Why the Yankees Believe They Can Win the World Series This Year
NEW YORK — Shortly before breaking camp, heading north for the beginning of the regular season, Yankees manager Aaron Boone made a resounding assessment of his ball club.
"I think we're a better team right now than we were at any points of last year," Boone said. "[We're] a more complete team."
Many scoffed at the notion that New York—a team that fell short yet again in 2021 thanks to a campaign riddled with inconsistencies and underperformance—could be a better product this spring, especially after so many swings and misses in free agency.
Is this team really going to make some noise in the best division in baseball?
Regardless of what outsiders have been saying about those in pinstripes as Major League Baseball embarks on the 2022 season, Boone and his players have made it abundantly clear that they believe in this group, a unit that's poised to bring a modified brand of baseball to the Bronx this season.
"We have the guys in the room to do it, the guys in the front office and coaching staff to prepare us, ownership to go out and get anything that we seemingly need to push it over the line," Yankees Opening Day starter Gerrit Cole said on Thursday afternoon. "We're all kind of connected in our same goal and we have a much more versatile team that allows us to win different types of ballgames."
More versatile.
Sure, having a bench with two Swiss Army Knives—DJ LeMahieu and Marwin Gonzalez—brings versatility. That's part of the solution. Cole meant more than just the presence of a few utility men, though.
"It's nice to blow a team out, but that's not going to happen on a nightly basis as we've seen, proven time and time again," he said. "There's going to be situations where you're gonna need to win ugly, you're going to need to win tight, you're going to need to win with a defensive play, you're going to need to win with speed and an extra 90 feet.
"I think that as a group, we're much more prepared to handle the different array of challenges that the game can throw at us. That puts us in a position to win really any type of ballgame."
A more well-rounded roster prepared to win any type of contest is a direct result of New York's offseason, a winter featuring certain key additions and subtractions. Trading with the Twins for shortstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa, third baseman Josh Donaldson and catcher Ben Rortvedt—in exchange for backstop Gary Sánchez and infielder Gio Urshela—New York took a massive step forward defensively. Same goes for the addition of backup catcher Jose Trevino in a recent trade with the Rangers, with Rortvedt starting the season on the injured list with a right oblique muscle strain.
Bringing back Anthony Rizzo wasn't the splashiest of free-agent signings, but it shored up an over-loaded infield with a Platinum Glove Award winner at first base. In fact, you can make the argument that New York has a Gold Glove-caliber defender at nearly every position in their probable Opening Day starting lineup.
"The outfielders, the infielders, our catchers, I think we have a chance to be really fundamentally sound defensively, making the plays you need to make. That's the most important thing," Rizzo said Thursday.
It's more than just the defense. As Cole alluded to, New York's offense is deeper this season. They'll still hit the ball out of the ballpark, and have superstars in the heart of their order, but they're also poised to bring more balance, stringing hits together rather than relying on the home run ball.
This team is more athletic, they're faster and a new group of hitting coaches have been bringing the most out of this experienced group of position players so far this spring.
Lastly, the Yankees' pitching staff—a unit that was reliable and effective in 2021—has improved. New York added a healthy Luis Severino back to the rotation, it brought young arms like Clarke Schmidt and Ron Marinaccio to an expanded bullpen while swapping Joely Rodríguez for Miguel Castro (in a deal with the Mets).
"I don't think there's any question we're better defensively and our pitching was really consistent for us last year," Boone said. "When you consider the totality of the staff, starters and relievers, that was kind of what sturdied us all year."
By betting on this group and making minor tweaks, rather than a blockbuster signing in free agency, New York is banking on their star players staying healthy and this unit gelling between the lines.
If everything works out as planned, there's no reason why this team can't win the division or at least go on a deep run in October. You can say that about half the league at the beginning of each season, though. After all, as Boone reiterated on Thursday, "talk is cheap."
So as those in pinstripes jog onto the field Friday afternoon, kicking off another campaign, keep in mind that this team has faith in itself. Fans and pundits might not agree with New York's internal endorsement, but behind closed doors, this team is as hungry as ever to show what they're capable of between the lines.
"We're definitely gonna win 60 games, who knows if we're going to lose 60 games this year," Rizzo said. "It's the other ones in between that pitching, defense, stealing a base late in the game, getting a guy over, all the little things that come into play, will take us to the next level and give us that real championship confidence."
MORE:
- Aaron Boone Reveals Yankees' Leadoff Hitter For Opening Day
- Yankees' DJ LeMahieu Not Sweating Possible Opening Day Absence
- 'This Is Where He Belongs': Aaron Judge Reacts to Yankees Signing Greg Bird
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