New York Yankees: Mike Tauchman’s star is on the rise
The New York Yankees have had many different players wear the pinstripes this season due to various injuries. The latest star, Mike Tauchman, is taking advantage of his opportunity.
The Major League Baseball season is full of many injuries, and players shift up and down between the minor league system. The New York Yankees have made the most of their bad injury situations with the breakout performances from replacement players.
Mike Tauchman is the latest Yankees role player to make a tremendous leap in production due to the extra playing time from injuries. The former Colorado Rockie star has finally become comfortable in pinstripes after struggling to find his footing earlier in the season. The next round of outfielder injuries that included Brett Gardner and Aaron Hicks being placed on the IL has given new life to his Yankees career.
In his first 18 games since the All-Star break, Tauchman contributed six home runs and 19 RBI. He’s adequately filled some of the holes in the lineup as starters are beginning to drop every other game. The defensive plays have also helped him stand out and allowed the Yankees to keep Clint Frazier in the minors to continue working in that area.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone had nothing but positive things to say about Tauchman’s production as of late while doing his regular pregame presser this past Tuesday night.
"“Our guys were high on him. I don’t know necessarily if he was undervalued, but he was a guy who Colorado had a little bit of a logjam. He was somebody we feel like had big league upside,” Boone said before Tuesday’s game. “He had a ton of success in the minor leagues. I am just talking offensively speaking. Now you factor in that he is a really good defensive outfielder (and) can play all three spots. Athletic, he can run. So I think we saw a lot of upside, he could be a guy who could impact us at the big league level and he certainly has.”"
Money Tauchs. pic.twitter.com/ctDe1ONqHI
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) August 7, 2019
Tauchman’s fantastic catch against the Baltimore Orioles has further cemented his legacy as a reliable player on the team. The concern moving forward will be his status heading into the postseason. The Yankees will be expecting several outfielders to return to the lineup and it will be a free for all to secure a spot in October.
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Boone will have his work cut out for him trying to figure out which player deserves a chance in the postseason.