D New York Yankees The hurricane is in the eye.
Aaron Judge and company already face the pressure of an exciting postseason campaign in a year of historic investments for the organization.
They take one 2-1 series lead over the Kansas City Royals in the ALDS on Wednesday night, but are still a long way from advancing to the World Series.
Then Hurricane Milton hit Florida.
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This GOES-16 GeoColor satellite image taken at 12:15 p.m. ET and provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows Hurricane Milton in the Gulf of Mexico off Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, Tuesday, October 8, 2024. (NOAA via AP)
The Yankees own multiple facilities in the state of Florida, and many of them were in the storm's path. This includes their spring training site, George M. Steinbrenner Field. Earlier this week, the organization evacuated all minor league players from its training site and turned it into a shelter for Tampa-based organization employees and their families before the storm was expected to hit.
Several of the team's potential playoff players, including veteran starter Marcus Stroman and up-and-comer Clayton Bitter, were potential call-ups to return to the ALCS lineup, and they were in Tampa on Tuesday to hit the spring training complex before heading to the safe. field. Catch a flight to New York.
“It's an uncertain time,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone told reporters this week. “I just have to pray for the best and hope for safety.”
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General manager Brian Cashman told reporters the team must shut down the instructional league this week and move an alternative rehabilitation and training facility outside the area.
“(We hope) the damage is minimal, but it probably won't be,” Cashman said.
The hurricane has already proven to be strong enough to cause extensive damage to many large buildings. The Yankees' divisional rival was the Tampa Bay Rays The roof is torn The Milton show will air Thursday night at their home stadium, Tropicana Field. This year, however, the Rays did not make the playoffs. Therefore, this will not exclude any MLB postseason games. However, according to reports, the stadium also served as a bomb shelter.
Drone photo shows the Tropicana field dome that was torn apart by Hurricane Milton on October 10, 2024 in St. Petersburg, Florida. (Brian R. Smith/AFP via Getty Images)
The center of the storm hit 60 miles south of Tampa near Sarasota, Florida, and by Wednesday, more than 6.5 million Floridians in the Tampa Bay area were reported to have evacuated.
Milton made landfall on Florida's west-central coast on Wednesday around 8:30 p.m. When the hurricane made landfall, it had maximum winds of 200 km per hour. According to Fox Weather, at least five people died. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis told reporters his state had not confirmed any deaths but did not rule out casualties.
The area is home to several Yankee players. including refereeDJ LeMahieu, Gleyber Torres and Austin Wells.
“When you're in the heat of the playoffs and everything we're playing for, there's always a dose of perspective and you can do it,” Boone said Wednesday before the team's 3-2 victory in Kansas City. “Everyone knows we have a handful of people on site or on site and the timing is uncertain.”
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Judge is a registered owner. In 2018, he purchased a 2,480-square-foot condo in Tampa Bay for $800,000.
Players, including referees, who have had problems will have to put that uncertainty to rest for now. The Yankees captain had to refocus in adverse conditions on Thursday night after a historically bad stretch of postseason play.
After going 0-for-4 with another strikeout Wednesday night, Judge took over the highest strikeout rate in MLB postseason history at 34.3%. He didn't hit a home run or have an RBI in the first three games of the series. He was 1-for-11 with five strikeouts. On Wednesday, his batting average dropped to .203.
The Yankees won't return to New York until Friday at the earliest. They will play 4 games against the Royals on Thursday night and have a chance to win the series.
Jazz Chisholm Jr. (Right) greets Aaron Judge before Game 3 of the New York Yankees division series against the Kansas City Royals on October 9, 2024 at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri. (Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
The Yankees took the series lead with two hard-fought one-point wins in games one and three. However, the team also showed many weaknesses against a team that was less than one-third the Yankees.
Taker pitcher Gerrit Cole and fellow high-end starter Carlos Rodon had poor performances in Games 1 and 2. Starting pitcher Anthony Volpe made a series of costly errors in the first three games that led to the Royals' sweep.
First baseman Anthony Rizzo will also miss the season due to injury, and relievers Oswaldo Cabrera and John Bertie are expected to maintain those positions. Rizzo usually makes the difference when he plays well.
The team will work to overcome all of these issues while also worrying about potential historic hurricane damage. They are just one win away from advancing to the ALCS, which they will host for the first time since 2012 if they beat Kansas City.
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