Bleeding Yankee Blue

A LOT OF BOONE IMPROVEMENT PROMISES, BUT ALL THESE YEARS LATER, NOTHING CHANGES

2026-10-07T05:57:00.000-04:00

Yup, we don't forget.

Players have changed over the years, but one thing remains. Boone. And after the mistakes, he's not out there reprimanding them. Just a lot of talk to the press about how things need to get better, but the players do not.

What the Yankees did against Tampa Bay on Monday was an embarrassment.

Four errors. A 5–2 loss. A 2–0 deficit in a best-of-five division series. A team supposedly built to compete for a championship suddenly standing one loss from elimination because it could not handle the basic responsibilities of playing baseball. Catch the ball. Make the throw. Understand the situation. Give your pitcher a chance. It's your job.

Apparently, those expectations are too demanding.

We here at Bleeding Yankee Blue has been hammering this organization about leadership, accountability and fundamentals for years. The other night supplied another miserable example of why. The names change. The opponent changes. The calendar changes. The Yankees keep finding familiar ways to sabotage themselves.

And Aaron Boone keeps finding something to say afterward.

That is the part I cannot stomach anymore. There is always an explanation. Always another assurance. Always a suggestion that the Yankees understand what went wrong and will address it. Then another important game arrives, and the same problems show up wearing freshly washed pinstripes.

How many times are we supposed to buy this?

Boone kept Ryan McMahon in the lineup partly because he wanted “to prioritize the defense.” McMahon then mishandled a routine grounder on the second pitch of the game. Jazz Chisholm Jr.’s attempted double-play throw went astray. Austin Wells added catcher’s interference. Three official errors in the first inning.

Prioritize the defense?

The Yankees could barely survive it. Those were the opening moments of a playoff game. This was the preparation they brought to a night when they desperately needed to even the series.

By the end, the defensive damage extended beyond the four errors in the box score. There were additional misplays, including mistakes involving Spencer Jones, George Lombard Jr. and Luis García Jr. Three unearned runs helped bury the Yankees.

Every one of those players has a responsibility to execute. Their mistakes belong to them. But the manager and his coaches have a responsibility to prepare a team that can perform under pressure. When these breakdowns keep resurfacing in important games, the people running that preparation deserve scrutiny.

Boone has had years to establish his standards. We are looking at the results. Cam Schlittler was left trying to navigate the mess around him. He departed after 4⅓ innings, charged with four runs, only two earned.

His outing was not flawless. He kept grinding. But his teammates made an already difficult assignment harder. Before making the pitching change in the fifth, Boone had watched his defense repeatedly compromise his starter.

I wanted to see Schlittler get a chance to work through that inning. Pulling him did nothing to repair the fielding behind him. George Lombard Jr.’s subsequent error extended the inning, and Richie Palacios delivered the two-run single that pushed Tampa Bay’s lead to 5–1.

Meanwhile, Ben Rice supplied two solo home runs. The rest of the lineup went a combined 2-for-28. Rice was trying to drag an entire offense across the finish line while the defense was busy digging a hole underneath it.

That is a hell of a way to approach October.

Afterward, Boone said:

“We’ve got to get over it.”

Of course they have to recover. There is another game to play.

But fans deserve something more substantial than the latest invitation to move past a disaster. We have been moving past these disasters for years. Eventually, somebody has to explain why the organization cannot stop producing them.

The history of these comments makes last night even harder to accept.

In 2022, Boone said of baserunning:

“It’s been a stronger point of emphasis from Day 1 of Spring Training.”

Good. It should be. But an emphasis has to become a habit. A habit has to survive a difficult game, a tight score and the pressure of October. Otherwise, the organization gets to announce its commitment every spring without ever being held responsible for whether that commitment lasts.

On July 5, 2024, after a loss to Boston, Boone said:

“We have to play clean baseball, especially when things are hard to come by. We’ve got to be better, period.”

I mean, no shit. Don't tell us, tell them! And while you're at it, make sure these players are doing what is needed! The context was maddening. Anthony Volpe failed to run hard enough from third to score before DJ LeMahieu was tagged at second. Because that final out was a tag rather than a force, getting home in time mattered. LeMahieu also could have prolonged the play with a rundown. The Yankees wasted an opportunity through poor execution and situational awareness.

Boone recognized the problem publicly. Recognizing it was the easy part. The harder responsibility was making that kind of baseball unacceptable—and producing a team that consistently demonstrated it understood why.

On July 8, 2024, CBS Sports’ Mike Axisa wrote:

“Simply put, they need to play cleaner baseball.”

Even the outside diagnosis had become familiar. There comes a point when “cleaner baseball” should stop appearing on the organization’s wish list and start describing the product on the field.

On February 14, 2025, Brian Cashman acknowledged the defensive problem:

“Defensively we were challenged in a lot of positions last year.”

He also said:

“I thought we were bad defensively.”

Cashman was discussing the offseason effort to improve run prevention after the 2024 World Series loss. He believed personnel changes would strengthen the defense and help the Yankees go further. That matters because this failure reaches above the manager. Cashman knew. The front office knew. The problem had been identified. Improving it was an organizational objective.

So nobody gets to act blindsided when fans demand answers about another October defensive collapse.

Then, in comments reported July 24, 2025, after another four-error game against Toronto, Boone said:

“Keep working at our fundamentals day in and day out and it will continue to get better.”

Read that again. Then think about last night.

The Yankees may conduct drills. Coaches may review video. Conversations may happen behind closed doors. We do not need to invent what happens inside the clubhouse to judge the effectiveness of the work.

The recurring failures are visible.

Whatever instruction and accountability exist have not produced a standard reliable enough to prevent another postseason embarrassment. That is the failure Boone and the front office have to answer for.

And I am tired of hearing their intentions presented as evidence of success. The same week as that Toronto debacle, Aaron Judge said:

“Going into this off day, we’ve got to refocus and tighten it up on defense.”

The captain could see it, too. At some point, all this tightening is supposed to hold. Instead, the Yankees keep arriving at the biggest moments with parts falling off.

Bleeding Yankee Blue was calling for change long before this latest disaster. On November 5, 2024, our senior managing editor, Jeana Bellezza-Ochoa, argued that the Yankees needed to move on from Boone and establish accountability after the World Series. Her criticism specifically addressed the team’s baserunning, fundamentals and leadership.

On July 24, 2025, BYB returned to the same issue in HOUSE OF HORRORS & LOSERS Jeana described recurring fundamental failures and challenged the protection Boone and the front office continued to receive.

The record is there.

I have been ahead of the curve on this argument, and BYB has kept making it when plenty of people preferred to dismiss the criticism as excessive. We were watching the habits. We were watching the excuses accumulate. We were asking why an organization with these resources continued to tolerate such unreliable execution.

Now, for those finally opening their eyes: welcome.

And shame on everyone who waved away the warning signs and treated concerned fans as the problem. You do not have to agree with every lineup criticism or bullpen complaint to recognize that repeated failures deserve more than another defense of the manager.

Being demanding about the Yankees is part of caring about the Yankees.

I care enough to say this plainly: Aaron Boone should be fired.

His public assurances have lost their credibility with me. A manager cannot keep promising improvement while his team repeatedly demonstrates the same vulnerabilities under pressure and expect unlimited patience...FOR YEARS.

The players need consequences for repeated lapses. Those consequences should be deliberate and consistent: corrective work, changes in roles, and playing time earned through execution. A respected veteran should face the same expectations as a rookie. Talent should come with responsibility.

Boone also needs to be judged by that standard. So do his coaches. So does Cashman.

A replacement manager will need authority to enforce expectations. The front office needs new decision-makers who will challenge unsuccessful practices and judge the organization by what it delivers. Hal Steinbrenner has to demand that change instead of signing off on another round of reassuring explanations.

The Yankees of the late 1990s, carrying into 2000, won four championships in five seasons under Joe Torre.

That is the seriousness this franchise should be trying to recover, but with a clown like Boone... forget it.

It requires preparation, trust, execution and the willingness to confront failure. Players can feel supported while being held responsible. A manager can remain composed while insisting on standards. Torre’s success should remind the Yankees that leadership is measured by the team it produces.

Last night, Tampa Bay kept putting pressure on New York. The Yankees kept giving that pressure somewhere to go.

Boone cannot throw away this game, retrieve another familiar phrase and expect the discussion to end. The discussion should reach his office, Cashman’s office and ownership.

I have no faith that the Yankees will win a World Series under this leadership. They have given me years of reasons to reach that conclusion. Another October collapse only strengthens it.

Fire Boone. Bring new leadership into the front office. Give the next manager the authority and responsibility to make disciplined baseball a daily requirement.

And hold everyone to it!

The Yankees have supplied enough statements about getting better. Their fans have earned the right to demand that they actually do it. The time is now, I am fed up.

FOUR ERRORS, ZERO BACKBONE & ANOTHER BOONE OCTOBER DISASTER

2026-10-06T07:49:00.875-04:00

Four errors. Two runs. One more loss and everybody can start packing.

The Yankees lost Game 2 to Tampa Bay, 5–2, and somehow the score makes this embarrassment look more respectable than it was. Down 0–2 in a best-of-five series, they looked outmatched, rattled and completely unprepared to handle the most basic requirement of postseason baseball: catch the damn ball.

Four errors in a playoff game is a disgrace. These are major leaguers playing for the New York Yankees, and they turned the field into an obstacle course for their own pitcher.

Cam Schlittler deserved better.

He was competing. He was giving this team a chance. But what good is getting a ball hit to a defender if you have to hold your breath waiting for the play to be made? Cam had ZERO SUPPORT FROM HIS TEAM IN THE FIELD, and the Yankees made his job harder with every mistake.

Then Aaron Boone removed him.

Why the hell did Boone think pulling Cam was a good idea?

Explain the baseball logic. Explain why the pitcher should lose the ball while the defense responsible for sabotaging his outing gets to keep fumbling through October.

To my eyes, Cam was doing what the Yankees needed: battling through a mess his teammates helped create. I wanted Boone to trust him to keep fighting. But Boone feels like he needs to tinker with stuff, like the PITCHER... when it's not the pitcher at all. The brilliant Rays put the ball in play. The Yankees don't play well defensively. By the way, WE HAVE BEEN TALKING ABOUT THIS FOR 4 YEARS. It has never improved. And so yeah, Going to the bullpen didn’t fix anybody’s glove.

And afterward? The familiar Boone comfort blanket.

“A really rough night to say the least for us,” Boone said. “We’ve got to get over it. We’ve responded all year to difficult times and we’ve got to do it again.”

Statements like that only add fuel to the fire.

A “rough night” is traffic on the way home. Four errors when it matters with your season hanging in the balance demands something stronger than another reminder that everyone has bounced back before.

Where is the anger? Where is the accountability? Where is the manager willing to say this performance was unacceptable without immediately cushioning the landing?

Boone’s public response sounds soft just like him. He's a bad fucking leader. The decisions invite scrutiny, the team falls apart, and then we get another soothing explanation. Fans are furious, and he sounds ready to roll over and turn the page.

Meanwhile, the fantastic Tampa Bay Rays are turning the series into a rout.

The Yankees have one loss left to give. They need clean baseball, actual urgency and a manager whose decisions help them survive.

Because right now, the errors are embarrassing, the excuses are exhausting, and October is almost over. Oh yea, and Boone will screw this up... as predicted.

SOME PEOPLE DO STICK UP FOR BOONE! THEY MUST BE STUDIED.

2026-10-05T07:37:27.084-04:00

We've spent 9 seasons criticizing Aaron Boone. I think the only way we stop is when he is finally gone. That has to happen sooner or later, right? No one can live forever. That's what science has told us anyway. So since Baboonie isn't immortal and the Yankees aren't smart enough to fire him we can pretty much count on Baboonie doesn't go away because the Yankees finally fire him.

At this point, I can't imagine ever defending Baboonie. If I ever did, someone needs to have me examined because something is wrong with me. There's always at least one that goes against the grain though, right? Well NJ.com is defending Baboonie, you can check it out HERE. The closest I will ever get to defending Baboonie is to say that he did not hand pick Austin Wells to be the catcher of this team. He is stuck with him. Wells definitely screwed up game one, but given his track record it isn't a surprise.

Baboonie even went so far as to admit he screwed up. He gave him some tough criticism in his own Baboonie way so there is that. But why defend him at all? He doesn't need or warrant defending. If he actually won a championship the criticism would at least come with one gleaming moment of accomplishment that matters to all of us.

Instead, we have to listen to him defend dead weight like Wells and then strangely justify decisions not add Aaron Judge to the ALDS roster. I say strangely because he tried to use science to ssound smart and defend the thought process but it just falls flat. NJ.com went as far as to say Judge isn't close to being 100% yet....but one more week not rehabbing could get him there.

Come again? Seriously, am I the only one who thinks one week could be a difference maker? We've seen Giancarlo Stanton battle with an epidemic of strains for years now. One week never brought him close to 100% in the nine seasons he's been here. He's a constant walking strain! Baboonie has an example of the exact opposite thought process but the aging captain is somehow going to be different. It's Baboonie logic.

A Grade 2 strain takes 6 to 8 weeks to fully heal for all other professional baseball players not named Judge. When the ALCS starts on October 12th, Judge's rehab will be on day 26. That's not even four weeks IF the Yankees can even get there. I'm not against wishing for that once in a lifetime miracle....I just don't trust that Baboonie or the Yankees would recognize it happening.

So while anything is possible, I just don't understand defending Baboonie for anything, really. Anyone who does needs to be studied and possibly committed.

--Jeana Bellezza-Ochoa

BYB Senior Managing Editor

Twitter: @nyprincessj

WELLS PLAYS HERO, BOONE’S OFFENSE PLAYS DEAD

2026-10-04T11:09:43.677-04:00

The Yankees lost Game 1 to Tampa Bay, 1-0, wasting five innings of one-run pitching from Gerrit Cole. Jonathan Aranda’s third-inning homer supplied all the scoring. Drew Rasmussen supplied the humiliation: eight innings, 10 strikeouts and one lousy hit.

Then Austin Wells decided he was trying to be a hero. With two outs in the eighth, he finally broke up the no-hitter—and promptly got thrown out stretching a double into a triple. He saw Luis Rojas’ stop signal after passing second and kept going. Congratulations: you rescued the Yankees from one embarrassment and drove them straight into another. Stay at second and give the next hitter a chance. That’s October baseball, not an audition for a highlight reel.

And Aaron Boone deserves scrutiny, too. He stacked the lineup with eight left-handed hitters, and Rasmussen carved it up. The supposed matchup advantage produced 23 swings and misses. At some point, having right-handed alternatives means actually considering a different look while there are still outs to work with.

Then Boone chose Giancarlo Stanton to pinch-hit for Ryan McMahon leading off the ninth—Stanton’s first plate appearance since April 24. He struck out. I understand betting on his October power, but asking a guy sidelined for five months to rescue a one-run playoff game is a hell of a gamble. Boone afterward said he liked the at-bat. Wonderful. Put that on the scoreboard.

Monday’s Game 2 has Cam Schlittler lined up to start. The Yankees need to give him actual run support and bring this series home tied. Expect pressure immediately: another loss means facing elimination in Game 3.

Boone needs better answers. Wells needs better judgment. And this lineup needs to remember that beating Boston didn’t finish the job.

WELLS BLOWS A LEGIT SHOT FOR THE YANKEES

2026-10-03T23:00:38.657-04:00

Austin Wells finally did something useful against Drew Rasmussen—and immediately found a way to wreck it.

Two outs. Eighth inning. Yankees down 1-0. Wells breaks up the no-hitter with a double, then gets thrown out trying to stretch it into a triple. Opportunity over. Inning dead.

Park your ass at second base.

You’re a catcher, Austin. You run like you’re dragging the equipment bag. Where exactly did this sudden belief in your blazing speed come from?

Austin Wells spoils Drew Rasmussen's no-no then gets HOSED at third 🤯 https://t.co/yIGAjlCHK3
— B/R Walk-Off (@BRWalkoff) October 4, 2026

The Yankees finally had a pulse, and Wells decided to unplug the monitor.

This was brutally dumb baseball. Second base already puts you in scoring position. With two outs, you’re running on contact. Give the next hitter a chance. That’s basic baseball awareness, and Wells apparently left his in the dugout.

Instead, he took the team’s precious opening and gambled it on legs that had absolutely no business making that bet.

Spare me “he was trying to make something happen.” Something had happened. You hit a double. Your next assignment was standing on a bag. Somehow, that proved too complicated.

The lack of speed was obvious. The lack of judgment was inexcusable.

Wells deserves credit for breaking up the no-hitter. Then he deserves to get absolutely roasted for turning a legitimate scoring chance into an inning-ending display of delusion.

You don’t have to be fast to help this team. You do have to be smart enough to know you aren’t.

HEY BOONE, DON’T SCREW THIS UP

2026-10-03T10:00:12.626-04:00

The Yankees swept Boston, and I enjoyed every second of it. Now comes the harder part: beating Tampa Bay without turning their own dugout into the Rays’ greatest competitive advantage.

These Yankees—the misfits as I call them, the guys I’ve questioned all summer—have given us something worth rooting for. They handled the Wild Card round without Aaron Judge. Austin Wells contributed. Spencer Jones contributed. Suddenly, a lineup that too often looked like a collection of separate problems started playing like a team.

I want these misfits to win the whole damn thing.

That doesn’t mean Brian Cashman gets a summer’s worth of criticism erased by two October victories. I’m still tired of roster construction built around gambles, injury recoveries and the assumption that somebody will eventually figure it out. I still question the evaluations, the patience afforded certain players and the habit of selling hope as a strategy.

But the players have an opportunity now. Let them take it.

Tonight starts with Gerrit Cole. Game 1 begins at 6:30 p.m. ET at Tropicana Field, with Cole facing Drew Rasmussen. Tampa went 55–26 at home, so walking into that building and expecting Boston’s surrender to carry over would be a mistake.

Cole brings a 10–9 record, a 3.61 ERA and 131 strikeouts. Rasmussen counters with 16–5, a 2.67 ERA and 174 strikeouts. Those numbers should get everyone’s attention.

Cole is rested. Now he needs to be sharp. There’s unfinished business after Tampa eliminated the Yankees in the 2020 ALDS, but revenge doesn’t retire hitters. First-pitch strikes, command and keeping the ball in the park do. Junior Caminero, Yandy Díaz and Jonathan Aranda cannot be allowed to turn every inning into traffic.

And against Rasmussen, the Yankees need useful at-bats. Make him work. Move runners. Take the available run instead of waiting for the three-run homer that might never arrive.

Then there’s Wells. I’ve criticized him plenty, and his regular-season bat earned those questions. I really don't think he's good, but maybe he's on a hot streak. He had a good Wild Card series, and he deserves credit. In Game 1 alone, he delivered two hits, drove in a run and scored another while helping the Yankees pitchers overwhelm Boston.

Trent Grisham? I appreciate what he can provide offensively. I’m still watching him in the field. Does he take the right route? Make the clean play? Keep an extra base from becoming an extra run? October defense has to withstand scrutiny, especially against a team willing to pressure every small mistake.

And is Aaron Judge even necessary in this series?

It’s a provocative question, but the roster decision deserves one. A healthy Judge makes this team better. A limited Judge returning from a strained right calf presents a different calculation. Entering today, his availability remained uncertain, with a possible pinch-hitting role under consideration.

If he can help, use him. If he cannot run or defend effectively, don’t rearrange a functioning lineup simply because the biggest name is available. The misfits just showed they can win together. Respect that.

Ryan Weathers’ potential addition to the ALDS bullpen presents another test. I’ve questioned the Cashman gamble there, too. Making the roster is one thing; being ready for a tight October inning is another. Boone needs to know the difference.

Behind Cole, Cam Schlittler is slated for Monday’s Game 2, with Carlos Rodón and Max Fried the likely options when the series reaches New York. Those Bronx assignments remain unconfirmed, but there is enough pitching here to make this a real fight.

Which brings us to the question every Yankee fan eventually asks:

Will Boone mess this up?

Will he recognize when his starter is finished? Choose the reliever suited to the inning? Let productive players play? Or will we spend tomorrow discussing a decision everyone could see going wrong before it happened?

Manage the game in front of you, Aaron. Give these guys their best chance.

I’m rooting for Wells to keep hitting, Grisham to make every play, Cole to own the opener and the kids to keep bringing life into this team. But, Rasmussen is tough... and the Rays are home.

Let the misfits win.

I’d love nothing more than to spend November explaining how they proved me wrong.

THE MISFITS OWNED BOSTON. PORTNOY CRIES.

2026-10-02T08:09:56.910-04:00

The Yankees absolutely flattened the Red Sox, and I enjoyed every glorious second of it.

A 9–0 win in Game 1. A 9–2 win in Game 2. Eighteen runs to two across a two-game sweep. Boston showed up for October baseball and wound up participating in a Yankees batting demonstration. Somebody should have offered them continuing education credits.

There’s something deeply satisfying about watching your biggest rival get sent home before its fans have finished explaining why this is finally their year.

And yet, somehow, Dave Portnoy came away concerned about the Yankees’ champagne consumption.

The Barstool founder and professional Boston grievance distributor posted this:

“The Yankees celebrating a wild card series win with champagne just shows how far that franchise has fallen. Very embarrassing.”

Dave, your team just got swept. Perhaps start the embarrassment inspection in your own clubhouse.

Now, before anyone mistakes me for the president of the Aaron Boone Appreciation Society, let me be clear: I’m a true-blue Yankees fan, and I thought the celebration after merely clinching a wild-card berth was ridiculously stupid.

On that principle, I agree with Portnoy. Making the playoff field shouldn’t have me wondering whether somebody accidentally ordered the World Series celebration package. Shake hands. Enjoy dinner. Save a few bottles for an actual accomplishment.

But eliminating the Red Sox in a playoff series? After beating them like that?

Pop the cork. I loved it.

There’s a difference between celebrating your invitation and celebrating after you’ve kicked your biggest rival out of the party. These Yankees earned a moment to enjoy themselves.

Look, champagne celebrations are routine when teams advance in the postseason. And Boston was good, and Boston’s strong second-half push ended with the Yankees sweeping them without Aaron Judge playing in the series. That’s a rough combination for a Red Sox fan trying to lecture anybody about standards.

Boston couldn’t beat the Yankees without their biggest bat, but Dave would like a congressional hearing on the beverages. Wonderful priorities.

And here’s the funny part: I’m defending a team in this 2026 Yankees club I still haven’t fully fallen in love with. I know, crazy right?

Look, it bothers me. These are my Yankees. I should feel more attached. Instead, too often I watch them with the emotional posture of a homeowner waiting to find out what the contractor broke.

A lot of that, for me, comes back to Boone. I think he’s a poor leader. I want a manager whose team looks prepared, focused and accountable. Too often, I’m left wondering whether the next explanation will make me more annoyed than the mistake did.

Then there’s the group itself.

They remind me nothing of the Core Four. I don’t get that feeling I associate with the 1978 Yankees, either. Those teams have a permanent place in my baseball soul. This bunch still feels like a collection assembled from three different rosters and a handwritten notice outside a hardware store...and you know I'm right. That's why I call them the New York Misfits.

Minor leaguers. Big leaguers. A couple of guys who look like they could finish framing your garage before heading over to the beer league. I half expect somebody to ask whether the postseason shares include mileage for the work van.

It’s a weird group. They haven’t given me that automatic emotional connection just because they wear pinstripes. I’m rooting like hell, but I’m still waiting for the moment when rooting turns into believing.

Well, destroying Boston was a pretty good sales pitch. For two games, these misfits gave me exactly what I wanted: winning baseball and a thoroughly miserable Red Sox fan base. I don’t need everybody to remind me of an old champion when they’re busy sending Boston home. Keep doing that and we can work on the relationship.

Portnoy, meanwhile, sounds like a guy standing outside a restaurant complaining that the people inside are enjoying dessert. Would I expect Boston to celebrate if the roles were reversed? Absolutely. And I’d hate watching it. That’s the privilege of being a rival fan. You can be aggravated without pretending you’re the commissioner of champagne.

The Yankees now move on to Tampa Bay, which finished with the American League’s best record and let's face it, they are a better team than the Yankees. Now, the Yankees are hoping to have Judge back for that series. But I wonder, do we need him? This rag-tag group seems to be doing great.

Look, I want to see these misfits win again. Beat the Rays. Give me another reason to yell at the television in a way the neighbors can actually enjoy.

Maybe this oddball collection will grow on me. October has a way of making a fan sentimental about people he spent September threatening to trade.

For now, enjoy the win, BYB freaks. And Yanks? You earned this celebration.

And Portnoy? Shove it, buddy. Go back to Boston.

Your team can pick you up. They’re free.

SWEEP DREAMS IN THE BRONX!

2026-10-01T09:26:23.962-04:00

The fat lady is singing and it's OVER! Boston can go back home and drink some Samuel Adams and start making their reservations on the golf course. As my boss likes to say, "it sucks to suck" and boy does Boston suck.

Losing is never easy but it hurts even more when the Yankees don't have Aaron Judge on the roster and they still spanked the Red Sox! That could've been an advantage for the Red Sox because we have all seen how different this team can be when there is no Judge but Ben Rice and Cody Bellinger stepped up and took care of business.

But that didn't matter. Even without Judge, the Yankees out scored Boston 18-2 and the starters had a miniscule 0.73 ERA. Cam Schlittler and Max Fried shut Boston down! It's the second year in a row the Yankees stomped Boston in the Bronx. The Yankees outplayed Boston in every aspect of the game. It's one thing to not be at full strength, and both sides arguably had some holes but the Yankees had more holes. The Red Sox had a door to walk through, but they couldn't make it happen. It was shut in their faces! Boston was lifeless and they had plenty of mistakes mixed in that it was their own downfall. Chad Tracey made some interesting decisions this series, and it didn't pay off. Now the Red Sox need to do a lot of self reflection. They didn't look like the same team that was breathing down the Yankees neck the second half of the regular season.

When the Yankees hit and pitch on all cylinders this team CAN beat anyone. If the Yankees continue to play the way they did in this series, they can beat Tampa in the ALDS, but they have to be consistent. They have to carry this into Saturday and they can't get complacent.

So for now, I am going to enjoy this moment. We've been waiting to see this team click on all cylinders like this. It's a nice victory, but Tampa is next. The work is not done yet but it feels freaking fantastic to beat Boston. How SWEEP it is!

To the Boston fan who heckled me in the breakroom yesterday....I am lookin for ya! Watch out.

--Jeana Bellezza-Ochoa

BYB Senior Managing Editor

Twitter: @nyprincessj

SCHLITTLER DEALS, RICE FEASTS & BOSTON CHOKES

2026-09-30T07:41:13.510-04:00

The Yankees beat Boston 9–0 in Game 1, and nothing improves a postseason evening quite like watching the Red Sox run out of answers.

Cam Schlittler was outstanding: 6⅓ scoreless innings, two hits, one walk and 10 strikeouts. Boston couldn’t get a runner past first against him. That’s command. That’s confidence. That’s a pitcher giving his teammates every reason to believe they’re winning tonight.

Then Ben Rice grabbed the spotlight and practically ripped it off the ceiling. Four hits. Two homers. Six RBIs. His fifth-inning solo shot created breathing room; his eighth-inning grand slam sent Boston looking for the exits. What a night for a guy who keeps giving this lineup some serious muscle.

And give Austin Wells his credit. All of it. His second-inning RBI single put the Yankees ahead before this became a blowout. Behind the plate, his successful challenge turned a first-inning pitch into an inning-ending strikeout. Later, his sacrifice fly brought home another run. Those contributions matter, and a monster night from Rice shouldn’t bury them. When Wells delivers, say so.

George Lombard Jr. added three hits and scored twice, while Paul Blackburn’s seventh-inning double play stopped Boston’s chance to make things uncomfortable.

Now comes the test: finish it. Max Fried gets the ball against Sonny Gray in Game 2. Keep the pressure on, keep getting contributions throughout the lineup, and make Boston’s stay in the Bronx a short one.

The Yankees and Boone had a mediocre lineup yesterday that played better than I expected, but they were banking on Cam to dominate and he did. Tonight, we need to see if Gray will choke in the Bronx like he did when he was on the team. Gray's better than he used to be... more confident. So... it will be a big test.

TYLER WADE MADE EVERY INCH COUNT

2026-09-29T07:51:54.612-04:00

Tyler Wade announced his retirement Monday, thanking the Yankees for taking a chance on him at 18 and calling them “the best franchise in all of sports.” He also thanked the coaches, staff, trainers and fans who helped him along the way. To his teammates, he wrote: “I’m going to miss the grind, the clubhouse, the competition.”

Yankees fans have a few Wade moments worth keeping. Playing right field during Corey Kluber’s 2021 no-hitter, he made a running catch for the second out of the ninth. A month later, he scored the winning run on Luke Voit’s walk-off hit against Kansas City. And in 2021, his busiest season in pinstripes, Wade hit .268 and stole 17 bases in 103 games.

He wasn’t a superstar. He was the guy who could take the extra base, cover almost any spot, and give the Yankees exactly what they needed that day. He turned a fourth-round draft pick into parts of nine seasons in the majors. That underdog career deserves a tip of the cap.

Congratulations, Tyler. You earned every bit of it.

COLE SHOULDER: DID THE YANKEES JUST DEMOTE THEIR ACE?

2026-09-28T06:43:00.731-04:00

I'm not gonna lie, I am nervous about this Wild Card series. There are so many question marks with this roster right now. It's playoff time, so any unknowns add another monkey wrench to this season. This is the last thing we need when we are battling the Red Sox again.

We have several players in limbo right now. Everyone is waiting to hear if Aaron Judge is going to play in this series at all. But he's not the only person in limbo. The Yankees have decided to give the ball to Cam Schlittler for Game 1, read more HERE.

The Cy Young hopeful is getting the ball against his hometown team in a spot that Gerrit Cole has held for six seasons. There's no doubt that Schlittler has earned it with his 14-6 record and 1.95 ERA, he's been the very definition of an ace, especially as Cole has worked his way back this season. Schlittler may have the number one spot not, but Cole didn't slide in behind at number two.

The Game two starter is Max Fried, not Cole. Yup, you read that correctly. Cole will get the ball for Game 3, if necessary. He will be the last chance for the Yankees to move forward. Earlier this month we asked GERRIT COLE-APSE: IS HE STILL AN ACE? after a rough outing. We all knew one day someone else would come up the ranks and change the rotation, especially after Cole missed all of last season.

Now we have Schlittler to set the tone for the series and no Carlos Rodon as a starter, even though he has been reliable and effective lately. It's a good problem to have, when you have a strong rotation that you don't have enough slots for all of your starting options. It's not something we are used to writing about. It's nice to have a strong rotation in a short series. It should be a big advantage for the Yankees, but a weird one when your once ace in Cole, would be pitching as number three. It's not something I would've even thought was a possibility.....but here we are.

This is a big series, and the Red Sox have been chasing us for months now and they want some revenge after we beat them in the Wild Card series last season. There's a lot on the line, and the Yankees look very different this time around.....I don't like different in the postseason. This better work.

--Jeana Bellezza-Ochoa

BYB Senior Managing Editor

Twitter: @nyprincessj

STOP SELLING ME THE 2026 YANKEES. LET THEM EARN IT FIRST.

2026-09-27T08:48:36.252-04:00

I love the Yankees. That is precisely why I am tired of being told how much I am supposed to love this 2026 Yankees team.

There is a difference between rooting for the uniform and swallowing every story the organization wraps around the men wearing it. I want them to beat Boston on Tuesday. I want them to win the World Series. But I am not going to pretend that 93 wins erase what I have watched for six months, or that a postseason berth turns every underperformer into a folk hero. A ticket to October is an opportunity. It is not a personality transplant.

The Yankees have won despite losing Aaron Judge for most of the season. That is real. Cam Schlittler and the pitching staff have given fans plenty to admire. Ben Rice has hit 41 home runs. There are players here who have earned their applause, and there is a reason to believe this club can win a short series. But a record cannot make me feel something the baseball itself has not made me feel.

And too much of this Yankee baseball has felt like a sales pitch interrupted by strikeouts.

Look, I'm about to go on a ramble, but that's why you come to Bleeding Yankee Blue, right? There is a difference between winning and believing. I know that doesn't make alot of sense, but let me explain.

We start here. Remember 1996? Derek Jeter hit .314. Bernie Williams hit .305 with 29 homers and 102 RBIs. Paul O’Neill hit .302 and drove in 91. Joe Girardi, the catcher nobody marketed as an offensive savior, hit .294. The club hit .288, scored 871 runs and struck out 909 times. It won the World Series.

Through 161 games this year, the Yankees were hitting .235, with 739 runs and 1,480 strikeouts. They had hit 223 home runs, 61 more than the entire 1996 team. Those are different eras with different league-wide offensive conditions; raw averages alone do not settle which lineup was better relative to its competition. They do tell you what it has felt like to sit through an inning. In 1996, a hit could become another hit. In 2026, you can spend a lot of time waiting for one swing to redeem a parade of empty at-bats.

The ’96 club had imperfections. O’Neill did not hit in that postseason the way he did in the regular season, and Girardi was no slugger. That is the point: nobody needed to pretend they were something else. You knew what those guys brought, you watched them bring it, and eventually they delivered the last win of the year. Affection followed the work.

This 2026 organization seems to want the affection up front. So, in short, stop telling me who to love.

Look, Anthony Volpe was a neat story to initially. Local kid. Homegrown shortstop. It practically wrote the promotional copy itself. Then the games kept happening. In 56 big league games this year, before his August demotion, he hit .240 with one home run. The Yankees handed shortstop to George Lombard Jr. That was an admission, in the language that matters most, that the old plan was not good enough. And thank god they made this decision.

Volpe did decent in Scranton. He hit .264 with an .906 OPS in 37 games, came back when Jazz Chisholm Jr. was hurt, and hit a grand slam in his return. I cheered the hit. I still refuse to be told that one big night settles three years of arguments about his bat. Volpe once again, and predictably, hasn't done a thing since. Look, the bottom line and the point I am trying to make is a fan can wish a player well and reject the insistence that he is a cornerstone before his performance says so.

That is where the marketing grates. The Yankees can promote a young player. Of course they can. But they cannot schedule a fan’s emotional attachment like a bobblehead giveaway. When the image gets ahead of the player, every commercial, every reassuring quote, every invitation to believe feels less like celebration and more like an instruction to ignore your own eyes. And I think that's what bothers me most about this 2026 team. Much of it is like fake news.

Look at Austin Wells. Wells presents the same problem without the hometown fairy tale. He was batting .186 after Friday’s game. You can tell me about his defense and the demands of catching, and I will listen. You can tell me catching is hard, and I will agree. But you cannot ask me to watch a regular in the Yankees’ lineup struggle to get above .185 and act as though this is a minor aesthetic complaint. Girardi hit .294 for the 1996 champs. Nobody needed a brochure explaining why a hit from the catcher mattered.

The criticism belongs with the people who keep assembling and endorsing the roster, too. Wells did not draft himself. Volpe did not make himself the face of a campaign. The front office and the manager decide how long a bet gets to occupy the lineup and how they explain it to the people paying to watch.

It is my opinion that Brian Cashman has had years to build a club whose weak spots do not keep arriving as familiar surprises. His defenders can point to 93 wins and a playoff berth, and they are entitled to. He also deserves credit for talent that has helped this team survive Judge’s injuries. But that is not the end of the accounting. A general manager does not get graded only on whether enough of his bets hit to reach a Wild Card Series. He gets graded on the holes fans could see coming, on the cost of carrying them, and on whether October exposes them again.

How many seasons are fans supposed to watch the Yankees sell potential where production is required? How many times are they supposed to hear that a struggling regular is close, that a new piece might be the answer, that the next stretch will show what this club really is? Hope is part of baseball. Hope cannot be the entire roster-building strategy of the New York Yankees.

And do not confuse this complaint with a demand for nine .300 hitters. I am asking for a front office to look honestly at its own team, then speak with the same honesty to its fans. When a player is not producing, adjust. When a prospect has not become the star you promised, stop selling the promise as an accomplishment.

Aaron Boone has guided an injury-hit club to October. That matters. Players appear to trust him, and his handling of the staff has helped the Yankees keep winning. He has also made harder lineup choices this year; the demotions and changing roles show he might finally understand how to manage, but for me, I still don't truly see it. My problem is the gap between the action and the public language. Boone’s reflex is to protect his players, reassure everybody, and find the sunny side of another ugly night. I can understand why players appreciate that. Fans who just watched the same failed at-bat for the hundredth time are allowed to find it maddening. Leadership means more than absorbing criticism for the clubhouse. It means making the standard unmistakable.

Joe Torre’s calm felt like control because the club on the field kept backing it up. There was also accountability. Boone’s calm, at its worst, feels like a press conference held in a different ballpark from the game I just watched. There are nights when I want a manager to say plainly what every fan saw: this was not good enough, and the people who keep getting chances must earn the next ones.

That does not mean humiliating Wells or Volpe. It means refusing to treat honesty as disloyalty. When it comes to Boone, there is no accountability. It's called coddling.

Now, Willie Randolph knows what a champion looks like. He lived through the Bronx Zoo, coached the 1996 champions, spent time with this year’s club in spring training, and sees camaraderie and pitching that he believes can carry the Yankees to a title. I respect the firsthand view. He also said his teams were sharper fundamentally.

The Bronx Zoo was not just a collection of personalities and good chemistry. The 1977 and 1978 Yankees won consecutive World Series. Thurman Munson, Reggie Jackson, Graig Nettles, Ron Guidry, Randolph and the rest did their talking amid the circus by beating the people in the other dugout when the season was on the line. Randolph is entitled to see a resemblance in the room. I am entitled to say that the resemblance is incomplete until this 2026 team does the job.

I also wonder what, exactly, we are being asked to compare. The Bronx Zoo label was born from actual chaos, conflict, talent and championships. This team has an expertly managed image and an offense that can disappear for innings at a time. Calling them equal because they get along and have a deep rotation is like saying a movie poster is as good as the movie. Let me see the ending.

Here's my thing; the uniform is enough reason to root, but it's not enough reason to pretend. Does that make sense?

I will be there on the couch for the first pitch against Boston. I will celebrate every Rice homer, every Schlittler strikeout, every Lombard play and every unlikely contribution from Volpe or Wells.

But I am done letting the Yankees tell me that skepticism is a failure of fandom. Loving this team means caring whether the standards match the sales pitch. It means remembering the difference between a player with a great story and a player who has done the job. It means demanding more from Cashman than another clever explanation and more from Boone than another comforting one.

93 wins are real. So is the exhaustion of watching the organization try to sell us devotion to players who have not earned it yet. The 1996 Yankees earned theirs one at-bat and one October win at a time. The Bronx Zoo earned its place in history with championships.

These 2026 Yankees? They have a chance to change the conversation. Good. Let them. But until they do, stop asking me to fall in love with the advertisement. I am watching the games dude. I see everything.

That's my take.

--Robert Casey
Chief & Head Writer, Bleeding Yankee Blue

SABATHIA, BLEEDING YANKEE BLUE & A FULL CIRCLE MOMENT

2026-09-26T11:41:49.610-04:00

Some Yankees become favorites because of what they do on the field. CC Sabathia was that guy from the moment he put on pinstripes. He took the ball, carried the pressure, and helped bring a championship back to the Bronx.

But at Bleeding Yankee Blue, our connection to CC and Amber Sabathia became more personal than a box score.

BYB was still young when the Sabathias gave us their time HERE. That was our interview from 2013. We talked about baseball, of course. We also talked about their family, their work helping kids through the PitCCh In Foundation, and how much New York had come to mean to them. They let our readers see the people behind the famous name.

At the end, we asked Amber if they read Bleeding Yankee Blue. She said yes and thanked us for the support. That was a huge moment for us. We were building this place one story and one reader at a time, and the Sabathias knew we were there.

We will always love this clip of CC speaking about BYB to a reporter years ago is another reminder of that connection. Their generosity toward a growing fan site is something I’ve never forgotten.

We’ve been rooting for the Sabathias ever since. CC gave Yankees fans a pitcher they could count on, but he and Amber also showed us why they were so easy to admire as people. That’s why this honor feels personal to BYB.

Now No. 52 has been retired, and CC has a plaque in Monument Park. The rest of the baseball world sees a Hall of Famer getting the recognition he earned. I see that, too. I also think back to a Christmas morning, an interview we were proud to share, and a family that made time for Bleeding Yankee Blue when we were finding our way.

That’s full circle. Congratulations, CC. You and Amber have always been part of the BYB family. Love you guys!

THE YANKEES GOT PUNCHED, BUT THEN PUNCHED BACK.

2026-09-26T03:25:00.000-04:00

The Yankees were embarrassed 10–2 by the Orioles in Friday’s doubleheader opener. Read HERE. Then they came back out and won the nightcap 6–3. That’s the story: a team that could have let one ugly game turn into an ugly day answered with a win.

Was a split what we wanted? Of course not. But after that first game, the Yankees needed to show some fight. They did. They gave their fans a reason to leave the Stadium talking about a victory instead of spending the whole night stewing over a blowout.

Anthony Volpe helped make it happen with a two-run double in the sixth. Good for him. I’m happy to see him deliver in a big spot. But one hit should not turn into another announcement that Volpe has finally figured it out. The recent eight-game batting figures of roughly .200 to .222 that have circulated from StatMuse are a reminder of why fans still question his consistency.

Volpe gets credit for Friday’s double. The Yankees get credit for the 6–3 win. Now they need to bring that same response to the next game, because a split is only satisfying when it leads to something better.

GAME 1? AN EMBARRASSMENT IN THE BRONX.

2026-09-25T23:58:00.000-04:00

The Yankees opened Friday’s doubleheader against the Orioles with a 10–2 loss at Yankee Stadium. Baltimore hit four home runs. Pete Alonso hit two of them. Dylan Beavers added a grand slam. By the time it was over, the Yankees had given their fans a pretty good reason to be concerned as we get closer to the playoffs.

Game 1 was an embarrassment. The Orioles scored ten. The Yankees scored two. Sad.

And please, spare me the “it’s just one game” routine. Yes, the Yankees came back and won the nightcap, 6–3. Good. They needed to. But winning later doesn’t erase how flat and overmatched they looked earlier. Both games count, and so does the impression a team makes when it gets punched in the mouth.

The postseason is almost here. The Yankees should be sharpening their game, showing some urgency and giving opponents reason to fear them. Instead, for one ugly afternoon, they gave the Orioles four trips around the bases on home runs and gave Yankee fans another reason to wonder which version of this team will show up in October.

That first game was ugly. It was unacceptable. And yes, it was embarrassing.

THE YANKEES HAVE AN ACE. WHY IS AARON BOONE HESITATING?

2026-09-25T13:19:58.590-04:00

Cam Schlittler has spent the season making the hardest decision in the Yankees’ playoff rotation look easy. He is the American League Cy Young favorite, and the Yankees have a short Wild Card Series to win. Give him the ball in Game 1.

Yet when Bryan Hoch asked Aaron Boone whether Schlittler would start the opener, the answer was: “We’ll see. Not necessarily.” Boone explained that starting Game 1 or Game 2 would leave a pitcher available for the same potential starts in the Division Series. I understand the calendar. I also understand that you have to get to the Division Series first.

This is what drives me crazy about Boone. A straightforward playoff call becomes a discussion of future matchups and hypothetical schedules. Schlittler has earned the opener with what he has done this season. In a best-of-three series, I want my best pitcher setting the tone before the Yankees have a chance to fall behind.

Then I would go to Carlos Rodón in Game 2. Rodón has put together a remarkably steady run, including 24 consecutive starts allowing no more than three runs as of September 12. That is the kind of reliability I want when momentum is on the line.

Gerrit Cole’s name and résumé command respect. They should not make this decision for Boone. Cole recently allowed seven home runs across two starts, though he followed that stretch with a stronger outing against Arizona. That is a pitcher I still value. It is not, to me, the strongest case for handing him Game 1 over Schlittler.

Does Boone worry about Cole’s standing in the clubhouse? Is he waiting for Brian Cashman and the front office to settle the order? I cannot know that, but I will bet it's one of them, cause the dude can't make hard decisions. Boone’s hesitation says it all. His job under playoff pressure is to make the call that gives the Yankees their best chance to win, even if an established ace has to hear that someone else goes first.

To me, this is the roadblock the Yankees keep running into. Boone can explain a decision ten different ways. When October arrives, I want a manager who sees what is in front of him and acts on it.

Start Schlittler. Follow him with Rodón. Make Cole part of the plan without letting his reputation dictate it. If Boone keeps managing for the series after this one before winning the series in front of him, don’t act shocked if the Yankees are home early, off hunting for the winter.

Boone, my friends, is the problem we have in October. That's the bottom line.

IS JUDGE FINALLY GETTING FED UP WITH BOONE?

2026-09-24T19:08:00.000-04:00

Something doesn't smell right here. And I'm done pretending that every strange exchange between Aaron Judge and Aaron Boone is just another innocent case of poor communication.

Aaron Boone told the world that Judge has a “moderate” calf strain. Judge then stood in front of reporters and said:

“Everybody's ‘moderate’ is a little different... I don't know why he used those words.”

Read that again. “I don't know why he used those words.” That's Aaron Judge talking about his manager. And here's where it gets interesting. Judge insists he's trying to play in the Wild Card Series. Boone has painted a much less optimistic picture. Judge even said that if Boone says he isn't going to be ready, that's something Judge can't control.

That's tension.

Call it whatever you want. A disagreement. A disconnect. Frustration. I'll call it what I think it is. The beginning of a feud. Because we've seen this before. Last season Boone went on WFAN and announced that he didn't think Judge would return to throwing the way he normally does during the remainder of 2025 while recovering from his flexor strain.

Judge's response? “I don't know why he said that.”

Judge then added something even more revealing: Boone hadn't watched him throw for the previous two weeks. And what did Boone do afterward? He backed off the statement, admitting, “Maybe that's a little overstated.”

Are we seeing the pattern yet? Same subject — Aaron Judge's health. Same problem — Aaron Boone talking publicly and Aaron Judge wondering why the hell he's saying it.

I'm sorry, but that's not normal. Now Judge also said, “Boonie's my guy. I've always got his back.”

Fine. What do you expect Aaron Judge to say? He's the captain of the New York Yankees. He's not going to walk into a press conference six days before postseason baseball and announce, Yeah, I'm sick of my manager. Judge doesn't operate that way. He's calculated. He's professional. He's careful.

Which is precisely why “I don't know why he used those words” catches my attention.

That's Judge pushing back without detonating the clubhouse. And maybe — just maybe — he's getting tired of Boone speaking for him. Look, I've said this forever about Aaron Boone. He's the perfect manager for this Yankee front office. Not necessarily because he's some brilliant baseball mind. He is not. It's because he plays the role.

Brian Cashman runs the operation. The organization establishes the message. Boone walks into the press room every day, delivers it, protects everybody above him and absorbs whatever criticism comes his way.

He's the mouthpiece. That's why the Yankees love him. Cashman has publicly praised Boone for controlling the clubhouse and specifically cited his temperament when explaining the organization's faith in him. The Yankees rewarded Boone with a contract extension through 2027. But there's one enormous problem with having your manager serve as the organizational mouthpiece:

The mouthpiece has to know when to shut his mouth. Why announce that Judge has a “moderate” strain when just days earlier Boone himself declined to reveal the severity of that exact injury?

That's another part of this story that shouldn't be ignored. When Judge initially went on the IL, Boone specifically wouldn't provide the severity and wouldn't predict a return date. “I don't have a timeline on him,” Boone said. “I'm not going to predict anything.”

Great. Then don't.

Yet days later we're suddenly getting “moderate” from Boone. And Judge is wondering why. So am I.

Look, that's my question. If you haven't watched Judge throw, don't announce how he's going to throw. If you're not going to reveal the severity of his calf injury, don't suddenly characterize its severity. If the player believes he can return and you believe he can't, maybe figure that out behind closed doors before everybody starts talking to reporters.

This is the manager of the New York Yankees. He's been doing a lousy job since 2018 and at this point we all know Judge is the leader here. I mean how many communication mulligans does Boone get? And how many times are we going to hear Aaron Judge publicly question something his manager has said before we're allowed to acknowledge that maybe there's something happening between these two?

I'm acknowledging it. I think there's something there. I think Judge is frustrated. I think Boone talks too much. And I think Judge's carefully chosen words are becoming increasingly difficult to dismiss.

Does that mean they're screaming at each other behind closed doors? I have no idea. Does it mean Judge hates Boone? Nobody outside that clubhouse knows. But a feud doesn't have to begin with somebody flipping a table. Sometimes it starts quietly. A comment. A contradiction. A little public pushback.

“I don't know why he said that.”

Then a year later:

“I don't know why he used those words.”

That's enough for me to start asking questions. And here's the biggest one: How long before Aaron Judge stops wondering publicly why Aaron Boone keeps saying these things and starts wondering privately why the hell he's still his manager?

It's a good question right? I want the answer.

BEN RICE WASN’T THE YANKEES’ CHOSEN ONE & THAT’S THE POINT

2026-09-24T14:08:00.000-04:00

The Yankees love a prospect with a story they can sell. Just ask Anthony Volpe's family. Seriously though, a first-round pick. A familiar name. A future star before he’s taken a major league swing.

Ben Rice wasn’t that guy.

Rice played just 30 college games at Dartmouth after the pandemic wrecked his schedule. The Yankees took him in the 12th round of the 2021 draft, 363rd overall. Nobody was clearing a path for him to the Bronx. That's an important line... Nobody.

The only reason the Yankees took a chance on him was that area scout Matt Hyde noticed his strong performance in wood-bat summer collegiate leagues, where he got the reps he missed in college. Hyde saw power, followed the kid. It wasn't a long, drawn out courtship, it was a guess. Let's call it what it was. Well, I am glad Hyde guessed right.

But here’s what drives me crazy: Rice had to make himself impossible to ignore. The bat was real. The work was real. Yet he came into the organization as a 12th-round pick, while the Yankees have spent years telling us who their special prospects are.

Anthony Volpe. First-round pick. New Jersey kid. Yankees fan. Great story. The organization praised his tools and built enormous expectations around him from the start. And yes, his amateur résumé gave them reasons to draft him. But at some point, the story has to step aside and the results have to take over. He just isn't what Hyde claimed he was. That's a fact.

And that’s my problem with the Yankees. Once they decide a player is a favorite, they seem determined to be proven right. When a guy like Rice comes along, he has to do the proving for them... and boy, has he done it.

Rice became a 2026 All-Star by doing what good hitters do: showing up, taking his swings and producing. He has power, he can hit, and he carries himself like a guy who still remembers what it felt like just to get drafted. He said he was excited to be picked in the 12th round and wanted to make the most of his chance. That’s the kind of attitude you want in your clubhouse.

Matt Hyde guessed on Ben Rice, but Rice wasn't even on the radar, not like Volpe. So, I mean sure, credit the scout, but credit Rice even more for breaking through and forcing a conversation.

Now I’d like the Yankees to learn something from Rice. A first-round label doesn’t win games. A prospect ranking doesn’t drive in runs. And being somebody’s favorite doesn’t mean a damn thing once the pitcher lets go of the ball.

Ben Rice earned his place the hard way. Maybe it’s time the Yankees started valuing that as much as the players they picked first.

BABOONIE CAUGHT LOOKING SILLY....AGAIN!

2026-09-24T06:57:05.927-04:00

There's so much to think about, and hell even worry about as we wrap up the regular season. The Wild Card series is waiting for us where we will probably be playing the Red Sox again and we don't even know who is gonna be able to play!

That's because Aaron Boone is talking crazy again. It happens all the time, I just didn't think we would get an extensive sneak peak into his insanity. The Yankees are preparing their postseason roster, and Baboonie is living in an alternate universe, read more HERE and HERE.

Let's start with Aaron Judge, arguably the heart and soul of the team. He's the guy that is the difference maker for anything and everything. The Yankees suffered without him for three months and now they suffer again because they rushed him back to action without a minor league rehab assignment and now Baboonie has said "we're planning on him not being a part of " the first round. But then it gets dicey.....

The Yankees and Judge are clearly not on the same page. We all know is going to rush back. He's already done that. No one believes that he wouldn't push to be in a wild card series against the Yankees biggest rivals. We know what is on his mind, he's going to "try to get my body ready so I'm ready to go" because we expect no less from Judge. Baboonie says he will not be an option, and Judge tells a different story. "We've done a lot of talks, but I can't control what people say," Judge said. "So you'll have to talk to them about that."

Judge-less against the Red Sox is not the only challenge though. This one is a real head scratcher though because Giancarlo Stanton is "knocking on the door" of a return. Yup, after Stanton has been out since April with not one but three different calf strains. Oh and two of those strains happened while he was running the bases and ramping up for a return to the team. The guy is a rotation of chronic reoccurring calf strains but Baboonie thinks this time it's all gonna work out! Stanton is coming back everyone! He took a few at bats recently and hit a home run so it's a sure fire sign he's ready to come back!

So history be damned, everyone. Baboonie even admitted that he wasn't sure if Stanton returning during the first round was realistic but "anything's possible" so there's hope (I guess). Of course, IF Stanton is ready to play it's "looking more at a pinch-hit scenario. We'll see if that's even a realistic option. I don't know yet," Boone said. It must be exhausting being this stupid.

So there we have it. Let's completely rule out Judge but talk about crazy fantasies about Stanton that just don't make any sense. Logic does cease to exist in Baboonie's world. If we are going to live in an unrealistic world, I'd rather live in the world where Baboonie no longer manages the Yankees!

--Jeana Bellezza-Ochoa

BYB Senior Managing Editor

Twitter: @nyprincessj

THE YANKEES LET IT FLY

2026-09-24T04:52:00.000-04:00

The Yankees needed a response after Tampa Bay celebrated clinching the division Tuesday night.

They got one.

The Yankees blasted the Rays 9-2 on Wednesday, launching four home runs and making sure this one was never really in doubt.

And Ben Rice was the star of the show.

Rice launched his 40th home run on the first pitch of the game and then did it again later, finishing 3-for-4 with two bombs. He now has 41 home runs on the season.

That's HUGE.

Rice has become one of the most dangerous power bats on this team, and the timing couldn't be better. If he's getting hot heading into October, the Yankees could have a very interesting weapon in their lineup.

Ryan McMahon added five RBIs, including a grand slam, while George Lombard Jr. also went deep.

Gerrit Cole did his part, striking out eight over 5⅔ innings.

But let's be honest—this was the Ben Rice show.

And the Yankees certainly won't complain if he keeps swinging like this.

WHY IS BOONE NOW FORCING VOLPE AT THIRD BASE?

2026-09-23T15:48:00.000-04:00

I'm done.

At some point, the Yankees have to stop pretending Anthony Volpe is something he hasn't been. And apparently, that point still hasn't arrived. And now Aaron Boone is telling us Anthony Volpe will likely move to third base while George Lombard Jr. stays at shortstop — because apparently the Yankees still haven't run out of ways to keep Volpe in the lineup.

Third base? Seriously? After everything we've watched from Volpe over the last three years, the Yankees' answer is to move him around the infield and keep finding ways to get him into the lineup?

This is getting ridiculous. WE ALL SAW WHAT VOLPE WAS, Let's not rewrite history now. When Anthony Volpe was at his lowest point, Yankees fans absolutely hammered him.

And why wouldn't we? The guy couldn't hit consistently. He made far too many errors. He looked completely overmatched at times. And three years into his major-league career, we were still talking about the same problems that were supposed to be fixed by then.

And one of the biggest problem has always been the arm. Volpe has legitimate throwing limitations, and his Statcast arm-strength numbers have ranked near the bottom of the league. His 2025 arm-strength percentile was just 8th percentile, with his 2026 mark listed at 13th percentile.

Then came the shoulder problem. Volpe dealt with a torn labrum and underwent surgery. So explain this to me why are you taking a guy with a questionable throwing arm and moving him to third base?

That's where this entire thing falls apart. Every time Volpe struggles, the Yankees seem to find another explanation. Maybe he's young. Maybe he needs more time. Maybe the pressure of New York is getting to him. Maybe he's injured. Maybe he'll figure it out. Maybe he'll become the player everyone thought he would be.

Enough.

At some point, potential stops being an excuse. Volpe isn't a rookie anymore. This isn't spring training. This isn't some 20-year-old prospect getting his first taste of the majors. We've seen him. We've seen the bat. We've seen the errors. We've seen the throwing issues. We've seen the inconsistency.

And we've seen enough baseball to know that sometimes a player simply doesn't become what everyone hoped he would become.

That's not personal. That's baseball.

The Yankees apparently believe George Lombard Jr. is good enough to take over shortstop. I'm thrilled. But why does that automatically mean Anthony Volpe needs to play third?

Ryan McMahon is right there. Is McMahon perfect?

No. Is he my favorite third baseman in baseball? Obviously not. But he's a veteran major-league third baseman who has spent his career playing the position. He's experienced. So why are the Yankees trying to turn Volpe into something else?

Why are we once again watching the organization bend the roster around Anthony Volpe instead of simply asking the most basic question: Who gives us the best chance to win right now?

That's supposed to be the job. Not protecting a former top prospect.

This is where I put the blame on Brian Cashman and Aaron Boone. Because this isn't just a Volpe problem anymore. It's an organizational problem. The Yankees seem determined to find a position for this guy rather than simply determining whether he deserves one. STOP CONFUSING DRAFT STATUS WITH PRODUCTION... that is backwards.

Look, I get it, Volpe was a highly touted prospect according to our scouts, who, after our investigation, concluded it was all favoritism... according to our findings HERE.

But ok, he was supposed to be the future. But the hype of Volpe doesn't win baseball games. Production does. That's what matters. And Volpe has had plenty of opportunities to provide it.

Instead, we've spent three years having the same conversations over and over again. I'm tired.

The Yankees are trying to keep Volpe in the lineup because they're afraid to admit that maybe the experiment hasn't worked. My opinion of course. I'm sorry, but that's not my problem as a fan. Do the Yankees gauge their audience? About 70% of the fans don't even want Volpe.

I don't care where Anthony Volpe was drafted. I don't care how highly he was once ranked. I don't care what the Yankees thought he was going to become. I care about what he gives this team right now. And that's the standard Cashman and Boone should be using too.

I was patient with Volpe. But eventually, you run out of excuses. Volpe has had three years to establish himself as the Yankees' shortstop, and now the idea of him at third base with a weak arm doesn't even make sense. Not to me, not to anyone with a brain in their head and the eye test on lock.

The bottom line is discussing whether he should move to third base tells you everything you need to know.

If McMahon is available, play McMahon. If not, use the more athletic utility man, Jose Caballero. And if Volpe has a role on this team, then make it a role that actually makes sense... the bench.

The Yankees don't owe Anthony Volpe a starting job. They owe Yankees fans a team built to win.

And if Cashman and Boone can't separate what they wanted Anthony Volpe to become from what he has actually been, then maybe the biggest problem isn't Anthony Volpe anymore.

Maybe it's the people who refuse to move on from him.

SHOWALTER KNOWS BASEBALL. MAYBE THE YANKEES SHOULD LISTEN.

2026-09-23T09:22:00.000-04:00

Buck Showalter believes the Yankees made a mistake bringing Aaron Judge back without a minor league rehab assignment. After months away with a rib injury, Judge returned to the lineup, played seven games and landed back on the injured list with a calf strain.

“When you start talking about the calf, that’s a different animal,” Showalter said on Foul Territory.

Buck’s point is that Judge’s new injury brings a different problem. The rib injury kept him out for months; the calf now affects the running and movement required to play. Showalter believes a rehab assignment would have let Judge build back up in games before taking on a major league workload. He isn’t claiming that the calf strain proves the Yankees caused it. He’s questioning how they handled the return.

And Buck has earned the right to ask. He spent 22 seasons managing in the majors, including four with the Yankees. He won Manager of the Year four times with four different clubs: the Yankees, Rangers, Orioles and Mets. In 2022, he guided the Mets to 101 wins. That’s a real manager and a real baseball mind speaking from decades in the dugout.

Judge wanted to play. Every Yankees fan wanted him back. But wanting your captain in the lineup and preparing him for the demands of playing every day are two different things.

Would a rehab assignment have prevented the calf strain? Nobody knows. Judge is hurt again, October is almost here, and Showalter’s question deserves an answer.

The bad decision making from this front office is never more evident than the last few years. No one is paying attention, and it's getting worse.

We. Need. Change.

RODÓN STOPPED THE RAYS. BOONE COULDN’T STOP THE CELEBRATION

2026-09-22T22:43:06.127-04:00

For one game today the Yankees looked ready to make Tampa Bay wait.

Carlos Rodón was terrific in the doubleheader opener. He gave the Yankees eight scoreless innings, allowed just three hits and didn’t walk a batter. Cody Bellinger hit a two-run homer, David Bednar finished the shutout, and the Yankees won 2-0. It was crisp, decisive baseball. It also required Rodón to be nearly perfect because the lineup managed only five hits.

And Anthony Volpe? 0-for-3. Another empty line on a day when every run mattered. I’m tired of being told to see the player the Yankees hope he’ll become while watching the player standing in the batter’s box. Dude’s not good period. If Boone is making October decisions based on faith in Volpe instead of what he’s producing, fans have every reason to worry.

The nightcap gave those fans plenty more to worry about. Drew Rasmussen carried a no-hitter into the seventh and struck out 11. Heliot Ramos finally broke it up with a double, and George Lombard Jr. drove in the Yankees’ lone run. Meanwhile, Taylor Walls helped Tampa Bay build its lead, and Yandy Díaz drove in four. The Rays won 6-1, clinched the AL East, and celebrated at Yankee Stadium. That’s the image fans are left with after a split that briefly felt promising.

Now comes the familiar request to stay calm because the Yankees made the playoffs. Fine. They made it. But October doesn’t hand out runs for regular-season wins, and it doesn’t give a manager extra time to figure things out. Aaron Judge is expected to miss the Wild Card series. The lineup just produced one run and three hits in the game that decided the division. A fan looking at that and feeling uneasy is paying attention.

And that brings me to Aaron Boone. His teams win plenty of games over a long season. I know the number. What I want to know is why, when the pressure rises, I’m supposed to trust him to get the crucial decisions right. A manager is judged by what happens when there’s no comfortable margin left, and Boone has done little to earn that trust from me. Why does Hal Steinbrenner continue to allow Boone to manage this team? How many anxious Octobers does he need to see before he asks whether regular-season success is enough?

Rodón showed what the Yankees can look like at their best. A few hours later, the Rays showed them what it looks like to finish the job. The Yankees still have a postseason ahead of them, but this is a rocky road to get there. Right now, being a Yankees fan feels less like anticipation and more like bracing for the next bump.

SHOULD YANKEE FANS PANIC YET?

2026-09-21T13:09:00.000-04:00

The Yankees had this game. Then, almost on cue, they gave it away.

New York jumped out to a 4-1 lead after Heliot Ramos, George Lombard Jr. and Spencer Jones all homered in the third inning. The kids supplied the power, the Yankees grabbed control—and then everything collapsed.

Arizona scored seven unanswered runs, with Nolan Arenado delivering the crushing blow: a fifth-inning grand slam off Brent Headrick that turned a three-run Yankees lead into another ugly loss. The Diamondbacks won 8-4 and took the series. Once Arenado’s ball landed in the seats, the Yankees never answered. Five Arizona relievers shut them out over the final 6 1/3 innings.

So, do we panic yet?

Maybe “panic” is too dramatic, but concern is absolutely justified. This is no longer about one bad inning in Arizona. The Yankees are now six games behind Tampa Bay with only seven remaining, and their shot at the American League East is barely breathing. They will almost certainly enter October through the Wild Card door—assuming they don’t stumble even further.

And that brings us back to Aaron Boone.

Boone has won plenty of regular-season games. His defenders will always point to the record, the playoff appearances and the consistency. But managing the Yankees isn’t about piling up victories from April through August. It’s about executing when the pressure arrives.

Boone has repeatedly shown that when a game tightens, his decision-making does too. Sunday was another example. The Yankees had a lead, the inning was slipping away, and Boone entrusted the game to an overworked Headrick, making his 79th appearance. By the time Boone reacted, Arenado had already put Arizona ahead for good.

That is Boone’s greatest weakness, and it will always make him a poor manager in my eyes—regardless of how many regular-season wins appear next to his name. The postseason exposes hesitation, questionable bullpen choices and managers who fail to feel the moment. We have watched that movie before.

The Yankees now head into a four-game series against Tampa Bay. Boone says they need to “kick their butt.” That sounds wonderful. But this team doesn’t need another Boone slogan. It needs urgency, clean execution and a manager capable of staying ahead of the game instead of reacting after it has already been lost.

Should Yankee fans panic?

Not yet. But if this is how Boone and the Yankees plan to handle October pressure, we already know how the story ends.

The dude can't close. Yes, we clinched a playoff spot, but that means nothing if we can't win it all. The dude's not George Patton... he not even close.

IS PLAYOFF BASEBALL A POSSIBILITY WITHOUT JUDGE?

2026-09-21T07:33:00.000-04:00

Nothing hurts more than being kicked when you are down. That's how I feel right now. The Yankees are down, and begging for a postseason miracle as the bad luck just keeps on coming. It's a consistent kick to the gut and the pain just keeps intensifying.

What a weekend. We lost the series to the Diamondbacks which I hate more than anyone here could ever understand. The weekend they celebrate their 2001 World Series against us, we lose again. Luis Gonzalez didn't deliver the crushing blow this time but that spirit still lives on. Of all the times I wanted the Yankees to win, this ranks high up there. We lose again, and it stings.

Then to add insult to injury, we all get to sit and hold our breath about Aaron Judge, who is back on the Injured List. On September 2nd, we wrote AARON JUDGE IS CLOSE TO A RETURN - BUT IS HE READY? I was worried he wasn't going to be ready because a rub injury is no joke and our medical staff IS a joke. Now Judge lasted 7 games before his next problem....a calf strain.

I swear I am so sick about this team and their calf strains. It is ridiculous! Here we are again. Judge has a right calf strain, and we don't know how bad it is. Our plan of attack includes hoping that we can get him back by the last game of the regular season and ready for the postseason. This sounds a little scary....

"They haven't told me yet [grade of muscle strain]. But he did reveal that the strain was to the soleus muscle, which he said "is a little more crucial with running and hitting," said Judge.

"It doesn't matter what grade it is, said Aaron Boone. "We're going to get him back, or we're not. That's what we're going to work to do, and we'll see."

That doesn't make me feel great. For the record, I don't believe that the Yankees don't know what grade strain he has. They absolutely do, they are just trying to keep it under wraps.....which makes it sound really really bad. It also makes the rest of us speculate which is dangerous.

Soleus muscle injuries can be precursors to Achilles tears if they are not treated properly or if someone is rushed back prematurely. Judge is so important to this team, but if they don't rehab this correctly it could cost us the rest of the season. The Yankees are six games behind the Rays with seven games left to go. Odds are the Yankees are going to be playing in the Wild Card spot again....and we need Judge ready to contribute.

A Wild Card berth means the Red Sox would be waiting for us again. The Red Sox are always a pain in the ass, but would be an even bigger one without Judge. That's just something I don't want to think about.

It's been a rough season, and even though the regular season is almost over it certainly isn't getting easier. This is definitely more than I want to stress about right now. It's time for the bleeding to stop. It's time to start praying to baseball gods and asking for a postseason miracle.

--Jeana Bellezza-Ochoa

BYB Senior Managing Editor

Twitter: @nyprincessj