A Pinstripe Alley Farewell

Derek Jeter famously wrote in a school report as a child that his life goal was to play shortstop for the New York Yankees. In that ilk, there’s definitely a paper somewhere in my attic declaring my goal to broadcast or write about the New York Yankees.

For parts of four seasons, I got to write about the Yankees for a leading national platform, and it was nothing but a pleasure. But, all good things come to an end, and with the prospect of a new job and a move out-of-state, it’s time to say goodbye.

My summers growing up in Central Jersey revolved around the Yankees. My dad and I went to dozens of Trenton Thunder games, seeing future Yankees and rehabbing big-leaguers alike. And there was always that magical day once or twice a year when we’d go into the city and watch the Bombers play live. One of my best memories in Little League was the year I got to be the Yankees (I was number 13, although that’s about all I had in common with Alex Rodriguez on the diamond). I spent hours in the backyard, perfecting batting stances and windups of the 2008-2014 era Yankees, announcing imaginary games to myself and whoever else happened to be outside. My wardrobe consisted almost entirely of Yankees t-shirts, from Jorge Posada and Mark Teixeira to Kevin Youkilis and Jacoby Ellsbury.

So, when the opportunity to write for a site I’d been reading for years came up through a Quinnipiac University connection (thank you, Ryan Chichester!), I knew I had to apply. I submitted a story on the Yankees being too right-handed (hmm!) and somehow got the gig. Over the years, I’ve written analysis, editorial, recaps, previews, ran the Twitter, and so much more, and it’s always been a blast. The Pinstripe Alley community is one of the best parts of the job. The staff has a welcoming atmosphere, the readers begin to know your name, and nothing beats the thrill of writing about the New York Yankees.

One of my best memories comes from Josh’s famous “Recapper’s Record” spreadsheet. It sounds crazy, but it definitely seemed like the Yankees performed better when certain people wrote the recap. I was one of those lucky ones, given the task of recapping key playoff games for Pinstripe Alley. I went around college, telling my friends that with the “Staff Ace” on the recap, the Yankees were a shoo-in to take the lead vs. Boston in Game Three of the 2018 ALDS, and to take that oh-so-pivotal Game 2 of the 2019 ALCS, and to bet on the Bombers with me recapping the winner-take-all Game 5 of the 2020 ALDS.

It turns out, baseball is a game of averages.

During my time at Pinstripe Alley, I wrote 486 posts. Leaving now, short of the 500-mark, is a little like when Alex Rodriguez finished his career with 696 homers. You wish you could just stick it out a little longer and hit the milestone, but the timing just isn’t right. I really thought that from May 2018-June 2021, I’d have written about a Yankees championship somewhere in there, but here’s to hoping that me picking them to win every year wasn’t the jinx.

Some of my favorite posts were my final ones. I firmly believe the Yankees’ hands are tied by their own mismanagement, and that unless a change is made and the luxury tax threshold is exceeded, they will waste a prime contention window. I believe that the Giancarlo Stanton enigma is a perfect embodiment of the issues with the team right now. I wish I could have written more positive final posts, but there is a shortage of positive vibes around the Yankees right now. At the end of the day though, this is still a team with a lot of talent and a lot of resources, that is probably just a few tweaks away from getting back to where they need to be.

My career is taking me into Red Sox country, but I’ll still carry my Yankees pride up North. In the meantime, keep reading all the great work at Pinstripe Alley. It’s the best place around for free, comprehensive, thoughtful Yankees coverage. Thanks to all the Pinstripe Alley staff, past and present, for hiring me, helping me grow as a writer, and giving me a place to air my grievances on the team I love so much. I won’t be writing about the Chase for 28 anymore, but I want it just as bad as you do. Let’s go Yankees.