Yankees have look of ineptness

Domingo German was supposed to start Monday night for the Yankees. Instead, he was scratched after discomfort in his armpit.

Yet, somehow he managed to make a relief appearance after relieving starter Jhony Brito, who gave up four home runs, including back-to-back in the fourth inning to Isaac Paredes and Josh Lowe in the Yankees’ 5-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays at Yankee Stadium. He managed to throw five scoreless innings of two-hit ball in a game that was out of reach.

The Rays announcers were befuddled about the decision of not starting German just to have him in relief during the telecast. YES analyst Jeff Nelson called out the Yankees for this odd decision on the Yankees telecast.

This just sums up everything that is wrong with the Bronx Bombers this season. Not only are they dysfunctional on the field, but they are dysfunctional off the field.

If anyone wonders why they don’t develop young players well, we can look back at this decision. If they weren’t so sure German can start just to pitch him anyway, you just wonder how they manage to put players in a position to succeed.

Maybe German was scratched because the team may want to trade him, but if they were going to use him anyway, it makes all of this ridiculous. They might as well have him start. It sure seems like this organization lacks conviction in using players, which explains why their problems start with inept player development.

Outside of Aaron Judge, which Yankee player has developed into a star? Luis Severino, Gleyber Torres, Gary Sanchez, Greg Bird, Jackson (Clint) Frazier arrived in the majors with high hopes just to fail. One has to wonder if any of these guys played for another organization like the Rays, would they have failed?

When a Yankees fan sees what the Baltimore Orioles and Rays are doing with their young players, he or she has to wonder what’s going on with the Yankees and how come they don’t have success with it. Their young players do well in Double-A and Triple-A yet when they entered the majors, they flop.

One can’t help but wonder if coaching is the problem in the majors. Ever since Joe Girardi was fired as manager, the players have not been coached properly. This is what happens when they hire a company man as a manager in Aaron Boone to take orders from Yankees general manager Brian Cashman rather than hire a manager who knows how to coach players. The coaching staff leaves so much to be desired.

It’s not a coincidence Torres, Sanchez and Severino faltered after Girardi was fired. This should raise questions if the team should be trusted with developing Anthony Volpe, who hasn’t exactly been an impact player the way Elly De La Cruz has with the Cincinnati Reds. It’s also not a coincidence the team stopped playing well after he was fired. This is a team that can’t do the little things right such as fielding, baserunning and executing runners.

The Yankees are 55-51 and last place in the AL East by merit. They can’t pitch, and they can’t hit. Everything was on display once again against a superior Rays team.

When a starter starts the game by giving up a two-run home run in the first inning and another home run in the second inning as Brito did, it exemplifies everything that’s bad about this team. When a starter put his team behind early, it makes it harder for a team to come back, especially with the Yankees being limited on offense.

Maybe none of this happens if German was starting, but that’s no guarantee, either since he has yet to show he can be a reliable starter in his career.

After striking out 18 times against the Orioles on Sunday night in the Yankees’ 9-3 loss to the Orioles, the home team struck out 12 times against the Rays. When they are hacking away, it shows right there this team is fundamentally bad. They can’t get on base, and they can’t create a big inning when they actually get guys on base.

With the Yankees trailing 5-1 against the Rays in the sixth inning, Judge hustled from first to third on Anthony Rizzo’s single. This was an example of leadership when the Yankees star is hustling to make it happen on a toe that still hurts. This was a chance to make something happen. Instead, Giancarlo Stanton grounded into a double play on one pitch to end the inning.

That inning sums up why no one fears the Yankees anymore. They create their own incompetence that gets in the way of winning a ballgame.

Boone and his players can keep talking about there are plenty of games left and it’s right there in front of them, but what about this team should give Yankees fans a reason to believe? They have been awful all season. They have been outplayed by teams in their own division. Even worse, they have been unwatchable. There is no identity in this team as they are not a bunch of savages at the plate anymore just by them whiffing at every pitch. They look like a slow softball team that relies on home runs and nothing else.

Forget this year for a minute. What makes anyone think the Bronx Bombers are going to be better in the next few years? The Orioles are getting started. The Rays and Toronto Blue Jays are still going to be good. The Boston Red Sox are starting to build a good young team. This championship drought could last for a decade with the way it’s going. It's easy to wonder if Gerrit Cole's and Judge's career will be wasted in the Bronx.

This organization lost its way as a Major League Baseball team altogether. They have no clue how to play baseball and how to operate as a team.

This is what happens when Hal Steinbrenner runs a country-club atmosphere where accountability doesn’t exist anymore.

George Steinbrenner would be ashamed of his son and his team if he was alive to see this.

You can read Leslie's Jersey Sporting News column on Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays.