Yankees lineup change Aaron Boone needs to make before ALCS Game 3

The New York Yankees have a 2-0 lead in the ALCS against the Guardians with the series headed back to Cleveland on Thursday. Overall, the Yanks did just enough to swipe their two home games, but the offense has left a lot to be desired.

This team is still failing to cash in with runners in scoring position (they are now 8-for-52 in the playoffs). They continue to make sloppy baserunning gaffes. They are averaging just one home run per game despite their calling card being ... home runs.

Not complaining! Just stating the facts. The Yankees have gotten this far in spite of their offense. The entire pitching staff has been near-flawless while manager Aaron Boone has pressed all the right buttons on that front, though we are worried about the bullpen's longevity now that Luke Weaver and Clay Holmes have pitched in every game so far (and Tommy Kahnle's seen five of the six contests).

This trend cannot sustain if the Yankees want to lift the Commissioner's Trophy in a few weeks. They've scored just 25 runs across six games and have put a great strain on the rotation and bullpen. It's time for Boone to act with intent when making lineup decisions, just as he's been doing with the pitching.

Yankees lineup change Aaron Boone needs to make before ALCS Game 3

In short, we love Austin Wells. He's one of the most promising rookies in the league. But it can also be true that he no longer has any business batting cleanup for the Yankees in the ALCS.

After finishing the season with an insane 8-for-72 slump with 20 strikeouts in his final 21 games, Wells has gone an unfathomable 2-for-24 in the playoffs and has struck out 10 times. His two RBI and two walks in Game 1 of the ALDS were swell, but it's been all downhill from there. So here's what needs to be done.

For as much as fans complained about Anthony Rizzo returning to the lineup despite the success of Jon Berti and Oswaldo Cabrera, Rizzo's clearly able to handle the moment even when dealing with an injury. He's already 3-for-7 with a double and a walk in the first two games of the ALCS. Will that sustain? We have no idea. But nothing can be worse than what Wells is doing right now. Here's what the Yankees' lineup should look like come Thursday:

1. 2B Gleyber Torres
2. RF Juan Soto
3. CF Aaron Judge
4. 1B Anthony Rizzo
5. DH Giancarlo Stanton
6. 3B Jazz Chisholm Jr.
7. SS Anthony Volpe
8. C Austin Wells
9. LF Alex Verdugo

The Yankees clearly want to avoid stacking righties in the lineup and they should have more flexibility than this, but wells, Chisholm and Verdugo just haven't come close to doing enough to warrant getting moved up in the lineup. And somehow Verdugo has been eons better than the other two.

All of Torres, Soto, Judge, Stanton and Volpe can't move from their spots in the lineup because of the positive production, as well as the likely matchup conflict. Boone must get creative with Rizzo, Wells, Chisholm and Verdugo. Keeping the lineup static to watch mediocrity each and every night is not a championship recipe.

Earlier in the season when Wells was struggling, he was at least making good contact and putting up some really good at-bats. The same cannot be said at this very moment (except for his final plate appearance of Game 2, a well-struck out). He has a lot on his plate as the team's starting catcher, so some of the burden must be lifted off him during his first career playoff run.

Boone's been riding with the hot hand in the bullpen. The same must be done with the middle of the order. There's no "waiting to see" if things turn around. Wells has 10 hits since the beginning of September. This is a decision that should've been made long ago, and the Yankees are lucky it hasn't resulted in worse outcomes.