Resurging Yankees Star Threatens AL Rivals With Bold Declaration as Playoff Race Heats Up

The New York Yankees went from a five-game slump to a five-game surge in just a span of weeks. Outscoring their opponents 43-14 in that span, the Yankees have won 12 of their last 16 matchups. Their offense finally erupted in the series finale against the Washington Nationals, recording six homers. The momentum continued on Thursday when the Bombers beat the South Siders, notching a 10-4 win at Rate Field, and moving up the table.

Although the Yanks are now four games behind the Toronto Blue Jays in the division, the club holds a five-game lead in the Wild Card race. However, at this point, neither the five straight wins nor a Wild Card cushion is enough for Jazz Chisholm Jr., who has his eyes right on the division title.

After Thursday’s win, Chisholm Jr. opened up about the Yankees’ end goal. “We want to win the division. We don’t just want to get to a Wild Card spot… Right now, it’s just like, we’re going to go out there and win that, and then we’re going to go and win the World Series,” he said. In fact, Chisholm himself has somewhere been the driving force behind the Yankees’ recent surge.

In the series opener against the White Sox, Cody Bellinger opened the scoring with a two-run blast in the first inning. It was then followed by Chisholm’s solo shot to lead off the second. Speaking of which, he has tallied four home runs and eight RBIs in his last five games.

Well, if the Chisholm and company wants to notch the division title, they’re required to keep the momentum up and high in the upcoming games. The Yankees are now at 40-26 against losing teams but 34-34 against squads at or above .500. They’re right now only a half-game behind Boston and four games behind Toronto.

The second baseman has also recorded a personal milestone this season. He had hit his 26th home run after a two-run shot against the Nationals earlier in the week. This surpasses his previous mark of 24 home runs last year. Currently, the 27-year-old has a career-high 26 homers across only 102 games in his first full season with the Yankees, averaging one in every four. All of these milestones, though, came amidst Chisholm grieving the loss of his loved one.

Chisholm mourning close friend amidst reaching 100 HRs with the Yankees

Last Sunday, just hours after sharing on social media that he had lost a close friend, the Yankees’ second baseman stepped onto the field with emotions running high. Yet, by the end, he had delivered one of the most incredible performances of his career.

Chisholm had hit his 100th career homer in the second inning of the Yankees’ 7-2 win against the Red Sox. The moment sunk in for the 27-year-old who was caught crying in the dugout on television cameras, while his teammates surrounded him to congratulate.

Then, Chisholm added another homer in the eighth inning, serving a stunning two-homer night during one of his most difficult personal moments. “It felt kind of surreal. I lost my best friend yesterday. Today felt like a different type of day, especially with the 100th home run coming today. I’ve been going through a lot in the last 30 hours,” he admitted.

He also added later that he prefers to keep the details of his friend’s passing private. One of the things that is keeping him going is stacking wins. “We definitely needed this one tonight,” he said that night.