By Eddie Castro
The 2026 Major League Baseball regular season came to an end last week, and what a ride it was for the New York Yankees. If you are a fan of the Bronx Bombers, you have to tip your hat to Manager Aaron Boone on his most challenging and impressive job since he has been the Yankee skipper. All year long, the Yankees were decimated by injuries to both their offense and pitching. Players like Aaron Judge (missed 101 games), Cody Bellinger (28), Giancarlo Stanton (149), Max Fried (84), Gerrit Cole (58), and Carlos Rodon (98) all missed time during the season. Still, the Yankees found a way to whip up yet another 90-plus-win campaign. On Tuesday, September 29th, the Yankees began their chase for championship number 28 as they’ll go head-to-head with the Boston Red Sox in the American League Wild Card round. This matchup, of course, renews yet another chapter in their historic and intense rivalry.
The two teams met in the Wild Card round last year, and the Yankees came out victorious in a three-game series, clinched by pitcher Cam Schlittler. As we fast-forward to today, Schlittler may very well be the team’s Game 1 starter after having one of the most impressive seasons by a Yankee pitcher we’ve seen in some time. In fact, it is almost a foregone conclusion that Schlittler will be the American League’s Cy Young Award winner, posting a win-loss record of 14-6 with an ERA of 1.95 to go along with 239 strikeouts in 32 starts this year. Although nothing has been announced by the Yankees at this very moment, and his teammate Max Fried could get some consideration for the Game 1 start, it is expected to be Schlittler. In 13 matchups with Boston this year, the Yankees won the regular-season series by a score of 7-6, solidifying themselves with home-field advantage in the Wild Card round at Yankee Stadium.
As we go to press, the Yankees have not announced their playoff roster as of yet. The reason why that is a topic of conversation is that there are still major key players making their way back from injury that could give the Yankees a major boost if they were activated from the Injured List. Obviously, the big name would be Aaron Judge. Judge returned a few weeks ago from a fractured rib on his right side. In a game against Minnesota, Judge was seen wincing in pain during an at-bat.
It was then revealed that he sustained a strained calf and essentially was placed back on the IL. Stanton is another name associated with a similar injury. Stanton has not played a game since April 24. A recent video showed Stanton taking live batting practice at the stadium, leaving many fans questioning whether he’d be able to make his return to the lineup in time for the postseason. Whoever the Yankees add to their postseason lineup, these players will be the players that Boone strongly believes give the team the best chance to win against a pesky Red Sox club. However you slice and dice it, playoff baseball is once again back at Yankee Stadium, and we shall see how it all unfolds with a ball club that has some potential World Series aspirations going for them.
However, the Red Sox will look to make the Yankees’ dream a nightmare by spoiling those hopes. It’s Yankees versus Red Sox; it’s that October-like crisp wind in the air and we get to see these two go at it in a best-of-three playoff series. Get the popcorn ready because this matchup is sure to be quite the movie.
SPORTS NOTES: (WNBA): The No. 8-seeded New York Liberty begins its quest for its 2nd championship in franchise history as it began its playoff series this past Sunday (September 27th) against the No.1 seed, the Minnesota Lynx. (FOOTBALL) The New York Giants will play their first game of the year without their star quarterback Jaxon Dart, who underwent season-ending knee surgery last week. The team will now rely on their 2026-27 season on the arm of former No. 1 overall pick Jameis Winston.
The team welcomes the Tennessee Titans in a Sunday afternoon (Sept 27th) matchup at MetLife Stadium at 1:00 PM EST. The Jets will try to bounce back from a tough loss to the Green Bay Packers as Head Coach Aaron Glenn returns to the Motor City to face his former team, the Detroit Lions, on Sunday, September 27th at 1:00 PM EST. Tune in this Thursday, October 1st, for an All-new Episode of the Sports Talk With Eddie podcast presented by Our Time Press. You can see the show live on the Our Time Press website and on YouTube at Eddiecastro8382. Have a question during the show? Let your voice be heard; call in live at 917-319-5481.