The New York Yankees lost to the Toronto Blue Jays in the ALDS, sending the Yankees home after a disappointing 2025 postseason. While Game 3 of the ALDS sparked some heroics from Aaron Judge and the Yankees, Game 4 was a tough loss.
Following the loss, a lot of debate will be had about who should return and who should be let go. But, for MLB insider Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, he is urging the Yankees not to make any big changes to their leadership this winter.
While there will be calls for Aaron Boone or Brian Cashman to be fired, Rosenthal believes both should stick with the club, as he urges the Yankees to keep both following the Yankees' lackluster ALDS loss to the Blue Jays.
Yankees should keep Brian Cashman and Aaron Boone after 2025 postseason ALDS loss
"Oh, some New York Yankees fans will want manager Aaron Boone gone." Rosenthal writes, "Others will wish the same fate on general manager Brian Cashman. But neither is the reason the Yankees lost the Division Series to the Blue Jays, three games to one."
The Yankees dropped the ALDS thanks to a combination of multiple things, but one of the overarching themes of the series was how dominant the Blue Jays' offense, led by Vladimir Guerrero Jr., was.
New York didn't get good enough pitching. The Blue Jays scored 10 runs in Game 1, 13 runs in Game 2, six runs in Game 3, and five runs in Game 4. While the Yankees' offense scored 19 runs in the four-game series, the pitching staff's struggles meant they couldn't come back in Games 1 and 2.
The struggles of the pitching staff aren't the fault of either Boone or Cashman. The players, Max Fried, Carlos Rodon, and Cameron Schlittler, in the rotation, had their moments but also struggled against Toronto this series.
In the bullpen, David Bednar was great for New York and will be a nice closer for the Yankees in 2026 - one of Cashman's trade deadline pickups that worked great so far. Even Devin Williams, who struggled in the regular season, shut down the Blue Jays.
But between the starter's struggles, along with Luke Weaver, Camilo Doval, Fernando Cruz, and Paul Blackburn's struggles, the Yankees couldn't make up the difference offensively.
"For the Yankees," Rosenthal writes, "getting eliminated by the Blue Jays was dispiriting, but not a disgrace. While any management team should get only so many chances, an overreaction in this case would make little sense. Sometimes, you just lose."
This point by Rosenthal is a tough one to come to terms with, but in the ALDS, the Blue Jays were, simply put, better. The Yankees weren't bad, though the pitching staff didn't perform to expectations; they weren't the sole reason for the loss.
New York has the talent to be a top contender again next year, and if everyone can stay healthy by season's end, they might end up being World Series favorites.
Rosenthal wants the Yankees to give Boone and Cashman another shot, and with how this season ended, without the fault lying with either, such a scenario seems within the realm of possibility. Even though many want one or the other gone, the Yankees keeping both wouldn't be surprising.
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