The New York Yankees may have the best record in the American League as of this writing, entering Wednesday’s game against the Washington Nationals at 78-55, but they are still a flawed baseball team.
They lead the AL in runs, which is fantastic, but a huge part of that can be attributed to Aaron Judge and Juan Soto, two extremely great players. The supporting cast is underwhelming, with DJ LeMahieu being the main issue. The two-time batting champion has suffered hard at the plate this season, but Aaron Boone hasn’t stopped using him at all costs, even when the analytics show he shouldn’t.
He put LeMahieu in a critical position on Tuesday, and it backfired. He’ll start LeMahieu again on Wednesday. That will almost certainly backfire as well. Aaron Boone, the manager whom Yankees fans have long despised, is to blame. With moves like these, he continues to demonstrate to his admirers that they were correct.
Aaron Boone should be fired if he continues to play DJ LeMahieu on a regular basis.
On Tuesday, the Yankees faced a daunting task: try to rally from a 4-1 deficit into the ninth inning against Nationals All-Star closer Kyle Finnegan. The odds were stacked against them, especially because Soto and Judge had hit the inning before, but they kept things intriguing.
Three of the first four batters reached on hits. The Yankees scored a run to close the gap to two runs, and the tying runs were on base with one out for LeMahieu. Rather than resort to his bench for switch-hitter Oswaldo Cabrera, Boone persisted with LeMahieu, who flied out. Gleyber Torres then flied out with Soto on deck, and the Yankees lost 4-2 in a game they will want to reclaim if the Baltimore Orioles catch them in the AL East.
When asked why LeMahieu, a hitter slashing.200/.267/.256, was allowed to face the right-handed Finnegan, Boone offered a simple reason. He stated that he stuck with the right-handed hitter against the right-handed pitcher because Finnegan is superior versus lefties.
In Boone’s defence, the statistics back it up.
Even though Finnegan is superior against righties, the Yankees might have brought up a better bat than LeMahieu, but that explanation makes logic. For what it’s worth, LeMahieu has performed better against right-handed pitching than left-handed pitchers.
Given that Boone played the numbers in that big moment on Tuesday, can anyone explain why LeMahieu is in the lineup on Wednesday? The Yankees will face MacKenzie Gore, a left-handed starter who has performed better against righties than lefties this season. Boone essentially stated that it is about having more balance between righties and lefties.
So let’s get this straight. LeMahieu got to hit in a critical situation on Tuesday because the pitcher is better against left-handed hitters, but did you play LeMahieu, a player who has been better against right-handed pitching, against a lefty who has been better against lefties, just to balance the lineup? If you really wanted balance, you could have put the switch-hitting Cabrera at first base instead of LeMahieu; it is that simple. You seem to like LeMahieu and want to play him no matter what.
Boone noted LeMahieu’s track record and the fact that he received a later start due to injury as reasons why he continues to earn opportunities. Both are relatively fair, although he has participated in 65 games. If he can’t hit in 65 games, he may not be good anymore. Furthermore, this is a batter who hasn’t been the same since winning the batting title during the truncated 2020 season.
Respecting veterans is vital to some extent, but the Yankees are at a critical moment in the season. Every game every win counts. The Yankees cannot afford to play LeMahieu, especially in games where his presence is unnecessary. Why start him if he struggles against lefties and the lefty excels versus righties? Aaron Boone, it’s time to play your top players. If not, the Yankees will not be able to move forward.
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