After a few weeks where it looked like they might actually somehow sneak into the wild card race, the Yankees finally appear to be officially out of the playoffs. This is no surprise to anyone. They've never really been in the race, and anybody who thought they were was fooling themselves. It's really a miracle that they were considered "contenders" for this long.
They were terrible in April, slightly less bad in May, and decent in June. Pretty much every game over the first three months of the season followed the same script--either they hit a few solo homers in a 4-2 loss, or they actually did get a few hits, but no pitching and lost 10-8.
It got to the point that the Yankees found themselves in the unusual position of being sellers at the trade deadline. First they sent Aroldis Chapman to the Cubs, then traded Andrew Miller to the Indians, turning No Runs DMC (the only thing on the team worth watching during the first half of the season) into No Runs D. Then it was their best player, Carlos Beltran, getting shipped to Texas. Oh yeah, and A-Rod was essentially fired in the middle of all this, too.
Then something crazy happened. They got good. The Yankees were 52-52 on August 1. On September 1, they were 69-63. They hit their high-water mark on September 10, when they won to go 11 games over .500 at 76-65. In other words, a team that was .500 after 100 games (they were actually 52-48 after 100 games, but you get my point) went 24-13 (a .649 winning percentage) over their next 37. And this after getting rid of the three best players on the team!
I've never seen a team overhaul their roster this much in the middle of the season. Let alone get better after making such massive changes. In fairness, there are only about 10 players from the Opening Day roster no longer on the team, but Mark Teixeira and Brian McCann have also seen their playing time drop significantly, so it really does seem like an entirely new squad.
That's why I think Brian Cashman deserves some serious consideration for Executive of the Year. When the Yankees made all of their deadline moves, Cashman and Joe Girardi both insisted that they weren't throwing in the towel for 2016. It turns out they were right. Some people thought they were making room for Gary Sanchez, Aaron Judge and Co. to give them extended auditions for 2017 and beyond. Well, guess what? Those guys are the reason for the turnaround. Not only are they better than the guys they replaced, they had no idea what they were doing (and I mean that in a good way). The Baby Bombers brought a new energy that had been missing for quite a while. Suddenly the Yankees were fun to watch again. And it was all because they did a complete reset at midseason.
A popular debate among baseball experts right now is Gary Sanchez's Rookie of the Year candidacy. Now, I don't think a guy who's only been in the Majors for two months deserves to be Rookie of the Year over someone who's been in the Big Leagues all season. And I do think the Tigers' Michael Fuhlmer will win (which he deserves to). But Sanchez does deserve consideration, even if he doesn't end up winning the award.
What Sanchez has done since being promoted permanently in August is unprecedented. He's hitting home runs at a record clip, and is definitely the most exciting Yankees rookie since Robinson Cano. Sanchez is so impressive that he got Alex Rodriguez fired, turned Brian McCann into a platoon player/pinch hitter (although, I'd love to see McCann return next season as the DH), and become the everyday No. 3 hitter for the New York Yankees. And don't be surprised if he occupies that lineup spot for years to come.
To say Gary Sanchez, Aaron Judge and Co. are the main reason for the Yankees turnaround wouldn't be a stretch. And that's another reason why he belongs in the Rookie of the Year conversation. Again, I don't think he should or will win, but Cashman and Girardi's instincts about the Major-League ready talent the Yankees had waiting in the wings was right on. (It should be worth noting that Scranton/Wilkes-Barre won the Triple A championship without all those guys who got called up.)
None of these moves were made with 2016 in mind. Yet they hung around in the wild card race much longer than anyone anticipated. And they restocked the farm system at the same time, which didn't go unnoticed by other organizations. They came much closer to the playoffs in 2016 than anybody thought they would, all while preparing to be really good in 2017-18. Brian Cashman should get as much credit for that as the players he promoted to the Major Leagues.
Gary Sanchez won't be the AL Rookie of the Year and Brian Cashman won't be the AL Executive of the Year (you've gotta think that's going to be Ben Cherington). But don't be surprised if the last three months of the 2016 season marked the beginning of the next great Yankees dynasty.
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