The New York Yankees fell to the Cincinnati Reds by a score of 5-4 in 11 innings on Tuesday night and are now on the verge of getting swept by the Reds for the second straight season.
With the loss, the Yankees fell to 12-27 in extra-inning games on the road since 2020, the worst mark in Major League Baseball over that span.
While there are obviously a whole lot of factors at play here, Yankees fans have zeroed in one variable in particular: manager Aaron Boone.
Boone has been a polarizing topic of discussion for the Bronx faithful over the years. He took the Yankees’ managerial job in 2018 and has led New York to a World Series appearance, six trips to the playoffs and three AL East division titles during that time. However, there is no question that he has made a plethora of frustrating decisions that have many Yanks fans wanting to cut the cord.
Of course, it’s hard to pin all of this on the manager. At some point, the players actually have to go out there and execute, and it’s not Boone’s fault that Mark Leiter Jr. ultimately blew the save on Tuesday evening. But on that same token, Boone clearly has issues with in-game decision-making, which is obviously reflected in the Yankees’ record in extra-inning contests — particularly when they aren’t batting last.
New York fell to 45-34 on the season with the loss and is still in first place in the division, but what once seemed like an easy impending AL East crown has now gotten very hairy, as the Tampa Bay Rays have climbed to within one game of the Yankees. On top of that, the Toronto Blue Jays are just two-and-a-half games back.
