Giancarlo Stanton

As Giancarlo Stanton readies himself for a return to the Yankees, the expectations have never been higher on New York's power-hitting designated hitter.

It’s pretty clear that the New York Yankees’ cannot duplicate the incredible success they had in the first half of the season.

The Major League Baseball All Star Game used to be a very hot commodity and a must watch event every year. There is less appeal to me in the All Star Game now.

In 44 games, the 2022 New York Yankees have played the Baltimore Orioles 13 times and after last night, are 9-4 against them. So, for the next 118 games, the Pinstripes and the O's will only face off another 6 times. Good for Baltimore bad for the Bombers. Thursday, the Yankees and their most dominant opponent in the American League East over the past few years, the Tampa Bay Rays, will face-off in the first of 19 battles this season.

It should have been an awesome celebration. Gleyber Torres came off the bench and delivered a pinch-hit single with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning for a 5-4 comeback victory for New York Yankees over the Cleveland Guardians. Fans should have been cheering and players should have been jumping up and down with happiness. That happened briefly, then the ugliness in right-field began.

The New York Yankees and Mets are stacked with All Stars...right? Well, when you want to find out who are the most productive players in the game, just ask the fantasy sports experts. So, USA Today Sports released their Top 200 MLB Fantasy Baseball Players on usatoday.com. Here are New York's top 10 players and there are certainly some surprises!

No news is good news. Right? That's not the way the Pinstripes usually roll. The New York Yankees are used to dominating even the bleakest of sports-news days in past years. Until Wednesday, Brian Cashman seemed content to let his crosstown rival little brother bask in their new over-priced free agent toys and their flashy new manager, who he fired way back in 1995. However, on Wednesday, the Bombers GM may have fired a shot a cross the bow, letting everyone know that the Yankee line-up is loaded and we've made changes to optimize that fire power.

When Opening Day will take place, may be a bigger question than even the New York Yankees questionable Opening Day line-up. Let's have some fun and give general manager Brian Cashman a little help, while providing manager Aaron Boone with a winning line-up. Remember, we have to be realistic with our wish-list additions!

They have battled the ups and downs of 156 games of Major League Baseball, played through, hopefully, the back end of a pandemic. They weathered the criticisms of the media, as their $200 million dollar payroll dipped precariously out of the playoff picture. The experts wondered aloud if Hal Steinbrenner would drastically part ways with the steady hand of general manager Brian Cashman. Or, as most think would be the likely outcome, would Aaron Boone take the hit for his underperforming squad? 3 games may answer everyone's questions.

The evening was full of playoff pressure for both the New York Yankees and the Mets at Citi Field last night. The two teams had split the 3 game series so far. Both teams are in their respective Wild Card races and the Mets have a fading chance to return to the top of the National League East with dwindling opportunities. The high emotions surrounding the 9/11 anniversary game on Saturday were behind them. It was back to the business at hand, make the playoffs.

Personally, I wouldn't have said what Trevor May just said, but then again, I'm not Trevor May.

Fortunately for the New York Yankees, they had their lethal secret weapon in right field, Giancarlo Stanton. The big power hitter has been, for the most part, limited to the Designated Hitter role during his nearly four year stint in the Big Apple. Stanton was a solid outfielder in his years in Miami. In 2012, he won Wilson's Defensive Player of the Year. Now, for the past four weeks, Giancarlo has been a semi regular outfielder and it may be helping his hitting. Over Stanton's last 7 games, he is batting .400 with 3 homeruns and 8 RBI.