The first half of the season is over in Major League Baseball. Players not included in the All Star Game festivities are resting up, spending time with their families and taking a break in the middle of what is always a grueling season.
It’s also a time for fans to reflect on the first halves of their favorite teams and media to assess teams they cover.
With that, let’s break down the first half of 2017 for the New York Yankees. Today, we will grade position players. Next time, we will grade the pitchers. Let’s begin!
Catchers
Gary Sanchez – (.276, 13 HR, 40 RBI) Gary Sanchez, a 2017 All Star, has been a key part of the Yankees lineup. He’s not slugging to the beat of the ridiculous pace he put on in the 2nd half of 2016, but his .491 slugging percentage is very respectable. His defensive stats are a bit lacking in comparison to last year. Sanchez had three errors and six passed balls in his abbreviated 2016. In 2017, he already has nine errors and seven passed balls. He is throwing out close to the same amount of would-be base-stealers; in 2016, Gary gunned-down 13 of 19, in 2017 he’s nabbed 11 of 19.
Grade: B
Austin Romine – (.231, 2 HR, 17 RBI) Romine is a career backup who does a respectable job behind the plate on the occasions Gary Sanchez needs a breather and also can play 1st base in a pinch.
Grade: C
1st Base
Greg Bird – (.100, 1 HR, 3 RBI) 2017 was supposed to be the year of Greg Bird’s resurgence. Instead, it’s been a mess. He fouled a ball off his right ankle at the end of March, and started the season hoping his ankle would heal as he played. After 19 games, he won’t on the DL and hasn’t played since. Six days ago, a member of Yankees management questioned Bird’s desire to play. Stay tuned.
Grade: Incomplete
Chris Carter – (.201, 8 HR, 26 RBI) Oy. Chris Carter‘s time in the Bronx was a disaster, both with the bat and his glove. Brian Cashman pulled the plug on Carter for good, DFA’ing him for the 2nd (and last) time after the Yankees’ game on July 4th, and releasing him on July 11.
Grade: F (if there was a lower grade, I would give it)
2nd Base
Starlin Castro – (.313, 12 HR, 45 RBI) Castro began the season hitting like a man-possessed and carried an average hovering around the .350 mark three weeks into May, including a 9 game stretch from April 27-May 6 where he was a blistering 18-39 (.461). Since then, his average has slowly trended down until he went on the disabled list after pulling his hamstring on June 26. He’s scheduled to be activated from the DL for tomorrow’s game against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway.
Grade: A-
3rd Base
Chase Headley – (.251, 4 HR, 36 RBI) Ever since Stephen Drew left, it seems Headley has become #YankeesTwitter’s favorite scapegoat, with the exception of Chris Carter in his short stay. In ’16, he cut his errors by more than half (10) compared with 2015 (23 errors). This season he already has eleven. In the batter’s box, Headley is striking out more frequently with each passing year. In ’15, he K’ed in 23% of his at bats. In ’16, it rose to 25%. So far this year, it’s 29%. Before Gleyber Torres went down with Tommy John surgery on his non-throwing elbow, there was talk of him taking over at third by the end of July. Now it seems Headley will continue on as the Yankees as the third baseman through at least the end of the season.
Grade: D+
Shortstop
Didi Gregorius – (.291, 10 HR, 38 RBI) Didi missed the first month of the season while he let his right shoulder heal after straining it in the WBC. Upon his return, he promptly recorded seven hits in his first fifteen at-bats. He never missed a beat. In mid-June, Gregorius’ average stood at .344. He’s tailed off in the last month, but his .291 average is still very good. In the field, Didi’s fielding has vastly improved. In his first two seasons, he recorded 28 errors between the two seasons. In 2017, he has two errors total, and he fields the ball cleanly 99.2% of the time, up from 97.5%. Each year, Didi gets better and better.
Grade: A
Utility Infielder
Ronald Torreyes – (.278, 2 HR, 20 RBI) – “Toe” has become a fan favorite, with his ability to play almost anywhere on the field and produce. Yankees manager Joe Girardi has plugged Torreyes in everywhere on the field except first base, catcher and CF. Torreyes has one error on the season, testimony to him being prepared to play almost anywhere. At bat, Ronnie hits well enough that there isn’t no real drop-off in production if he needs to fill in long-term, as he did when Didi and Starlin Castro were out with injuries.
Grade: B+
Outfielders
Brett Gardner – (.256, 15 HR, 40 RBI) Gardy started slow out of the gate in April, but raised his average gradually through the end of May, where his average stood at .280 on May 24. His average has dropped steadily since, as seems to happen with Gardner as the season wears on. It’s possible the beating he takes with his hard-nosed style of play takes it’s toll on his body, lowering his productivity as the season progresses. Fielding is never a problem with Brett. He has yet to make an error this season.
Grade: B
Jacoby Ellsbury – (.266, 4 HR, 17 RBI) Ellsbury’s season was off to a good start, hitting .281 through May 24, when he crashed into the wall making a running catch in a game against the Royals, sustaining a concussion. After missing a month, Ellsbury’s average dropped 15 points during the eleven games since his return (9 for 42). In the field, he is generally sure-handed and can run down most balls in the gaps.
Grade: B
Aaron Hicks – (.290, 10 HR, 37 RBI) Until his season was rudely disrupted by a strained oblique muscle, Aaron Hicks was busy making Yankees fans forget his forgettable 2016. In 200 at-bats, he has already out-produced most of his numbers from last season. His OBP is over 100 points higher and he’s taking as many walks as strikeouts, while his walk to K ratio was 1:2 in 2016. In the outfield, he can play anywhere with no drop-off in defense. Hopefully Hicks will return around the middle of August.
Grade: A
Aaron Judge – (.329, 30 HR, 66 RBI) Hey, this guy is pretty good! Needless to say, Aaron has opened eyes everywhere in the world of baseball with his mammoth home-runs and ability to hit every baseball with authority. Don’t overlook his defense, though. He’s made several great plays in the field this season, including the diving catch against the Blue Jays.
Grade: A+
Designated Hitter
Matt Holliday – (.262, 15 HR, 47 RBI) Holliday’s first season as the Yankees’ DH has been solid. Before going down with an illness later diagnosed as Epstein-Barr virus, known to cause Mononucleosis, he was producing as well as ever. His days in the field are most likely done, but Holliday’s bat still has plenty of pop. Along with Starlin Castro, plans are to have Holliday return for Friday’s game in Boston.
Grade: B
In the next entry, we will take a look at Yankees pitchers and their grades for the first half of the 2017 season.
See ya next time!
Charlie
The Titanium Spine 