2 mind-bending stats prove Yankees' clutch hitting allergy is very real

The 2025 New York Yankees are a masterwork. They maintained one of baseball's best offenses ... before June began. They've improved the swing-and-miss in their bullpen — but that hasn't prevented a sweat-pouring implosion every ~nine games. They surged to 17 games over .500 with a seven-game division lead, but can't beat anyone in that division head-to-head. Within a two-week span, they went from a high-performing team that was able to overcome their imperfections to a melted marshmallow leaking fluid from 18 holes.

The Yankees remain relentlessly dedicated to their process, which always seems to wind up with them in October (success?), a month where they end up not winning it all (failure). If you're seeking continuity in the process, look no further than the way they've performed in extra-innings games after being gifted a free runner in scoring position since the post-COVID rule changes were enacted.

New York has always been able to ride the wave at home, sporting one of the game's best records in extras at Yankee Stadium since the Ghost Runner first said "boo". On the road, it's a different story; they dropped to a ghastly 12-27 on Tuesday night, far and away the worst in baseball. Why? Think about the rigidity of the Yankees' process. The Ghost Runner doesn't appear in extra innings in October. So why should they plan for it or care? Whether they're going for multiple runs or just trying to push a single run across the plate — something Aaron Boone has plainly stated he goes back and forth on, depending on personnel — it doesn't work. But you can bet Brian Cashman sleeps well at night knowing he's only giving away a few regular-season games, and that the rules will change once the baseball begins to "matter" again.

Now, they might be in real danger, though, as that head-thudding reality has begun to creep into other portions of crunch time, expanding past the 10th and 11th. Maybe it'll magically turn around. That always seems to work. But, for now, the 2025 Yankees have been the least clutch offense in baseball throughout every inning of every game, ranking -6.10 in FanGraphs' clutch stat. That means it's no illusion. Their play really does precipitously drop when the heat is on.

And as for those extra innings ... the Yankees' woes with runners in scoring position have been magnified thirty-fold this year. These futile numbers are staggering.

Yankees have two hits in extra innings, are the least clutch team in baseball

If it makes you feel better (it won't), the 2017 Yankees were also horrendous in this regard, posting a -7.05 before surging through October in an inspiring playoff run. There's a reason that team went 91-71 in the regular season, underperforming their pythagorean record by nine full games (they should've gone 100-62 based on performance metrics).

But all that really does is make you harken back to when things were fresher and newer and we weren't infuriated by them yet. That team also coalesced in October around an ... ahem, different manager.

Tuesday night was the fifth — FIFTH! — game of the season in which the Yankees held a multi-run lead in the top of the seventh and fumbled it. That happens to good teams ... twice a year? Thrice, if you live in hell? The Yankees are poised to double that in 2025 — and, of course, when they give away the lead, they struggle to punch back. When they survive to extras, they have to rely on a well-timed wild pitch; otherwise, they won't be able to accept the gift Rob Manfred has given them.

Maybe 4.5 years of data is about to reverse course. Until that miracle occurs, it sure seems like the Yankees' Achilles heel is killing them this time instead of merely wounding them.