Yankees: 3 players we're officially worried about heading into ALDS

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Spirits are high after the Yankees advanced to the ALDS, but it’s important to be realistic.

The New York Yankees are set for a date with the Tampa Bay Rays in the ALDS after their Wild Card Series Game 2 victory over the Cleveland Indians, which was an instant playoff classic.

For the most part, the Bombers look ready in all facets of the roster with the exception of the bullpen, and we’ll get to that soon. Gerrit Cole dominated in his Yankees playoff debut, the offense scored 22 runs in two games at Progressive Field, and the defense has kept things tight after largely shaky year. Even Masahiro Tanaka largely looked fine after dealing with that weather delay fiasco.

But all is not rosy. Some hitters are still slumping, and anything can really turn in a flash. That’s been the case all year, so why would it change when the stakes are the highest?

Fans should tread lightly in terms of their confidence in these three players ahead of the start to the ALDS on Monday.

New York Yankees relief pitcher Zack Britton /

3. Zack Britton

The Yankees can’t feel confident about Zack Britton in the postseason.

On top of Zack Britton being unable to perform in split-inning duty, the left-hander doesn’t have a good postseason track record. He owns a 3.79 ERA and 1.42 WHIP in 18 career games, 12 of which have come with New York. His 15 walks across 19 innings is a serious red flag.

Two of those free passes were issued on Wednesday night, which put the Yankees in a jam and eventually cost them the lead. He threw just 10 strikes out of his 24 total pitches. He looked pretty bad. He was charged with two earned runs when Jonathan Loaisiga couldn’t get the job done and allowed a pinch-hit double to Jordan Luplow.

While Britton was a force during the regular season, maintaining a 1.89 ERA and 1.00 WHIP in 19 innings, he largely flourished in the closer role when Aroldis Chapman was away from the team as he recovered from COVID-19. Britton just doesn’t feel as if he’s as reliable and comfortable in another role.

He’s the Yankees’ setup man, and he was deployed in the sixth inning on Wednesday night. He needs to get used to being utilized in other spots, but it doesn’t seem like he can. Manager Aaron Boone clearly won’t be amending his usage of the left-hander, so Britton’s going to be an edge-of-your-seat appearance throughout much of the postseason.

New York Yankees relief pitcher Adam Ottavino /

2. Adam Ottavino

Where in the world is Yankees reliever Adam Ottavino?

Well, we know where he is. He’s in relief pitcher purgatory because Boone doesn’t know how to use him. After an incredible debut regular season with the Bombers, Otto disappeared in the postseason and was utterly shelled by the Houston Astros (and didn’t make things easy in his lone ALDS appearance vs the Twins, either).

His 1.90 regular-season ERA was supplanted by a disgusting 11.57 mark with a 3.00 WHIP in 3.1 innings of playoff duty. Then came the six-run inning in 2020 against the Toronto Blue Jays, which seemingly broke the man.

He was finally getting back on track over the last few weeks, but then ended the season by allowing one run on five hits in one inning of work. Both times he was called upon, he failed to pitch a full inning, and his slider was off, despite it appearing to make its way back between Sept. 17 and Sept. 22.

And last night? Boone didn’t even consider bringing in the right-hander, even to counteract a light-swinging righty in Luplow. We never saw him warming up, and the manager opted for Loaisiga over Otto, and if we’re being honest, Loaisiga hasn’t been much more impressive after coming off the injured list.

So why are we worried? Because Otto’s a $9 million reliever that the Yankees quite literally need, especially with no days off during the ALDS and ALCS. We’re worried that there won’t be enough reinforcements — which Otto was believed to be, and a good one at that! — if Boone doesn’t trust him.

Aaron Judge #99 of the New York Yankees /

1. Aaron Judge

Yankees slugger Aaron Judge is still slumping regardless of what you think.

Aaron Judge kickstarted the Yankees’ offense on Tuesday by uncorking a two-run homer off Shane Bieber to give the team a 2-0 lead they never looked back from. That set the tone for Game 1 and played an immeasurable role in the Wild Card Series win.

However, Judge has just two playoff extra-base hits ever since blasting “New York, New York” at Fenway Park, and we can’t help but be concerned. He’s just 11 for his last 50 postseason at-bats with two homers, four RBI, 16 strikeouts and 10 walks. Even more problematic is his current slide.

Ever since coming off the injured list on Sept. 16, Judge is 8 for his last 44 with one home run, four RBI and 17 strikeouts. That momentous home run will quickly make you forget about all of that, though, and truth be told, if he keeps hitting timely home runs, everyone will dismiss the overall struggles. However, we can’t bank on that given the wackiness of this year’s postseason.

Initially, everyone was concerned about Giancarlo Stanton because he’d looked really bad ever since coming off the IL the same week as Judge, but he went 2-for-7 with three runs scored, two home runs, three RBI and two walks, one of which came in the ninth inning in Game 2 to keep the Yankees alive, in the Wild Card Series.

And Judge missed most of the team’s action against Tampa this year, so it seems he’ll be facing an uphill battle in terms of getting back on track at the plate.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 25: Aroldis Chapman #54 of the New York Yankees smiles after pitching during the ninth inning against the Miami Marlins at Yankee Stadium on September 25, 2020 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images)

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3 Yankees we’re officially worried about heading into ALDS