We’re just past the halfway point in the season and the New York Yankees sit a game back of the Orioles in the AL East with 54 wins. Let’s see how the team is doing individually and as a whole with a Yankees midseason report card.
Only a few weeks ago, the Yankees had the best record in the majors and things were pretty rosy at 161st St and River Ave in the Bronx.
Lately, however, they’ve only won 5 of their last 17 games, giving up 17 runs in two games against the Boston Red Sox, and 17 runs in one game against the Baltimore Orioles. At one stage, they surrendered 61 runs over a seven-game stretch.
Once Giancarlo Stanton went down with his annual hamstring injury, it left Juan Soto and Aaron Judge on an island having to carry the offense by themselves due to the lack of power in the lineup.
Judge may break the AL single-season home run record for the second time in three seasons, but GM Brian Cashman needs to address the flaws in the rest of the roster if they are to win a 28th Championship.
Yankees Midseason Report Card
The Infield
Anthony Rizzo: F
Before Anthony Rizzo broke his arm, he was in the midst of a career-worst season. For the month preceding the injury, his WRC+ was 10, a full 90% below average. He also had a -13 RAA (Runs Above Average) and a -0.5 WAR. His defense was also on a steep decline, with the four-time Gold Glover racking up 3 errors with a -2 DRS at first base.
It’s looking like we might be nearing the end of the storied career of the beloved veteran.
Gleyber Torres: D-
Gleyber Torres is producing one of the worst contract years in recent memory. He ranks second in the majors in errors and the worst at his position.
Offensively, he’s suffering career worsts in every major category and doubling his strikeout rate from last year. It’s hard to fathom why he continues to have effort issues at this stage of his career. He was recently benched for a massive slump, costly errors and not running out a ground ball against the New York Mets.
However, in fairness, the benching has helped. He’s 7 for his last 17 with four RBI. They desperately need something from Torres the rest of the way. He’s a better player than this, but he’s made it impossible to be considered for an extension.
DJ LeMahieu: D
A multiple batting champion and former MVP candidate, DJ LeMahieu has fallen off dramatically since his extension. Injuries mostly have sapped the veteran’s power. There are reasons for this, and being seemingly rushed back during his rehab set him back further. LeMahieu went his first 81 plate appearances this season without an extra-base hit.
There are small signs he might be getting himself together though. He has four hits and three RBI in his last five games with a few doubles.
Plus, his glove is still valuable, providing quality defense at three infield spots.
Anthony Volpe: B
Anthony Volpe has really saved this infield. Having won a Gold Glove at shortstop in his rookie year, he’s actually played even better this season. His range is in the 99th percentile, and his fielding is in the 98th percentile, according to Baseball Savant.
Offensively, he moved to the leadoff spot due to his 21-game hitting streak. However, entering Wednesday, he’s in a nasty slump of 0-for-14, and 6-for-41.
His power and walk numbers aren’t there either, which is increasing the pressure on Juan Soto batting after him. His barrel percentage and bat speed are in the 12th and 16th percentile, respectively. Moving him down in the order may spark his bat.
Ben Rice: B
Rookie Ben Rice was fast-tracked to the bigs due to Rizzo’s injury. Naturally he’s a catcher, learning first base on the fly, but hasn’t put a foot wrong there.
Offensively, he’s even caught the eye of Judge. Rice has shown poise and an ability to hit big-league pitching, and he looks to have an exciting future. He has a solid .715 OPS and an above-average OPS+ of 105. His positive cameo has helped ease the team’s issues at first.
Oswaldo Cabrera: C+
Oswaldo Cabrera started this season on fire, but has returned to the mean. He plays an acceptable third base and shows a proclivity to hit with RISP, especially from the left side. He’s a solid utility guy, but no more as of now.
Catchers
Jose Trevino: D
Jose Trevino is an elite pitch framer in the 100th percentile. The Yankees love him, which keeps him in a largely everyday role despite his 3-for-29 slump on offense. However, his pop time is in the 4th percentile with one of the worst arms for a catcher. Alex Cora smartly scouted it, and the Red Sox ran rampant on Trevino to the point they stole nine bases on him in one game. That is an unwanted record for the Yankees dating back to World War II. It’s been open season on him since then. It is a problem, whether they wish to admit it or not.
Austin Wells: C+
Austin Wells hasn’t provided much with his bat, but defensively he’s called a very solid game for his pitchers and has proven he deserves more playing time than he gets.
The Outfield
Aaron Judge: A++
No longer is there any debate about whether Aaron Judge is the best player in the world, it’s where he stacks up all-time. Judge already has better numbers at the end of June than Bryce Harper had in his MVP season in 2021.
Judge is leading in all three Triple Crown categories, is in another stratosphere in OPS, and is on course to break his own American League single-season homer record for the second time in three seasons. He’s putting up video game numbers. An OPS+ of 221 is a staggering 120% above the league average. His 32 home runs and 84 RBI with a 1.158 OPS at this point in the season is jawdropping.
Juan Soto: A+
Soto is everything the Yankees could have dreamed of and more. Soto leads baseball in OBP at .435. He has 20 home runs, 61 RBI, and a .300 batting average. He could easily finish the AL MVP race as a one-two punch with Judge and him. He’s already in a blank check category for a new contract. He’s also provided the most exciting moment of the season with his massive go-ahead Bonds-like home run in the 9th against the San Francisco Giants.
ARE YOU SERIOUS JUAN SOTO!? pic.twitter.com/s4VPal1z6z
— Dillard Barnhart (@BarnHasSpoken2) June 2, 2024
Alex Verdugo: B
Alex Verdugo has been a hugely positive locker room addition since his trade from the rival Red Sox. Providing the team with an edge and positivity. His 43 RBI lead the AL among left fielders. However, he’s in the midst of a month-long slump and his OPS has dropped to .690, which is below average, especially out of the clean-up spot.
His defense in left has been incredible though, easily the best the Yankees have had in the position in a number of years.
Trent Grisham: B-
Trent Grisham is the perfect 4th OF. His defense is as advertised, the multiple Gold Glove winner glides out there, making difficult plays look extraordinarily easy. He has a poor bat though, and his .150 batting average attests to this. However, five home runs in limited action should merit more playing time.
Giancarlo Stanton DH: A-
Giancarlo Stanton was on course to make the All-Star Game as a DH for the AL before going down with a hamstring injury. The Yankees offense hasn’t recovered from losing him, as he was Judge’s protection in the lineup. His 18 home runs were top-10 in the majors before his injury. The Yankees need him back pronto.
Starting Rotation
Gerrit Cole: B
Gerrit Cole, the defending AL Cy Young Award winner, is still working himself back after suffering an elbow injury in spring training. His last start against the Toronto Blue Jays, five innings of 1-run ball, is an encouraging sign that Cole will be his Cy Young self in the second-half of the year.
Cole is a baseball savant, a professor in pitching – his work behind the scenes to help Luis Gil early this year was immeasurable.
Nestor Cortes: B
‘Nasty’ Nestor Cortes is providing a pretty solid season with a 3.51 ERA. His home and away starts are very unusual. He is 4-3 with a 1.80 ERA at home, as opposed to a 0-3 record and an ERA of almost 6 on the road. He gives up too many fly balls, and his hard-hit percentage against is in the 10th percentile.
Overall, he’s been effective and a solid back-end starter, just don’t pitch him on the road in the playoffs.
Luis Gil: A-
Gil was revelatory and breaking records to start his Yankee career. Indeed, he was on course to likely start the All-Star Game. However, his last three starts are showing a worrying trend that he might be starting to fatigue, as he’s never pitched 100+ innings in his career to date. He’s still likely to make the All-Star team. He has 102 strikeouts in 89 innings with a strong 9-4 record. His 3.41 ERA is not quite as impressive as his sub-2.00 era before his last three starts.
Still, he saved the Yankee rotation while they waited for Cole to get healthy. He’s already on track to be the best Yankee starter they’ve developed in two decades or more. They would be wise to manage his innings and rest him up for the stretch run.
Carlos Rodon: C+
Carlos Rodon‘s 4.42 ERA is not to his standard. He’s been lit up of late. 28 hits and 22 runs in his last 13 innings have blown up his season from being potentially an All-Star to a concern. The Yankees need Rodon to pitch to his ability if they are to retake the AL East from the Orioles.
Marcus Stroman: A-
Marcus Stroman has a 7-3 record and a 3.20 ERA. Any concerns about his fit with the Yankees have been answered. Stro’ looks at home in pinstripes, he looks built for the pressures, and he’s proving to be a great teammate. Credit to Brian Cashman for this signing on a team-friendly deal.
Bullpen
Clay Holmes: B
Clay Holmes is a confounding talent at closer. At one stage, he had a 0.00 ERA. But that was fool’s gold. He’s given up 37 hits in 34 innings. His 1.324 WHIP is too high. In his last seven games, he’s 0-2 with an ERA over 8.00.
However, he’s only given up 1 homerun for the season and has 19 saves at this stage is strong. Is he an elite closer? No. Is he one of the quality arms in the league with his turbo sinker? Absolutely. He’ll make you sweat though.
Luke Weaver: A
Luke Weaver has been the most important arm in the bullpen this year. It’s a huge success story for pitching coach Matt Blake to turn him from journeyman to elite multi-inning reliever to replace Michael King. His 0.797 WHIP is excellent and he averages over a strikeout per inning, which is very important considering the rest of the pen doesn’t miss any bats.
Michael Tonkin: A
He may look like a substitute teacher, but Michael Tonkin is pitching to an ERA of around 1.00 over his last 20 appearances. Another huge Matt Blake success story and one of Cashman’s diamonds in the rough.
Caleb Ferguson: F
In his last six innings, Caleb Ferguson has an ERA over 9.00. Overall, he has an era of almost 6.00. He’s one of the worst lefty relievers in baseball. He’s been a disastrous trade pickup, leaving the team without a quality situational lefty.
Tommy Kahnle: B
Tommy Kahnle‘s return from injury has come at a good time. He is still pitching with a quality changeup. In his last seven outings, he has a 0.00 ERA and 10 strikeouts.
Management:
Aaron Boone: B+
Manager Aaron Boone has done the best he can with a bullpen that doesn’t miss many bats and an offense solely reliant on Soto and Judge.
Is he too quick to make excuses for Torres’s lack of hustle and poor fielding? Absolutely. However, he did bench him and it paid dividends.
Being blown out by Boston, the Orioles, and the Mets of late is an example of needing to figure out how to beat his rivals and end the poor current run if they are to go anywhere in October.
However, there’s plenty of fight in the locker room, and he does a good job of keeping everyone on the same page.
Brian Cashman: A-
GM Brian Cashman had a really strong offseason with the caveat of mixed results with his bullpen moves. Ferguson and the recently waived Victor Gonzalez are both busts. Weaver and Tonkin are inspired. However, they’re still short a quality arm or two.
His Stroman signing was judicious and a steal, same with Verdugo. The Juan Soto deal is one of his best ever.
It’s hard to blame him for Rizzo, DJ, and Torres having career-worst years. Still, he must address the team’s infield issues at the trade deadline.
Photo Credit: © Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports
