There’s no getting around your win-loss record; it’s what determines the standings, who makes the playoffs, indeed how far you have to go to catch the team(s) you may be chasing. The Yankees, at time of writing, are 60-54, 6.5 games back of the Blue Jays, 3.5 behind the Red Sox, and just half a game up on the Rangers for the last Wild Card spot. Your record is your record.

Of course we also know that there’s more to a team than just the record. Run differential is cited all the time as a possible reason why one team or another might be better or worse than their place in the standings. Right now for example, the Yankees sport the best run differential in the American League at +87, seven better than the Tigers and 51 ahead of the division-leading Blue Jays (albeit only two up on Boston).

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