The Yankees didn’t let Aaron Judge’s absence turn into a slide. That’s the biggest takeaway from a week that could have gone sideways fast and instead ended with New York climbing in the power rankings.
Judge went on the IL at the beginning of June with a stress fracture in his upper right rib, an injury he had been dealing with earlier in the season before it became too much. In past years, losing the captain might have sent the Bronx Bombers into a tailspin. This group has held its ground in the American League East.
That resilience showed up in the final stretch before the All-Star Break. New York had two road series left, first against the division-rival Tampa Bay Rays in a four-game set, then against the Washington Nationals for three games. The Yankees split with the AL East-leading Rays, then handled the Nationals with a sweep - though not without some late drama.
Bleacher Report’s Kerry Miller rewarded that 5-2 week by moving the Yankees from No. 9 to No. 7 in this week’s power rankings.
"New York's series in the nation's capital was the baseball equivalent of the 'They had us in the first half, not gonna lie' meme. In innings 1-7, the Yankees were outscored by a combined score of 8-4, trailing by either one or two runs in each game.
But in innings 8-9, they smoked the Nationals' bullpen to the tune of a 10-0 advantage, winning each game in come-from-behind fashion. And for the week, Ben Rice went 11-for-26 with five home runs and the game-winning, two-run triple on Sunday."
The sweep leaves New York three games behind the Rays. Next comes a serious measuring-stick moment right after the break, with the Los Angeles Dodgers waiting first on the schedule.
In Other News...
Junior Caminero Is Creating A Rays Dilemma Fans Know Too Well
Junior Caminero is already talking like a player who understands the business side of stardom, and that matters for the Rays as much as anything he does at the plate. In an interview with ESPNs Jeff Passan, the young slugger acknowledged where he fits among baseballs brightest young names, the kind of company that includes Juan Soto and Vladimir Guerrero Jr., while also reinforcing why Tampa Bay views him as more than just another promising talent. He has already piled up multiple home run records for players 23 or younger, and for a club that has built its identity around finding and developing impact bats, Caminero looks like the rare one worth centering an entire future around.
That is where the familiar Rays dilemma comes back into view. Tampa Bay would love to keep a superstar in his prime, but doing so usually means paying a hefty price, and the franchises budget realities make that conversation a lot more complicated than the on-field fit. The result is a tug-of-war the Rays know well: a homegrown player good enough to anchor the lineup for years, and a long-term future in Tampa Bay that suddenly feels far less certain than the production suggests. [Read more 🡒]
Junior Caminero Shares What Is Fueling The Rays' First-Place Push
The Rays have spent much of the season looking like a team that knows exactly who it is, and Junior Caminero says the answer starts in the clubhouse. Tampa Bays first-place push has been built on more than timely hitting and pitching, with Caminero pointing to the way the group has stayed connected and the leadership that has helped keep everything moving in the same direction.
Caminero has also been doing his part on the field, hitting .279 with 28 homers and 59 RBIs in 94 games, and he carried that momentum into the break after taking part in the Home Run Derby. Now the Rays turn back to the standings and a series against the Red Sox, with the clubhouse tone and the steady presence of several veterans still shaping how this stretch feels for a team trying to protect its lead. [Read more 🡒]
Astros Fans Still Cant Believe How Yordan Alvarez Ended Up In Houston
A lot of the All-Star conversation this week has centered on how far some of these players have come, and Yordan Alvarez remains one of the best examples. The Astros slugger has become a centerpiece in Houston after arriving through a transaction that now looks like one of the most lopsided deals in recent memory, the kind of move that still makes rival fan bases shake their heads when the midsummer showcase rolls around.
The broader point is hard to miss: plenty of the games biggest names did not start their careers where they are starring now. Whether it is a pitcher who found another level after changing organizations or a hitter who blossomed after a new opportunity, the All-Star stage keeps reminding teams that talent can be hidden in plain sight. For Houston, Alvarez is the reminder that one misread can change a franchises trajectory for years. [Read more 🡒]