Kevin Baker's book is here!

Kevin Baker's book is here!
"... an exemplary sports book..." Kirkus Reviews

Sunday, June 17, 2018

It's Not the Pitching.

Another Sunday, another excellent pitching performance utterly wasted.

Today, facing a "starting" pitcher—who knows what anybody is doing for Tampa Bay anymore? Starting, relieving, and the this and the that, and HEY LADY!—with an ERA of over 6, the Yanks scored all of one run—on a dinger, of course—and left 9 men on base, 5 on second or third.

Their at-bats with those 9 runners on went:

Fly out, ground out, ground out, strike out, strike out, ground out, strike out, strike out, fly out, double-play ground out, strike out, strike out, ground out, strike out, strike out, pop out.

Quite a display.

Now granted, Neil Walker, the Designated Fridge Break was playing, and Bird was stretching out his Limitless Potential, which will someday be so immense he might get above the .220 mark. And then there's the fact that it was Fathers Day, and maybe our heroes were just too teary-eyed thinking of all the sacrifices their dads made for them to see the ball clearly, or too depressed by the baby-blue hats they were forced to wear for the occasion, take your pick.

But such peccadillos obscure a larger problem, methinks. This team can't hit.

As previously noted, its run production is dropping steadily, from over 6 runs a game in April, to 5.25  in May, to just 4.0 for May. It has now been 21 games since the Yanks scored more than 8 runs, a total reached exactly once in that skein, back on June 2. They've scored more than 4 runs just 6 times in those same 21 contests.

In the last 10 games, they've averaged just 3.2 runs a game, and are 7-3 only by dint of the pitchers performing at levels that cannot and will not hold up.

Let's face it, folks. There are World Cup teams that score more than the Yankees.

I jest, I jest, of course. But seriously: lest I be accused of the mortal heresy of small sample size, this really is about more than just the dreaded Walker taking needed reps from players who are still among the living, or Bird's fractious ankles.

For the last couple years now, every single player who comes to the Yankees becomes less and less effective as a hitter as time goes on. Sure, some of that is pitchers making adjustments to hot rookies. But veterans suffer the same fate.

What's going on is the approach. The Yankees, like many teams today, train their players to produce home runs or nothing. Unsurprisingly, what they get are home runs or nothing. It's not enough. Their sinking run production will kill them in the playoffs, and likely break the bullpen before they ever get there.



11 comments:

Anonymous said...

WELL HOSS, HERE WE ARE AGAIN....

MAINSTREAM MEDIA KEEPS SAYING WE NEED PITCHING, PITCHING, PITCHING....

....BUT WATCHING EVERY GAME EVERY DAY, WE SEE THAT IT REALLY ISN'T THE PITCHING.

STANTON KIND OF SUCKS.

RIGHT NOW, GARY SUCKS TOO.

....SO DOES BIRD.

THAT'S PRETTY MUCH THE HEART OF OUR ORDER.

CAN'T HAVE 3 GUYS IN THE HEART OF THE ORDER SWINGING FOR THE FENCES EVERY GAD DAMN TIME UP.

....AND THAT NEIL WALKER HAS PRETTY MUCH BEEN NON-EXISTENT.

I WANT CLINT FRAZIER UP HERE.

LETS GET A GAMER WITH FIRE AND HUSTLE IN THIS LINEUP.

I'M TELLING YOU, IF WE KEEP HICKS LONG TERM, INSTEAD OF FRAZIER, WE ARE MAKING A BIG MISTAKE.

Anonymous said...

Right you both are, imho - - the pitching has been pretty much all we could expect, and we can't hope to sustain it at this level, all year. That would be a miracle - - a minor one, at least.

Walker AND Hicks both bore me, and I would love to see them elsewhere - - and it took Old Timers' Day to remind me how bloody annoying I always found Swisher; he was always clowning around, whether he had screwed up royally, or on the rare instance he managed something heroic. Man, I was glad to see the back end of him, for the final time.

Right now, if we didn't have the two "kids" Cash-Puss didn't want to start, I shudder to think what our season would be like.

Bring on some Thunder - - and, FGS, do NOT stick us with some big-name Dud, who'e well into the down-cycle of his "illustrious" pitching career. NO. WAY. JOSE. LB (No J)

Joe Formerlyof Brooklyn said...


Swinging for the fences? Right now I'm pretty sure Gary S could not swing and HIT a fence. Ditto GStanton.

Bird? Maybe still injured? I'm being optimistic there.

TheWinWarblist said...

Unutterable gloom and sadness ...

JM said...

The offense is crapola.

HoraceClarke66 said...

And as I'm sure you noticed, ALL-CAPS, the averages of both El Matador and El Conquistador are dropping, while The Gleyber, at least, is suddenly, miraculously hitting unprecedented numbers of home runs.

I'm sure by the end of the season he will be like everyone else in the lineup: a .240 hitter with a bunch of dingers and a hundred-something strikeouts. Hooray.

HoraceClarke66 said...

Joe and No-Jay, I would love to see Frazier. But I'm sure he would also soon be converted to the Yanks' next Dave Kingman.

I have tried my best to like Stanton. But despite Cousin Dan's hopes for him, I just don't see it. He can't go five games without reverting to a slump, and I can't help but think the worst of him, however unfair that may be. Namely, that his past success was based mostly on a substance he no longer uses.

That may well be unfair. But I will make a prediction about him that I once made about Mussina, and which proved to be all too true: we will never win a World Series with Stanton as a regular.

That was probably unfair to Mussina, too; had we got to the 7th game of the 2003 Series, which he was scheduled to start, he might have been hot enough that year to have won it. But I would not have bet cash money on it.

Clutch exists, no matter what the stats people tell you. The Moose was not clutch. Neither is Stanton.

KD said...

what you write about Mussina may be true but I will never forget how Moose saved our season after Clemens shit the bed against the red socks in 2003. That was one hell of a Big Moment and Mike came though for us. His first-ever relief appearance, no less.

Those sorts of moments cement a player's image in my mind forever. Statistics mean next to nothing after I witness something like that.

Swisher never had such a moment. He's Like Mr. Hankey, the Turd from South Park. Likeable enough but I wouldn't want him anywhere near my punch bowl.

HoraceClarke66 said...

That's true, KD...although he had already lost his two starts in that series. He often came up very small in October.

KD said...

Thanks Hoss! Can’t argue with the dude that holds the data. I simple appreciate the room given to an irrational, crazy fan who loves for no reason. None at all!

Isiyku Abdulahi said...


I really want the world to know about this great man who brought back happiness into my life again after my husband left me and the kids 3 years ago for another women online when i contacted Dr Believe he cast a love spell for me within 48 hours my ex husband start calling me and begging for forgiveness for everything that have happened between us. I was so happy to have my family back together with love again here is the email of Dr Believe via believelovespelltemple@gmail.com a man with the great powers you can also call him or add him on Whats-app: +2348156148821
God bless you
I am very grateful for your help in my marriage.