Can New York baseball finally end the city’s wait for a championship?
Can New York baseball finally end the city’s wait for a championship?
By Lachlan Wellington October 14, 2024 19:12
The City of New York is in the midst of one of the longest sports droughts one city has ever faced. Although New York City FC did win the 2021 Major League Soccer title, the last New York Championship for one of the traditional major sports is the Giants Super Bowl victory back in 2012.
Meaning that by including the four major league sports (baseball, basketball, football, hockey) and across the eight teams: the New York Yankees, New York Mets in baseball, the New York Rangers and New York Islanders in hockey, the New York Knicks and the Brooklyn Nets in basketball and the New York Giants and New York Jets in football; the New York sports drought is over 12 years long and over 4,500 days. This does not even include the New Jersey Devils who have not won the Stanley Cup since 2003.
The worst thing for New York is how big sports are in the Big Apple and that despite being one of the financial capitals of the world, they trail only four cities in time without a championship- three of which have never won a trophy and New York is by far the biggest city on this top 10 list. Only Minneapolis, with a 33-year wait for a major sports title plus Buffalo, Charlotte and Nashville who have never won major league sports trophies are waiting longer than New York. Another nail in the coffin for New York is that only Minneapolis has teams in all four leagues and none of these cities has two teams in any major sport.
Despite the long wait, fans will have quiet optimism going into the Championship series of the 2024 baseball season. This is because New York does not just have one team left- they have two.
Both the Mets and Yankees are in the final four and Championship series for the first time since 2000 when both teams made the World Series with the Yankees winning their third ring in a row. A repeat this season would guarantee New York ends the wait for a major league sports trophy.
While the Mets have gone on a rampage to not only make the postseason but also the National League Championship series they have their work cut out to beat the mighty Los Angeles Dodgers. However, the Mets have found a way this season so who is to say they cannot do it again?
The Yankees certainly face the easier (not easy) run to the World Series as they play the Cleveland Guardians in the American League Championship series. No disrespect to Cleveland but the Dodgers are simply the more formidable foe and that is not saying they will not run the Yankees at least close.
Whatever the outcome, New York has more than a fighting chance of a Major League Championship this season in baseball with two teams left and only four remaining the odds are 50% currently that New York ends the wait. No matter the outcome this has been one heck of a season for both teams- with each being just eight games away from ending New York’s hurt and wait.