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For the Yankees, June Will Be Their Proving Ground

By Josh Levin

May 29, 2016; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; New York Yankees second baseman Starlin Castro (14) and teammates react after defeating the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. The Yankees beat the Rays 2-1. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
May 29, 2016; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; New York Yankees second baseman Starlin Castro (14) and teammates react after defeating the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. The Yankees beat the Rays 2-1. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /
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Memorial Day is the first major benchmark in the baseball season. No longer is it too early to take stock in teams; the season is a third of the way through, and now the real assessments can begin.

Here’s what we know about the Yankees after 49 games: they are in fourth place, under .500 (24-25), and 5.5 games in back of the Red Sox thanks to a lousy April. On the flip side, the back end of their bullpen is lethal, they are 21-10 in games not started by Michael Pineda or Luis Severino, and their offense has awoken from its month-long hibernation. This all adds up to a 15-8 mark in May.

The Memorial Day evaluation of the Yankees might say that the team can’t stand up to its AL East rivals because it hasn’t gotten enough production from its elder statesmen (Alex Rodriguez and Mark Teixeira) and it has been done in by two disappointing starters (Pineda and Severino). However, it could also say that those are fixable warts, and that there are enough positives to believe the Yanks can compete. But which appraisal is the true indication of what’s to come?

Apr 30, 2016; Boston, MA, USA; New York Yankees pitcher Michael Pineda (35) reacts during the third inning against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 30, 2016; Boston, MA, USA; New York Yankees pitcher Michael Pineda (35) reacts during the third inning against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports /

Starting with a three-game series in Toronto to finish out the month of May, the Yankees’ schedule over the next four weeks may determine what kind of season this is going to be. The Bombers will play 16 home games next month, and face just two teams with winning records (Orioles and Rangers). With seven games against the lowly Twins, and four against both the Rockies and Angels, June represents an opportunity for this club to either get fat or flounder.

If the strong play in May carries over into June, we’ll likely be talking about a team that’s fully in the thick of a playoff race. All the chatter about trading guys like Carlos Beltran and Aroldis Chapman will dissipate. In fact, the focus could shift to who the Yankees might be interested in trading for.

But if Joe Girardi’s bunch turns in more bad performances in June, we’ll know that the team we saw in April is more in-line with who these Yankees really are. At that point, all the talk of fire sales could very well be on the table.

So, yes, it is Memorial Day, and normally this would be the time to figure out who the Yankees are, but this is a unique case given how Jekyll and Hyde this season has been. The next month, not the previous two, will serve as the real judgement of the 2016 Yankees.

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