Why the Yankees Playing Good Now Should Come as No Surprise

It is no secret that the New York Yankees have been playing good baseball as of late. It seems to be the trend that happens the last few seasons. For instance, at the 2005 season, the Yankees found themselves below .500 and looking near the bottom of the division but apparently decided to play good baseball and start winning games. It would not be until the end of that season where they would end up taking the division despite having the same record as Boston at the end season on the sheer count of having a better head to head match up. The next season, the Yankees started slow but picked up and this time however won the division in a more convincing manner winning it by 10 games over 2^nd place Toronto Blue Jays. Fast forward to the present, it is the 2007 season and now the Yankees are in a similar predicament like they were 2 years ago, 2^nd place, barely about .500, and now 9 games behind 1^st place Boston.

The Yankees haven't won a Playoff series since 2004 but this is mainly covering the season. I've noticed that and it seems to be a common trend no matter who is on the team. Is it some coincidence that it seems to happen within a few months that the New York Yankees start playing good later on in the season? It most likely is but it does seem to have a little bit frequently especially as of late. I would have to make the comparasion of saying it's like it takes them a few months before they get going as a unit. For them, it must be like Better Late than Never.

The boss, Mr. Steinbrenner, has given warnings out to the General Manager about turning this team around. So far, I will say that they are playing perhaps maybe there best baseball this season by going on a hot streak. The team itself has had its share of injuries that is true, but at the same time, it looked like the team didn't want to play at least early on. I guess someone must have riled them up because all of a sudden at this moment as of June 20^th, 2007, this team has been winning a lot more than they've been losing this entire month. Until it rolls into September, I would not say that the New York Yankees are out of the playoff just yet. A lot can happen between now and then like Boston could collapse and fall behind and end up in 2^nd place in their division.

What's on the line is the Yankees streak of not only making the playoffs, but also the fact that they've won the division 8 times in a row back to 1998. That is currently the longest active division title streak in the major leagues but they've gone to the playoffs the past 11 years and that too is also the current longest active streak. The pitching it seems will most likely be there for them with notable stars like Roger Clemens and Andy Petitte playing good at the moment along with up and coming pitcher Chien-Ming Wang. There are other pitchers on that staff that could very well but Rivera may have lost some of that aura that he had due to the fact that he has blown games a little more frequently than he had in the past. I do think we can expect New York ready or pretty close to that playoff spot once the season continues to draw to a close. Maybe not until the end of the All Star Break but perhaps the 2^nd half of the season will be really where it will be told if this team will do like it had in years past.