MLB Notebook: Early postseason exit for Yankees means Sox' rivals have work to do, too

For many Red Sox fans, the only thing nearly as intoxicating as Red Sox success is Yankee failure. And in years where the former was non-existent -- the last meaningful Red Sox game was probably played in the first week or so of August -- those fans will seek sustenance wherever they can find it.

It's a bit of schadenfreude, for sure -- if Red Sox fans are going to be miserable, the only consolation is that Yankee fans join them in their despair.

Of course, even as it ended prematurely Friday night, the 2020 Yankee season was far, far better than that of the Red Sox. The Yankees didn't win the American League East and they didn't reach the ALCS, but they did finish second and qualified for the expanded playoff format.

Still, the Yankees haven't won a pennant -- much less a World Series title -- since 2009, when they won both. And that 2009 championship stands as the franchise's lone ring in the 21st century despite payroll investments totaling billions.

The Yankees though they had added the missing link last winter when they signed Gerrit Cole to the biggest free agent deal ever given to a pitcher. And Cole pitched splendidly for the Yankees in October, with a 2.95 ERA over three starts, including 5.1 innings of one-run ball -- on three days' rest -- in the season-ending loss to the Tampa Bay Rays Friday.

But Cole wasn't nearly enough for the Yankees, who revealed themselves to be a slightly better version of the 2019 Red Sox: overpaid and underperforming. (The Yanks' 33 wins in the pandemic-shortened season would have translated to 89 wins in a full 162-game year, a small upgrade over the 2019' Red Sox total of 84).



Free agency will hit the Yankees hard this winter. They stand to lose second baseman D.J. LeMahieu, who's been their best everyday player the last two seasons; veteran outfielder Brett Gardner and three starting pitchers -- J.A. Happ, Masahiro Tanaka and James Paxton.

Only Cole, rookie Deivi Garcia and Jordan Montgomery are in place to begin next season in the rotation. Like the Red Sox with Chris Sale, the Yankees will eagerly await the return of a front-line starter. Luis Severino underwent Tommy John surgery almost exactly a month before Sale did.

The 2020 season revealed the Yankees to have significant holes in their lineup. Shortstop Gleyber Torres was a big disappointment -- in the field and at the plate -- and Gary Sanchez, who twice has hit 30-plus homers in a season, could actually be non-tendered.

Then there's the matter of Aroldis Chapman, whose established himself as both one of the more dominant closers in the game and a postseason liability, having given up season-ending homers in each of the last two trips to the playoffs.

Then there's the issue of existing long-term contracts which could restrict even the Yankees going forward. Giancarlo Stanton still has a staggering $208 million remaining over the next seven seasons even though he's played in slightly more than half (199 of 384) of the team's games in his first three seasons. Center fielder Aaron Hicks has five more years and more than $50 million remaining on what is already a bad contract. And despite his October struggles, Chapman has another $32 million coming to him over the next two seasons, which is no one's idea of an efficient use of resources.

Even Aaron Judge, the club's most gifted player, can't stay on the field. He's been less durable than even Stanton and his chronic injury history surely has the Yankees questioning the wisdom of getting a long-term extension done as he nears his second salary arbitration winter and inches ever closer to free agency.

As their season heads into the winter, then, the Yankees are uncertain about three key positions -- catcher, shortstop and second base -- and in need of starting pitcher reinforcements.

Resources are never an issue with the Yankees, but even they may be somewhat constrained by the massive revenue losses that have shaken the industry in the last seven months. The consensus is that the Yankees won't spend nearly as freely as they did in 2020 when they amassed (for CBT purposes) a $265 million.

That means there will be no quick fixes in free agency, so the idea of writing massive checks to re-sign LeMahieu and add, say, Trevor Bauer and J.T. Realmuto to fill holes would seem out of the question.

Surely, the Yankees aren't in free fall. They've qualified for the postseason in each of the last four seasons and have been in the mix for the pennant each time. They've continually uncovered hidden gems in other organizations (Luke Voit, Gio Urshela) and both Garcia and Clark Schmidt represent potential rotation pieces, both homegrown.

But like the Red Sox, the Yankees' annual aspirations are set plenty high. And going more than a decade without adding to their number of championships is bound to create lots of intrigue this winter.

Could three consecutive playoff flameouts possibly cost manager Aaron Boone his job? Boone's contract is up, but his firing is doubtful, especially since GM Brian Cashman recently mentioned on a podcast co-hosted by Jon Heyman that the Yankees "certainly hope that we can have him around for a long time.''

Even if Boone returns -- the Yankees hold a club option, so they could technically bring him back for 2021 without committing to him further if they so chose -- he'll do so with some of his authority somewhat compromised. Around baseball, there's a consensus that the disastrous decision to use Garcia as an opener, followed by Happ as a bulk guy in Game 2 0f the ALDS, was the idea of Cashman and others in New York's analytics department, and not that of the manager himself.

All things considered, the Yankees find themselves in a better position than the Red Sox. If nothing else, the presence of a true, certified No. 1 like Cole, along with the bullpen depth represented by Zack Britton and Chad Green, assures that.

But there is no small amount of work ahead for the Yankees, too, especially since their recent remake/remodels keep falling short in the only month that matters.

And if the Red Sox to-list is longer and more complicated, for Red Sox fans, the idea that the Yankees, too, are unhappy, provides at least a dollop of satisfaction.

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There are just four teams remaining in the postseason as the two League Championship Series get underway, which means, other than the Red Sox, 25 other teams are through. That could mean a ramping up soon of the Red Sox' managerial search.

Currently, only the Detroit Tigers are also without a manager, though consensus seems to have them focused on A.J. Hinch. Like his one-time bench coach, Alex Cora, Hinch is nearing the homestretch of his MLB-imposed suspension for the 2018 Houston Astros' sign-stealing malfeasance. Both will be eligible to return once the World Series is complete, and that could happen in as little as two weeks.

Of the four remaining teams in the playoffs, only two candidates have been remotely linked to the Sox' job opening: current Dodgers first base coach George Lombard and current Rays bench coach Matt Quatraro. It would be difficult to envision the Red Sox have any interest on the staff of either the Atlanta Braves or the Astros.

That leaves plenty of other potential candidates free to interview with the Sox -- assuming that permission is granted.

Don't expect that previous managerial experience will be a pre-requisite for Bloom. Certainly, Cora himself wasn't limited by his lack of dugout experience when he directed the Red Sox to a franchise-record 108 wins and a title in his first season with the team.

Similarly, two of the four remaining teams (Los Angeles and Tampa Bay) are led by managers who are in their first managerial jobs at any level while Atlanta's Brian Snitker, though the beneficiary of 20 years of managing in the minors, had never before done so in the big leagues when he was tabbed to take over the Braves in 2016.

Only Dusty Baker (with almost 3,600 games as a big league manager) profiles as an experienced major league manager and his hiring was an anomaly -- brought in to restore credibility and calm to a franchise drowning in scandal, and in desperate need of an image overhaul.

Moreover, Bloom was part of a Tampa Bay franchise that had no hesitation in turning from the seasoned Joe Maddon to the untested Kevin Cash -- and that decision has already been more than validated.

In short, Bloom is unafraid to take a chance on someone who hasn't managed at the big league level - even as the suspicion continues to grow that, ultimately, he may end up filling the vacancy with the same man who created in last January.

Either way, with more teams retreating into offseason mode and the field of available candidates growing, expect to hear more about the Sox' job search in the coming days and weeks.

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Bloom hasn't had a Red Sox game of his own to watch for two weeks now, but that doesn't mean that he's not keeping tabs on his ongoing playoffs in both leagues.

I wondered what was going through his mind while he watched the Rays, his former employers, get through their Wild Card series with the Toronto Blue Jays and then their epic ALDS battle with the Yankees.

Was he wistful? Nostalgic? Proud? After all, Bloom had a big hand in constructing the current Rays roster -- only a handful of players (Hunter Renfroe, Randy Arozorena, Yoshi Tsutsugo) joined the Tampa roster after Bloom signed with the Red Sox last October and he was also very involved in the team's minor league operations and draft.

Bloom didn't want to insert himself too much into the Rays' postseason run this year, which is understandable. There would be the appearance of taking credit for something with which he's no longer associated, and also, might suggest that he hadn't yet completely cut himself off emotionally from his former team.

But yes, Bloom is watching. And yes, he can't help but feel good for the people with whom he once worked in his former organization.

"I'm proud of what we built together,'' said Bloom, "and I'm happy for the folks there who get to see their hard work pay off. People drive success in this game -- and the Rays have great people who deserve to enjoy this ride as far as it takes them.''