Roster Mismash

We’re a quarter of the way through the baseball season and the only clear thing we can say is that teams cannot hit. I know batting average isn’t popular, but there are only six teams even hitting .250. The Mariners as a team are hitting .198! There have already been six no-hitters (the record is 7) and teams are striking out 9 times a game on average. Ten years ago, MLB hit .255 with 7 strikeouts per team each game. This year they are hitting .236 with 9. MLB you have a problem.

And so I won’t dwell too long on the Yankees problem, they can’t hit either, but point out the flaw in their roster construction. Yes 13 pitchers is too many, but thanks to 13 hitters this year, not as heinous as in years past. It’s the way the Yankees are assigning spots to the 13 hitters- they essentially have only 3 real outfielders on their roster.

Those three, Frazier, Gardner, and Judge, are supplemented by two infielders masking as corner outfielders in Andujar and Wade. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but the Yankees have left themselves short by trying to shoehorn players like Roughned Odor and Mike Ford onto the 40-man roster, two players with very limited positional flexibility. Thanks to injuries, which always happen, the Yankees have only one remaining infielder and outfielder on the 40-man, and they don’t seem inclined to call up either of them.

The problem is they are really exposed in centerfield right now. If Gardner gets hurt, or has to leave a game, I would bet you Judge moves to center. He’s done it before, but that was in 2018, before injuries became a regular part of his game. I guess Frazier could move there as well, but the Yankees need a better answer.

And that answer should be getting rid of Ford and Odor while swapping in better fits. Ford had an amazing 50 games in 2019, but he’s done nothing since and the Yankees have LeMahieu to backup Voit at first. Odor hit .167/.209/.413 last year and got cut by a Rangers team that had to eat a huge contract. He’s hitting .174/.278/.362 this year and only can play second where the Yankees have LeMahieu with Wade and Gleyber available for backup. Getting them off the roster and finding another body who can play center and a more versatile glove should be the top items on Brian Cashman’s to-do list right now.