Yankees: There’s no doubt now, Girardi’s job is on the line

Yankees fans and all fans of baseball know it’s not how you look when things are going well, it’s how you look when things begin to fall apart. And for the manager of the Yankees, his fate will be determined by what happens over the next thirty games, or perhaps even the next four.

The Yankees on the bubble manager, Joe Girardi, once had a team he could manage robotically. It was a team stacked with overpriced veterans who came to the ballpark ready to play. And he could start with his lineup at the top, penciling in Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, Mark Teixeira and so on down until he came to the pitcher when he could comfortably pen in the name, Masahiro Tanaka.

These were not very good teams, though here and there they made a run for it. But most everyone knew these teams were too old, too tired, and too rich to cause much damage to anyone.

That all changed last season, though, when Brian Cashman went on a hunting expedition to find the best young talent in baseball he could poach from other teams. Gradually, the stultifying payroll was reduced and, suddenly, the Yankees had more major league talent than they knew what to do with.

Over time, queries were seen in the media, including one from this writer asking, Is Girardi the right man for this job, with the backbone of the story wondering if he would be able to “handle” the young talent he was inheriting.

And for a while, when the team was firing on all cylinders and Aaron Judge was being widely heralded as the next Babe Ruth, and even given a special seating section at the Stadium as fans flocked to see their new hero, all was merry and golden in the Big Apple.

And not by coincidence, as late as July 27, I wrote another story, but this one was titled, Six reasons to bring Girardi back in 2018. Which leaves me open to the charge I am very fickle as a writer. But, I don’t see it that way because you call ’em as you see ’em. And right now, Girardi is hanging on by a thread.

Girardi has seen this coming

Girardi is far from stupid, and he has seen what’s happening to his team for some time now. And it’s no coincidence that his temper has raged on the field twice now in the last ten days as his frustration has boiled over, leading to his ejection on both occasions.

So maybe it’s high time we asked a few question as they relate to Girardi’s decisions of late.

What about the Bullpen by Committee, how’s that working out for the team? And when will Girardi say out loud that Dellin Betances and David Robertson are your two best in the bullpen and use them accordingly?

And why, all of a sudden, is Jacoby Ellsbury in the Yankees lineup every day. I thought he was dead and buried and Girardi had signed up on it.

Above all else, the Yankees lack consistency now. And the only way for the team to overcome that is for Girardi to be consistent in defining roles and awarding playing time, for better or worse, based on those judgments.

Girardi has been fiddle-faddling around for the last three weeks trying to find “the answer.” Well, maybe there is no answer, and Girardi needs only to go with his gut in making some choices that give the team the stability and, therefore, the confidence they need to carry this thing through.

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For Girardi, he has no choice in the matter. His job next season, if he cares about it at all, depends on it. And whatever he chooses as his personnel to close out the season, I’m down with it. At least I’ll know what I’m dealing with. And more importantly, so will the players.

As always, I invite you to share your thoughts and comments about this story or anything Yankees on the Yanks Go Yard Facebook page.

Update – Breaking News

In lieu of the pending supensions of Sanchez and Romine, the Yankees have acquired minor league catcher Erik Kratz from the Cleveland Indians for cash considerations. A roster move will be needed if he joins the team to fill in during their absence. The league is expected to rule on their appeals tomorrow.