Could the Yankees, by playing Giancarlo in the outfield, have spared us the miserable first half? And how many HRs would Luke have this year, if not for the injuries?

Here's to the 10-game streak, a veritable two-week orgasm in a tub full of Calgon Bath Oil Beads - the longest Yankee winning spell since - well, um - last year...

I like to believe that you - the seasoned, thoughtful, Jedi masters of fanhood who visit this blog - understand the need to maintain strict negativity, and to avoid outwardly positive thoughts about the Yankees.

Remember: Nothing good comes from talking hopefully. If you see the Yankee glass half full, you'll only end up feeling thirsty. Predict calamity, and at the worst, you have been proven right. 

That said, we must be wise enough to know a good thing when it show up, wrapped in bacon, on our doorstep. A 10-game streak is luxurious. Sure, it will rile us when it ends; nobody wants to leave the hot tub. So enjoy this while we can - WHILE MAINTAINING NEGATIVITY. 

After all, we know how last year's 10-game winning streak turned out, right? (See, juju gods? Nothing but neg...)

Today, two metaphysical questions about the 2021 Yankees.

1. Were the Yankees undermining Giancarlo Stanton all this time by not letting him play the outfield?

Last night, Stanton played his 11th game in the OF this year. He started July 30, in his old Miami pasture. Until then, he had only played DH, this year and last. 

Since 2019, the Yankees have bubble-wrapped Stanton - almost marginalizing him - as if he were a defensive abomination. In fact, he's looked rather nimble out there. Also, keep in mind that they played both Clint Frazier - the 2019 version, anyway - and Miguel Andujar in the outfield, when both played horrible defense. 

You'd think Stanton was 39 and fat - not 31 and a yoga guy (he took it up last winter.)  

In August, since he started playing defense, he's hitting .325 with five HRs - his best month in the last three years. (In 2019, he batted .462 in the 10 games that he played in LF.)

Moreover, the Yankees look much better by using the DH as an open slot, so various hitters can rest. Without Stanton playing OF, Luke Voit would have sat most of last week, instead of being named AL Player of the Week. 

Don Imus used to say, "Let the big dogs run!" The Yankees should have taken that to heart with Stanton. So, yeah, it looks as though coddling him was a bad idea.  

2. What if Luke Voit had not suffered so many injuries this season? Would he be among the HR leaders?

The top 10 HR leaders in MLB average about 430 at bats. (Shohei Ohtani, with 40, has come to bat 422 times.)

Last year's HR leader, Luke, has 7 this season - in 158 at bats. 

Doing a little fourth-grade math, we can see that, if Luke came up 430 times, he'd have 19 HRs - tied for 36th in the AL, with Matt Chapman, Carlos Correa and Eric Haase. 

He seems to be heating up, and you can argue Small Sample Size. But thus far, he's not the world-leading slugger of 2020. 

By the way, using the same calculations, if they came to bat, say, 430 times...

Gary Sanchez would have 26 HRs - tied for 14th in the AL with Nelson Cruz and Mike Zunino. 

Stanton would have 25, Rougned Odor would have 21, and Kyle Higashioka - our own Higgy - would have 24 dingers. Twenty four. Aint math fun?