The Yankees Can Finally Exorcise Their ALCS Demons

The New York Yankees recently knocked out the Kansas City Royals in four games in the ALDS. This is the 20^th time in franchise history that the Yankees have appeared in the ALCS. This puts them on the doorstep of getting back to the World Series for the first time since 2009. The Yankees are currently awaiting the winner of the Cleveland Guardians and Detroit Tigers division series. However, this round of the postseason has been the Yankees’ Achilles heel. New York has been eliminated from the ALCS in 2010, 2012, 2017, 2019, and 2022. The Yankees can exorcise the ALCS demons of their postseason past.

Winning A Hard-Fought ALDS Against The Kansas City Royals

The New York Yankees won a hard-fought ALDS in four games against a surprise Kansas City Royals team. All four games were decided by two runs or less. Despite minimal contributions from Aaron Judge, it was Gleyber Torres, Giancarlo Stanton, Alex Verdugo, Juan Soto, and Anthony Volpe who made the offense go. While New York hit a league-leading 237 home runs, the only players to homer in this series were Stanton, Torres, and Jazz Chisholm one time each. Out of the 28 runs they scored against Kansas City, only five of them came off the long ball. New York scored most of their runs from bases-loaded walks, sacrifice flies, and base hits.

The Bullpen Has Emerged As A Weapon

However, the biggest surprise was how the Yankees’ much-maligned bullpen shut down the Royals’ offense. Led by Clay Holmes, Tommy Kahnle, and Luke Weaver, New York’s bullpen didn’t allow an earned run the entire series. Kansas City stars Bobby Witt Jr. and Salvador Perez looked completely lost against Yankee relievers. Holmes and Weaver even appeared in all four games. The Yankees’ bullpen success was a big reason why the Yankees advanced to the ALCS.

The Yankees Have Had Problems In The ALCS In Recent Years

In recent years, the Yankees haven’t been able to get past the ALCS. It has been 15 years since the Yankees last won the American League pennant. New York has been eliminated in this round of the postseason in 2010, 2012, 2017, 2019, and 2022. This includes being knocked out by the despicable Houston Astros three of those times. The Yankees now can exorcise their past ALCS demons and get back to the World Series. With the Astros being swept out of the postseason in the Wild Card round, New York won’t be dealing with that postseason nemesis in 2024. This in theory makes their path to the World Series easier, however, it also eliminates any excuse they might have for falling short.

No Excuses To Hide Behind This Time

The Yankees have a big opportunity in front of them in the postseason. They can finally exorcise their ALCS demons and officially bury their shortcomings of 2012, 2017, 2019, and 2022. It has been 15 years since New York last went to the World Series, fans are growing impatient and are tired of the team’s postseason runs ending in this round. With the Bronx Bombers not having to face the Astros, this is the year to end the drought. If the Yankees happen to fall short again in the ALCS, they’ll have no excuses to hide behind this time.

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