The New York Yankees still have a slim chance to win the American League East, and their series against the Tampa Bay Rays next week will be very important.
The Yankees entered Thursday trailing the Rays by 4 1/2 games, and a Rays win against the Athletics on Thursday would make that deficit five games. The Yankees will face the Arizona Diamondbacks over the weekend, while the Rays will face the Boston Red Sox. After an off day on Monday for both teams, they will face off in a four-game series.
The Rays' magic number is seven entering play on Thursday, so a win on Thursday followed by a sweep of the Red Sox and a Diamondbacks sweep of the Yankees would end the division race. However, that is an unlikely scenario. The Rays are still in the driver's seat, and the Yankees will need to sweep them to even have a chance, essentially. However, they are giving themselves a chance by lining up their best arms.
According to the New York Post's Greg Joyce, the Yankees are staying on turn for the Diamondbacks, meaning the Yankees will have Max Fried, Carlos Rodón, Gerrit Cole and Cam Schlittler to start against the Rays.
The Yankees know that to have any chance of winning the division, they need to sweep the Rays. Assuming the Rays beat the A's on Thursday, if the Yankees don't lose any ground to the Rays over the weekend, a sweep will cut the Rays' division lead down to one game. A sweep would also give the Yankees the edge in the season series, thus giving them the tiebreaker.
If that happens, the Rays will go into a series against the Philadelphia Phillies with a one-game lead. Meanwhile, the Yankees will host the Baltimore Orioles in their final series. The Phillies could be fighting for seeding, while the Orioles could be fighting to get into the postseason. The Orioles could also be eliminated by then.
The Yankees' odds are slim, but they are not out of the division race just yet.