Last fall, the New York Yankees stepped into Dodger Stadium with the hopes adding another championship to their historic resume.
Despite giving it their best shot, New York was unsuccessful. That certainly did not stop the front office from reloading in the off-season. With the Juan Soto sweepstakes taking center stage, the Yankees battled to keep their rental. Soto opted to move across town to the Mets and New York pivoted.
Adding Max Fried, Paul Goldschmidt, Cody Bellinger, and Devin Williams, it felt like New York improved as an overall team. Heading into Spring Training, many felt like the Yankees would return to the Word Series in 2025.
Then in March, news broke that ace Gerrit Cole would miss the entire season, needing to get Tommy John surgery on his throwing arm. This was ultimately a huge blow, as the Bronx Bombers lost arguably one of the best pitchers in the game.
A hot start to the season however restored faith that 2025 could be a magical season for the Yankees. Since that start however, New York has seemingly lost their grip on the American League.
Deadline Regrets?
At the 2025 Trade Deadline, the Yankees were one of the most active teams in baseball. The club added Ryan McMahon to improve their third base situation, while also trading for players such as David Bednar, Jake Bird, and Camilo Doval to strengthen the bullpen.
New York felt confident in their team, even with Aaron Judge expected to miss a few weeks with an elbow injury. However, New York now finds themselves in the middle of a slump.
The club was swept by the Miami Marlins in their first series since the completion of the deadline. On Monday night, New York dropped their fourth straight with a loss to the Texas Rangers.
Their new additions have not exactly helped either. Bird allowed a grand slam in his first action as a Yankee, taking a 9-4 New York lead down to 9-8 against the Marlins. He has since been demoted back to Triple-A, less than a week after the team dealt prospects for him.
Bednar and Doval have also had their struggles since joining the Yankees. Both players gave up runs in the Bird grand slam game, and all contributed to a Yankee loss.
Playoff Outlook
With the 4-game losing streak, the Yankees have fallen to third place in the American League East. They have been leaped by their rivals, the Boston Red Sox, and are now tied with the Seattle Mariners in the fifth Wild Card spot.
The Rangers, the team that took down the Yankees, are currently 1.5 games back of New York. This series could ultimately put them in front of the Yankees if the Rangers can sweep.
Without Aaron Judge, New York looks very beatable in all aspects of the game. When the MVP favorite returns to the lineup, Judge should help stabilize the offense. In the meantime however, the Yankees need to limit the damage.
The American League Wild Card picture is full of teams on the outside looking in. It takes just one hot streak for the Rangers, Cleveland Guardians, Kansas City Royals or Los Angeles Angels to steal one of the final spots.
Will the Yankees weather the storm and turn their season back around? Or will the hits keep coming, sinking New York further away from their goal of getting back to the World Series in 2025.
Matt Watson Media 
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