Yankee's have problems
Written By: Eric Shaw
The New York Yankees came into the season as one of the top power houses of the league. After going 33-27 in 2020 and losing in the ALDS to the Rays they were still seen as the best team in the AL. Many predicted that the Yankees would not only win the AL East, but would also be representing the AL in the World Series. The Yankees had a great chance to at least win the AL East with the departure of Blake Snell and Charlie Morton from the Rays. The Blue Jays had some good auditions over the off season but still did not show to have the fire power they need to beat the Yankees.
We can all say as of right now that was all not true. As of April 20th, 2021 the Yankees are last in the AL East with a record of 5-10. This is their worst 15 game start since 1997, when they also went 5-10 to start the season. The Yankees have lost five in a row, which contained getting swept by the Tampa Bay Rays.
Looking into the Yankees games, they are lacking offense, defense and pitching. Everything that could go wrong is indeed going wrong. They are having tough times to capitalize on key moments. The Yankees still have not scored a single run in the ninth inning, putting them dead last in the league in the category. The Yankees are having their biggest struggles with the bats, which is pretty hard to believe. The only player still playing somewhat decent is Aaron Judge. Players like Gleyber Torres, Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Hicks are all hitting under .200 still. Hopefully when star first baseman Luke Voit comes back, their offense can go back to normal.
Luke Voit has been on the 10-day Injured List since the beginning of the season, he is yet to have an at bat yet. Injuries have always been a problem for the Yankees, and as time goes on, there is a better chance for Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton to get injured. The past couple of years both of them have gotten injured, but they have been able to play around them and still be able to make the playoffs. So there is still a way for this Yankee team to turn their season around.
Gerrit Cole is absolutely carrying the pitching staff with a 2-1 record and 1.82 ERA. And he needs to stay good for the Yankees to stay competitive. But it is obviously too early to be worried about them. The Yankees are lucky how early we are into the season, where there is a lot of time to turn this all around. The Yankees are playing scarcely, there is a lot of pressure for them to win to break their losing streak, and with pressure comes a lack of confidence. If the Yankees can play the game of baseball without thinking too much, they will play a lot better. If they get out of this streak of poor performance, they are still a good team. But it needs to happen soon before being five games behind first place turns into 10 games behind.
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