The Yankees slinked to the bottom of the AL East in the first game back from the All-Star break, further burying Aaron Boone’s reputation among fans.
Earlier this season, Hal Steinbrenner angered fans when he said he was confused as to why they were so frustrated by the state of the 2023 season. It’s only the third week of June, he said.
Well, it’s now the middle of July and the Yankees fighting with the Red Sox for the right to sit in last place in the AL East, a position they haven’t been in during the second half of the season since 1992.
On Friday, in the first game back from the All-Star break, the first with new pitching coach Sean Casey in charge, the Yankees looked no different than before.
Sans Aaron Judge, they eeked out two runs in a 7-2 loss to the NL West-bottom-feeding Rockies.
So, Hal, is it starting to make sense as to why fans aren’t all that happy?
New York baseball fans go off on last place Yankees
This is the first time since August 23, 1992 that the Yankees have been tied for last place this late in a season. They have not been in sole possession of last place this late in a season since 1990, when they finished in last
— Talkin' Yanks (@TalkinYanks) July 15, 2023
(via @ktsharp) pic.twitter.com/wny8dyH3SH
Yankees are now in last place ever since Hal Steinbrenner has said this. 14 years in counting and we will never win another World Series under idiotic Hal Steinbrenner and Brian Cashman with the analytics that doesn't work... And every board member of the Yankees should b ashamed pic.twitter.com/cgrrx7rpKc
— Snake (@Set42_YouTube) July 15, 2023
Aaron Boone’s personal everyday left fielder Isiah Kiner-Falefa misplayed yet another ball and one that gave Rockies the lead. He was asked about the play and got snippy.
— Neil Keefe (@NeilKeefe) July 15, 2023
“I thought it was a double off the bat, what did you think?”
It had a 70% catch probability.
Gonna be hard to sell Ohtani to the Yankees in three months when Hal Steinbrenner let Brian Cashman build a last place team in the first year of a 4-year deal.
— Gary Sheffield Jr. (@GarysheffieldJr) July 15, 2023
Aaron Boone: "its all there right in front of us". For once he is right. Every team in the division is there in front of them.
— Mike Lasowski (@MDL1981) July 15, 2023
“I’m not worried” -Aaron Boone
— Very Depressed Giants, Yankees, Nets, and MSU Fan (@WakaFlockaFleet) July 15, 2023
“I don’t understand why the fans are so upset” -Hal Steinbrenner https://t.co/ms1nRNdpzD
I believe winning instinct comes for the top and players feed off of it, no matter how good they are. The Yankees FO and Boone especially don’t have it and never will. Makes me sad.
— Chicky (@ChickyDC) July 15, 2023
The Yankees have the second-biggest payroll in baseball. The Al East-leading Rays have the fourth-smallest. The second-place Orioles have the second-smallest. The Red Sox are not in a position to compete. Neither are the Blue Jays. This is not a division that should be giving New York this many problems.
Judge’s injury has certainly contributed, but leaning into the idea of being a one-man team is a weird strategy for a franchise spending more than $200 million on players not named Aaron Judge.
As of Saturday afternoon, they were out of last place only by virtue of the Red Sox loss to the Cubs.
#congrats to the Yankees, who by virtue of the Red Sox losing are already guaranteed to *not* be in last place by themselves after tonight.
— Pinstripe Alley (@pinstripealley) July 15, 2023
they are real winners https://t.co/8fFVGKNJBY
It’s a sad state of affairs indeed when the only positive the Yankees can cling to is the Red Sox being marginally worse.