Quick (Close To No) Hit: Rangers Shutout Yanks

by Paul Semendinger

April 29, 2023

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Uggg. The Yankees managed three hits against Nathan Eovaldi who walked none and struck out eight. Over their last nine games, the Yankees are 3-6.

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All winter, I stated that the Yankees were building a team that did not look strong offensively.

Here are the starters in the game tonight and their batting averages for the year:

1. Volpe - .216

2. Rizzo - .293

3. Torres - .244

4. LeMahieu - .256

5. Calhoun - .243

6. Cabrera - .207

7. Trevino - .237

8. Bauers - .000 (just called up) - replaced by Hicks .125

9. Kiner-Falefa - .174

The Yankees are 15-13 on the year. They are on pace to win 87 games. In games Gerrit Cole doesn't start, and earn a win, the Yankees are 10-13.

I know, it's only April, but this is no longer just a small sample size.

Dating back to July 1, 2022, the last four full months (plus 6 games in October) of Yankees baseball, the Yankees are 58-55. We're now talking a sample size of 113 games. (That's on pace to win 79 games over 162 games.)

As they planned for the 2023 season, the Yankees:

• Never got a left fielder.

• Never added a quality lefty bat to the lineup

• Hoped that the frequently injured Harrison Bader would be a regular.

• Hoped that the frequently injured Giancarlo Stanton would be a regular.

• Hoped that Josh Donaldson would revert to how he played years ago.

• Hoped that the frequently injured Luis Severino would stay healthy.

• Hoped that the injured (when they got him) Frankie Montas) would somehow be healthy and be the fifth starter

• Hoped that the frequently injured Tommy Kahnle would help the bullpen

• Hoped that Aaron Judge would play at the level he played at last year

• Hoped that Aaron Hicks perform better than he has in many years...

None of those things have happened yet.

It wasn't a good plan. It was a lot of wishful thinking. We heard last year that the "process" was sound. "It's not the results," we were told.

Well, I hate to say it, but the results aren't good. And neither was the process.

I know a lot of people feel that the Yankees will suddenly turn it all around. I don't. What we see if a flawed team playing flawed baseball.