MLB East This Week: Yankees and Red Sox face off

It seems as though the Jays are slowly getting their groove back this week, while first and second place rivals the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox face off. Here’s a wrap up of how the division shaped up this week.

New York Yankees (53-26)

Somehow, the dominating Yankees got swept by the Tampa Bay Rays in a three-game series. This was bad news for us Jays fans, keeping the Rays above Toronto in the division standings. The Yankees would go on to face the Philadelphia Phillies in a three-game series. They won games one and two 4-2 and 6-0 but fell 3-0 in game three. Friday saw the opening game of a three-game series against second-place rivals, the Boston Red Sox. Game one was all Yankees, resulting in an 8-1 New York victory. This series will pick back up today at 7:15 EST.

Brandon Drury was recalled from triple-A prior to the opening game against the Red Sox. Manager Aaron Boone stated there was a good chance he would play with the big club in the foreseeable future. He was the starting third baseman before he was sidelined eight games into the season with headaches and blurred vision.

Boston Red Sox (55-28)

The Red Sox finished off a series against the Seattle Mariners with a 5-0 victory, ending the three-game series with two wins. Up next, they faced off against the Los Angeles Angels in a three-game series. They swept the Angels, winning 9-1, 9-6, and 4-2. As stated above, they were dominated by the Yankees in the opening game of three. Eduardo Rodriguez saw his second straight start and failed to deliver.

As I’m sure you all know, the Red Sox acquired Steve Pearce from the Jays in exchange for Santiago Espinal. It will be interesting to see how that trade shapes up.

Tampa Bay Rays (40-41)

The Tampa Bay Rays are on the up. After sweeping the Yankees, they swept a two-game series against the Washington Nationals, winning 11-0 and 1-0. They’re two games deep in a four-game series against the Houston Astros, currently sitting at a split. The Astros took game one 1-0, while the Rays took game two 3-2, which ended Houston’s 11-game road win streak. Game three goes down today at 4:10 EST.

Baltimore Orioles (23-58)

Yeah, this Jays season hasn’t been the best, but at least they aren’t the Baltimore Orioles. The Orioles were swept in a four-game series against the Seattle Mariners. They lost 5-3, 3-2, 8-7, and 4-2. They started off a three-game series against the Los Angeles Angels on Friday, losing 7-1. They’ll try to change up their luck today at 4:05 EST.

Will Manny Machado be moved? Rumour has it the Los Angeles Dodgers, Philadelphia Phillies, and Arizona Diamondbacks are interested. Do you think he’ll be traded? Something needs to be done to boost this team, that’s for sure.