Yankees' clutch win over Astros was hopefully fueled by stern Old-Timers' Day message

Thank goodness for that! The New York Yankees nearly blew another game, but scratched and clawed their way back to a much-needed 5-4 victory on Saturday over the Houston Astros. They went down early when the first batter of the game homered, and then they battled back after the bullpen blew a late two-run lead. Trent Grisham belted the go-ahead homer in the bottom of the eighth and Yankee Stadium erupted. David Bednar recorded another five-out save.

But it all wasn't all that great leading up to the game. Friday night's loss was tied with about seven others for "worst of the Yankees' season" and it directly preceded Old-Timers' Day on Saturday. The celebration for the 25th anniversary of the 2000 World Series just didn't feel like it mattered, to be honest. The Yankees were 19-30 over their last 49 games, which was the worst in the American League.

But it ended up being a pleasant time, and a hopeful tone-shifter. Countless Yankees of yesteryear spoke to the media before (and during) the game and reminded everybody what made those dynasty teams so great.

Those years didn't always feature the most dominant groups. In fact, that 2000 World Series team was 87-74. Eight other teams in MLB that year had a better record than New York. But the Bombers had the postseason experience, the attitude and the grit.

The current Yankees showed a little bit of that on Saturday in their win over the Astros, which featured a team effort with numerous clutch performances on both sides of the ball. And fans are hoping that was fueled by the messages sent by former Yankees players.

Yankees' clutch win over the Astros was the hopeful beginning of an attitude shift

Willie Randolph was on Joe Torre's coaching staff for the last great stretch of Yankees baseball (and won the 1977 World Series with the team), and he was blunt with what he told reporters. He said other teams aren't afraid of the Yankees anymore, referring to the team as "us" — a clear indicator of how former players and coaches still take this seriously and feel part of the organization.

And it's obvious there's a noticeable difference between these generations. Jorge Posada was another figure to make his feelings clear, saying the current Yankees "gotta get a little angry" and "can't be friends with everybody."

Did the players in the clubhouse catch wind of this? Were they hearing what the old timers were saying? Did the old timers make it a point to approach some of the guys and give them advice or a piece of their mind? Did it wake them up a little bit?

We can only hope! Torre also appeared in the booth during the broadcast and stressed the need for a "feel" for the game, and that an over-reliance on analytics or even a rigid process can be detrimental when playing a game where randomness rules all. It felt like that was a tactfully pointed comment at the Yankees of the last eight years, as they've been hell bent on their processes and have hardly acted with gut instinct, which many feel has been their demise.

Nonetheless, Saturday's victory took guts, so riding this momentum alongside the support and wisdom from those in attendance today feels like it could be a turning point if the 2025 season ends on any sort of positive note.