MLB playoffs 2017: 5 reasons Yankees will make it

By Tre LyDay | Sep 19, 2017

NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 17: Didi Gregorius #18 of the New York Yankees celebrates his second inning home run against the Baltimore Orioles with teammates Matt Holliday #17 at Yankee Stadium on September 17, 2017 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images) /

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The New York Yankees not only lead the wild card, but a division title is still in play.

The New York Yankees have had somewhat of a rollercoaster of a season, but if the season ended today they’d be playing the Wild Card game at home against the Minnesota Twins.

The Yankees are almost certainly going to the playoffs barring a monumental collapse, and there a handful of reasons why.

5. Getting healthy

New York is getting healthy at the right time. While Aaron Hicks is still on the DL with an oblique injury, everyone else has made their way back to the lineup.

Greg Bird, who missed over half the season is back and has hit the ball fairly well. The numbers may not completely back that up, but it’s just a matter of hitting it were they aren’t especially since teams shift against him.

Clint Frazier, Matt Holliday and Starlin Castro have all returned from their injuries. Matt Holliday is still getting the job done with RISP. His .667 slugging percentage entering Sunday was fourth highest in the American League (minimum 50 plate appearances).

Castro looks to be fully healthy after suffering from hamstring issues that included two DL stints. He may very well end the season with a .300 batting average for the first time since 2011, and finish with a career high in OPS.

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