(Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
The New York Yankees have been one of the most enigmatic teams in all of baseball this year.
After winning 99 games and cruising to an AL East title in 2022, the Yanks have fallen on hard times and now are in last place in the division, despite still being four games above the .500 mark.
New York is nine games back of first place and 2.5 back in the Wild Card race.
Since early June, they have been playing without Aaron Judge, who suffered a toe injury in a game against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
On Twitter, Bob Nightengale pointed out some numbers which show just how valuable Judge is to the Yankees.
When the #Yankees were 103-59 in 2019, they went 61-41(.598) when Aaron Judge played and 42-18(.700) when he didn’t.
This year, they are 50-46; 30-19 when Judge plays and 20-27 when he doesn’t.
Take away 2019, Yanks are 405-271(.599) when Judge plays; 85-90(.486) when he doesn’t
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) July 19, 2023
Nightengale notes that back in 2019, the Yankees won 103 games.
During that season, Judge missed 60 games due to injuries.
They were 61-41 when he played and 42-18 when he didn’t.
This year is a different story.
With Judge active, New York has gone 30-19, but with him not playing, they own a record of 20-27.
Another important thing to note is that if you take out 2019, the Yankees are 405-271 when Judge plays and 85-90 when he doesn’t, which ultimately goes to show how instrumental Judge is to the Yankees’ success.
Without him, New York has been floundering and they now find themselves in last place alone.
This is the latest they have been alone in last place in a season since the early-1990s, the last time they finished at the bottom of the pack.
The Yankees currently own a record of 50-46, and there is still no timetable for Judge’s return.
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