{"id":108116,"date":"2025-10-06T19:58:33","date_gmt":"2025-10-06T23:58:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/?p=108116"},"modified":"2025-10-06T19:58:55","modified_gmt":"2025-10-06T23:58:55","slug":"three-keys-yankees-comeback-2025-alds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/2025\/10\/06\/three-keys-yankees-comeback-2025-alds\/","title":{"rendered":"Three Keys for the Yankees to Come Back in the ALDS"},"content":{"rendered":"

After losing the first two games of the ALDS to the Toronto Blue Jays, the New York Yankees are in dire straits. If they lose just one out of their next three games against Toronto, their season is over. Gone will be not only another one of Aaron Judge<\/a>\u2019s shots at a title, but also multiple key players<\/a> who have played major roles in the team\u2019s success this year.<\/span><\/p>\n

But it\u2019s not over just yet. The Yankees are a much better team when playing at home, and with two games at Yankee Stadium coming up, they have a good shot at forcing the series back to Toronto for a winner-take-all Game 5. However, before that happens, they need a lot of things to go right. Here are three keys for the Yankees to pull off a comeback in the ALDS and keep their season alive.<\/span><\/p>\n

Three Keys to a Yankees Comeback in the ALDS<\/h2>\n

1. No More Poor Pitching<\/h3>\n

Firstly, and most obviously, the Yankees need their pitching to drastically improve<\/a>. They\u2019ve surrendered an absurd 23 runs in the first two games of the series, which is unacceptable in the regular season, let alone in the playoffs. Luis Gil<\/a>, who gave up two earned runs over 2 \u2154 innings, was taken out of the game in favor of a bullpen that allowed the Blue Jays to blow the game wide open. This depleted much of the bullpen for Game 2, in which Max Fried<\/a> was not his usual self; if the Yankees had a reliable bullpen, this wouldn\u2019t have been a huge issue. But, as the final score shows, it was.<\/span><\/p>\n

New York needs not only Carlos Rod\u00f3n<\/a> and Cam Schlittler<\/a> (if he even gets to pitch), but also the bullpen to hold down the Blue Jays and give the offense a fighting chance before the game is already over. The \u2018pen looked good against the Boston Red Sox in the Wild Card Series<\/a>, so it\u2019s definitely possible for them to pin down the Blue Jays\u2019 offense. Pitching wins championships, and though the Yankees have a talented pitching staff, they have not shown up yet in the ALDS.<\/span><\/p>\n

2. Clutch Hitting<\/h3>\n

Pitching isn’t the only problem the Yankees have had in this series. New York\u2019s offense, the best in MLB by many metrics this season, has looked overwhelmed and outmatched. Judge, who has famously struggled in the postseason<\/a>, has amassed a respectable eight hits in five games. The rest of the lineup, however, has all but disappeared. Cody Bellinger<\/a>, Trent Grisham<\/a>, and Giancarlo Stanton<\/a> (last year’s ALCS MVP), three of the team\u2019s best hitters, have combined for 10 hits throughout the entire playoffs. Not only that, but they\u2019ve been as unclutch as they can be; they scored just a single run in Game 1, and waited until the Blue Jays had already scored 12 times before putting a run up on the board in Game 2.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Aaron Judge in the 2025 MLB Playoffs:<\/p>\n

.444 AVG
\n1.024 OPS
\n8 Hits (leads MLB)<\/p>\n

He\u2019s shown up. pic.twitter.com\/7cjQNV0XbV<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 C (@CSmittyNY) October 5, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n