New York Yankees “Nobody Believes In Us” Season

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It appeared impossible to believe in the New York Yankees this season, yet look at them now! We all turned a blind eye and have been forced to face this team head on.

Prepare for the intense sports debate that only sibling rivalry can conjure. Seesaw Sports, where Dan Salem and Todd Salem throw down on the NFL, MLB, NBA and more. Only on BuzzChomp. Two brothers from New York yell, scream and debate sports.

 

Memorial Day is the first checkpoint of the MLB season. Teams have played roughly one third of the season, and a lot of outcomes are banked, both positively and negatively. Take, for example, our New York Yankees. Coming into the season, we were dubious of this team’s ceiling. They were an old club on offense and a pitching staff without much to bank on with Gerrit Cole sidelined. Now, two months in, the Yankees are the best team in the American League (percentage points behind Cleveland in record but with the far superior run differential), and the recipe is hard to argue against.

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That old offense was buoyed by the entrance of Juan Soto. Soto has been, flat-out, one of the best players in baseball. We expected this on a micro level, but his impact on his teammates was hard to predict. Guys like Mike Trout win MVP’s year after year and have little impact on their surrounding lineup mates, but Soto seems to have invigorated an entire clubhouse. Not only are the Yankees winning, they are doing so without much fireworks.

 

New York Yankees “Nobody Believes In Us” Season

 

Todd Salem: Let Me Check My Eyes

Soto’s success hasn’t occurred in a vacuum. It helps that Aaron Judge is simultaneously also one of the best players in baseball, though each certainly helps to lift up the other. Outside of that, we’ve gotten that hopeful breakout from Anthony Volpe and a healthy and productive start from Giancarlo Stanton. No one else in the lineup has been spectacular, but two MVP-level producers plus an All-Star-caliber leadoff man generate a formidable blueprint. From there, Alex Verdugo, Oswaldo Cabrera, Jose Trevino, and others have all chipped in during certain hot weeks. 

Though I say that few others have been spectacular, there really hasn’t been a black hole to worry about either. And that’s a valuable commodity. In fact, when Jasson Dominguez and DJ LeMahieu are healthy and ready to return, they may not have a place to play everyday. 

The pitching staff is a different variant. We expected it to follow the storyline of the offense: an MVP-caliber lead lifting up the rest of the group. Instead, with Cole out, it has actually been an elite bunch top to bottom. I don’t know how anyone could have expected this, but it has been other-wordly.

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The five-man rotation has stayed healthy and produced, to a man. ERA isn’t everything, but all five guys have an ERA of 3.30 or lower in more than 55 innings apiece. Marcus Stroman has been really solid, and he’s probably the “worst” of the five. Carlos Rodon, Nestor Cortes, and Clarke Schmidt have all been great. And then there’s Cole’s replacement, Luis Gil. The 25-year-old has been one of the best pitchers in the AL. 

Much like the story with Dominguez and LeMahieu, when Cole is ready to return, the Yankees will actually have a tough decision to make. Obviously, Cole is going to immediately gain the top spot in the rotation, but we don’t know what is going to happen from there, whether it’s a six-man rotation, someone getting bumped entirely, some type of piggyback situation, etc. It’ll be a good problem to have.

Lastly is the bullpen. With five MLB-level arms from the bullpen on IL and Tommy Kahnle being a sixth who just returned recently, it would have been reasonable to expect the bullpen to be the death sentence for New York. Instead, it’s been great. Clay Holmes has been one of the best relievers in the league. Luke Weaver has been stellar as his setup man. The rest of the guys have pieced together successful outings.

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Weaver is a fascinating performer. Another failed starter, when he was signed this offseason, we scratched our heads at him seemingly being the sixth starter, AKA the guy who would be given Cole’s rotation spot. Brian Cashman had other ideas, and he has developed into a great late-inning reliever to this point. Relievers are volatile, so it will be nice if some of the other arms start getting back, but New York has held on to most of its leads thus far.

The Yankees’ record has been a surprise, but it doesn’t feel fluky at all. As we’ve outlined, the offense hasn’t been too far over its head, with only three guys really mashing. The pitching staff is going to get Cole back, and the bullpen has a number of arms on the mend to serve as reinforcements. 

We can hit on the other teams around the league next week, as there are a couple of prime challengers, but the Yankees are a real contender and should remain so for the rest of the season.

 

 

Dan Salem: Confidence is Contagious

One major difference for the New York Yankees this season has been expectations. They weren’t particularly high entering the year. This is not to say most of us didn’t expect the postseason to be in play, but few if any of us viewed New York as good to great. A second major difference has likely fueled this team and will continue to do so.

This is the first season I can remember having bullpen concerns so early. Usually the bullpen has been the Yankees’ strength entering the year. With their ace out and the bullpen hurting, New York needed people to step up, but they needed this to happen during the optimal time. April and May baseball is when everyone feels their best and the pressure is off because it’s so early in the season. Just look how players have flourished thus far. Add in lower expectations and this is a team to fear going forward.

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What excites me the most about how New York has played is that nothing individually is anomalous. As you noted, the offense hasn’t played over its head and the manner in which the pitching staff and bullpen are succeeding is nothing out of the ordinary. It’s the beautiful combination of all three very sustainable things that places the Yankees in prime position for a ton of wins. This isn’t a scary team, but everyone is playing loose and with extra motivation and poise. That type of confidence can become very scary as the season wears on.

I’ll admit, Juan Soto’s success has surprised me and he’s taken the pressure off nearly every other player in the process. I’m just going to stop talking and enjoy this ride, because so far it’s been wonderful. There are other very good teams in baseball, but not many who are ahead of the New York Yankees.

 

Meet our Writers:

Dan Salem is Lead Editor and Co-owner of BuzzChomp. He’s an award winning Actor, Director and Producer. Visit M Square Productions for his film work, or get lost in his old-school comedy on Pillow Talk TV. You can follow him on X, TikTok and Instagram. His latest film ‘Alone’ is now on Amazon.

Todd Salem is a Staff Writer and Contributing Editor at BuzzChomp. He’s also a champion of fantasy football and fantasy baseball, dominating leagues for over two decades. Comment below on his unfiltered opinions.

New York Yankees Photo Credits: yardbarker.com and pinstripesnation.com via Getty Images

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