Bronx Bomber Ball

This weekend in the Bronx, the Yankees completed a three-game sweep of the Boston Red Sox to bring their record to 7-1 in this unprecedented short season. In game one, Suzyn Waldman serenaded an empty Yankee Stadium with the National Anthem and CC Sabathia returned to throw out the first pitch.  Jordan Montgomery and the bullpen held the Sox to just one run­–a solo shot off the bat of Michael Chavis in the third.  Home runs from Aaron Judge, Gio Urshela, and Brett Gardner propelled the Bombers past the Red Sox to a 5-1 win.  Gardy’s homer ended his hitless start to the 2020 season, where he was previously 0-for-12 with seven Ks. 

The Yankees took a trip out to the West Coast this week for two three-game sets against the Oakland Athletics and Los Angeles Dodgers. The first series in California led to an embarrassing three-game sweep of the Yankees by Oakland. However, the Bombers took the series in LA, winning two out of three against the Dodgers this Players’ Weekend.  Photo via @Yankees on Twitter

This week, the New York Yankees faced off against the Rays and Rockies at Yankee Stadium in the blistering summer heat. After losing the first game to Tampa, the Bombers rebounded and won five out of their next six games. Following Sunday’s game, the Yankees boast an impressive 64-34 record in 2019.  Photo Credit: @yankees via Twitter 

The Yankees completed a three-game sweep of the Baltimore Orioles on Sunday, earning their first series win of 2019. Domingo German pitched six solid innings allowing only two hits. However, it was the Yankees’ offensive outburst with seven home runs, including three from slugger Gary Sanchez, that led to a win on this sunny afternoon, with a final score of 15-3.  Photo Credit: Rob Carr/Getty Images

Well, it's been just about a week now since the Boston Red Sox eliminated the Yankees from playoff contention and we've all had some time to stew on it.  Obviously not the ending any of us wanted and made even more painful due to the fact that it was our arch-rivals who put the nail in the coffin.   Some of our contributors weigh in below about how this season ended, what to make of it all, and where the Yankees go from here heading into 2019.

After losing two out of three to the Oakland Athletics earlier this week, the Yankees were able to take the series against the Seattle Mariners after last night's victory. Going for the series sweep, CC Sabathia and the bullpen only surrendered three runs, but the offense could not capitalize with runners in scoring position to score more than two against Erasmo Ramirez.  Photo Credit: Getty Images/Stephen Brashear

The Yankees played less than seven innings on Friday night in the Bronx, but it was enough to secure a win due to the rain-shortened game. Lance Lynn pitched his worst start in a Yankees uniform with three walks and five earned runs in just four innings. Neil Walker and Giancarlo Stanton both hit home runs to propel the Bombers to a game one win against Toronto.   Photo Credit: Elsa/Getty Images

This four-game set against the Red Sox at Fenway Park is the most important series of 2018 thus far. The gap between first and second place in the AL East seems to be widening each day, so it didn’t help that the Yankees suffered a devastating, awful 15-7 loss tonight. The Red Sox offense exploded for 19 hits, and none of the Yankees’ pitchers, including CC Sabathia, could stop them. The score may as well have been 25-4.   AP Photo/Michael Dwyer

Trade deadline summary: Yankees received: JA Happ, Zach Britton, Lance Lynn, Luke Voit, maximum amount of international spending money Yankees traded: Brandon Drury, Billy McKinney, Tyler Austin, Luis Rijo, Chasen Shreve, Giovanny Gallegos, Adam Warren, Caleb Frare, Dillon Tate, Cody Carroll, Josh Rogers Here is how our staff perceived the deadline:  Photo Credit: NJ.com

Following a disappointing series loss to the Tampa Bay Rays, the New York Yankees now have a 64-36 record. It sounds unreasonable to be complaining, but the Boston Red Sox have a 5.5 game lead in the AL East, and the Bombers have been slacking as of late. The Yankees are 11-8 in July, their worst month of the season. The Kansas City Royals enter this series as one of Major League Baseball’s worst 2018 teams, sporting a dreadful 31-70 record. They are second to only the Baltimore Orioles in lowest winning percentage at .307. The Yankees must take advantage of the opportunity to sweep or win this four-game set against Kansas City in order to catch up to Boston and avoid the Wild Card playoff game. 

After a disappointing, preventable 7-6 loss last night at Tropicana Field, the Yankees rebounded and won game two against the Tampa Bay Rays. Masahiro Tanaka cruised through the lineup all night, completely shutting out Tampa. This was Tanaka’s first complete game since April 2017. Brandon Drury left the game with a left hand contusion in the fifth, but most importantly, the Yankees were able to even up the series.  Photo Credit: AP Photo/Mike Carlson

GAME ONE The Yankees dropped game one of today’s double header against Baltimore by a close score of 5-4. CC Sabathia pitched one of his worst games of the season, allowing five earned runs on two homers. The Yankees had opportunities to make a comeback but couldn’t get the job done against the last-place O’s. The Yankees are just 25-14 against teams under .500, which is 15th in the league. When facing teams above .500, they rank best in MLB at 34-16. 

The final game in this three-game set brought yet another series win to the New York Yankees. They are 19-2-2 in the past 23 series, dating back to April 19th. Impressive starts from Domingo German and rookie Ryan Borucki kept the scoring to a minimum. Brett Gardner’s 10th inning hit and Tyler Wade’s pinch-running speed allowed the Yankees to win on a sunny afternoon in Toronto.   Photo Credit: Toronto Blue Jays

In a lineup initially missing rookie phenom Gleyber Torres, the Yankees were able to even up the series with a suspenseful 8-5 win against Atlanta. Despite a short performance from German and an exhausted bullpen, the Bombers took game two on a beautiful Bronx night.   Photo Credit: New York Yankees The action got started early in the Bronx with a two-run homer from Aaron Hicks, who now has nine home runs in his last 17 games. In the bottom of the second, Kyle Higashioka earned his second Major League hit as well as his second career HR with a long fly ball to left.  Brandon Drury collected an RBI after being walked with the bases loaded, which was the final strike for Braves’ starter Sean Newcomb. The potential All-Star was replaced after a meager 2.2 innings by Luke Jackson. Higashioka walked to earn his third career RBI, but Neil Walker’s bad luck continued as he sharply lined out to first for what could have been a multiple-run hit. Instead, the inning was o...

After a series win against the Boston Red Sox, the Yankees began a three-game set with the Atlanta Braves at Yankee Stadium. Jonathan Loaisiga could not do enough as the Yankees lost 5-3 after 11 innings against veteran Anibal Sanchez, who was 4-0 with a 2.39 ERA against the Yanks in the Bronx entering today.  Photo Credit: AP Photo/Frank Franklin II

Following an important series win against the Red Sox, the New York Yankees are staying in the Bronx to face the Atlanta Braves in a three-game set. The Braves may not be division rivals with the Bombers, but they come into town with an impressive 48-34 record. At the beginning of the season, the Yankees were fully expected to be a competitive team. On the other hand, according to FanGraphs, the Atlanta Braves had just a 38.6% chance of making the playoffs in 2018. The season is far from over, but they currently stand in first place with the Phillies trailing by three games. These two talented teams ought to make for some great baseball games this week. 

After an exciting 6-0 shutout of the Phillies yesterday, the offense went silent and failed to produce a run in the series finale. Zach Eflin faced off against Luis Cessa, who only lasted three innings. Despite a stellar performance from the bullpen, the Yankees lost 3-0.  Photo Credit: AP Photo/Matt Slocum

The Yankees did not have to travel far for this road series against their cross-town rivals, the New York Mets. Masahiro Tanaka faced off against Jacob deGrom, who is having a fantastic season for the Mets thus far. Entering tonight, he led the National League with a 1.49 ERA. However, deGrom could not secure the win for his team tonight due to stellar pitching from the Yankees’ staff and a go-ahead home run by Brett Gardner.  Photo Credit: AP Photo/Adam Hunger

The Yankees have selected their second outfielder in the 2018 draft, a 6’1”, 185-pound righty named Brandon Lockridge. Lockridge currently plays baseball for Troy University. Photo Credit: Troy Athletics

The Yankees took on the Los Angeles Angels on a beautiful Friday night in the Bronx with a sellout crowd of over 46,000. Luis Severino and Andrew Heaney faced off in a pitcher s' duel, but Gleyber Torres was  the difference maker in this game. His seventh inning solo home run led the Yankees to their 32nd win of the season by a score of 2-1.     Photo Credit: AP Photo/Frank Franklin II