Here we are at the hypothetical mid-point of the season, the All-Star Break. This year's game will be taking place in our nation's Capitol, Washington D.C. - home of the Washington Nationals. If you hadn't heard, the Yankees will be sending four players to the game: Aaron Judge, Gleyber Torres, Luis Severino, and Aroldis Chapman. Only Aaron Judge has earned the opportunity to start the game. The starting lineups/batting orders was released yesterday before the Home Run Derby competition:
American League:
Mookie Betts (Red Sox) - RF
Jose Altuve (Astros) - 2B
Mike Trout (Angels) - CF
J.D. Martinez (Red Sox) - DH
Jose Ramirez (Indians) - 3B
Aaron Judge (Yankees) - LF
Manny Machado (Orioles) - SS
Jose Abreu (White Sox) - 1B
Salvador Perez (Royals) - C
Chris Sale (Red Sox) - SP
National League:
Javier Baez (Cubs) - 2B
Nolan Arenado (Rockies) - 3B
Paul Goldschmidt (Diamondbacks) - DH
Freddie Freeman (Braves) - 1B
Matt Kemp (Dodgers) - LF
Bryce Harper (Nationals) - CF
Nick Markakis (Braves) - RF
Brandon Crawford (Giants) - SS
Willson Contreras (Cubs) - C
Max Scherzer (Nationals) - SP
One of the first things you'll notice is... how stacked are these teams? Seriously imagine if you could send out one of these lineups on a daily basis... insanity.
Secondly, Judge is the only Yankee starting... cool. However, he will be in Left Field - a position he is quite unfamiliar with. I am guessing because Mookie Betts had more votes, they put him in Right Field - regardless, Judge is a very good athlete and I am sure he will perform perfectly fine in Left Field. He'll likely only be out there a couple innings, so no big deal. The only thing I really have somewhat of an issue with is Chris Sale getting the start on the mound over Luis Severino. Sale has started the previous TWO All-Star Games for the American League, and is likely deserving to start this years Mid-Summer Classic too, but I think Severino should have been given the ball. Let's compare stats really quick to determine who is more deserving (not that this start means much). Sale will probably throw an inning or two, and Severino is slated to pitch second, for an inning.
On the season so far, Chris Sale has started 20 games and holds a 10-4 record, with a 2.23 ERA. He has thrown 129.0 innings and struck out 188 batters, while only walking 31 (0.90 WHIP). He has given up 10 home runs, and opponents hold a .184 Batting Average Against him.
Severino on the other hand has also started 20 games, but holds a 14-2 record, with a 2.31 ERA. He has thrown 128.1 innings and struck out 144 batters, while only walking 32 (1.01 WHIP). He has given up 10 home runs as well, and opponents hold a .209 Batting Average Against him.
Well, Severino only holds an edge in W/L - and many will argue that a pitcher's record alone doesn't determine the quality of pitcher he is. Looking at the stats, Sale does in-fact appear to be the better pitcher (not by much) over Severino, and deserves the starting nod. Maybe next year, Luis...
Both Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, and Gleyber Torres did not participate in the Home Run Derby last night. This set the stage for Bryce Harper's dramatic win over Kyle Schwarber.
The All-Star Game is tonight at 8:00pm, and will be televised on Fox.
With the All-Star Game comes all the talk about the looming trade deadline and what major moves teams will make beforehand. One of the most talked about moves right now is a potential Manny Machado trade. Last week, while the Yankees were in Baltimore - it was announced that Brian Cashman and the Yankees had made a "strong" offer to acquire Machado from one of their division foes. And that was literally all any writer, blogger, twitterer (is that a thing?) could talk about. It wasn't released which prospects were included in the offer, just that it didn't include their top pitching prospect (Justus Sheffield) or Clint Frazier - however that it did include one or more of their top 10 prospects (Florial? or Albert Abreu?). It appears we may never know, as of this morning Jon Heyman tweeted:
"@JonHeyman - Breaking; The Dodgers appear to be the leading contender for superstar Manny Machado as talks head toward the finish line. The situation is fluid and brewers and phillies may still have an outside chance. Barring turnabout, deal should be done this week. Story coming on @Fancred"
So, it would appear the Yankees are out of the running, unless they make a major push right at the end.
You know, a lot of people were complaining that the Yankees didn't need Machado and that they should be focusing on landing a starting pitcher. The problem is, right now the pitchers they had been targeting (Cole Hamels, J.A. Happ, and Michael Fulmer) have been struggling quite a bit of late. Struggling enough to cause teams interest to waver. With these starters struggling, and no sign of any better options - wouldn't it make sense to pull out all of the stops for an elite bat like Machado? A friend of mine shared a really good point with me the other day, with the Yankees adding a bat like Machado would present another tough hitter in an already stacked lineup that the great Astros rotation or Chris Sale will have to get through. If you remember, the last time the Yankees faced Verlander or Sale... that didn't go very well. When you put it that way, it kind of all makes sense to go for it. Alas, it doesn't seem to be happening this season. But, that doesn't mean the Yankees don't try to sign him come the offseason. There was a lot of speculation that the Yankees would trade for Machado and perhaps include Andujar in a deal for a starting pitcher. But, I guess if they don't acquire Machado, then Andujar will stay put.
I would also imagine that if Andujar stays put, then it is likely that Drury won't be a Yankee for much longer. It will be interesting to see what kind of deal Cashman puts together. The other thought was, if the Yankees cannot acquire a starter - look for Sheffield to get a chance in the rotation and have the Yankees make a trade for a quality reliever (Brad Brach or Brad Hand - Brads a plenty).
There were also rumors floating around about the Yankees scouting Angels pitchers Andrew Heaney, but that was squashed pretty quickly.
It came out yesterday that the Mets have been talking to Jacob deGrom's party about signing him to an extension, and his agent CAA's Brodie van Wagenen was quoted as saying "We have discussed Jacob's future with the Mets at length. Jacob has expressed interest in exploring a long-term partnership that would keep him in a Mets uniform for years to come" - in a two part tweet from Ken Rosenthal, "If the Mets don't share same interest, we believe their best course of action is to seriously consider trade opportunities now. The inertia of current situation could complicate Jacob's relationship with the club and creates an atmosphere of indecision." Interesting, right? If I were Cashman, this is the path I would be focused on. The rotation is the Yankees greatest question mark right now. Severino has been incredible this season, but his last start against the Indians had shown he's not always going to have his Ace-like stuff. Sabathia has been somewhat consistent, but both he and Tanaka always have that one mistake pitch that turns into a home run. Sonny Gray is... well, he's an enigma. He has all the tools to be a fantastic pitcher, but has been unable to get the results he was capable of while in Oakland. His last start against Baltimore was fantastic, and if he could find a way to replicate those results the remainder of the season, I think he, the Yankees, and those annoying and negative Yankee fans would ultimately be happy.
Sorry, I apologize - as I myself am a very big Yankee fan. I have been reading other Yankee blogs for years, and have followed the Yankees since I was about five years old. I have lived through the dynasty years, and the drought years, and this year for whatever reason - the fans have been incredibly vicious. I understand that they are in a tough division, and their top rival doesn't seem to ever lose. So, yeah - a loss here and there may turn into huge losses down the line. But, if you were to tell me before last season that at the All-Star break the Yankees would be 29 games over .500 - I would have been ecstatic. We all put a lot of faith in Cashman to rebuild this team. To rid the payroll of terrible contracts, (Still trying to figure out how to get rid of Ellsbury's contract). To make critical trades to re-stock our farm system. He did just that. And now, because one of these young players has a bad game, or has a rough patch of games our instinct is to DFA him immediately or trade him. Or that Boone is a terrible manager, because he took a pitcher out too early, or pinch hit for someone... Look, these guys are professional baseball players AND human beings. They work hard year round, and in all likelihood will come around. They WILL make mistakes - it's going to happen. Like I said, I know it's tough to be patient when the Red Sox seemingly never loose. But, you need to put it into perspective - the Yankees were never supposed to be this good this quickly. These players were catapulted into stardom (Judge, Sanchez, Torres, Andujar, and Severino) - that if they don't experience immediate success, then they're no good. Part of rebuilding (and I would consider the Yankees as still rebuilding) is that you're going to have to deal with the extended slumps and the mistakes just as you would the big hits, and big plays. People forget, for as dominant as Severino is this season (and last) - in 2016 he couldn't buy an out. Judge and Sanchez had so much immediate success that the second they have a bad at-bat people are ready to jump all over them. It's hard to remember that these guys are still kids ALL WITH LESS THAN FIVE YEARS OF EXPERIENCE. Be patient. Be patient with the players, be patient with the manager, and be patient with the Front Office. There are still 67 games left to play - a lot can happen in that time.
End rant.
Before the All-Star Break is over, I would like to put out an article grading the Yankees individual player performances, so look for that later this week.
The Yankees come out of the break with ten straight games, hosting three games against the Mets, three games in Tampa, and then host four games against the Royals. This would be a fantastic opportunity to hopefully gain some ground on the Red Sox.