O No
Welp, this was a less than an ideal way to start the season. In fact, dropping two of three to the consensus worst team in baseball at home is a horrendous way to kick off a season in which expectations start and end at the top.
Nevertheless, the Yankees stand where they stand, and it’s not like they’re the only club underperforming out of the gate. Boston opened up dropping two of three to the rebuilding Mariners, the Astros fells in three of four to the Rays, and the Indians came up on the losing end of their opening series with the Twins. None of this absolves the Yankees of under-performing, but it does give them some cushion to work with moving forward.
There was a ton of bad to reflect on from opening weekend, but there was also some good, so let’s break it down ahead of the team’s mid-week dance with the Detroit Tigers.
BAD
Hitting with RISP — There could have been so many reasons to exclaim, “oh look, the 2018 Yankees all over again”, but this one stings the most. 33 runners left on base in 3 games for the Bombers this weekend, and may I remind you, against one of the least talented/experienced clubs in the game. 25 of those runners were left on during the final two games, with a whopping 14 runners left on base in the series finale. I’m beside myself over this problem. The Yankees keep the clubhouse very tight, so I don’t know exactly how Boone tries to change this theme day-to-day, but something has to flip if the Yankees want to make the run we’re hoping for.
Team Defense — From problems we were hoping were behind us, to problems you could see coming from a mile away, the Yankees were charged with Errors in all three games of this series, including 3 Errors in the middle game against the O’s. There’s nothing that more clearly defines a team beating themselves than defensive errors, and regardless of the capacity in which they were committed, the consistency of their presence is the the real issue to be concerned with. Players in particular who had poor weekends in the field: Gary Sanchez (throwing the ball, oddly enough), Luke Voit, Greg Bird (first base is looking sweet), and Miguel Andújar (what else is new). I’m sure there were some nerves opening the season, but these are professionals who have all played in bigger moments, so errors are problems that become intolerable fast.
Brett Gardner — We all know Gardy has seen his best days, and that definitely doesn’t mean he shouldn’t have a role on this ball club, but continuing to slot him in the leadoff spot is just as bad as the Giants continuing to start Eli Manning. Who should replace him? We know that it’ll be Hicks whenever he’s able to return (which could be a while), but that shouldn’t keep the Yankees from making a change. If there’s even a hint of confidence that Gleyber Torres could be ready for that role, I’d make this series against Detroit the time to try it out. A safer bet could be DJ LeMahieu, who’s got some experience batting leadoff, and has been one of the few bright spots thus far.
Giancarlo Stanton — Happy not April fools! I quite literally received the news of him hitting the 10-Day IL with a bicep strain in the middle of writing out this post. What an opening week. Stanton struggled to keep the ball in play this weekend, but he still does a lot more for this team being in the lineup, than not. We’ll have to wait for more news, but all we can hope for is that the rest now preserves him moving forward, and that Clint Frazier is ready.
Now let’s be optimistic.
GOOD
DJ LeMahieu — You could make the argument that DJLM was the Yanks’ most impressive player in the first three games, and he didn’t even crack the opening day lineup. We all woke up Saturday, unsure of exactly what to expect of a guy playing third base for the first time in a long time, but he dazzled (even though he was charged with an error). He also racked up 4 Hits in the two games he played, including reaching all four times on Sunday with 2 BB to go with his 2-for-2 day. Out of the gate, LeMahieu has been everything the Yankees could have expected, and is poised to find a nice groove between third, second, and first.
James Paxton — Continuing the trend of newcomers with strong performances is James Paxton. Although he came away with the loss after his debut in Yankee Stadium, Pax allowed just 1 ER over 5.2 IP, with 5 K’s to boot. His pace on the mound was ideal, and his commitment to getting (and staying) ahead of hitters was staunch. To summarize, Paxton looked like the antithesis to Sonny Gray, who continuing his struggles in Cincinnati, while wrapped in the bosom of his college pitching coach. Funny how that works. Anyways, It’ll be exciting to watch Paxton follow up his first outing — hopefully the team shows up for it.
Adam Ottavino — Not that it’s been a hot take in anyway, but I’ve been singing the praises of Adam Ottavino, and he delivered opening weekend. This guy is gross, and is going to be a major weapon for the Yankees this season. He mentioned that he woke up at home to go to work this weekend, which was funny to him, but was music to my ears. Not only is this guy reaching the apex of his career, but now he’s home and living the dream. He’s going to take the ball whenever the Yankees need him to this season, and I predict that this weekend was just a sneak preview of an amazing campaign to come.
It’s funny how all of these new Yankees played well this weekend. Imagine if the Yankees signed, perhaps, one more big-time player? Maybe an outfielder? What could have been…
It could have been worse, but the result of this weekend was about as poor as anyone could have imagined. Still, I trust in the professionalism of this organization and these players to put the opening weekend woes behind them. Losing Giancarlo Stanton this morning, quite literally, adds injury to insult, but maybe it will inspire Aaron Judge to put his words from Saturday into action. Backs against the wall, and it’s barely April.
Buckle up.
