New York Yankees: Not enough at-bats available for Bombers bats
By Ed Stein
Left Field
Center fielder Aaron Hicks was hurt in spring training. That forced left fielder Brett Gardner to move back over to center. No problem because the Yankees had Giancarlo Stanton who went back out in the field from his usual DH spot. Soon after, Stanton was injured too.
That forced the recalls of Mike Tauchman and Tyler Wade to hold down the position. They did the job fairly adequately until Hicks return on May 15. Now Gardner is back in left and it’s his job for the time being. That might change depending on some other position shuffles.
Center Field
Hicks is back. He’s off to a slow start power wise since his return three weeks ago, but not too far from where he should be. The past two seasons Hicks has a combined .470 slugging percentage and .838 OPS, this year those numbers are .397 and .726 respectively. As he gets more comfortable his extra-base hit totals should rise accordingly.
Right Field
Here is where some dominoes may start to fall. Aaron Judge is the New York Yankees everyday right fielder when he’s healthy, no question. Unfortunately, the star slugger has been out since April 20 with a left oblique strain. That has got to be a painful injury for a player that generates as much Torque as Judge does with his swing. He was due to return around now but isn’t quite ready yet.
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In the meantime, Clint Frazier was recalled from Scranton to fill Judge’s spot in the lineup. “Red Thunder” was on a hitting tear from his recall through May 7. After that date, Frazier has hit .235 with five home runs in 85 at-bats. His slump is deepening as of late. Since May 28 Frazier has gone 4-for-23 (.176) with only one long ball. Worse, his fielding has been atrocious and he’s had some, to put it lightly, “communication issues” with the media.
Boone hopes to have Judge back by the time NYY plays Boston in London on June 29. Should Frazier regain his composure and play as he did upon his arrival this season, he’ll be tough to send back down. At that level, he can’t ride the pine either. Does Boone move him to left for added power in the lineup? Maybe. More likely Frazier will find himself as part of a trade package for a starting pitcher.
Camron Maybin has done a nice job as the fourth outfielder since Cashman picked him up from Cleveland at the end of April. He should continue in that role even when Judge and Stanton return.
Designated Hitter
The Yankees had so few major league ready hitters when the injuries hit, they had to trade for veteran Kendrys Morales in mid-May. The man who broke his leg jumping on home plate after hitting a walk-off home run for the Angels in 2010 appears to be done. His .161 batting average isn’t enough to get him a decent ticket at Yankee Stadium, let alone a seat on the bench.
Stanton will take his job back when he returns. There is really no reason to put him in the field due to his injury issues. The New York Yankees aren’t going to pay him $26M in 2019 to be on the bench. That doesn’t mean catcher Gary Sanchez might not get a day off from behind the plate and DH once in a while. The same goes for Voit.
Five drafted players the Knicks failed to keep in NYC. dark. Next
A month from now, the Yankees lineup will be very different with the returns of Gregarius, Judge and Stanton. Will it be enough to K.O. second place Tampa from the division race?