I won't apologize for rants over a guy who hits .147 for a season. But as Aaron Boone last night, in his post-game hostage video, praised Sanchez for persevering, it hit me that - yeah, the guy does deserves credit for marching on through the hailstorm. Sanchez is no All-Star and will surely never fulfill the Hall of Fame promise he displayed as a rookie in 2016. And if he reverts back below .200, we'll be once again flinging kitchen appliances at him. This is a fan blog. We do not claim to be experts. What we do is we register our passions and opinions as euphorically - or as cruelly - as anywhere to be found on Al Gore's Information Superhighway. That's our mission. And when a guy hits .147, I do not suggest he or his mom read this blog.
But Sanchez is slowly reclaiming respectability, as well as his starting catcher position. Here's where he stands, statistically. Among MLB catchers, he is...
Fifth in HRs with 10.
Sixteenth in RBIs with 22.
Seventh in strikeouts, with 54.
Eighteenth in batting average, with .228.
Interestingly, one of his career statistical doppelgangers is Robinson Chirinos, currently in Scranton, waiting to replace him.
But but BUT... over the last 15 days, Sanchez is hitting .316 with 4 HRs, and his shots against Toronto saved the Death Barge - for now - from falling below .500. It's still only mid-June, but every time the '21 Yankees have rallied, they soon after fell apart. We'll see.
I believe that, whatever happens, this is Sanchez's last stand as a Yankee.
If he falls into another slump, the Gammonites and talk radio will run him out of Gotham. If he stays hot, but the Yankees continue to slide, he'll be part of a massive wave of housecleaning. The Yankees have horded young catching prospects, he has no DH option, and he certainly doesn't look like a first-baseman. Sanchez has one chance to stay with the Yankees: Stay hot and lead this team through a troubling time.
And, dammit, last night, he did. Bravo! Tonight, it's one more against the Jays and tomorrow, the cream of the AL West, the A's. Does he have a month in him? Can he stay hot?
Make no mistake: I would love to write nothing but love letters to Gary Sanchez. Go ahead, sir. Make my day.
Pardon me el duque, I happen to be an expert.
ReplyDeleteI have a doctorate in the law; a degree in philosophy [making me a gentleman of letters] and a degree in political science [making me a scientist].
Therefore, much like the experts on CNN and MSNBC, I can be routinely called upon to pontificate on any subject whatsoever. My take on the Yanks is gleaned from decades of intense study.
[ Disclaimer; The reference to certain networks was merely meant as a triggering event and does not represent the view of this entity.]
The All-Encompassing Archangel
Sanchez looks like a different player recently. A good one.
ReplyDeleteDon't be fooled. He'll return to being our lovable ICS soon enough.
ReplyDeleteAs an aside, last night's 9th inning adventure shows why El Chapo can not be used in the tenth. The first base hit (of two!) would have scored the mystery runner from second.
ReplyDeleteAs to Gary - who is to say that he doesn't read this blog regularly and uses it as "locker room bulletin board" fodder to motivate himself?
If we start praising him he could become smug and self satisfied again and revert back to his wild swinging ways.
Just sayin'
Doug K.
You cannot turn a pickle back into a cucumber. To quote a major asshole that I know, “it’s a very small sample size.” Don’t let the last few days go to your heads.
ReplyDelete13bit, I am very confused- assholes, cucumber, pickle? And what does this have to do with Sanchez or is it a reference to el duque?
ReplyDeleteIs it the new ingredients to the Whooper Deluxe?
Brother, Where art thou?
The Perplexed Archangel
A while back, I noticed that Sanchez had reduced his leg kick considerably. On the home run, the leg kick was almost gone. The question is why it took so long to get to this point. I feel that most other teams would have been able to correct this problem well before he ever hit .147 for a season.
ReplyDeleteThe Hammer of God
We're fixated on guys like Sanchez, but it's also interesting that another no-name with a 5 E.R.A. came within one batter of outpitching our stud starter Cole.
ReplyDeleteIt just goes to show that we don't develop enough young pitchers. The successful clubs continually develop new young pitchers. Two get hurt? They still have half a dozen guys ready to step in. Meanwhile, when two spots open up on our staff, we go out and get two injury magnets. Band-Aids on an elephant's butt.
The Hammer of God
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteHas absolutely nothing to do with Duque. Cucumbers and assholes. Food for thought. Exit velocity, approach angle, ball gag, ice cream sandwiches. It will take me a long long long long time to ever have any faith in Sanchez again. Is this a walk year for him? Maybe his agent gave him an Adderall enema.
ReplyDelete@13bit
ReplyDeleteGary Sanchez signed a 1 year / $6,350,000 contract with the New York Yankees, including $6,350,000 guaranteed, and an annual average salary of $6,350,000. In 2021, Sanchez will earn a base salary of $6,350,000, while carrying a total salary of $6,350,000.
He went to arbitration and got a one year...
Amen, Duque.
ReplyDeleteAnd you know, we praise these guys when they do well, we knock them when we don't.
Sure, there's no need for anything intensely personal or nasty, and no one should ever be throwing things or mouthing obscenities in front of children at the ballpark.
But aside from that, I can never understand those fellow fans—and some players—who feel it's a crime to ever boo the home team. These guys are not playing for dear old state. They are fabulously compensated professionals, and like everyone else who works for a living they should expect criticism when they screw up—particularly when they screw up through basic stupidity or laziness.
And that said, Sanchez last night not only hit the game-winning, pinch-hit homer, he also bailed out his pitcher in the 9th when Chapo was flailing spectacularly, both on the mound and off it.
ReplyDeleteAfter allowing those first two hits, Chapman then blew the rundown they had Impaler, Jr., caught in—a play a Single-A pitcher is supposed to make. Sanchez bailed him out with a quick, accurate throw to third that at least made the play close enough for the ump to call Impy out.
Next, after what was probably a high, wild pitch that bonked off the ump's mask, Sancho had the presence of mind to pretend it was a foul ball, and talk the stunned ump into believing it through his show of sympathy. Nice!
He gets As all around—for hitting, fielding, and on-field smarts. And if he goes 0-4 today, we will boo him.
Mike Ford just got promoted to the Rays.
ReplyDeleteTrade Gary soon while we can extort an overpayment from a contender.
ReplyDeleteAnd Archangel... I'm an Earl and an OBE so that makes me an earlobe. Ask me any question on the British royal family as I'm an expert. LOL
ReplyDeleteI'm confused. I'm heavily invested in future sales of ice cream sandwiches, thru my Robin Hood account.
Does this mean I should sell 'em off? Or short 'em? Or whatever else it is that real investors know how to do???
1. I , too, disavow the comment about experts on this show. There are plenty of us. Some, even in Holland and Austria.
ReplyDelete2. Gary Sanchez has adjusted his leg kick to a "pickle sized kick. THAT is why he is hitting better.
3. Speaking of pickles ( sour ones ) ; another reason Gary has looked good lately, is that Hagashioka has looked terrible. He is performing like the "under .200" hitter everyone figured him to be.
4. The Ford " deal" ( the major noise in MLB so far in June ), assures that Gittins will hold on tho the FB job in Scranton.
Sour, Sweet, half-sour, cucumber.
More of the Yankees should read this blog.
ReplyDeleteAnd Fuck Joe Morgan.
It unfortunately may not be Gary's last stand. Genius Cashman and the Analytics Geeks love him. They are wowed by his prolific homeruns. The Yankees do not care about Gary's almost non existent defense, dumb base running and invisibility when it comes to hitting for months. The threat of a home run is all they need. The fact that Gary's stats are one of the best for catchers furthers Genius Cashman and the other Nimnos who run the Yankees. This is why we unfortunately won't see a championship for the Yankees. Yankeelytics and more Yankeelytics. Big players who strike out and can't hit in the clutch.
ReplyDelete@Hoss Junior Impaler? Ha ha, good one!
ReplyDeleteBTW, what is with Chapman and his throwing? We were lucky to get that guy out at third. Instead of running at the baserunner and making him commit one way or the other, Chapman just automatically fires home and almost made everyone safe.
The Hammer of God
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