Yankees' meltdown for the ages in ALCS Game 3 encapsulates current title drought

If Game 7 of the 2001 World Series and Game 7 of the 2004 ALCS didn't exist, this might be the worst playoff loss in modern New York Yankees history. The manner in which they blew Game 3 of the 2024 ALCS against the Cleveland Guardians will go down as one of the biggest chokes any fan will ever see.

After taking a 4-3 lead in the top of the eighth on Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton homers off Emmanuel Clase, the Yankees took that momentum and gave it right back in classic fashion. This team has proven time and time again that they are a group of pushovers, and did so on Thursday in emphatic fashion.

Aaron Boone's overuse of the same bullpen arms finally came back to bite him in a manner fans were waiting to happen. He used Luke Weaver and Clay Holmes for the seventh straight game, and both finally melted down to the fullest.

On an 0-2 count against Lane Thomas in the bottom of the ninth with two outs, Weaver eventually somehow got the count full, and then served up a strike right down broadway. Thomas belted a double to center field. The next batter, Jhonkensy Noel, a rookie who was pinch hitting, crushed a game-tying two run homer.

This, by the way, came after the Yankees could only get one run across in the top of the ninth with runners on second and third with nobody out. It was another case of failing to maximize even the easiest of opportunities. Austin Wells struck out yet again as he continues to swing under every fastball thrown to him, and Juan Soto was fooled looking at strike three. Hindsight is 20/20, but this is a narrative fans have been up in arms about all year long. This team does not cash in when it needs to. It leaves the door open time and time again for their opponents to kick it down.

In the top of the 10th, Anthony Volpe swung out of his shoes at strike three to strand two runners. And from that point on we knew it was over because Clay Holmes was tasked with keeping everything intact, something he famously cannot do if it's the seventh inning or later.

Holmes gave up a leadoff single and then got the next two outs before serving up a 96 MPH sinker right in David Fry's wheelhouse on a 1-2 count. The Guardians slugger continued his epic postseason story with another clutch hit, walking off the Yankees with a two-run homer. The Yankees looked like they were losing this game from innings 2-7 when they squandered opportunity after opportunity, but nobody saw them losing like this.

7-5, Guards. From leading the series 3-0 to leading 2-1 and having absolutely no bullpen for the remaining two games on the road, the Yankees are in a world of trouble.

It's an indictment of everything. Let's start with the overmanaging. Boone took out Clarke Schmidt after 4 2/3 innings and 78 pitches because he gave up a double with two outs. Then Boone started to burn the bullpen yet again when the Yankees were down by two runs and failed to log a baserunner for three innings. There's almost no chance he can use any of Kahnle, Holmes or Weaver on Friday, because that would be managerial malpractice. Those guys are exhausted, and showed it on Thursday.

While Judge and Stanton woke up the team with their clutch blasts, the Yankees, as a collective, fell apart because it's part of their identity now. They collapse in unimaginable ways. This was their response to two of the most exciting home runs of the entire 2024 postseason. They went 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position to continue that horrid trend. They made multiple defensive miscues that led to runs. They made another out on the bases that stalled an offensive rally. All of it adds up. And it finally came together in a way that could see their playoff run die in its tracks.

It won't be easy to come back from that one. And with the way this team responds to adversity, we wouldn't count on it, either.