CHASING DOWN THE RED SOX

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Many, including myself at times, said it wasn't possible for the Yankees to catch the Red Sox and yet, here we are in late August and the Bombers are taking advantage of Boston's recent slew of losses.  The Yankees have cut into The Sox lead at the top of the American League East and now trail them by only seven games.  With the Yankees one game away from sweeping the Baltimore Orioles, things seem to be falling into place for a team who have had their share of bad breaks.

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Losing Aaron Judge, CC Sabathia, Didi Gregorius and Aroldis Chapman not to mention earlier losses of Masahiro Tanaka in inter-league play and Jordan Montgomery to season-ending Tommy John surgery, have been big blows to both the Yankees' physical and mental aspects of their game.  But now with the Yankees back in business and on track to potentially catch the Sox, the team simply cannot tolerate low productivity in their regular starters.

"The urgency is such that the Yankees are no longer content to let first baseman Greg Bird hit his way into form", reported the New York Times after Friday night's extra innings win. “Performance matters,” Manager Aaron Boone said.

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And what he saw in Luke Voit on Friday night was more than just performance.  "In addition to the two home runs, his first extra-base hits as a Yankee, Voit delivered a jolt of enthusiasm as he bolted around the bases, carrying himself like the hulking linebacker he was before shoulder injuries forced him to give up football in high school. It was the type of verve that the analyst Pedro Martinez said had been missing from the Yankees of late, and it energized the visitors’ dugout," reported The Times.

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The Yankees, perhaps still on the high left by Voit, played light on their feet, swift in their bats and aggressive on the base paths against the Orioles as they swept the double-header at Camden Yards against their other division rival.

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Are the Yankees in contention for an AL East crown? Of course they are.  They have never took their eyes off that goal.  But with the injuries, shifts in the roster, the weather and the grind of the long season, they have been beaten up.  The Yankees are chasing down the Red Sox and it certainly isn't their first rodeo.  It is deja vu all over again and it ain't over 'til it's over.  It is starting to get really interesting.

Buckle up everyone.

--Suzie Pinstripe
BYB Managing Editor
Twitter: @suzieprof