The New York Yankees head into the most important game of their season thus far. The Yanks must knock off the Boston Red Sox in Game 3 of the Wild Card series on Thursday night. Otherwise, the result could be disastrous for the Bronx Bombers.
New York and Boston entered the series roughly neck and neck. While the Yankees finished ahead of the Red Sox in the standings, both clubs played fairly evenly throughout the season. In Game 1, the Red Sox took the lead on the heels of a dominant performance from Garrett Crochet.
In Game 2, it was the Yankees’ turn to flip the tables on the strength of their bullpen’s tremendous outing.
But Game 3 is an entirely different story. The Yankees will need their offense and pitching to come through. It will be up to their bullpen to carry the load, as there’s no telling how long projected starter Cam Schlittler could go in the game.
Plus, New York’s offense must bust loose. Thus far, Aaron Judge has been relatively quiet, at least by his standards. Giancarlo Stanton and Cody Bellinger haven’t really hit their strides yet. If these stars fail to show up in Game 3, it could be an extremely long offseason of questions surrounding the Yankees’ ability to get over the hump and back to a World Championship.
Aaron Boone Could Face the Wrath of Yankees’ Backlash in Loss
If the Yankees fail to pull through, it could be Aaron Boone who faces the brunt of the fan and media backlash. The Yankees’ manager has done a great job keeping the team afloat amid injuries and inconsistency at times.
But if the Yanks can’t get past Boston on Thursday night, it could very well be Boone who takes one for the team. After all, would there be a massive overhaul in the Bronx? Sure, the Yankees will tweak the roster during the offseason. But then again, it would be much easier to wipe the slate clean with a new manager.
This offseason has already featured several managerial firings. So, it wouldn’t be out of the question to see the Yankees also follow suit. There’s no indication that Aaron Boone could be on the block. A win on Thursday night would erase such speculation.
But the club will need to rise to the occasion in order to avoid utter disaster.
Beating Boston Won’t Be Enough for Fans
Honestly, beating the Red Sox, while satisfying for Yankees’ fans, won’t be enough. The only thing that can quell the thirst in the Bronx is a World Series. Last season was a major step forward. The Yanks made it to the Fall Classic and lost to a powerhouse Dodgers team.
This time around, getting back to the Fall Classic will just be the beginning for Yankees’ fans. While there’s no telling it’ll be the Yankees and Dodgers in a rematch, the opponent doesn’t really matter in the end. The only thing that matters is winning.
Yankees on Brink of Disaster in Game 3 vs Red Sox