Yesterday, Jake opened up the day with a discussion about what the biggest positive development the Yankees have gotten out of this season has been. If you’ll forgive the shameless piggy-backing off of that topic, I’d like to flip the question on its head and ponder what the worst development has been, what decline in the team’s roster has been the most worrisome and in need of addressing. There are, unfortunately, plenty of areas to look at.
The culprit that has made the most commotion recently has to be the bullpen at large, and there are several offenders here but only one that has definitively regressed from what they were in 2025. David Bednar was solid enough for New York last season after coming over at the deadline, but his tendency to cause a mess before getting down to business has backfired tremendously this year. The other relievers struggling to this point, namely Camilo Doval and Jake Bird, were already problems after coming over as part of that deadline overhauling, with Bird infamously getting demoted after just a few games even.
The rotation has been the deepest strength of the team throughout this year, but there’s one candidate you could point to here in Luis Gil. The 2024 AL Rookie of the Year missed a large portion of last season, but when he returned he was still serviceable with a 3.32 ERA in 57 innings. The same cannot be said about his 2026 campaign, as he got all of four starts before he landed on the IL with a gaudy 6.05 ERA that will all but necessitate a lengthy stay in the minors before he gets a shot in the rotation again. The staff is about to be getting a major boost with Gerrit Cole’s return on Friday, but with Max Fried taking his place on the IL indefinitely they remain one bad break away from needing an arm, yet Gil’s place in the organization is deeply in doubt nowadays.
The lineup has its highlights posted front and center, but when you get down to the bottom of it there are some bats that have severely struggled thus far. Jazz Chisholm Jr. has disappointed after emerging as one of the team’s better bats in his first full season with the team last year, Trent Grisham has been one of the most unlucky batters in baseball trying to follow up on his breakout in 2025, Ryan McMahon has gone from being a subpar bat with elite defense to nearly a negative WAR player, and Austin Wells has been a black hole at the plate for far too long. It would be the hardest to make changes with these players, but you could argue that any one of their declines have been more detrimental to the team’s success than the others. With the full field of choices, what would you say? Which one of them needs to turn it around the most? Which one would be the most damaging to future wins if they don’t?
Before we get back to the field with the Yankees looking to secure a series win in this four-game set, there’s a lot we’ve got ready for Wednesday. Peter has a double-feature out of the gate, first focusing on Cam Schlittler and how he’s renovated his sinker to rise to the top before covering the Rivalry Roundup. Matt gives Bobby Murcer his flowers on what would’ve been his 80th birthday, Kento examines Cody Bellinger’s renewed ability to work walks this year, John walks us through the best spots to avoid the Yankee Stadium speaker noise, and Scott rounds us out with a look at Payton Henry ahead of a matchup with his former team in the Lehigh Valley IronPigs.
Today’s Matchup
New York Yankees vs. Toronto Blue Jays
Time: 7:05 p.m. EST
Video: Amazon Prime Video, Sportsnet One, MLB Network
Venue: Yankee Stadium, Bronx, NY
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