Last year, the New York Yankees made it to the final round before the World Series, a feat they had also accomplished in 2017. Coming off a 103 win season - a very impressive feat in professional baseball - they are looking to make, or possibly even win, the World Series this coming year.
There are a few important steps the Yankees need to take to win the next World Series. Now that their biggest rival is worsening, all they need to do to achieve his goal is to stay healthy and sign a few big-name free agent pitchers.
As I noted above, the Yankees have been falling just short the past few years. In 2017, they lost a heartbreaker to the Astros in an intense ALCS championship game that many Yankees fans still regret remembering. The Yankees were undefeated at home during this series; they would have been in the World Series had they won.
However, new allegations have recently accused the Astros of stealing signs from opposing teams; if they stole signs from the Yankees, they would have had an unfair advantage in that championship game.
Going into this season, the Astros were considered to be the Yankees’ biggest rival, but they have suffered and are not expected to break 90 wins this year.
Among their biggest problems is the loss of Gerrit Cole, their star pitcher and runner-up Cy Young candidate, to the Yankees. The Astros are also expected to suffer severe consequences because of the cheating scandal. If the MLB can finish its investigation soon enough, we may see something as drastic as the Astos losing even more of their star players, and maybe even their 2018 World Series title.
If the Yankees can acquire two more high-tier starting pitchers, I think they will certainly be a lock for the World Series. They ended their 2019 season with 4.31 ERA (earned run average), which placed them 14th among all MLB teams. This is a decent number, all things considered. However, it can be greatly improved.
All-Star pitchers such as Corey Kluber and Gerrit Cole will be key players this season, as Cole had a career-best 2.50 ERA last season and Kluber has had a stellar pitching career. Either of these pitchers can assist the Yankees’ starting rotation, assuming they can perform up to their expectations in the big city.
As I mentioned above, the Yankees announced on December 10th that they came to an agreement with the biggest star in free agency, Gerrit Cole. They had previously met twice and it is now rumored that the two parties agreed upon a nine year, $324 million contract. Cole is currently 29 and has just hit his prime - he had a career-best 2.50 ERA last season.
Cole adds great depth to an already decent Yankees rotation. Also, Cole will allow the bullpen to rest more and thus allow other players to perform better.
The Yankees would do well to acquire another big name pitcher - Corey Kluber comes to mind. In addition to a top tier starting pitcher, the Yankees need their players to stay healthy to make a deep playoff run or even compete for the World Series.
This past season, the Yankees broke the record of most players to hit the disabled list, with 29. Their star right fielder, Aaron Judge, was injured, and their breakout third baseman, Gio Urshela, suffered a late-season injury as well. Their star ace, Luis Severino, was coming off two straight terrific All-Star seasons and was highly ranked for the Cy Young when his season was also cut short by injury.
The Yankees have a deep lineup in every position that is well-equipped to handle these kinds of losses, but there’s no denying that losing your team’s top performers will hurt.
Let’s hope that next season will show the Yanks better luck. Assuming most of the Yankees roster stays healthy - something that will require great fortune - the odds are highly in their favor to win the World Series.