The New York Yankees need to find a way to start winning games after an embarrassing loss to the Baltimore Orioles on Saturday. With the final score being 6-1, the Yankees lost their second game straight in Baltimore and will face off on Sunday with Masahiro Tanaka on the mound. However, they desperately need one of those sluggers to start picking up his bat, and his name is Gary Sanchez.
Sanchez has been dismal at best all season at the plate, hitting a putrid .130 with seven homers and 15 RBIs this season. His home run totals always manage to overshadow his awful contact rate and ability to get on base.
[wpdiscuz-feedback id=”smcztkhr3q” question=”Should the Yankees BENCH Gary Sanchez? ” opened=”0″]On Saturday, Sanchez struck out all four times as a designated hitter, and manager Aaron Boone stated they simply need more from him.[/wpdiscuz-feedback]“We’ve got to find a way with Gary at this point,’’ Boone said after Saturday’s loss. “He’s just too talented to have some of these at-bats that are happening. Whether it’s subtle mechanical adjustments, we’ve got to do some things to help him get going because he’s too important to our offense.â€
“A night like tonight, we had some lefties out there,†Boone said. “We need him to be a little bit better.â€
There’s no question that Sanchez has the tools and talents to be a phenomenal player in the MLB, and he shows it periodically with spurts of greatness. His issue is consistency and confidence, failing to produce solid performances day-in and day-out on a regular basis. He did earn an All-Star appearance in 2019 for his first-half performance but finished hitting .232.
Again, his home run totals hit every other deficiency, as he launched 34 balls into the stands. Over 100 at-bats this year, he has an embarrassing .237 OBP and .350 slugging percentage. His on-base+slugging percentage is the lowest it’s been in his entire career at .587.
Defensively, he has a .996 fielding percentage with four passed balls. He’s actually playing a bit better than 2019 behind the plate, and Gerrit Cole seems to like him.
The New York Yankees know he has the talent, but where is it?
“He has all the equipment to turn it around,’’ Boone said. “I do believe he understands that. You’ve got to find some subtle ways to find a way right now. [Whether] it’s subtle adjustments with approach, timing and getting started, these things have to start happening.â€
With an abbreviated regular season condensed into 65 days and 60 games, Sanchez hasn’t been given much time to rest. His body is the major issue, with wear and tear playing a major part in his degradation. The Giants have been trying to get Kyle Higashioka and Erik Kratz reps to rest Sanchez, but it has been difficult with such a condensed schedule.
“He’s had some days off here and there,’’ Boone said. “I know he’s working very hard behind the scenes. We’ll talk and we’ll consider everything because we need to all be part of the solution here, working alongside and helping him find what we know is in there.â€
Hopefully, the Yankees can bring the best out of Sanchez in the coming days, as they desperately need his offense to boost a lagging team. They are currently 21-18 on the year and quickly falling out of the playoff picture.