There’s a debate among sports fans whether it’s better to lose a high-stakes game by a blowout so you have no expectations, or better to lose a close game because you at least have a chance. I’m in the latter camp, but as a Yankees fan, last night was very tough.

As a fan, memories are a big deal, and you hope to avoid terrible ones. I didn’t like losing the 2003 World Series, for instance, but I can’t remember anything from that one except for a rain delay — so it’s not so bad. But I’ll never forget the end of the 2001 World Series — so that one is still a crusher.

Now, I’m going to be thinking about this crucial misplay for years:

It’s some consolation that the Yankees proved beyond a doubt that they weren’t good enough to win the Series and didn’t deserve to win the Series, but the process of establishing that was hard to take.