The New York Yankees are beating the teams they’re supposed to beat, and not necessarily their chief rivals.
Earlier this month, it looked like the sky was falling. But the Yankees have since gone 11-1 against the Minnesota Twins, St. Louis Cardinals, Tampa Bay Rays, Washington Nationals, and Chicago White Sox.
Beating up on low-quality opponents? Sure. But it’s keeping the Yankees in good stead to make the playoffs, and even within striking distance of a division title if the Toronto Blue Jays and Boston Red Sox falter.
The main thing preventing total positivity in Yankee-land, however, is the fact that the only series they’ve played in the middle of this hot stretch, last weekend against the Red Sox, was an utter embarrassment.
Still, after whupping the White Sox 10-4 on Thursday night, Yankees outfielder Cody Bellinger asserted that there’s no shame in padding the record against low-quality competition, which is objectively true.
“Those guys are still throwing a baseball really hard, and we’ve got to hit it,” Bellinger said, per Bryan Hoch of MLB.com. “They’re trying to get hits off our pitchers. Ultimately, it’s the same game plan: Show up and (figure out), ‘How are we going to win today?'”
In actuality, the Yankees are 37-37 against teams above .500, which ranks 11th in Major League Baseball. They’ve been pretty good against National League playoff teams; it’s their 4-15 record against the Red Sox and Blue Jays that has fans up in arms.
All they can do for now is take care of business against the White Sox for the rest of the weekend. Eventually, if they want to accomplish their goal of winning the division, they’ll have to start beating quality opponents again, beginning with a road series against the rival Houston Astros next week.
“Nothing’s impossible,” Bellinger said, per Hoch. “We have faith in everyone in here – pitchers, bullpen, lineup. We’ve got to keep playing our game. Good things can happen.”
More MLB: Cubs Insider Names Top Two Trade Candidates If Kyle Tucker Stays in Chicago
Read the full article here
