BRAWLIN IN THE BRONX - WILL THE YANKEES SHOW UP?

I am NOT looking forward to this. The Dodgers are coming into town. That means I am going to hear all of the fake, annoying Dodger fans at work become even more obnoxious. Here come all of the jabs about the next three-peat and dynasty. You won't find a bigger pool of bandwagon Dodger "fans" then where I live. This is their breeding ground.

So here we go. First series back from the All-Star break and it has to be against the damn Dodgers. At least it's on our turf, but then again....it's on OUR turf! I still think about how the Dodgers embarrassed us in the World Series. We have been playing some very uninspiring baseball for too long. This could be a disaster in the making. I hope the time off invigorated the Yankees but this team for years has needed a lot more than time off to help them become real contenders.

At this point, we are at the halfway point. Wildcard standings, division races and trades matter more than ever. October is coming and fast. This series could be a preview of what's to come. Some fans are really serious about it, others aren't and that's a lot of what YES broadcasters discussed HERE. I think if you are the Dodgers this series doesn't matter as much, but the Yankees it matters a lot.

I love Paul O'Neill, he's a legend and I like listening to him call games. I just don't know if I share his same thoughts about this series. "I don't think a weekend series in July tells you how you're gonna play a team in the World Series. Everybody looks at that World Series where the Dodgers on paper look like they beat up the Yankees but the Yankees had a couple of games that they could've coulda won and it could've been a seven-game series. I never feel that the Yankees are truly overmatched by anyone. I would assume that the media will turn it up to be a big, big series, but Aaron Judge is not a part of it, Stanton's not a part of it. Ohtani, who knows? He might not even be a part of it, won't be pitching probably. It's gonna be a different scenario if you meet them again in October."

Coulda, shoulda, woulda won....but didn't. There's too many of these. O'Neill may not feel like the Yankees are truly overmatched by any team but they certainly play like they are sometimes. They lack fundamentals, can't hit the broad side of a barn, have circus ringleader Aaron Boone for a manager and are their own worst enemy. Teams don't fear them whether Judge is playing or not. He's only one guy on the field or in the batting lineup. The rest of the team does not compare and all signs point to Shohei Ohtani playing this weekend just most likely not pitching.

Do I think he's right that it will be a different scenario if we meet again in October? It could be. But first we have to get there and it's hard to have confidence that we will. Both teams slumped heading into the All-Star break, but we slumped a lot longer and harder. The Dodgers kick it up another gear once the postseason hits and we just have a hard time finding one that isn't reverse. 

I hope this weekend goes well for us. Hopefully the Dodgers continue their slump, and we find a spark. I think this series matters. Let's face it they all do but second half of the season against the Dodgers is a real test....and I am not sure that the Yankees are ready.

--Jeana Bellezza-Ochoa

BYB Senior Managing Editor

Twitter: @nyprincessj

BOONE'S BIGGEST FAILURE IS THE CULTURE HE CREATED

When the leader stops leading, is when the collapse happens. This is a historic fact.  I encourage you to read this. It will open your eyes allowing you to understand the hell us Yankee fans are in the middle of.

Winning organizations rarely implode because of one bad employee, one lazy player, or one unfortunate decision. They unravel when leadership stops leading. Whether it's a baseball clubhouse, a Fortune 500 company, a military unit, or the United States Congress, the pattern is remarkably similar. Standards begin to slip. Accountability disappears. Small problems become accepted behavior. Eventually, losing becomes the culture.

The old saying that "everything rises and falls on leadership" isn't just motivational fluff. History repeatedly demonstrates that organizations reflect the standards—or lack thereof—set by the person in charge.

This is a lesson worth reading.  Discipline and accountability is important. But it must come from the top. Every successful championship manager understands one fundamental truth: if the captain has to become the disciplinarian, Like Aaron Judge yesterday, the manager has already lost part of the clubhouse.

The manager, in this case Boone, needs to establish expectations. The players execute them. When those roles reverse, something has gone wrong.

One of the greatest examples came from Joe Torre with the Yankees dynasty. Torre wasn't known for screaming every day, but players understood where the line was. Veterans like Derek Jeter, Paul O'Neill, Jorge Posada and Bernie Williams never questioned who was running the clubhouse. Torre balanced personalities while holding everyone accountable. Players who didn't buy in didn't stay long.

Likewise, Bill Belichick built the New England Patriots on a brutally simple principle: "Do Your Job." It didn't matter if you were Tom Brady or the last player on the roster. Mental mistakes had consequences. Star status didn't exempt anyone from accountability.

Even fiery managers like Lou Piniella and Billy Martin understood that discipline wasn't optional. Their methods weren't always popular, but players never wondered who was in charge.

Contrast that with teams that spiral. Repeated defensive mistakes. Repeated mental errors. Repeated lack of hustle. Repeated public displays that would never be tolerated elsewhere. Those aren't isolated incidents. They're symptoms.

Believe me, don't believe me. Whatever. I'm right. Corporate history tells the exact same story. Look at Enron. Executives created a culture where ethical shortcuts became normalized. Financial manipulation went unchecked because leadership rewarded results instead of integrity. The company collapsed into one of America's largest corporate scandals, destroying thousands of jobs and billions in retirement savings.

Wells Fargo CEO John Stumpf and Community Bank head Carrie Tolstedt

Remember Wells Fargo? Employees opened millions of unauthorized customer accounts to satisfy unrealistic sales goals. Executives ignored warning signs for years because the numbers looked good. The eventual scandal cost billions in fines, permanently damaged the company's reputation, and forced leadership changes.

Boeing. Following the two 737 MAX crashes, multiple investigations concluded that cultural failures and weakened oversight contributed to catastrophic decisions. Engineers raised concerns. Communication broke down. Production pressure often outweighed safety priorities. The consequences were devastating.

Different industries. Same pattern. Leadership tolerated behaviors until they became disasters. Now think about Boone and the Yankees.  No true leadership, coddling, making excuses, and zero accountability. Wow.

Think about Government. Congress often becomes mired in dysfunction when leadership cannot enforce discipline within its own caucus. Party leaders rely on consensus, negotiation and political pressure to keep members aligned, but when factions ignore leadership or refuse compromise, legislation stalls, deadlines are missed, government shutdown threats emerge, and public confidence erodes.

Leadership in politics isn't simply about giving speeches, or in Boone's case, word salading press conferences. It's about maintaining order among dozens—or hundreds—of competing personalities.

When that disappears, so does effectiveness. the bottom line is history shows that leadership matters. Military history reinforces the lesson.

During the Battle of Gettysburg, Union leadership under George G. Meade maintained cohesion under immense pressure despite facing repeated Confederate assaults. Command discipline and coordinated execution helped preserve Union lines during one of the Civil War's decisive battles.

By contrast, historians frequently cite failures of coordination and command in numerous military defeats throughout history, where unclear authority, inconsistent discipline, or commanders ignoring warning signs contributed to disastrous outcomes.

Organizations succeed when leaders establish standards that everyone understands—and enforce. Am I being dramatic? Maybe. But it all goes back to leadership... something the Yankees are lacking with Aaron Boone in charge.

When Aaron Judge was forced to speak to players and address the team's lack of focus following another embarrassing stretch, it sounded like a captain trying to do the manager's job. in fact, he WAS doing Boone's job, because Boone doesn't command respect.  In short, he has no balls.

Now look, captains absolutely should lead. They should encourage teammates. They should set examples. They should speak after losses. But when the captain has to become the disciplinarian, one uncomfortable question naturally follows:

Where is the manager?

Aaron Boone has repeatedly defended poor performances, minimized prolonged slumps, and continued writing the same struggling names into the lineup.

Anthony Volpe entered this recent eight-game stretch hitting just .194 (6-for-31).

Austin Wells was even worse, batting approximately .077 between June 24 and July 2.

Yet both continued receiving opportunities while the offense spiraled. Slumps happen. Every player goes through them. Managers are judged by how they respond. Sometimes leadership means showing confidence. Sometimes leadership means making difficult decisions. Sometimes leadership means sending a message that performance still matters. he coddles Volpe and Wells. They should NOT see the lineup, they are automatic outs.

If poor performance never changes playing time, accountability becomes difficult to see. Then there are the optics.

Jazz Chisholm Jr. casually eating a lollipop while playing on the field may strike some fans as harmless personality, while others see it as poor timing during a stretch of embarrassing baseball. Regardless of where one falls on that debate, strong leadership often recognizes when a team's public image no longer matches its performance. Teams enduring prolonged losing streaks generally benefit from projecting urgency rather than comfort.

The Yankees have committed an alarming number of defensive mistakes, repeatedly looked fundamentally unsound, and suffered through extended stretches of lifeless offense. Eventually, fans like me stop asking what's wrong with the players. They start asking who's allowing it. That's Aaron Boone.

Look, leadership isn't about being nice. The best leaders aren't necessarily the loudest. They aren't always the smartest. They're the ones willing to make uncomfortable decisions. Bench a struggling veteran. Call out lazy effort. Demand fundamentals. Protect the culture before protecting feelings.

Every successful organization eventually reaches the same conclusion:

Culture doesn't maintain itself.

Standards don't enforce themselves.

Winning doesn't happen accidentally.

Leadership drives all three.

When players continually repeat the same mistakes, when accountability appears absent, when the captain feels compelled to deliver the message that usually comes from the manager, and when losing becomes expected instead of unacceptable, criticism naturally shifts away from the roster and toward the person responsible for leading it.

History has shown this in sports, business and government. Leadership either sets the standard—or allows the standard to disappear.

Hey Hal, are you paying attention? This manager is driving this team into the dirt. He's a loser.

DEAR HAL STEINBRENNER, STOP HIDING & START LEADING!

When a team loses its fan base, there’s only one person who can change the temperature of the room—the owner. The man who signs the checks. The man who’s supposed to set the tone. That means you, Hal Steinbrenner. And right now, you’re nowhere to be found.

You’ve ducked behind closed doors while the Yankees collapse under the weight of their own incompetence. Radio silence. No leadership. No statement. Nothing. And let me tell you, Hal: it’s sickening.

Meanwhile, we’ve watched Aaron Boone suck the life out of this franchise year after year, handing him extensions like participation trophies while he delivers absolutely nothing. Boone’s in-game management has bled this team dry of millions, and in return? Smiley faces on the lineup card and excuses in the postgame pressers. He should be thanking you for his job security every day, because the fans sure as hell aren’t.

Then there’s Brian Cashman. Oh, Brian. The man who strutted out of the trade deadline acting like he just cracked the code to baseball itself, only to deliver a worse team than the one we had before. His grand plan? A spit-and-duct-tape rotation that can’t get past the fifth inning. A Frankenstein pitching staff that collapses nightly. Even Max Fried—when he’s on the mound—looks exhausted from carrying this circus. I wonder if this poor guy wishes he never came to the Yankees.

And so, my question is what’s the approach here? What’s the strategy? Because from where the fans sit, there isn’t one. It’s pathetic.

And again, where the hell are you, Hal Steinbrenner? Do you even care?

This is the Yankees we’re talking about. The franchise of Ruth, Gehrig, DiMaggio, Jeter. The pinstripes that once struck fear into opponents. And yet, we just dropped three straight to the Red Sox. We are 1-8 against Boston this year. Let that sink in: one win, eight losses. These are games you absolutely must win, and instead, we’re getting humiliated.

Yesterday’s loss was maybe the worst I’ve seen in 15 years of covering this team. And the most insulting part? Nobody in that clubhouse seemed angry. Nobody smashed a bat, nobody flipped a table, nobody even looked ticked off. No fire, no edge, no pride. Just another day at the office for these guys.

You know it’s bad when even the broadcasters can’t hide their disgust. Michael Kay and Paul O’Neill could only sit there and watch in horror as the Yankees melted down in real time:

“It can’t get much worse than this,” Kay said.

“Every once in a while, you get embarrassed on the field and this game has just snowballed…” O’Neill admitted. “The Yankees have absolutely fallen apart here in the last couple innings.”

“Quite frankly, the Yankees are getting schooled by the Red Sox…” Kay jumped back in.

That’s your brand right now, Hal: embarrassed on national television. Schooled by the Red Sox. Fallen apart.

A few weeks ago, I did something I never thought I’d do: I wrote, HEY HAL STEINBRENNER, WE HATE THIS TEAM RIGHT NOW. Guess what? Nothing’s changed. In fact, it’s gotten worse. I’ve reached a point in my 15 years of Bleeding Yankee Blue where I flat-out don’t give a damn anymore. That’s how far this has gone.

I haven’t been to Yankee Stadium in almost two years—and it’s not because I don’t love baseball. It’s because I refuse to spend a dime on this embarrassment. Not on tickets. Not on food. Not on merchandise. Nothing. Why should I? Why should any fan bankroll this clown show while you sit in silence?

Hal, you need to speak. You need to act. You need to care. Because right now, Yankee fans are losing their minds as they watch the team they love sink deeper into mediocrity while Cashman counts his job security and Boone happily sharpens his pencils for tomorrow’s lineup card.

We’re furious. We’re exhausted. And yes, we HATE this team. Not because we’ve stopped being fans—because we are fans. Because we know what this team should be, what it once was, and what it’s failing to be now.

This? This ain’t it.

Fix it. Fire someone. Light a fire. Make a statement. Do something. Because if nothing changes, then what’s the point? What the hell are we even doing here?

We are the Yankees. Start acting like it.

And here’s the thing, Hal—it’s not even the roster. On paper, this team should be stellar. It’s not the players, it’s the philosophy. The Yankees have become slaves to numbers, strangled by analytics, blinded by spreadsheets. They’ve let computers replace common sense and they’re dying by their own algorithms.

Clint Hurdle once described what’s missing in baseball these days: “guts and nuts.” The intangible traits that actually win games. He’s right. You can’t measure heart, toughness, or ice in your veins on an Excel sheet. You need guts. You need balls. You need a front office willing to trust its instincts instead of its calculators.

But guess what? We’re running out of time. The postseason is slipping away fast, and honestly? I don’t see this team making the playoffs. And maybe—just maybe—that’s exactly what needs to happen.

Maybe missing October is the only wake-up call that’ll force you to fire Boone. Maybe it’s the only thing that’ll make you finally show Michael Fishman and his analytics cult the door. Maybe it’s the only thing that’ll burn this failed philosophy to the ground and let real baseball people take over.

Because right now, Hal, this isn’t baseball. This is an embarrassment. And it’s happening on your watch.

So, I’ll ask it one last time: Where the hell are you, Hal Steinbrenner?

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED, HUH?

The three relievers that the Yankees acquired shit the bed tonight. And with that, let’s cue the sad trombone for the most delusional trade deadline recap in recent Yankee memory.

Let’s rewind just 24 hours, shall we? Brian Cashman stood there, pounding his chest like he’d just solved baseball. “Mission accomplished,” he proclaimed, as if he had just landed a spacecraft on Saturn instead of cobbling together a patchwork bullpen from baseball’s junk drawer. No starter. No difference-maker. Just a bunch of guys who threw hard and, as it turns out, throw hittable.

And tonight? Well, tonight the Marlins — yes, the Marlins — turned loanDepot Park into their own backyard Wiffle Ball field. Say what you want about Miami being a team that flirts with irrelevance every year, but they came in scrappy, fearless, and ready to embarrass the mighty Yankees. And they did just that.

Remember yesterday when we here at Bleeding Yankee Blue stressed — no, begged — for good starting pitching? Having a legit starter go deep into a game gives the bullpen a chance to breathe, reset, and come at hitters with fresh arms throughout the week. But why would the Yankees ever want to do something logical like that? Why would they ever target a starter when they can just load up on relievers and hand them to Aaron Boone like he’s some bullpen whisperer?

Spoiler alert: Aaron Boone is not a bullpen whisperer. He’s barely a bullpen mutterer. He sucks.

Now tonight Rodon just didn't get very far, but that actually would help Cashman's argument then, right? He has the top relievers in the game now after the trade deadline. Surely, they could handle it and bail Rodon out, right? Nope. Wrong.

These new bullpen additions came with hype, tweets, and highlight clips. They also came with zero chemistry and zero margin for error — and they imploded in unison like a synchronized swimming team trained by clowns. Boone had no idea what to do with them. He tried to mix and match, but all he did was mix gasoline and fire.

Paul O’Neill called it a “Little League game.”
Michael Kay called it a “horror show.”
And both of them were being kind.

Sure, you can clap for Anthony Volpe and his little offensive breakout, but that’s like giving a standing ovation to a guy playing a fiddle on the Titanic. The ship still sank. Bad managing. Sloppy defense. Embarrassing pitching. And in the middle of it all, Boone chewing his gum like he’s deep in thought instead of completely lost.

Want to talk errors? Let’s talk about José Caballero’s defensive disaster in right field. That’s right — right field. Why was a shortstop playing right? Because, according to Boone, “he’s athletic.”

Let me translate that: “We had no actual plan.”

It’s like giving a juggler a chainsaw and saying, “Well, he’s coordinated.”

This was a full-on team collapse, engineered by a front office that clearly doesn’t understand the assignment. Cashman didn’t deliver anything remotely resembling a good trade deadline. He brought in parts — not players — and tonight, those parts broke, fell apart, and embarrassed the franchise.

And let’s be crystal clear here — the Yankees were better on paper. They’re supposed to beat the Marlins. But guess what? The Marlins played hungrier. They played sharper. They played like they actually cared.

And the Yankees? They played like strangers at a company softball game.

Brian Cashman, Aaron Boone, this one’s on you. The rest of us saw the flaws before this game. You saw a finished product because you're looking at "progression numbers". We begged for starting pitching. You gave us chaos. And tonight, the chaos did exactly what Bleeding Yankee Blue feared it would.

It lost us the game.

Bad game. Disgusting game.
But hey... mission accomplished, right Cashman?

LEADERSHIP IS LOST BUT EJECTIONS ARE PLENTIFUL!

 

"I don't want him getting tossed there. I want me to get tossed there in those situations." 

- Aaron Boone

We all know that Aaron Boone is a pro at getting tossed out of a game. He's much better at causing the right kind of shenanigans to get tossed than he is managing a baseball team. It's what Boone is best at! Bless his little heart.... too bad he just doesn't have it in him to be a good leader. I wish he was half as good at being a good leader as he is at getting thrown out of a game.

The worst part is, that just spreads. It spreads even faster amongst a team that is in a massive skid that can't win games. Boone's talents for getting ejected have spread to his players. It's no secret that Jazz Chisholm was screwed in Tuesday's game. Umpire Mark Wegner made a bad call. It's not surprising anymore, since that is "the norm" in today's game, but what is surprising is how much rope Wegner gave Chisholm to let him get it out of his system before he was tossed. 

That was ejection number two for Chisholm this season. I get it. And for the record, I don't disagree I'd rather have Boone get tossed there. But in that scenario, a player can strategically say their peace while at the plate and then maybe have a Paul O'Neill moment in the dugout but then when it's time to go out to the field you reset and get your head in the game. Even Aaron Judge was trying to calm him down between innings. Instead, Chisholm kept carrying on in the field and then had to mouth off to Wegner and earn his ejection. 

Bad calls are a part of this game (especially in recent years). Expressing frustration in the moment is understandable, but Chisholm let it consume him long after. I'll even say that Wegner might have fanned the flames by staring at him in the field and causing Chisholm to bark at him. Hell, you can even say Jose Trevino helped spark that tantrum. This is just another example of a lack of fundamentals and leadership. This team is flawed on so many levels and now we see it highlighted when the ball isn't even in play. What Chisholm did only hurt the team when we are already in a bad slump.

"Everybody knows how I am: If I'm going to go at an umpire, I'm going to go at an umpire," Chisholm said HERE. "I'm not going to hide it, none of that. If I wanted to say something to him, I would have said it. Nobody's going to stop me from saying something to an umpire if I want to. I'm a grown man. So for me not even to say nothing to you, and me to ask you why you're looking at me and you toss me, I feel like there's a problem."

He's a grown man alright, he's just not acting like it and it's causing his team (that is already struggling) to suffer the consequences. There is a problem....in this scenario it's his reaction to a known problem called bad umpiring. That doesn't mean it's time to make it worse!

Sorry Jazz, I like you.... but the problem was you. It's time to pull your head out of your arse and rise above. We need to get back to winning series, and this doesn't help.

--Jeana Bellezza-Ochoa

BYB Senior Managing Editor

Twitter: @nyprincessj

THE DODGERS ARE THE NEW EVIL EMPIRE? NOT SO FAST

First, they signed Roki Sasaki. Then came Blake Snell. Next, they brought back Teoscar Hernández. And just when you thought they were done, they went and signed Hyeseong Kim—prompting most fans to Google "Who is Hyeseong Kim?" only to get mad when they realized he was now a Dodger. The reaction across the league? "This is over. It's unfair. One team shouldn't be allowed to sign all the stars!"

If you’re a Yankees fan, this panic should feel eerily familiar. Sound like 1998 to you? The 2024 Dodgers might look like the ’98 Yankees, but they’ve got a bit of the ‘96 Braves in them too—those Braves who boasted a rotation that could strike fear into anyone: Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, and John Smoltz. A trio so good, they seemed invincible in a short series. Well, until they weren’t. The Yankees knocked them off. Repeatedly.

The '98 Yankees were a different beast altogether, one of the greatest teams ever assembled. With 114 wins in the regular season and a postseason that ended with them at a ridiculous 125-50 record, they were a juggernaut. Their ERA? Sixth best in baseball. Their runs scored. League-leading. This wasn’t just a team—it was a finely-tuned, record-smashing machine.

Now, back to the Dodgers. Their roster? It’s a veritable who’s who of baseball talent. Their rotation? Strong enough that their sixth starter might be better than some teams’ aces. Their payroll? The kind of money that makes other teams weep. But before you throw in the towel, remember this: baseball is wonderfully, maddeningly unpredictable.

The 1996-2000 Yankees were a masterclass in smart team building. They built up to it by nailing their drafts, grabbing Derek Jeter early and finding gems like Jorge Posada and Andy Pettitte in the later rounds. They scoured the globe for hidden talent, unearthing Mariano Rivera, and pulled off clever trades like the one that brought Paul O’Neill to the Bronx. Scott Brosius was plucked off the A's bench—no one thought that move was season-defining, but it was.

Clemens joining the squad in 1999 as the moment the Yankees became the baseball equivalent of a Death Star. 

By the early 2000s, the Yankees shifted from precision to sheer accumulation. Jason Giambi.

But back to 1996 for a second, the Yankee build up to their run.  The 1996 Braves were untouchable—until they weren’t. The 2003 Yankees were packed with talent, but they fell to the plucky, wildcard Marlins. Even the Dodgers, for all their might, are vulnerable. Just like the Braves were dethroned by a scrappy, cobbled-together Yankees team in '96, the Dodgers can be beaten.

Yes, the Dodgers have it all: chemistry, depth, star power, and enough financial firepower to outbid anyone. But so did the ’96 Braves. And we all know how that story ended. The season’s not over until the final out. And in baseball, any team can have its Cinderella moment.

So go ahead, be mad at the Dodgers for doing what every team dreams of—stockpiling stars like it's a Black Friday sale. But keep rooting for your team. Because this is baseball, and in baseball, anything can happen. Just ask the ’96 Braves. Or the 2003 Yankees or even the 2001 Yanks. Sometimes, the Goliaths fall. And that’s what keeps the game so exhilarating.

By the way, shout out to Yanks go Yard for keeping us all thinking about stuff like this. Good Article.

--Alvin Izzo
BYB Yankee History Contributor

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

THANK YOU, MR. T

I’m a creature of habit in so many ways. I go to what I know when I feel off, lost, alone or confused with whatever type Maddux-esq bleeder crosses the plate of life. I make jokes…normally at my own expense. I sing along to my favorite songs…been belting out “House of the Rising Sun” a good bit of late. I’ll watch baseball and I write. Lord knows the Yanks haven’t been a ton of help this season...and I could use those Bomber of the Bronx that’s for sure.

I’ve been lucky to have had so many coaches in my life when stuff goes sideways. Not just skippers on the diamond, field, water or court, but the best ones from the game of life. My old man, lifelong pals or even a fella I met reading a blog about those Pinstriped Players and became fast friends with. These people have been to me what Mr. Torre was to Jeter. Sometimes when you feel like you're last in your own “division”, relating to what you know isn’t just a good thing to do, it’s the right thing to do.

I’m here at the end of the bench beating myself up for everything like Paulie would do after missing that 3-2 limper that passed over the dish and wink at him on the way by. I’m angry, confused and utterly spent…but KNOW I must play on. There are people that count on all of us and to say, “Bulls**t I quit!” just isn’t what you do. If you truly have heart, you know you can’t quit on anyone that needs you.

So why Mr. T? Why bring up Stoic Number 6? Because of something he told Jeter. I’m paraphrasing of course, as I wasn’t on the roster or in the clubhouse to hear it. “We play the game with all we have. We
play it heart and soul…but it isn’t ours. We are charged to return it to the next generation better than we were given it.”

That’s something I’ve thought about a lot lately. The way Joe Torre was a Yoda-like thinker is why, in my opinion, he is a Hall of Fame Manager and person. 

I try to play the game I was given by my folks, family, the old guard with respect and with my heart and soul. Having good manners, good intentions, trying to be a hero as my grandfather, the good Cop from Bay Ridge was to the people in the neighborhood he patrolled. I owe that to them.

My time as a kid enjoying the everyday fun of school, little league and carefree summers is over. I need to turn over the game to my kids (the next generation) and steward over it like the Old Timers watching this current group of young Yankees. There is something in Torre’s message that shakes you out of whatever is dragging you down. It is like hearing Mickey Goldmill screaming his war cry of, “Get up! Get up you son of a bitch! One more round…cuz Mickey loves ya.”

We all must find the message in what Mr. T said. He wasn’t just about Baseball…it was about so much more, and he knew it when he said it to that skinny shortstop from Kalamazoo.

I write when I’ve lost my way and can’t see how things will work out. It helps to see my words on the page. Whether it be a post, song lyrics, a reminder…do what you know. Remember you are important to so many, and so many loved to watch you play the game. Now it’s your turn to give it back better than you received it. That’s how it’s done the right way.

Not a song that fits the post…but it’s a great one nonetheless.

--Mike O'Hara

BYB Contributor

Twitter: @mikeyoh21

ROLLING OUT OLD YANKEES FROM YESTERYEAR WON'T CHANGE THE FACT THAT THE YANKEES STINK!

The Yankees are rolling the bones out yet again.  Old Timer's day is September 9th.  On that day, Derek Jeter will debut as an Old Timer for the New York Yankees.  Nice moment, but let's keep this real; in my opinion is might be the biggest game of distraction ever. 

Yankee Brass should be ashamed of themselves. THE YANKEES STILL STINK.  Sure, it's a moment to celebrate but give me a break.

Hey look, I’m not saying Jeets, Andy, Jorge, Mo, etc.… are in rascal scooters or in-home nurses in tow, asking, “When are my stories on?” No, I’m saying their GLORY DAYS have passed us by.  They were epic! They were legendary! They were truly a Dynasty. 

BUT HOW IN THE NAME OF VON HAYES DOES THIS ROSTER OF PINSTRIPE TITANS HELP THIS, to steal a line from Pop Fisher, DEAD TO THE NECK UP BALL CLUB?  Yankee Faithful, are we stupid? I’m asking if we are somehow now the biggest clown show fanbase in baseball? Serious question. 

For decades the Yankee Fan was dialed into the game and team like no other. Now, well in the front office’s view, we see something shiny and forget about everything else.  We’ve become Cubs fans from the early 90s. Get 12 Olde Styles at Wrigley, sing Take Me Out with Harry, stumble out of the Friendly Confines and hit The Cubbie Bear. It’s so bad in the Bronx these days.

So rather than putting any thought into the current team the Brass rolls out Yesteryear ONE MO' TIME! Like it’s a bad Skynyrd Cover band that plays FREE BIRD once to open, once to close and 4 times in the middle of the set! 

AM I ALONE HERE? I feel like Lewis Black at this point!  F*&^% EVERYTHING AND F&^% EVERYBODY!

deep breath…

I am just done watching the Yankees this year. I still love Judge, Schmidty, Cole and some of the other fellas, but this is just lousy baseball. The team is a badly run ship of misfitting pieces. It was built with massive holes in the hull. HOW CAN IT FLOAT? It can't.

So go watch the Old Timers Day game! Sure, Paulie, Jeets, Boomer, Coney, Mr. T, Mo! Yes, they'll all be there. Hell, you can then hit the Deegan and be home before the actual team gives up a five-run 3rd and meekly scratches across a run in an 8-1 loss.

I have to ask... WHERE HAVE YOU GONE STICK MICHAEL? THE YANKEE FAN TURNS THEIR LONELY EYES TO YOU!

Well, Cubs’ fans…er, I mean Yankee Fans…there’s always next year. At this point I’d take the four lads from Liverpool over DJ, Volpe, Torres and Rizzo.  Paul, John, George, Ringo…take it away. I too believe in Yesterday. Today? Nah. Tomorrow? I’ll get back to you at Mike Stanley Day at the Stadium next May.

--Mike O'Hara

BYB Contributor

Twitter: @mikeyoh21

LAST NIGHT WAS PROOF THAT CLUELESS BOONE CAN'T LEAD THE YANKEES

I will never understand how Aaron Boone makes game time decisions.  He's either looking at a binder full of metrics that really don't matter, or he's throwing guys bones because he feels bad.  Either way, it's the most pathetic display ever. I have said it once and I will say it again... when times are tough, when hard decisions need to be made, he doesn't know how to make them. He's not a confident manager, he is a manager that plays the role of acting confident.  Yelling at umpires in front of a team may rile up a fan base, but that gets old when the Yankees continuously lose... and that's where we are right now.

Last night against the Rangers was a disappointment and it's all Boone's fault. Now I hate recaps, you all know this, but I need to point out why we lost.

For me, the biggest flop was his pinch-hit decision.  You're in the 10th inning, DJ LeMahieu is at second base and McKinney is supposed to come to the plate. McKinney has been hot as hell these days, literally doing everything we could ask for of him.  But hold on, what's this? He is pinch hit for the worst hitter in the league right now, Josh Donaldson.  

At that point the Yankee world was outraged and should have been. To be honest, I don't even think Josh Donaldson thought he could hit a baseball in that spot let alone a beachball. The guy is lost at the plate, and everyone knew it... except for Aaron Boone. Now this knucklehead can sit there and say, "Well I knew Donaldson was struggling and I wanted to get him going", but the truth is you don't do that then. You can't feel bad for struggling players and throw them bones in a must-win situation. What Donaldson did next was nothing, literally taking the breath away from the Yankees.  As Luke Baquero of Fansided wrote:

"This season, McKinney is 3-5 with an RBI single vs left-handed pitchers.... McKinney has been great in his run with the Yankees. Slashing .318/.348./.636 with a .984 OPS, and over 160 wRC+ is way too valuable to be pinch hit for in a situation for an ice-cold Donaldson. "

The other bad move that Boone made was the relief situation in the top of the tenth inning.  Boone chose Michael King instead of Ron Marinaccio. I know it's a guessing game at this point for many, but you have to review 2 ways, statistics and the eye test.  The gut reaction alone in a must-win game would have been Marinaccio if the decision was made by any other manager on the planet. But not Boone. 

The New York Post writes: "It was Rangers cleanup man Adolis Garcia who blasted Yankees reliever Michael King’s first pitch of the 10th inning into the left field bleachers to give the Rangers a 4-2 lead and eventual victory at Yankee Stadium."

The post game was the worst. Boone just can't take responsiblity and blame for making bad decisions. He just doesn't have a grasp on anything when it comes to failure. Here's the thing, if a team is losing this bad, it usually means leadership isn't leading.  Now you can sit there and suggest that we are waiting it out until Aaron Judge comes back, but 1 man does not make a team.  Boone needs to step up.  

The classiest move of the night goes to IKF. This guy made a costly error in the 4th. Was the loss his fault though? No. Why? Cause it happened in the 4th.  The loss happened because of Boone's bad decisions in the 10th. IKF took the high road claiming he was responsible for the loss, but he wasn't.

.  

IKF gets kudos from me.

Look, there is no way the Yankees can continue at this rate.  They are not supported by their manager who makes bonehead decisions, they are clearly going through the motions and have no true leadership like the days of Jorge Posada or Paul O'Neill.  They're lost.  

Hal Steinbrenner needs to stop being confused on why the fan base is mad and have a hard look at who he brought in to make a mess of this team. This Boone experiment needs to be over already.

DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY CLUE ON WHAT'S GOING ON WITH THIS TEAM?

Source: USA Today

Each day I wait to get my Yankee lineup alert on my phone and when I do I sigh. The computer shuffles the lineup every night.  But guess what, the computer has no idea what is going on in real life. Like, let's look at the lineup for the second game in the three game series against the Tampa Bay Rays. Can anyone tell me why Aaron Judge is batting first and Josh Donaldson is batting cleanup? My frustration with this team is enabling me to find other things to do with my time—like watch the US Open Tennis Championship, College Football Game Day and dare I say the New York Mets? Does anyone have any CLUE on what is going on with this team?

YES Broadcaster and Color Analyst Paul O'Neill said in last night's game, "I'd love to sit down and talk to some of the Yankees about their approach." Yes, Paul, please. And YES Play by Play Announcer, Michael Kay called out the entire Yankee lineup one by one, basically diagnosing what we know is a subpar, non-championship team. Yet, Aaron Boone keeps doing what he is doing, without any change from his "formula." I don't get it. Does he get it?

Source: USA Today

As ESPN reports, "Manager Aaron Boone continues to struggle in his attempts to explain the free fall that the New York Yankees are going through the second-half of the season. But he hopes New York's 9-0 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays Friday night at Tropicana Field was a wake-up call. "That's an embarrassing loss," said the usually mild-mannered Boone. "Hopefully, one of those rock-bottom situations, where you should be pissed off and embarrassed. We've set a better standard around here. We just got to be better. Period."

Aaron Boone in the ESPN article tells reporters, "I'm in charge of this team." Great. So, Aaron, how can this team get better if they are being mismanaged by you night after night? I just don't see it.  And what will be more embarrassing than a 9-0 loss, is the dethroning of the Yankees from the top of the AL East as September soars on—slamming the postseason door to a team that should have handily beat their AL opponents and given the NL something to worry about. They are an embarrassment. Period.

Source: Fox News

"The Yankees have scored three runs or fewer six times in their past seven games, two runs or fewer four times and one run or fewer twice; the club is batting .105 (4-for-38) with runners in scoring position over that stretch. Friday night's loss was the Yankees' 12th shutout this season; they've been shut out an MLB-high six times since the beginning of August. According to ESPN Stats & Information, the Yankees' 9-19 (.321) record since Aug. 2 is the worst in the AL." 

Source: theday.com

The only sign of life on this team is Aaron Judge, who also appears to have the only sensible thing to say at this point. "We've got everything we need here in this room. Nobody on the outside's going to help us, nobody's feeling sorry for us," Judge said. "Nobody likes to lose. We're going to see what this team is made of. No team has ever coasted into the postseason and expect to go out there and win every day."

The Yankees have to save themselves; no manager, no outside addition, is going to do it for them. This is their season to either thrive and soar, or die and be buried. Their choice. Not the computer. Go get it. 

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