They're a home run or nothing offense, they're bullpen has been hit or miss, and their starters were what they were coming into the season--a huge question mark.
Kevin Kernan wrote today that he believes that the team is selfish and that this slump may be more than just a bumb in the road:
There has been a sense of selfishness around the Yankees for quite some, and it's not just Jorge Posada's frustration about his .165 average and the fact that manager Joe Girardi dropped him to ninth in the lineup last night.I guess the feelings you have towards this team right now depend a lot on what your expectations were for this team heading into the season. In my case I really wasn't too confident about this bunch, so I'm not really surprised about where they are. I am surprised at how bad the offense has been (besides those long balls), but I think that'll turn around eventually.
The bottom line is that the Yankees are nothing special right now and haven't been for quite some time. These Yankees need to get it in gear in so many ways, not just because Posada has had a problem with being "disrespected." And not just because he removed himself from the lineup an hour before the 6-0 loss to the Red Sox at Yankee Stadium, saying he "couldn't play" and needed time to "clear my head."
For too long the Yankees have been a privileged team. After the humiliating loss to the Royals on Thursday, I wrote that Yankees pride had left the building, along with Mystique and Aura. The Yankees lost their season-high fourth straight last night with their ace CC Sabathia on the mound.
Girardi, general manager Brian Cashman and the Yankees have not made it all that easy for the prideful Posada either. It has been an ugly situation for quite some time.
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This is not a temporary slump. Consider the Yankees were 29-30 from Aug. 1 to the end of the regular season last season and you begin to understand that these 2011 Yankees, with a home-heavy schedule so far, are in trouble.
They have looked old, sloppy and even disinterested. And last night it really got ugly.
The Mets have gotten all the heat in this town, and deservedly so, but the Yankees are underwhelming and have shown no signs of breaking out. They are 16th in the majors in batting average with a .250 mark, and they are 12th overall in pitching with a 3.78 ERA.
They are middle of the pack millionaires in so many ways.
Still, the question is 'Are the Yankees in trouble?' and to that I think I'd have to say yes. Coming into the season, I thought Boston was the favorites to win the division, and after the Yankees allowed them to survive their terrible start I still believe that's the case. So, I guess I'd have to say yes they are in trouble. But most of that has to do with the team they've put together and not Jorge Posada being frustrated because he's hitting under the Mendoza line.
So what do you think? Answer the poll below:
