The Yankees were baseball's best team from May 29 to the end of the regular season, but that knowledge gave them little solace as they sat, heads in hands, pondering their third consecutive American League Division Series exit.
Brushed away by the Cleveland Indians in four games, the Yankees were dealt one final stinging blow, months after their season was considered a foregone conclusion in the minds of many observers.
"I think you have to give the Indians a lot of credit," catcher Jorge Posada said. "They executed and did a lot of things well. Everybody's on the same boat. It's not one person. We all lost."
But the Yankees, with Joe Torre as their pilot, never gave up hope, running off a hot streak following a red-faced clubhouse meeting in Toronto. They thought the embarrassment and vitriol of that tongue-lashing that could take them deep into October.
"We felt like we had a team that could win a championship this year," outfielder Johnny Damon said. "I thought our pitching was better, our bench was deeper. It's definitely frustrating."
Now, as the Yankees cleaned out their lockers in a box-filled clubhouse, so much of the future remains uncertain. Torre may have scribbled out his final lineup card for the organization, while so many others -- Posada, Alex Rodriguez and Mariano Rivera among them -- could have played their last games for New York.
"As players, it falls on us," Rodriguez said. "You can point the finger at whoever you want, but the bottom line is we didn't get the job done."
Record: 94-68, second in AL East, Wild Card winner.
Defining moment: Fed up, Torre shuts the clubhouse doors on May 28 in Toronto and rips into his team, leaving veteran players stunned and whispering to each other that they had never seen the longtime skipper so angry. Torre told reporters that day that most of the address had covered tentative behavior; certainly the manager unloaded enough aggressiveness to help spur the Yankees to a Major League-best 51-25 record after the All-Star break.
What went right: The left-handed batters in the lineup awoke all around the same time, with Bobby Abreu, Robinson Cano, Damon and Hideki Matsui helping power the second-half offense. Rodriguez was the best offensive player in baseball, leading the Majors in home runs, RBIs and runs scored. Posada batted a career high .338, and Melky Cabrera gave the club energy after claiming the center field job. Chien-Ming Wang won 19 games for the second straight year.
2007 Yankees statistical leaders | |
Hitting | Pitching |
| Average: Jorge Posada, .338 | Wins: Chien-Ming Wang, 19 |
| Doubles: Jorge Posada, 42 | Losses: Mike Mussina, 10 |
| Triples: Melky Cabrera, 8 | ERA (starter): Wang, 3.70 |
| Home runs: Alex Rodriguez, 54 | ERA (reliever, min. 10 app.): Joba Chamberlain, 0.38 |
| Runs: Rodriguez, 143 | Saves: Mariano Rivera, 30 |
| RBIs: Rodriguez, 156 | |
| Stolen bases: Johnny Damon, 27 | |
What went wrong: Early season injuries prompted Andy Pettitte to pause and reflect that the Yankees rotation was just himself and four rookies. Kei Igawa pitched his way all down to Class A; Roger Clemens gave the Yankees just six wins after a dramatic entrance. Jason Giambi missed two months with a foot injury and started just one postseason game. Kyle Farnsworth, Brian Bruney and Scott Proctor never fit into the bullpen mix. Mike Mussina made a two-year contract look like a bad investment.
Biggest surprise: Joba Chamberlain wasn't even invited to Spring Training, but skyrocketed from Class A Tampa all the way to the big leagues by Aug. 7. Once he got there, the dominant right-hander was nearly unhittable, not allowing a run in his first 15 1/3 innings and striking out 34 batters in 24 innings. If not for a swarm of too-friendly Lake Erie midges that attacked Chamberlain in Game 2 of the ALDS, the postseason story might have played out differently.
Lineup: Damon, Derek Jeter, Matsui, Cano and Cabrera are all set to return next year. Rodriguez can opt out of his contract and become a free agent, while Posada is expected to test the market. First baseman Doug Mientkiewicz says he wants to return, but the Yankees need to figure out if 1B Jason Giambi is anything more than an expensive bench player. Abreu has a $16 million option that the Yankees may be tempted to pick up.
Rotation: Wang is set to return, and Mussina has one more year on his contract. Pettitte has a $16 million player option for 2008 and a healthy elbow, but says he has no idea if he wants to continue pitching. At age 45, this may finally be the end for Clemens, a free agent, but the Yankees have a slew of options with Phil Hughes, Chamberlain, Ian Kennedy, plus other contributors from the array of rookies who made starts in 2007.
Bullpen: Rivera is a free agent and says he intends to test the market. Luis Vizcaino appeared in a team-high 77 games and is expected to be re-signed. Most others are under contract, but don't rule out Farnsworth being moved, if the Yankees can find a taker. Ross Ohlendorf and Jose Veras made the ALDS roster over Ron Villone, a free agent.
Biggest need: The Yankees led the Major Leagues with 968 runs scored, but scored just eight times in the first two ALDS games. At some point, they will have to address the idea that teams rarely slug their way through October. Slapping a very expensive Band-Aid on the rotation in Clemens seemed like a good idea, but the Yankees are developing an array of impressive pitching talent and should allow them to get their feet wet. Names like Chamberlain, Hughes, and Kennedy -- plus more down the road -- are the ones that will help end the championship drought.
Prospect to watch: Righty Alan Horne could be next on the list of pitchers to move through the Yankees system and make a Major League debut. Horne (12-4, 3.11 ERA at Double-A Trenton) won Eastern League Pitcher of the Year honors in 2007 after honing his mechanics. He throws four pitches -- fastball, curveball, slider, changeup -- making him close to a big league-ready product.
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