The New York Yankees have regained their mojo. The Yankees, who overcame a slew of injuries, have fought all the way back into first place. But they were in the midst of a 3-8 stretch after losing two straight games on the road to the surprising Chicago White Sox. With the Tampa Bay Rays and Houston Astros coming into Yankee Stadium, things were not looking good.
Yankees Regain Mojo
Then the Yankees turned it around. Midway through the Saturday night game in Chicago, word came that the Yankees had traded a very low-level prospect for the American League home run leader, Edwin Encarnacion. This was a jolt to a team that was already getting healthy offensively, with Giancarlo Stanton set to return against the Rays and Aaron Judge hopefully returning for the Astros series.
The Yankees won the last two games against the White Sox to split the four-game series then returned home to sweep the second-place Rays, and just like that, the Yankees have won five games in a row. Their three-and-a-half-game lead over the second-place Rays is the Yankees’ largest of the season. The Yankees have not lost since trading for Encarnacion.
The Rays Series
The Rays were dominated by the Yankees in the three-game series. The Yankees outscored the Rays, 21-4, and that included knocking out 2018 Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell in the first inning. But, more importantly, the Yankee pitching stepped up. Masahiro Tanaka pitched a complete game shutout in the opening game of the series. J.A. Happ pitched a solid five innings in the middle game of the series. In the finale, CC Sabathia won his 250th career game as the Yankees finished off the sweep.
Offensively the Yankees are hot. Gary Sanchez and DJ LeMahieu each had one home run and five RBI. Cameron Maybin had six hits including two home runs. Encarnacion had his first home run as a Yankee, and Stanton also returned to the lineup.
The Astros Series
The Yankees now have a four-game series with the Astros in what can be an ALCS preview. The Astros, after getting swept by the Cincinnati Reds, now have lost four games in a row. With an eight-game lead, the Astros are seemingly in control of the American League West division. This is despite two of their best players being on the injured list — Carlos Correa and George Springer. However, star player Jose Altuve has just returned to the lineup this week.
The Yankees get a break with star pitcher Gerrit Cole not pitching in this series. The Astros swept a three-game series in early April when the Yankees visited Houston. This is the last time these two teams will play before a possible playoff matchup.
Yankees Outlook
As a result of the Encarnacion trade, the Yankees had to send outfielder Clint Frazier to the minors so he could continue to play every day. With Judge ready to be activated any day, there is just not enough playing time for everybody. This is a good problem to have, despite having to demote Frazier.
The Encarnacion trade serves two purposes. It is protection just in case of another injury to a top offensive player. It also makes Frazier seemingly available for a potential trade for an upgrade in starting pitching. The Yankees figure to be active, as usual, before the trade deadline and now have the necessary players in place to land a top starting pitcher or two.
The Yankees are loaded and have that swagger back just in time, as they are in the midst of an important stretch of games. After playing four against the Astros, the Toronto Blue Jays come in for three games. The Yankees just lost two out of three against the Blue Jays in Toronto, so they will be looking for payback. After that, they play two games in London against the Boston Red Sox, followed by two at the New York Mets. Then the Yankees will close out the first half of the season with four games in Tampa against the Rays.
Not only can the Yankees make a major statement in the next two weeks, they can also widen their lead in the American League East.
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