Yankees Using 2004 For Motivation...?

Their hopes fading fast, the New York Yankees have switched things up yet again in their lineup heading into Game 4 against the Houston Astros, hoping to avoid an ALCS sweep. 

Yankees fans' favorite whipping boy, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, is back in the lineup at a position he has not endeared himself at, shortstop. Oswaldo Cabrera is moving back out to left field. Matt Carpenter, who's gone 1-for-11 with nine strikeouts in the postseason, is back on the bench. 

But the real bizarre move that manager Aaron Boone has made prior to Game 4, believe it or not, is to call up the ghosts of 2004, when the Boston Red Sox came back from a 3-0 ALCS deficit to knock off the Yankees and go to the World Series.

Aaron Boone said that Chad Bohling, the #Yankees’ mental skills coach, was sending around highlight videos of the 2004 Red Sox this morning. Eduardo Perez also FaceTimed David Ortiz into Boone’s office pregame.

— Bryan Hoch (@BryanHoch) October 23, 2022

Boone told reporters that the team's mental skills coach Chad Bohling was sending around highlight videos of the 2004 Red Sox comeback this morning for inspiration. In addition, Red Sox legend David Ortiz was FaceTimed into Boone's office. 

Not all Yankee fans are excited about reliving the 2004 Red Sox however.

The Yankees are really publicly admitting that we’re watching and taking inspiration from the 2004 Red Sox, aka highlights of the Yankees losing, that is so fuckin embarrassing

— AT (@YankeeWRLD) October 23, 2022