The Yankees' offense dazzled in the Bronx as the team dominated their homestand, taking five of six games at home. Although the Bombers fell just two runs short of a complete sweep of their biggest adversary in recent years, the Houston Astros, they concluded the stretch on Thursday with a successful overall performance. The Yankees secured a three-game sweep over the Tigers and followed it up with a 2-1 series victory over the Astros, showcasing their prowess at the plate.
Yanks' bats light up the Bronx
Who poked the bear (Aaron Judge) in this homestand? If that was you, props to you. The Captain is alive and well, and many fans say that nobody should ever question him. In his last seven games, he tallied a slash line of .474/.545/1.158 for an OPS of 1.703. Is that good? It’s pretty good. In fact, it’s even better than his counterpart, Juan Soto, who racked up a .421/.500/.632 slash line and an OPS of 1.132 in his last seven.
In addition to his piping hot slash line, Judge delivered three moonshots in this homestand, including the third-longest of his career at 473 feet.
AARON JUDGE 473 FT NUKE pic.twitter.com/C8MDHLCpkl
— Talkin' Yanks (@TalkinYanks) May 9, 2024
The Bombers didn’t stop there with putting the hurtings on their homestand opponents.
Giancarlo Stanton launched the hardest-hit home run of the season in back-to-back games of the Astros series. First, he hit a 118.8 mph homer on Tuesday night, then surpassed the hardest-hit home run of the season, held by himself, the very next night, logging 119.9 mph.
119.9 MPH off the bat for Giancarlo Stanton. Sheesh! 😳 pic.twitter.com/VGbjxCbdGo
— MLB (@MLB) May 8, 2024
The Yankees' 9-4 victory over the Astros on Wednesday marked the third game this season where both Judge and Stanton went deep in the same game. The team boasts a record of 34-4 when the duo hits home runs in the same game, including postseason play.
In addition to the two veterans and Soto, Anthony Volpe had a pair of homers with 5 RBI, and Alex Verdugo and Anthony Rizzo each had a homer and combined for 7 RBIs.
Guys are just getting confident with where they're at, and we've just got to keep that rolling," Judge said. "That was an impressive homestand for a lot of guys. - Aaron Judge
Yanks’ rotation is far exceeding expectations
The setback of the Yanks’ ace Gerrit Cole was supposed to stifle the Yankees, but instead, the Yankees have the second-best ERA in baseball. Nestor Cortes, Carlos Rodon, Marcus Stroman, and Clarke Schmidt are all boasting ERAs in the threes. And the most pleasant surprise of all, the newcomer and “Gerrit Cole’s fill-in,” Luis Gil, who was sidelined all of last year, has posted an ERA of 2.92 in his first seven starts.
Homestand Game Summaries
What’s next for the boys of the Bronx?
The Yankees head to Tampa to face the division rival Rays for the second time this season. After Sunday’s game, they will head to Minnesota for the first face-off of the season with the red-hot AL Central Twins, who are gunning for their longest winning streak since 1991 (15 games). As of Thursday, they had won 12 straight.
With their bats on fire, the Bombers have set the tone for the remainder of the season and built confidence as they hit the road for crucial division matchups against the Rays and Twins. Fans can expect the Yankees to carry this momentum forward as they continue their pursuit of dominance in the AL East. The Bronx is buzzing with excitement, and the Yankees are ready to reclaim their Evil Empire status.
Be sure to check out JerseySportingNews.com for Bronx Bombers updates all season long!
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