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The New York Yankees are baseball’s most famous franchise, their logo worn on baseball caps around the planet. The Yankees are one of the most valuable sporting organisations on the planet, ranked fifth in the world by Forbes, behind the Dallas Cowboys, Real Madrid, Barcelona and Manchester United.
The Yankees are heading across the Atlantic to take part in MLB’s first ever London Series against their arch-rival Boston Red Sox. Here is some information about the iconic franchise from the Big Apple…
History
The Yankees are the most successful team in Major League Baseball history, boasting 27 World Series titles.
Before the glory years with Babe Ruth in the 1920s – who they signed from the Red Sox – the Yankees played at the Polo Grounds, sharing the stadium with the New York Giants. In the early part of the century, they were known as the New York Highlanders.
After losing to the Giants in the 1921 and 1922 World Series, the Yankees moved to their own home Yankee Stadium and won the title in ’23. In the famous 1927 season, the Yankees line-up became known as ‘Murderers’ Row’, led by Ruth and Lou Gehrig.
Titles followed throughout the years for the Yankees as did the star names. Once Ruth retired, Joe DiMaggio arrived, then it was Mickey Mantle, Whitey Ford and Yogi Berra.
There was a barren period for the Yankees in the 1980s and 1990s before the Derek Jeter, Jorge Posada, Mariano Rivera and Andy Petitte core won four titles in five years from 1996 to 2000.
Their last championship came in 2009, the year they opened the new Yankee Stadium. Petitte, Rivera, Jeter and Posada remained, but they were joined by yet more stars, including Robinson Cano, Alex Rodriguez, CC Sabathia and Mark Teixeira.
2018 season
Although the Yankees had to wrestle some injuries in 2018, they still won 100 games and landed the top wildcard spot. They easily saw off the Oakland Athletics at Yankee Stadium in the one-game wildcard showdown, setting up a Division Series matchup with their London Series foes, the Boston Red Sox.
Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez missed extended periods, while Giancarlo Stanton settled in after his blockbuster trade from Miami. Didi Gregorius was ruled out for over a year and missed the postseason.
For what was a disrupted campaign, it was an impressive performance, even though it ended in a four-game defeat to Boston.
2019 season (so far)
Injuries have again been an issue for the Yankees, with Judge and Stanton just two of their stars missing considerable time. Gregorius, Stanton and Judge are all back in the line-up for the MLB London Series, however, but the Yankees are still without Luis Severino, Dellin Betances and Miguel Andujar.
Miraculously, the Yankees have still found a way to win plenty of games, sitting atop the American League East having caught the Tampa Bay Rays despite their own red-hot start.
Offseason signing DJ LeMahieu has been an integral part of New York’s success this season, while a bounceback year from Sanchez has softened the blow of injuries to sluggers Andujar, Judge and Stanton.
Strength
Power, power and a bit more power. This Yankees line-up – with recent addition Edwin Encarnacion – is the best in baseball, it’s packed with not just sluggers, but legitimately very good hitters from the raw power of Stanton, Judge and Encarnacion to the less explosive Gleyber Torres and LeMahieu.
Weakness
The starting pitching isn’t a disaster, but it’s an area Brian Cashman will be looking to reinforce with Severino still unavailable. Sabathia, Masahiro Tanaka, J.A. Happ and James Paxton are solid, though it’s undoubtedly the weakness of this deep, talented Yankees roster.
At the time of writing, we do not know who will start for the Yankees at the London Stadium.
