With a 95-67 record the New York Yankees finished second in the American League East, and advanced as far as the ALCS before losing to the Texas Rangers in six games. Things may look all rosy from the outside, but when we look at the numbers maybe there is a reason to be concerned in pin stripe land. The Yankees had a losing record against two of their division rivals. They went just 9-10 against the Tampa Bay Rays, and 8-10 against the Toronto Blue Jays. They also only managed a 9-9 record against the Boston Red Sox. Sure they got a 13-5 record against the Baltimore Orioles and a 11-7 record in Inter League play, but their division is catching up to them.
The Yankee offense scored 859 runs, they most in the American League. However their team batting average was .267 just seventh among the 14 AL clubs. Only second baseman Robinson Cano finished the season with a better than .300 batting average. They hit the third most home runs in the AL with 201, and racked up 1,485 hits which was just sixth best in the junior circuit. They struck out 1,136 times and drew 662 walks.
All five of their regular starting pitchers ended up with double digit wins, and all of them had a winning record save Javier Vazquez who went 10-10. The Staff ERA was 4.06 seventh best in the AL. They struck out 1,154 batters and walked 540 of them. They surrendered 1,349 hits which was the third lowest total in the American League. In the end just 639 runners crossed home plate to score.
It seems the Yankees are showing us how to win in the modern day. Today pitching rules all, it also helps if their offense is giving their team a lead to work with. This team was 35-17 in blowout wins, meaning a win by five or more runs. So while pitching rules all, a team has to be able to score runs and score them in bunches.
Related Links:
- New York Yankees news and notes
- The Business of Major League Baseball
- Joshua Lobdell.com
