Yankees 2021 Season Thread

[notin]

We are a game and a half back of the Rays and Jays, who will ultimately be the real competition this year. The Sox have had a nice start for sure, but they’ve had everything go right for the most part and we all know it’s not gonna last. If we were 5 games back of the Jays, I’d be a little more concerned, but they’re struggling too

 

You do realize that the team hit the hardest by injuries right now in the AL East is the Red Sox, who are without Sale...

[moonslav59]

Not a single player had a hot start. Through 14 games, Judge and Lemahieu are right near their career OPS. Everyone else is WAY below. The only player who is hot is our backup catcher. That’s it. The offense will eventually hit, and when it does we will win.

 

I only have 2 major qualms from the first 14 games. One is Torres and his overall horrendousness. If his bat doesn’t get back to 2019 levels, then we need to pull him from the lineup and at least ensure good D. The other is Kluber. I like his movement, but his stuff is down and his location has been off. He’s not a build type project, he’s a veteran who needs to be effective or move him along. Other than that, I expect Hicks and Stanton to hit. I do think Frazier will hit. Gio should hit. Judge will eventually get white hot as will Lemahieu. Just need to not fall too far behind while we wait

 

In all seriousness, what happens when the injuries start up, and you know they will?

 

Your non pitching depth has already been grossly exposed.

 

All your studs have played in 12-13 games (Frazier 10). No starter is hurt, except Voit, but Bruce and Odor have combined for 61 PAs, which is more than any one player on the team.

 

Why don't Frazier and Tauchman, and even Higashioke and Wade have more than 61 PAs combined? Some of these guys were the players Yankee fans were bragging about all winter long- in terms of depth.

 

Yes, Gardner has 31 PAs, too, but he's not the one killing you. His .687 OPS is actually among the team leaders.

 

Players with 30+ PAs:

.899 Judge

.806 LeMahieu

.777 Sanchez

.687 Gardner

.648 Urshela

(all the rest are under .600)

 

[dgalehouse]

There is always a lot of publicity and hype that comes with playing in New York. Some guys become overrated as a result. Aaron Hicks is a good example. He is 31 years old. A career .234 hitter , with a career OPS of .730. Are the Yankees really counting on big things from him ? A lot of the Yank's overhyped prospects are in the same situation. You hear names thrown around so much that you start thinking they are something special. In reality , they are not.

[jacksonianmarch]

You can’t win when you’ve only got two guys hitting. You just can’t.

[moonslav59]

You can’t win when you’ve only got two guys hitting. You just can’t.

 

But, with "a strong and deep bench", you'd think someone could have taken up the slack, instead of relying on Bruce & Odor.

[jacksonianmarch]

Agreed. They just decided against using them. Infuriating

[jacksonianmarch]

And what are you gonna do? The team is built to rely on their power and the middle of their order. The middle of the order has a .150 BA and an OPS under .550

[Bellhorn04]

Cash has the balls to use Jeffrey Springs as the closer, and he mows them down. That's how bad the Yankees' offense is right now.

[Thunder]

Cash has the balls to use Jeffrey Springs as the closer, and he mows them down. That's how bad the Yankees' offense is right now.

 

That's what I call a power move

[Thunder]

Who wants to bet that Acuna can singlehandedly have more RBIs than the Yankees in one of the games this week?

[bkzwhitestrican]

Offense is trash currently. Last in MLB in slugging %. Any other problems the team has right now are insignificant compared to this. It will correct itself eventually but it sure is ugly right now.

[notin]

Cash has the balls to use Jeffrey Springs as the closer, and he mows them down. That's how bad the Yankees' offense is right now.

 

I was going to point out he only used Springs for the worst part of the order, but the entire Yankees lineup is the worst part of the order...

[notin]

There is always a lot of publicity and hype that comes with playing in New York. Some guys become overrated as a result. Aaron Hicks is a good example. He is 31 years old. A career .234 hitter , with a career OPS of .730. Are the Yankees really counting on big things from him ? A lot of the Yank's overhyped prospects are in the same situation. You hear names thrown around so much that you start thinking they are something special. In reality , they are not.

 

Hicks is a switch-hitting Jackie Bradley. Offense is inconsistent and a bonus, and not why he starts...

[mvp 78]

Jay Bruce announces retirement.

[mvp 78]

https://blogs.fangraphs.com/the-yankees-have-been-bronx-bummers-so-far/

 

The Yankees hit bottom this past weekend, not once but multiple times. Projected to be the AL’s best team, they’re instead the worst thus far, with a 5–10 record and a five-game losing streak. On Friday, they played so badly against the Rays that Yankee Stadium fans started hurling baseballs back onto the field, and afterwards, manager Aaron Boone dressed his players down in a closed-door meeting. In terms of outcomes, the stern lecture didn’t help, as the Yankees lost again on Saturday and Sunday, making it the first time they’ve been swept this year.

 

It was an embarrassing display that plays into stereotypes of the fan base’s sense of entitlement.

 

The sweep marked their seventh straight series loss to the Rays dating back to September 24–25, 2019, a stretch that includes last year’s Division Series; the Yankees are 5–17 against the Rays in that span.

 

So what’s ailing the Yankees, who at the outset of the season were projected for an AL-best 95.4 wins? First and foremost, they’re in the midst of a power outage and are scoring just 3.67 runs per game, second-to-last in the AL. Their .346 slugging percentage is in a virtual tie for the major league’s lowest, and while some of that is a function of their .210 batting average (the AL’s second-lowest, one point ahead of Cleveland), their .136 isolated power is 13th, and their 16 homers are 10th. For a team that ranked second last year in slugging (.447) and homers (94) and first in ISO (.200), that’s a nasty surprise.

 

Then there’s the defense, which is 11th in the AL in defensive efficiency (.684, 10 points below league average) and last in Defensive Runs Saved (-7). The infield in particular is a mess right now. Torres is already shaky at shortstop, with -14 DRS in 1,096.1 innings since the start of 2019. With Bruce’s inadequate production at first base, LeMahieu has been playing there lately while Odor plays second — a significant step backwards based upon their respective bodies of work even before considering the latter’s .125/.192/.250 line in 26 PA.

[5GoldGlovesOF,75]

https://blogs.fangraphs.com/the-yankees-have-been-bronx-bummers-so-far/

 

The Yankees hit bottom this past weekend, not once but multiple times. Projected to be the AL’s best team, they’re instead the worst thus far, with a 5–10 record and a five-game losing streak. On Friday, they played so badly against the Rays that Yankee Stadium fans started hurling baseballs back onto the field, and afterwards, manager Aaron Boone dressed his players down in a closed-door meeting. In terms of outcomes, the stern lecture didn’t help, as the Yankees lost again on Saturday and Sunday, making it the first time they’ve been swept this year.

 

It was an embarrassing display that plays into stereotypes of the fan base’s sense of entitlement.

 

The sweep marked their seventh straight series loss to the Rays dating back to September 24–25, 2019, a stretch that includes last year’s Division Series; the Yankees are 5–17 against the Rays in that span.

 

So what’s ailing the Yankees, who at the outset of the season were projected for an AL-best 95.4 wins? First and foremost, they’re in the midst of a power outage and are scoring just 3.67 runs per game, second-to-last in the AL. Their .346 slugging percentage is in a virtual tie for the major league’s lowest, and while some of that is a function of their .210 batting average (the AL’s second-lowest, one point ahead of Cleveland), their .136 isolated power is 13th, and their 16 homers are 10th. For a team that ranked second last year in slugging (.447) and homers (94) and first in ISO (.200), that’s a nasty surprise.

 

Then there’s the defense, which is 11th in the AL in defensive efficiency (.684, 10 points below league average) and last in Defensive Runs Saved (-7). The infield in particular is a mess right now. Torres is already shaky at shortstop, with -14 DRS in 1,096.1 innings since the start of 2019. With Bruce’s inadequate production at first base, LeMahieu has been playing there lately while Odor plays second — a significant step backwards based upon their respective bodies of work even before considering the latter’s .125/.192/.250 line in 26 PA.

 

Moving DJ to first means leaving Odor at second, ensuring they have the worst DP combo in the majors. The only way it ever made sense to move DJ -- a good second baseman -- was so they could hide Gleybar there.

 

This may be the only way to salvage the entire season: go out and trade some of that elite farm system for one of next year's elite free agent shortstops... asap.

[moonslav59]

Even at this early point of the season, it should be easy to acquire a decent 1Bman from somewhere.

 

I think Logan Morrison is still a FA, too.

[dgalehouse]

If old George were still alive , batting coach Marcus Thames would be on the unemployment line with Boone soon to follow. The son seems either not to care as much or is a lot more tolerant of failure.

[Bellhorn04]

If old George were still alive , batting coach Marcus Thames would be on the unemployment line with Boone soon to follow. The son seems either not to care as much or is a lot more tolerant of failure.

 

Or to put in nicer terms, he has a lot more patience.

[bkzwhitestrican]

It's still too early to start making drastic changes. The main problem is the offense, and there's too many good hitters on the team for them to continue batting .210 collectively with like a .340 slugging %. If somehow this continues into May though, then I think Boone and Thames should be on the hot seat.

[Bellhorn04]

The Yankee bats are sure to turn around to a degree, but there are a lot of intrinsic issues with the team - a questionably one-dimensional approach on offense, and some really bad defense and fundamentals. Guys playing out of their best position. And they don't have depth like they did in recent years. The bizarre trade for Odor showed that.

[Thunder]

The Yankee bats are sure to turn around to a degree, but there are a lot of intrinsic issues with the team - a questionably one-dimensional approach on offense, and some really bad defense and fundamentals. Guys playing out of their best position. And they don't have depth like they did in recent years. The bizarre trade for Odor showed that.

 

Correct. In the heat of the summer, the bats could be sizzling, but they're screwed if they play in a pitcher's park with the wind blowing in. They need to learn how to manufacture runs so they can still score when balls aren't leaving the yard

[moonslav59]

Many "good teams" are seeing their weaknesses exposed, early this season.

 

They were always there, even when some were projecting close to 90 losses for the Sox.

 

Sure, we have many weaknesses, and we will hit our hard times, at some point(s), but look around.

 

We are not alone.

[notin]

If old George were still alive , batting coach Marcus Thames would be on the unemployment line with Boone soon to follow. The son seems either not to care as much or is a lot more tolerant of failure.

 

Well, even George would not hold Marcus Thames accountable for Jordan Montgomery (4.24), Corey Kluber (6.10), Jameson Taillon (7.56) and Domingo German (9.0). Also, Nick Nelson (10.80).

 

The Yankee starting pitchers should form a band called Gerrit and the Atrocities...

[Thunder]

Too bad Larry Rothschild isn't around anymore. He was always a fun guy to blame for everything...

[bkzwhitestrican]

The starters outside of Cole have been bad, but overall the pitching has been good enough to win many games. Yankees still have a 3.60 team ERA (8th best in MLB) and have held their opponent to 4 runs or less in 10 out of 15 games. The offense just isn't getting it done.

[5GoldGlovesOF,75]

The starters outside of Cole have been bad, but overall the pitching has been good enough to win many games. Yankees still have a 3.60 team ERA (8th best in MLB) and have held their opponent to 4 runs or less in 10 out of 15 games. The offense just isn't getting it done.

 

ERA doesn't translate to wins if your team leads the league in unearned runs.

 

AL Unearned Runs Allowed: 10 -- NY, TB, TOR, CHI, SEA; 9 -- MIN; 8 -- KC, LA; 7 (league avg) -- BOS, TEX; 6 -- CLEV; 5 -- BAL; 4 -- DET; 2 -- OAK, HOU

[Bellhorn04]

ERA doesn't translate to wins if your team leads the league in unearned runs.

 

AL Unearned Runs Allowed: 10 -- NY, TB, TOR, CHI, SEA; 9 -- MIN; 8 -- KC, LA; 7 (league avg) -- BOS, TEX; 6 -- CLEV; 5 -- BAL; 4 -- DET; 2 -- OAK, HOU

 

Right.

 

Yankees ERA 3.60 Runs Allowed 4.27

Red Sox ERA 3.70 Runs Allowed 4.00

[5GoldGlovesOF,75]

Right.

 

Yankees ERA 3.60 Runs Allowed 4.27

Red Sox ERA 3.70 Runs Allowed 4.00

 

No matter the sample size, stats can always show where you stand. When I tell my wife she's the best wife I've had this century, it is irrefutable.

[bkzwhitestrican]

Right, but what I'm saying is that though pitching and defense have been problems, the main problem is the offense. The Yankees averaged 5.39 runs/gm last year and 5.77 the season before, with largely the same offensive pieces. So far this year it's 3.67. No one expected the Yankees rotation or defense to be top of the league, but the expectation was that the offense would score so many runs that those deficiencies would be covered up.