MLB

New York Yankees: Aroldis Chapman Blows Game in Unusual Form, Losing 3-1 Vs Detroit

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New York Yankees, Aroldis Chapman

With the game going to the top of the ninth, New York Yankees hard-throwing lefty Aroldis Chapman was called from the bullpen to get three big outs, even though it wasn’t a save situation.

One problem: he didn’t get the job done.

The Detroit Tigers scored two runs off of Chapman before the Yankees were shut down in the ninth inning, losing 3-1.

After a strikeout to John Hicks, Niko Goodrum walked, then Dustin Peterson followed with a double to score Goodrum. Chapman then retired Grayson Greiner, but gave up a single to Jordy Mercer, which scored Peterson before finally retiring the side.

Dismal offense:

You couldn’t say that the Yankees had trouble hitting with runners in scoring position because there were barely any runners in scoring position. They only had three attempts with runners on second and/or third, and converted zilch.

Their only run came off a sacrifice fly by newly recalled Clint Frazier after DJ LeMahieu singled and new Yankee Mike Tauchman hit a ground rule double down the left field line.

Tauchman got his first career Yankee hit, while back-up catcher Austin Romine and also newly recalled Tyler Wade got their first hits of 2019.

Tanaka did his part for the New York Yankees:

Masahiro Tanaka had his second start of the 2019 season, and though he allowed several well hit balls to deep in the park, he got the job done. He pitched 6 2/3 innings while giving up eight hits, allowing one run, and striking out seven.

The 1-2 punch of the splitter and the slider seemed to work well yet again for the right-hander from Hyogo, Japan, getting most of his strikeouts from it along with a few fastballs. The splitter definitely worked the very best, minimizing contact with that pitch. The hard hit balls were with the slider and the fastball. Jeimer Candelario of the Tigers hit a hard double off of a curveball, one of the few he threw all night.

So despite not having his best stuff, anytime you pitch 6 2/3 innings and only give up run, it means that you are doing something right. Another good start for the righty, I just wish there could be more offense.

The rubber match of the series will be Wednesday late-afternoon with a 4:05PM start time.  Jonathan Loaisiga will take the ball against the Tigers’ Matthew Boyd. The game will be on YES Network and Fox Sports Go.

The New York Yankees Beat The Tigers as Gardner and Sanchez Homer

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New York Yankees, Gary Sanchez

In a low scoring affair, New York Yankees starting pitcher Domingo German threw five solid innings and Gary Sanchez and Brett Gardner each hit solo home runs to beat the Detroit Tigers by a score of 3-1.

Seven combined hits

The Tigers and the Yankees combined for just seven hits all game, and just two came from the Tigers. Both of them happened to come off the bat of Jordy Mercer, who went 2-of-4.

The Yankees had five hits, two of which left the yard. Sanchez and Gardner each had solo shots, and Gardner also added a single in the first.

Greg Bird had a single to left field, but Tigers outfielder Christin Stewart bobbled it and Luke Voit put the wheels on and scored from first after a walk in the third inning.

Judge doubled in the seventh inning, but was stranded there, unable to build on the lead.

Aroldis Chapman came in to lock it down in the ninth, pitching a 1-2-3 inning with a strikeout to end it.

The Yankees four big relievers that are healthy right now pitched on Monday, and each did a great job. Chad Green, Zack Britton, Adam Ottavino, and Aroldis Chapman were each scoreless in one inning of work, and Britton was the only one that allowed a hit.

German did what was asked of him

Domingo German went out there on Monday with relatively low expectations, but pitched a solid game. In five innings, he only gave up a hit and a run, the run being charged on another Gary Sanchez throwing error. It did look like Gleyber Torres just missed the catch and Sanchez was just stuck with the error, so it’s not really his fault.

German only threw 77 pitches, but struck out seven while throwing first-pitch strikes 62 percent of the time. He got three of his seven strikeouts on curveballs, two of his seven on sliders, and two of his seven on fastballs. So basically, there was a lot that was working for German.

Though his pitches worked well, his accuracy and composure were poor. He walked five batters on Monday, and a 7:5 strikeout to walk ratio is really bad. He needs to keep practicing his accuracy and find more strategies with Gary Sanchez to get the ball to spots he can hit and the batters can’t.

Game two of the series against the Tigers continues on Tuesday at 6:35PM on YES Network and Fox Sports Go.

Masahiro Tanaka is scheduled to make his second start of the season, while Jordan Zimmerman will do the same for Detroit. Zimmerman was dominant last time out against the Blue Jays, allowing just one hit in seven innings.

 

 

New York Yankees: Another Player Heads to Injured List, Possibly For Entire Season

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New York Yankees, Miguel Andujar

Monday evening before the New York Yankees took on the Detroit Tigers, it was announced that Miguel Andujar will now be on the injured list along with Giancarlo Stanton and many others.

It was announced after Monday’s 3-1 win over the Tigers that Andujar his a small labrum tear in his shoulder and that he will basically be shut down for two weeks. If no improvement come two weeks, season ending surgery may be an option.

Who will the third baseman be?

Our best guess would be that DJ LeMahieu would get the majority of the time at third base, with Tyler Wade getting a few starts. The Yankees called up Wade to counter Andujar on the IL.

So far, LeMahieu has played in three games and has gone 4-for-8 from the plate as well as playing stellar defense, but threw a ball away on Saturday.

Tyler Wade had a strong Spring Training for the Yankees, but hasn’t played any Minor League baseball yet, as Scranton begins play on Thursday (4/4).

We will keep you updated when we know more. This is a developing story.

Yankees can’t recover from Happ’s poor start in another loss to Orioles

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New York Yankees, J.A. Happ

JA Happ gave up a three run homerun to Orioles third baseman Renato Nunez in the first inning, and the Yankees weren’t able to recover as they dropped the rubber match to the Orioles, 7-5.

Happ’s struggles

In his first start of the season, JA Happ did not come out with his best stuff. After more than a three hour rain delay, Happ opened the game by striking out Jonathan Villar. It spiraled downward after that.

Dwight Smith Jr. hit a double to right-center field, then Trey Mancini hit a dumb little chopper down the third base line that Andujar couldn’t get to in time, putting runners on the corners.

Then, Nunez crushed a 2-2 fastball into the bleachers in left field, giving the Orioles a 3-0 lead.

After a 1-2-3 second inning, Trey Mancini launched another fastball, this time into monument park to give Baltimore a 4-0 lead.

Happ worked a 1-2-3 fourth, but the Yankees decided to pull him and put in long reliever Luis Cessa, who gave up one earned run in 3 1/3 innings.

Happ just couldn’t throw the fastball well on Sunday. Both home runs came from it, as well as the double in the first inning by Smith Jr. Happ struck out three while issuing just one walk in his four innings of work, throwing 75 pitches.

Hitting like it’s still 2018

It may be a new season, but the Yankees offensive tendencies are just the same. Too many chased pitches while having a poor average with runners in scoring position. The Yankees were 2-of-12 with runners in scoring position on Sunday, Judge knocking in two on a single in the fourth, and a LeMahieu RBI single in the ninth.

The Yankees were down 7-4 going to the bottom of the ninth after Tommy Kahnle walked the bases loaded, but managed to work out of it.

Bird walked and then Gleyber Torres just inched out an infield single before LeMahieu had his RBI single. Troy Tulowitzki pinch-hit for Brett Gardner, but struck out on a 1-2 slider that he check-swung at.

14 of the Yankees 27 outs were strikeouts, but four of them came from Judge and three came from Sanchez. However, in addition to Judge’s RBI single, Sanchez went yard for the first time in 2019, lining a 1-2 change-up down the left field line in the seventh.

The Yankees will now take on the Detroit Tigers in a three game series to wrap-up a six game homestand. The Tigers split a four game series with the Toronto Blue Jays to open their season. Tyson Ross is expected to start for the Tigers, while the Yankees are expected to have a “bullpen game”. Domingo German is expected to pitch a few innings for the Yankees, but it is unknown if he will be the starter.

Game time is at 6:35PM on YES Network and Fox Sports Go.

Andujar with missed opportunities as Yankees drop first game of season

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New York Yankees, Miguel Andujar

In his first start as a Yankee, southpaw James Paxton pitched well, giving up two runs (one earned) off of four hits with five strikeouts. However, he was credited with a loss as the Yankees couldn’t get much going on offense, dropping the second game against the Orioles by a score of 5 to 3.

Despite having 10 hits, the Yankees only managed to score three runs while going 3-of-9 with runners in scoring position. Their defense sure didn’t help any, having three errors on the game.

The little offense they had:

In the fourth inning, DJ LeMahieu punched one up the middle, barely strong enough to get through, scoring Gleyber Torres.

In the sixth inning, the Orioles put up two runs off a single by Dwight Smith and a throwing error by Gary Sanchez on a double steal attempt. With runners on first and second, Sanchez threw to second on the steal attempt. The throw was in plenty of time, just off target. This would knock Paxton out of the game.

An inning later, Baltimore got one more, this time off of Chad Green. Rio Ruiz doubled, then later scored off a single by Jesus Sucre. Sucre led the Orioles, going 3-for-4 with three RBIs.

In the ninth inning, Yankee reliever Jonathan Holder made a mess, starting after an error by DJ LeMahieu. With runners on the corners with one out, Sucre knocked one down the left field line, stopping at second and clearing the bases while making the score 5 to 1.

The Yankees sure tried to come back in the bottom of the ninth. Troy Tulowitzki led off with an opposite field home run, then LeMahieu followed with a double. Gardner hit a hard liner to center that was caught for the first out, however Aaron Judge kept it going with a hard single. After a full count strikeout by Giancarlo Stanton, Luke Voit hit a high fly ball that barely dropped in with the outfield playing back. That scored a run making it 5 to 3, but Miguel Andujar struck out on a 1-2 slider to end the game.

Andujar ruined their two biggest opportunities

Way back in the first inning, Baltimore starting pitcher Nate Karns was in no mood to deal with the big boys. After Gardner was retired to start the inning, Karns walked Judge, Stanton, and Voit to load the bases. After taking a low fastball for a ball, Andujar hit it back to Karns who threw it to Sucre behind the plate, then Trey Mancini at first for a 1-2-3 double-play.

Now in the ninth inning, the Yankees had Judge on third and Voit on first with Andujar up to bat. After swinging at a 95 MPH fastball for strike one, Oriole reliever Mike Wright threw three straight sliders. Andujar laid off the first one but swung at the next two to end the game.

Andujar finished 1-for-5 with two strikeouts on the afternoon.

The Yankees finish the series with the Orioles on Sunday afternoon at 1:05PM in the Bronx. The game will be televised on YES Network and Fox Sports Go.

 

New York Yankees First Base Position Battle is Decided, Greg Bird Wins the Job

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New York Yankees, Greg Bird

New York Yankees skipper Aaron Boone announced that Greg Bird will get the start at first base for the team’s opening day game against the Baltimore Orioles. Luke Voit is still expected to DH on Thursday but won’t play the field. Voit is definitely the fan favorite, and fans now have questions about the move.

Greg Bird had a slightly better spring:

Both players hit the ball well this spring, but Bird’s stats were just a bit better. Bird hit .333 compared to .289 for Voit. Voit however did have more home runs (12) and RBI’s (four) compared to Bird (10 and three respectively). While the more seasoned fielder did have a higher OBP and slugging percentage than Voit, he also showed a new ability to hit to the opposite field.

But will the spring success continue up north for Bird? He hasn’t had much success in the big leagues in his career, only one really big moment in pinstripes. That, being his ALDS game three home run off of Andrew Miller in 2017. If he doesn’t hit well, it could be his last chance with the Yankees.

Both aren’t fast or have particularly good gloves:

Both Voit and Bird aren’t known for having a good glove or necessarily being a speed demon. In my opinion, Voit is definitely a better runner and hitter, but he lacks defensive advantage. They are both good enough to get by in comparison to other players at their position.

So no matter who they pick to play defense, it honestly may not matter. It comes down to offense with those two players, and Voit will likely bat higher in the lineup, even as high as fourth or fifth. I think that Voit’s success last year wasn’t a fluke and that they have found their first baseman of the future.

New York Yankees: Dellin Betances to Start Season on Injured List

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During Tuesday’s spring training game on the YES Network, New York Yankees GM Brian Cashman announced in an interview that hard-throwing relief pitcher Dellin Betances will start the 2019 season on the injured list. Cashman said that in an MRI, he showed to have shoulder inflammation and the team is calling it a “shoulder impingement.” The team expects Betances to be throwing again “in 3 to 5 days.”

Betances had not been himself during spring training. He had an ERA of 5.40 in just four outings, and the team was concerned about his velocity. His fastball was only reaching 88 to 92 mph, much lower than his 96 to 100 mph average. He has had issues with getting off to a fast start, literally. His ERA is always a bit higher in the early part of the season, and way high in spring training with his strikeout rate lower.

More Injuries

This now leads to even more early season injury concerns from the Yankees. Though he is the only bullpen guy out right now, the Yankees are down two starters in CC Sabathia and Luis Severino. Aaron Hicks will not be ready until at least the second series of the season, Didi Gregorius is out until summer because of his Tommy John surgery, and who knows about Jacoby Ellsbury.

Like last year, the Yankees will need to have a “next man up” mentality to fill these roster spots. Young guys will be stepping up and providing a lot to start the season, especially on the pitching staff. Those pitchers may be Jonathan Loaisiga, Domingo German, Stephen Tarpley, and Luis Cessa.

New York Yankees: How Concerned Should We Be About Luis Severino’s Injury?

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On Monday, the New York Yankees presumed ace Luis Severino was scratched from his first spring start due to what the team called “rotator cuff inflammation” and will be shut down for two weeks. Yankees skipper Aaron Boone said that it is “highly unlikely” that Severino will start the season with the team, forcing the Yankees to look for a new opening day starter. Severino was warming up in the bullpen and felt pain in his shoulder at about 1PM, 10 minutes prior to first pitch.

With Severino likely not on the 25 man roster to start the season, this leaves the fifth starting pitcher position wide open. Plus, how severe is Severino’s injury anyway? We’ll look into all of it right now.

Yankees: Severino’s concern level

From what we hear, the Yankees are not particularly concerned about Severino…. yet. When he had his MRI Tuesday, the results came back quite clean. With that being said, he should be cleared after two weeks if his shoulder isn’t hurting. No Tommy John surgery has been recommended, but if he continues to have pain after the two weeks, the team will grow more concerned.

The plan is to begin a throwing program after the two weeks, then get him some in-game action before camp breaks and the team heads to Washington for an exhibition. My guess is that he would spend a week or two in extended spring training before going to Trenton and/or Scranton for a few rehab stints. Remember, CC Sabathia is also a few weeks behind due to his offseason heart surgery and will also likely not be on the opening day roster.

Options from free agency

When talking about free-agents, two names come into the minds of Yankees fans: Dallas Keuchel and Gio Gonzalez.

In 2018, Dallas Keuchel had a rather down season, his ERA at 3.74 in just over 200 innings. A lot of people thought that the Yankees might push towards him more than signing JA Happ or acquiring James Paxton. But the team didn’t and now heading towards the middle part of March and spring training, he remains a free-agent.

Gio Gonzalez had an ERA last season of 4.21, but remained effective with a 10-11 record in just over 170 innings. Gonzalez, now 33, was a former first round draft pick in 2004. He could still be a fit for any team, and his stats show those of an average fifth starter.

But which one is the better option? In my opinion, Gonzalez is. Gonzalez is older than Keuchel and is now fit to be a five starter, and will not want a whole lot of money. Keuchel was the Astros number one starter just a few years ago, but is now settling as more of a two or three starter.

If Keuchel was available after the 2019 season, the Yankees would jump right on board with him, but they have a solid rotation when healthy. Signing Keuchel would be expensive, and would force the Yankees to really rearrange their pitching staff once everyone is healthy. With Gonzalez, you can DFA or release him and not lose much of anything for your team or salary.

In-house options

The Yankees have a few guys who could replace both Severino and CC in the first few weeks of the season.

Luis Cessa is the first name Yankee fans jump to. Cessa hasn’t had it that great so far in the big leagues, an ERA a bit under five and a 5-11 record. He is slowly improving, but the problem is that he’s out of options. If he starts in the MLB this season, to send him to Scranton they must DFA him and hope he clears waivers.

Domingo German struggled last year for the Yankees, making some starts for injured pitchers in the springtime. His ERA was over 5.50 and won just two games in 14 starts. But his start this spring has been promising, giving up no runs thus far in 4 2/3 innings.

Jonathan Loaisiga, or “Jonny Lasagna” also made a few starts last season, but had an ERA over five despite going 2-0. He definitely needs some more work, and got hammered on Tuesday against the Cardinals, giving up four runs in 2 1/3 innings.

It remains unknown how the Yankees will fill Severino’s hole to start the season, but either way the team goes, there are options.

New York Yankees: Masahiro Tanaka Dominant in Spring Debut

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New York Yankees, Masahiro Tanaka

New York Yankees starting pitcher Masahiro Tanaka had is spring debut on Sunday at home against the Tigers, and boy he sure looked good.

In the first inning, Tigers centerfielder Daz Cameron rocketed a double deep into center field, but Tanaka stranded him on third by striking out the next two batters and forcing a fly out to center for the third out.

Tanaka’s second inning was flawless, working three groundouts to the left side, two of them to Miguel Andujar at third. The first one, Andujar took a few steps right to field a backhanded, hard-hit ground ball, and threw a two-hopper to first. The second was a routine ground ball that he put away with ease.

The third inning was just as good for Tanaka, getting the leadoff hitter to groundout to Kyle Holder at short, then two easy flyouts to Estevan Florial in center.

His final stat line: three innings, one hit, two strikeouts, and one runner stranded at third.

He also got a little run support in the first two innings, Brett Gardner hit two homeruns to right field for his first two hits of the spring, Aaron Judge lined his first homerun of the spring to right, and Gary Sanchez hit a screamer down the left field line that barely stayed fair.

Yankees feature two squads in two-game Sunday:

The Yankees are actually playing as a split squad today, the other team is playing the Toronto Blue Jays in Dunedin. Luke Voit is leading the way down there with a solo homerun, making the fight for first base even more interesting.

New York Yankees: Can Gleyber Torres and Miguel Andujar avoid the “sophomore slump”?

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New York Yankees, Gleyber Toress, Miguel Andujar

In 2018, New York Yankees youth products Gleyber Torres and Miguel Andujar burst out into the scene in New York with Tyler Wade struggling and newly acquired Brandon Drury injured.

Once they came, they made immediate impacts including multiple walk-off hits and big home-runs. Both players had WAR’s over 2.0. Many baseball fans always worry about the dreaded “sophomore slump” that many players go through after a successful first season in the big leagues.

With Didi Gregorius out with an injury, the Yankees are relying on Torres and Andujar to pick up the slack on both the offensive and defensive end.

So many extra-base hits for the Yankees:

Combined between Torres and Andujar, the two had a total of 95 extra-base hits last season. Miguel Andujar brought more power between the two, but Torres could put one out or get a double when he needed to.  In 2018, Andujar tied the record for most doubles by a rookie in the American League with 47.

As he continued to go through the season, people began to compare him to Manny Machado who early in his career had a lot of doubles, and as he developed he turned them into home runs.

Machado had 51 doubles in his first full season. His first time up was long enough to count him as a rookie, so if he was a rookie in 2013 when he had all of those doubles, Andujar wouldn’t have a share of the rookie record. The Yankees are hoping that Andujar put enough muscle onto his body this winter to do the same thing Machado did with his hitting.

Fielding was a weakness:

Once the end of last season rolled around, Andujar had the worst third base fielding in the MLB, with his fielding percentage less than 95 percent. His glove wasn’t the issue, most of the mistakes he made were just throwing and judgment errors, including his baseball IQ. Andujar has been working hard during the winter to improve his fielding so he can continue to have a starting spot.

Last year at times, Andujar would be removed late from the game and replaced with Neil Walker or Ronald Torreyes. With both players gone, he doesn’t have much of a backup, DJ LeMahieu being the most likely.

Torres’ fielding percentage was just a hair over 96 percent, with his shortstop fielding percentage under 93 percent. That number is slightly concerning, as he likely could be the opening day shortstop with LeMahieu at second. The hype on Torres was his strong defense, and he did make several great plays last season but booted some of the easier ones.

Poor play on defense sometimes leads a player to have poor hitting, and if their poor defense continues in 2019, they may have some trouble at-bat. They need to keep that same mindset at the plate, and more strength may lead to more home runs. Hopefully, Miguel Andujar and Gleyber Torres can avoid the “sophomore slump” in 2019 and make an impact on both sides of the ball.