5 Yankees storylines to watch during the second half of the 2024 MLB season

O Yankees has had a rollercoaster first half of the 2024 season. After a slow start, New York had a thrilling 21-7 May before faltering in June and July, going 18-21 heading into the All-American break. Star and losing control of the AL East lead.

Still, the Yankees (58-40) are just one game behind the Orioles and three behind in the loss column for the best record in the American League.

How this team finishes the season – and how well it does in the playoffs – will determine the success of the year. But until we get there, here are five stories to watch as the Yanks begin the second half…

What will the Yankees do at the trade deadline?

Let’s get straight to the point. The Yankees are destined for the postseason, but their team is very flawed.

The bullpen has holes, as does the infield, and the starting rotation has stumbled since its historic start. So GM Brian Cashman has work to do.

It appears to be a seller’s market this season, especially when it comes to the bullpen. Teams like the Oakland A’s and Chicago White Sox are selling big on relievers, and it will likely take more than Cashman is willing to give up to get an impact arm.

Names like Tanner Scott of the Marlins and Carlos Esteves dos Anjos are potential fits, but they’re not as electric as someone like Mason Miller.

Yankees fans should temper expectations that Cashman will make an incredible impact, especially when it comes to the bullpen. However, Jazz Chisholm Jr. It is Ryan McMahon these are names that have been attached to the Yankees and that would upgrade the infield.

The continuous development of newcomers

On the trade deadline note, how much internal help the Yankees need could depend on how much Ben Rice develops at first base.

The left-handed hitter has done an admirable job since being called up. Through 24 games, Rice is slashing .228/.315/.494, but has shown surprising power — six home runs in his last 10 games, compared to none in his first 14 — and has been incredibly strong.

In the final three innings of games, Rice hit .308 with three home runs and nine RBI. He’s also 4-for-21 with eight RBI in high-leverage situations. Aaron Boone even put Rice in the cleaning place to give Aaron Judge protection in recent games, so they clearly like his hitting.

With the fight Anthony Rizzo with a fractured arm, if Rice continues to play this way, the Yankees could have an answer — at least this year — at first base and won’t have to address it at the deadline. This is also a mini-plot to monitor the closer Rizzo gets to his return. Will the Yankees continue to start Rice or will Rizzo get his job back?

And then we have Austin Wells. After a good cup of coffee last season, the catcher was the Yankees’ backup all season, with mixed results. The 25-year-old started batting more consistently, as did José Trevino was placed on the IL before the All-Star break.

With Trevino down a bit, Wells will get most of the starts behind the plate. If his stick continues to mature, he could be a sneaky offensive presence in a lineup that has been extremely inconsistent outside of Judge and Juan Soto.

He can Antonio Volpe change your season?

While rookies continue to get playing time, Volpe is suffering a sophomore slump.

After a tremendous first few months, in which Volpe established himself as the leadoff hitter and batted close to .300, he fell hard in June and July. In He hit .220 in June and is hitting just .128 in 12 games in July.

Volpe improved his average and OBP in his rookie campaign, but his hitting dropped – and his OPS remains the same (.666). There are some tradeoffs with the Yankees shortstop, but there is reason to be concerned.

Since June 6, Volpe’s .171 average is third-worst among players with at least 100 plate appearances, and he has the sixth-worst WAR. He has also struggled defensively at times this season.

Boone has knocked Volpe down the order, where he spent most of last season, and there are no signs he will be promoted anytime soon. Whether Volpe will return to being the team’s third-best hitter or anything like that is a great story to watch.

Aaron Judge home run record and MVP clock

It’s incredible to think that after Judge’s putrid start, he’s on track to have a better year than his 2022 MVP season.

His 34 home runs before the All-Star break are a franchise record, and he leads the 2022 season in several categories. Judge has a higher batting average (.306 to .284), OBP (.433 to .364) and slugging (.679 to .618), and is far ahead in RBI (85 to 70).

Over the past two and a half months, the baseball world will be watching to see if Judge can continue this pace en route to his second MVP award — and perhaps even chase his own AL home run record.

Right now, Judge is on pace for 57 home runs, but a hot streak could put him back on pace for 63.

Run to win the AL East

As we said in the opening, the Yankees are just one game behind the Orioles at the top of the AL East. Seizing the division is obviously big for a potential Wild Card round, playoff seeding, and home field advantage.

The top two finishers (the two division winners with the best record) will receive a bye and avoid the best-of-three Wild Card round. The AL East winner will likely be one of the top two seeds, so capturing him would help the Yanks move closer to their first World Series since 2009.

According to Tankathon, the Yankees have the 19th toughest schedule remaining, while the Orioles have the 23rd. Of the toughest opponents, the Yankees face the Phillies, Guardians, Royals and Mariners three more times this season.

The Orioles face the Guardians and Astros four times, the Dodgers and Twins three times and the surprising Red Sox seven (!) times in the second half.

The Yankees have played two more games than Baltimore, so it will be harder to make up ground. However, both teams will face each other for the final time in late September in the Bronx, which could determine the division winner.