The case for the Yankees to win it all

Recently, the Yankees played a role that was foreign to them in the past: a likable and entertaining underdog! From Aaron Judge's powerful rise to prominence to the colorful personalities of guys like Didi Gregorius and the since-departed Todd Frazier's "Thumbs Down" movement, there was a lot to like about the mostly homegrown Yankees and their entertaining style of play that propelled them to the ALCS.

Whatever underdog status the Yankees had went right out of the window when they pulled off the biggest trade of the offseason by convincing Giancarlo Stanton to waive his no-trade clause in order to leave the Marlins for the Bronx. That brief underdog period was fun, but it appears that the Yankees are trying to return to their status as the Evil Empire.

Why the Yankees could win it all in 2018:

More power to you. For starters, they already had a powerful lineup to begin with. Judge had an explosive rookie season during which he broke out for 52 home runs, and eye-popping advanced statistics backed up the fact that he could hit the ball really hard. Gary Sanchez established himself as an elite power hitter as well, launching 33 home runs in 122 games. Adding Giancarlo Stanton and his frightening power to that lineup will make the Yankees an incredibly entertaining team to watch when the top of the lineup is due up and ready to put a charge into the baseball.

Pitch perfect. While the big boppers in the Bronx will be the most entertaining part of this season, you really shouldn't sleep on New York's elite pitching staff. Masahiro Tanaka has been solid for four seasons now and should have a fifth year of quality in 2018. CC Sabathia has been doing it for much longer, and he's still a reliable rock in the rotation. That's not where it ends. The Yankees will have the services of Sonny Gray from the jump, along with another year of improvement from Luis Severino, fresh off his first career All-Star appearance.

Plenty of relief. If the starters don't do well, they can rest easy knowing that the bullpen will once again be more than capable of picking up the slack. Aroldis Chapman is still an elite closer, and his bullpen mates in the form of Dellin Betances, David Robertson and Tommy Kahnle, among others, form perhaps the most formidable stable of relievers in the game. High-leverage situations in the later stages of games shouldn't be a problem for the Yankees.

Why they won't win it all in 2018:

Everything's bigger in Texas. New York should be the favorites to win the AL East this season and make another deep run in the postseason. However, even with the improvements there's still a possibility that this year could end the same way last year did for the Yanks: losing to the Houston Astros in the ALCS. They're better equipped to compete with Houston this year, but Houston also improved and still has a better offense from top to bottom. The Yankees may have loud bats, but their lineup gets considerably weaker as you go down the list, which lacks in comparison to the Astros not having a single hole in their order.

While I personally wouldn't pick the Yankees to get past the Astros, you never know what could happen in a potential ALCS rematch. The Yankees have the tools to win it all, and if new manager Aaron Boone can come up with a recipe to get past the reigning champs, then it's very possible that all of those poor eight-year-old Yankee fans who have never seen their favorite baseball team win the World Series could finally see it happen in 2018. Plus, with the organizational depth and general youth of this team, it could be coming soon anyways. Either way, the Evil Empire is very close to being back in full power, something that should terrify the other 29 teams in the game.