Browsing: Yankees

Oct 16, 2025, 12:27 PM ET

New York Yankees star Aaron Judge won’t need surgery on his elbow, but left-hander Carlos Rodon underwent an operation this week and could miss Opening Day.

Judge’s throwing was limited after he hurt the flexor tendon in his right elbow in July. Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Thursday that an MRI after the team was eliminated last week showed “no surgery is going to be needed.”

“He’ll take some time off and continue to do strengthening things and rehab and stuff,” Boone said. “But it felt like he finished the season in a pretty good place, as we saw continued improvements with him.”

Judge, 33, led the majors in batting average (.331), OPS (1.144) and WAR (9.7) while finishing with 53 home runs and 114 RBIs. He hit .500 with 1 homer, 7 RBIs and 4 walks in the postseason.

Boone said he expects Judge to be New York’s every-day right fielder in 2026 and downplayed the idea that the two-time American League MVP could see some playing time at first base.

Judge hurt the elbow making a throw at Toronto on July 22. The seven-time All-Star returned Aug. 5 from a 10-day stint on the injured list and threw gingerly upon his outfield return Sept. 5. He built up arm strength and made a 90.2 mph throw from right field in the AL Division Series opener.

Rodón was operated on by Dr. Neal ElAttrache on Wednesday to remove loose bodies in his left elbow and shave a bone spur. He has eight weeks of no throwing, and the start of his season could be delayed by a couple of weeks, Boone said.

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Rodón, who will turn 33 in December, was 18-9 with a 3.09 ERA.

Boone also said slugger Giancarlo Stanton does not need surgery on his elbows.

“He’s in a pretty good place,” Boone said. “He’ll treat it and everything, but nothing expected for Big G.”

Gerrit Cole, returning from Tommy John surgery in March, will throw lightly off a mound next week and could be available not far after Opening Day.

New York has a record 27 World Series titles but none since 2009. After beating the Red Sox in the AL Wild Card Series, the Yankees lost a four-game ALDS to the Blue Jays.

“It’s just playing at the highest level at the most important time, and you’ve got to maintain that and do that for the entire month of October,” said Boone, the manager since the 2018 season.

After losing to the Dodgers in the 2024 World Series, New York started the season 35-20, slumped during a 25-34 stretch as its bullpen struggled, then closed 34-14 and lost the AL East to Toronto on a tiebreaker.

“Could I have been more creative in some of the things that I could have done in those games in the middle of the season where we were a little short?” Boone asked out loud.

Boone’s contract runs through 2027.

“He’s one of the better managers,” GM Brian Cashman said. “Because of our environment, he’s someone that can be second-guessed 10 million times over.

“And I don’t care who you put in that, that would be the same, whoever else would be there. I trust him. I think he’s a good man. I think he works his tail off.”

Among potential free agents, Cashman said the Yankees would like to retain Cody Bellinger.

“We’d love to have him with our team moving forward,” he said.

Bullpen coach Mike Harkey and first base/infield coach Travis Chapman won’t return for 2026. Assistant hitting coach Pat Roessler won’t be in that role, and minor league hitting coordinator Jake Hirst will be taking that job.

Cashman added that third-base coach Luis Rojas was given permission to interview for Baltimore’s manager opening and that hitting coach James Rowson was allowed to interview for Minnesota’s manager job.

ESPN’s Jorge Castillo and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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The Yankees’ HOPE Week has been named a finalist for the 2025 Allan H. Selig Award for Philanthropic Excellence.

HOPE Week, the Yankees’ long-running initiative to celebrate inspiring individuals and organizations in their local community, is one of five finalists for this year’s Selig Award, which was created by Major League Baseball in 2010 to recognize the charitable and philanthropic efforts of MLB clubs.

Along with HOPE Week, the other 2025 finalists are the Dodgers’ Wildfire Relief and Recovery, the Red Sox’s Fenway Park Learning Lab, the D-backs’ Inter-Tribal Youth Baseball and Softball Tournament and the Royals’ Literacy League.

Fans can vote for the 2025 Selig Award winner online at MLB.com here:

Voting is open through Monday, Oct. 20.

The Yankees established HOPE Week — which stands for Helping Others Persevere and Excel — in 2009, when they moved into the new Yankee Stadium. This year marked the 16th edition of HOPE Week.

HOPE Week is celebrated over five consecutive days during baseball season, with the Yankees shining a spotlight on a different individual, family or organization every day. HOPE Week honorees get to share their inspirational stories with Yankees players and fans, and each day of HOPE Week ends with a visit to Yankee Stadium on the day of a game.

The 2025 HOPE Week honorees included Joan Hyland and her nonprofit “Love, Nana”; nonprofit organization Bottomless Closet; Ed and Sue Goldstein and their nonprofit The Valerie Fund; young Yankees fans Carmine and Vincent Gagliano and their family’s The Strength of Brothers Foundation; and Brian Worthington, founder of the New York Metro Black Pilots of America.

Over the 16 years of HOPE Week, the Yankees have had 78 unique honorees and donated more than $1 million to them and their charities.

Yankees players, coaches and front office employees all participate in the community outreach program — from Derek Jeter helping outfit low-income men who were re-entering the workforce with new suits, to CC Sabathia and Jorge Posada taking a double-decker New York tour bus with young Haitian refugees, to Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton playing kickball with a middle school girl who was bullied.

For the last 12 years, the Yankees’ Minor League teams have also held their own HOPE Weeks, allowing the organization to reach more than 400 community causes in New York and around the country.

The Yankees even win on the field for their honorees during HOPE Week. The Bronx Bombers have a 44-28 record on HOPE Week since it began and have won 31 of their last 51 HOPE Week games.

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Aaron Boone’s future as the manager of the New York Yankees remains unclear, but if he does return, there will be some changes to the coaching staff.

According to Andy Martino of SNY and Chris Kirschner of The Athletic, the Yankees won’t be retaining bullpen coach Mike Harkey or first-base coach Travis Chapman.

“Had a great 16 years and I’m very grateful for the opportunity I had with the Yankee organization!” Harkey told Martino. “I wish them nothing but the best!”

Other changes could follow. As Kirschner noted, “Pitching coach Matt Blake and catching coordinator Tanner Swanson have club options, and bench coach Brad Ausmus’ and third-base coach Luis Rojas’ contracts expired.”

Harkey had two stints as the Yankees’ bullpen coach, first between the 2008-13 seasons and later between 2016-25. The bullpen was a major weakness for the team, however, with a number of players taking a step back in their roles, most notably Devin Williams.

Chapman held a number of roles in the team’s farm system before joining the MLB staff in 2022 as both the infield coach and first-base coach. Kirschner noted that he was “lauded [internally] for his ability to pick up tells from opposing pitchers and relay that information to batters,” though New York’s infield defense regressed in 2025, highlighted by Anthony Volpe’s rough season at shortstop.

As for the team at large, the Yankees reached the playoffs for the seventh time in eight seasons under Boone but failed to win the World Series yet again. The 2025 season was marked by major bouts of inconsistency, while the pitching staff was undressed by the Toronto Blue Jays in the ALDS.

Boone’s seat feels hot, and it’s a bit peculiar that the Yankees haven’t either fired him or publicly expressed confidence in him since being eliminated from the postseason last week. Either way, changes are happening to the team’s coaching staff.

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While the Yankees haven’t conveyed that noticeable changes to their coaching staff are expected this offseason, it appears they’re at least comfortable seeing one of Aaron Boone’s trusted minds pursue a promotion elsewhere.

According to a report from the New York Post, the Yankees have granted the Twins permission to interview hitting coach James Rowson for their open managerial position. Red Sox bench coach Ramon Vazquez and former Pirates skipper Derek Shelton are reportedly in the running as well.

It’s not at all surprising to see Rowson — who assumed the Bronx role ahead of the 2024 season — on the Twins’ radar. The 49-year-old oversaw a Yankees offense that produced league-high marks in home runs (274), runs (849), OPS (.787), and walks (639) during the 2025 campaign.

Rowson also has a history with the Twins, as he worked as their hitting coach for three seasons (2017-19) before serving as Marlins bench coach from 2020-22. The Yankees knew they were receiving a power-centric approach from Rowson — the Twins smacked a league-record 307 homers during his third and final season there.

It remains to be seen whether Rowson emerges as a serious managerial candidate. The Mount Vernon native has a long history with the Yankees, too — he played a few seasons in the Yankees’ farm system (1995-97) and spent seven seasons (2006-11, 2014-16) as their minor league hitting coordinator.

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Cody Bellinger is hitting free agency again, leaving the New York Yankees with a hole to fill in their outfield.

Bellinger plans to opt out of the final season of his deal, according to MLB.com, which would have paid him $25 million. The decision comes with a $5 million buyout from the Yankees, which will be partially covered by his former team, the Chicago Cubs.

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The deal was originally a three-year, $80 million contract signed with the Cubs after Bellinger’s first year in Chicago. It contained opt-outs after both the first and second seasons, with a clear aim for him to re-enter free agency after a disappointing first foray. This time, he’s hitting the free market after a strong year with the Yankees, who acquired him in a trade with the Cubs last offseason.

Cody Bellinger is looking for his big pay day. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/MLB Photos via Getty Images)

(Daniel Shirey via Getty Images)

As a Yankee, Bellinger hit at a well-above-average clip — if not quite up to his old MVP level — and was one of New York’s most valuable players on defense, effectively covering all three outfield spots and first base. He posted 29 homers, his most since his MVP season in 2019, and a career-low 13.7% whiff rate.

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He spoke glowingly of his time in the Bronx at the end of the season:

“I had an unbelievable time putting on this uniform. Yankee Stadium, the fans, the organization, the culture that these guys have created in this locker room. It really is special. It’s such a fun group, it was a fun group to be a part of. We came up short, and that part stinks for sure, because we had a really, really good group here.â€

[Get more New York news: Yankees team feed]

New York has one outfield spot emphatically spoken for with Aaron Judge. The other two are less clear in a world without Bellinger and Trent Grisham, who is also a free agent.

There’s also former top prospect Jasson Domínguez, who keeps flashing elite traits but posted an underwhelming .248/.327/.397 line in his first full MLB season at 22 years old. The club has also indicated that it highly prizes prospect Spencer Jones, who posted big numbers at Triple-A this season but has also shown significant swing-and-miss issues.

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Neither option should leave the Yankees with confidence that the outfield is handled for 2026, so a move to retain Bellinger and/or Grisham or replace them appears likely.

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  Jorge CastilloOct 10, 2025, 10:53 AM ET

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  ESPN baseball reporter. Covered the Washington Wizards from 2014 to 2016 and the Washington Nationals from 2016 to 2018 for The Washington Post before covering the Los Angeles Dodgers and MLB for the Los Angeles Times from 2018 to 2024.

As expected, New York Yankees outfielder Cody Bellinger plans to opt out of his contract and become a free agent next month, a source told ESPN.

Bellinger, 30, has a $25 million player option for next season. After a rebound season in his first year in pinstripes, he presumably will receive widespread interest in free agency — it should yield a lucrative multi-year contract.

The Yankees acquired Bellinger from the Chicago Cubs last December. For the Cubs, he was a salary dump days after they acquired Kyle Tucker.

For the Yankees, he was part of the swift pivot from Juan Soto. In the end, the 2019 NL MVP ended up being their second-most valuable player.

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Hitting behind Aaron Judge most of the season, Bellinger batted .272 with 29 home runs and an .813 OPS in 152 games in 2025. He was especially productive against left-handed pitching despite hitting left-handed, leading all left-handed hitters in on-base percentage (.415) and slugging (.601) against lefties.

He was also one of the sport’s top defenders: Bellinger accumulated seven Outs Above Average and eight Defensive Runs Saved between the three outfield positions and first base. He added 13 steals in 15 attempts. His 4.9 fWAR was tied with Kyle Schwarber for 18th in the majors and second on the Yankees behind Judge.

Bellinger signed a three-year, $80 million — with opt-outs after the first and second years — with the Cubs before the 2024 season. He had declined the Cubs’ qualifying offer earlier in the offseason.

Other Yankees expected to reach free agency include outfielder Trent Grisham, first baseman Paul Goldschmidt, and relievers Devin Williams and Luke Weaver.

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  Jorge CastilloOct 10, 2025, 08:00 AM ET

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  ESPN baseball reporter. Covered the Washington Wizards from 2014 to 2016 and the Washington Nationals from 2016 to 2018 for The Washington Post before covering the Los Angeles Dodgers and MLB for the Los Angeles Times from 2018 to 2024.

NEW YORK — Twenty-four hours after launching one of the most important home runs of his career, with the kind of power display very few people on Earth could muster, Aaron Judge on Wednesday night continued an October tradition going on a decade. Eight times the New York Yankees have reached the postseason with Judge powering the lineup. And eight times a dejected Judge, with the disappointment still raw, has had to reflect on a season without a World Series title.

“It’s what you play for,” Judge said after the Yankees’ Game 4 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays in the American League Division Series. “You play to win. And when you don’t win, it’s not a good year.”

Individually, from Opening Day through the final postseason out, it was Judge’s best year. During the regular season, the reigning AL MVP made a strong case to win the award a third time by leading the major leagues with a .331 batting average — 20 points better than anyone else’s — and mashing 53 home runs with a 1.144 OPS. He followed it with his best playoff showing. Judge went 13-for-26 (.500) with a 1.273 OPS in New York’s seven postseason games. He collected seven RBIs and four walks, and had multiple hits in every game but one.

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The year helped cement Judge’s place among Yankees greats. He passed Yogi Berra and Joe DiMaggio on the franchise’s all-time home run list into fourth place. He became the fourth player ever with four 50-plus home run seasons. His 53 home runs were the most ever for a batting champion. He set the AL record for intentional walks with 36. This month, he became the sixth player to hit .500 or better in a postseason with at least 20 at-bats. He did it all while playing through a flexor strain in his right elbow that sent him to the injured list in late July.

But a World Series title, the crowning achievement that all of his peers in the Yankees pantheon accomplished, eludes the 6-foot-7 right fielder.

“They’ll probably have a statue out there for him eventually,” Yankees left-hander Carlos Rodón told ESPN. “And I feel like before it’s all over, for him, it’ll only be right to win at least one World Series for him. I think his legacy would be pretty set in stone if he won one here.”

It is easy to take Judge’s greatness for granted. The reality is his peak will not last for much longer. Time catches up to everyone, even the most elite of athletes, and the pressure is on the Yankees to not waste Judge’s prime.

“I’m confident we’ll break through, and I have been every year, and I believe in so many of the people in that room,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “That hasn’t changed. The fire hasn’t changed. It’s hard to win the World Series. Been chasing it all my life.”

ON APRIL 26, a Sunday, Judge will turn 34 years old. The Yankees are scheduled to complete a three-game series against the Astros in Houston that day. How they will look is anyone’s guess. Several players will reach free agency the day after the World Series ends. Trading other players is certainly possible. The Yankees’ cornerstones will remain in place, but general manager Brian Cashman has important moves to make.

Judge’s own status isn’t 100% clear. After Wednesday’s loss, Judge did not dismiss the possibility of undergoing surgery on his injured elbow. The most drastic option — Tommy John surgery — would knock him out for most, if not all, of next season. The likelier option is that Judge will rehab the elbow without a procedure.

The Yankees have reached the postseason in eight of Judge’s nine full seasons in the majors. The only miss was 2023, when Judge was out of action for nearly two months with a torn ligament in his right big toe. Last winter, after their first World Series appearance in 15 years, the Yankees pivoted when Juan Soto signed with the Mets and built a deeper roster — one that lasted just a week in October.

Giving themselves another chance to crack a 16-year championship drought starts with transactions made in the coming months. This offseason, the Yankees are expected to have at least 10 players hit free agency. Those players combined to make nearly $70 million of the Yankees’ more than $300 million payroll in 2025.

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One person who is expected to return: Boone. The manager signed a two-year contract extension through the 2027 season in February.

“I’m under contract, so I don’t expect anything,” Boone said.

What can we expect from the rest of the roster?

The starting rotation:This is one group that doesn’t need a significant addition.

New York should boast one of the best rotations in the majors next season with Gerrit Cole slated to return from Tommy John surgery sometime during the first half. The projected Opening Day starting five without him is strong: Max Fried, Rodón, Cam Schlittler, Luis Gil and Will Warren. Clarke Schmidt, who had Tommy John surgery in July, could join the group by the end of the season.

The Yankees have a few prospects who could graduate to the majors at some point in 2026 — Carlos Lagrange and Elmer Rodriguez-Cruz top the list — and they could add a veteran starter or two for depth after Fried, Rodón, and Warren handled the largest workloads of their careers and Gil didn’t resemble the 2024 AL Rookie of the Year upon returning from a lat injury.

The bullpen:This is another matter. Right-handers Devin Williams, Luke Weaver and Jonathan Loáisiga, whose $5 million team option will be declined, are headed to free agency. Left-hander Tim Hill could join them if the Yankees decline his $3 million club option. The foundation for a strong bullpen is in place with David Bednar at closer, Camilo Doval in a setup role, and Fernando Cruz as an effective fireman, but the group, which struggled throughout 2025, will look different in 2026.

The outfield:Assuming he’s ready for the start of the season, Judge will continue locking down right field. Elsewhere, there is uncertainty. Cody Bellinger, who became the team’s every-day left fielder at full strength, will opt out of his contract, a source confirmed to ESPN, after an impressive season in the Bronx, and center fielder Trent Grisham will become a free agent for the first time after a career year.

“Two guys that had incredible years,” Judge said. “It was fun to watch them. Fun to learn from them. And hopefully we can run them back. We’ll see what happens.”

The Yankees paying market value for both players to return is a long shot. Jasson Dominguez, who lost regular playing time down the stretch, gives the Yankees a far less expensive option with potential for improvement, but his defense and struggles hitting right-handed against left-handed pitchers were issues in his first full major league season. Prospect Spencer Jones, who hit 35 home runs between Double-A and Triple-A, is another in-house option who could be added to the mix.

The infield:Anthony Volpe has not approached the expectations he carried when he was named the Yankees’ Opening Day starting shortstop as a rookie in 2023. The streaky former top prospect has a .662 career OPS that ranks 102nd out of 103 players with at least 1,500 plate appearances since then. His .222 batting average and .283 on-base percentage rank last.

This year, he improved his slugging, but regressed in just about every other category. He was overmatched in the ALDS, going 1-for-15 with 11 strikeouts in the four games. His defense also declined: Two years after winning a Gold Glove, Volpe ranked 11th in defensive runs saved and 17th in outs above average among MLB shortstops this season.

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However, Volpe, 24, played with a small labrum tear in his left shoulder for most of the season and had at least two cortisone shots to treat the pain. After Wednesday’s loss, Volpe said he didn’t know if he would have offseason surgery.

Boone and Cashman continued to adamantly back him this season — Cashman in September said he still views Volpe as the Yankees’ shortstop of the future — but he lost playing time to Jose Caballero when he struggled in September.

Caballero, acquired at the trade deadline, is the Yankees’ other internal option at shortstop. Top prospect George Lombard reached Double-A this season, and isn’t part of the equation for 2026.

Veterans Paul Goldschmidt and Amed Rosario are free agents. Goldschmidt, 38, was revered in the Yankees’ clubhouse for his professionalism and presence, but a reunion is unlikely; Ben Rice figures to become the every-day first baseman next season. Rosario, who was effective in his role against left-handed pitching, brought a spark and seamlessly fit into the clubhouse after being acquired at the trade deadline. The Yankees could pursue re-signing him to play third base and second base against lefties.

Catcher:Like Volpe,Austin Wells regressed in 2025, his second full season, but the Yankees’ more pressing problem was having three left-handed catchers — Wells, Rice and J.C. Escarra — on the roster for most of the season and in the postseason. With Rice’s likely move to first base, they could bring in a righty to platoon with Wells, who was slightly better against lefties in 2025 but significantly better against righties in 2024. Three-time All-Star J.T. Realmuto, a right-handed hitter, will headline the short list of free agent catchers this winter.

After another October exit, Yankees captain Arron Judge turns 34 in April. Al Bello/Getty Images

CHANCES ARE THE Yankees will field a playoff contender in 2026. They have not finished below .500 since 1992. They have reached the postseason in 26 of the past 31 years.

But success is measured differently in the Bronx. Winning the World Series is more difficult than ever. The postseason — now with 12 entrants — features too much randomness to expect to pop champagne after the final game every year. But dismissing the Yankees’ 16-year title drought — the second-longest in franchise history — as simply the product of bad luck does not square with other teams’ successes.

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Eight AL teams, including the Yankees, have reached the World Series since 2010. Four have gone that far multiple times: The Boston Red Sox and Kansas City Royals twice, the Texas Rangers three times, and the Houston Astros four times. Four AL teams have won at least one World Series: The Red Sox (twice), the Royals, the Astros (twice) and the Rangers.

The Yankees are 19-6 against the AL Central, a division with four of the six smallest markets in the AL, and 13-27 against the AL East and AL West in the postseason since Judge’s playoff debut in 2017.

Winning the 28th World Series in franchise history will undoubtedly require handling heavyweights in October. The time to accomplish the feat with Judge — and avoid having him go down as the greatest Yankee never to win a title — is ticking. Next August will mark the 10th anniversary of his first major league game. He is under contract through 2031, his age-39 season. There are only so many prime Judge years left.

“Every year is different just based on how it goes,” Judge said. “But I think the feeling’s still the same if you didn’t win.”

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Outfielder Cody Bellinger intends to decline his $25 million player option for the 2026 season, making him a free agent.

ESPN’s Jorge Castillo reported Bellinger intends to opt out of his deal with the New York Yankees and test the open market.

The Yankees acquired Bellinger from the Chicago Cubs last December for right-handed pitcher Cody Poteet. He enjoyed a productive season in New York, hitting .272/.334/.480 with 29 home runs and 98 RBI while scoring 89 runs. Bellinger was excellent in the field as well with 11 total runs saved, per Fielding Bible.

Bellinger arrived in the majors in 2017 with the Los Angeles Dodgers, and he provided an immediate positive impact, hitting 39 home runs and posting a .933 OPS while winning NL Rookie of the Year honors, making the All-Star Game and even finishing ninth in the NL MVP race. He helped L.A. win the NL pennant as well.

Bellinger’s best season was 2019, when he won NL MVP honors after hitting .305 (1.035 OPS) with 47 home runs and 115 RBI.

Bellinger then endured a three-year slump, in part because of numerous injuries suffered during the 2021 season, when he hit just .165 over 95 games. From 2020-2022, Bellinger hit just .203 (.648 OPS).

After the 2022 season, Bellinger left the Dodgers for the Cubs in free agency on a one-year, $17.5 million deal. He enjoyed a great bounce-back campaign in 2023, hitting .307 (.881 OPS) with 26 home runs and 97 RBI in 130 games. Bellinger finished 10th in the NL MVP race and earned his second career Silver Slugger award.

He re-signed with Chicago on a three-year, $80 million deal after the season. Following the 2024 campaign, the Cubs went in a different direction, adding outfielder Kyle Tucker from the Houston Astros, leaving Chicago with extra players at the position. And so Bellinger went to the Bronx, a place his father, Clay Bellinger, called home from 1999-2001 as a utility man for the Yanks.

Bellinger enjoyed a great 2025 season, but this is a situation where the 30-year-old should cash in on a fantastic year and look for a lucrative, long-term deal.

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  Jorge CastilloOct 9, 2025, 02:45 AM ET

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  ESPN baseball reporter. Covered the Washington Wizards from 2014 to 2016 and the Washington Nationals from 2016 to 2018 for The Washington Post before covering the Los Angeles Dodgers and MLB for the Los Angeles Times from 2018 to 2024.

NEW YORK — Late Wednesday and into early Thursday, as clubhouse attendees taped together boxes for players to pack and everyone said their goodbyes for the winter, a sense of disbelief hovered over the New York Yankees.

From manager Aaron Boone to superstar Aaron Judge on down, the Yankees believed this team was more talented, more complete, better equipped to handle October than the club that went to the World Series a year ago.

But the 2025 Yankees will not reach the World Series. They will not even reach the American League Championship Series. Their season ended Wednesday night with a 5-2 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays in Game 4 of the ALDS at Yankee Stadium to extend their championship drought to a 16th season, the third longest in franchise history.

“It’s tough to describe,” Judge said. “We didn’t do our job, didn’t finish the goal. We had a special group in here, a lot of special players that made this year fun, but we didn’t get the ultimate prize, so we came up short.”

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Standing in the Yankees’ way to the championship series was the team that stood in their way of the AL East title. Toronto went 8-5 against the Yankees during the regular season to claim the tiebreaker that proved to be the difference in getting a bye through the wild-card round when the teams finished with identical AL-best 94-68 records.

But for as ugly as the first two games of the series were for the Yankees — Toronto outscored them 23-8 in blowouts at Rogers Centre — they reported to work Wednesday a confident bunch, riding high after Judge, blistering at the plate in this postseason, delivered a monumental three-run home run in Game 3 that helped extend their season.

On paper, they had the pitching advantage: rookie Cam Schlittler, coming off a historic eight-inning performance in the wild-card series, opposite a slew of familiar relievers in the division rivals’ 21st meeting of the year. Win, and the pressure would shift to the Blue Jays to avoid a collapse in Game 5 at home.

Schlittler did not resemble the dominant force that held the Boston Red Sox scoreless in an elimination game the previous week, but he pitched well enough to give New York a chance to stave off elimination. However, the Yankees fumbled the opportunity, managing just the two runs on six hits. They stranded two runners on base in the sixth and seventh innings, and left the bases loaded in the eighth.

“It’s brutal,” said Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe, who finished the series 1-for-15 with 11 strikeouts. “I’m kind of in shock.”

The Blue Jays collected 12 more hits to finish with 50 in the series and outscored New York 34-19 to reach the ALCS for the first time since 2016. The 34 runs were the fourth most scored in a team’s first four postseason games. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. led the way, going 9-for-17 with three home runs and nine RBIs, to counter Judge, who went 13-for-26 in the postseason to become the sixth player all time to hit at least .500 in a single postseason.

The difference was in the supporting casts. Toronto utilityman Ernie Clement recorded three straight multihit games to finish 9-for-14 in the series. Center fielder Daulton Varsho went 7-for-16. Catcher Alejandro Kirk whacked two home runs. In Game 4, Addison Barger recorded three hits. Nathan Lukes added two, including a backbreaking two-run single to increase Toronto’s lead to 4-1 in the seventh inning. And Myles Straw came off the bench to drive in the final run with a single in the eighth. As a team, the Blue Jays batted .338 with a .974 OPS in the series.

“They didn’t miss and they scored, it felt like, every time they had a guy in scoring position,” Yankees catcher Austin Wells said. “They did whatever they could to put the ball in play. And they were ready. They were on it from the first at-bat. It was impressive.”

Said Boone: “They took it to us this series.”

For the final month of the regular season, as his club rounded into form and the wins accumulated, Boone did not hesitate to share that he believed this year’s club was the most talented in his eight seasons on the top step. It boasted power, speed, an improved defense, a stout rotation and a bullpen featuring several proven veterans. He envisioned a path to the World Series. He wasn’t the only one.

“We all thought we were the team to win the World Series,” Yankees second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. said. “But baseball is baseball. We all know baseball can take a turn in any way, any time. Baseball favors nobody.”

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One year removed from a World Series appearance, the New York Yankees were eliminated in the American League Divisional Series in four games by the Toronto Blue Jays on Wednesday, and fingers are already being pointed following the early postseason exit.

During the post-game show on FS1 following the Blue Jays†5-2 series-clinching win over the Yankees, former Yankees stars Alex Rodriguez and Hall of Famer Derek Jeter went in on whoâ€s to blame most for New Yorkâ€s downfall. Yankees manager Aaron Boone was the person the former players put this collapse on.

“[Aaron Boone] is the one guy I would circle that has least to blame…one of the worst constructions of a roster Iâ€ve ever seen.” – Alex Rodriguez

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“Iâ€m pretty sure Aaronâ€s not the one thatâ€s calling every move that they make throughout the game.” – Derek Jeter

The two baseball legends stopped short of saying any names, but these comments appeared to be aimed at the Yankees front office, and as the baseball world knows, the buck stops with general manager Brian Cashman in that regard.

Rodriguez called out the construction of the team, and that clearly has to do with the front office. Jeter said Boone did a good job with the team, but that heâ€s probably not the one calling every move in games. Without saying any names, A-Rod and Jeter seem to have called out Cashmanâ€s leadership of the team and placed much of the blame squarely on his shoulders.

New York finished with the same record as last season (94-68) but with much different results. They didn’t win the World Series last year either, but they did make a run all the way there. As defending American League champions, getting knocked out in four games in the ALDS by a division rival, no less, is disappointing.

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Even more disappointing is the fact the Yankees failed to capitalize further on the outstanding postseason right fielder Aaron Judge was having. In seven postseason games Judge was hitting .500 with a .692 slugging percentage and a 1.273 OPS. Those are MVP caliber numbers the Yankees failed capitalize on.

This elimination stretches the Yankees streak of not winning the World Series to 16 years. The last time this franchise won it all in 2010, Rodriguez and Jeter were still playing in pinstripes.

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