RAB Thoughts

The Official 2024-25 RAB Offseason Plan

November 21st, 2024: Soto, Durbin, Rodriguez, Coleman, Mailbag

Reminder: The Offseason Plan is going live tomorrow. I need to read through it once more today and transfer it over from Google Docs to Patreon, which is a surprisingly annoying process (every Patreon update seems designed specifically to make my ...

November 19th, 2024: Gil, Soto, Judge, Volpe, Rule 5 Draft, Vivas

The Offseason Plan is a go for Friday. It is written – 18,974 words before edits – and now I just need to read through it again, edit it, etc. Friday’s regularly scheduled post will run Thursday, then the Offseason Plan will run Friday. Than...

November 15th, 2024: Soto, Giants, Hill, Hernández, Rays, Mailbag

Offseason Plan update: I had a good few days and got a lot done this week. Much more than I anticipated. I’d say I’m about 70% of the way through, with most of the hard work already done. It’s looking good for a launch next week. This is the...

November 12th, 2024: Boone, Soto, Sasaki, Sugano, Estevéz, Walker

I forgot to mention this last week, but the two Dominican Winter League games at Yankee Stadium were canceled. Apparently it had something to do with the Yankees not being able to guarantee the ballpark’s readiness after the World Series. The ga...

November 8th, 2024: Soto, Offseason, Arbitration Projections, Mailbag

Two pieces of business. First, I’m planning to skip the regularly scheduled post on Friday, Nov. 29th. That is three weeks from today and it is the Friday after Thanksgiving. I will happily cover any breaking news that comes down (Juan Soto re-s...

November 5th, 2024: Cole, Weaver, Rizzo, Trammell, Trivino

Thanks in part to old pals Tyler Austin and Mike Ford, the 71-69-3 Yokohama DeNA BayStars defeated the heavily favored 91-49-3 Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks in the Japan Series this past weekend. The BayStars won four straight to overcome a 2-0 series de...

November 1st, 2024: World Series, Soto, Rizzo, 2025 Draft, Mailbag

Going to use the intro as a state of RAB update. The Patreon isn’t going anywhere or anything like that. It’ll be business as usual moving forward. I’m shifting back to the Tuesday/Friday schedule with extra posts as necessary, though I need...

The Yankees and the 2024-25 Offseason Calendar

The Dodgers are the 2024 World Series champions, the Yankees are the 2024 World Series losers, and the 2024-25 offseason is here. It’s an important offseason for the Yankees. I say that every offseason, but it’s true, and this offseason is mor...

The Yankees have lost the 2024 World Series

You gotta hand it to them. The 2024 Yankees stayed true to themselves to the very end. They made every defensive mistake in the book – dropped fly ball...

Thoughts before Game 5 of the World Series

The Yankees will try to make history Wednesday night. Never before has a team that fell behind 3-0 in the World Series forced a Game 6. Prior to this yea...

Thoughts after Game 4 of the World Series

It’s funny, once the Yankees fell behind 3-0 in the World Series, I became much more zen. I mean, down 3-0, either things are going to end the way you ...

Thoughts before Game 4 of the World Series

The Yankees have 1-4 games remaining in their season and they almost certainly will not win the World Series, but they won four straight games and the Dodgers lost four straight games plenty of times this year. Stranger things have happened (have ...

Thoughts after Game 3 of the World Series

Do you think Aaron Boone will show the Yankees the 2004 Red Sox video again? Maybe he can have Dave Roberts come over and give them a motivational speech...

Thoughts before Game 3 of the 2024 World Series

It is not a literal must-win, but Game 3 Monday night is a must-win. It will be hard enough to beat the Dodgers four times in five games. Four times in four games will be impossible. Games 1 and 2 of the World Series were close games that were one...

Thoughts after Game 2 of the 2024 World Series

These two games have been closer than the 2-0 series deficit may lead you to believe, but it is indeed a 2-0 series deficit. The Yankees lost Game 2 by t...

Thoughts after Game 1 of the 2024 World Series

Losing a Gerrit Cole start – an effective Gerrit Cole start – is a rough way to begin the World Series. The Yankees must now beat the best team in ba...

Thoughts before Game 1 of the 2024 World Series

UPDATE: Turns out Jon Berti is not on the roster because of an injury. He has a right hip flexor strain, Aaron Boone announced. Ber...

October 24th, 2024: World Series X-Factors, Mailbag

The World Series will begin Friday on a somber note: Dodgers legend Fer...

October 22nd, 2024: World Series, Mailbag

Welcome to the calm before the storm. The Yankees are in the World Series and so too are the Dodgers. They sent the Mets home in NLCS Game 6 Sunday night. So close to a Subway World Series! That would have been so fun. We’ll have to settle for t...

Thoughts after Game 5 of the 2024 ALCS

The New York Yankees are World Series bound. Saturday night October G and the generational Juan Soto led the Yankees to a 5-2 win over the Guardians in G...

The Yankees are going to the 2024 World Series

This is why you trade for Juan Soto. You trade for him so he can go win you a damn pennant. The New York Yankees are going to the World Series because Gi...

Thoughts after Game 4 of the 2024 ALCS

When Jon Berti bobbled that ground ball in the ninth inning, I half-expected him to fire it into the stands. That he didn’t means the Yankees are a Tea...

Thoughts after Game 3 of the 2024 ALCS

Well that was about the worst possible way to lose Game 3. Couldn’t lose 3-1 like a normal team, huh? Eh, well, I didn’t expect the Yankees to sweep ...

Thoughts before Game 3 of the 2024 ALCS

The ALCS shifts to Progressive Field for Games 3 and 4 and, if necessary, 5. The Guardians went 50-30 at home during the regular season. The Yankees went 50-31 on the road. That’s the third best home record against the best road record. Three ga...

Thoughts after Game 2 of the 2024 ALCS

The Guardians out-sloppied the Yankees in Game 2 and the good guys will take a 2-0 series lead to Cleveland when the ALCS resumes Thursday. The Yankees a...

Thoughts after Game 1 of the 2024 ALCS

Four wins down, seven to go. The Yankees rode Carlos Rodón’s left arm and timely wild pitches to a 5-2 win over the Guardians in ALCS Game 1 on Monday...

Thoughts before Game 1 of the 2024 ALCS

It is once again Yankees vs. Guardians. Josh Naylor rocking the baby, annoying bloop hits to shallow left field, pitching changes galore, midges, all that stuff. The ALCS will be the fourth Yankees vs. Guardians postseason series in the last eight...

October 12th, 2024: Guardians vs. Tigers, ALCS, Mailbag

The Yankees partied Thursday night in Kansas City, flew back to New York on Friday, and will hold a few workouts this weekend while awaiting their ALCS opponent. As much as I would enjoy beating the Astros in a revenge ALCS, I’m glad we don’t ...

Thoughts after Game 4 of the 2024 ALDS

The Yankees are going to the ALCS and, for the first time since 2012, they don’t have to go through the Astros. They closed out the ALDS with a 3-1 win...