What was once a thrilling neck-and-neck race in the American League East has now turned into a procession.
By completing a four-game sweep of the New York Yankees, the Boston Red Sox now hold a seemingly insurmountable 9.5-game cushion over their rivals – the largest division lead in baseball.
It was the first time Boston swept a four-game series against an opponent that entered the match-up at least 30 games above .500 since 1939, also against the Yankees.
New York were already in a precarious, but manageable, position coming into Fenway Park, and needed to, at worst, split the series to avoid losing more ground.
The chance to stay level was lost when the Red Sox secured a 4-1 win in the third game, but the nail in the coffin came in the final meeting.
Red Sox just ripped out the Yankees' heart and threw it in the Charles River pic.twitter.com/han42dtMzO
— Starting 9 (@Starting9) August 6, 2018
Just when it appeared the Yankees would fire a parting shot on their way out of town, Boston erased a three-run deficit in the bottom of the ninth inning before Andrew Benintendi delivered a walk-off single in the 10th.
For New York, the damage is hard to ignore.
In the divisional era (since 1969), only three teams have ever climbed out of a hole of 9.5 games or more in August or later – the 1993 Atlanta Braves, the 1995 Seattle Mariners and the 2006 Minnesota Twins.
The Yankees themselves came back from an 8.5-game deficit in 1978, when they stormed back on Boston and beat them in a one-game playoff for the AL East crown – history that can serve as a rallying cry for New York in the final stretch of the season.
Despite the nightmarish scenario the Yankees now find themselves in, manager Aaron Boone doesn’t believe all hope is lost.
“This is a test we are going through no question. We have some adversity being dinged up roster-wise, but we’ll come out a lot tougher,” Boone said.
“This is a weekend hopefully we’ll look back on that brought us together and grow as a club. We’ll move on.”
There’s still a slim chance of New York making the division race interesting again, mostly due to the fact they have the second-easiest remaining schedule of any team in the league, according to Baseball Prospectus. They also have six head-to-head clashes against the Red Sox.
But the harsh reality for the Yankees is that they’re trying to catch a runaway train in the Red Sox, who have been far and away the best team in baseball this season and are having the most successful regular-season campaign in the franchise’s storied history.
Boston simply refuse to lose, as their 79-34 record puts them on pace for 113 wins, which would be the fourth-best mark in MLB history.
While the Red Sox have sustained their strong play with seemingly no hiccups, New York are just 18-20 over their last 38 games and look shaky in every facet – from their starting pitching, to their bullpen, to their bats going quiet.
The Yankees’ offence has been hindered by injuries to Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez, with the former dealing with a chip fracture in his wrist, and the latter on the 10-day disabled list with a groin issue.
At this point, New York have to set their sights on the Wild Card game and do everything they can to click at the end of the season, leading up to the elimination contest.
Having their entire season come down to one game is a tough pill to swallow for a team that has the third-best record in baseball, but the Yankees have the misfortune of going against an absolute juggernaut in their division this year.
