That was quickly completed. Everyone was prepared to write off the New York Yankees’ early success after they easily defeated the AL champion Arizona Diamondbacks, the AL champion Houston Astros, and two additional series victories over the Toronto Blue Jays and Miami Marlins.
“Ha, check out the records of those teams! They’re not up to par.” Yes, have you really listened? They were battered into the soil by the Yankees. Their poor records stem from this. Furthermore, a team’s full potential is not defined by a “bad” record after two weeks of play in the season. It’s time to become an adult and grow up.
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However, it’s possible that ESPN went a bit further. They revealed their MLB predictions for 2024, including their “hottest takes.” Oh no! Keep me from burning!
This is a bullish prediction for the Yankees, but it also has a tiny caveat. That will come up in a moment. However, the first one—which was provided by members of the national media—could not be more classic.
The seemingly cool-guy ESPN fantasy and sports betting writer AJ Mass raised the ante on his hot take by predicting that the New York Mets would win the pennant instead of the Yankees.
Although a team’s performance in 162 games has nothing to do with early season success, the Yankees were playing their greatest MLB ball at the time, and the Mets were… 5-7.
ESPN’s funny Yankees forecast, motivated by hate, is the ideal inspiration for 2024.
As of Tuesday morning, the Yankees still hold the best record in MLB with a 12-5 record, while the Mets are now 8-8. Seeing/hearing so many people criticize the Yankees only because they want to see them fail after obtaining baseball’s top hitter is just tiresome. To prevent Juan Soto from resigning, everyone wants to see them fail.
It makes sense, but isn’t it kind of unrealistic? “The AL East is really good!” appears to be the main point of contention. However, the Toronto Blue Jays have been worse every year, the Boston Red Sox are perhaps worse than ever, and the Tampa Bay Rays have significantly underperformed despite losing a ton of talent in the summer. Though they are still a young club with little to no playoff or high-leverage experience, the Baltimore Orioles pose a real threat.
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It remains to be seen what will transpire, but the remainder of the AL is also quite lacking. Nobody is shaking in their boots about the AL West, and the Central is still the worst baseball division.
ESPN will still attempt to cast its negative energy on the Yankees, though. Buster Olney casually stated last week that Gerrit Cole wouldn’t make a comeback in 2024. just without cause. Since “elbow injuries are unpredictable.” Excellent idea.
“Anthony Volpe producing more value in his age-23 season than Derek Jeter did” is ESPN’s optimistic assessment of the Yankees. Somehow, there’s always going to be Jeter slander in there. Thank you very much for the Yankees playoff run and an All-Star season from Volpe. Have a conversation in October.
