Key Points
Bullet point summary by AI
- The Yankees have entered their annual summer slump, losing seven straight games and falling behind in the AL East.
- Rumors imply the organization will not make any changes to its coaching staff or front office ahead of the trade deadline.
- The team's struggles are tied to injuries and a lack of veteran presence to hold players accountable.
Major League Baseball fans have officially reached a fan-favorite point of the season: the New York Yankees’ annual summer swoon.
Beset by injuries, Aaron Boone’s Yankees have lost seven straight games entering this weekend’s series with the Twins. Not only have they dropped to 2.5 games behind the Rays in the AL East, but they’ve scored four or fewer runs in 12 consecutive games.
“It sucks,” second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. said after Wednesday’s 11-inning loss to the Tigers. “Every loss sucks. Ain’t no loss better than the next. Every time we lose, it sucks.”
With roughly a month until the trade deadline, calls are mounting for major changes. Boone and general manager Brian Cashman, as always, remain a lightning rod for criticism.
And while the lineup could see some new faces in the coming weeks, we can’t say the same for the coaching staff.
Don’t expect Aaron Boone or Brian Cashman to make any midseason staff changes
Let’s get the obvious out of the way: No, the Yankees almost certainly aren’t firing Cashman or Boone during the season.
Organizationally, the Yankees do not make midseason staff changes. Boone has a reputation for being fiercely loyal to players and staffers alike, though that’s come with its own issues.
But in fairness, there’d be no reason for Boone or Cashman to panic and start firing coaches. Not with how injury-ravaged the Yankees’ lineup is, and not when they’re still well on pace to make the postseason.
By no means are we saying that simply earning a playoff berth constitutes a successful Yankees season. That’s arguably the mindset that has allowed Boone and Cashman both to stay employed this long.
Frankly, Aaron Judge deserves just as much blame, if not more. The Jazz Chisholm Blow Pop saga showed that the All-Star second baseman is caught up in his own world, in part because there isn’t a respected veteran voice holding teammates accountable.
Perhaps the worst move the Yankees made this past offseason was not finding someone who could fill the void left by Brett Gardner and Anthony Rizzo. The Yankees need a clubhouse leader who understands what goes into wearing the pinstripes.
But the Yankees as a whole have shown they don’t even understand that mindset anymore. Look no further than the facial hair rule change or how commercialized Yankees games have become. Hal Steinbrenner’s priority is revenue, not championship parades.
That’s on the trio of Boone, Cashman, and Judge, all of whom should know better. Playing for the Yankees used to mean being held to a higher standard, and that doesn’t mean sticking to the old-school philosophy of not punctuating home runs with bat flips.
Just ask yourself whether Jorge Posada or CC Sabathia would’ve tolerated Chisholm taking the field with a Blow Pop in his mouth. Gardner or Mark Teixeira would have smashed it with a bat.
If the Yankees didn’t fire Boone last summer when they hovered around .500, then they’re not dismissing him now. Cashman has held his role since 1998 and, at this point, is almost guaranteed to leave on his own terms.
Besides, a managerial change isn’t a magic elixir. The Red Sox and Mets are still a disaster, though Boston is at least surviving in an extremely weak American League.
As for the Mets? Let’s just say that the Jets’ season can’t come soon enough.
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