ALL DECADE YANKEES

Now this is going to be a bigggggg team! Probably one that gets a lot of heat for some notable omissions as well... but there's only 18 spots on this team, so for a storied franchise like the Yankees, cuts have to be made! The Yankees won the World Series in 2009 and haven't returned to the Fall Classic since then (although they're obviously in a dog fight with Houston for the AL Pennant right now). Despite that, they're LOADED with talent thanks to seven playoff appearances between 2010 and 2019, as well as five seasons of at least 95 wins. Consequently, the greatest franchise in sports will have a chance to add an "All Decade MLB Showdown" title to its 27 rings!

The 2017 Aaron Judge card that Bob made as part of his first ever post for this blog!!

Lineup: The Bronx Bombers are going to live up to their name in the All Decade league!! Leading it off is The Captain, the iconic soon-to-be Hall of Famer Derek Jeter! Bringing an OB 10, A(22) speed and top notch fielding, he's a great SS and leadoff man to set the table for the powerful hitters behind him. The run of great pop starts with his battery mate, Robinson Cano. Cano's bringing a bunch of doubles and defensive swagger to the #2 slot. Potential MVP Aaron Judge's incredible rookie season card is in the 3 slot -- OB 10, HR at 16 will be DEADLY to all pitchers! And they'll have to pitch to him, as Curtis Granderson brings one of the most electric cards ever made to the cleanup slot! Honestly, the 2011 set was the first one my friends and I got from Colby's site and we were so, so amazed by how good Grandy was, and I'm sure he'll be a stud in this league too! No rest for the weary pitcher though, as OB 9, HR at 16 Mark Teixeira bats fifth. OB 10, HR at 18 with A speed Alex Rodriguez is in the sixth slot and I think he's going to have a surprisingly high number of RBIs. The Yankees bottom third is a truly marvelous homage to the "bombers" nickname with an assortment of SUPER POWERFUL OB 8 sluggers. Hitting seventh, winner of the DH vote, Edwin continues the barrage of incredible power with the Sammy Sosa-like card he put together in 2019... wowza, what a slugger!! He's going to rock low control pitching and should probably move up in the order, but I love the "deadly 8s" theme. Following him is the surprise winner of the OF poll, Giancarlo Stanton. Triumphing over higher OB and speed players, Stanton brings a stellar OB 8, HR at 16 bat to the 8 hole... man that's deadly. One of the favored catchers for players to use rounds out the order -- Gary Sanchez bringing the reliable OB 8, HR at 16 power card and a +7 arm to keep baserunners honest. Overall, this lineup comes in at 4,390 points, absolutely blowing the previous four teams' lineup totals away!!! There are no easy outs and everyone can absolutely mash the ball for extra bases... I definitely pity opposing pitchers!

Rotation: If this team has a weakness, it's technically the rotation.... and it's got three Tier 2 starters, two of whom bring out a Control 6. CC is the ace, which definitely feels right after he's been a strong member of the Yankees' rotation since 2009. It's awesome seeing him pitching like the true beast that he was again. He's supported by Tanaka, who is essentially the exact same card with one less IP. Both cards charts are from Colby, so another shout out to his blog (mlbshowdowncards.blogspot.com)! The next Tier 2 starter is Severino, who's going to be risky with his Control 3 but has the potential for some really, really dominating performances with that 1-18 out range! The rotation is rounded out by Eovaldi's 2015 card (made by Matthew P), which features another Control 6. While he allows a walk at 15, I think a lot of players are going to be a huge fan of his no doubles. Honestly, as long as the Yankees can get 5 good innings each start (and in the postseason, 3-4 good innings), they're going to be in excellent shape thanks to that bullpen!

Bullpen: The Yankees have the best bullpen yet, and project to have (at worst) the best bullpen in the All Decade American League. Opponents will have to face *FOUR* Tier 1 relievers out of the Yankee pen. That includes the unanimous Hall of Famer, Mariano Rivera. He's supported by David Robertson, with neither dominant reliever surrendering extra bases. Backing them up are TWO IP 2 relievers with high controls and Tier 1 status. Both Betances and Green are high K guys who can go 3 innings. Honestly, if the Yankees make the postseason, watch these horses go to WORK. Rounding out the bullpen is Ottovino, who beat three other Tier 2 studs for the final spot in a fan vote. He's another elite Control 6 arm! This bullpen is a pricey 1,350 points, which is honestly unfathomable, but that just screams Yankees and will be incredibly fun to manage in the All Decade league!

Overall, the Yankees are a definite frontrunner for the AL East crown, AL Pennant, and winning the All Decade World Series! They're continuing the trend of teams blasting into first place for overall point value with an incredible 7,920 point team!!! That's 500 points better than Houston, the current #2 overall team! Honestly, it's fitting that they're this good... the key will be to somehow slow down the power while jumping on the starters while they can, because that bullpen is not going to allow a lot of runs! Here's the current point totals:

1.   Yankees     7920 points
2.   Astros        7420 points
3.   Mariners   6880 points
4.   Marlins     6750 points
5.   Tigers        6710 points