The New York Yankees look to get back on track after a disappointing 2023 season.
With World Series aspirations once again, the New York Yankees will attempt to bounce back from last year’s 4th place finish in the AL East. After finishing 82-80 and missing the playoffs for just the first time since 2016, the Yankees with some big offseason acquisitions will look to get back to the World Series for the first time in 15 years.
2023 Pitching Struggles
The Yankees got hammered with injuries in 2023 making it hard for them to ever make a severe push to the postseason. The one major bright spot in the starting rotation was AL Cy Young Gerrit Cole who led the team with a 15-4 record and a 2.64 earned run average. The four other starters Nestor Cortes, Carlos Rodon, Luis Severino, and Domingo German combined to make just 65 of 129 possible starts due to Domingo German getting suspended and the other three pitchers going on the injured list at least once each. The bullpen was sharp all year long, having the best ERA in baseball but had to work extra hard due to the lack of starting pitching which wore them out over time.
2023 Hitting Struggles
As far as the lineup goes, the Yankees were abysmal in 2023, ranking 25th in the league in terms of runs scored. Whether it was injuries or underperforming seasons from players, the team never seemed to have the right lineup together to produce runs.
This mainly was due to the team captain and 2022 AL MVP Aaron Judge missing over 50 games due to a torn ligament in his toe. Aaron Judge has been the catalyst to the team’s offensive success the last few years and without him, the lineup could not get going. In games Aaron Judge played before his toe injury the team averaged an impressive 5.1 runs per game, but dropped to only 3.9 runs per game the rest of the season.
Why To Have Expectations
Now why is this the year the Yankees can turn it around and win their first World Series since 2009 one might ask. The whole team is starting the year healthy unlike last year and the Yankees made a splash for one of the best players in baseball Juan Soto. Juan Soto is a left-handed swinger who will have great success in the Yankee Stadium short porch and will be a great compliment to Aaron Judge in the lineup. The Yanks were also able to pick up solid starting pitcher Marcus Stroman who will be able to slot into the middle of the rotation. Stroman was an all-star in 2023 going 10-9 with a 3.95 ERA on the season but was especially dominant early on posting a 2.96 ERA pre-all-star break before suffering an injury that led to a disappointing second half. If the Yankees get a fully healthy Juan Soto and Aaron Judge as well as a rotation that mainly stays healthy they will be back competing for their 28th World Series.
Record Prediction
With all that being said, I predict the New York Yankees to finish with a record of 94-68 and finish 2nd in the AL East behind the Baltimore Orioles. Even being slotted in as a
wild card team the Yankees have the veteran experience and star power to make a run to the World Series.