Just when you thought the New York Yankees might avoid some of the drama of past seasons, here we are again. Aaron Boone's club walked into Toronto for a four-game series with the Blue Jays holding a three-game lead over their opponents in the AL East standings. They now leave with a one-game deficit in the division after being swept. And after Thursday's loss in the finale, losing starting pitcher Clarke Schmidt, whether intentional or not, pretty much put all the blame on Boone.
Following the loss, Schmidt was asked about the current state of the Yankees, a team now tied for the top AL Wild Card spot after losing four straight and seven of their last 10. The starting pitcher, who suffered an injury scare in the Thursday loss to Toronto, sounded like he was trying to stay somewhat positive in regard to the wears of a 162-game season, but the subtext was all about his manager in the Bronx.
"We're in the thick of it right now," Schmidt told Chris Kirschner of The Athletic. "In my career as a Yankee, I can think about this happening almost every single year, and it feels like around June and July where we kind of grind a little bit. We're going through it."
Clarke Schmidt on the state of the team: "We're in the thick of it right now. In my career as a Yankee, I can think about this happening almost every single year, and it feels like around June and July where we kind of grind a little bit. We're going through it."
— Chris Kirschner (@ChrisKirschner) July 4, 2025
If he can "think about this happening almost every single year", then the one common denominator in that equation is the man leading the clubhouse, Boone.
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Yankees' Clarke Schmidt basically admits Aaron Boone is to blame for skid
Let's be clear, I'm not dumb or naive enough to think that there aren't going to be ebbs and flows for a baseball team throughout the course of a grueling and exceptionally long season. The Yankees or any team isn't going to go through that without some speed bumps and hardships. They're going to happen every year.
What stands out, though, is that the Yankees haven't necessarily weathered these storms perfectly when they happen, to use Schmidt's words, every year. Sure, they made it to the World Series a year ago, albeit through a weak American League, but then were largely embarrassed by the eventual-champion Dodgers. Furthermore, whenever they're in these times of tribulation, the necessary fixes never seem to come soon enough.
Yankees fans have been watching frustratingly for weeks now as Anthony Volpe has been an error-filled mess at shortstop who's also been up against it at the plate. The Jazz Chisholm Jr.-D.J. LeMahieu debate continues to irk others. Then there are some of the questionable bullpen management decisions we've seen. And while some of that comes on Brian Cashman, it also comes down on Boone for how he's managing this team.
What if it's not actually 'right in front of' the Yankees this time?
Just days ago, Boone broke out his old-faithful line about the Yankees, saying that success was "right in front of them". Fans are certainly tired of that clichéd refrain, but there are also questions about how true that might be right now.
Yes, Aaron Judge is still unbelievable and doing things at the plate that no one else in baseball is really coming all that close to in terms of his combination of average and power. At the same time, the rest of this lineup is struggling mightily. And that all comes while the rotation is showing signs of regression after already starting the season up against it following Gerrit Cole needing to undergo Tommy John surgery and miss the entire year.
The trade deadline obviously offers some potential reprieve, especially if they could land a bonafide third baseman to move Chisholm to his natural second base and get LeMahieu out of the lineup. But is that going to help Volpe, who has a .483 OPS over the last seven games? Is that going to wake up the likes of Giancarlo Stanton and Ben Rice at the plate? Let's also not forget that they will then need to also probably upgrade the rotation, but this is a farm system with limited assets.
Vibes are certainly not high in the Bronx right now. Maybe things will turn around. But Boone is clearly at least partially at fault here. This team does seem to hit a crater every season, and squanders a division lead or any type of cushion in the process. This time around, however, it feels a bit more dire, and if the Yankees go into the second Subway Series of the year against the Mets, especially with Juan Soto involved, and the struggles continue, the frustration with Boone might reach an all-time high.