The New York Yankees failed to secure a top-four seed in the American League, and as a result, they will play the Wild Card series against the Cleveland Indians at Progressive Field, away from their fortress: Yankee Stadium.
Why do we say fortress? Because the Bombers finished the season 33-27, but 22 of those victories (roughly 67 percent, or two thirds) came at Yankee Stadium. At home, they had a 22-9 mark. The club performed admirably in familiar surroundings.
When playing on the road, the team had a mediocre 11-18 register, which is especially worrisome considering that they won’t play any more games at Yankee Stadium for the remainder of the postseason as MLB adopted a different schedule and format for the 2020 season.