It Is, But Hadn't Ought to Be

For the 16th consecutive season, and the 24th of the last 25, a team other than the New York Yankees will win the World Series.

Last night, at Yankee Stadium II, the Yankees lost Game 4 of the American League Division Series to the Toronto Blue Jays, 5-1, giving the Jays the series. They will play the survivor of the series between the Detroit Tigers and the Seattle Mariners for the AL Pennant.

There are still 4 teams remaining on the National League side: The defending World Champion Los Angeles Dodgers, the Philadelphia Phillies, the Milwaukee Brewers and the Chicago Cubs.

The Blue Jays did not have a reliable starting pitchers ready, and went with a "bullpen game." The Yankees had rookie sensation Cam Schlittler ready to go.

And what happened?

* 1st inning: Aaron Judge singled with 1 out. He got stranded.

* 2nd inning: Paul Goldschmidt was hit by a pitch with 1 out. He got stranded.

* 3rd inning: Ryan McMahon led off with a home run. Then we went down 1-2-3.

* 4th inning: Giancarlo Stanton led off with a walk. This leadoff walk triggered no Cliché Alert, because Jazz Chisholm Jr., one of last night's heroes, grounded into a double play.

* 5th inning: The Yankees went down 1-2-3.

* 6th inning: Judge was intentionally walked with 1 out. Stanton drew a walk with 2 outs. This was the 1st time, aside from McMahon home run, that a Yankee had reached 2nd base. Chisholm grounded to 2nd.

* 7th inning: Goldschmidt led off with a walk. Then, 2 puts. Then, Amed Rosario singled him to 2nd. Then, Trent Grisham popped up.

* 8th inning: 2 outs, then Stanton singled. Chisholm and Ben Rice walked to load the bases. Then Austin Wells hit one deep to center field. But this would be no game-tyong grand slam. It was caught. It would have been a home run in many ballparks. But not at Yankee Stadium. "Little league park," my ass.

* 9th inning: Jasson Domínguez, making his 1st appearance in the series, led off with a double. Rosario flew to left. Grisham grounded to 1st, moving Domínguez to 3rd. Judge singled him home -- the 1st time all night the Yankees got a hit with a runner in scoring position. And then Cody Bellinger struck out, to end the game and the season.

The Yankees did this little, against 8 Toronto pitchers, none of whom lasted 2 full innings. That is what Brian Cashman's lineup, designed to bomb opposing teams out of the yard, did in a win-or-go-home game. At home, in their alleged little league park.

You'll notice that I haven't yet said how well Schlittler did. Well, the kid deserved a better fate: He threw 88 pitches, 69 of them strikes, in 6 1/3rd innings, having allowed 2 runs on 7 hits and no walks.

When Aaron Boone took him out of the game, he had just allowed a grounded that a Chisholm error turned into men on 1st and 3rd with 1 out. He was in a little bit of trouble, and it was only half his fault. But Boone saw the pitch total, and panicked.

And, of course, he brought in Devin Williams, more than any single player responsible for the Yankees' failure to win the AL Eastern Division this season, and this get home-field advantage for this series. And, of course, he allowed both runners to score.

That was the game, right there. Would Schlittler have gotten out of it? Maybe, maybe not. But he had earned the right to try. Except Boone and Cashman don't believe in pitchers' rights.

Camilo Doval allowed an additional run in the 8th. Final score: Those pesky Blue Jays 5, those hopeless Yankees 1. Season over.

The Good: We won 94 games despite all the injuries. We made the Playoffs. The Mets didn't, a tremendous embarrassment for them. We not only won a Playoff round, but, in so doing, we knocked our most hated rivals, the Boston Red Sox, out of the Playoffs.

For most teams, that would be considered a successful season. But the New York Yankees are not most teams.

The Bad: When we most needed big hits, both in the regular season and in 3 of the 4 games of the ALDS, this lineup, statistically as good as any lineup ever assembled, failed. Cashman continues to acquire players who fail, or get hurt, when we need them most. And Boone -- whether you believe he's following Cashman's orders, or making dumb decisions on his own -- continues to make bad decisions with the players available to him.

The Ugly: No World Series wins in 16 years. Just 2 Pennants in 22 years. Just 1 World Series win in 25 years. For most teams, that would be okay. But, again, the New York Yankees are not most teams.

And now, for the 16th year in a row, we have to spend an entire year, until at least late October 2026, hearing from fans of the other 29 teams that the Yankees "suck" and "choke."

Including teams that didn't make the Playoffs, like the Mets. Including teams that haven't won a Pennant in over 30 years, like the Blue Jays. Including the Red Sox, whom we eliminated.

As Boone’s predecessor as Yankee manager, Joe Girardi, who managed the 2009 World Series win, likes to say, "It's not what you want."

As Boone so often says, "It is what it is."

John Greenleaf Whittier said, "For all sad words of tongue and pen, the saddest are these, 'It might have been.'"

But Bret Harte -- another poet, not a "professional wrestler" -- reminded us, "More sad are these we daily see:

'It is, but hadn't ought to be.'"