There is one player the New York Yankees must stop to defeat the Tampa Bay Rays.
The New York Yankees are beginning their Division Series matchup with the Tampa Bay Rays on Saturday night, and even though they are without Aaron Judge, they have a phenomenal chance of advancing to the ALCS.
The Yankees looked tremendous against the Boston Red Sox in the Wild Card Series, outscoring the Red Sox 18-2 and dominating every facet of the game.
Of course, an argument can be made that the Rays are a significantly better team than Boston, so just because New York thumped its most hated rival does not necessarily mean it will parade through the ALDS.
Tampa Bay certainly features a stronger lineup than the Red Sox, and there is one player in particular the Yankees must stop in order to win the series: Yandy Diaz.
To say that Diaz was a Yankee killer during the 2026 campaign would be an understatement.
The 35-year-old slugger slashed .362/.412/.532 with two home runs and 10 RBI in 12 games against New York during the regular season. And over the course of his 10-year big-league career, his 13 homers versus the Yanks are tied for his most against any team.
So, yes: Diaz — who is leading off in Game 1 Saturday evening — is a menace that the Yankees must keep in check.
Obviously, Junior Caminero and Jonathan Aranda represent significant threats, as well, with Caminero having homered 42 times this year and Aranda owning a very solid .274/.358/.434 slash line.
However, Caminero batted just .204 with one long ball against the Yankees in 2026, and Aranda posted a paltry .427 OPS in 12 games.
Diaz is the primary threat New York needs to eliminate, and if it can shut down the two-time All-Star in this series, it would stop Tampa Bay's offense at the point of attack.
The Rays do have some other decent hitters, such as Victor Mesa Jr. and MLB trade deadline addition Liam Hicks, but none of them are quite as scary as Diaz.
Now, the Yankees will have to generate some offense themselves, which has always been tough against Drew Rasmussen. And Tampa Bay finished a very solid seventh in ERA during the 162-game campaign.
But if the Yanks can limit the damage from Diaz, it would put a ton of pressure on Caminero to produce on his own, and that has been tough for him against the pinstripes.
We'll see if the Yankees can execute starting Saturday.
