A look at the five teams that have been a thorn in the Yankees side the last 10 years.
We’re all suffering right now. Whether we’re sick, bored or missing normal life, everyone is going through some pain during the coronavirus pandemic. In the last 10 years, there has been plenty of pain for the New York Yankees and a handful of opposing ball clubs are to blame.
Here are the five teams’ that have caused the most pain to the Yankees since 2010.
5. Detroit Tigers
While the Detroit Tigers are in the midst of a major rebuild, they were perhaps the Yankees’ most significant problem in the early half of the past decade.
Detroit ended the Yankees season in both 2011 and 2012, including sweeping the Yankees in the 2012 ALCS.
Overall, the Tigers won 32 out of 70 games against the Yankees during the decade and scored 300 runs, which ranked fourth among non-American League East foes.
While the Tigers have declined, they still did enough damage to the Bombers to earn a spot on this list.
4. Oakland A’s
Of all American League teams’, only the Oakland A’s (37-37) have a .500 record or better against the Yankees since 2010.
While the Yankees won the lone playoff battle between the two teams during the decade, defeating Oakland has been a tall order for the Bombers.
At the Oakland Coliseum, the Yankees went just 18-22 on the decade and suffered series sweeps in 2012, 2017 and 2019.
3. Tampa Bay Rays
While the Rays and Yankees have never met in the postseason, Tampa has done plenty of damage against New York in the regular season.
Tampa posted a 90-97 record against New York last decade as they’ve handed the Yankees more losses than any team in baseball during that span.
Many of the Yankees losses have come at Tropicana Field as their 40-53 road record against the Rays is their second-worst in a visiting ballpark since 2010 (Toronto Blue Jays).
Once the 2020 season begins, the Yankees and Rays will likely be the lone two contenders for the AL East title.
2. Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox had far more success than the New York Yankees this past decade.
Boston took home a pair of world series titles (2013 and 2018) and had both a CY Young Award winner (Rick Porcello 2016) and AL MVP (Mookie Betts 2018).
Head to head against New York, Boston held their own going 88-99. In 2018, the Red Sox took down a 100 win Yankee team in just four games in the ALDS, causing both pain and embarrassment to Yankee fans earning them a prime spot on this list.
1. Houston Astros
While relevant for half the decade, the Houston Astros still managed to cause the Yankees more pain than other team since 2010.
The Astros ended the Yankees season three times during the decade as they shutout the Bombers in the 2015 AL Wildcard game, won a seven-game ALCS in 2017 and six-game ALCS in 2019.
To make matters worse, the Astros were caught cheating during their 2017 playoff run that saw them knock off the Yankees and may have been again in 2019.
Cheating or not, the Yankees’ heartache caused by the Astros won’t be going away until they can find a way to get revenge on the diamond.