The New York Yankees Clinch a 2022 Postseason Berth
Courtesy: ESPN
For the 24th time in the past 28 seasons the Yankees have clinched a playoff berth. A walk-off single by Josh Donaldson against the Boston Red Sox officially marked October baseball for New York. A Yankees team headlined by an incredible Aaron Judge season, who has even bigger implications heading into the offseason.
However, Judge and the Yankees have one common objective: bringing the Commissioner’s Trophy back to New York. This rollercoaster season for the Yankees first saw them on pace to break the record for the most regular season wins in MLB history. From April to June the Yankees were untouchable going 56-21 with no other team in baseball on their level. However, a mediocre July going 13-13 and an abysmal August (10-18) quickly became the worst months for the Yankees in 33 seaons derailing New York.
The final month of the season saw a much needed turnaround for the Bronx Bombers looking to make a deep run in the postseason. The achilles heel for the Yankees heading into October has been the Houston Astros. The Astros have knocked New York out of the playoffs twice in the 2017 and 2019 ALCS series, becoming the biggest obstacle for the Yankees.
However, the Yankees have the manpower to get over the hump with a formidable rotation of Gerrit Cole, Nestor Cortes, and Luis Severino. The offense for the bombers is clearly spearheaded by Aaron Judge, who is on pace to become the first triple crown winner in 10 years. Aside from Judge, the offense has shown promise with Giancarlo Stanton and Gleyber Torres swinging a hot bat, Anthony Rizzo having a 30+ home run season, Matt Carpenter potentially rejoining the Yankees in the playoffs, and much more. Evidently the bullpen for the Yankees is the biggest question mark heading into October as Clay Holmes and Aroldis Chapman have shown concerns of inconsistency.
Nonetheless, the Yankees proved when they are firing on all cylinders, that they pose a great threat to winning the World Series. Only time will tell as once again baseball fans will be treated to an amazing postseason beginning on October 7th.
