Yankees overcome ‘hard week’ with convincing victory against the Red Sox

The New York Yankees lost six members of their active roster to COVID-19, and it’s unclear when they will be back. Their first baseman, Luke Voit, suffered yet another injury, this time to his knee, and will be on the shelf for a while. They were shut out on Friday, and had to endure a rain delay on Saturday to win. A fan was banned for life from MLB stadiums after throwing a ball to Alex Verdugo. It was, as you can see, a crazy week.

Yet the 48-44 Yankees could finally defeat the Boston Red Sox in a series this season after taking Sunday night’s game 9-1 thanks to good performances by pitcher Jameson Taillon and middle infielder Rougned Odor and Gleyber Torres, both with timely home runs.

“It’s been a hard week,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said to MLB.com. “I’m just really pleased with the level of focus and energy that the guys have come in with, each and every day. It’s definitely a good win to get over a team that we’re chasing.”

The Yankees, indeed, haven’t given up on the idea of chasing the Red Sox. The two teams still have a lot of games to play against each other, and the Bombers are currently 7.0 games behind their archrivals.

The Yankees’ playoff hopes are very much alive

That seems like a lot, but they also managed to cut the difference with the second Wild Card team, the Oakland Athletics, to 3.5 games. They still have a very good chance of making the playoffs.

One of the most important takeaways from the game is the continued improvement shown by Jameson Taillon. He pitched 5.1 scoreless innings against a top offense, with three strikeouts, and is 4-0 with a 2.86 ERA over his last six starts.

“The last couple of starts, the offense has put up a ridiculous amount of runs for me,” said Taillon. “That has allowed me to feel really free out there, just compete and challenge guys. Tonight I didn’t have my best stuff by any means, but I was able to keep the team with the lead.”

With a decimated roster, but a day off on Monday, the Yankees will have to remain active in the trade market to keep their season alive, but they are playing very well right now, winning seven of their last ten contests.

Will the Yankees complete another winning week?