O.C., California- Staffeln » After losing to the Red Sox 15-7

Thursday in Boston http://www.philliesfanproshop.com/authentic-dave-cash-jersey , the Yankees are 6.5 games back in the American League East. Their 68-39 record makes them a near-lock for a playoff berth, but they'd obviously prefer to win the division outright and avoid the crucible of the Wild Card Game.They also need to measure themselves against a Boston squad that, along with the Houston Astros and Cleveland Indians, will provide stiff October competition in the top-heavy Junior Circuit.Severino's struggles aren't the Yankees' only concern. Key offensive cogs Aaron Judge (wrist) and Gary Sanchez (groin) are on the disabled list.Meanwhile, left-hander J.A. Happ鈥攚hom New York acquired from the Toronto Blue Jays at the trade deadline to shore up its rotations on the DL with hand, foot and mouth disease, per Miller.New York already lost left-hander Jordan Montgomery to Tommy John surgery. Veteran CC Sabathia is showing signs of wearing down with a 5.48 July ERA. Masahiro Tanaka is back and pitching well after missing time with a pair of strained hamstrings, but Sonny Gray owns a 5.56 ERA, was demoted to the bullpen and is embroiled in controversy.To put it simply: The Yankees need Severino to pitch like a Cy Young Award contender if they want to make a World Series run. And Friday's start against their archrivals would be an excellent time to begin.According to FanGraphs, Severino's velocity hasn't taken a significant dive. There is no talk of injury. Maybe his recent issues are an anomalous blip."He's still throwing hard, nothing looks fatigued with the arm or anything like that," a rival talent evaluator said, per Newsday's Erik Boland.On the other hand, despite his live arm and considerable talent Steve Carlton Jersey , Severino posted a 5.83 ERA in 71 MLB innings as recently as 2016. He put up a 2.98 ERA with 230 strikeouts in a career-high 193.1 frames in 2017 and has made two straight All-Star teams.Still, it's fair to wonder if his ascent toward unambiguous No. 1 status has hit a snag. And, if so, whether it might derail New York's lofty postseason aspirations.Mike Stobe/Getty ImagesSure, the Yankees have ample young talent in the pipeline. Their window of contention is opening, not closing. They're also the Yankees, with 27 titles under their belts and the perennial expectation to win another one.The fact that they're locked in a divisional battle with the Red Sox only ratchets up the urgency.After contests against Boston on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, the Yankees will enter a soft portion of their schedule in which they'll play 24 of 27 games against teams that currently possess losing records. It's a chance to gain ground in the standings, but that shot will be diminished if Severino isn't pitching up to his potential.Even with a deep bullpen augmented by the deadline addition of Zach Britton and an offense that hopes to have Judge and Sanchez healthy for the playoffs, Severino may be the Yankees' key come October. You don'tneed a rotation-fronting horse to ride to a Commissioner's Trophy, but it sure helps."They all go through [struggles] in their careers," an unnamed scout said of Severino, per Boland. "[Chris] Sale http://www.philliesfanproshop.com/authentic-aaron-nola-jersey , [Clayton] Kershaw, [Corey] Kluber. All the good ones do. To me, just a bump in the road."There are a lot of folks in the Bronx and beyond crossing their fingers and toes, hoping that's true.All statistics current as of Thursday and courtesy of Baseball Reference and FanGraphs. ATLANTA (AP) The Atlanta Braves acquired outfielder Adam Duvall from the Cincinnati Reds on Monday night to bolster their lineup, especially against left-handers, for a postseason push.Duvall was targeted for a platoon role, starting against left-handers. The move will cut into Ender Inciarte’s playing time.For the Reds, the trade opens the way for full-time roles for corner outfielders Jesse Winker and Scott Schebler while adding three young players.The Braves sent right-handers Lucas Sims and Matt Wisler and outfielder Preston Tucker to Cincinnati. All three spent time in Atlanta this season but were with Triple-A Gwinnett at the time of the trade.The trade was announced following the Braves’ 5-3 win over Miami on Monday night.Duvall, 29, has hit 15 home runs with 61 RBIs but is hitting only .205 this season.Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos said the Braves plan to start Duvall in left field against left-handers, with rookie Ronald Acuna Jr. moving to center and Inciarte, a Gold Glove Award-winning center fielder, moving to the bench.”We’ve been a good team against left-handers but we can get better and this is a guy who’s under control going forward,” Anthopoulos said.Anthopoulos said Duvall and Inciarte have been told of the outfield plan.”I talked to Ender tonight and he was great Juan Samuel Jersey ,” Anthopoulos said. ”His response was `I just want to get to the playoffs.’ He’s awesome.”Duvall hit 64 homers over the previous two seasons, including 31 in 2017. He was an NL All-Star in 2016.Duvall was also a finalist for the Gold Glove Award in each of the last two seasons.The Braves are only a half-game behind Philadelphia in the race for the NL East. The Reds are last in the NL Central despite a recent surge.”We’re pleased with the performance we’ve seen in the middle of the summer,” said Reds president of baseball operations Dick Williams. ”We’ve been trying to keep an eye on next year but this year is also important. … I think when we looked at next year we saw Winker and Schebler really emerging as corner outfielders that are going to have a lot of success in the big leagues.”Wisler, 25, had a 5.40 ERA in seven games, including three starts, with Atlanta this season. Sims, 24, had a 7.84 ERA in six relief appearances. Tucker, 28, hit .256 with four homers and 22 RBI in 62 games. Tucker was optioned to Gwinnett on Saturday.—