The New York Yankees are currently in the middle of their latest playoff push, so all cylinders need to be firing. Unfortunately, it seems as if a couple of them aren't doing that. Following second baseman Gleyber Torres' mental error and subsequent benching during Friday's 8-5 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays, Yankees captain Aaron Judge spoke about the incident to reporters, including MLB.com's Bryan Hoch.
“If I know Gleyber, something like this ain't going to happen again,” stated Judge. “He takes pride in his work and his craft. He's definitely not happy about what happened. I bet you the rest of his career, something like this ain't going to happen again.”
In order for the Yankees to clinch a playoff spot and continue their chase for championship number 28, everyone has to be locked in. There's no arguing that fact. Yet it seems as if Torres hasn't been there lately. During the second inning of Friday's defeat, Torres believed he had hit a home run, yet the ball didn't clear the wall and bounced off of it. Because Torres wasn't paying attention, the Yankees infielder had to stop at first.
Who knows how that turn of events impacted the game. The loss dropped the Bronx Bombers to 65-46, tied with their division rival, the Baltimore Orioles, at the top of the AL East standings. If they had won, then they would have had a half game lead going into today's game.
Gleyber Torres running out of time to stay with Yankees long-term
In order to get there though, players like Torres have to lock in. Everything can't be on the shoulders of Judge and his fellow superstar Juan Soto. The addition of former All-Star Jazz Chisholm Jr. was a savvy move, as the young infielder has earned rave reviews for his play at third base so far. In fact, he could be Torres' long-term replacement at the keystone.
The current Yankees second baseman is a free agent at the end of this season. So is Soto, outfielder Alex Verdugo and more key players on the major league roster. If Torres doesn't focus and get back to the top of his game, he could be plying his trade elsewhere next season and beyond.
Despite all of their issues, the Yankees are in pretty good shape at the moment. At least in the standings, where they are co-leaders of their division and are currently at the top of the standings in the Wild Card hunt. However, a home field advantage in the playoffs is more often than not a good thing.
Yes, the Texas Rangers won a World Series last year by winning 11 road games. But that is a feat that is unlikely to be repeated again, as a lot had to go their way in order to accomplish that feat. New York won't want luck to go their way. Defending Yankee Stadium in the playoffs is something the 27-time world champions would rather do.
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