2024 New York Yankees Season Thread

[ButlerBulldog]

Yankees fans are losing their minds this morning because Giancarlo Stanton was thrown out at second base on what should’ve been a single to RF by Austin Wells but instead became a fielder’s choice.  Although I think Stanton has been a disappointment since joining the Yankees, I’ve grown weary of the constant criticism he receives from our fanbase.  On this particular play, he did everything a baserunner’s supposed to do on a line-drive, and he was thrown out because he doesn’t run well.  People need to get a grip.

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

11 minutes ago, ButlerBulldog said:

Yankees fans are losing their minds this morning because Giancarlo Stanton was thrown out at second base on what should’ve been a single to RF by Austin Wells but instead became a fielder’s choice.  Although I think Stanton has been a disappointment since joining the Yankees, I’ve grown weary of the constant criticism he receives from our fanbase.  On this particular play, he did everything a baserunner’s supposed to do on a line-drive, and he was thrown out because he doesn’t run well.  People need to get a grip.

If there’s one guy who’s NEVER getting the benefit of the doubt from Yankees fans, it’s Stanton.  Just is what it is.

[NJDevs4978]

I saw a stat recently where Stanton had the most career HR’s by a Marlin since 2017 with 59…and that was his only season there since 2017 lol

He has fallen off dramatically the last 2+ years though, OBP’s way under .300 and his career OBP is just under .350

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

2 minutes ago, NJDevs4978 said:

I saw a stat recently where Stanton had the most career HR’s by a Marlin since 2017 with 59…and that was his only season there since 2017 lol

He has fallen off dramatically the last 2+ years though, OBP’s way under .300 and his career OBP is just under .350

At the plate, he's like a poor man's Alonso at this point:  he's slashed .206/.288/.446 since the start of 2022.  He strikes out a TON to boot (293 in 971 plate appearances).  And of course can't stay healthy.

408 career HR and only 34 years old, but man what an odd career he's had.  Really sucks when you're brittle AND declining rapidly.

[ButlerBulldog]

7 hours ago, NJDevs4978 said:

I saw a stat recently where Stanton had the most career HR’s by a Marlin since 2017 with 59…and that was his only season there since 2017 lol

He has fallen off dramatically the last 2+ years though, OBP’s way under .300 and his career OBP is just under .350

I saw that stat as well.  It’s an indictment of the Marlins’ ability to develop position players that a player who’s been off the roster for seven years has more home runs than anyone who’s since played for them.

7 hours ago, Colorado Rockies 1976 said:

At the plate, he's like a poor man's Alonso at this point:  he's slashed .206/.288/.446 since the start of 2022.  He strikes out a TON to boot (293 in 971 plate appearances).  And of course can't stay healthy.

408 career HR and only 34 years old, but man what an odd career he's had.  Really sucks when you're brittle AND declining rapidly.

I’m not sure what the Yankees will do with Stanton long-term, as he can no longer play the outfield, and there’s not much of a market for aging right-handed sluggers on the decline.  What’s really scary is that he still has three more years on his contract.

[ButlerBulldog]

With tonight’s loss, the Yankees now trail the Orioles by one game in the AL East in what projects to be an interesting race between the two teams as the spring and summer unfold.  Juan Soto continued his torrid start to the season by hitting a ball onto Eutaw Street.

 

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

14 hours ago, ButlerBulldog said:

I saw that stat as well.  It’s an indictment of the Marlins’ ability to develop position players that a player who’s been off the roster for seven years has more home runs than anyone who’s since played for them.

I’m not sure what the Yankees will do with Stanton long-term, as he can no longer play the outfield, and there’s not much of a market for aging right-handed sluggers on the decline.  What’s really scary is that he still has three more years on his contract.

I'm guessing they'll release him prior to the 2027 season, and eat what they have to eat...but of course, that won't help now, or in 2025 or 2026.

I think Cashman occasionally takes unfair criticism, but sometimes it really feels like he does things because he CAN, as opposed to doing things he SHOULD.  Yankees never really needed Stanton, but Cash sometimes sees that shiny toy and decides he's just gotta have it.  

[NJDevs4978]

45 minutes ago, Colorado Rockies 1976 said:

I'm guessing they'll release him prior to the 2027 season, and eat what they have to eat...but of course, that won't help now, or in 2025 or 2026.

I think Cashman occasionally takes unfair criticism, but sometimes it really feels like he does things because he CAN, as opposed to doing things he SHOULD.  Yankees never really needed Stanton, but Cash sometimes sees that shiny toy and decides he's just gotta have it.  

That and Stanton made it too easy, he was only gonna waive his no trade for like four teams and the others didn’t bite so the Yankees could pretty much name their price.

Edited May 1 by NJDevs4978

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

3 minutes ago, NJDevs4978 said:

That and Stanton made it too easy, he was only gonna waive his no trade for like four teams and the others didn’t bite so the Yankees could pretty much name their price.

And it's not like he's had NO success at all with the Yankees but between missing so many games due to injury and now being a shell of himself who can no longer run or play the field...yikes.  

[ButlerBulldog]

2 hours ago, Colorado Rockies 1976 said:

I'm guessing they'll release him prior to the 2027 season, and eat what they have to eat...but of course, that won't help now, or in 2025 or 2026.

I think Cashman occasionally takes unfair criticism, but sometimes it really feels like he does things because he CAN, as opposed to doing things he SHOULD.  Yankees never really needed Stanton, but Cash sometimes sees that shiny toy and decides he's just gotta have it.  

The Stanton acquisition happened for two reasons:

1. It was Cashman’s consolation prize for the fanbase after losing out on Ohtani because the latter didn’t want to play on the East Coast.

2. Stanton-to-Boston rumors were popping up all over the place, so Cashman pulled the trigger on the deal to keep the Red Sox from getting him.

Hindsight is always 20/20, but the trade was clearly a mistake, as it not only saddled the Yankees with an aging, one-dimensional player but also eliminated them from the Harper/Machado sweepstakes the following offseason.  Harper’s had his own injury problems, of course, but he’s also performed at the highest level in big moments and might have helped the Yankees get over the hump against the Astros.

[ButlerBulldog]

 

[ButlerBulldog]

Weren’t we just talking about this, @Colorado Rockies 1976?

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

1 hour ago, ButlerBulldog said:

Weren’t we just talking about this, @Colorado Rockies 1976?

Really was such a crazy time for that franchise.  Even though the championships haven't been coming at a rate the Yankee faithful expect over the last couple of decades, they're still respectable and competitive most seasons.  They had become SUCH a joke for that relatively brief period...and even though the Mets didn't really do THAT much in the grand scheme back then (only making the playoffs in 1986 and 1988, and of course, only one WS appearance), they absolutely owned NY for about 6-7 years.  They haven't since of course...not even close. 

Edited May 2 by Colorado Rockies 1976

[ButlerBulldog]

36 minutes ago, Colorado Rockies 1976 said:

Really was such a crazy time for that franchise.  Even though the championships haven't been coming at a rate the Yankee faithful expect over the last couple of decades, they're still respectable and competitive most seasons.  They had become SUCH a joke for that relatively brief period...and even though the Mets didn't really do THAT much in the grand scheme back then (only making the playoffs in 1986 and 1988, and of course, only one WS appearance), they absolutely owned NY for about 6-7 years.  They haven't since of course...not even close. 

Agreed.  1993 is when the pendulum started to swing back toward the Yankees, as that was the season in which George Steinbrenner was reinstated, and a rejuvenated Bombers squad finished second in the AL East (88-74) after acquiring Wade Boggs, Jimmy Key, Paul O’Neill, Jim Abbott, and Spike Owen during the previous offseason.  The Mets, by contrast, finished 59-103 despite big years from Bobby Bonilla and Eddie Murray.

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

34 minutes ago, ButlerBulldog said:

Agreed.  1993 is when the pendulum started to swing back toward the Yankees, as that was the season in which George Steinbrenner was reinstated, and a rejuvenated Bombers squad finished second in the AL East (88-74) after acquiring Wade Boggs, Jimmy Key, Paul O’Neill, Jim Abbott, and Spike Owen during the previous offseason.  The Mets, by contrast, finished 59-103 despite big years from Bobby Bonilla and Eddie Murray.

The reason those bad Yankee teams have some mystique is because they were SO unlike the franchise's norm.

It's the same reason that the 1986 Mets have a similar level of mystique...because the ultimate success is SO unlike the franchise's norm, heh heh.

The Mets' tumble had already started in 1991...they were actually having a pretty good season and then they collapsed big-time that year, tried to buy their way back into contention prior to 1992 and saw that fail spectacularly.  Once Bobby V became the manager things started to head in the right direction, but that guy was so deeply insecure and had a major inferiority complex, he really did.  It's sad because he's no dummy when it comes to baseball, but in a lot of ways I think he was absolutely his own worst enemy as a manager.  He was one of those types who get on people's nerves without even really trying.

[ButlerBulldog]

10 minutes ago, Colorado Rockies 1976 said:

The reason those bad Yankee teams have some mystique is because they were SO unlike the franchise's norm.

It's the same reason that the 1986 Mets have a similar level of mystique...because the ultimate success is SO unlike the franchise's norm, heh heh.

The Mets' tumble had already started in 1991...they were actually having a pretty good season and then they collapsed big-time that year, tried to buy their way back into contention prior to 1992 and saw that fail spectacularly.  Once Bobby V became the manager things started to head in the right direction, but that guy was so deeply insecure and had a major inferiority complex, he really did.  It's sad because he's no dummy when it comes to baseball, but in a lot of ways I think he was absolutely his own worst enemy as a manager.  He was one of those types who get on people's nerves without even really trying.

I stopped taking Valentine seriously after he donned the Charlie Chaplin-esque disguise to work around a 1999 ejection.  If I remember correctly, his interpersonal shortcomings indirectly got Gary Thorne fired after 2002, as Mets management was none to happy about the latter disclosing that most of the players on the previous season’s team didn’t like playing for Bobby.

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

2 hours ago, ButlerBulldog said:

I stopped taking Valentine seriously after he donned the Charlie Chaplin-esque disguise to work around a 1999 ejection.  If I remember correctly, his interpersonal shortcomings indirectly got Gary Thorne fired after 2002, as Mets management was none to happy about the latter disclosing that most of the players on the previous season’s team didn’t like playing for Bobby.

According to Piazza’s book, that whole disguise bit was Bobby being more silly than anything else, to get a bit of a laugh out of his team.  But Piazza made it clear that Bobby is the kind of guy that you’re pretty much going to have a love-hate relationship with, at best…and I think that was true of most of the Mets at the time.  

[ButlerBulldog]

I know I’ve been harping on umpires’ collective insecurity a lot lately, but these guys really need to have thicker skin.  Judge was clearly walking away when he was tossed.

[ButlerBulldog]

The stupidity of Major League umpires has reached yet another low.  After allowing the Tigers and Yankees to play into the 8th inning despite miserable weather conditions, Allan Porter and his crew decided to halt the game after the rain had temporarily stopped, apparently so that they can wait for more to pass through the area.

The Yankees are leading 5-2, so I won’t complain if the game is eventually called, but I don’t understand this at all.  The field wasn’t in great shape, but with only an inning or so remaining, why not just finish things up, especially with the Tigers leaving for Cleveland after today’s game is over?  Michael Kay and Paul O’Neill were beside themselves.

[ButlerBulldog]

39 minutes ago, ButlerBulldog said:

The stupidity of Major League umpires has reached yet another low.  After allowing the Tigers and Yankees to play into the 8th inning despite miserable weather conditions, Allan Porter and his crew decided to halt the game after the rain had temporarily stopped, apparently so that they can wait for more to pass through the area.

The Yankees are leading 5-2, so I won’t complain if the game is eventually called, but I don’t understand this at all.  The field wasn’t in great shape, but with only an inning or so remaining, why not just finish things up, especially with the Tigers leaving for Cleveland after today’s game is over?  Michael Kay and Paul O’Neill were beside themselves.

The game has been called.  In the time it took to make that decision, the game could have been finished.

[ButlerBulldog]

The Yankees welcomed Justin Verlander back to New York by scoring three runs off him in the bottom of the first inning, courtesy of an Alex Verdugo home run.  After one, it’s 3-1, Bombers.

[ButlerBulldog]

Looks like Aaron Judge has settled in, as he’s hitting .385 with 4 home runs and 11 RBI and an OPS of 1.284 in his last 11 games.

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

9 hours ago, ButlerBulldog said:

Looks like Aaron Judge has settled in, as he’s hitting .385 with 4 home runs and 11 RBI and an OPS of 1.284 in his last 11 games.

Yeah he was going to figure things out at some point.  Alonso is much more concerning, especially since he was never truly a great hitter to begin with, really…he just hits a lot of dingers.

[ButlerBulldog]

This looks like it will be an interesting series.