The New York Yankees are set to host the Baltimore Orioles tonight for the first of a three-game set that could end with the teams tied atop the American League East.
After building up a 10 game lead in the division in mid-July, the Yankees have gone 18-21 and sit only 3 games ahead of the Orioles.
"It's baseball. You look forward to the series (against Baltimore)," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said, according to the Associated Press and Stats LLC. "You got a chance to put more space between you and them."
The team has dealt with a high amount of injuries this season, including two trips to the DL for ace pitcher CC Sabathia and the lengthy absence of slugger Alex Rodriguez. Other injuries have included first baseman Mark Teixeira, relief pitcher David Robertson, as well as season-ending injuries for closer Mariano Rivera and outfielder Brett Gardner.
While the Yankees have been struggling, the Orioles have been white hot. The team has won 20 of its last 29 games and has also won 13 straight one-run games.
New York has also found itself in trouble when behind late in games. The Yankees are winless in 47 games that they are trailing after eight innings.
Baltimore may be the most surprising team in the major leagues this year. The Orioles haven't finished over .500 in the regular season or made the postseason since 1997. If the team can win three games against the Yankees this weekend, they will leave the Bronx with a share of the division lead.
While the Orioles would love to be in first place, they are also concentrated on ending a decade of futility.
"Trust me, this group is going to have fun with it," said Orioles manager Buck Showalter about the pennant race, according to the Associated Press and Stats LLC.
In the first game of the series the Yankees will start pitcher Hiroki Kuroda, who has had a great season since signing as a free agent from the Los Angeles Dodgers. He has thrown three complete games and has a sub-3.00 earned run average. Kuroda has been stellar while pitching in the Bronx, winning three of his last five starts at home.
The Yankees have relied heavily this season on shortstop Derek Jeter, who leads all of baseball with 176 hits. The 38-year-old Yankee captain is hitting .321 on the year and has hit .438 against Baltimore.
Although the Yankees have won six of the 11 games they played against Baltimore this year, the Orioles have won four of six games in the Bronx.
New York hasn't dropped a season series against the Orioles in over ten years, going 13-0-1 during that time.
Miguel Gonzalez will take the mound for the Orioles on Friday and has had success versus the Yankees this season, winning his last start against the team in late July.
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