nothing for us.  The worst in my estimation has to be Montas who went through a physical and was still hurt because he was apparently hiding and injury. But that comes down to his integrity and the medical staff's lack of awareness when it comes to the human body.  But all of them were greenlit by Cashman who is walking around high and mighty over his Yankee career with literally nothing to show for it. In fact 4 guys he gave up were champs with the Rangers.  4 guys... Chapman, Montgomery, Heaney and Eovaldi.  How in the world is this guy wrong all the time?

The Yanks needs to do something bigly for the 2024 season.  Something that would resemble the 2009 season when George made him go out and get Swisher, Teixeira, Sabathia and Burnett.  But what? Is it Juan Soto and Cody Bellinger?  No one really knows. But Clutchpoints has this:

"Cashman asserted the Yankees would be in the conversation to pursue a host of players:

“We’re knocking on those doors, we’re having those conservations. Hal Steinbrenner and his family have always run it the way that if there’s some opportunity worth pushing on, they’re always there to allow that to happen,” the Yankees GM said, per Bryan Hoch."

Well... that sounds like more of the same to me. The only difference is George is dead, and if he were alive Cashman would be out of a job and George would personally invite these guys up to his box and get a handshake agreement quickly.

Look, the state of the Yankees is in shambles. I don't really think they plan on improving this team, their front office or even take a "deep dive" into fixing anything. I absolutely believe they want us all to forget about it.  

But we're fans... we don't forget.  We need to bring a championship back to the Bronx.  That's the bottom line.

ARE THE YANKEES THE BLOCKBUSTER OF BASEBALL?

Now I realize I am dating myself. But it's okay. My kids know what Blockbuster Video is or rather was. I think maybe a good portion of you do too. And you know the Yankees of today and in the days of Blockbuster. They were, good. Blockbuster provided access to VHS and then DVDs to customers across the country. They were the only video rental chain, and they owned the market. But they drank the invincible punch and therefore, never thought they could be ousted. They even declined the purchase of their first true competitor, Netflix, which could have kept the giant in business. Interestingly enough, Blockbuster closed in 2014. You know who also hung up his cleats in 2014. Yep, the Captain, Derek Jeter. The Yankees are the Blockbuster of Baseball and here's why.

"Blockbuster was known for charging customers a fee for every day they were late returning a movie rental. In fact, Blockbuster said it made $800 million in late fees, or 16% of its revenue, Quartz reported. This frustrated many customers, including Netflix founder Reed Hastings," reported Business Insider. The Yankees, well they play by their own rules. They don't listen to fans, or their baseball gut; they only listen to analytics. They don't reward good leadership; they'd prefer puppets who execute orders from above. They are old. They got cocky. And guess what, they are as defunct as Blockbuster.

The new baseball, the modern baseball, takes into consideration wisdom of the past coupled with today's analytics. Great teams of today favor strategic hitting, lower pitch counts, and low tolerance for mediocrity. If you don't have it today, you are out of the game. 

But Aaron Boone does not subscribe to that kind of mantra. He likes to give days off to players who are making a difference in the lineup, he prefers home runs over base hits and he misuses his pitchers. Yet, "One thing Steinbrenner has decided on is to retain Boone as manager for ‘24. Steinbrenner spoke to a lot of the current players, former Yankees like Andy Pettitte and Nick Swisher, and front office people like Omar Minaya and Brian Sabean, and the conclusion was unanimous. "Without giving my opinion on the call, they all came to the same conclusion which is, Aaron is a good manager. He should be our manager in 2024. That was the first big decision I needed to make,” said Steinbrenner as reported MLB.com. 

Now the Yankees have decided to bring in an outside consultancy to evaluate their analytics department. "Steinbrenner wants to make sure that the team is making the right decisions on the field. Zelus will work with the Yankees throughout the season.  "We are going to take all that from what we learned and compare it to what we do,” Steinbrenner said. “There could be some areas that we feel that we need to do better and change,” reported MLB.com. 

How about using a combination of baseball knowledge and analytics? You don't need an outside consultant to prescribe that. How about take a page from Texas Rangers Manager Bruce Bochy, Arizona Diamondback Manager Torey Lovullo or even Philadelphia Phillies and former Yankee coach Rob Thomson's playbook. They know their players; they don't tolerate crap and they use that combo of wisdom and numbers - the secret sauce for leading winners.

When you are aging, you look for ways to stay young. You challenge yourself. You keep current. If you don't, you simply will be outplayed, and therefore become outdated. The Yankees are just that. They assume they are the Yankees and therefore everyone would want to play here and as a fan, come to the stadium and drop hundreds of dollars to see a legendary franchise play. But guess what? The fans want more and expect more. 

In 2023, "New York finished with a .227 batting average, 29th among the 30 teams, and was 25th in runs with 673," reported ESPN. Steinbrenner says there will be big changes that to the naked eye, you can't see. Well, with the manager and general manager still in place, I am not sure the Yankees will look that much different in 2024. What are they actually waiting for? Another "streaming service" to overtake them in the market? They know what the stakes are. They can see how other teams are winning. Can't they see the writing on the wall? The Yankees are the Blockbuster of Baseball and unless things change, they will remain out of business for the foreseeable future. 

--Suzie Pinstripe

BYB Senior Managing Editor

Twitter: @suzieprof

SEAN CASEY GONZO!

 

Well Sean Casey was a pretty decent hitting coach for the New York Yankees, but now he's gone.  Unreal. The Yankees are blowing it, aren't they?

Empire Sports Media writes:

"Casey was able to impact a number of players positively, but after announcing his departure from the Yankees via his podcast, “The Mayors Office,” he cited family reasons for his decision."

How about just saying "Why would I be part of that sinking ship? No way, I'm out."  But seriously, it's not a good look for the Yankees right now. Casey actually was pretty helpful with our team... helping to get DJ LeMahieu back on track.  It was DJ himself giving Casey the credit.  

So what happens now? Alot of rumbles on Yankee Twitter throwing out names like Nick Swisher and Tino Martinez.  I honestly think it should be a guy with some heart and personality and NOT an Aaron Boone friend.  I think that's where the problem lies.  To be honest, I was really hoping Sean Casey would replace Boone, but I guess now we just have to wait and see what the Yankees do next.

Good Luck to Sean Casey... it was fun while it lasted! Thanks for your service.

COULD ANTHONY VOLPE FORCE THE YANKEES TO INNOVATE?

Isiah Kiner-Falefa came to the Yankees at the start of the 2022 season as part a trade that sent Gary Sanchez to the Minnesota Twins. IKF played in 138 games, 131 of them at shortstop for the Yankees last season with 15 errors. He slowly declined both defensively and offensively but stayed healthy for most of the season. Yet, when push came to shove, he just could not perform the way the Yankees needed their middle infielder to perform, particularly in the postseason. 

Conversely this spring, the Yankees have seen nothing but incredible performances from rookie shortstops Anthony Volpe and Oswald Peraza, with Volpe really stealing the show. So what does all of this mean for IKF, who has had a pretty good spring training so far going 5-for-19 and batting .263? It means the Yankees may need to get innovative if they are going to keep IKF but promote Volpe to starting shortstop.

"Yankees manager Aaron Boone told reporters (including MLB.com's Bryan Hoch) on Tuesday that Kiner-Falefa has been working with former big-league outfielder Nick Swisher to learn the nuances of playing on grass. Kiner-Falefa will even be making an appearance in center field in spring training before the week elapses. Boone added that he thinks Kiner-Falefa could be a "natural" out there," reported CBS Sports. 

Source: NY Daily News

IKF may be an above average fielder but he has not pulled his weight in the batter's box. The Yankees need more consistent at bats from their lineup—this goes for everyone, IKF and beyond. But if IKF can add some competitive advantage through the lens of another position, I am all for it. As long as he hits and hustles. 

Source: NY Post

"It’s to be determined if there was a true competition entering the camp or if the Bombers had a favorite for the position all along. Volpe has been the clear top performer out of the bunch and with Kiner-Falefa now trying to learn the outfield, the competition has only gotten more intriguing a little over two weeks before Opening Day," reported the New York Daily News.

Yankee Captain Aaron Judge compliments what I have been preaching since I started writing this blog more than five years ago. The key to winning in this sport is putting the best team on the field and if Volpe is that guy, then he should be the starting shortstop on opening day.

“I think he’s got all the tools,” said Aaron Judge after last Wednesday’s game against the Cardinals at the Yankees’ spring complex. “He checks a lot of boxes defensively, offensively. He’s got the speed... My thing has always been, if you’re the best player, it shouldn’t matter your age. You should be up helping the New York Yankees,” reported the New York Daily News.

Innovation is something that has been lacking in the Yankees over the years. They just have not been able to play that card when they needed to or perhaps they just did not want to take the chance. But now Anthony Volpe may just be forcing their hand and that could mean big things for the Yankees in 2023. 

--Suzie Pinstripe
BYB Senior Managing Editor
Twitter: @suzieprof