Palladino: Huge Start Gave Yankees Cover To Withstand Growing Pains
By Ernie Palladino
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The current state of the Yankees says more about their start than where they stand today.
Despite failing to win their previous 10 series, their longest non-winning streak since 11 way back in 1991, the Bombers haven't fallen out of any of the postseason possibilities.
It's all still open, still there if they can get their young selves righted. The Red Sox probably won't run away with the division, so the 3 1/2-game deficit the third-place Yanks face after beating the Mariners late Thursday night is certainly doable.
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And if the division title remains possible even as an outside shot, it stands to reason that both wild-card spots will remain in play unless the Yankees completely bottom out before September.
All in all, the Bombers are in a much better situation than anyone in the executive offices could have dreamed. And that's with the recent devastation of losing Michael Pineda to Tommy John surgery and seeing rookie sensation Aaron Judge go through his first tailspin of the season. (Judge went 1-for-3 with an RBI on Thursday night)
It's exactly the reason Brian Cashman shipped off two major league-quality prospects for Todd Frazier, David Robertson, and Tommy Kahnle the other day. He's hoping a combination of the hard-throwing Kahnle and the double homecoming of the power-hitting New Jerseyan Frazier to the area and Mariano Rivera's former setup man Robertson to his old team can help push the Yankees over the top.
Cashman may not be done, either, as the Yanks are in need of a starter before the trade deadline. But regardless if he gets that piece, the veteran executive has left no doubt the Yanks are going for the postseason this year, well ahead of schedule.
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Thank their 21-9 start for that. It put them in great shape, right up until the last couple of weeks before the All-Star break made Cashman's latest move necessary. Had this team not exceeded its initial expectations of losing and learning from the beginning, that trade wouldn't have been necessary and manager Joe Girardi would not be talking about finding a spark to create a second-half push to the playoffs.
But they did. And now they have the luxury of asking the questions.
Did adding yet another 100-mph arm in Kahnle and an seasoned pro like Robertson turn the Aroldis Chapman-and-Dellin Betances-led bullpen invincible?
Can Frazier, an all-or-nothing hitter this year with a .2o7 average and 16 homers, benefit from a change of scenery and inject the contagion that will re-ignite Gary Sanchez and Judge into the formidable one-two punch Girardi expected when he put them second and third in the batting order? Do that, and the offense could certainly return to its previous run-machine status.
And now that Pineda is gone, do Masahiro Tanaka, CC Sabathia, Luis Severino, and Jordan Montgomery have the stamina to carry this still-maturing team to the finish line?
All are legitimate questions. And all were made possible by a hot start that only those looking through the rosiest of lenses thought was possible.
Please follow Ernie on Twitter at @ErniePalladino
