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Thoughts on the Yankee Offense & Defense

By TanyaAnderson Updated

(Stats via Fangraphs and B-Ref)

  • Apparently the rumors of Alex Rodriguez's demise have been greatly exaggerated for now. A-Rod is currently third on the team in hits, wRC+, and wOBA, and second in fWAR. It would appear that the centaur is heating up before our eyes, but because the homers haven't been there yet, he's still doomed. Hopefully the grand slam in Atlanta is a sign that some of those long fly outs to the warning track will start finding the seats.
  • The Yankees have the least amount of errors in baseball with 25 which is a little surprising if you only looked at their collective dWAR numbers. Only Russell Martin, Mark Teixeira, and Robinson Cano have a positive mark in that department among the starters. After watching Curtis Granderson continue to take awful routes to balls and misjudge whether his first step should be forward or backward, I'm surprised his dWAR isn't lower than it already is.
  • In limited innings, Defensive Catcher Chris Stewart has narrowly out-dWAR'd The Second Coming of Thurman Munson, but to my eye alone, Stewart hasn't really done anything impressive behind the plate. He's tied for 3rd in baseball with five passed balls in only 17 games. I would say Martin needs to pick up his defensive skills if he really wants that extension but I highly doubt that that's true.
  • Cano and Granderson are going to be getting paid by the truckload soon, and they are making it very difficult for Brian Cashman to not be the one driving that truck up to their front door. I would love for the Yankees to work this off season to sign Cano to an extension, but I am sure Scott Boras will be having none of that. It might leave a dollar or two on the table and we can't have that. The situation is tougher for Grandy, who I assume will not be able to stay in centerfield for the remainder of his next contract but will surely want top dollar for being among the best recently. If one of Mason Williams, Tyler Austin, or even Slade Heathcott manages to progress quickly, I could see Granderson pricing himself out of the 2014 version of Yankees on a Budget.
  • Derek Jeter and Raul Ibanez were offensive forces at the beginning of 2012, proving any doubters and haters who questioned their ability to produce at their advanced age wrong. Both have cooled off their torrid pace, though their season numbers are still quite respectable because of their hot start. Still, it's difficult to look at the charts below and not be a little concerned. With the exception of Ibanez's average (hence troll face), the other numbers have had a pretty steep drop off. Hopefully those two can stop the free fall sooner rather than later. You can probably hold off on your apologies for now.

    • Alex Rodriguez leads this team in stolen bases. I don't even...
    • I have conflicting feelings over Jayson Nix and DeWayne Wise being on the big league roster. On one hand, they barely play, so how much can it really matter? On the other hand, I'd really like to see Ronnier Mustelier get a shot while he's hot. Maybe he won't be like Jorge Vazquez and fall off a huge cliff, missing any shot he had at the majors; but if he does, I'll regret that the Yankees chose not to play the hot hand while the perfect opportunity presented itself. If he got called up and only used as frequently as David Phelps was, he's probably better off in AAA.
    • The Yankees have hit into 56 double plays so far this season. Derek Jeter leads everyone with 11 (one more than he hit into all of last year), while A-Rod, Tex, and Cano each have seven. You should try to do other things instead, guys.

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