SEATTLE - Two weeks into the 2024 season MLB season, there's no team hotter than the New York Yankees at the moment. The Bronx Bombers have started off the new campaign with 12 wins in their first 16 games, a new franchise record.
The Yankees have been a well-balanced team in the first two weeks of the season, mixing a potent offense with one of the best pitching rotations in the Majors so far.
Before dropping their last game of the series against the Cleveland Guardians, the Yankees' 12-3 start was their 18th time with a record of 11-4 or better through the first 15 games of the season. They won the World Series in five of those instances.
The last team to start 11-4 or better in their first 15 games were the 2018 Boston Red Sox, who ended the year lifting the Commissioner's Trophy.
Their pitching department has had a strong start to the year, ranking among the top five in the American League in WHIP (1.20), earned runs allowed by a pitcher (45) and they have limited opponents to a batting average of .217, with only the Detroit Tigers having a better average in all the Majors (.202). Their loss to the Guardians on April 14 was just the second time this season that their pitching team allowed eight runs in a single game.
If there's one thing the Yankees have shown so far in 2024 is that they are relentless. They have five comeback wins this year, a number only bettered by the Baltimore Orioles with six. They have also managed to find a way to win close games, holding a record of 6-1 in games decided by 1 run or less.
Their offense has also been much better compared to last year. The Yankees finished 2023 with their worst batting average in more than 30 years and ranked outside the top 10 in hits, runs, slugging and OPS. The offensive resurgence has seen many players stepping up, but none more than three-time All-Star Juan Soto.
🎶 Jose, Jose, Jose, Jose 🎶@HipHipJose5 👏 pic.twitter.com/9VYunugvHc
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) April 14, 2024
The Dominican leads the team in hits (21) and RBI (15) and his on-base percentage is the third best among AL players (.468) through the first two weeks of the season.
As a team, the Yankees have 19 homers in their opening 16 games of the season, all of them distributed among eight players. Giancarlo Stanton leads the team with four dingers while Aaron Judge is tied for second with three.
Although Judge hasn't had the crazy numbers we are used to seeing from him, he's only two homers away from his total at this point in the season last year. When he broke Roger Maris' record in 2022 for most homers in a season by a Yankee, Judge only connected three homers in his opening 16 games.
On April 14, he tied Derek Jeter on the Yankees' all-time HR list with 260. Judge reached that number in just 851 games played, 1896 games less than the ones it took Jeter to reach that mark.
The Captain joins The Captain!@TheJudge44 ties Derek Jeter on the @Yankees all-time HR list with No. 260. pic.twitter.com/K4gOfl7UBN
— MLB (@MLB) April 14, 2024
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