Finally. Finally somebody in the front office said something about the Yankees, who have been downright awful so far this season. It was general manager Brian Cashman who called the players to task, saying in not so many words that if things didn't change soon, he'd have to change things for them. He also indicated that owner Hal Steinbrenner is "not happy." Of course, if Hal's father was still around, it wouldn't have taken this long. There already would've been changes.
George Steinbrenner, of course, was notorious for his lack of patience whenever the Yankees struggled, especially when it came to his managers (as George Costanza put it, "He fires people like it's a bodily function!"). So, if The Boss was still alive and running things, Joe Girardi's job would likely be in jeopardy. He might even have been let go already. (George Steinbrenner did get softer in his later years and let both Joe Torre and Girardi ride out rough stretches
But Cashman gave no indication that Girardi's in any sort of trouble. Rather, he put the onus on the players. They're not performing up to their capabilities (and expectations), so it's on them to right the ship. If not, the "changes" that have been promised will likely be players either being traded or released.
So, who are the biggest culprits? Well, we've got to start with Chase Headley. Yankees third basemen are the only position in baseball without an extra-base hit this season. That's just difficult to even fathom. Then there's Aaron Hicks. I was so excited about that trade during the winter, and Hicks has been great defensively. But he hasn't hit a lick. His average was below .100 for a while. I think it still is. And Mark Teixeira has been victimized by the shift more times than I can count.
Girardi, in his frustration, has said that if he could change anything about baseball, he'd outlaw the shift. The Yankees have been shifted against more than any other team in baseball...by a wide margin. But that's the way the game is played now, and it doesn't look like opposing teams are going to stop shifting anytime soon. So they'll have to figure out a way to beat the shift. If not, we're gonna see a whole lot more of this.
The entire team hasn't hit all season. The Yankees are last in the Majors in scoring. They've scored more than three runs only six times all year (and in one of those games, they had a whopping four!), and three of those were in the first four games of the season. Simply put, it's tough to win when you don't score. And the only way this team ever seems to score is on solo home runs. I love the home run as much as the next guy. But it would be nice if they hit one with somebody on base once in a while. Or, better yet, if they got a couple hits in a row and scored in another way. Then maybe they'd score more than once an inning. Or maybe even score in multiple innings.
There have been a couple "bright" spots, but they're few and far between. Starlin Castro has been great. That trade may end up being one of the best moves Cashman ever made. He and Brett Gardner seem to be the only guys on the team on base with any sort of regularity. And A-Rod has been hitting home runs. Although, it looks like he might be headed to the DL.
It's not completely on the offense, either. The pitchers do get somewhat of a break because when the offense is only scoring two runs a game, they have virtually no margin for error. But that doesn't mean the pitching has been good. Not by a long shot. Masahiro Tanaka has been the only consistent starter. Luis Severino has been so bad that they're talking about sending him down, Michael Pineda gives up a few too many long balls, and Nathan Eovaldi can't seem to get past that one bad inning. Even Dellin Betances has been lit up this season.
This isn't the first time this has happened. In 2005, they had a terrible April, then called up a rookie by the name of Robinson Cano in May. They went on to win the division title. In 2013, they got Alfonso Soriano at the trade deadline and he resuscitated a moribund Yankees offense for the final two months of that season. Soriano didn't lift them into the playoffs, but the point remains.
Problem is, they don't have a Cano waiting at Triple-A. Reinforcements are on the way in the form of Aroldis Chapman. But there's only so much a short reliever can do. Especially on a team that can't score any runs. How many opportunities will Chapman have to actually affect the game when they never have the lead in the late innings? A relief pitcher isn't going to help the offense, so something more drastic might be in order. Like releasing Headley, trading Carlos Beltran for a third baseman, and bringing Nick Swisher (who's currently in Scranton) back to play right field.
One month does not make a season. You can't win the division in April, and you can't lose it in April either. The Blue Jays were 50-50 after 100 games last year and won the division going away (acquiring David Price at the trade deadline certainly helped). Likewise, the Yankees had an unexpectedly good April three years ago, but didn't make the playoffs.
If the 2016 Yankees want to be anything like the 2015 Blue Jays, though, they have to go back to being the Bronx Bombers. And soon. Otherwise, this is going to be a long season. It already has been. And it's only May.
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