Why MLB schedule favors Red Sox over the Yankees in AL East

Both the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees are tied for first place in the American League East. The Yankees have the best winning percentage in the majors, while the Red Sox have the most wins in the majors. But the remaining games for both teams appear to present a bigger challenge to Aaron Boone and the Yankees.

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The Yankees enter play on Monday, June 18, with the best winning percentage in baseball: .687, thanks to their 46-21 record.

The Boston Red Sox enter play on Monday with a record of 49-24, giving them the most wins in the majors.

As a result of their records, the Red Sox and Yankees are tied for first place in the AL East. Both teams are 25 games over .500.

But some simple math tells you the Red Sox have played six more games than the Yankees this season.

According to Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe, that gap, plus the remaining games on the schedule, could work in the favor of the Red Sox:

New York will pick up two games on Monday with a doubleheader against Washington while the Sox enjoy a day off here. But not counting the All-Star break, the Sox have 11 scheduled days off remaining and the Yankees nine.

That may not sound like a big deal, but the Sox can use those days to build in extra rest for their starting pitchers and/or reconfigure the rotation to create more favorable matchups.

In addition, the Sox are done with West Coast games and the Yankees have six in September. The Yankees also have two more doubleheaders scheduled (July 9 at Baltimore and Aug. 25 at Baltimore) and the Sox so far none.

The teams have four series remaining against each other, two in each city. But there are seven games at Fenway Park and six at Yankee Stadium. The last three games of the season are Fenway.

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The stakes are high, too. The winner of the AL East gets a few days off and loser plays the wild-card game. That second-place team could have well over 100 wins and face elimination in one game.

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The Yankees play 1 1/2 games on Monday in Washington against the Nationals. The Red Sox return to action Tuesday when they open a three-game series in Minnesota against the Twins.

Mike Rosenstein may be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @rosenstein73. Find NJ.com on Facebook.