When the Yankees stormed out of the gates this past spring, pacing Major League Baseball with a historic record, New York was poised to dominate through the rest of the season, making it back to the World Series for the first time since 2009.
Instead, a collapse in the second half, a barrage of injuries and a showdown with a juggernaut in the postseason had the Yankees watching the Fall Classic from home for the 13th year in a row.
Reflecting on what turned out to be another failure in the postseason, Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner told Meredith Marakovits of YES Network that he's "disappointed" with the way this year turned out. Steinbrenner added that what happened with this team down the stretch in 2022 is "unacceptable."
"We had high expectations, particularly the way we started this season, more than half of the season, doing so well," Steinbrenner said. "We're just going to keep plugging away like we did last year. We improved on defense, we improved in other areas, we're going to have to sit down like we always do and see what areas we need improvement in, who we're going to bring back that was with us this year, who we're not. We've got a couple of young kids, three young kids actually, that we're excited to see more and more of. So, we're just going to work. Unacceptable what happened. No doubt about it."
New York did improve in comparison to their performance in 2021, another season that featured flashes of a championship product that ended with a premature exit in the playoffs. In that campaign, the Yankees snuck into the dance, losing right away in the American League Wild Card Game against the rival Red Sox at Fenway Park.
This time around, New York won 99 games and a division title, advancing to the American League Championship Series. They proceeded to get swept by the Astros, the club that went on to win the World Series.
Steinbrenner and the Yankees will need to be active this winter if they hope to get back to the ALCS and get over the hump in 2023. Right fielder Aaron Judge, along with nine other Yankees, entered free agency this month. While new faces will undoubtedly be added this offseason, everything starts with Judge and whether or not the superstar slugger will return or sign elsewhere.
Steinbrenner told Marakovits that he has had "more than one" conversation with Judge since the conclusion of this past season, adding that it was a "very position conversation" about keeping him in pinstripes.
"He means a lot to this organization and I made it clear to him we’re gonna do everything we can to make that happen,” Steinbrenner said.
Marakovits' interview with Steinbrenner will air in its entirety on Monday at 7:00 p.m. ET on YES Network.
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