The New York Yankees entering a season with high expectations is nothing new. The franchise has began virtually every season for the past 27 years with a reasonable (or better) chance of playing postseason games. Yet despite reaching the postseason in 22 of the past 26 seasons, there have been Yankee teams that have underperformed initially, and in doing so, put themselves in the unenviable position of needing a late comeback in order to get October baseball on the schedule.
As you know, the 2021 Yankees are one of those teams. Although the final chapters of the story have yet to be written, this group has rallied to the extent that the prospect of October baseball in the Bronx is no longer a pipe dream.