Yankees' Aaron Judge: A Lot 'Needs to Be Fixed' After Missing MLB Playoffs
The New York Yankees are not postseason-bound in 2023 and the captain is not happy.
The Yankees were officially eliminated from postseason contention Sunday, following a 7-1 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks. This was more of a formality, considering the Yankees are 78-77 and 6.5 games out of the third wild-card spot, but it is still significant since the Bronx Bombers have not missed the postseason since 2016.
With the lost season now confirmed, outfielder Aaron Judge weighed in on the state of the team and knows that the group needs significant improvement to reach new heights in 2024.
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"It's not going to happen overnight," Judge said, per Coley Harvey of ESPN.com. "So we got to hit the ground running, especially when the season ends. We've got a lot to work on, a lot of things to change and a lot of stuff going on around here that needs to be fixed."
Judge declined to elaborate on the comments, stating that it should "stay in-house" but the issues on the team aren't too difficult to diagnose. The Yankees rank second-to-last in batting average in 2023 and 24th in runs scored. This comes despite playing at a ballpark known for producing home runs.
A big reason why the team doesn't rank even lower is Judge. He is one of just two players on the team to hit above .250 on the season and the only player to hit more than 30 home runs. This comes despite missing about a third of the season, and the lineup's issues were laid bare in his absence.
The Yankees spent much of the season in the basement of the AL East and have risen to fourth place, but this is still way below expectations for a team that won 99 games and the division and reached the ALCS in 2022.
That doesn't mean there weren't some positives in the Bronx this season. Ace Gerrit Cole delivered another excellent season on the mound and young players Anthony Volpe, Oswald Peraza and Jasson Dominguez got see time on the field.
However, the division looks as difficult as ever going forward and a quick turnaround will be needed for this group to reach its potential.
