The New York Yankees’ season this time has gone from serious blunders to the highest highs. However, there is one thing that has remained constant for the team, and it’s Jazz Chisholm Jr’s confidence in the team. Back in September, he made a huge declaration: “We’re the best team in the league. Any team that thinks they’re better than us should know that when we step on the field, we’re coming with relentlessness.” 

And you’d think that, given their brutal 10-1 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays in Game 1 of the ALDS, his stance might have changed. But not really. In fact, his latest words sounded like a reminder and a warning to the Blue Jays.

Chisholm, while talking to Ken Rosenthal, said, “I just feel that we have the best players in the league on the team. I feel like we have a lot of confident guys and a lot of guys that established themselves.” And as far as the pitcher Toronto is putting forth, Trey Yesavage, Chisholm Jr said, “I just watch all his old videos and compare him to the other guys that I have faced in the past…that’s how I go about facing a new guy. He is a fastball splitter guy…we faced a pretty good fastball splitter guy yesterday. Almost identical to the velocity and all.”

Toronto is sending 22-year-old rookie Trey Yesavage to counter New York Yankees ace Max Fried in Game 2 of this extremely thrilling series. He is only a rookie and a few months ago was pitching A ball. Now he would be facing the Yankees in the postseason. He has gone 1-0 with a 3.21 ERA and 16 strikeouts in 14 innings, and if you think he is nervous, think again. He says he’s ready to “take it all in.” 

It is a remarkable rise, but that’s not to say that playoff baseball is not like regular games. It has a different kind of pressure, and whether he can take in all that pressure is what is questionable. Not to mention, Yesavage does seem to have some command issues, too. However, the Yankees, instead of maybe sugarcoating everything now, need to surely get shaken up. Game 1 was a wake-up call for them because, facing Kevin Gausman, their bats went silent. Just two hits in five innings and not even a single walk.

The Jays struck early with solo homers by Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Alejandro Kirk. And by the time the Yanks had a chance to rally to the sixth, the momentum had left—they couldn’t cash it in. And the things only got worse from then on, as the bullpen unravelled in the seventh and Toronto blew the game wide open. But for Chisholm, this is just part of the fight, maybe. He has seen the team rise like a phoenix through hook and crook before, and maybe he wishes that’s what will happen again. However, it’s not just Chisholm Jr. who has his team’s back. Some ex-players, like legend CC Sabathia, also have the team’s back long after leaving pinstripes.

CC Sabathia defends the New York Yankees’ honor

It’s not just Jazz Chisholm Jr. who is standing up for the New York Yankees. Even long after hanging up his pinstripes, New York legend CC Sabathia is still standing up for his old team—especially when someone tries to take a shot at them. As the Yankee fans know, former Yankee Clint Frazier has stirred the pot with the Yankees plenty of times. 

He recently joked online about sitting with the Bleacher Creatures for Game 3 of the ALDS. It might have seemed harmless, but Sabathia was not amused. The six-time All-Star immediately jumped to comments on Instagram and gave a blunt reply, “F— [clown emoji].” The emoji may have lessened the blow, but the message was on the wall—he was not all for Frazier’s jokes.

This is not the first time the two have clashed, though. Frazier, who played for the Yankees from 2017 to 2021, has made it his habit to criticize the team since leaving. After he signed with the Chicago Cubs, he accused the Bronx team of relying on rocket scientists and making dumbass decisions. Even then, Sabathia didn’t hold back and said in his podcast that he would “punch somebody in the face” if he had to hear another story about Frazier whining about the New York Yankees.

Sabathia, after all, saw Frazier’s entire New York Yankees journey. The hype, the flash of talent, and the frustration that came. Frazier had come to New York with plenty of promise, but his bat never put out a flabbergasting performance. And now, with him out of the team and talking about his previous team in a podcast, many picture him as a bitter character. One thing is for sure, though—loyalty does run deep in the Bronx; ask CC and ask Chisholm Jr.!