For the first time in postseason history, the last four teams in the baseball playoffs all were clubs that were at least 100 years old.
The St. Louis Cardinals, San Francisco Giants and Detroit Tigers are al storied clubs with rich histories and the New York Yankees are no different. But this postseason the Yankees wrote some history they wish they could change; putting together one of the worst and most disappointing postseasons in team history.
The team hit .188 during the playoffs, good for the lowest team batting average in postseason history for a team that played at least seven games.
For as bad as the Yankees played this postseason, it's amazing that all the team needed to do to get back into the series against Detroit was something they had done 95 times during the regular season: win one game.
But a roster that cost over $200 million could not muster up enough offense to even do that.
The Yankees were swept in the League Championship Series after losing Game 4 on Thursday night and now face an offseason full of uncertainty and big questions.
Things truly began to feel hopeless in Game 1 against the Tigers at Yankee Stadium. Sure, the Orioles series was bad for the Yankees, but nothing describes the 2012 season for the team more than that first game of the championship series.
All year the team had trouble hitting with runners in scoring position. Three times in Game 1 the Yankees had the bases loaded and failed to score a run.
The Yankees relied heavily on the home run ball this season. Down 4-0 in the bottom of the ninth inning, the team hit two two-run home runs by Ichiro Suzuki and Raul Ibanez to tie the game and send it to extra innings.
The Yankees are led by their captain and most important player, Derek Jeter. In the 12th inning of the game, right after the Tigers re-took the lead, Jeter dove for a grounder at shortstop and fractured his ankle, devastating the team.
New York lost the game 6-4 and you know how the rest of the series went.
Now the team faces an offseason of mounting pressure that is sure to last until next spring.
Will Alex Rodriguez return to the team? And if so, what type of player will he be?
Rodriguez struggled mightily through the end of the season and all through the playoffs, striking out 12 times in 25 at-bats with only three hits.
"I think that too much attention is put on Alex," Yankees president Randy Levine said. "The fact that we lost this was a total team effort, a total organization effort to single out one person is not fair. At the end of the day, we as an organization lose as an organization. We are all in this together."
One of the best power hitters of all time, Rodriguez was benched multiple times in the playoffs and was replaced in the lineup by Eric Chavez by manager Joe Girardi, possibly fracturing the relationship between manager and player.
Following the decision to pinch hit Raul Ibanez for Rodriguez in Game 3 against the Orioles (which worked out, considering Ibanez hit a game-tying home run), the superstar said: ""I love Joe and I'm one of the leaders of the team. Maybe 10 years ago, I would've reacted in a much different way, but I'm in a place in my career now where the team is everything."
But after getting benched for Game 3 of the series against the Tigers, Rodriguez wasn't as emphatic when asked about his relationship with his manager. He said: "The one thing I'll always give Joe a lot of credit is he's been very good to me over the years. He has a lot of equity with me."
Rodriguez had to deal with some controversy after a story surfaced that he was openly flirting with women in the stands after getting taken out of Game 1 against the Tigers.
"I don't worry about all that. It comes with the territory," he said. "The thing about this situation is, if I'm playing my game, Joe has no choice but to play me. And If I'm not playing my game, then he's open to other options. I gotta look in the mirror."
Rumors also began to circulate that the Yankees would try to trade the star to his hometown Miami Marlins.
"I don't get into speculation," Rodriguez said to ESPNNewYork.com. "I can only deal with what I can control and I'm going to take care of that."
But according to Rodriguez, he will be back with the Yankees next year.
"I've never thought about going to another team," Alex Rodriguez said to ESPNNewYork.com. "My focus is to stay here. Let's make that very, very clear. I will be back and I have a lot to prove and I will come back on a mission."
The last time Rodriguez spoke like that was following a disappointing 2006 playoffs. The following season he came back with a vengeance and won the AL MVP. But Rodriguez is not that player anymore. He is older, less healthy and less skilled. Rodriguez is still owed over $100 million over the next five years.
Will Derek Jeter be able to fully heal from his fractured ankle?
No player represents the Yankees like shortstop Derek Jeter. So when the captain was carried off the field following an injury in Game 1 of the League Championship Series, the Yankees might as well have given up right there.
No one wants to see their team give up, but without Jeter the Yankees looked emotionless and devastated. They played that way too.
Jeter had one of the best seasons of his career, leading the majors in hits with 216 and hitting .316. But following a serious ankle injury, Jeter faces up to five months of rehab and may miss the beginning of spring training.
The Yankees need Jeter to return as the same player he was this season for any hope of winning a championship next year.
The Yankees also have a lot of questions when it comes to personnel.
Will Rafael Soriano opt out of his contract after a stellar season? Will an older Mariano Rivera be able to come back from a season-ending injury? Will Andy Pettitte return for another season?
The team also faces decisions on Russell Martin, Nick Swisher, Ichiro Suzuki, Curtis Granderson, Hiroki Kuroda and many others.
"The season just ended today," Ichiro said to ESPNNewYork.com,. "Like I said before, I just want to be that player that is needed and is wanted. That's what I can tell you today."
The Yankees have many questions to answer this offseason and could return next year with a very different looking team.
"I would expect to be back, but I don't control that," said Granderson, who would love to return. "You have to talk to the guys in the front office, and they'll give you a better answer than that."
One thing is certain, it's going to be an interesting offseason in the Bronx.
