The New York Yankees have regained their footing in the AL Wild Card standings in the last week after a rollercoaster of play in the month of August. After dropping three of four to the Boston Red Sox at home, the Yankees responded by winning the final game against Boston before sweeping the Washington Nationals and winning two against the Chicago White Sox.
For Yankee manager Aaron Boone, it’s all about taking the remaining month of the season one day at a time.
“It’s a fun time of year, a lot on the line,” Boone said after Friday night’s win. “[The playoff race] isn’t something we can worry about too much, we’ve really got to handle our business and play our game. Tomorrow’s a new day, we’ll come out and try to get a W.”
New York has been streaky in August, with winning streaks of six and four games, but a losing streak of five to start the month.
The Yankees have gotten more consistent performances from some of their marquee players on this most recent winning streak. Cody Bellinger is 10/21 in his last six games with two home runs and six RBI while the pitching staff has limited opponents to just 16 runs, including some strong outings from Max Fried and Cam Schlittler.
Do The Yankees Have Another World Series Run in Them?
After starting the season 35-22 through the month of May, New York seemed poised to coast into the playoffs with another AL East title, but they finished June and July playing sub-.500 baseball, and have dropped as low as the final Wild Card berth. The summer has been replete with streaky baseball for the Yankees, which begs the question of whether they have enough durability on their talented roster to maintain a playoff push deep into October.
The answer to that question boils down to pitching. The Yankees have the most productive offense in the MLB with an absurd 230 team home runs, 29 more than the second place Dodgers. Run production isn’t New York’s issue, it’s consistency from their pitching staff, both starters and relievers.
After a stellar first half, Yankees’ ace Max Fried fell off the deep end in July and early August, giving up 31 earned runs across eight starts. Though his last two starts were strong, his summer struggles are a concerning sign for New York fans who expect him to give their team seven shutout innings every time he steps on the mound.
The Yankees bullpen, which was supposed to be one of the best in the game has also been suspect for a majority of the season. Camilo Doval and Devin Williams were supposed to be an elite 1-2 punch in the late innings, but have instead posted ERA’s of 5.23 and 4.91, respectively.
Remaining Schedule for New York
The Yankees schedule toughens up again in early September as they’ll face Houston, Toronto, Detroit and Boston three times each, before they finish their season with six against Baltimore and three apiece against Minnesota and the Chicago White Sox.
This early September gauntlet will provide a real barometer for whether the Yankees have enough juice in the tank to make another deep postseason run, and if they can escape those first 12 games with anything over .500, they’ll be a virtual lock for one of the top two Wild Card slots in the AL.
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