Yankees Dog Daze

 

By Andrew Rosario

 

 

The New York Yankees had a first half season that saw them have the best record in team history with 64 wins by the All-Star break. They could do nothing wrong. Led by Aaron Judge, who arguably was the Most Valuable Player in the American League, went deep 33 times. The ace of the pitching staff Gerrit Cole, finished the first half with a 9-2 record and a 3.02 ERA. The relief core picked up the slack and it seemed like every time the team needed a big hit, someone new would come through. Then came August commonly known as the Dog Days.

 

 

 

 

After the Yankees were shut out Monday night 4-0 at the hands of the Tampa Bay Rays, it was their second straight shut out as they were blanked last Sunday night 3-0 to the Boston Red Sox. It was only the second time since 2016 they would be shut out in back-to-back game. After the team lost 5 straight games in early August, manager Aaron Boone called a team meeting. The squad got the message as they broke the streak the following game. Unfortunately, it was only a temporary fix.

 

Since then, New York has lost 5 of their last 6 games. Their overall record in August is a sorry 8-16. Every facet of their game is struggling. Look at these post All Star game stats:

.217 batting average with runners in scoring position.

4.1 runs a game compared to 5.6 prior to the break.

4.61 ERA by the starters.

 

The Yankees were in first place by 4 games over the Houston Astros before the break. After the loss Monday night, they trailed Houston by 2 1/2 games. The only saving grace is that the top two teams in the American League at the end of the season get a bye in the first round of the playoffs. 

 

In the loss Monday night, the Yankees had more than enough chance to break the game open. The biggest culprit was centerfielder Aaron Hicks who first misplayed a fly ball that led the Rays to score first 1-0. His biggest gaffe came when he batted with the bases loaded only to hit into a double play. Earlier in the game he came up with runners on first and second and failed to move them over by striking out. To his credit, he didn’t duck the media after the game. “Extremely frustrating. Second inning, with a guy on first and second and I ended up striking out and not getting the job done and come back up with the bases loaded. I try to stay short and try to hit the ball up the middle and end up cuing the ball right back to the pitcher for a double play. Just overall, extremely embarrassing, actually. Even if I’m not hitting, I want my defense to be on point. And I messed up out there as well, said Hicks.