Jordan Montgomery's continued dominance is another indictment on Yankees' management

Remember when Aaron Boone said the rest of the league was "closing the gap" on the New York Yankees? Perhaps no other team is more representative of that than the Texas Rangers, who went from a 60-win team in 2021 to a World Series contender in 2023.

Meanwhile, the Yankees went from World Series contender in 2018 to playoff chum from 2020-2022 to completely irrelevant in 2023.

Oh yeah, and remember when Brian Cashman said Jordan Montgomery wouldn't be making postseason starts for the Yankees last year when he was traded for Harrison Bader at the deadline?

At the time, fans agreed with that because Monty wasn't exactly a worldbeater and the team had better starters ... but now that he's absolutely dominated outside of New York for over a year now, can't we chalk that up as another Cashman blunder?

Montgomery was traded to the Rangers at this year's deadline after an impressive full-season campaign with the Cardinals. He's picked up right where he left off and now figures to be a key rotational piece once Texas reaches the postseason.

Jordan Montgomery's continued dominance is another indictment on Yankees' management

In true Yankees fashion, though, after Monty went eight scoreless on Monday night, Aroldis Chapman surrendered the game-tying home run in the ninth and the Rangers lost in extras. So at least Chappy's gone!

In Montgomery's case, there's always the existing possibility that a good deal of players perform better outside of the harsh conditions of New York, where the expectations and spotlight are objectively overbearing and difficult to handle.

Then again, Monty held his own in the Bronx. He had a 3.94 ERA, 3.90 FIP and 1.23 WHIP in 98 games with the Bombers. Fans didn't exactly trust him in the biggest of spots, but one could argue the Yankees also failed to further develop his offerings (as he detailed upon arriving in St. Louis) and ability to handle the high-leverage situations needed to build his pedigree.

This trade is officially a loss for the Yankees, no matter how you look at it. Even Bader propelling New York in the ALDS last year doesn't make up for the lost starting pitching production that was badly needed down the stretch in 2022 and for all of 2023.

But worst of all is Montgomery leveling up with a change of scenery and better advice from his new coaching staffs, which is nothing new for the Yankees. Until changes are made up top, expect this to be an exhausting narrative that repeats itself annually.