Steinbrenner blames Yankees players for lack of World Series title, defends Boone and Cashman

NEW YORK (AP) — Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner defended manager Aaron Boone and general manager Brian Cashman following New York's failure to win the World Series and blamed the players for the lack of success.“I thought Boone managed a good season, especially with the pitching staff," Steinbrenner said Wednesday. "The bottom line is the players didn’t live up to their end of the bargain in the playoffs.”New York has gone 17 seasons without a World Series title. That matches the Yankees' longest drought since winning their first championship in 1923, a gap between titles in 1978 and ’96.“If we don’t win a championship while I’m here, I’m sure that will be a frontline story of it all and how people think of me and how a fanbase reacts,” Boone said. "I understand that.”Steinbrenner spoke alongside Cashman during a joint Zoom news conference from team's spring training ballpark in Tampa, Florida, and Boone followed with a video news conference from Yankee Stadium.New York went 93-68 and f