The Biggest Disappointments From Yankees Spring Training So Far
Last blog I mentioned how positive everything was in Yankees camp with the baby bombers mashing at an absurd rate. There’s actually some legitimate optimism surrounding this team and it’s really exciting. Well, it’s not all sunshine and rainbows in Tampa, Florida these days and there have been some major letdowns from guys that should be producing at this point. Cue the fat lady because it’s the end of the road for most of these guys.
The sand in the hourglass is almost all at the bottom for Rob Refsnyder these days. There was so much hype and promise for the once dubbed second baseman of the future after his first weekend against the Sox in 2015. Remember this bomb?
Through 33 at bats, the “asian sensation” is batting a minuscule .212 with only one homer to show for it. Coming off a 2016 season that saw him go homer-less in 58 games, the once thought power hitting second baseman has seen his value decrease at a rapid pace. With the emergence of Tyler Wade this Spring, and the proven midget Ronald Torreyes, the Yankees will soon be looking for a trade partner to take Refsnyder. Wade has essentially become everything we had hoped Ref would be in just a much quicker fashion. With Didi’s recent injury it’s becoming a reality that Wade starts at shortstop on opening day after hitting .394 through 33 at bats, catching the eye of everyone in the organization. It’s so fucking disappointing Refsnyder hasn’t developed into an everyday player at this point. For a while he was free to mail it in everyday because of the lack luster farm system we possessed, but now that we’re stacked beyond belief Ref should be packing his bags and waiting for the call to see what city he’s moving to. SEE YA
Chase Headley 3B
With a team of rising youngsters, the 32 year old third baseman’s days in pinstripes are numbered. Hitting .257 in Spring is eh, but he’ll still get the opening day nod, because at the moment we have no one else. You lucky motherfucker Chase. Double A Prospect Miguel Andujar has impressed pretty much everyone this Spring despite being only 21 years old. He’s still got a long ways to go defensively, but Headley can start looking over his shoulder if Andujar continues his hot Spring (.304) into the minors. If the baby bombers start really producing in the big leagues and this team has the looks of a contender, we may see Cashman look into the hot corner market for a temporary fix. Evan Longoria’s name has been tossed around as a potential fit (obviously he’s a fit he’s Evan Fucking Longoria), but our eyes at third should be centrally focused on Mr. Machado. Headley showed a glimpse of promise last July when he hit .286, but those numbers tailed off badly over the last two months of the season. He was brought in for his gold glove caliber fielding accompanied by solid hitting. He’s been shaky at best during his time at third, having us hold our breathe whenever he gets ready to throw across the diamond, and the hitting has been below average at best. One more year folks. One fucking year until Manny Machado becomes our future. We can do this. For now close your eyes whenever the ball get his in the vicinity of third base.
Between A(Advanced), AA, and AAA, Holder compiled an eye-popping 1.65 ERA in 65.1 IP with a 101/7 K to BB ratio. He came into this Spring with a real shot at winning one of the final bullpen spots for the big league team. February and March have not treated Holder nicely as he’s posted a 4.32 ERA in 8.1 IP. The Tigers had a lot to do with that ERA when they took him to the woodshed for four runs on four hits in an inning and two-thirds. Take out that one bad outing and his numbers are solid so it depends if Girardi has liked what he’s seen, minus the Detroit outing, if Holder makes the squad. As of now they’re going to get a longer look at Holder as he’s yet to be sent down. In short, this coming week will be huge for the reliever.
Brett Gardner LF
Brett has been on the trade block for quite sometime and this has to be the year he gets sent packing. Being owed $12.5 mill and $11.5 mill the next two years will make it a tad difficult to deal a 33 year old who’s really fast, but can’t steal bases or hit for a solid average. If you’re going to be the lead off man you need to either get on base frequently and/or steal bases. Gardner does neither (2016: BA/OBP .261/.351 with 16 steals). This Spring he’s hit a miserable .209 with a grand total of ONE stolen base. What a fucking waste of a player. I’m also going to guess he’ll be caught with doing steroids from 2014-2015 when he hit over 15 homers in consecutive years. Maybe one of the more fishy things to be swept under the rug for a guy who never hit over eight any other year. If the Yanks can find a trade partner for Gardner. probably a team with poor outfield defense, they’ll pull the trigger in a heart beat. Hopefully SEE YA
Jorge Mateo SS/CF
He’s still very young (21), but a .136 batting average in 22 at bats is not what I want to see from a guy that’s been talked about for a few years now. Before we developed into one of the best farm systems in baseball, Mateo was looked upon as the future at short stop. Now, because of the cluster fuck at short, Mateo has been getting work in center field. From my understanding he’s the best athlete in the entire system so it makes sense to test him out in center. He was optioned back to minor league camp on Friday and will continue to see work at second, as well as center. To the contrary of the guys I mentioned above, Mateo has plenty of time to develop, because the Yankees see the potential he has with his pure athletic ability. He’ll stick somewhere, and maybe center field is the place, we’ll just have to wait and see.
Agree? Disagree? Are you the one guy that still believes in Rob Refsnyder? I’m here @ehubbs13