New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox: Teams Just a Few Moves from Greatness
The New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox both find themselves in a dog fight. At 21-19 and 5.5 games behind the upstart Baltimore Orioles in the AL East, the New York struggling to find its groove.
At 19-21 the Red Sox are battling several pitching woes to rebound from a slow start to the 2012 season.
In this slideshow, we have compared hitting, pitching and fielding statistics for both the Yankees and Red Sox. At the end of each category, we provided an edge to the best performing team.
Statistics will show, both teams are just a few clever moves away from taking back their rightful places in the AL East.
All stats verified from ESPN.com
Pitching
1 of 4New York and Boston’s pitching staffs have gotten whacked with injuries this early season. The Yankees staff, which is still reeling from the sad loss of iconic reliever Mariano Rivera, has undoubtedly underachieved this season.
Boston’s staff has pitched better lately, but it still remains the team’s weak link. While both pitching staffs have ground out enough victories to keep their respective teams afloat, which staff has performed better so far?
| Yankees (rank) | Red Sox (rank) | League AVG | |
| ERA | 4.14 (22nd) | 4.68 (27th) | 3.87 |
| WHIP | 1.36 (23rd) | 1.42 (25th) | 1.30 |
| Hits allowed | 362 (23rd) | 377 (27th) | 343 |
| Earned Runs allowed | 163 (18th) | 190 (28th) | 155 |
| Home Runs allowed | 50 (29th) | 44 (22th) | 38 |
| Walks allowed | 118 (8th) | 140 (24th) | 128 |
Alarmingly, the Yanks have given up 50 home runs, which is good for second worst in baseball. Only Minnesota has given up more homers (55). On a positive note, the Yankees have surrendered just 118 walks.
By comparison, the Red Sox own a team ERA of 4.68. Only the Colorado Rockies (5.05) and Minnesota Twins (5.14) have been worse.
Opposing teams are batting .264 against both the Yankees and Red Sox. Only six teams have a worse batting average against.
EDGE: Yankees
Hitting
2 of 4Historically, both the Yankees and Red Sox have consistently been two of the best offensive clubs in the game.
This season is no exception.
| Yankees (rank) | Red Sox (rank | League AVG | |
| AVG. | .267 (5th) | .273 (3rd) | .250 |
| OPS | .793 (4th) | .794 (3rd) | .714 |
| OBP | .338 (4th) | .333 (8th) | .317 |
| Home Runs | 60 (2nd) | 50 (6th) | 44 |
| RBI | 182 (6th) | RBI (2nd) | 162 |
| Slugging | .454 (4th) | .462 (3rd) | .396 |
As expected, the Yanks have also shown tremendous power as a club. The team is second in home runs (60), sixth in RBI (182) and fourth in slugging percent (.454).
By comparison, the Red Sox are batting .273 as a team. Only the Texas Rangers (.290) and the St. Louis Cardinals (.279) boast a better team batting average in the league. And like the Yankees, the Red Sox also boast solid power-hitting.
EDGE: Red Sox (By a Hair)
Fielding
3 of 4But what team has been better defensively?
| Yankees (rank) | Red Sox (rank) | League AVG | |
| Errors | 18 (3rd) | 17 (2nd) | 26 |
| Fielding PCT. | .988 (3rd) | .989 (1st) | .983 |
| Assists | 357 (26th) | 419 (12th) | 405 |
| Putouts | 1,063 (24th) | 1,068 (12th) | 1,084 |
Strangely, the Yankees are near the bottom of the league in assists (357) and putouts (1,063).
The Red Sox by comparison have also been outstanding defensively. With a .989 fielding percentage, the Red Sox are the best in baseball. The team has just 17 errors this season. Only the Seattle Mariners have less (16).
EDGE: Red Sox
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Conclusion
4 of 4While the Yankees and Red Sox have battled significant pitching issues so far this season, statistics point to both teams having played well enough offensively and defensively to win ballgames. These statistics also point to two teams that are just a few clever front-office moves away from climbing all the way up the ladder in the black and blue AL East.
Like many baseball fans, we are thrilled to enjoy the exhilarating AL East race that rests before us.
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