00:00It's time to believe the Yankees have a real World Series chance.
00:04That's the title of our New York Post sports columnist, Mike Vaccaro's latest column on the Yankees,
00:10comparing their season and possible deep playoff run or championship run to the Knicks.
00:16Let's talk about it now.
00:17Mike, appreciate you hopping on with us in the words of Lloyd Christmas.
00:21So you're saying there's a chance.
00:24A lot of the fan base that's desperate and starved for a ring,
00:28they're going to be reading this column, and we can't wait to get into this.
00:32So why would the inconsistent 2026 New York Yankees remind you of the 2026 NBA champion New York Knicks,
00:42especially coming off of a sloppy and sluggish 10-1 loss in Anaheim against the Angels on Monday night?
00:50Yeah, it's probably an ill-time comment given the way they played last night,
00:53but, you know, 3,000-mile plane, flight, all that.
00:56But, look, I mean, the Knicks treated the regular season last year almost like an annoyance,
01:02something that had to be endured, you know, gotten through.
01:05And I think you can see a lot of similarities with the way the Yankees are trying to manage this
01:10regular season.
01:11Look, they're going to be in the playoffs, and that's as much a testament to the American League as anything
01:14else.
01:15But, look, I mean, they're going to be in the playoffs, and they've known they're going to be in the
01:18playoffs since June.
01:19So it's really all about managing the season.
01:22They're going to get in comfortably.
01:23They're going to get in the tournament.
01:25And once you're in the tournament, as the Knicks proved,
01:27you really can't do anything as long as you're playing at your best and you're at your best.
01:31All right, let's talk about that tournament because September 29th is the first day of the postseason.
01:37What's one thing or things the Yankees need to do or at least be as the Knicks were when they
01:43played their first playoff game on April 18th?
01:46And do you think that that's actually possible?
01:49Yeah, Brian, look, I mean, the Knicks made no pretense about the fact that whatever happened during the regular season,
01:54the most important thing was that on game one of the playoffs, they were healthy,
01:59and they were going to be as healthy as they were all year.
02:01And that's what they were.
02:02I mean, it's the whole reason why they managed Mitch Robinson as they did all year long,
02:06and they had good fortune with injuries so that by the time they started their postseason against the Hawks on
02:13April 18th,
02:14they were as fully healthy and good to go as they've been all year.
02:18And look, the Yankees have the same mission now.
02:20They're going to get Aaron Judge back probably by the end of next week.
02:24Their pitching staff, not good.
02:27Looks like it projects to be healthy from the beginning of the playoffs,
02:30and that was always going to be their strength.
02:32And look, a couple of guys who have done the job in the rotation in Warren and in Weathers
02:37are going to be able to strike in the bullpen now.
02:40So to be ready to go when the playoffs begin,
02:44whether it's in the wild card series on September 29th or a couple of days later,
02:49once the ALDS begins, that's got to be their mission and their number one goal.
02:53You mentioned Aaron Judge possibly coming back next week.
02:57How much pressure is it on Judge to have a Jalen Brunson-esque type postseason?
03:04Yeah, well, look, I mean, until a couple of months ago,
03:07I think that Judge was, if not considered the clear-cut, you know, number one athlete in New York,
03:12he was 1A and maybe Brunson was 1B.
03:15But Brunson is stuck ahead of him because as the captain of a team that wasn't expected to win the
03:19championship,
03:20they won a championship.
03:21And so you can only imagine what that would do to burnish Aaron Judge's legacy and his reputation
03:26if he's able to do the same thing with the Yankees someday, specifically this year.
03:30And, of course, he'd be able to do it in time because he's going to have a couple of weeks
03:33under his belt
03:34before the playoffs begin and get back into form.
03:37And, look, there's going to come a year when he's going to have to deliver on all the promise
03:42that his career has suggested.
03:44And he's done everything he can individually.
03:47The one thing that's missing on his resume, and he'll tell you this himself,
03:50is winning the championship.
03:51And, look, he's that kind of player.
03:53He can carry a team for a couple of weeks during the regular season.
03:56And if his bat happens to get hot during October, he can do the same thing
04:00when the games are at their most important.
04:02One thing Jalen Brunson had was a supporting cast in the team that, you know,
04:07they read up on and brought guys in in the offseason.
04:11So is there something the Yankees have as a team in their favor at this point of the season
04:18that the Knicks maybe didn't have?
04:21Well, the one thing the Yankees have is they still have plenty of time in the season
04:24to actually catch the Rays.
04:26You can get the number one seed.
04:27And, look, in the baseball playoffs, you know, getting a bye in the first round
04:30of the playoffs is huge.
04:32It allows you to save your rotation until the ALDS.
04:36You know, if you're messing around in the wild card series like the Yankees did last year
04:40with the Red Sox, all of a sudden maybe you're starting the ALDS
04:43with your number four starter setting your number one.
04:46So there's a lot of things to be gained from winning that number one seed.
04:50And, well, at a relative point of the NBA season,
04:53the Knicks had already conceded the one seed in the East to the Pistons.
04:56And, of course, that didn't wind up battering because they wind up not playing each other.
05:00The Yankees still have that as a possibility.
05:02They're only five games behind the Rays for first place,
05:06and they have four games ahead of them starting three weeks from today.
05:09So if you can narrow that gap, and I think the Yankees' schedule is a little more favorable
05:13in the Rays between now and then and maybe make a push then, it's going to be enormous
05:17because you saw last year, look, I mean, the number one seed really helps
05:22because you not only get the extra game at home, although the Blue Jays didn't need that last year,
05:26but you're able to set up to where you're absolutely ready to go for game one of that series.
05:31And that's an enormous benefit.
05:32So that's what the Yankees still have ahead of them,
05:34but the Knicks really had conceded by this point in their season.
05:36Okay, so let's say that they can't catch the Rays and take that number one seed.
05:41The Rays would then be the top dog in the AL.
05:44So which team would they be comparable to the most
05:48or at least remind you of the most in the Eastern Conference?
05:52Well, look, I mean, it would be the Pistons to me,
05:55even though, of course, the Pistons wound up stumbling before they ever faced the Knicks,
05:58but the Pistons were the clear class of the Eastern Conference across 82 games,
06:04beat the Knicks by like a drum every time they played them during their regular season.
06:09But, you know, very similar to the Knicks.
06:11I mean, I don't think there's a man on the Knicks, even though they wouldn't say it publicly.
06:14We didn't believe they'd be able to take care of business against the Pistons
06:17if they had to face in the playoffs, mostly because they've done it last year.
06:22I would have to think that if you gave a truth serum to the Yankees,
06:27they would feel the same way about the Rays, who are a feisty team, a great story.
06:31But look, the Yankees' run differential is almost 100 runs better than the Rays' is.
06:36I mean, that's a big deal, and it tells you what their relative strengths are.
06:41The Rays, of course, have had the kind of season where they win crazy games game after game.
06:47I mean, they won two games against the Padres last weekend,
06:49which had to be seen to be believed, and that's a real issue
06:52when you're playing a team like that.
06:53But the fact is, the Yankees, when they match up with them,
06:55especially when it comes to the rotation,
06:57they're going to throw four A-list pitchers at whoever they would play in a five-game series,
07:04and that would be the Rays if that plays out the way it's playing out now.
07:09Mike, another thing the Knicks had in their favor throughout the course of that championship run
07:13was a head coach in Mike Brown who listened to his players,
07:16listened to his leaders, made adjustments.
07:21Can Aaron Boone do that?
07:23Can Aaron Boone be that Mike Brown-type coach?
07:26Well, to me, Brandon, one of the things about the hallmarks of Boone's tenure with the Yankees,
07:30I know he gets a lot of flack from a lot of precincts of Yankees fans,
07:34but the Yankees are never more at their best than when they're going through it with injuries
07:41and trying to figure it out.
07:44And this is another year Aaron Boone has done that.
07:46He's kept the Yankees' ship afloat.
07:49They're about to get fully healthy again, which should only augment their chances.
07:54So, yeah, look, I'm not in the category of Boone bashers that I know seem to proliferate around here
08:00every now and again, but, and I think he's certainly a championship manager.
08:03Now he's just got to win a championship to prove that confidence.
08:07Boone bashing is what gets the clicks and views around here by the people of New York.
08:13But if you guys want to read a really great article, read the rest of this article,
08:16go ahead and check out Mike's column on newyorkpost.com slash sports.
08:22Mike, appreciate you hopping on with us, sir.
08:25Thanks, Brandon.
08:25Always great talking to you.
08:26Take care.
08:30Take care.
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