Rich Eisen has never been one to hold back when it comes to the Yankees, and their latest offseason blunder sent him into full meltdown mode. The longtime sportscaster and die-hard Yankees fan was fuming over the team losing a key player—not just to free agency, but to their biggest city rival. In a fiery rant, he ripped into the Yankees for letting another star walk while seemingly prioritizing bizarre off-field decisions, like changing their post-loss theme song.

Eisen felt more than the loss of talent. It was also about seeing the Yankees lag behind as the Mets unexpectedly took steps to enhance their team’s performance. In the New York baseball rivalry, dynamics have shifted recently with the Mets making strategic moves under owner Steve Cohen’s leadership while the Yankees seem more preoccupied with managing setbacks rather than boosting their lineups’ strength.

Will the Yankees regret letting Holmes go?

On a recent Rich Eisen Show episode Eisen with Chris Brockman and TJ Jefferson discussed the Yankees’ moves this offseason. Eisen said “New rules of Sinatra playing after a loss were in place last year. The guy who would have prevented New York, New York from being played more than anybody else is his new fresh starter ace. Enjoy Clay Holmes, dude. Enjoy him.”

Many Yankees fans share Eisen’s frustration feeling that the team’s management is reluctant to take the daring steps needed to excel in top-tier competition. While they did add Max Fried and Devin Williams, the bullpen remains a major question mark, and losing Holmes only adds to the concern. Meanwhile, the Mets—who had one of the worst bullpens in baseball last season — stole not just Juan Soto but one of the Yankees’ best late-game arms Clay Holmes.

Apart from this, the Yankees have long prided themselves on being the team that outspends and outmaneuvers their competition, but in this case, they were outbid for a player they arguably couldn’t afford to lose. If Holmes thrives in Queens while the Yankees struggle to hold late leads, this move will haunt them all season.

Is music the problem, or the roster?

On the same show, the sportscaster unloaded on the team, not just for their slow free agency moves, but also for a musical policy change. The Yankees, known for playing Frank Sinatra’s New York, after every home game win or lose have decided to swap the song out following losses. Instead, when the Yankees drop a game, they’ll now play Sinatra’s That’s Life, a song about bouncing back from failure.

Furthermore, this was just another sign that the Yankees have lost their edge. Instead of focusing on building a powerhouse roster, they’re micromanaging the postgame soundtrack. And in typical Eisen fashion, he couldn’t let it slide. The longtime Yankees fan didn’t just mock the move—he tied it to the team’s struggles on the field, particularly the decision to lean heavily on closer Clay Holmes. He said the Yankees’ focus should be on preventing losses, not figuring out what song best accompanies them. “That’s Life” may be about resilience, but as Eisen made clear, Yankees fans aren’t in the mood for musical consolation prizes; they just want to win.

In essence, with bullpen depth now a concern, the pressure is on the Yankees to prove they can close out games without their former All-Star closer. What do you think? Will this move come back to haunt them in a season where every late-inning lead matters?