Ethan’s NY Sports Journal: Yanks Not Playing October Ball

Penned by Rye resident, Osborn Elementary graduate and incoming
sixth grader Ethan Sears, Ethan's NY Sports
Journal column will report on and analyze New
York metro sports teams. Today Sears tells us the Yanks are not playing October ball.
Sears is a two
time attendee of Sports
Broadcasting Camps.

On Wednesday when Dan Johnson hit a two run home run to put the Rays into the lead for good, the thing that may have came into the mind of a frustrated Yankees fan was that the Yankees simply put don’t have the magic this year that they  had last year.

The atmosphere at Yankee Stadium is not the same as last year. Is this because of the lack in having the spark that Johnny Damon and Chuck Knoblauch have provided in years past? Or is it because the replacements for Johnny Damon and Hideki Matsui (Austin Jackson included) have not performed well?

Nick Johnson played a couple of games without hitting before going on the DL with an inflamed tendon in his wrist which required season ending surgery. The main move for the Yanks was giving up hot prospects Austin Jackson and Phil Coke for Curtis Granderson. Granderson has batted .247 and still cannot hit lefties. The big piece that the Yankees gave up – Austin Jackson – is hitting .300 and is a major candidate for Rookie of the Year.

Another big off season move was bringing Javier Vazquez to New York in exchange for Melky Cabrera. Although Cabrera has not been good in Atlanta, Vazquez has not worked out in New York. Versus two possible postseason rivals, the Yankees have been swept in three games by the Rangers and lost two out of three to the Rays. The Yanks don’t look like they can contend in serious October baseball.