The Yankees barely squeaked out a win against the Guardians on the second day of May, but they still remain in last place. Injuries have plagued this team, and they need to piece it together until the right guys get healthy; which might be a case of too little, too late.
Aaron Judge went to the IL with a hip strain, Stanton and Donaldson have hamstring injuries, Lou Trevino is done for the year because he needs Tommy John, Severino is still out, Montas is cooked, and Carlos Rodon can’t “get over the hump” of his back injury which he suffered while recovering from a forearm injury. That’s just the tip of the iceberg. It is a total mess in the Bronx right now.
Last season, the Yankees faced a similar offensive problem early on before finally figuring it out. Those problems came back around in the postseason, which lead to a disaster of a series against Houston where they couldn’t consistently perform offensively. It’s the same problem this year. It’s the same team, except right now everyone is injured.
I love what rookie Anthony Volpe is doing. He’s got some magic in him and I love how hard he plays, he is happy to be out there. The same cannot be said for Aaron Hicks. In no universe should he be allowed to step on the field or be in the lineup. He doesn’t try, he makes mental errors, and he is an automatic out at the plate. He brings nothing positive to this team. In a world where the Arizona Diamondbacks are eating almost $40M because they DFA’d Madison Bumgarner, why can’t the Yankees do the same with Aaron Hicks? Especially after this guy went whining to The Athletic about his “role on the team.”
Best Case Scenario: the Yankees get everyone healthy, play up to their standard, make the playoffs, and get eliminated by a much better team because they still suffer from the same problems at their core.
Worst Case Scenario: no one can stay healthy, they continue to play a frustrating brand of baseball and finish dead last in the AL East.
The thing about the Worst Case Scenario is nothing will change. No one gets held accountable. Not the medical staff (something needs to happen if these injuries happen year after year), not Aaron Boone, and not Brian Cashman. I said on From My Point of View that Cashman and Boone should have been let go after last years embarrassing loss to the Astros in the ALCS. Instead, Cashman got an extension and Boone remains the skipper.
Hal Steinbrenner refuses to hold anyone accountable. Hicks plays and acts horribly, and is still in the lineup, he doesn’t hold Boone or Cashman accountable despite bad decisions, ie: Boone taking out German when he shouldn’t have and then the Yankees losing the game to the Guardians; Frankie Montas trade knowing he was injured. Those are just recently too, but they are indications of a much larger issue. Even if they figure it out and finish strong and make the playoffs, I don’t think this team is a threat.
The Yankees need a major shakeup.
Leave A Comment