The New York Yankees came away last night with a spit of their doubleheader with the Philadelphia Phillies. The Phillies won the first game 11-7 and the Yankees took the second game 3-1. There are some important take-a-ways from the games.
First and foremost two Yankees pitchers failed miserably. J.A. Happ looked just as bad in his second start of the season as he did in Baltimore. Last night he gave up four runs while walking six Phillies in just three innings. The Yankees have to find a way to get Happ on track, he is too important in the rotation that is already missing Luis Severino (Tommy John surgery) and Domingo German (suspension). At this point, one has to wonder how many more times in this short season manager Aaron Boone will put Happ out there when other quality hands are available such as Clarke Schmidt and Micheal King.
Also in the first game reliever, Nick Nelson allowed his own damage by giving up six runs in 1.2 innings. After the game, he was optioned to Scranton Wilkes/Barre along with Thairo Estrada. In a surprise move, the also optioned outfielder Miguel Andujar to the alternate site. Andujar really hasn’t found his place with the team this season. The 2018 hitting star also hasn’t found his place behind the plate either. So far in the season, he is batting only .071.
Catcher Gary Sanchez also seems to be lost behind the plate as well, his powerful bat is missing and he is hitting .074. In 27 plate appearances, he has only two hits with 16 strikeouts. Right now it seems like backup catcher Kyle Higasioka might be the better option at the backstop.
Chad Green continues to show why he is an elite reliever for the New York Yankees. Last night he pitched 2.1 scoreless innings while striking out two. So far this season he has pitched eight innings for the Yankees against the Nationals, Orioles, Red Sox, and the Phillies, pitching in all of those games with an ERA of 0.00.
So far the storyline of the season is slugger Aaron Judge who has a batting average of .310. He looks like he could eclipse his 2017 performance when he game in second in the MPV voting. So far he has hit seven home runs in his last eight games, one of them yesterday in the game one loss. His base discipline is better, striking out only 13 times. In a normal season, his homers would equate to 21 homers in his first 33 games, that’s a rate better than 2017 when he hit 52 long balls.
The last take-a-way from the games is that the New York Yankees bullpen continues to shine in many ways. The Yankees have won both of the bullpen games, one against the World Champion Nationals and one last night against the Phillies. Last night five relievers went seven innings giving up just one run. Another highlight is that Zack Britton, filling in for Aroldis Chapman has saved all five of his games including game two last night. Britton’s ability to close is one of the reasons Brian Cashman went after him.