With Red Sox in World Series, here are 3 things Yankees fans can look forward to for next season

Yankees fans are feeling pretty down again after watching the Red Sox disperse the Astros in five games to win the American League pennant. After all, this was supposed to be the year the Yankees would be back on top and their rivals in Beantown continue to twist the knife into the 2018 season.

While the Red Sox will be competing for a World Series title and the Yankees are stuck golfing in October, it may be hard to find any optimism. While next season seems distant at the moment, there is reason to look forward to 2019 despite Boston's recent run. 

Former Yankees pitcher Chien-Ming Wang is best known for his success as one of the Yankees' top pitchers in the mid-2000s, but it was also what happened next that has him in the spotlight of an upcoming documentary set to be released in New York on Oct. 26.

Wang, who enjoyed two spectacular 19-win seasons with the Yankees in 2006 and 2007, posting a 3.63 and 3.70 ERA, respectively, was plagued by injuries later in his career. With years off in between appearances on the mound, he managed to string together stints with the Nationals and Royals before retiring. 

Yankees GM Brian Cashman says teams have called to inquire about trading for catcher Gary Sanchez. Despite the interest and the fact that Sanchez had an awful year in 2018, Cashman says he is unavailable.

"He will be our starting catcher next year," Cashman told Michael Kay on Wednesday during an appearance on ESPN Radio. 

"I think some bad luck early led to trying too hard ... and then his confidence wavered," Cashman said. "I think toward the end of the regular season, and in the second season, you saw he started to get his mojo back."

Now that he's played in both the American and National Leagues, Giancarlo Stanton wants neither 2018 pennant winner to win the World Series.

The Yankees slugger joked to TMZ Sports that he's "rooting for a draw" in this year's Fall Classic, no matter who's in it.

After downing the Bombers in the ALDS, the Red Sox sent the reigning champion Astros packing in the ALCS Thursday night. Boston will now face either the Brewers or Dodgers (who lead 3-2 in the NLCS) in the World Series.

Andy Martino, SNY.tv | Twitter |

The Yankees will hold their annual pro scouting meetings next week, during which Brian Cashman and his staff will determine an offseason strategy, including which players to pursue, and which of their own free agents to retain.

Cashman, along with top lieutenants Michael Fishman, Tim Naehring, Jean Afterman and others on the staff will huddle, as they do annually, and hash through the many issues facing the roster. Hal Steinbrenner is also expected to participate to some degree.

According to major league sources, and basic common sense, here are some of the key topics...

Yankees shortstop Didi Gregorius underwent Tommy John surgery on Wednesday at the Hospital for Special Surgery in Manhattan, the team announced.

The surgery, which went as expected, was performed by Dr. David Altchek. 

It was announced last week that Gregorius needed the surgery after injuring his elbow during the ALDS, but manager Aaron Boone was hopeful Gregorius will be with the team for most of the 2019 season.

Chris Carelli, SNY.TV Facebook | Twitter | About Me | Archives: As the Yankees have seemingly reset their luxury tax penalty, fans hope the organization has one thing in mind -- go big in free agency this offseason. Luckily for the Yankees, two megastars will be on the open market, both of whom are consistently linked to the bright lights of New York -- Bryce Harper and Manny Machado.

While the Yankees will have the money to try to bring in both players, which one do they need more considering the club's immediate and long-term roster configuration?

The case for Harper

Aaron Boone became a Yankees legend on today's date in 2003, when his walk-off homer against Tim Wakefield of the Red Sox in the 11th inning of Game 7 of the ALCS sent New York to the World Series.

Boone's homer came three innings after the Yankees' stirring eighth inning comeback that happened after Sox manager Grady Little left an exhausted Pedro Martinez in one inning too long.

The Yanks went on to lose the World Series to the Marlins in six games, but Boone's homer was etched in the Yankees' lexicon. Click below to see...

Count Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner among those who think Miguel Andujar should win the American League Rookie of the Year award over Shohei Ohtani of the Angels.

"Second year in a row we've got a homegrown kid that's a candidate for Rookie of the Year," Steinbrenner told Don La Greca during an appearance on ESPN radio. "And in my opinion, he should get it."

Andujar, 23, hit .297/.328/.527 with 27 homers and a Yankees-rookie record 47 doubles in 149 games. He was a major liability at third base, though, where he was worth -25 DRS (defensive runs saved) in 1,1691 innings. Andujar's likely competition for the award is Angels RHP/DH Shohei Ohtani, who became baseball's first true two-way player since Babe Ruth...

Yankees managing general partner, Hal Steinbrenner, is primed for a busy offseason.

After staying under the luxury tax this season, the Yankees reset their threshold for next season, which means Steinbrenner has a little more wiggle room to work with. But in a recent interview on ESPN's "The Michael Kay Show," it sounded like Steinbrenner doesn't mind living up to his family name and spending big if the player is worth it.

"Look, my family has always been willing to take money that comes off the payroll and put it back in," Steinbrenner said Friday. "We're going to do our best to field a championship-caliber team every single year. This coming year is going to be no different than last."

Former Yankees SS Derek Jeter has made many iconic plays throughout his career. But, on this date in 2001, the most bizarre one of them all came in Oakland against the Athletics in Game 3 of the ALDS. 

The Yankees were down 0-2 in the series, but held a one-run lead when Terrence Long came to the plate with Jeremy Giambi on first base and Mike Mussina on the mound. Long laced a pitch down the right field line, and Giambi got on his horse around the bases as the ball made its way to the corner. 

By the time Shane Spencer got to the ball in right, Giambi was headed for third and had no intentions of stopping there. As Giambi touched the bag, Spencer's throw came into the infield, but it went over the head of cut-off man Tino Martinez. 

As if this week could not get any worse for Yankees fans. 

After being eliminated by the Red Sox in four games in the ALDS and having their AL East rival celebrate in their stadium, former Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez had to appear in a Boston uniform during FS1's NLCS postgame show.

Rodriguez, who played for the Yankees from 2004-16, lost a bet with fellow postgame analyst and Red Sox great David Ortiz and was forced to not only don the Red Sox uniform but also receive a champagne shower from Big Papi himself. 

Chris Carelli, SNY.TV Facebook | Twitter | About Me | Archives

The Yankees' offseason is off to a rocky start.

As if the Yankees weren't dealing with enough disappointment being eliminated from the postseason Tuesday, the club announced Friday that star shortstop, Didi Gregorius, was set to undergo Tommy John surgery. Gregorius reportedly suffered the injury during the American League Division Series, and an MRI after the loss revealed a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his throwing arm.

Luke Voit had such a hot start to his time with the Yankees that manager Aaron Boone believes the 27-year-old has a "leg up" on the first base job heading into next season, according to the New York Post.

Voit, who hit .333 with 14 homers in just 39 games with the Yankees this season, made his big league debut with the Cardinals last season. He struggled in St. Louis, compiling a .246 batting average in 62 games last season before hitting .182 in his first eight games this season. 

But once he was traded to the Yankees, he wound up thriving at first base and even went on to contribute during the postseason when he hit a two-run triple in the AL Wild Card game. 

Andy Martino, SNY.tv | Twitter |

The first blush of reaction, after Yankees PR man Jason Zillo dropped the stunning news on reporters assembled for the team's post-mortem news conference that Didi Gregorius needed Tommy John surgery, was the most obvious: The team needed to pursue Manny Machado in free agency.

But it wasn't Gregorius' injury that made Machado an important item for the Yankees. The 26-year-old superstar was already a target, and rightfully so. The Yankees tried to trade for Machado twice -- last offseason and this July...

Aaron Boone admits he made a mistake. 

The Yankees manager reflected on the 2018 season in a press conference on Friday and acknowledged that he got "greedy" by bringing Luis Severino back out to pitch the fourth inning of Game 3 in the ALDS. 

"Sevy, I didn't feel like he was on top of his game," Boone said. "That's the one I look back and say, alright, I probably got greedy with Sevy in the fourth and he came out and struggled and it snowballed."

Former Yankees manager Joe Girardi will reportedly interview with the Texas Rangers for their managerial vacancy, according to the Dallas Morning News' Evan Grant.

Girardi didn't coach last season but spent time as an MLB Network analyst after the Yankees didn't renew his expiring contract following a 2017 season in which New York came within one game of making the World Series.

The 53-year-old Girardi, who said he would leave open the possibility of returning to managing after he was ousted, was reportedly in consideration for the St. Louis Cardinals' managerial opening in the summer as well, however he did not comment in July. He also interviewed for the Cincinnati Reds' vacancy, according to Grant.

The Yankees may have fell short of their ultimate goal, but do not expect any drastic changes to the coaching staff. 

All of the coaches on manager Aaron Boone's staff are expected to return next season, according to George King of the New York Post. 

First base coach Reggie Willits, third base coach Phil Nevin, bench coach Josh Bard, infield coach Carlos Mendoza and assistant hitting coach P.J. Pillittere will all be back after their first season coaching in pinstripes. 

Yankees manager Aaron Boone is still under fire for his strategy following the ALDS loss to the Red Sox that ended his inaugural season as the skipper. But former Yankees closer Mariano Rivera doesn't understand the scrutiny. 

In fact, Rivera thinks Boone did a "tremendous" job with the Yankees, per Newsday's Laura Albanese. 

Rivera, who was at a fire house in Harlem on Thursday to teach elementary school kids about fire safety, said Boone was the motivator the Yankees hoped him to be in his first season. And with the right offseason moves, this team could certainly make a deeper run into the postseason than they did this year. 

Andy Martino, SNY.tv | Twitter | There are plenty of reasons to worry about and criticize the Yankees, not least of which is that they just dropped an ALDS to a Boston team that they could easily have beaten. Their manager and star offseason acquisition failed in the clutch. They need more pitching than is probably available this winter.

But one criticism that is neither fair nor rational is that the Yankees took a step backwards this year, because they did not reach the American League Championship Series. Last season, of course, they came within one game of the World Series.

A front office's goal is to create a team that can win enough in the regular season to reach the postseason. Then, you see where the randomness of October takes you. This season, Brian Cashman constructed a club that won 100 games, and Aaron Boone led it capably until the final two games. From the standpoint of roster building and management, the season was a success...

The Yankees are 'absolutely convinced' RHP Luis Severino tipped his pitches in Monday's 16-1 loss to the Red Sox in Game 3 of the ALDS, Fancred Sports' Jon Heyman said on WFAN Thursday morning.

Severino, who allowed six runs and seven hits in three-plus innings, surrendered seven batted balls that had exit velocities of at least 100 mph.

Severino's arm slot did not change based on the pitch, according to USA TODAY's Andrew Joseph, but there is a video of Red Sox outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. mouthing the word "fastball" during a second-inning at-bat against Brock Holt...

After Game 4 of the ALDS ended in a loss, the Yankees 2018 season was officially closed. For CC Sabathia, it may have also been the end to an era in pinstripes.

Sabathia is set to be a free agent this offseason, and he has already made it known that he wants to return in 2019. Whether or not the Yankees want that to happen is still up in the air.

But fellow starter Masahiro Tanaka thinks New York should bring back the big lefty for another season...

The Yankees have nine arbitration-eligible players this offseason. Six of them are locks to be offered arbitration, and three of them have a more uncertain Yankees future.

According to MLB Trade Rumors, here's what they're projected to make if offered arbitration, and what the rest of their contract situation is. We'll first tackle the locks to be offered arbitration, followed by the question marks...

Locks

Chris Carelli, SNY.TV Facebook | Twitter | About Me | Archives

Right after being eliminated in the ALDS, questions stirred regarding the slew of free agents that are on the Yankees' roster. Who should stay and who should go?

Zach Britton

Andy Martino, SNY.tv | Twitter | The Yankees are now two seasons into a new era defined by Aaron Judge and a young core. In each of those seasons, they have made the playoffs, but stalled before reaching the World Series. And while they might still be a team on the ascent, GM Brian Cashman faces a tricky offseason, at a time when American League powerhouses like Houston and Boston are ahead of the Yanks.

Here are the major questions the Yankees must confront:

How do they maintain the dominant bullpen?

Mark Teixeira says Aaron Judge made a costly error when he blasted "New York, New York" through the halls of Fenway Park following the Yankees' lone ALDS win over the Red Sox in Game 2.

"You woke a sleeping giant," Teixeira said Wednesday morning on ESPN's "Get Up!" "Aaron Judge has no rings. And I have a ton of respect for Aaron Judge, I think he will have rings. But when you boast -- when you wake a sleeping giant in Boston -- on your way out back to Yankee Stadium and then get your butts kicked two games in a row, I just think that you might want to let your bat do the talking. Because Aaron Judge's bat will talk."

Before their season-ending 4-3 loss to the Red Sox Tuesday night in Game 4 of the ALDS, the Yankees put out a call for the 'Avengers' on Twitter, saying it was 'all on the line.'

Mets pitcher Noah Syndergaard (AKA Thor), who has been voyaging around Europe -- where he became a Viking -- had a response to the Yankees on Wednesday morning.

Click below to see...

In the end, Giancarlo Stanton was far from the only reason the Yankees failed miserably in this ALDS against the Red Sox, but he is the only one making a zillion dollars, coming off an MVP, 59-home run season, and acquired theoretically as something of a final piece to a championship puzzle.

So he is going to have to wear it all winter and into next season, as the most obvious target for fan frustration. And rightly so.

In some ways Stanton is the new Alex Rodriguez from those Yankees-Red Sox wars of the past, the hired-gun superstar who came up small when it counted most -- unable to get a clutch hit throughout this series, despite his many opportunities...

The Yankees' season came to a close in Game 4 of the ALDS against the Red Sox at Yankee Stadium when they were unable to complete a pulsating ninth-inning comeback.

Click below to see how the New York papers reacted... 

Andy Martino, SNY.tv | Twitter |

 All through the fall and winter, it will be as if Aaron Boone didn't help a team win 100 games during his rookie season as a manager, didn't synthesize complex analytics, didn't win over the clubhouse, and didn't handle his media responsibilities with ease and class.

Many Yankee fans will only want to talk about his bullpen management in the division series. And in a sense, that's the deal in New York. When you work for the championship-or-bust Yankees (however silly and dated that mentality may be), you will only win over the public with a World Series win. Or two or three or four.

It was too little, too late for the Yankees. A ninth inning rally gave the Yankees a chance to win the game but Craig Kimbrel righted the ship and got Gleyber Torres to ground out with two runners on to end the game and the Yankees' season. >> Box score

1) The Red Sox bullpen shut down the Yankees until Kimbrel came in and struggled with the strike zone. He allowed two runs on one hit, two walks and a hit batsman but ultimately settled down to finish the job. The final out was decided after a replay review, putting the Red Sox celebration at a momentary halt.

It is uncertain if CC Sabathia will pitch again in the majors, but what is certain is his disdain for umpire Angel Hernandez. 

Sabathia, who took the loss in Tuesday's season-ending 4-3 defeat in the ALDS to the Red Sox, ripped the home plate umpire following the game. 

"I have something to say: Angel Hernandez should not be behind the plate for playoff games," he told reporters. 

If they can make it here, they can make it anywhere. 

The Red Sox champagne celebration following their 4-3 win over the Yankees included the clubhouse speakers blaring Frank Sinatra's "New York, New York" after they eliminated the Bombers from the postseason. 

The song, played after every Yankees game, was played by Aaron Judge as he was leaving Fenway Park following a 6-2 Game 2 win by the Yankees. 

Taking the mound in the a win-or-go-home Game 4 against the Red Sox, Yankees LHP CC Sabathia may have toed the rubber for the last time in pinstripes. And, if that's the case, this definitely isn't the way he wanted to go out. 

It was an eventful first inning for the big lefty, as he saw a bases-loaded scenario with two outs and Ian Kinsler at the plate. He avoided a first-inning surge, though, as Kinsler flew out to Brett Gardner in left field. 

After a quiet second inning, the Red Sox offense turned it up a notch, and Sabathia couldn't handle it. Andrew Benintendi was hit by Sabathia's first pitch of the inning, and Steve Pearce moved him over to third with a single. Then, the regular-season RBI king in J.D. Martinez hit a long sacrifice fly to center field to score the first run of the ballgame. 

The Yankees are on the brink of elimination after an embarrassing 16-1 Red Sox rout in ALDS Game 3 at Yankee Stadium, the most lopsided defeat in their postseason history.

Yankees Notes

The Yankees have their backs against the wall after Boston made Aaron Boone regret sending a struggling (and possibly tardy) Luis Severino back on the mound for the fourth inning. The Sox also pummeled reliever Lance Lynn in that seven-run frame, as former Yankee Nathan Eovaldi went on to shut down his former team, while Brock Holt became the first player ever to hit for the cycle in the postseason...

Chris Carelli, SNY.TV Facebook | Twitter | About Me | Archives: For the second straight year, the Yankees' season is on the brink after their manager failed to make the correct decision. First it was Joe Girardi, then it was Aaron Boone. Can this year's club turn the page as quickly and forcefully as last year's?

In Game 3 of the ALDS Monday night, Boone not only allowed Luis Severino to pitch the remainder of the third inning, he inexplicably pushed his starter out there for the fourth inning. Seven runs later, the rout and ultimate embarrassment was on.

Severino's first pitch of the game was launched 400-plus feet and it didn't get any better from there. His inability to command his fastball led to diminished effectiveness of his slider, allowing the Red Sox to sit dead red. And as a consequence, Boston was incredibly successful when he actually got one over the plate.

John Harper, for SNY.tv | Twitter | 

A day later, despite denials from all involved on the Yankees' side, Ron Darling is standing by his comments that Luis Severino appeared to be late for his warm-up before Monday night's ALDS Game 3 loss to the Red Sox. 

"It seemed unusual to me," Darling told SNY by phone on Tuesday. "That's why I brought it up. A lot of people can disagree, but, really, I don't know how they could."

Darling, the former Met who does analysis on Mets' games for SNY, told a national audience during TBS' broadcast that he saw Severino begin throwing off the bullpen mound at 7:32 p.m., eight minutes before the game was scheduled to start. 

First base umpire Angel Hernandez was almost impossibly bad at his job on Monday night during Game 3 of the ALDS, with three of his safe/out calls at first base overturned after replay review.

Hernandez, who was savaged by the fans at Yankee Stadium while making awful calls against both the Yankees and Red Sox, told Luke Voit at one point during the game that he'll "get the next one right." And Voit wasn't a fan of that attempt at humor.

"These guys are human," Voit said. "They are going to make mistakes. It's tough though, the delays while the play gets reviewed. It kind of breaks up the game."

The Yankees' worst nightmare came true. 

Luis Severino reverted back to the pitcher who struggled much of the second half in Monday's Game 3 against the Red Sox and Aaron Boone left him in a few batters too long as he was knocked out of the game in the fourth inning and the Yankees fell behind, 7-0. 

Severino finished with six earned runs on seven hits and two walks in three innings pitched. Three more runs were charged to him when Lance Lynn was unable to hold the runners he inherited in the fourth inning after Boone chose to send Severino back out to start the inning.

Andy Martino, SNY.tv | Twitter |

Boston was a tougher matchup for Luis Severino than Oakland

The Yankees chose Severino to start the wild card game over J.A. Happ and Masahiro Tanaka in part because his specific stuff played best against the Oakland lineup. As strong an offense as the A's had this year, they were the worst team in baseball in wOBA (weighted on-base average, a metric valued by many front offices) against fastballs 97 mph and above.

The Red Sox were 10th in MLB in that metric, far more suited to handle Severino's heat. And handle it they did, from the first pitch. 

BRONX, N.Y. -- This was a moment when analytics couldn't really help Aaron Boone. Nor could his ability to connect with players, a skill Brian Cashman cited as a primary reason for changing managers last year.

This was, in fact, exactly the type of moment that has become all too under-valued in this era of Ivy League-educated GMs who have taken to hiring cookie-cutter managers mostly to implement data and carry out orders from the baseball ops guys.

In short, watching the game still matters. Making decisions on the fly in the dugout isn't always as easy as it looks from a luxury suite, especially in the cauldron of post-season baseball.

Luis Severino allowed six runs in three-plus innings, including three in a seven-run fourth inning, as the Yankees were pushed to the brink of elimination with a 16-1 loss to the Red Sox in Game 3 of the ALDS on Monday at Yankee Stadium. >> Box score

1) After throwing four scoreless innings in last Wednesday's wild-card game, Severino (0-1) gave up six runs, seven hits and two walks on Monday, getting pulled after he loaded the bases in the fourth. Lance Lynn surrendered a bases-loaded walk to Mookie Betts and a bases-clearing double to Andrew Benintendi that gave the Red Sox a 7-0 lead.

2) Severino's counterpart, Nathan Eovaldi, shut down the Yankees, allowing just one run and five hits in seven innings as the Red Sox took a 2-1 series lead.

David Price got a different kind of "Bronx cheer."

During introductions before Monday's ALDS Game 3, Yankees fans heavily booed every Red Sox player, coach and trainer that was announced, with the exception of Price. 

The Red Sox southpaw was immune from the vitriol and instead received a healthy dose of cheers from the fans at Yankee Stadium.

The ALDS shifts gears as the Yankees return home with the series tied, 1-1, and a chance to take the lead against the Red Sox. 

Yankees Notes

The Yankees jumped all over Red Sox starter David Price, tagging him for three runs and knocking him out of the game after 1.2 innings en route to a 6-2 victory. The Yankees are 2-1 in ALDS Game 3 with the series tied a 1-1 and are 13-6 all-time in ALDS Game 3's. ...Gary Sanchez recorded his first multi-home run postseason game with a pair of blasts in Game 2. Aaron Judge homered in Game 2 and joined Hank Bauer and Johnny Mize as the only MLB players to homer in their first three postseason games. ...Andrew McCutchen knocked in his first career postseason run with a RBI single in Game 2. 

Nobody is quite sure if Luke Voit is the real deal or a flash in the pan, but whatever he may be, the Yankees first baseman is loving every minute of it. 

The 27-year-old slugger wrote about his pinstripe experience for The Players' Tribune ahead of Monday's ALDS Game 3 against the Red Sox and Voit could not be more appreciative of how he has managed to find himself in the thick of the sport's greatest rivalry. 

"This is just so much frickin' fun," he said. 

CC Sabathia is 38 years old, on balky knees, and set for free agency. But he reiterated Monday that he wants to pitch in 2019. 

"I definitely want to play next year," he said before Game 3 of the ALDS at Yankee Stadium. "I'll play anywhere, whoever needs me.''

Sabathia, who gets the start in Game 4 on Tuesday, had a 3.65 ERA and 1.31 WHIP with 140 strikeouts in 153.0 innings (29 starts) during the season. 

Pedro Martinez said Sunday night that Yankees ace Luis Severino wasn't "totally healthy" in the middle of the season and pitched through it, negatively impacting his season as he struggled badly. Severino says the claim from Martinez isn't true.

"I didn't know until I finally spoke to Severino that Severino wasn't totally healthy, and they could not afford to stop him from pitching," Martinez said Sunday on the MLB Network." So that ended up affecting the Cy Young-type of season that he was having and affecting his performance when they needed him the most."

Severino, who has been mentored in a way by Martinez -- who he has worked with during offseasons -- said he didn't know where Martinez got his information, and that he cares about his arm and being healthy. 

The Yankees demolished David Price during his start in Game 2 of the ALDS, but Red Sox manager Alex Cora is ready to turn to Price again -- as a reliever. 

"Obviously we need outs," Cora said, according to Ian Browne of MLB.com. "Actually, we were just talking about him, me and [pitching coach] Dana [LeVangie], and there were a few things that we noticed, actually the last few weeks, that he's not doing the way he did in those 11 outings or whatever it was," Cora said. "I know physically he's fine, and we know where we're going. So most likely we'll use him in some spot, yeah."

And Cora isn't just offering lip service about using Price in relief.

Yankees outfielder Aaron Hicks and manager Aaron Boone are both hopeful the 29-year-old outfielder will return to the lineup for Game 3 of the ALDS on Monday after he aggravated a hamstring injury in Game 1.

"I feel good," Hicks told reporters on Sunday. "When I woke up today, things are just going well. When I was walking around, everything felt pretty much normal."

Hicks, who hit .248 with 27 home runs and 79 RBIs in the regular season, left Friday's Game 1 with a hamstring injury and did not play in Game 2. An MRI came back clean, however the Yankees want to be cautious.