The Yankees introduced their vaunted new group to a new audience, and the hits kept on coming.
New York began a stretch of 32 straight games against opponents outside the American League East this past week, and the team's bullpen -- bolstered by the trio of Dellin Betances, Andrew Miller and Aroldis Chapman that has been nicknamed "No Runs DMC" -- helped it win five of seven games against the Angels and Tigers.
"No Runs DMC" lived up to their billing, tossing 7 2/3 scoreless innings last week while allowing just three hits and pairing 13 strikeouts with no walks. Chapman and Miller combined to pick up three saves in a performance worthy of the Bullpen of the Week Award presented by The Hartford.
As part of the MLB Prevailing Moments program, each Monday throughout the 2016 season, MLB.com is honoring the "Bullpen of the Week presented by The Hartford." An industry-wide panel of MLB experts, including legendary stats guru Bill James, constructed a metric based on James' widely renowned game-score formula, to provide a weekly measurement of team-bullpen performance.
:: Bullpen of the Week winners ::
Here's how the Bullpen Rating System is compiled for each week. For reference, a weekly score of 100 is considered outstanding:
• Add 1.5 points for each out recorded
• Add 1.5 points for each strikeout
• Add 5 points for a save
• Subtract 2 points for each hit allowed
• Subtract 4 points for each earned run allowed
• Subtract 2 points for each unearned run allowed
• Subtract 1 point for each walk
• Subtract 5 points for a blown save
The Yankees' bullpen led Major League Baseball with 87.5 points after giving up just four earned runs on 15 hits over 18 innings. They also struck out 25 hitters without issuing a single walk en route to capturing their second Bullpen of the Week Award this season.
New York's bullpen displayed an ability to withstand adversity and succeed despite unexpected circumstances. Here's a look at their biggest obstacle:
The unexpected: The visiting Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim came out red-hot against Yankees starter Nathan Eovaldi on Wednesday, scoring in four of the first five innings and slugging two home runs. After 5 1/3 innings of work, Eovaldi hit the showers down 5-4. Betances, Miller and Chapman had each been used heavily in the previous three games, meaning manager Joe Girardi had to look for other options to close out the final 3 2/3 innings.
How they prevailed: A trio of middle-inning relievers flipped the switch on the Angels' hot offense, allowing just one earned run and striking out eight batters the rest of the way. That was plenty enough for the Yankees' offense to respond, as New York rallied to a 12-6 win. Right-hander Anthony Swarzak, who pitched 1 2/3 scoreless frames immediately following Eovaldi's exit, picked up his first Major League win since Aug. 28, 2014.
The Yankees finished just one point ahead of second-place Detroit in the BRS standings last week. Tigers closer Francisco Rodriguez earned a pair of saves in his team's series win over New York this past weekend, and is now tied for the AL lead with 19 saves for the year.