From August 28-31, the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees will meet for their most important series of the year. The Rivals are back-to-back in the standings in the second and first Wild Card spots, respectively, and theirs will be a battle for higher seeding and for the tie breaker.
The Red Sox's insane hot streak through July and into August actually began in late June with a four-game sweep of the Yankees. Now, with another winning series, Boston could pass New York and take hold of the first Wild Card spot.
The Sox could have an easier time doing this because their offense has been firing on all cylinders lately while the Yankees' defense has not. Yankees rookie shortstop George Lombard Jr. has committed an error in six straight games, the longest streak the organization has seen since infielder/outfielder Chick Fewster set the mark in 1921, according to ESPN.
Lombard has made a total of seven errors over his 20 games in the big leagues. It would seemingly be a prudent offensive strategy for the Red Sox to hit the ball right at him all game long.
Red Sox could take advantage of George Lombard Jr.'s defensive struggles during Yankees series
Lombard is only a rookie and he's still settling into his spot in the big leagues. It's too early to say he's a flop or that he'll be a terrible defender forever — his defense was actually his calling card in the minor leagues. But his early sloppiness could give the Red Sox a key advantage in the most critical series of their season, and they'll need it with Cam Schlittler and Max Fried on the mound.
The 22-year-old's start in New York hasn't been all bad. He started his big league career hot at the plate with a home run in his first at-bat, but he's slowed down a bit since then. He's slashing .264/.316/.389 with 19 hits, 12 runs and six RBI over 20 games.
It's undeniably funny that the Yankees went from Anthony Volpe's atrocious defense at shortstop to Lombard's, but the latter player is still fighting debut jitters. He's usually a skilled shortstop and a playmaker.
But since their 30-5 hot streak through July and into August, the Red Sox have taken advantage of other team's defensive mistakes with savvy baserunning and small ball. This could be key against the Yankees, a club Boston will most likely not out-slug during this series and down the stretch.
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