To make playoffs, Yankees need otherworldly performances from 'Martian' and much more
On Aug. 22, the New York Yankees lost their ninth straight game, marking the team's longest losing streak since 1982. At 60-65 with just 37 left to play, the Yankees sat 10.5 back in the AL wild-card standings and in danger of their first losing season since 1992.
That was just two weeks ago. The Yankees have won 10 of their past 15 since, including a sweep of Houston, their first of the Astros since 2013. In what has been an enigma of a season, the Yankees are 70-70, seven games back in the AL wild-card race, and have playoff odds below 1%, per FanGraphs.
The Yankees haven't missed the playoffs since 2016. With 22 games left, it would take a miracle for the streak to continue. Let's dream.
1. Play spoiler and win in AL East
The Yankees have the 11th-easiest schedule remaining with a series left against the lowly Kansas City Royals and Pittsburgh Pirates, but they still must face AL East opponents in the Toronto Blue Jays and Boston Red Sox, two teams in front of them in the wild-card race.
Boston is New York's worst nightmare, winning eight of their nine played this season. The Blue Jays occupy the third wild-card spot, seven games above the Yankees. The teams will meet six more times. New York must win them all. Figure the Yankees must go 18-4 the rest of the way.
2. Veteran players must perform.
Veteran Yankees players have been on a roll recently, as Brian Murphy of MLB.com noted.
"Plenty of veteran Yankees have been thriving lately... DJ LeMahieu and Gleyber Torres are on a power binge with seven and six homers, respectively, through their past 13 contests," he wrote earlier this week.
While Torres has been of a somewhat consistent bright spot this season, LeMahieu has struggled with productivity, with a career-low batting average of .244, and 106 strikeouts, one below his career high for the regular season.
In his past 13 games, though, LeMahieu has six home runs. In those games, the Yankees are 9-4. To make an unlikely push, LeMahieu must stay hot.
3. 'The Martian' plays out of this world
20-year-old outfielder Jasson Dominguez, or "The Martian" as they call him, has gotten off to a terrific start in his young career.
In his MLB debut, Dominguez homered against veteran Justin Verlander in his first at-bat. That wasn't it, though. Through his first five games, Dominguez has delivered otherworldly performances.
The emergence of Domínguez, albeit in a small MLB sample size, is joyous and encouraging for Yankees fans. He must stay hot, too.
The playoffs are still unlikely, but Yankees fans can dream.
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