With the All-Star break in effect, it comes time to make evaluations as the New York Yankees have officially reached the unofficial ‘halfway’ mark.
With an 11-7 victory over the Cleveland Indians yesterday, the New York Yankees finished up the first half of their 2016 campaign fittingly. Their 44-44 record defines their mediocrity, their sudden ability to take a series from the prominent Cleveland Indians demonstrates their inconsistent nature, and the question marks that persist only raise eyebrows.
However, with all that has gone wrong with Joe Girardi’s team, the argument can be made that they should be generally satisfied with where they are. Following a dismal 8-16 start to the season, they played at a 91-win pace up until the break.
At the rate which they have played since their awful early season spell, they would win 42 out of their final 74 games and be right in the mix as an 86-win team. With that said, a lot has to go right.
The factors that have to turn in the right direction are the same exact factors that failed the Yankees in the first half. 7.5 games off the pace in the AL East and 5.5 games out of a playoff spot, there is certainly a sizable hole that was dug both collectively and by individual supplements.
A sample size which has grown large provides for the ability to judge players fairly and accurately. Right now, this is an undistinguished 81-win team with several letdowns on the 25-man roster.
A starting rotation that entered the season with so much uncertainty and ‘if’ factors has lived up to its name. Overall, the staff that comprises mainly of Masahiro Tanaka, Michael Pineda, Ivan Nova, CC Sabathia, and Nathan Eovaldi has simply not gotten the job done. In fact, Tanaka is arguably the only guy who has kept it purely consistent.
The unit has combined for a 26-34 record and an ERA that ranks 23rd in baseball (4.80). In addition, the team’s starters only give them an average of just over five and a half innings a start.
With shallow middle relief prior to the ultimate hammer, the team has been left vulnerable when not provided with length.
Pineda was brutal to watch over his first handful of starts before finally pitching respectably, Eovaldi completely fell off the table prior to a brief demotion to the bullpen, Nova has been extremely shaky in his 12 starts, and CC has become a mystery after an absolutely brilliant start to his campaign.
Question marks, question marks, question marks.
The starting rotation is as much to blame as any other aspect of the team, and it will continue to draw scrutiny if second half improvements or alterations are not made.
Yet another inconsistent factor involved with the team. One night the offense will break out for 20 hits, and then the following week they will be lucky to manage 25 hits total.
Positives and negatives all the way around describe an offense which ranks 20th in batting average, 23rd in on-base percentage, and 26th in slugging.
Bright Spots
–Jacoby Ellsbury is quietly having a bounce back year while catalyzing the offense. His .279 batting average heavily outweighs anything he did a year ago and general health has resided with the 32-year-old.
-Simply put: Carlos Beltran has been absolutely sensational. The 39-year-old wonder will head to San Diego and deservingly so. Playing in 83 of the team’s 88 games, he finished the first half with a .299 average, 19 homers, and 56 runs batted in. What does that put him on pace for? How about 35 round-trippers and 103 RBIs.
–Didi Gregorius is having his breakout season and proving that he can be a flat-out star in this league. Arguably snubbed of an All-Star appearance, he heads to the break hitting .298 with an already career-high 11 homers. At this rate he would finish with 20 homers and 75 RBIs to go along with his .796 OPS. That would be the best season by a Yankee shortstop production-wise since 2012.
Busts
–Mark Teixeira nearly carried the New York Yankees to the promise land a year ago and was one of the main reasons they were right in the thick of things. This year, he is battling with the mendoza line. A first half that featured a .193 average, 7 home runs, 20 RBIs, and an awful .588 OPS has been extremely detrimental to the offense. Not to mention the articular cartilage tear he suffered that puts the remainder of his career in jeopardy.
–Alex Rodriguez signifies the second aging bopper that has underperformed. His .220 average and eight homers kept him as a benchwarmer for nine out of the final 10 games leading into the break. The 40-year-old will enter the second half with confusion as to the role he has on the roster. Following a magnificent comeback season one year ago, A-Rod has been a sheer disappointment. 695 homers is where he will stay until he can find himself some consistent at-bats.
Dellin Betances, Andrew Miller, and Aroldis Chapman have been as good as advertised. The monstrous trio has kept the Yanks in some games they had no business being in, and helped them steal wins as well.
However, the middle relief has often taken away from the hype at the back-end. Every arm the Yankees have called upon or tapped from the so-called ‘Scranton Shuttle’ has not panned out.
The ultimate result is a bullpen that ranks 13th in baseball with a disappointing 3.84 ERA. Thanks to the big three, they do lead in strikeouts (320) but they have to hope the middle relief woes will not overshadow what should be a dynamic overall ‘pen.
If the Yanks put together a good stretch of baseball out of the gates in the second half and become buyers, a decent sixth-inning man is what they will be in desperate search of.
The Yankee bench provides a mixed reaction if there ever was one. Rob Refsnyder has been stellar serving as a utility guy and his potent bat off the bench has often found him in the starting lineup. Furthermore, Austin Romine has provided an unexpected offensive lift out of his backup catching duties.
However, the bench has its flaws as well. While Ronald Torreyes was a nice addition, you probably see him once a week if you are lucky. He is as nonexistent as it gets, but at least he is not of the horrendous nonexistent nature which belongs to Aaron Hicks.
The 26-year-old offseason acquisition has been absolutely dreadful in his transition to a part-time playing role. His slash is .197/.261/.301 overall and a horrific .155/.218/.225 against left-handers — what the organization pays him to do. If it was not for the franchise’s obsession with having a young outfielder as a three-to-four times a week insurance policy, he would be long gone.
The New York Yankees are a mediocre team. If they want to contend and make a run, they buy. If they want to look towards a potentially bright future, they sell. If they want to finish with 80-82 wins, they stand pat.
Offseason improvements combined with what they already had were expected to help improve last year’s win total. If you take the first half with that in mind, disappointment will be the immediate result.
On the other hand, if you consider the fact that everyone is a year older and the additions have only helped this team from crumbling, you might view a 44-44 first half a general success.
A .500 clip at the break provides the organization with a chance to declare themselves. They know who they are and, in turn, envision what lies ahead.
The normal mindset of the front office would entail the thought that the Yankees are too good for .500 baseball and Yankee Stadium is too good for empty seats. On the contrary, new and innovative minds may view the team as fortunate to have avoided implosion.
Take it for what it is because there is certainly no promise land in sight.