New York Yankees: In or Out?

I’ve looked at the Cleveland Indians and the Baltimore Orioles already, but here’s another bubble team: The New York Yankees. Just like the Indians and Orioles, the Yanks are trying to find a wild card spot, as they are only four games back from Oakland and Tampa Bay, compared to seven and a half games back from the Red Sox. 

 

You know the Yankees. They are known for their big value players that hopefully can bring them some wins, and then win a World Series. That’s always been their motto, and it’s worked out plenty. They have won the most World Series with an absurd 27 titles. In the late 90’s/early 2000’s, they were unbeatable, winning four World Series crowns in the span of five years, and going to the 2001 World Series, but losing to the D-Backs in seven games. They also went in 2003, but lost to the Marlins. 

They wouldn’t return until 2009, when they beat the Phillies. Notable members on that ’09 team were Jorge Posada, Mark Texiera, Robinson Cano, Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, Johnny Damon, Melky Cabrera, CC Sabathia, Mo Rivera, and the World Series MVP, Hideki Matsui. Most of those players are now either retired, old, or not even on the Yanks anymore. Cano, Jeter, A-Rod, CC, and Rivera are still on the team. Cano is now 30, Jeter 39, A-Rod 37, CC 32, and Rivera 43. 

That was four years ago. That’s this team’s problem. They are really old. They still have those guys, and now have even more old players, such as Ichiro, Kevin Youkillis, Alfonso Soriano, and Hiroki Kuroda. They have some prospects, but nothing so special to bring them to a pennant. They also have lots of injuries, including Youkillis, Texiera, Jeter (who’s day to day now), and of course they have Rodriguez appealing a suspension.

I’m pushing too much into the future. So what’s my decision? Is it even a question? They’re out of the playoffs. I kind of feel like a jerk for not having the Yanks, Orioles, or Indians in, but I just like the chances of the Athletics and Rays.

Picking up Alfonso Soriano was actually a great move, even though he was old. Not only is he a former Yankee in his Rookie years, but he brings power that New York doesn’t have at all. They rank 27^th in slugging percentage, with a .379 percentage. They also only have a .247 batting average (22nd in MLB) and a .311 OBP (19^th). Robinson Cano leads most of the way in offensive categories, but before Soriano came, they had nothing much at all. Soriano had more home runs in July than the entire team. 

Pitching wise, they are in the middle of the pack. CC Sabathia is really struggling, while Hiroki Kuroda is doing well (but remember that he is old too). Ivan Nova is a bright spot, as he just threw his first career shutout against the Orioles. 

If they get into the playoffs, I’ll be dam surprised. There is no chance that they can win the division, unless they win all eighteen games against their division. That’s right, they still have eighteen games against their division only. Watch them move up in the rankings by the end of next week, as they are in a home stand against Baltimore, Chicago (White Sox), and Boston. If they can pick up wins against the Red Sox, that’ll be big. However, they go on a road trip against Baltimore, Boston, and Toronto right afterwards. 

I’m much more worried about the future of this team. Yes, they can buy players from other teams, but who can they give up? Robinson Cano is a free agent at the end of the season, and it doesn’t look like they’ll resign him. They’ll have to replace Mariano Rivera (which I’ll talk about later), and will probably have to oust Sabathia for a new ace. 

This team has the potential to completely fall in the next few years, unless they focus much more on prospects. The organization does a great job with the team, so I’m not too worried, but it’ll be quite a ride for New York.

Email me at statsbuddy42@gmail.com for any questions/comment/concerns.

Who's Hot/Who's Not 8 30 13

Happy Friday! Friday leads to my personal favorite on the blog: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not. Make sure you add these players to your beat the streak, and watch out for pitchers who are on fire. Let’s take a look at my eight who are hot.

Brandon Moss: Moss had an incredible game two nights ago, hitting two homers and driving in a career-high six runs as Oakland beat Detroit, 14 to 4 (also watch out for the A’s in general, they are hot). Last night, Moss didn’t go lights out like before, but still hit a two run homer in a loss to the Tigers. This week he’s hit five homers, driven in twelve, and has batted .400. It’s moved his batting average to .252, and he now has 25 homers. 

 

Will Venable: Venable has been killing it, having six multi-hit games in his last ten. This week he’s batted .519 with 3 homers and 7 RBI’s. He is really finding his rhythm, and now has a .281 average with  20 homers and 49 RBI’s. He is on an 8 game winning streak, too. 

 

Jason Castro: Castro is another player killing it right now, batting .526 in his last seven games, including hitting four out of the park. The catcher has a .282 batting average now, with 18 homers and 53 RBI’s. He is my pick for Beat the Streak today.

 

Paul Goldschmidt: I read an article today that had Goldschmidt in third place for the NL MVP race, behind Clayton Kershaw and Andrew McCutchen. If he continues hitting like this now, he might move up on the list. Goldschmidt has not hit a homer in his last seven games, but has batted .357 and is averaging a walk per game. Apparently Steve Berthiaume, the broadcaster for the Diamondbacks, accidently called Goldschmidt “Paul Golds**t” on air. That’s embarrassing.

 
Zack Greinke: Greinke almost went the distance in his last outing, going eight and two thirds and giving up five hits while striking out nine. In his last three starts, he’s gone 3-0 with a 1.13 ERA, and is now 13-3 with a 2.86 ERA. Wow.

 

Ricky Nolasco: Another Dodger on the list, Nolasco is finally starting to feel his groove after getting traded. In his last three starts he’s 2-0 with a 0.82 ERA, striking out 22 while only walking two. He now is 11-9 with a 3.26 ERA.

 

Jose Fernandez: The hottest pitcher since the all-star break, Jose Fernandez is starting to become the best Rookie to watch in the Major Leagues. You might not know who he is because he’s on the Marlins, but he should win Rookie of the Year. Fernandez is 2-0 with a 0.45 ERA in his last three starts, striking out 22 and walking four in that span. He’s now 10-5 with a 2.30 ERA, and makes his next start today.

Koji Uehara: My favorite as you probably know now. Koji still has yet to give up a run since the all-star break, and has been even better since his last two years (when I thought he couldn’t be any better). This past week he’s collected four saves and a win, and has moved to 3-0 with a 1.22 ERA and 14 saves. He also has one of the best, if not THE best career K/BB ratio in MLB history, and has an 80/9 ratio this year.

That’s my picks for who are hot. Other players that are hot include Ian Desmond, Bryce Harper, and Shane Victorino. Now let’s take a look at who’s cold!

Kolten Wong (Cardinals): To be fair, Kolten Wong just came up to the big leagues a few weeks ago, but he’s still batting .172 this year. To make matters worse, he has not gotten a single hit in his last seven games. It might be time to move him back down to AAA. He still is a top prospect for the Cardinals, but still needs some work.

Jose Altuve (Astros): Another “cut him some slack” guy because he’s pretty young and does have lots of potential. Altuve has struggled lately, putting up a .172 batting average in his last seven. However, he still bats a comfortable .268, and has lots of speed and is a good defender. Hitting wise, he’s just in a rough spot. 

Garrett Jones (Pirates): Not cutting any slack here. Jones (32) has a .235/.292/.409 batting line, which is much lower from his career .255/.317/.457 line. Last year he hit 27 homers, and this year he only has 12. In his last seven, he’s batted only .059, that one hit being a homer. With a team that’s actually going to be in the playoffs, he needs to step up.

Edison Volquez (Padres): The Padres sent Volquez down the other day after he could not get out of the first inning while giving up five runs. He is 9-10 with a 6.01 ERA this year, and went 1-1 with a 13.50 ERA in his last three starts. 

King Felix Hernandez (Mariners): Felix on this list?? What is this?? But it’s true. Hernandez has gone 0-3 with a 9.64 ERA in his last three starts. Wednesday against the Rangers, he only went three innings and gave up 8 runs on 11 hits. He still is 12-8 with a 2.97 ERA, but needs to have the best month of September if he still wants to be in the Cy Young race.

Email me at statsbuddy42@gmail.com for any questions/comments/concerns that you may have.

-Evan Boyd