Great For 94 Wins, Not Enough For 11: Are The Yankees Built For October?

When I zoom out on the last few years, the pattern is pretty stark. Since 2020, the Yankees have lost a Division Series to Tampa Bay, a Wild Card game at Fenway, an ALCS to Houston, missed October completely in 2023, lost the 2024 World Series to the Dodgers, then fell in the 2025 ALDS to the Blue Jays.

That is a lot of “almost” and “what if” for a franchise that measures itself in parades.

At the same time, the 2025 Yankees looked like a powerhouse on paper. They went 94-68, tied Toronto for the best record in the American League, led MLB with 849 runs and 274 home runs, and posted a plus 164 run differential while Aaron Judge grabbed his third MVP with a .331 average and 53 homers.

So which is it? A club that is one or two breaks away from another banner, or a team that is built more to crush the regular season than to survive October knife fights?

In my view, the answer is somewhere in the middle, and that “middle” is exactly what the front office has to fix.

What Actually Wins In October

Before I put the Yankees under the microscope, I think it helps to define what “built for October” actually means. Every postseason is weird and noisy, but certain traits show up over and over again with the teams that hang around late.

1. Swing and miss pitching at the top

In short series, you cannot count on balls in play finding gloves. You need starters and high leverage relievers who can simply miss bats when there are runners on and the crowd is roaring. That means:

Aces who can go six or seven innings with double digit strikeouts.
Relievers who can punch out the heart of the order when contact is a disaster.

The Dodgers in 2024 and the Astros and Rays before them lived on this.

2. Contact and situational hitting

The best October lineups still hit home runs, but they do not need one every time they threaten. They:

Shorten up with two strikes, especially with runners on third.
Take the extra base when an outfielder hesitates.
Push across that third or fourth run in a game where both sides are throwing filth.

You see a lot of high contact hitters and lineups that are comfortable winning 3-2 instead of needing to win 8-5.

3. Clean defense and smart baserunning

In the regular season, you can survive some sloppy nights and make it back over 162 games. In October, one misplay can swing an entire series.

Championship teams tend to:

Convert every routine play.
Limit extra bases on balls in the gaps.
Run the bases aggressively but under control.

The 2024 World Series is basically a cautionary tale here, with the Yankees’ defensive meltdown in Game 5 turning a potential classic win into a title clincher for the Dodgers.

4. Bullpen depth and flexibility

Modern postseasons are matchup marathons. Managers who have six or seven arms they trust in different roles can:

Shorten games when they have a lead.
Mix and match to cover a starter who does not have it.
Survive extra innings or a long series without running anyone into the ground.

The teams that fall short usually have one or two elite relievers, then a cliff.

5. Roster versatility

The more ways you can win a game, the better you hold up over a month of October. That means:

Players who can move around the diamond without killing you defensively.
Benches that provide real platoon advantages instead of just extra first basemen.
Enough athleticism to create pressure in low scoring games.

With that in mind, let me try to answer the real question: how do the current Yankees stack up against that October template?

How The Yankees Measure Up

Offense: The Best In Baseball, But One Dimensional

On paper, the 2025 Yankees built exactly the kind of offense you dream about. They scored 849 runs, hit 274 homers, and slashed .251/.333/.455 as a team, winning the AL Offensive Team of the Year and giving pitchers nightmares from April through September.

Aaron Judge put up a video game season: .331 average, .457 on base percentage, .688 slugging, 53 homers and 114 RBI. Jazz Chisholm Jr. joined the 30-30 club with 31 homers and 31 steals. Cody Bellinger and Trent Grisham gave the lineup legitimate depth and a better left right balance than we have seen in a while.

Over 162 games, that profile is a cheat code.

In October, though, we saw the old issues bubble back up. Against the Blue Jays in the ALDS, the Yankees scored 19 runs in four games but gave up 34. Two of the losses were blowouts where the bats woke up too late, and the elimination game was a 5-2 night where eight Toronto pitchers kept the power mostly in the park and the Yankees could not string together enough tough at bats.

The overall picture:

Elite power and patience.
More athleticism than earlier versions of this core.
Still too reliant on extra base hits instead of grinding out runs when the ball is not flying.

Rotation: Two Legit Aces, Then Questions

If you draw up an October checklist, having Max Fried and Carlos Rodón at the top of your rotation is a very nice place to start.

Fried gave the Yankees exactly what they paid for in year one: 19-5, 2.86 ERA, nearly 200 innings, and ace level command. Rodón paired 203 strikeouts with a 3.09 ERA across 195 1/3 frames.

On paper, once Gerrit Cole returns from Tommy John, that is a terrifying playoff trio. In reality, 2025 showed that:

When Fried or Rodón have a bad night, the drop off to the next options is still pretty steep.
Young arms like Cam Schlittler can dominate (ask Boston about that Wild Card clincher) but are still unproven over a long haul.
The staff as a whole was good, allowing 685 runs with a 3.91 ERA, but not so overwhelming that it could erase a quiet night from the offense.

So the Yankees check the “swing and miss” box at the very top of the rotation, but depth and health remain major questions, especially when you compress the schedule in October.

Bullpen: Strong Pieces, Not Quite Enough Trust

Tim Hill gave the Yankees 70 appearances of 3.09 ERA ball. Devin Williams, for all his ups and downs, still brings elite swing and miss stuff in the late innings. Luke Weaver and Ryan Yarbrough filled valuable swingman roles.

The issue is not that the Yankees have no relievers. It is that their October usage keeps revealing a short list of arms Aaron Boone truly trusts when the leverage spikes. In the ALDS, early blowouts forced the bullpen to soak innings, and by the time Game 4 rolled around, the Jays were comfortable using eight different pitchers while the Yankees tried to stretch their top few options.

Come playoff time, that is the difference between being able to chase the matchup game and hoping your script holds. Right now, the Yankees are closer to the latter.

Defense And Baserunning: Better, But Still Not A Calling Card

Compared to some of the plodding, corner heavy rosters of a few years ago, the 2025 Yankees are noticeably more athletic. Jazz, Dominguez, Grisham, Bellinger until his late season decline, all brought more speed and range.

At the same time, defense is not a true strength yet. The 2024 World Series turned in part on routine plays the Yankees did not make. In 2025, there were still enough miscues and in between plays lost that you never felt like run prevention was their identity.

On the bases, the picture is similar. Jazz’s 31 steals and a more aggressive overall mindset helped, but this is still not a club that consistently squeezes every extra base out of a game.

In other words, the Yankees are no longer a bad defensive team, but they are not a clean, relentlessly sharp one either. In October, that middle ground is dangerous.

Where The Roster Falls Short In October

When you combine all of that, you end up with a team that is clearly built to dominate the regular season and only partially built for the postseason.

A few recurring issues stand out.

1. Too Much Feast Or Famine At The Plate

You do not lead the league in runs and homers by accident. I do not want to pretend the 2025 offense was flawed in some fundamental way. It was elite.

But in both the 2024 World Series and the 2025 ALDS, we saw the same thing:

When opposing staffs lived in the strike zone with mistakes, the Yankees destroyed them.
When pitchers expanded just a little and refused to groove fastballs, the Yankees struggled to string hits together and leaned even harder on the long ball.

In a short series, you will absolutely run into nights where the power is not there. The teams that keep advancing are the ones that can win ugly: bloop single, walk, productive out, sac fly, 3-2 win. The Yankees do that occasionally. They do not do it by nature.

2. Thin Margins Behind The Stars On The Mound

Fried and Rodón give the Yankees a real chance at shutting down anyone. Cole’s eventual return could elevate that even more.

The problem is what happens when the top of the rotation runs into trouble or when injuries force the depth to step up. The 2025 ALDS was a preview of that world. Toronto did not just beat Fried once. They wore down the rest of the staff and turned the series into a parade of tough at bats against Yankees pitchers who were clearly on fumes by the end of the week.

In modern October baseball, you cannot count on your Game 1 starter to fix every problem. You need a rotation and bullpen that can survive a bad night without the whole series tilting. The Yankees are not there yet.

3. Defense That Is Good Enough For 94 Wins, Not For Elite October Margins

This is the hardest thing to quantify, but if you have watched all of these games, you have felt it.

In the regular season, the Yankees make enough plays to be fine. In October, the bar is higher. The 2024 World Series and 2025 ALDS both featured moments where a more secure defensive team probably gets off the field, and the Yankees do not.

It is not always circus errors. Sometimes it is a slightly off line throw that turns a double play into one out. Sometimes it is a read in the outfield that turns a single into a double. Those margins matter when every run feels like three.

What Has To Change For The Yankees To Be Truly Built For October

So where does this leave the Yankees going forward? In my view, the goal is not to blow up what works. It is to layer the October skill set on top of the regular season machine they have already built.

1. Add More Contact And Bat Control Without Losing Too Much Thunder

I am not asking for a full stylistic makeover. The Yankees should not run from their identity as a power club, especially in Yankee Stadium.

But they have to sprinkle in more hitters who:

Put the ball in play at an above average rate.
Can handle elite velocity and off speed with two strikes.
Are comfortable grinding a six pitch at bat that ends with a single instead of hunting the perfect pitch to drive.

One or two lineup spots like that turn a three outcome offense into a group that can beat you in more ways.

2. Build An October Rotation And Bullpen, Not Just A Regular Season One

The names are there at the top. The next step is:

Another playoff caliber starter so that a Fried or Rodón stumble does not feel fatal.
Two or three more legit medium leverage relievers who can get tough outs in the fifth through seventh innings.

You saw what this looks like on the other side when Toronto used eight pitchers to close out the Yankees in Game 4. It was not always pretty, but it was relentless.

3. Treat Run Prevention As A Pillar, Not A Placeholder

Defense and baserunning cannot be “nice to have” for this team anymore. They have to be part of the core identity. That means:

Prioritizing sure handed infielders even if they are slightly less potent bats.
Keeping at least two true center field quality defenders on the roster.
Leaning into smart aggression on the bases instead of playing station to station outside of home runs.

The Yankees have already started to move this way with players like Jazz and Bellinger. They just have to keep going.

So, Are The Yankees Built For October?

If I have to give a straight answer, I would say:

Right now, the Yankees are built to get to October every year, but not fully built to control it.

The core is absolutely good enough. Aaron Judge is still one of the best players on the planet. Max Fried and Carlos Rodón are legitimate aces. The lineup can be a nightmare for any pitcher who is even a little off.

What is missing is the last layer of polish that turns 94 regular season wins into 11 postseason ones: more ways to score when the home runs dry up, more arms that shorten games instead of stretching them, and a cleaner, more disciplined brand of run prevention.

Until that changes, I think we are going to keep asking this same question every November.