MLB Standings 2018: Yankees Pass Red Sox For Best Record, Keep Beating Baseball's Best Teams

The New York Yankees are the hottest team in baseball, winning 17 of their last 18 games. The team defeated the Boston Red Sox Wednesday night to move into first place in the AL East, as well as the top of the overall 2018 MLB standings.

New York (26-10) has the league’s best record after beating Boston in two straight games at Yankee Stadium. The Red Sox (25-11) had been MLB’s top team for just about the entire season, but the Yankees have surpassed them by playing nearly perfect baseball over the last three weeks.

Whether it’s been great performances by their starting pitching or late-game comebacks, the Yankees seem to find a different way to win each night. New York leads the AL in runs scored and ranks second in ERA.

Perhaps the most impressive part of their winning streak is that it’s come against the American League’s best teams. New York has won eight games in a row, as well as each of their last six series. Five of those series have come against the teams that rank just below the Yankees in the AL standings.

A seven-game West Coast trip saw the Yankees win six games against the Houston Astros (24-15) and Los Angeles Angels (22-14). The defending champion Astros sit atop the AL West, just a half-game ahead of Los Angeles.

The Toronto Blue Jays (20-17) were the first victims of the Yankees during their recent stretch, and the Cleveland Indians (18-18) were swept by New York last weekend. Toronto trails L.A. by 2.5 games for the AL’s second wild-card spot, and Cleveland is in first place as the only AL Central team that isn’t below .500.

Four of MLB’s best teams reside in the AL. The Arizona Diamondbacks (24-12) are the only National League team with a winning percentage better than .600 on May 10. Arizona has a 3.5-game lead in the NL West over the second-place Colorado Rockies (21-16).

The Atlanta Braves (21-14) are in first place in the NL East, and the St. Louis Cardinals (20-14) sit atop the NL Central.