The New York Yankees have a terrific lineup filled with timely and powerful hitters. To start the season the big bats in the lineup. Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Judge led the Yankees to an 8-1 lead on the season. Aaron Judge hit nine homers on pace to beat his 2017 record. Stanton was much more disciplined at the plate and had two homers and a .300 batting average.
Then disaster reminiscent of the 2019 injury season happened. In 2019, 30 Yankees players went on the IL in 39 separate instances. Not to blow it out of proportion, when Stanton and Judge both went on the IL within a week of each other, it seemed like it was beginning to be Deja Vu all over again. Then on Saturday DJ LeMahieu injured his thumb and was added to the 10 day IL. All of these injuries just 25 days into the season.
After that quick start, the New York Yankees hit a hard patch going 2-5. But that would not last as the “next man up” mentality kicked in, and the bench started to carry the team. This is exactly what happened last year when the Yankees won 103 games. Mike Tauchman, Mike Ford, and Clint Frazier have been a blessing for the Yankees. In games that they have played, during the last seven games, the Yankees have gone 6-2, mostly due to them stepping up their game to allow the Yankees to win.
Mike Tauchman: Although the “T-Man” is not a home run hitter, his ability to get on base nearly matches that of DJ LeMahieu, and has led to much of the small ball Yankee success. Tauchman in 42 at-bats has a batting average of .357, 15 hits with 9 runs driven in, and while fast on the bases he has 4 stolen bases. Add to that a very respectable .889 OPS.
Mike Ford: Ford has a lesser record. The thing with Ford, is that he always seems to rise to the occasion when it’s really important. His batting average is only .194 with 7 hits. But two of those hits were home runs contributing to Yankees wins. Looking at the record reveals that although his batting average is way below Tauchman’s, he has more RBI’s, indicating timely contributions.
Clint Frazier: Clint wasn’t brought up from Scranton until Judge was put on the IL. Since then, he has been on a tear. In 15 at-bats, he has two homers and a batting average of .553, 8 RBI’s, and an insane 1.696 OPS. Also, the masked “Red Thunder” has shown an improved maturity and defense in the outfield. In Saturday’s game he made an amazing running diving catch.
In that “next man up” mold, in the absence of Aroldis Chapman, who was out after testing positive for the coronavirus, Zack Britton stepped up to fill the void. And fill the void he did, saving all 8 of his chances with a tiny ERA of 1.09. I also, should not go without mentioning the contributions of reliever Chad Green. Green has been called into 9 games, pitching 12.2 innings. He has a 2-0 record, and a minuscule .071 ERA with only 1 earned run.
Hopefully, in the coming week, things will turn around in favor of the Yankees, injury-wise. Closer Aroldis is scheduled to return today, moving Zack Britton, and strengthening the bullpen by going back to his setup job. Later this week hopefully slugger Aaron Judge will be back in the lineup along with DJ LeMahieu follwing him. The Yankees won’t be as lucky with Stanton, who is expected to be out another few weeks.
The New York Yankees are proving once again that their depth of talented players greatly contributes to their success.
“We feel that we have a group of guys — and a depth of guys — that the expectations don’t change,†Yankees manager Aaron Boone said.