The Yankees rallied from a 9-1 and 11-4 deficit to tie the game at 11 in the ninth inning against the Orioles on April 28, and they eventually celebrated a 14-11 victory after Matt Holliday’s three-run home run in the 10th inning.
It was the highlight of the Yankees’ 2017 season so far. Yankees fans celebrated this victory as if the Yankees won the World Series. It was that game that had them believing their team can be a playoff team. In fact, some thought this would be a championship team.
Fast forward to now, those were the good old days. The Yankees have gone through some tough times lately. They lost 16 of their last 22 games and six of their past seven series after taking a 7-6 loss to the Blue Jays Wednesday afternoon at Yankee Stadium.
This should be a sobering reality for the Yankees. Deep down, they have to realize they are an average team based on an average rotation and a lineup that has played above expectations for the first two months of the season. It was hard to believe they would keep this up in a long season.
Yankees fans did not want to believe it or accept it. They wanted to enjoy the moment, and that’s fine. It’s been depressing the last few years, so they wanted a reason to be excited, but they got carried away as if this was 1996 all over again. They had to know better. The Yankees have too many weaknesses, and now it’s showing.
Let’s start with the bullpen. It was supposed to be the Yankees’ strength at the start of the season. Instead, it has become a weakness that could derail a feel-good season. The Yankees bullpen has blown 16 saves this season, which was the total blown saves they had all of last season. In the last two weeks, the Yankees relievers have posted a 5.22 ERA, which is why they are losing games and losing ground in the standings.
Dellin Betances illustrates the Yankees bullpen woes right now. He pitched in the eighth inning in a 6-6 game between the Jays and Yankees on Wednesday, and he walked four of the five batters in that inning, forcing in the go-ahead run. He threw 10 straight balls at one point in that inning. That should have been an indication that was not his day. In fact, it was interesting Yankees manager Joe Girardi went with his struggling reliever in that spot.
In Betances’ last four appearances, he walked 10 batters and allowed four runs in 2 2/3 innings. Since June 22, he has a 17.36 ERA in seven appearances while allowing 12 walks. This is not just a trend, but it’s alarming. His command is clearly off, and he and the Yankees have no idea how to fix it. If that is the case, the Yankees are in trouble. They have to hope it’s one of those things in a long season where a pitcher goes through ups and downs.
It isn’t just Betances that is struggling. Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman has not been dominating like he was last season as he puts runners on base until he gets out of it, and sometimes, he simply does not have it. Tyler Clippard has been so bad that his ERA is 11.17. Chasen Shreve does not inspire any confidence. Adam Warren just came off the disabled list. Jonathan Holder was so bad that he was sent to Triple-A Scranton.
It’s hard to take the Yankees seriously as a playoff team if their bullpen continues to pitch the way they have been pitching. Teams don’t make the playoffs with a bad bullpen.
The Yankees starting rotation pitched well in April, but since then, they have been mediocre. Prior to his last three outings, Yankees ace Masahiro Tanaka has gone through a rough patch. In his 17 starts, Tanaka has a 5.25 ERA. CC Sabathia has been on the disabled list. Jordan Montgomery and Luis Severino have been okay at best. Michael Pineda is who he is, which he will tantalize with greatness and frustrate with his ability to give up home runs. In his Wednesday’s start against the Blue Jays, he gave up three home runs and allowed five runs in three-plus innings.
This rotation is not scaring anyone. It never did in the first place. It was hard to believe any Yankees starter had the chops to be dominating this season. An average rotation will never cut it when it comes to making the playoffs. That was why the Yankees were never taken seriously as a playoff team when the season started, and it’s hard to think it’s changing anytime soon.
The Yankees lineup has been productive, but they also have struggled against good starters this season. Outside of Aaron Judge, who exactly inspires the fear of God to other pitchers? They should get better with Starlin Castro being back in the lineup along with Holliday coming soon. But even then, it’s a lineup that relies on home runs. They need to know how to play small ball and beat the shift, which is something they don’t do well.
The Yankees are struggling to win one-run games by going 9-17. That shows this offense has not been good enough to blow the other team out, and the bullpen has been unreliable in blowing leads. This is an example of a flawed team. Elite teams often win one-run games.
Looking at these factors, it shouldn’t be surprising the Pinstripers have regressed to the mean. They are who we thought they are, which is they are an average team at best. They were predicted to be average to start the season, and now they have reached that stage after overachieving in April and May.
The Yankees have surprised everyone in the first half of the season. To be in first place at one time this season was an accomplishment in itself. To beat the Blue Jays, Red Sox and the Orioles in April showed this team had potential.
Unfortunately for them, baseball is a 162-game season. A long season exposes the flaws of a baseball team as the Bronx Bombers are discovering.
