The New York Yankees, or hottest team in baseball, would be nowhere without the contribution of Ronald Torreyes.
When you think about how great of a start the New York Yankees are off to in 2017, there is a whole host of reasons that come to mind as to their success.
Some, to name a few, are the starting pitching, the power of Aaron Judge and the effectiveness of New York’s lights out bullpen.
A couple of things you might not have come up with is the play of Austin Romine, the backup catcher who’s filling in for the injured Gary Sanchez, and their lucky charm that could fit in the pocket of Judge; Ronald “Toe” Torreyes.
Torreyes not only did an outstanding job filling in for Didi Gregorius while he was on the disabled list with a shoulder strain, but the “little engine that could” led American League shortstops (min. 60 AB) in batting average (.318) and ranked inside the Top-5 in on-base percentage (.318), slugging percentage (.439), RBI (13) and had the lowest strikeout rate (9.1 %).
His defensive range and abilities have helped the Yanks to be amongst the league leaders in fewest team errors with a total of eight. Not to mention, you can’t help but smile every time you see the diminutive shortstop celebrate his team’s achievements.
Looking like something out of a Make A Wish Foundation commercial, the 6-foot-8 Judge holds his arms up as high as he can in order to make his 5-foot-7 mini me try to reach it. It seriously makes me laugh out loud every time I see it.
As for Romine, the backup catcher stepped up for Gary Sanchez in a huge way in their game two series-clinching victories over the Orioles on Saturday. He joined the long ball party while collecting a career-high five RBIs in their 12-4 rout of Baltimore.
In fact, he is five-for-eight with runners in scoring position this season and has posted the third-best catcher’s ERA (3.23). Gary who?
Despite his offensive outburst this afternoon, Romine has been exceptional calling pitches behind the dish in Sanchez’s absence, helping to lead the club to a Major League-best record of 15-7. Even when Gary returns, Romine should absolutely be the personal catcher for Michael Pineda. Though Pineda didn’t make it through six in his last start, the strong relationship established with Ro has led to an eye-popping 37-to-4 strikeout-to-walk ratio for Big Mike
Whether it be rabbit’s feet, a lucky Toe or a clutch Ro, it appears as though it is going to be a really fun summer in the Bronx this season.