The 2004 New York Yankees season was the 102nd season for the team. The Yankees opened the season by playing two games against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in Japan on March 30, 2004. The team finished with a record of 101-61, finishing 3 games ahead of the Boston Red Sox in the AL East. The 2004 season was the Yankees third straight season of 100+ wins, the first such instance in franchise history. New York was managed by Joe Torre. In the playoffs, the Yankees defeated the Minnesota Twins, 3 games to 1, in the ALDS, before losing to the wild card Boston Red Sox, 4 games to 3, in the ALCS. The 2004 Yankees are notable as the only team in MLB history to lose a 7-game playoff series after taking a 3 games to none lead. This was the fourth straight year in which the Yankees lost to the eventual World Series champions in the postseason. Only the Los Angeles Dodgers (2016–19) have duplicated the same feat.
Offseason
October 27, 2003: Luis Sojo was released by the New York Yankees. December 16, 2003: Nick Johnson was traded by the New York Yankees with Randy Choate and Juan Rivera to the Montreal Expos for Javier Vázquez. December 23, 2003: Buddy Carlyle was signed as a free agent with the New York Yankees. January 6, 2004: Kenny Lofton signed as a free agent with the New York Yankees. February 5, 2004: Mike Lamb was traded by the Texas Rangers to the New York Yankees for Jose Garcia (minors). February 16, 2004: The New York Yankees sent Alfonso Soriano and a player to be named later were sent to the Texas Rangers in exchange for Alex Rodriguez. The New York Yankees sent Joaquin Arias (April 23, 2004) to the Texas Rangers to complete the trade. March 25, 2004: Mike Lamb was traded by the New York Yankees to the Houston Astros for Juan DeLeon (minors). Signed Gary Sheffield
Regular season
Season Summary
July
Derek Jeter dives into stands chasing and catching a pop up in the 12th inning of a 3 to 3 game against the Boston Red Sox, the play was later named the dive.
August
On August 31 the Yankees had their worst loss in history by run differential, losing 22–0 to the Cleveland Indians.
September
On September 30 the Yankees clinched their division.
Season standings
Record vs. opponents
Notable transactions
June 7, 2004: Phil Hughes was drafted by the New York Yankees in the 1st round (23rd pick) of the 2004 amateur draft. Player signed June 16, 2004. July 22, 2004: Donzell McDonald was signed as a free agent with the New York Yankees. July 31, 2004: Esteban Loaiza was traded by the Chicago White Sox to the New York Yankees for José Contreras and cash. August 3, 2004: John Olerud was signed as a free agent with the New York Yankees. August 17, 2004: Shane Spencer signed as a free agent with the New York Yankees.
Roster
Game log
|- bgcolor="ffbbbb" | 1 || March 30 || @ Devil Rays || 3–8 || Zambrano (1–0) || Mussina (0–1) || — || Tokyo Dome || 55,000 || 0–1 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 2 || March 31 || @ Devil Rays || 12–1 || Brown (1–0) || González (0–1) || — || Tokyo Dome || 55,000 || 1–1