Red Sox Standings Watch: Stuck in the middle of AL East
By Sean Penney
Rising
New York Yankees
The young core of the new-look Yankees appears to be blossoming ahead of schedule. New York leads the league in runs scored and is at or near the top of most offensive categories.
What’s most surprising is that the Yankees have managed this without last year’s rookie sensation Gary Sanchez, who has been limited to five games by a biceps injury.
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Instead, it’s been the other young studs carrying this team. Aaron Judge is hitting .303 with a 1.161 OPS. His 10 home runs are tied for the league lead and he’s fifth in RBI with 20. Ronald Torreyes is doing his best Derek Jeter impression, hitting .313 and providing solid defense at shortstop where he has yet to commit an error in 18 games at the position this year. Starlin Castro seems to be making the leap many expected after a few promising season with the Chicago Cubs to begin his big league career. The 27-year old is hitting a blistering .352 with a .947 OPS in his second season in pinstripes.
As great as the offense has been, the Yankees pitching may be an even bigger surprise. While the old guard of C.C. Sabathia and Masahiro Tanaka have gotten off to slow starts, the young talent in the rotation is thriving. Luis Severino owns a 3.00 ERA, 0.78 WHIP and 11.0 K/9 through four starts, while Michael Pineda has been nearly as dominant with a 3.14 ERA, 1.05 WHIP and 11.62 K/9.
New York’s +43 run differential leads the league by a wide margin and trails only the Washington Nationals (+48) in the majors. Compare that to Baltimore’s +1 run differential and it’s clear which team’s division leading pace is more sustainable, making the Yankees the biggest threat to challenging Boston’s division crown.