clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Around the Empire: Yankees news - 6/8/21

DJ LeMahieu continues to struggle; don’t expect the Yankees to be sellers; one sign-stealing moment that led to 2019 ALCS tensions; former Yankee Todd Frazier excels in U.S. Olympic qualifiers

Boston Red Sox v New York Yankees Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images

NJ.com | Brendan Kuty: In very few places has the Yankees’ struggles been more obvious than in DJ LeMahieu’s 2021 so far. After back-to-back excellent seasons, the Yankees brought back LeMahieu on a six-year deal, but he hasn’t come close to matching 2019-20. Aaron Boone and the team insist that he is close to regaining the form that made him into a MVP candidate.

New York Post | Ken Davidoff: Some fans have taken the Yankees’ struggles this season as a sign that the team should be sellers at the deadline, like the 2016 team was before. However, don’t expect it. While that team was near the end of its competitive cycle, this team is, at least in theory, still in it.

Yahoo Sports | Andy Martino: This is a reprinting of a passage from Cheated: The Inside Story of the Astros Scandal and a Colorful History of Sign Stealing by Andy Martino. In particular, it is about an pre-game inspection of Minute Maid Park ahead of the 2019 ALCS that Yankees’ officials demanded, and the ensuing bad blood it led to in the rest of that series.

NJ.com | Mike Rosenstein: The US national baseball team qualified for this summer’s Olympics, featuring several notable names including former Yankee David Robertson. However, it was another former Yankee who starred in the clinching game. Todd Frazier went 4-4 in the clinching game after being released by the Pirates earlier this season.