NEW YORK — Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora said he hoped Saturday’s fiasco involving Gerrit Cole and Rafael Devers would galvanize his team in its pursuit of making the postseason. It didn’t work. The Red Sox looked flat on Sunday, and the New York Yankees took three of four from their rivals, nearly burying them in the chase for the wild card.
The Yankees lead the American League East by three games over the Baltimore Orioles. Even if the Yankees finish the season 6-6 and lose the season series with the Orioles (New York would need to sweep Baltimore next week to secure the tiebreaker), Baltimore would have to finish 9-3 to win the division. It might be a tall order for the Orioles to end their season on a hot streak, as they haven’t won a series against a team currently over .500 since July 4. Baltimore ends its season against New York and the Minnesota Twins, who are still fighting for a wild-card spot.
The division title is within reach for the Yankees. Here are three takeaways with the club beginning a three-game series against the Seattle Mariners on Tuesday night:
Can the Yankees seize their opportunity?
For the past few months, it has felt like no team wants to win the AL East. The Orioles had their opportunity to bury the Yankees in June and July but couldn’t take advantage. The Yankees entered the four-game series against Boston with a 19-17 record since Aug. 1 and lost several inexplicable series to inferior opponents. Now is the time for the Yankees to finish the job.
However, the Mariners will provide a challenging test for the Yankees, as Seattle is starting three of the best pitchers in the American League: Bryan Woo, Bryce Miller and Logan Gilbert. In two career starts against the Yankees, Woo has allowed zero runs. After an up-and-down rookie season, Miller has pitched to a 3.12 ERA this season. Gilbert ranks inside the top 10 in starting pitching fWAR this season.
The Yankees’ offense has been quiet since the start of September. Since the beginning of the month, the Yankees’ 91 wRC+ is tied for 16th.
445 ft for The Captain 🫡#ALLRISE pic.twitter.com/Fp439GPxw1
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) September 15, 2024
“I feel like, especially with as whole as we are now, we’re close to really turning that around,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “I like, from a lineup standpoint, our ability and capability right now. It’s literally about getting a few guys rolling, and then I think we can explode.”
Even if the Yankees lose the series against the Mariners, they must take advantage of an Oakland team this weekend that just lost a series to the Chicago White Sox. Sweeping Oakland, or at worst, winning two of three, could keep the Yankees on track to win the division, as long as Baltimore doesn’t go on a tear in its final 12 games.
Back of the bullpen stabilizing?
The bullpen has been a major concern all season for the Yankees. But don’t look now: The Yankees are getting major contributions from a few of their top relievers with just a few weeks to go until the postseason begins.
Luke Weaver has looked dominant for the past month, and he’s emerged as a possible traditional closer for the Yankees if they choose to name one before October. Since Aug. 16, Weaver has given up just two runs in 14 1/3 innings pitched while adding 21 strikeouts. Weaver was electric in Friday night’s win over Boston when he pitched two innings, struck out five and picked up his second career save.
Weav🐶 pic.twitter.com/2pr9bbtE6i
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) September 14, 2024
“He’s now getting more and more used to, with the year that he’s had, being in these big moments in these big parts of the game,” Boone said last week.
Jake Cousins, though he hasn’t looked as crisp of late, continues to have some of the best strikeout stuff among every pitcher the Yankees employ. Tommy Kahnle has a 1.64 ERA in the past month and continues to be devastating against left-handed hitters with his changeup.
Tim Hill deserves major recognition as someone who should be trusted in big spots. Hill is unconventional in that he doesn’t throw hard, doesn’t strike out many hitters and is a sidewinding, unassuming lefty. In his past 12 outings, Hill has an 0.63 ERA and the highest ground-ball rate in the majors.
Ian Hamilton has also been outstanding since returning from the injured list. In his 3 1/3 innings pitched, Hamilton has six strikeouts and hasn’t allowed a base runner yet. It’s a small sample, but if he can look like his 2023 version, that’s another high-leverage weapon for the Yankees in October.
This doesn’t mention the boon the bullpen could get if Nestor Cortes, Clarke Schmidt or both are options in the American League Division Series. Suddenly, the bullpen could become a strength.
Volpe’s historically bad offense
There have been 153 Yankees who have amassed more than 1,200 plate appearances in the franchise’s history. Of those 153, Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe has the third-worst batting average (.229), the fifth-worst on-base percentage and the 19th-worst OPS.
The .289 career on-base percentage should be the most problematic for the Yankees. The only four Yankees in the team’s history with a worse OBP are Whitey Ford, arguably the greatest starting pitcher in franchise history; shortstop Álvaro Espinoza, who finished his 12-year career with a 64 wRC+; shortstop Everett Scott, the Yankees’ captain from 1922 to 1925; and catcher Red Kleinow, who famously bit a chunk out of a reporter’s cheek back in 1908.
In his second season, Volpe has emerged as one of MLB’s most sure-handed defenders at shortstop, giving him immense value for the Yankees. He’s also a smart base runner who provides speed, which the Yankees didn’t have much of (though that area has improved with the addition of Jazz Chisholm Jr. and the call-up of Jasson Domínguez). However, Volpe wasn’t hailed as the next great homegrown Yankees talent because of his glove or speed. It was because the organization expected him to perform at a much higher level offensively than what he has shown.
Volpe won the starting shortstop job out of spring training last year because he finished with a 1.033 OPS in 19 games, while Oswald Peraza posted a .616 OPS (it’s another reminder to not put much stock into spring stats). The Yankees thought Volpe would hit and believed he could handle the pressure that comes with being the team’s shortstop. While the pressure hasn’t affected Volpe — Boone always says his shortstop remains even-keeled — he has not looked confident at the plate for most of his second season. Since June 1, he has the fourth-worst wRC+ among all qualified players. In the Red Sox series alone, Volpe left the bases loaded three times.
Sunday felt like a low point for Volpe. He struck out three times (two of which were on pitches well off the plate that he swung at) and left the bases loaded with a weakly hit ground ball. He may have a couple of good offensive games over the rest of the season, but his approach must change once again in the offseason. He’s lost at the plate.
(Photo of Anthony Volpe: Luke Hales / Getty Images)
