The Yankees are not
used to being second best. They don’t like it – and they don’t particularly
play the role well. So their current home just above the American League East cellar has
to be disappointing to both players and management.
Going into the All-Star
break, the Yankees are barely treading water (six games out of first place) and dealing with a parade of injuries. Both Alex
Rodriguez and Captain Derek Jeter, their two biggest names, haven’t contributed to the team at all in
recent months.
Mark Teixeira, Curtis
Granderson and Francisco Cervelli are also out with significant injuries. There
just aren’t enough standouts on the roster to fill their cleats adequately and
keep this team in contention for a playoff berth.
Jeter’s much-heralded
return to the lineup came Thursday after rehabbing his broken
left ankle through the first 91 games of the season. Unfortunately, he had to
be pulled late in the game due to quad tightness. He was expected to undergo an
MRI on Friday to determine if he can continue his comeback.
Jeter can be a potent
weapon if he stays in good health. He blasted a single Thursday on
the first pitch he faced this season and later scored a run. He also notched
his first RBI this season on a ground out. Even going 1-4 on the day, he helped
his team stop a three-game losing streak with an 8-4 win over the Royals Thursday.
Meanwhile, Rodriguez, who
is six games into a 20-day rehab assignment with the Tampa Yankees minor league
team, could be destined for a potential 100-game suspension related to his
involvement with a Florida clinic tied to a major PED investigation.
A-Rod is trying to
come back from hip surgery, and his outrageous salary structure has been a bone
of contention for team management. Though GM Brian Cashman has yet to openly
admit the signing was a huge mistake, Yankees brass (and a growing number of
fans who buy New
York Yankees tickets) seem to regret locking up the aging slugger for so
long.
The Yankees will have
a tough time catching the Red Sox for the divisional crown – or even lock down
a wild card playoff spot – without a major miracle. That could come in the form
of some blockbuster trades, but even a few bold moves might not be enough. It
might take a complete collapse by the teams above them, and maybe a few key
injuries hitting their competitors as the Yanks finally get healthy.
Tampa Bay and
Baltimore are playing excellent baseball this year and could gain even more
separation from the Yankees in the second half if nothing changes.
Unlike the surging,
offensively stacked Red Sox, the Yankees’ main strength is their pitching
corps. But even that crew only breaks the top 10 in ERA (3.79).
On the flip side, they
rank 23rd in quality starts. Closer Mariano Rivera is doing well in his final
year before retirement with 29 saves, and the team’s starters are doing the
best they can without the biggest bats on the team available to provide some
decent run support. C.C. Sabathia has 9 wins and 112 strikeouts to his credit, while
Hiroki Kuroda leads the team in ERA (2.77) – despite a lackluster 7-6 record on
18 starts so far.
The main issue with
this year’s squad is the anemic offense. Their highest ranking category is
runs, where they are 19th in the league. Robinson Cano is simply carrying the
team with a .299 batting average, 21 home runs, 62 RBIs, and 53 runs
scored.
The Yankees always
seem to be in the trade deadline mix every year, but this time they will have
to produce some serious magic. They’ll have to find a way to shore up their
pitching and their batting with some players who can become immediate
contributors.
There may not be
enough high-caliber bats and arms available to give them what they need,
though. Yankees fans might just have to get used to watching their team
struggle to stay out of last place for the remainder of the season.
- Rich Bergeron
