Implications of the Yankees offensive woes
The Yankees, coming off an eight-run
outburst on Saturday, reverted back to their old ways Sunday, scoring a meager one run in a 3-1 loss to the Orioles at Camden Yards. While many fans are
singling out the bullpen as the reason we lost the game, there was a much
bigger problem facing the team, and it's been a continuous problem all season
long: the Yankees are seriously lacking consistent offense.
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| Screenshot via MLB.TV |
- 430 Hits (lowest in AL)
- .236 Batting Average (lowest in AL)
- .377 Slugging Percentage (lowest in AL)
- .301 On Base Percentage (lowest in AL)
- .219 Average w/ Runners in Scoring Position (lowest in AL)
Unfortunately, those numbers
continued to decline during yesterday's game. As a team, they hit just 1-11 with RISP, which goes to a .090 average. With numbers like that, this team will never
get anywhere, plain and simple. Unless you're throwing a Cy Young candidate on
the mound every day, it's hard to consistently win when you get next to nothing
from your offense, which brings me to my next point.
When you're not scoring, it puts unfair and unnecessary pressure on your pitching staff. They begin to feel as though they have to be near perfect if they want to help their team win. Sadly, throwing a gem still might not be good enough. A perfect example is the game on May 5 in which Yankees played against this same Orioles team. Masahiro Tanaka dominated through eight shutout innings, only giving up five hits and one walk while striking out seven. He would end up with a no-decision, as Baltimore won 1-0 in 10 innings. When you have an ace who goes out and pitches about as good a game as you could hope for, the offense has to help him out and get him a win.
When you're not scoring, it puts unfair and unnecessary pressure on your pitching staff. They begin to feel as though they have to be near perfect if they want to help their team win. Sadly, throwing a gem still might not be good enough. A perfect example is the game on May 5 in which Yankees played against this same Orioles team. Masahiro Tanaka dominated through eight shutout innings, only giving up five hits and one walk while striking out seven. He would end up with a no-decision, as Baltimore won 1-0 in 10 innings. When you have an ace who goes out and pitches about as good a game as you could hope for, the offense has to help him out and get him a win.
Is this something that will turn
around before the season is over? It's highly unlikely, especially when you
consider the age and frailty of many of the starters. Even though there's still two-thirds of the season left to play, it would take a drastic turnaround at this
point for the Yankees to make the playoffs. As fans, we would like nothing more
than to be proven wrong. But realistically, the lack of firepower from this
team will be the reason this team misses October for the third time in the last four years.
Article by: Dan DeGregorio
Follow me on twitter @DanDegregs
Follow the BBB @BronxBomberBlog
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If we're going to lose and miss the playoffs, I'd rather do it with the Baby Bombers. Let them get their feet wet and build toward next year. We need to be sellers at the trade deadline.
ReplyDeleteGreat article!