For New York Yankees fans, this will probably not be your favorite article about these two players. Nevertheless, it’s a conversation that should be had. One of the reasons these players are controversial is that they both have so many positives, yet are dogged by constant problems affecting their play.
There is no question that slugger Aaron Judge is the face of the present-day New York Yankees. He has so much going for him. Looking at his 2017 MVP-like season and the fact that early in this shortened season, he already has 9 home runs, you see a great future for this monster of a man.
Many see him as the future Yankee Captain, following in Derek Jeter’s footsteps. The similarities between the two are obvious, they both were the type of player that the Yankees like to be represented by. Both apparently moral, talented, handle the press well, and in general, were Yankee traditional icon. But there are also major differences between the two.
The major difference is that Derek Jeter spent his entire 20-year career with the Yankees, starting out at just 18 years old. Likely, Aaron Judge may not. Judge is just a year and a half away from being 30 years old. Another big difference is that Derek Jeter in his entire career was durable, other than his severe foot injury in 2013, he played in almost every game throughout his career. Judge, in just a few years, has been off the field longer than Jeter in his whole career.
The big issue with Aaron Judge is his ability to play entire seasons without injuring himself. Will, he ever get that big contract that will keep him a Yankee for life? I’m afraid that may not happen. The New York Yankees will be reluctant to put out the big bucks over a long period, for a player that can’t stay healthy. Also, consider his age, his health issues are not likely to get better as he ages, following the norms, it will probably get worse.
His huge muscular body is his enemy. Other than the freak chipped wrist beyond his control, all of his injuries have been due to his size and muscular body. 2017 when he hit 52 home runs, was his only acceptable season, as far as games played. At the same time, that year showed the kind of player he could be. But, to do that, he must stay on the field, and that, he has not been able to do, playing only 112 and 102 games since then. Now he is on the IL again in this short season.
My guess is that the Yankees will definitely want to keep Aaron Judge as a Yankee, but it is doubtful that they will ever offer him a long-term, big-money contract. The Yankees still sore from the Jacoby Ellsbury fiasco will be cautious with Judge.
Gleyber Torres looked like the rising star in the Yankee organization. In 2018, he got 24 home runs and batted .271. In 2019 he went on a tear hitting .278 and with a team-leading 38 home runs. Both of those years were exceptional, however poor fielding dogged him.
Regarding his fielding, New York Yankee fans and brass alike, have said he is young, he will get better. That may be true, but in less than two dozen games this year, he has only gotten worse. Last year he had 20 errors replacing Didi Gregorius who was on the IL. This year he had 5 errors in spring training, 6 in summer camp, and already has 6 this season. That’s 17 errors with the rest of the season to go. Last year he also had two errors in the postseason. What is most problematic, is that Torres’s errors are on routine plays that any shortstop should be able to make.
Another problem with Torres this year is that everyone is wondering where his 2019 bat has gone to. He is batting only .246 with only 1 home run. So he is not contributing behind the plate or in the field. Torres was a better 2nd baseman than he is a shortstop, however, he can’t be moved back to second where the Yankees already have an MVP, DJ LeMahieu.
It’s always a difficult decision to make when a player is not playing well for long stretches. Do you bench him, trade him, or wait it out, hoping he will get better? With the trade deadline less than two weeks away, the Yankees may have to make that difficult decision. Leaving Torres at short will eventually cost the Yankees games.
Should the Yankees, before the trade deadline invest in a real shortstop like Francisco Lindor, who has no errors in spring training, none in summer camp, and none in the regular season. Since 2016 Lindor has had a .286 batting average and 134 home runs. He has been an All-Star every year, and MVP candidate every year, and has been a Silver Slugger twice, and a Gold Glover twice.
Maybe, just maybe, if General Manager Brian Cashman refrains from that big contract extension for Aaron Judge, he can afford to go out and get a star-like shortstop like Lindor. Food for thought. This writer is a lifelong Yankee fan and liking both Judge and Torres, I would dearly like to see them solve their issues. But at the same time, the facts are the facts.