Michael Kay Invokes Lincoln Assassination When Describing Yankees' ALCS Motivational Plan
New York Yankees broadcaster Michael Kay was highly critical of the team's motivational strategy after going down 3-0 to the Houston Astros in the ALCS. To illustrate how miffed he was, Kay explained how off-base the plan was by putting it in American history terms.
The team's mental skills coach Chad Bohling busted out a video intended to inspire the Yankees as they were on the ropes. The subject matter? Well, it was clips of a team who rallied from 3-0 in the ALCS, the Boston Red Sox.
The team they beat? The New York Yankees.
You can see what Bohling was going for but that's a definite "read the room" situation.
Kay was not happy to hear about this video and said he spoke to some of the 2004 Yankees who were annoyed by it.
"How in baseball god’s name can you be so tone-deaf as an organization, as if to do that. How can you be that tone-deaf?” Kay asked on his radio show.
"I mean, talk about bad optics. Are you out of your mind? I talked to three players from the ‘04 team. They were outraged by the fact that their failure was being used as motivation for the 2022 team. How could you do that?”
To drive his point home, Kay decided to make an analogy, one that will probably not be on the SAT anytime soon (but you never know).
“It would be like someone from Lincoln’s family, and you’re trying to teach them about shootings in theaters, and you use their dad as an example of how to avoid it,” Kay said.
“I mean, are you out of your mind?”
Kay's Analogy Is A Stretch... Sort Of
I mean, I don't know that the Lincolns would've needed a refresher on what went down at Ford's Theatre. At the very least they'd know the broad strokes.
It's not the greatest analogy, but it's not the worst. I mean, Lincoln is the Yankees in Kay's analogy. History buffs will know that is spot on. However, this makes the Red Sox John Wilkes Booth, which isn't particularly flattering.
Still, Kay makes a decent point that using one of the franchise's greatest collapses — and your biggest rival's shining moment — as motivational fuel is a bit strange. None of the current Yankees played on that team, so it's not like any of them are seeking redemption.
Maybe they should've just watched Rudy or Field of Dreams or something.
It didn't really matter what they watched. They were going to lose anyway.
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