The New York Yankees are 58-40 at the All-Star break. After a 49-21 start they stumbled going into the Midsummer Classic. They have lost 19 of their last 28 and the offense has gone into an extended slump. Playing in one of the biggest markets in the country, the struggles have been under a media spotlight. Nestor Cortes took to social media to address the negativity that seems to follow the Yankees.
“Everyone talks down about the yanks but they wanna be us. It’s a privilege to wear pinstripes. Every year we are in contention. I’m blessed to be able to compete for a playoff spot and always be contenders at the end,” Cortes wrote on X on July 16.
Everyone talks down about the yanks but they wanna be us. It’s a privilege to wear pinstripes. Every year we are in contention. I’m blessed to be able to compete for a playoff spot and always be contenders at the end.
Yankees Recent Struggles
The Yankees offense ranked No. 19 in runs in July. They ranked inside the top 10 in April, May and June. On the other hand, their pitching has struggled compared to the early parts of the season. In April they had a 3.22 team ERA. In May they held a league-best 2.37 ERA. However, in June they had a 5.27 ERA. Halfway through July, their ERA is 3.63.
The Yankees have been blown out 10 times all season. Six of those instances have come after June 12.
National media outlets like ESPN have put the Yankees’ struggles under a microscope. However, the big picture is that, despite their recent rough stretch, they are only one game back of the Baltimore Orioles in the American League East. They have the third-best record in the American League, behind just the Cleveland Guardians and the Orioles.
The Yankees may be slumping, but are still “in contention” as Cortes wrote. Cortes is in his second sting with the Yankees. He played for the Seattle Mariners in 2020 before returning to the team. During Cortes’ time on the team, the Yankees have made the postseason every year except 2023.
The club reached the American League Championship Series in 2019 and 2022. They lost their Wild Card Game against the Boston Red Sox in 2021.
In 2023 Cortes made just 12 starts and Aaron Judge missed 42 games from June 4 to July 28. Even in what general manager Brian Cashman dubbed a “disaster” season, the Yankees were not officially eliminated from making the postseason until September 24.
Brian Cashman’s Thoughts on the Trade Deadline and Struggles
Cashman confirmed to reporters on July 9 that the team will “be open-minded to a lot of different things” ahead of the July 30 trade deadline.
Brian Cashman met with @M_Marakovits and the rest of the media earlier today, to discuss the state of the Yankees. #YANKSonYES
“We definitely have areas to improve upon and we’ll do our best to do so,” Cashman said.
In 2022, the Yankees started 61-23 before playing sub-.500 the rest of the way. Ultimately, they were swept by the eventual World Series champion Houston Astros. This season could shape up to be the same if the Yankees don’t turn things around.
“Thankfully, we got out of the gates really strong, so hopefully that cushion will allow us to work through this, hopefully sooner than later, because it’s gone on long enough,” Cashman said.
In 2022, the Yankees tried to right the ship with the acquisitions of Andrew Benintendi, Frankie Montas and Harrison Bader. Those additions did not yield the results the Yankees had hoped for, but 2024 could be a different story.
