(Photo By Winslow Townson/Getty Images)
The concept of “clutchness” is extremely volatile and subjective.
Some people think it is a “gene” which some players are born with; while others seem to believe it depends on opposition, situation, and even the mood at one specific moment.
Whichever option is true, the New York Yankees haven’t had too many clutch performances this season or last.
To put it another way: they haven’t been clutch collectively and consistently in the last two years.
For one reason or another, they have failed to execute in late innings several times.
Close plays, defensive errors, mental blunders, baserunning mistakes, bad luck, and mediocre bullpen play have combined to give the Yanks a league-high 12 walk-off losses, per MLB stats expert Katie Sharp.
“Yankees have 12 walkoff losses since the start of last season. That’s the most of any team in MLB in that span,” she tweeted.
Yankees have 12 walkoff losses since the start of last season. That’s the most of any team in MLB in that span.
— Katie Sharp (@ktsharp) July 16, 2023
Of course, the pressure cooker that is playing in New York might have played a role, too.
A relaxed, focused player will make better decisions and execute better.
A nervous, anxious player is more prone to mistakes that can cost games in the late innings.
It’s as simple as that.
The team was the victim of a new walk-off loss on Monday night, as the Los Angeles Angels won the game by a final of 4-3 with a single in the bottom of the 10th frame.
Before that, Michael King left a fastball too close to the heart of the plate that Shohei Ohtani punished for a game-tying two-run homer.
Unless the Yankees start executing and playing better baseball from the seventh inning on and especially in the ninth, they will lose a lot of painfully close games.
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