# Yankees clinch playoffs but can't afford slow starts

> New York's offense struggles early in games, putting too much pressure on their pitching staff when it matters most.
- Title: Yankees clinch playoffs but can't afford slow starts
- Summary: New York's offense struggles early in games, putting too much pressure on their pitching staff when it matters most. The Yankees must score earlier in games…
- Keywords: new york yankees, aaron judge, mlb postseason, first inning offense, minnesota twins, toronto blue jays, dean kremer, will warren, ben rice, cody bellinger, luis garcia jr, jose caballero
- Source: New York Yankees On SI — https://si.com/mlb/yankees/onsi/yankees-biggest-weakness-that-must-be-fixed-ahead-of-the-mlb-postseason-01m2jwpe27x3
- Published: 2026-09-15T20:00:01+00:00
- Read time: 2 min
- Topics: new york yankees, aaron judge, mlb postseason, first inning offense, minnesota twins, toronto blue jays, dean kremer, will warren, ben rice, cody bellinger, luis garcia jr, jose caballero
## Yankees clinch playoff spot
New York secured their postseason berth Monday night with a comeback win over Minnesota. A Blue Jays loss brought the magic number to zero.
## Victory wasn't pretty
The Yankees struggled early against mediocre pitching and made sloppy defensive mistakes. They can't afford these errors when the stakes are highest.
## Offense remains the biggest concern
The lineup struggled badly while Aaron Judge was injured. Though he's back and hit a three-run homer Monday, the offense still has issues.
## Seven runs came late
The Yankees scored seven of their eight runs in the final two innings. Before the six-run eighth, they had just three baserunners and two hits.
## Struggling pitcher shut them down
Dean Kremer entered with a 5.65 ERA but held New York to two hits over 5.2 innings. Doing nothing against weak pitching puts too much pressure on Yankees pitchers.
## Slow starts all season long
The Yankees have scored only 74 first-inning runs, tied for ninth-fewest in MLB. They're consistently failing to get early offense.
## Dismal without Judge
From June 1 to September 7 while Judge was out, New York scored just 25 first-inning runs. That was by far the fewest of any team.
## 23 games without a first-inning run
From July 21 to August 25, the Yankees went nearly a month without scoring in the opening frame. The drought was historically bad.

> Yankees have gone 22 straight games without scoring a run in the first inning
## Early runs ease pitching pressure
Scoring in the first inning would let the Yankees leverage their strong pitching staff. Judge's return offers hope for fixing this weakness.
## Judge dominates first innings
Since 2024, Judge has hit 45 first-inning homers, including 20 in 2025 alone. This season he's slashing .273/.365/.691 in opening frames.
## Still finding his timing
Judge's numbers have dipped recently as he shakes off rust from missing three months. But Monday's big homer suggests he's locking in.
## Judge can't do it alone
Ben Rice, Cody Bellinger, and Luis Garcia Jr. need to contribute too. The Yankees need the whole top of the order producing.
## Supporting cast heating up
Rice has settled in as leadoff hitter, Bellinger is hitting .306 since August 23, and Garcia has raked since the trade deadline. The pieces are there.
## Turning weakness into strength
Early offense combined with dominant pitching would let the Yankees control games from the start. Judge's return makes that transformation possible.
## Key takeaway

The Yankees must score earlier in games to leverage their strong pitching and compete in October.