The Boston Red Sox (29-27) sit in third place in the AL East and 7.5 games behind the first-place NY Yankees, but the Sox have a chance to trim the lead nearly in half with a weekend sweep in the Bronx.
The Yankees suffered bad beat after bad beat this year in the injuries department with 17 key players on the IL. They were down to three starters with James Paxton and CC Sabathia on the IL at the same time. Paxton returned this week and pitched four scoreless innings, while Sabathia is scheduled to return this weekend to pitch on Sunday Night Baseball.
The Yankees (36-19) have the second-most wins in the American League behind the Minnesota Twins (37-18) and the Houston Astros (37-20).
The Yanks are fifth in the AL in scoring with 5.4 runs per game. The Baby Bombers are pulling this off without sluggers Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton. The other power hitters, Gary Sanchez and Luke Voit, have been carry the home run load. While several unknown Replacement Yankees like Gio Urshela stepped up to fill in for injured starters.
Sox Back on Track
After a sluggish start, the Red Sox finally shook off the World Series hangover. They also got over their fetish for Fortnite. The Sox went on a winning streak after banning Fortnite in the locker room. By the time the Sox got back on track, the Yankees seized first place from the Tampa Rays.
The Rays jumped out to a hot start while the Yanks and Sox stumbled out of the gate. The Replacement Yankees got hot and snatched the AL East lead from the Rays. The Yanks only hold a half-game lead over the Rays, while Sox trail the Yanks by 7.5 games.
A three-game sweep would put the Sox back into contention. Whereas, a sweep by the Yankees would put the Sox back by double digits. That’s not where the Sox imagined they would be at the start of June ten-plus games out of first behind the damn Yankees.
The Red Sox are coming into the series losing 4 out of their previous 6 games. The Yanks are on an 8-2 with eight straight series wins.
Weekend Rotation
A rainout cancelled the opening game of their four-game series, which is now reduced to three games. The Yankees benefited the most from the rainout because it game their overworked bullpen and extra day of rest. It also eliminated the need for an “opener” during a game this weekend.
The Yankees rotation this weekend will feature JA Happ (4-3, 5.09 ERA, 1.23 WHIP), Domingo German (9-2, 3.43 ERA, 1.04 WHIP), and CC Sabathia (3-1, 3.48 ERA, 1.26 WHIP) to the mound this weekend. Sabathia returns after a short stint on the IL with knee inflammation. German is coming off his worst start of the season, but still leads the majors in wins.
Alex Cora’s rotation for the Sox features Chris Sale (1-6, 4.19 ERA, 1.09 WHIP), Eduardo Rodriguez (5-3, 5.04 ERA, 1.40 WHIP), and Rick Porcello (4-4, 4.41 ERA, 1.34 WHIP). Sale, working on extra rest, got off to a poor start this season but has looked better in his last few appearances.
The Red Sox and Yankees continue the fiercest rivalry in all of sports. The Sox lost both games they faced the Yankees this season. Since then, the Yankees are 30-10 overall. Brett Gardner’s 100th home run happened to be a Grand Slam against the Red Sox, which helped kick off the current winning streak.