Lifeless

Under three hours for a Yanks-Sox game. Under three. Yankees vs. Red Sox.

(2:46 to be exact!)

I'm seriously cracking up right now.

If that wasn't a pathetic performance from the offense (and defense--thanks a bunch, Captain), I don't know what is. They forgot all their plate discipline in their beds apparently, and then let Jon Lester cruise to a 105-pitch CG shutout. Great showing of skill, boys! And people wondered why I wasn't jumping for joy after the 18 runs from yesterday: they're so inconstant. After the power surge, they let a team on a 5-game losing streak come in and silence them. Damn.

What the hell is wrong with this team? There are two problems--one is psychological and the other is organizational. From a psychological standpoint, they see winning as a chore. They're supposed to win, and if they can't or don't they give up. See the April strategy that reemerged tonight, in which everyone on the team swung for the stars on the first pitch as soon as the run deficit become greater than 2. Why does this happen? Because they're the Yankees and they're supposed to always be in the lead and when they're not, hit the panic button. It's not about fun, as it is for teams like the Rays and Twins. It's a chore and job. And the mentality is if you start off on the wrong foot there's no point in trying to correct it. Somehow, I feel the clubhouse is a very apathetic place to be after a loss.

The organizational problem is more deep rooted. After the Dynasty years of the late 90s, King George thought a quick trade and some cash would keep it going. He really thought the same formula would work forever. Well it didn't, because 1) people get old, and 2) it sacrifices the farm system. So then we had 2004 - 2006, where the team consisted of a number of veterans with no competent youth to fall back on. Oops. Cashman tried to right the ship afterward, and Chien-Ming Wang and Robinson Cano were proof of that. More recently, we have guys like Hughes, Kennedy, Joba, and Gardner, and it's definitely the right direction to take. But there's one problem--it's too late. The rest of the league was doing this when we were trying to hold on to the Dynasty feeling. As a result we have the Rays and Twins, for example again, who are not only younger but are also excited about playing and view every game as winnable until the very last out. The 2008 New York Yankees are feeling the poor business decisions of a few seasons ago, and it hurts.

Unfortunately, these problems are coupled and can't be solved easily. The organizational issues led to the creation of a team a "must-win" superstars, and there's no getting rid of them anytime soon (barring a MASSIVE shakeup). *sigh*

I won't pass judgment on October yet. But if this team gets there, it will take one hell of a miracle to get them through.