The Yankees played the 120th season in franchise history in 2020. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic this season was one of the craziest the team has ever seen.
Effects of covid-19
The season was originally suppose to start on March 26. However due to the Covid-19 pandemic the season got delayed. On June 23 Rob Manfred announced that the MLB season would start on July 23. Many changes were made for the 2020 season. Most notably the regular season would only be 60 games instead of the normal 162. The playoffs also had 16 teams play instead of the usual 10. The Yankees also only played east coast teams in the regular season to minimize travel.
Regular season
The Yankees season started on July 23 as they took on the Washington Nationals. The Yankees started their season with a 16-6 record. After that stretch they hit a wall. They would lose 15 of the next 20 games they played. The team finished with a 33-27 record. The Yankees finished 5th seed in the American league. D.J Lemahieu lead the league in batting average with a.364 average. Luke Voit hit 22 home runs in the season. This was enough to lead the league. Gerrit Cole finished with a 2.84 ERA and 0.96 WHIP in his first year with the team.
Postseason
The Yankees took on the Cleveland Indians in the wild card round of the playoffs. They swept this best of three series in Cleveland. The next opponent for the Yankees would be the Tampa Bay Rays. The Rays finished with the best record in the American league. The Rays defeating the Yankees in the 5th game of the best of five ALDS, ending the Yankees season. Giancarlo Stanton’s 6 home runs had him tied for 3rd for most home runs for all MLB players in the playoffs. Gerrit Cole struck out 30 batters in his 3 starts.
Predictions
I believe if the Yankees want to win more than 85 games next year bringing back D.J Lemahieu is a must. He will sign a 5 years, 113 million dollar extension. Next I believe the Yankees need added bullpen depth. They will fill this need by signing Brad Hand to a 2 years, 17 million dollar deal. Next I believe the Yankees need to trade Luke Voit for starting rotation help. The lineup is good enough to where Voit’s absense will not be noticed too much. Reds starter Luis Castillo is on the trade market this offseason.
If everything goes to plan, the Yankees should have spent 194 million dollars. This is between current contracts, new signings and arbitration deals. If everything goes right they will be able to give Masahiro Tanaka a 2 year, 31 million dollar deal and stay under the luxury tax. If they need to spend a little more than expected they can give Jose Quintana a 2 year, 15 million dollar deal. Worst comes to worst the Yankees should at minimum be able to afford to give Taijuan Walker a 3 year, 12 million dollar deal. Either way they need to sign a starter along with everything else I mentioned to compete for a world series in 2021.
