Litter.

The latest from Aaron Boone, after the latest debacle:

"The game is still littered with examples of teams going on unlikely runs." 

Right. And the highway's jammed with broken heroes on a last chance power drive. 

"I know we've put ourselves in a position to not give anyone that confidence," Ma Boone continued in his weird, anti-inspirational way, "but we gotta continue to work and fight and compete to do that."

Good thing Aaron Boone wasn't in the Notre Dame locker room.  

"I know this game isn't where we would like it to be at halftime, but, uh, you know once before he unfortunately passed away too young, George Gipp—Gipp was a very good player before most of you were here, some would even say an All-American. How he could continue at Notre Dame with those grades, I dunno. But anyway, he, uh, passed away at a relatively young age, though a lot of guys were dying young in those days, with the war and the influenza and everything, and he said that, if it wasn't too much trouble, and sometime things aren't going well, maybe I should try telling the team that, it's all in front of you in the second half."

Not for nothing, but the last time a Yankees team had a losing record this late in the season, was in 1995. Otis Livingston, who does a consistently excellent job every night on Channel 2, pointed out that that team then did indeed go on an unlikely run, and made the playoffs.

So they did. 

60-61 was the nadir for the 1995 team. They went 19-4 the rest of the way (it was a season shortened by the big strike of 1994-95). 

(Spoiler alert: 60-61 won't be rock bottom for the 2023 Yankees.)

In the playoffs against Seattle, they won the first two games—meaning they won an unlikely 21 of 25 (.840)—and would have won that ALDS had it not been for the Big Buck Muck, leaving an exhausted David Cone out to walk in the tying run with a ready Mariano Rivera in the bullpen.

Thing was, that 1995 Yankees team was betwixt and between, full of veterans who were maybe on the way down, and rising young stars.

They had been beset by injuries—particularly to the pitching staff—and some bad luck (free agent pick-up Black Jack McDowell turned out to be a bust). But there was the core of a good team there.

Don Mattingly, still good enough to have one last, great series in his first postseason (.417). Wade Boggs, still able to hit .324 and field an excellent third base at age 37 (looking at you, Jackie Donaldson).

In the outfield, both Bernie Williams and Paul O'Neill hit over .300 with power, and the fleet Gerald Williams backed them up. Mike Stanley, who could slug, was behind the plate. 

The pitching was more of a mess. Mariano only began to emerge as the GOAT in that playoff series. Young guns Andy Pettitte and Sterling Hitchcock weren't quite there yet. Melido Perez and McDowell were done, Cone and Jimmy Key struggled with injuries, John Wetteland was unreliable, Steve Howe had to be literally tied to a fence to keep him from running after cocaine, and Scott Kamienicki was Scott Kamienicki.

But hey, there was enough to go on that unlikely litter run. And to so much after that. Derek Jeter and Jorge, among others were still waiting in the wings.

Are our current New York Yankees anywhere close to going on a similar run?  Either for the rest of this season, or in the years ahead?

No. They are not.

Stanton is done, Donaldson is done. Who knows when Rizzo will even play again. Anthony Volpe is, let's face it, a bust so far. So are the Oswaldii. Bader will walk next year, and the Yankees should let him.

 Trust me: he won't get far before he pulls something.)

The pitching staff consists of one reliable starter, and no reliable relievers.  

Incredibly, even Judge is done, if AboveAverage is correct, reduced to a $40-million Andrew Benintendi. No, that's not fair. Benintendi can still play the field.

And there is nobody waiting in the wings. Just Estevan Florial, the Prometheus of the Yankees system, tied to a rock in Scranton, where everyday the carrion birds of the International League feast on his liver.

(Sorry. Those Greeks had really lurid imaginations.)

Scene we will not see in Yankee Stadium again...