You know you’ve got a pretty good team when a bunch of your players are underachieving and yet you still have the best record in baseball.
That was true of the Yankees as recently as a couple of weeks ago, when the Bronx Bombers seemed to be struck in neutral and unable to push the Red Sox out of the AL East race. That certainly has changed, as the Yankees have a majors-best seven-game winning streak going and now are a whopping 35 games above .500 with 27 games left on the schedule.
Robinson Cano and the Yankees are peaking at the right time of year.
The Yankees have done a number on the White Sox, A’s, and now the Blue Jays during this streak. They have outscored the opposition by almost two to one during this stretch. Everything is going right: When they gave up nine runs to the White Sox last week, they scored 12. When they only managed to score two the next day, they only gave up one.
If you’re not a Yankee fan—and believe me, I’m not—what’s scary here is that the Yankees have amassed a terrific record despite some off years by key players. A-Rod is hitting .265. Curtis Granderson is at .249. Derek Jeter has hit all of .265. Lance Berkman has been a non-factor since coming over from the NL. Likewise, A.J. Burnett has been generally awful in the starting rotation. Javier Vazquez has not been much better, and Joba Chamberlain was a bust in the set-up role.
How have the Yankees overcome all this mediocrity? Robinson Cano is having an MVP contender year. Nick Swisher is having a career year. Mark Teixeira has rebounded after a terrible start. C.C. Sabathia has had hefty year to match his hefty contract and weight. Some young pitchers have come through in the pinch.
All I can say is that if all of this year’s playoff teams play their best, no one is going to beat the Yankees.
