From a New York Times story by Tyler Kepner headlined “Swept by Boston, Yankees Face the Unthinkable: Mediocrity”:

The Yankees set themselves apart. That is the whole underpinning of their brand. Of course, they have the most championships, but it’s more than that. No beards. No names on the jerseys. No losing seasons in decades.

That last one is in serious peril. The Yankees lost for the eighth game in a row on Sunday, 6-5 to the Boston Red Sox in the Bronx. They are 60-64 this season, slipping ever closer to the first losing season for the franchise since 1992, the year Aaron Judge was born.