The New York Yankees have a 10-game lead in the AL East and the fourth-best record (72-44) in MLB. But it certainly doesn’t feel that way lately.
New York was shut out 4-0 by the Tampa Bay Rays on Monday night at Yankee Stadium.
The Yankees have now lost 10 of their last 12 games and five of their last six. They’ve been shut out in consecutive games (3-0 at the Boston Red Sox on Sunday), and three times over the last six games (including a 1-0 loss in 13 innings at the Seattle Mariners). And over the last six games, the Yankees haven’t scored more than three runs in any game.
Since starting the season with a ridiculous record of 61-23, the Yankees have gone 11-21. That’s quite the regression.
(You can see more about Anthony Rizzo’s frustration here)
So, it’s a pretty alarming drop-off for a Yankees team that seemed like a full-on juggernaut.
But, again- they still have a 10-game lead in the AL East, and they’re only 2.5 games behind the Houston Astros for the best record in the AL. And they still have a ton of talent, led by Aaron Judge, who’s having an absolutely absurd season (46 home runs and is worth 7.6 wins above replacement per FanGraphs) that will likely result in winning the AL MVP award.
Odds are that the Yankees will turn things around, but their recent woes will naturally leave the fan base feeling uneasy in a title-or-bust season.
Here’s a look at how the baseball world is reacting to the Yankees’ shutout loss:
https://twitter.com/EYYankees/status/1559331519872634880
About Matt Clapp
Matt is an editor/writer at The Comeback and Awful Announcing.
He can be reached by email at mclapp@thecomeback.com.