The only mantra for the Yankees now is CHANGE

No more excuses.

No shoulda, woulda, coulda.

No “the roof open kind of killed us.”

No that bad call changed the series.  

No, we were so close to making this a series.

None of that.

No more excuses.

Isn’t that what the Yankees themselves proclaimed on Opening Day earlier this year in front of all us fans?

There is now less room than there was before. The way the Yankees 2022 season came to a close should tell Hal Steinbrenner all he needs to know about the state of his ballclub.

Now, it's time for change!

Whether that includes the decision makers like Brian Cashman and his front office staff or the man delivering the data from the front office, the manager Aaron Boone, time will tell, but the players on the field do need to change. Say what you will about both Boone and Cashman—they aren’t playing the in the games. The players are and the players need to be better.

No amount of health would have saved this Yankee team from the result Houston dished out. As good as D.J. LeMahieu or Andrew Benintendi, or even Aroldis Chapman is (on a good day) those guys don’t have superhuman ability like Super Man to save the day. Even Aaron Judge couldn’t put the cape on one more time when the Bronx Bombers needed him most in the 9th, with Judge representing the tying run. But it wouldn’t have mattered. There was no magic potion fixing the 2022 Yankees against the Houston Astros.  At the end of the day—like Aaron Judge and Gerrit Cole said postgame, Houston was just better. If watched any of the four games, you could clearly see it. The Houston Astros out baseballed the New York Yankees. The Astros are a better baseball team than the Yankees are.

So, it is time for Hal Steinbrenner to open the checkbook, give support to the fanbase that has booed him due to the World Series drought, make the necessary changes, and make them the right way. No more nickel and diming their way around the issues surrounding the roster. When you get swept out of the playoffs by a team you proclaimed to be just as good if not better than and don’t fix the glaring issues that Houston exploited to get to their fourth World Series in six years the only person to blame in that situation would be the man at the top Hal Steinbrenner.

The players need to change.

As a team you cannot continue to throw the ball around the infield and give teams extra outs to anyone in the postseason. Or allow balls to find grass that should be caught. You cannot continue to have pitchers miss stops and give up big hits. You cannot continue to have a lineup not make contact and strike out 30 times in 18 innings.

It isn’t all bad. The starting rotation kept the team in the game against the best offense in the American League. Harrison Bader looks like one of the best everyday centerfielders in baseball. Anthony Rizzo is as good a first baseman and clubhouse presence as you can have. Aaron Judge is the best player in baseball. But that’s about it.

Josh Donaldson needs to find his third home in as many years. Isiah Kiner-Falefa needs to find his second home in consecutive years. Gleyber Torres as talented as he is, isn’t the answer at second base. As good as Oswaldo Cabrera and Oswald Peraza have shown you, they can be in their young careers, both will still qualify for the Rookie of the Year next year and should be utility options off the bench. Clay Holmes is a good relief pitcher but he’s a step-up man. The Yankees need an everyday left fielder and a fourth outfielder. And when this team makes the postseason, they are about three arms short (one starter and two bullpen pieces). In many ways today feels like what I assume October 9th, 1995, felt like.

In many ways this 2022 team parallels where the ’95 team was after the crushing loss in Seattle. When Jack McDowell watched Ken Griffey Jr. race around the bases it marked 18 years since the Bronx Bombers lifted the Commissioner’s Trophy. As Ryan Pressly tossed a weak tapper to Yuli Gurriel and a dejected Aaron Judge walked back to the Yankee dugout as Houston celebrated yet another trip to the fall classic, the Yankee World Series drought now stands at 13 years.

I don’t know what comes after no more excuses, but it better be winning postseason baseball. It better lead to the play on the field doing all the talking and making all of the headlines. There are players like Trae Turner, Nolan Arenado, Carlos Correa, Justin Verlander, Zach Grenkie, Nathan Eovaldi, and Edwin Diaz (just to name a few) out on the open market that can be plugged in and make the ballclub significantly better. The opportunity to make a statement is right in front of this franchise. Will Hal Steinbrenner and his brain trust continue to sit idly by or take action?

As Aaron Boone said after the 6-5 loss that ended the season “it’s an awful day. the ending is cruel…terrible.” It is just that and in the words of Boone it does sting, but hopefully this time next year the only thing that stings is the feeling of champagne in your eyes.