After about 20 games, contenders and pretenders are beginning to emerge. Here are two teams the Yankees should be concerned about, and one pretender.
Most MLB teams have around 20 games under their belts in the 2023 season. It’s been full of adjustments to new rules and changes to the field of play. But one thing doesn’t change: The early expectations and direct competitors starting to be made clear.
The New York Yankees are doing fine, yet to lose a series. At 12-8, it’s not the 14-6 start they got off to in 2023, but it’s a start. If they can get a little bit healthier, they have as good a shot at a World Series this year as they ever do.
Around the league, though, teams emerging as possible hindrances to that ultimate goal are emerging. Which ones appear to be clearly standing in the way of the Yankees’ hopes at a 28th title, and which ones are complete frauds? Let’s take a look around the American League.
Team who will threaten Yankees World Series chances: Texas Rangers
The Texas Rangers could very well be legit. They’ve invested a lot in starting pitching, and currently have the fifth-best ERA of the AL teams. They’re 12-7 and 7-3 in their last 10 games and took two of three against the Houston Astros, who have been the Yankee killers for the last several years.
They also made the defending National League champions look entirely mortal when they scored 27 runs in the opening two games of the season against Philadelphia.
The pitching is elite, and the offense is good, too. The Rangers are fifth in home runs and sixth in hits among AL teams. They’ve worked efficiently, leaving the fewest men on base in the majors this season. Put it all together and they have the league’s third-best run differential (+42) so far this year.