With 32 games left, the Yankees prepare for the Gauntlet

Let's face it: None of this fan crapola really matters, because the Dodgers will win, anyway. 

They've ignored the financial constraints faced by the rest of baseball, and who cares if their billionaire owner receives a stern talking-to, they'll have three rings, and we will spend the rest of our lives hearing about it. Shoot me now. 

It won't matter that they will write checks to Shohei Ohtani into the next millennium. Baseball Reference won't even show an asterisk. What they'll remember is that every winter, the Dodgers shelled out for star after star, while the Yankees counted pennies and finished second in the auctions. The Yankee brain trust achieved its one objective: 

Contend into September. 

So, here we are. Promises Kept. Mission Accomplished. The Yankees have 32 games left to catch Tampa and/or fend off Boston. Both are doable. Thirty-two games, and if we win half, we reach the postseason. Add another Wild Card flag and prepare for the crapshoot. Here's what's coming:

Three home v Houston. (Need two)
Four home v Boston. (Must win at least two)
Three in LA v Angels. (Sweep?)
Three in San Diego. (Need two.)
Three home v Colorado. (Sweep?)
Three home (so to speak) against Mets. (Just survive. One?)
Three in Minnesota. (Sweep?)
Three in Arizona. (Two)
Three home v Tampa. (Need two, if they matter)
Three home v Baltimore. (Sweep? If they matter.)

 We won't go the parenthetical 23-9. Expect a three-game losing streak, somewhere, probably around the Mets. But to miss the playoffs would require an A.I. Gene Mauch, Philadelphian collapse. With Aaron Judge returning, it's not hard to imagine the Yankees going 20-12. That would put hard heat on Tampa, who is already enduring 105-degree days in front of invisible crowds. Fifteen thousand fans meant sellouts at Steinbrenner Field. They look paltry in the Tropicana Dome.   

The Yankees play 10 against Boston, Tampa and the Mets. That's your season, folks. Get ready. For better or worse, this weekend could define the 2026 Yankees. But the Dodgers will win, anyway.