By Brandon Dutz,Total Apex Sports
Copyright yardbarker
The New York Yankees will begin a Wild Card Series with the Boston Red Sox tomorrow night to kick off the postseason. These two teams will face each other in the playoffs for the first time since the Wild Card in 2021. New York lost the division to the Toronto Blue Jays on Sunday, with Toronto having the tiebreaker. Whoever wins this series will take on the Blue Jays in the American League Divisional Series.
Yankees On A Hot Streak
In their last 30 games, New York is 22-8. In this stretch, they’ve won multiple playoff games and played clean, fundamental baseball. The Yankees took care of business against the teams that they’re supposed to beat and the top teams in the American League. Their pitching stepped up significantly, and they showed the fan base that they’re capable of making a deep run in October.
They’ve been one of the hottest teams in September, bouncing back from the tough stretch they had in June/July. Their biggest struggle throughout the season has been beating their division opponents. They went 9-17 against the Red Sox and Blue Jays this year, which is a big reason why they finished second in the American League.
Great Pitching Duel In Game 1
The Yankees will send Max Fried on the mound, as he’ll go up against Garrett Crochet. Crochet has shut the Yankees down every time he’s faced them, so Fried will need to be sharp, giving New York room to breathe in this game. In 3 games, Fried has a 1.96 ERA and 22 strikeouts against the Red Sox. Crochet is 3-0, with a 3.29 ERA, and 39 strikeouts.
The first inning will be crucial for both teams, as whoever takes the lead first will be able to dominate with their ace on the mound. With the Yankees adding to their bench at the deadline, they’ll have multiple right-handed hitters ready to face Crochet. Last time Fried took the mound against Boston, he led them to a huge 5-3 win in Fenway, going 5.1 innings, allowing 2 earned runs, striking out six batters.
Judge And Stanton Are Hot
While going up against Crochet is a tough task, the Yankees’ two best hitters are getting hot at the right time. In his last 30 games, Aaron Judge is hitting .374, with 13 home runs, and 21 RBI’s. In Stanton’s last 10 games, he’s batting .290, with 4 home runs, and 15 RBI’s. When Judge and Stanton hit a home run in the same game, the Yankees have a record of 52-7.
Giancarlo Stanton has shown up in the postseason, having a big hit in the biggest moments. Aaron Judge, on the other hand, has struggled mightily in October. The good news for the Yankees is that Judge is getting hot at the right time and will not have a long layoff heading into the playoffs. When Judge gets hot, he continues his hot streaks for multiple months. If he can finally get hot, the Yankees will be making a deep playoff run this year.
