3 Yankees we’re officially worried about heading into ALDS

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.

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.

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.

Yankees bullpen is a major problem heading into ALDS against Rays

The New York Yankees had control for most of Game 2 against the Cleveland Indians but the bullpen once again faltered and blew it before the comeback.