The Yankees had a very successful 2019 regular season but ended their season once again just short of reaching the World Series.
The Yankees lost a heartbreaking game in Houston last night after DJ LeMahieu tied the game in the top of the 9th with a two-run home run, only to have a Jose Altuve hit a two-run shot of his own in the bottom half to end the series with a bang.
In all honesty, many fans were not planning on the Yankees coming back from being down 3-1 and advancing to the World Series, but the way they lost makes it even worse. It’s just crushing to lose so quickly after having all the momentum in the world swinging to your side after just one at-bat.
Regardless of what happened, the season is over and there is nothing we could do about it now. Everyone is just depressed, to say the least, nothing else matters at this point. No one will really remember the 2019 season for how the Yankees overcame the odds and still won the division with over 100 wins despite all of the injuries, it will only be remembered for losing to the Astros again in the ALCS.
Our offense looked absolutely heartless in every game of the series other than Game 1. There was a countless number of opportunities this Yankees lineup wasted at the plate with runners on base and just struck their way out of the big chances. The only hitters who consistently put up good to great at-bats were LeMahieu, Judge, Torres, and Hicks, the rest of the lineup was just very hot and cold and for the most part, cold.
A few names in particular that stuck out as being astronomically bad when they needed them the most are Edwin Encarnacion, Gary Sanchez, and Didi Gregorius. Two of these players are now going to be free agents and should surely not be brought back by the Yankees. Gregorius is a fan-favorite and loved by many for his bubbly personality, but it is time to part ways with this free-swinging lefty. His approach at consistently swinging at first-pitch balls at his head is getting really old really quick and his lack of ability to ever get on base has hurt this team more than they could ever imagine. Edwin Encarnacion looked decent in the ALDS but disappeared when we got to the ALCS and turned into a three-pitch strikeout every time he came to bat.
Surprisingly, the Yankees pitching actually wasn’t that bad this series. However, this doesn’t mean that we don’t need to head into this offseason and break out the bank for Gerrit Cole or Stephen Strasburg, it just has to be done. There is no reason we should’ve had J.A. Happ pitching in Game 6 of the ALCS.
It is just very disappointing to end the 2010s without a single World Series appearance. The Yankees are in the midst of a cold spell that has lasted since they lost to the Rangers in the 2010 ALCS. There are only so many times you can keep making the playoffs but not even get to the big one and it is so frustrating that we have been getting so close, but end up collapsing every season.
Something has to change with these Yankees, whether if it has to do with the coaching staff or overall game plan. The truth is, you are never going to win the World Series by pitching your bullpen half of every single game without the opposing hitters knowing exactly what the pitcher is going to be throwing. It is a stupid idea that has never brought a team a championship, it is clear that good starting pitching wins championships and the Yankees keep refusing to acquire top-tier starting pitching. It’s also time to get rid of all of the boom or bust bats in our lineup and replace them with actual hitters who know how to get on-base and won’t just look for a home run every at-bat.
Regardless, sure the 2019 regular season was fun, but unfortunately at the end of the day, the only thing we will remember about this season is Jose Altuve hitting a walk-off home run against us to win the ALCS and end our season in heartbreaking fashion. The only way we can get over the heartbreak is going out this offseason and signing Gerrit Cole and coming back next season stronger than ever and finally taking down the Astros.