The Yankees are now 23-9, the major league’s best since starting the season at 5-10. On a roll, yes, but even better, the team is gelling…
The Yankees win over the White Sox this afternoon wasn’t made of thrills, as Aaron Judge drew a five-pitch walk with the bases loaded that sent them on their way home to face the St. Louis Cardinals, having been swept by the Yankees, the hottest team in baseball.
But clearly, the White Sox, as well as many other MLB teams, received notice that these Yankees have an arsenal of weapons that can beat you on any given day, plus a pitching staff that is emerging as one designed to make your life miserable in the playoffs.
When a team like the Yankees is going good, contributions comes from everywhere as they did today from a slumbering Clint Frazier, who erupted for three hits and a run scored, while Gleyber Torres continued his torrid hitting with three more hits today, and two more RBI, raising his BA to a more “Torres-like” .282.
The box score shows another decent, though not spectacular, start from Jameson Taillon (5 IP, no runs on two hits), with the backup of a Yankees bullpen that has been hard to reach.
Could Aaron Boone have asked for anything more from Taillon, his fifth starter, though, when he knows he has Corey Kluber leading off tomorrow to face the division-rival Toronto Blue Jays following an off-day tomorrow?
Yankees: Still Not Firing On All Cylinders
With Luke Voit struggling to find his way back (.175), Giancarlo Stanton on the IL, and Aaron Judge having an MVP season (there. I said it), Aaron Boone is still trying to find the right combination of Yankees who can give his team the best chance to win, every day.
Likely out for the season with impending surgery, Aaron Hicks is again of no use to the Yankees. DJ LeMahieu is not the .260 hitter his stats show, and Tyler Wade has suddenly become a full-time Yankees outfielder – but the team keeps on winning.
A recent troll of Yankees stats produced the revelation the team is made of more than the home run.
These are the Yankees who can win fourteen of nineteen games this month with 38 extra-base hits (not including today), slightly more than two per game, of which only nineteen are home runs.
In short, this is a Yankees team adding more weapons to their arsenal, stretching beyond the home run and challenging the long-held moniker of a team known as the Bronx Bombers.
Add the recent offensive explosion of Gleyber Torres, who’s gone 8-14 with six RBI to the consistent competitive at-bats of Gio Urshela (.277 with 23 RBI), together with the Yankees American League-leading ERA of 3.17, and voila – should there be any surprise at what we see now?
By a Red Sox loss today to an unbeatable Zack Wheeler (Philadelphia Phillies), the Yankees are now within a half-game of first place in the AL East Standings, albeit in a tie with the equally red-hot Tampa Bay Rays, who have found a way to reel off ten wins in a row.
Cream Rises To The Top
Cream rises to the top, as they say, and the Yankees find a rhythm that supports preseason predictions they were the team to beat in the AL and on their way to an appearance in the 2021 World Series.
Brian Cashman is ramping up to find a left-handed power bat who can take advantage of the short porch at Yankee Stadium, plus maybe a reliable starting pitcher – just in case.
In the meantime, the team’s focus turns to the Toronto Blue Jays, who advertise Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (.333, 13 HR, 36 RBI, with a league-leading .642 SLG) as a potential AL MVP candidate.
Three games at Yankee Stadium following a day off on Monday means the Yankees will face a division rival with two games in the standings dependant on the outcome of each of the three-game series.
Corey Kluber will pitch the opener on Tuesday, followed by Domingo German and Jordan Montgomery, who are coming off superb seven-inning performances in their last start.
So, here we go, and it’s what we’ve been waiting for with the summer temps heating up and a Yankees team that follows suit in a dog-eat-dog race to the finish…
Ex-Yankees manager Joe Torre always had the winning formula. First, you get to five over (.500), then ten over whee the Yankees are one-shy, the fifteen and twenty over that crush all opponents in your division.
This Yankees team will always be looking back to see who’s gaining on them (Satchel Paige), but all they need to do is to keep on doing what they’re doing, and good fortunes lie ahead…
Here’s What Readers Are Saying…
Scott Gerrol Yes sir, you say it like it is!! Many Yankee haters out there. Many Yankee lovers hate many aspects from coaching, rosters, players in a slump, etc.. I sit back and watch the improvements and the enjoyment of my MLB season. Go Yankees
Phil Levinson The “incompetent manager” has his team kicking butt and playing like the “Savages” similar to a couple of years ago when they were overwhelmed with injuries — and once again it seems like the GM has his moves working again— Odor- Andujar-Wade
Baseball, it is said, is only a game. True. And the Grand Canyon is only a hole in Arizona. Not all holes, or games, are created equal.
