Yankees 20 Game Report

Posted on by Charlie Ricker

Welcome back, everyone. It’s that time again! We’re going to take a look at the New York Yankees in ten game increments instead of half-seasons like a normal 162 game season. Last time out, we covered games one through eleven, this time we will even things out by covering games 12 through 20.

Pitching

Yankees pitching over these nine games was a mixed bag. Gerrit Cole pitched well in Tampa against the Rays, but didn’t make it out of the fifth inning because he got into a lot of deep counts that ran his pitch count up. Five days later, he silenced the Red Sox over seven innings of one-run ball.

James Paxton also had a pair of starts against those same Rays and Red Sox. The Big Maple gave up three runs in both starts, and looked much more like himself. His fastball velocity has been a source of concern as he continues building strength after back surgery over the winter. In his starts this week, his velo continues to trend upward, touching 95 a few times against the Red Sox. Equally as important, his spin-rates are also improving. Paxton’s 7.04 ERA is still unsightly, but he looks more like himself.

Masahiro Tanaka gave a pair of good starts, albeit abbreviated as he continues building his pitch-counts after a late beginning to his season after taking a liner off his head during summer camp. Jordan Montgomery and J.A. Happ contributed serviceable starts, the latter coming last night against Boston after ten days off. Montgomery and Happ both looking much better than their previous outings.

In the bullpen, Zack Britton continued his great work filling in for Aroldis Chapman, converting every save opportunity. Chad Green and Adam Ottavino have been amazing, giving the Yankees nearly flawless work in relief. Jonathan Loaisiga has been dependable, the same can’t be said for Jonathan Holder.

By the way, Aroldis Chapman has been activated ahead of tonight’s series finale against the Red Sox.

Hitting

On the offensive side of the ball, the Yankees scored 54 runs over the last nine games. Gary Sánchez and Gleyber Torres made significant progress after slow starts to the season. Gary homered in three straight games, while Torres has 13 hits in his last 25 at bats.

In the OF, Mike Tauchman and Clint Frazier have been tearing things up this week. Tauchman has shredded Boston, going 6-12 with 4 RBI, while Frazier (recalled for the injured Giancarlo Stanton) has announced his presence with authority by going 8-15 (2 HR, 8 RBI) over four games. Aaron Hicks’s defense has been spot on, and his bat is starting to rebound while taking a lot of walks. Brett Gardner’s struggles continue, but he earns his money as a much as a leader as his on-field work.

Mike Ford and Luke Voit have covered first base with their bats as well as solid defense, and Gio Urshela continues to prove his 2019 wasn’t an outlier.

D.J. LeMahieu (.456 OBP) and Aaron Judge (9 HR, 20 RBI) were tearing the covers off the ball, but both went down to injury this past week. Because 2020 can’t be normal, the Yankees again are dealing with health problems.

With Stanton out, Judge sidelined until Saturday and LeMahieu sidelined for the better part of a month, the Yankees need production from everyone.

Tonight, the Yankees wrap up the series with Boston. Jordan Montgomery gets the start for the Yankees, while Martín Pérez takes the mound for the Sox.

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2019 Yankees Take’em or Trash’em – Starting Pitchers

Posted on by Charlie Ricker

The 2019 season came to a heartbreaking finish for the New York Yankees two days ago, and for their fans it still stings. With the World Series between the Washington Nationals and Houston Astros set to begin Tuesday night, now is a good time to begin a post-mortem assessment of the Bronx Bombers.

This year’s “Take ’em or Trash ’em” will begin with the pitching staff. We will begin with the starters and follow with the bullpen.

Masahiro Tanaka – On the surface, Tanaka’s 11-9 record and 4.45 ERA look very pedestrian, but his numbers were skewed by a pair of starts against the Boston Red Sox where he was absolutely destroyed (14 ER’s over four innings). Take away those two starts and his season ERA was 3.84. Masa stayed healthy all year and was very dependable. If MLB goes back to using the same ball from 2018 and before, look for more strikeouts and overall better results.

TAKE HIM 👍🏽

 

J.A. Happ – (12-8, 4.91 ERA) Happ was signed to a two-year deal last offseason with a vesting option (27 starts or 165 innings) for a possible third year. His 2019 season had more ups and downs than an elevator. Happ gave up 34 home-runs and had ten starts where he gave up four or more runs. He also showed the brilliance of his second half of 2018 after Brian Cashman traded for him. He’s still under contract at 17M for 2020, and the Yankees would have to eat the majority of his salary if they decide to pull the plug and trade him.

TAKE HIM 👍🏽 (and pray he reverts to his 2018 form)

 

Domingo Germán – (18-4, 4.03 ERA) It’s amazing how quickly things can change. Germán was rolling along toward the end of May, pitching to a 9-1 record and an ERA of 2.60. From there, the rail-thin right hander was up and down, until his season was abruptly halted on September 19, when he was placed on administrative-leave after allegations of domestic abuse surfaced.

It remains to be seen where Germán’s career goes from here. If an investigation proves him guilty of domestic abuse or assault, it may be the end of the line for him in Pinstripes.

My take (If he’s guilty of these charges)? TRASH HIM 🚮 

 

James Paxton (15-6, 3.82 ERA) Paxton’s first season in the Bronx was a tale of two halves. The Big Maple pitched with mixed-results for the first four months of the season. In a pair of back to back starts in April, Paxton dominated, fanning 12 in both outings. However, he was consistently inconsistent until the calendar flipped to August. Going into Pax’s August 2 start against Boston, his ERA sat at 4.72 with a record of 5-6. Over his last eleven starts, Paxton put the Yankees on his back, going 10-0 with an ERA of 2.51. His final start against the Astos in the ALCS proved his internal fortitude, where he insisted on staying in the game, despite being well over 100 pitches. I look forward to seeing more of “The Big Maple”.

TAKE HIM 👍🏽🇨🇦

 

Luis Severino (1-1, 1.50 ERA) Luis Severino missed the majority of 2019 with shoulder and lat muscle strains. When he came back, he looked like the Sevy Yankees fans are used to seeing. His three starts in September were abbreviated as he was still getting stretched out. Severino started twice in the postseason and pitched well enough, but it was clear his command wasn’t where he or the Yankees wanted it to be. Now healthy, look for him to have a big impact in 2020.

TAKE HIM 👍🏽

 

Jonathan Loáisiga – (2-2, 4.55 ERA) Loáisiga began the 2019 season as the Yankees’s fifth starter, thanks in part to Luis Severino’s injury and CC Sabathia’s “That’s for you, bitch” suspension. He made a couple starts before Sabathia was activated, but his command was inconsistent and it got him in trouble. He was sent to AAA Scranton before being recalled again for a start in early May. Soon after, Loáisiga was shut down for three months with a right shoulder strain. He came back in mid-August and was used exclusively in relief. Jonathan’s stuff plays better out of the pen, and he may stay healthier if stays in relief.

TAKE HIM 👍🏽 (as a reliever)

 

CC Sabathia (5-8, 4.95 ERA) Unless you have been living under a rock, or you don’t follow baseball and clicked on the link to this article by mistake, you know how much CC Sabathia meant to this team. Yeah, his numbers this year weren’t great and to me they don’t mean much. He DID record his 3,000 strikeout this year and my son and I were lucky enough to win tickets to our first game at Yankee Stadium in April and we got to see CC pitch (and WIN!) against the Kansas City Royals.

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The last image we’ll see of CC pitching for the Yankees was him leaving the field with Stevie Donahue and his shoulder hanging, but he was so much more. Other great pieces from many excellent baseball writers have chronicled Sabathia’s accomplishments on the field and what his leadership has meant. I just want to say, “CC, you’ll be missed”.

TAKE HIM 👍🏽 (even if he’s retiring)

 

In our next installment of Take’em or Trash’em, we’ll assess the Yankees bullpen.

Thanks for reading! 😎