The New York Yankees have always prided themselves on not being like other teams. They have certain pedigree and a history of wins that makes anything less than total domination a disappointment. However, the past few years have brought on just disappointments for them. Juan Soto too recently bore witness to that when one of his home runs got called out for not living up to the Yankees’ spirit.

The Cincinnati Reds may have swept the Bronx Bombers but it was business as usual for Juan Soto and Aaron Judge. The two continued to perform well despite the lineup around them completely collapsing. However, during the 4th of July loss to the Reds, there was a moment that caught everyone’s attention. Soto hit a massive two-run homer in the 7th inning, bringing the score to 8-4 for the Reds. Here, Soto’s reaction gave a wrong indication to famous radio host Mike Francesa. 

Despite the Yankees being 4 runs behind, Soto rounded the base with a huge smile on his face. That didn’t sit well with Francesa who chastised the star for not showing enough urgency. “This is not Washington or San Diego, this is the Yankees,” said Francesa about Soto’s smile, continuing, “I don’t need a big smile as you go around second base in the 8th inning of game where you hit a home run and that makes the score 8-4.”

“You’re getting swept and you’ve got a big smile on your face. Nobody wants to see that!” Francesa added about Juan Soto’s expressions. However, Soto wasn’t the only one smiling during that moment. Aaron Judge too celebrated Soto’s 21st home run. However, one can imagine why Francesa didn’t like seeing a player celebrating while his team was getting swept.

But while the Reds’ loss hurt, the Yankees’ terrible form has continued in their series opener against the Boston Red Sox. More importantly, there’s a chance that the Yankees fans might be in for a major shock soon.

Despite Juan Soto’s brilliance, Yankees risk fighting for Wildcard spots 

After the last series opener with the Boston Red Sox on June 14th, the New York Yankees were 14 games ahead of their bitter rivals. With Juan Soto and Aaron Judge’s tremendous performances, it looked like that gap would only increase. But then the Yankees had a shocking collapse and the Red Sox experienced a renaissance. As a result, after this game, the two teams are just 4 ½ games away from each other.

If the Yankees’ current form persists, the team might just fall behind their rivals. That could be a major blow to their fanbase. Especially because the Red Sox haven’t invested much in their squad in the past few seasons. So to finish below a team that has been on a perennial low-budget rebuild could prove to be an embarrassing story for the Yanks. That’s one of the reasons why the fan uproar has slowly gained volume. Especially because this type of collapse has been an ever-present part of the Yankees’ story for the past few seasons.

Can they change the trend soon? It’s difficult to tell, but what do you think? Share your take in the comments below.