A truncated 60-game schedule and expanded playoffs produced a roller coaster season for Major League Baseball. For the Yankees, the ride ended much earlier than they were hoping.
But while we’re trying to figure out how much chips and dip to stock up on for these playoff games, the Yankees are also getting ready for next year.
First, there’s no shame in losing to the Tampa Bay Rays. That’s a good team which consistently finds a way to do more with less. Furthermore, they had the Yankees’ number all season.
The issue, however, is a familiar boom-or-bust narrative which continues to take up residency at Yankee Stadium.
When Aaron Judge gets a home run, I’m the first one looking to tweet the “All Rise” hashtag. Giancarlo Stanton went on a one-man Home Run Derby that made us all forget he only played in 23 regular season games.
But for all the home runs the Yankees hit, it’s never enough. For all the money they’ve spent in free agency, their injured list constantly resembles an overcrowded infirmary.
When fully healthy, the Yankees can play Home Run Derby on their opponents and light up the scoreboard. But that’s the regular season. And history continues to show how important pitching and situational hitting still is for the playoffs.
In the playoffs, everything changes. It becomes more of a chess match than at any point in the regular season.
Those championship teams from the late 90’s all knew the importance of getting on base, moving over the runner, and clutch middle-to-late inning relief out of the bullpen. That’s what made those teams the dynasty this current group aspires to become every year.
The Yankees are heading into a pivotal offseason. The front office needs to figure out how to put an end to the narrative in 2021. Home runs are great and they’re necessary. But so are the fundamentals, they will always matter.
Image: Noah K. Murray / USA Today Sports Images
