NEW YORK -- Yankees manager Aaron Boone called the first half of the 2025 season incomplete.
There were days when they looked like Murderers' Row and other days when they had problems winning ballgames. In the last month, the Yankees have had two six-game losing streaks, which have put the Bronx Bombers out of first place in the American League East. The Blue Jays are No. 1 now.
After losing to the Cubs, 4-1, on Sunday afternoon at Yankee Stadium, the Yankees (53-43) finished the first half in second place and are 10 games over .500. Boone made it clear that the goal for ‘25 is to return to the postseason and, hopefully, win a World Series title for the first time since 2009.
“We set out the year to get back to the playoffs and chase a World [Series] title and all those hopes and dreams are right there. It still exists for us,” Boone said. “... It’s still a long way to go. We are in a position to do what we need to do and hopefully, with the physical and mental grind of a long season, there’s that positive reset for some guys to get a breather, to get a blow and come with the hyperfocus of understanding what our mission is.”
If the Yankees want to win their 28th World Series title, improvements need to be made. They need more consistency from the back end of the bullpen, which includes Devin Williams and Luke Weaver. A healthy Fernando Cruz and Mark Leiter Jr. would help stabilize the ‘pen as well.
Boone admits the defense needs to get tighter. Lately, the Yanks seem to make mistakes at an inopportune time. In the seventh inning, for example, with Seiya Suzuki on second, Pete Crow-Armstrong hit a ball up the middle. Shortstop Anthony Volpe made a nice grab of the ball and maybe should have held onto it. Instead, Volpe threw wide to first base and Crow-Armstrong was safe, while Suzuki scored all the way from second base.
“It’s a good job [by the Cubs] of taking advantage of a slowly developing play,” Boone said.
After the first half ended, the Yankees stood near the middle of the pack in defense and Boone wants that tightened up. The Bombers are also one of three teams (Cubs and Dodgers are the others) to score 500 runs, but Boone wants more.
“There are across-the-board improvements. We never stop feeling like we could be a little bit better and that’s individually, but certainly as a team as well.” Boone said. “I feel we have the makings of a good defense club. We got to be tighter in that area. We’ve had an outstanding offense to this point, but that doesn’t mean we can’t be better.”
The Yankees need starters like Will Warren to step up after the All-Star break. Even though he lost his fifth game of the season, Warren pitched well, allowing two runs in 5 1/3 innings. After yielding a leadoff homer to Michael Busch in the first, Warren held Chicago scoreless until the sixth inning when he left the game in favor of reliever Ian Hamilton.
With the score tied at 1, Dansby Swanson hit a pivotal two-run homer off Hamilton.
“I didn’t think my stuff was as sharp today as it has been,” Warren said. “I battled through it. I let the defense work behind me. I tried to [grind it out] as long as I can.”
In 20 starts this season, Warren has a 4.63 ERA and 112 strikeouts in 95 1/3 innings. As a rookie, he leans on advice from some of the older pitchers like Max Fried and Carlos Rodón when it comes to managing workload.
“We all acknowledge he has a chance to be a really good pitcher in this league,” Boone said. “He has flashed a lot of really positive things this year. He has learned a lot through that, too. He has taken his lumps at times, but -- more today than he did at the start of the year -- he realizes that when he pitches well, he is really capable of getting quality big league hitters out. That has been [reassuring] to us.”
Cubs left-hander Shota Imanaga had his way with the Yankees, allowing one run in seven innings. Giancarlo Stanton’s second-inning homer was the only damage against Imanaga.
But the Yanks know the score. It’s World Series title or bust.
“Look, I think you know we are really high on this team,” Warren said. “We had some skids. … It’s 162 games. If we play Yankee baseball the way we are supposed to play, we are going to beat a lot of people.”