Welcome back to Yankees “Take ’em or Trash ’em”. Last time out, we covered New York Yankees catchers, this time we will go around the horn, covering the infielders. So let’s get started!
1st Base
Luke Voit (.322, 15 HR, 36 RBI) – The 27 year old Voit was acquired from the St. Louis Cardinals on July 29 along with international bonus slot money in exchange for pitchers Giovanny Gallegos and Chasen Shreve. All Voit did in his first two months as a Yankee was set the league on fire, averaging a hit every three at bats (.333), slugging 14 home runs in his 39 games he played, essentially kicking Greg Bird out of his starting job. He won’t bring back memories of Don Mattingly in the field, but he won’t kill the team with errors, either. Based off his performance in August and September, Voit should get first crack at the starting job in 2019.
Take him.
Greg Bird (.199, 11 HR, 38 RBI) – Bird has been snake-bit over his short career, being perpetually injured. He began 2018 on the shelf yet again, having surgery on his troublesome right ankle late in spring training to remove a calcium deposit that caused pain. He returned in late May, finishing the month with five hits (including a home run and a pair of doubles) in 17 at-bats. Always a streaky hitter, he went cold in June with a .184 average and followed that up with a much better July (.265 avg.). After that, the wheels fell off for Greg — with ten hits in 82 AB’s (.122) in August. By this time, he lost his starting job to Luke Voit and started only three games in September. Bird is still young, celebrating his 26th birthday on November 9th. Eventually the Yankees are going to have to make a decision whether he fits into their plans going forward because right now, Luke Voit is the better option.
Trash him (trade him while there still is value).
2nd Base
Gleyber Torres (.271, 24 HR, 77 RBI) – The young rookie from Venezuela made his much anticipated debut in the third week of April, and played so well he never was sent back to Triple-A Scranton. After going hitless in his first game in Pinstripes, Torres had at least one hit or more in 28 of his next 30 games. The 21 year old carried an average over .300 for a large part of the season, but cooled in the second half. He still finished at .271 and hammered 24 home-runs. His defense still needs some work, committing 17 errors (12 at 2B, 5 at SS) but will get better with experience as the game slows down for him. He’s expected to fill in at shortstop while Didi Gregorius recovers from Tommy John surgery.
Take him (Duh)
Neil Walker (.219, 11 HR, 46 RBI) – Walker was signed to a one year deal for four million during Spring training to provide depth at all infield spots, and he did that. The 33 year old Pittsburgh native had a very up and down season with the bat, but did provide some needed offense in July (.345 average) and August (6 HR’s) when required to play regularly. Walker is a handy guy to keep around due to his ability to play anywhere in the infield and being a switch hitter. If he’s willing to sign another dollar friendly deal, by all means do it. He’s not an everyday player, but can play decent ball a few days a week.
Take him.
Shortstop
Didi Gregorius (.268, 27 HR, 86 RBI) – Sir Didi, a Yankees fan-favorite continued to improve his game in 2018. His power output and run production was similar to his 2017 numbers. Gregorius hit 27 homers and drove in 86 runs, he also stole ten bases. His averaged dropped 21 points, but he raised his on base percentage twenty points by doubling his walk total (48 BB’s from 25 in ’17). In the field, Didi had six errors — down from nine the previous season. The Yankees are going to have to make do without Sir Didi for some time, as he injured his throwing elbow during the ALDS against the Boston Red Sox. He had successful Tommy John Surgery and will likely be out until after the All Star break. Gleyber Torres could possibly spend time filling in at short while Didi recovers.
Take him.
Ronald Torreyes (.280, 0 HR, 7 RBI) – Torreyes is probably glad this season is behind him. He was having a typical “Toe-type” of season, hitting .339 on May 20, when he was optioned to Triple-A Scranton when Greg Bird returned from ankle surgery. It was not an easy decision and manager Aaron Boone said it was “not deserved”, that it didn’t go over well in the clubhouse. A month later, Toe went on the inactive list as he returned to New York City to tend to his wife, who was ill and undergoing tests (thankfully his wife Anarelys is ok). He was inactive for almost a month before returning to action on July 23. Torreyes got back into playing shape, returning to the Yankees by mid-August. In his second game back, Toe had a three hits in a win against Toronto. He rarely played the rest of the way, with four hits in last six weeks of the season. Torreyes is still only 26 and can play anywhere in the infield, except 1st base. He also has some experience in the outfield. I think he’s ideal to keep around, especially since Didi’s going to miss at least half of 2019. He can get his hits, even if he’s only playing a few times a week.
Take him.
3rd Base
Miguel Andujar (.297, 27 HR, 92 RBI) – Okay. When a 23 year old rookie player hits 27 homers, drives in almost 100 runs AND hovers around .300 all season, you wouldn’t think there would be a need to justify the guy’s existence on the team for the foreseeable future. But here we are, with a lot of Yankees Twitter calling for Brian Cashman to sign free agent Manny Machado. Yes, there have been times when Andujar has struggled in the field but he only made 15 errors in 2018. Even Gleyber Torres had two more errors and played in 19 less games than Miggy! With each passing year, Miguel has worked on improving his glove-work and raised his fielding percentage. But he’s a natural hitter and an extra base hit machine, for a tiny fraction of what Machado would cost! I don’t think Cashman would disrupt the progress Andujar is making in the field and at the plate by going in a different direction. He’s smarter than that. Oh, did I mention that Andujar put up these numbers as a 23 year old rookie?
Just for reference, below are fielding stats for all 3rd basemen in MLB. I checked the E column (errors) to see who made the most. You’ll notice that Andujar had 15, tied for 4th most in the majors with a couple others including long time standout Evan Longoria.
TAKE HIM (and stop the nonsense Machado talk) 🤫
PS. A couple years before Derek Jeter joined the Yankees, he made 56 errors at short. I think he turned out ok.
That covers the Yankees infield. Please join us next time as we decide whether to take or trash the outfielders. See ya then! 👋🏼
The Titanium Spine 