The New York Yankees concluded their season with a disappointing home loss in game 4 while the Philadelphia Phillies — who played game 3 on the road — and the Chicago Cubs — who were at home — managed to extend their seasons, pulling themselves back from the brink and forcing decisive Game 4s.
The script for the New York Yankees in 2025 ended with a depressingly familiar thud. Just 24 hours after Aaron Judge authored an unforgettable, season-saving comeback victory in Game 3 — the largest elimination game rally in franchise history — the Yankees returned to Yankee Stadium only to lay an egg in Game 4. Their 5-2 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays officially terminated their season, extending a World Series drought that now stretches back to 2009.
The lineup hardly mustered any offense at all. Key hitters, including Trent Grisham and Cody Bellinger, were visibly pressing at the plate, managing only five baserunners through the first six innings. Manager Aaron Boone faced intense scrutiny because his pivotal mistake was being way too greedy with Schlittler, attempting to push the starter through the seventh inning while clinging to a 2-1 deficit.
This decision led directly to the game-sealing two-run single that put the contest essentially out of reach. And Boone turned to the struggling Anthony Volpe an impossibly long leash, failing to pinch-hit for him despite Volpe finishing the ALDS a miserable 1-for-15 with 11 strikeouts. This lack of urgency suggests a deep-seated organizational inability to adapt to the pressures of October baseball. The early exit applies maximum pressure on ownership, with one of the top candidates to replace Boone ironically being Don Mattingly, the current Blue Jays bench coach whose team just delivered the final blow.
Let’s take a look at the the two NLDS series where both the Phillies and Cubs were showing their resilience. The Philadelphia Phillies arrived at Dodger Stadium down 2-0, historically facing daunting odds, as teams in that hole in a best-of-five series prevail only about 10% of the time. The pressure was suffocating, especially on the top of the lineup. The vaunted trio of Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, and Trea Turner was mired in an abysmal slump, entering Game 3 a combined 2-for-24. Schwarber, specifically, was 0-for-his-last-21 swings.
The momentum immediately shifted though when Schwarber, in the fourth inning, unleashed the catharsis. His Schwarbomb was a 455-foot majestic drive that sailed through the Los Angeles night, becoming the first home run ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto had allowed all postseason. That blast didn’t just tie the game; it validated Harper’s assertion that they needed to flip the script and allowed the rest of the talent to follow. Harper and Alec Bohm immediately followed with singles, turning a 1-0 deficit into a 3-1 lead. By forcing Game 4, the Phillies’ Red October identity — a blue-collar mentality and commitment to fighting every single day — has successfully transferred the enormous pressure of expectations back onto the heavily favored Dodgers.
The atmosphere of survival was similarly in the air over in Chicago, where the Cubs leveraged methodical execution and managerial savvy to stave off elimination against the Brewers and force a Game 4. Unlike the Phillies, whose survival hinged on a sudden burst of star power, the Cubs’ fight was anchored by tactical discipline and veteran stability. Game 3 saw veteran right-hander Jameson Taillon stabilize the team after an early defensive miscue loaded the bases.
This steady performance set the stage for manager Craig Counsell, whose blueprint for October has appeared to prioritize maximizing bullpen usage outside of conventional roles. Counsell’s tactical flexibility adds to the growing impression of resilience and depth within the Cubs’ roster. This success was compounded by the undeniable advantage of playing in front of Cubs faithful, which provides a true home field advantage and restored big-game energy to the series.
Here’s the thing, folks: The events which too place tonight reveal the essential dichotomy of the baseball postseason. For the Yankees, elimination means finality and immediate change is necessary. Their failure was rooted in strategic rigidity. In stark contrast, the National League series have become stories of narrative inversion. The Cubs and Phillies, by refusing to yield, have achieved a massive psychological momentum boost that can propel a team forward with renewed confidence for the next round.
With that… While New York begins the painful process of accountability, Chicago and Philadelphia carry the dramatic weight of survival into Game 4, underscoring that the MLB playoffs often reward baseball’s best story rather than necessarily its best team.
If you cannot play with them, then root for them to survive!