Yankees left in disbelief: 'Didn't finish the goal'

NEW YORK -- Late Wednesday nighttime and into aboriginal Thursday morning, arsenic clubhouse attendees taped unneurotic boxes for players to battalion and everyone said their goodbyes for the winter, a consciousness of disbelief hovered implicit the New York Yankees.

From manager Aaron Boone to superstar Aaron Judge connected down, the Yankees believed this squad was much talented, much complete, amended equipped to grip October than the squad that went to the World Series a twelvemonth ago.

But the 2025 Yankees volition not scope the World Series. They volition not adjacent scope the American League Championship Series. Their play ended Wednesday nighttime with a 5-2 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays successful Game 4 of the ALDS astatine Yankee Stadium to widen their title drought to a 16th season, the 3rd longest successful franchise history.

"It's pugnacious to describe," Judge said. "We didn't bash your job, didn't decorativeness the goal. We had a peculiar radical successful here, a batch of peculiar players that made this twelvemonth fun, but we didn't get the eventual prize truthful we came up short."

Standing successful the Yankees' mode to the title bid was the squad that stood successful their mode of the AL East title. Toronto went 8-5 against the Yankees during the regular play to assertion the tiebreaker that proved to beryllium the quality successful getting a bye done the wild-card circular erstwhile the teams finished with identical AL-best 94-68 records.

But for arsenic disfigured arsenic the archetypal 2 games of the bid were for the Yankees -- Toronto outscored them 23-8 successful 2 blowouts astatine Rogers Centre -- they reported to enactment Wednesday a assured bunch, riding precocious aft Judge, blistering astatine the sheet successful this postseason, delivered a monumental three-run location tally successful Game 3 that helped widen their season.

On paper, they had the pitching advantage: rookie Cam Schlittler, coming disconnected a historical eight-inning show successful the wild-card series, other a slew of acquainted relievers successful the part rivals' 21st gathering of the year. Win, and the unit would displacement to the Blue Jays to debar a illness successful Game 5 astatine home.

Schlittler did not lucifer the ascendant unit that held the Boston Red Sox scoreless successful an elimination crippled the erstwhile week, but helium pitched good capable to springiness New York a accidental to stave disconnected elimination. However, the Yankees fumbled the opportunity, managing conscionable the 2 runs connected six hits. They stranded 2 runners connected basal successful the sixth and seventh inning, and near the bases loaded successful the eighth.

"It's brutal," said Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe, who finished the bid 1-for-15 with 10 strikeouts. "I'm benignant of successful shock."

The Blue Jays collected 12 much hits to decorativeness with 50 successful the bid and outscored New York 34-19 to scope the ALCS for the archetypal clip since 2016. The 34 runs were the fourth-most runs ever scored successful a team's archetypal 4 postseason games. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. led the way, going 9-for-17 with 3 location runs and 9 RBIs, to antagonistic Judge, who went 13-for-26 successful the postseason to go the sixth subordinate each clip to deed astatine slightest .500 successful a azygous postseason.

The quality was successful the supporting casts. Toronto utilityman Ernie Clement recorded 3 consecutive multi-hit games to decorativeness 9-for-14 successful the series. Center fielder Read Entire Article