Did anyone expect this series between the Red Sox and Yankees to have so much juice?
It’s still July, isn’t it?
Boston and New York will meet for the latest installment of their storied rivalry this weekend, and they do so heading in opposite directions. The Yankees are slipping, while the surging Red Sox have an opportunity to make things interesting as they approach the trade deadline.
Alex Cora’s club had a tremendous June, finishing the month with a 15-10 record and making up considerable ground in the American League standings with three straight wins to open July.
Jarren Duran has fueled the surge, but it really has been a true team effort for Boston. Connor Wong put together the longest hitting streak of his career. David Hamilton took an everyday role and (literally) ran with it. Tyler O’Neill is healthy once again, which means he’s good for about two bombs a week. Masataka Yoshida’s timing is back and he’s hitting everything. Ceddanne Rafaela has produced in nearly every clutch spot he’s been put in. Nick Pivetta, Brayan Bello and Kutter Crawford tossed gems in their last outings, while Tanner Houck has produced Cy Young-caliber performances in everything but his last start.
Boston, to put it simply, is playing tremendous baseball.
New York is not.
The Yankees are 14-16 over their last 30, allowing their monumental lead in the wild-card race to dwindle considerably — with the Red Sox now sitting just 5.5 games behind the top spot.
Aaron Judge and Juan Soto have been great, but everything around them has been the opposite. Alex Verdugo hasn’t hit anything since his emotional home run celebration at Fenway Park. Gerrit Cole, Luis Gil and Carlos Rodón each have had stinkers recently. Ben Rice is kind of cool, but he’s only in the lineup because Anthony Rizzo isn’t an option right now at first base.
It hasn’t been pretty.
Boston won’t punch a ticket to the postseason with a series win at Yankee Stadium, but it could flip the narrative as we approach one of the most important dates on the calendar.
The Yankees are the team that should be preparing to make a few splash moves at the trade deadline, much like they’re always in the conversation to. It just might not make sense to add anything of significance to this core. Judge, Cole and Soto should be enough to inspire confidence, but as the losses stack up it feels more likely that an organization audit (which they’ve already done) is coming. Brian Cashman could also just panic and trade away a ton of prospects because that is always on the table.
The Red Sox, on the other hand, have a chance to continue being greedy. Cora said it before, then doubled down, that he intends on having this team in position to make a postseason run — and what better way to start than with another series win over the Yankees?
