Yankees, Mets Are MLB’s First Teams to 20 Wins

Both of New York’s ballclubs are enjoying hot starts to the 2022 season.

New York baseball is thriving at the moment.

The Yankees became the first American League team to win 20 games on Monday, joining their crosstown rivals as the only MLB clubs to reach that benchmark. The Mets became the sport’s first team to reach 20 victories on Sunday when they beat the Phillies, 6-1.

The Yankees’ 20th win came on the back of a near no-hit effort from Nestor Cortes. The contorting southpaw baffled the Rangers Monday, allowing just one hit and zero runs over 7.1 innings. Cortes, who took his no-hit bid into the eighth inning, walked four and struck out 11 in the Yankees’ 1-0 win over Texas.

The Yankees are now 20-8 and have the highest winning percentage (.714) in the American League. Like the Mets, who are 20-10, they lead their division. The Dodgers, however, own baseball’s best record at 19-7 (.731).

As of Monday afternoon, the Yankees hold a 2.5-game lead in the AL East. The Rays (18-11) are in second place, while the third place Blue Jays (17-13) visit the Bronx for a three-game series on Tuesday.

The Yankees are 4-3 against Toronto already this season. They took two out of three from the Jays from May 2-4.

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Gary Phillips
GARY PHILLIPS

A graduate of Seton Hall, Gary Phillips has written and/or edited for The Athletic, The New York Times, Sporting News, USA Today Sports’ Jets Wire, Bleacher Report and Yankees Magazine, among others. He can be reached at garyhphillips@outlook.com.