Season’s End Perspectives

Wow, what a ride it was. 162 games. And, just like life itself, it all goes much (much) too quickly.

Now that the season is over, let me get to some perspectives and such:

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First – Thank You! This was an extremely successful season for this blog. We have created a large loyal and dedicated following. Our numbers exceeded all of my expectations. Thank you to all of our readers. Please know we’ll be posting stories all fall and winter, after what is hopefully a long (long) playoff run and a World Series victory.

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One of the things I have prided myself on is the fact that on this blog we have told the story of the 2018 Yankees regular season as we saw it. When things were good, we noted it. And, when things weren’t so good, we wrote about that as well. People may not have always agreed with everything we said, but we spoke from the heart as loyal fans who love the Yankees.

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Along that line, I didn’t want this site to be just a “Yankees are great” site. As far as my own reporting, I wanted to take a critical and honest view of everything that transpired. In reflection, I do think that in my attempt to view things with a critical lens, it did make me critical of the team. I stand by my criticisms from throughout the season, but now that it is over, I have to look back with awe. The Yankees won 100 games. They set all sorts of records for home runs. All of that is pretty cool. In the end, it was a very successful season.

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If one is to write about the team, he will have to take a position of all sorts of things – benching the star catcher having an off year, critiquing the manager, and such. There were times when I was correct in my assessments, but there were probably just as many times when I was not. But, that’s also the fun of being a fan and a writer. It is fair to say that many of us live and die each day with the Yankees. Sometimes the losses produce more angst than the wins generate joy. We will continue to make predictions and call things as they are and as we want them to be. (For example…This winter I am hoping to see Bryce Harper fitted for pinstripes.)

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Along those lines, I’m going to revisit a proposal I made in August… In fact, I am going to double down on it – Bring Back Buck. In the end, it makes no sense (no matter how much I might have disagreed with how he did it) to fire a manager whose team won 100 games. Aaron Boone will (and should) return as the manager in 2019. In the end, the results speak for themselves. But, that being said, if Buck Showalter is not renewed by the Orioles, and if he is available, the Yankees should, absolutely, bring him back to his original home in some capacity. Showalter is a brilliant baseball man with a great mind. Any front office would benefit from his insight and knowledge. If the Yankees are about to embark on a great new future, it would be nice to have Buck Showalter, finally, part of a winning tradition.

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It is amazing that the Yankees set the all-time home run record without any player having a monster season. This makes me excited for next year. VERY excited.

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I have never loved a one-game playoff system for baseball.

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The one game playoff goes against the very fabric of the game. Baseball is a marathon, not a sprint. A one game Wild Card Game can turn on any little thing. It is not a good way to judge the better team. One thing I have always said is that with the Wild Card and multiple rounds of playoffs, the best teams don’t always end up as World Series champs. As such, my definition of success is the regular season. Finishing in first place means a lot to me. It was obvious this year that the Red Sox had a season for the ages. The fact that the Yankees won 100 games though speaks, ultimately, to a successful year. (They were able to get there, in the end, with a great sprint to the finish, but they got there. That’s what counts.)

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It seems the Yankees got hot at just the right moment. Wednesday night is a lifetime away, but it would be super if the Yankees played great and lasted long into the postseason. I have high hopes that they will.

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Let’s Go Yankees

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Thanks again for following us all season long – now let the next round of fun begin!