5 reasons the Yankees are World Series contenders

The New York Yankees are wheeling and dealing to get themselves ready for an October run. Here are five reasons the Yankees are World Series contenders.

The New York Yankees have been one of the most active teams heading into the 2017 MLB trade deadline. After a largely frustrating last five years, the Yankees might be back in the Junior Circuit. Their farm system has been replenished, with many of the best crop yielding a beautiful harvest at the major league level.

New York has made two blockbuster trades in recent weeks to get ready to get ready for a deep October run. The Yankees acquired a trio of excellent players from the bottom-feeding Chicago White Sox in the form of third baseman Todd Frazier, reliever David Robertson and reliever Tommy Kahnle.

On Monday, the Yankees have acquired Oakland Athletics ace Sonny Gray in a deadline deal. It just might be coming together for the Bronx Bombers. Here are five reasons they are now a serious World Series contender heading into August.

5. The Houston Astros are unproven in October

Even if the Yankees catch fire with their new editions in August and September, there really is no way that they’ll catch the juggernaut Houston Astros for the best record in the American League. That’s not a bad thing for the Yankees. They’ll just need to win the AL East and they’ll be in good position to a deep postseason run.

That is because the Astros are largely unproven as a postseason team. They didn’t make the 2016 AL postseason a year ago. Houston only got back into the postseason in 2015 as the second wild card team. Sure, they did beat the Yankees in the win-or-go-home game in Yankee Stadium, but the Astros didn’t get past the ALDS.

Houston is still a team that has to prove it on the diamond in October. While the Astros could be the 2017 version of the 2016 Chicago Cubs, they could also just as easily be the 2017 version of the 2001 Seattle Mariners. Nobody should wish that sort of Mariners bad luck on anybody.

While the Yankees haven’t proven anything on the baseball diamond since winning the 2009 World Series over the Philadelphia Phillies, their biggest threat to the pennant has come close either. Yes, there are always frightening Cleveland Indians and Kansas City Royals in the AL Central, but the Yankees will get a slice of either team in the ALDS, assuming New York wins the AL East of course.