The Wheels Are Coming Off the Pinstriped Bus!

The Wheels Are Coming Off the Pinstriped Bus!

…Early July Thoughts from Cary Greene

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Editor's Note: Sometimes, when I have time, I ask various AI programs to create an image for an article. As I was getting ready to post this article, I asked three different platforms to create an image of the wheels coming off the Yankees' bus. I liked all three images, so I will share all three.

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Image created by Gemini

Image created by Co-Pilot

Image created by ChatGPT

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With the Yankees in the midst of collapsing, it certainly feels like the wheels are coming off the pinstriped bus as the Yankees have played .480 baseball (12-13) for the month of June.

On the surface, Yankees pitchers have posted a 3.54 ERA during the month of June, which pales in comparison to the 3.20 ERA they performed to from March 25th thru the end of May - but this doesn’t explain the extent of the Yankees problems.

Perhaps the most telling problem the Yankees have faced is that their defensive lapses are causing unearned runs to parade to the plate at a rate never before seen in Yankees history. Over the first 74 games of the season, Yankees pitchers allowed 22 unearned runs - but in the 24 games played during the month of June, Yankees pitchers have surrendered 34 unearned runs. Over the last 11 games, the Yankees defense has committed 15 errors. The Yankees horrible defense has no doubt put immense pressure on their starting rotation.

This type of play in the field reflects very poorly on Arron Boone and his coaching staff. I became so frustrated watching the Yankees play recently that during a rare lunch with two of my friends who are MLB scouts (for different teams), I complained about the Yankees defensive ineptness and I was surprised at the comments they made. Both scouts agreed that a big problem with the way Aaron Boone runs the team is that there is no defensive consistency for the players. One game, they have a guy at third base, the next, he’s at second base, then he’s in right field, then he’s in left field and then they play him at shortstop. Yankees defenders are often playing out of their ideal position - which doesn’t allow key players to fully acclimate well to any single position.

Another comment they both echoed was that meanwhile, the Yankees continue to play Anthony Volpe at shortstop, despite how poorly he fields the position. Yet another observation they made was that the Yankees are using Jasson Dominguez as an everyday player right now and as a reward for the vote of confidence, he’s done a fine job showing off what a poor fielder he is.

Even if they were to fix their defensive woes, the Yankees offense has posted a historically low number of hits and the team is striking out at rates not seen in over 125 years. Injuries have no doubt hit the Yankees hard this season, but the team’s remaining key players have gone into very untimely, massive June slumps. Paul Goldschmidt (.921 OPS) and Spencer Jones (.860 OPS) have been the Yankees best, currently healthy hitters this June. Trent Grisham will be activated Friday from his hamstring injury, he had a .981 OPS for June, prior to the injury.

The rest of the team offensively has pretty much been a dumpster fire this June. Austin Wells is currently unplayable (.152 OPS), Ben Rice has fallen off the table as well - he was smoking along with a 1.056 OPS until the calendar turned to June, since then he’s had a .632 OPS. Likewise, Cody Bellinger dropped to a .663 OPS for June - he was at ..855!

June has been a historically bad month for Yankees teams managed by Aaron Boone and this season has been so bad, that even the normally passive Hal Steinbrenner just might be forced to make some changes.

If Steinbrenner fails to act, as he typically does and if the Yankees continue playing this way in July, could the Yankees become sellers at this year’s MLB Trade Deadline? This is a thought that hadn’t occurred to me until today, but could it be possible that the Yankees could tank to the point where common sense finally forces Cashman to partially scuttle the ship? Afterall, the Aaron Judge and Gerrit Cole championship window does seem like it’s going to close soon if Cashman can’t get his roster right.

I’m of the opinion that the Yankees problems are seemingly easy to spot based on what we see on the surface, but when we look deeper we’re forced to acknowledge that Hal Steinbrenner’s method of running the team just isn’t working - although he might argue to the contrary. Revenue is at an all-time high afterall. Fans are still flocking to games.

Making a trade for an everyday catcher is the first thing the Yankees need to do in order to get back on track. Can they even afford to wait until the Trade Deadline? I don’t think so. Next, the Yankees need a good right fielder, someone who moves the needle. Spencer Jones is striking out at a 41.6% clip, he’s not ready yet. Jasson Dominguez needs to be traded - have we all seen enough? Anthony Volpe should either learn to play multiple positions or be DFA’d. Ahmed Rosario occupies a roster spot that could probably be better utilized. Oswaldo Cabrera isn’t a Major Leaguer, so he needs to be replaced as well.

Unfortunately, the Yankees have precious few internal solutions and instead of trying those they do have immediately, they’re likely waiting until the Trade Deadline. Prior to the start of the season, I was intrigued by Nick Torres, the MVP of the Mexican League last year, but he’s posted a .667 OPS at Somerset since coming back from his injury. Doesn’t look like he’ll be helping the Yankees this season. George Lombard is still a long-way from ready with regard to his bat, so he doesn’t presently profile as an upgrade. Dax Kilby, injured presently, is just beginning his Low-A ball journey with the Tampa Tarpons so he’s not going to be of help this season.

Folks, there’s no hiding the elephant in the room. The Yankees have a badly depleted farm system as a direct result of Hal Steinbrenner only agreeing to spend on an occasional super star and little else. This has forced Cashman to scour MLB’s dark alleyways, scrap heaps and unemployment centers over the years. We’re coming to the end of the line here with regard to having a pile of desirable trade chips and it's starting to look like the Yankees need some serious help on offense.

There are still tons of hilarious pieces on the internet that are all for the Yankees trading for Tarik Skubal. He’s the kind of acquisition that a team engaged in full win-now-mode would acquire. A team that planned well this past offseason and put themselves in perfect position, by spending big, to win it all come October. So mark the Dodgers down as being the team that lands Skubal in a blockbuster trade and tell ‘em it’s okay, as I told you ‘ta do it! LOL. As of this morning, the Braves and Brewers are listed as being the favorites to land Skubal.

According to MLB.com, the Brewers having the top ranked system and if they’re willing to dance with Tigers GM Jeff Greenberg who, if he’s going to trade Skubal, will be looking for a few fellow GM friends who are willing to clasp arms during a hora dance - then sit at table in the back room and talk about giving up their some of their best, nearly ready positional prospects for Skubal.

Greenberg will need to inflate Skubal’s market as high as possible if he’s going to trade him, so he’ll look for very exuberant candidates with which to conduct this dance – which is why I chose the famous celebratory Hora dance as my example here. Anyone who has ever seen a Hora dance live (and I’m part Jewish, so I certainly have seen a few) should know that it’s not possible to dance it without giving a ton of energy – and that’s precisely what Greenberg will be looking for in a trade partner. He’ll want someone with lots of good positional prospects and who has a true willingness to make a deal that could be the lynch pin towards delivering a World Series championship.

Now that I’m done with the parody, I’ll point out that the Dodgers have the second ranked Minor League system per MLB.com, so the team that lands Skubal will be the one that is willing to do almost anything to win now. Clearly, that’s the Dodgers right?

Perhaps the reason the Brewers are favored to land Skubal is that their farm system has better, not far off infield prospects opposed to the Dodgers, who are stocked with nearly ready outfielders. The Tigers actually have the fifth ranked farm system and it is stocked with a mix of highly regarded positional prospects, both infielders and outfielders. This is going to be a very interesting storyline to keep an eye on. I favor the Dodgers here for a reason though. They’re able to give up pieces more painlessly than the Brewers, who will need as many good prospects as they can get - considering their light spending ways.

Now let's look at the Deadline conundrum that Cashman and the Yankees will be facing. With their grip on first place in the East now all but forfeited, the team presently is sliding into the scrum of the American League Wild Card picture. If they keep playing the way they’re playing, in about another week the American League Wild Card race will become a complete free for all. Yet, there would still be 25 days left until the Trade Deadline at that point. If the slide continues at its current pace, the Yankees would be squarely out of contention.

We’re at the point, right now, where a very strong leader needs to step up and do something drastic to snap the Yankees out of this funk. The horrendous defense and myriad of underperforming, slumping players need a wake up call. Since it’s extremely hard to execute trades presently, due to high asking prices, a big trade or two in the near future seems like a big ask. What the Yankees can do though, is make a managerial change. Now is the perfect time to do it. It might work, it might not, but the Yankees need a manager with less tolerance for blunders and slumps, someone who has a higher sense of urgency as well.

Sending a notice to the players that lapses in focus and losing isn’t tolerated, is the single biggest thing the Yankees can do right now. It’s beyond time. Aaron Boone needs to be dismissed. Will Hal Steinbrenner finally act, or is really that out of touch and complacent? Yankees fans are dying for a change.