The story of this Yankees season hasn’t been one of larger-than-life stars (though some of those have played significant roles as well). It’s one of savvy organizational decisionmaking and depth, of unheralded players stepping up when called to the big stage. A future team biographer might well frame them The 2019 Yankees: Humble Savages. It’s all enough to make even the staunchest fan of an Evil Empire rival start rooting for the New York leviathan. (No? Okay, okay, just checking.)
But what does it all mean? We can and should tip our caps to GM Brian Cashman and his front office, for starters. There are a whole lot of well-conceived individual decisions snowballing here, involving smart roster management, wise player acquisition and development, and deft deployment of talent. Overcoming the injuries — the roster is still riddled with them — has been an impressive feat.
Still, at some point the club is going to pick a 25-man postseason roster. And then there’ll be the eventual wave of 40-man roster culling at the end of the campaign. Fringe roster members — even those that factored prominently this year — can and will be traded or decommissioned to suit the needs of the Yankees machine.
Which leads us to wonder about those heart-and-soul types, those scrappy unknowns who have given so much to this year’s Yanks. Which of them has earned a place in the future plans of the vaunted franchise — or at least a ticket out of town to a greater opportunity elsewhere? And which may ultimately look back on this time not as the start of a long and prosperous Yankees career, but as a blissful-but-fleeting moment when it all came together?
Put otherwise, in the words of the fans of rival clubs (I can only presume): are you serious with this Mike Tauchman guy?
Tauchman landed with the Yanks late in camp when it became clear he wasn’t needed in Colorado. He was already 28 years of age and had only just tasted the majors. All it cost the Yankees was a decent but hardly overwhelming reliever prospect who wouldn’t tie up a 40-man spot for the Rockies.
You know what happened next. It didn’t occur right away, as Tauchman didn’t thrive in his first fill-in work in New York earlier this year. But he has been ablaze since being recalled just after the All-Star break and is currently enjoying something like near-regular playing time in the absence of Aaron Hicks, Giancarlo Stanton, and Edwin Encarnacion.
Tauchman’s numbers of late have indeed been ridiculous. He has strode to the dish with bat in hand seventy times over a twenty-game span, driving in twenty runs along the way. Five of those plate appearances have ended in home runs. There are 28 base knocks and six walks. Tauchman has thrown in a pair of steals for good measure.
When you add up all of Tauchman’s contributions this year, he sits at a .299/.371/.563 slash line with ten long balls over 194 MLB plate appearances. That’s a 143 wRC+ — quite good! It’s only fair to note that defensive metrics are also fans of his glovework in left field, boosting him to an eye-popping 2.0 fWAR over just sixty games of action.
There was a reason the Yanks targeted Tauchman in the first place. He had struggled in two brief runs with the Rox, but that’s easy to dismiss. Heck, now that we can put it all in context … was this the inevitable rise of an excellent hitter? Tauchman devastated Triple-A pitching at Albuquerque for two-straight seasons, posting consecutive .331/.386/.555 and .323/.408/.571 batting lines. Even with league context, those were strong numbers. Tauchman’s numbers this year with the top New York affiliate are also strong: .274/.386/.505 with as many walks as strikeouts (16 apiece).
All good so far. But what does a look under the hood show us? There’s not much of particular interest in the K/BB department. Tauchman is walking at a 10.3% clip, which is slightly above-average these days. He’s also going down on strikes at a 27.3% rate. That’s rather elevated, though not to the point of being a major concern in and of itself. Tauchman’s 9.8% swinging-strike rate isn’t alarming and he has a high-contact history in the minors, having typically sat in the fifteen-percent K-rate range. He’s also carrying a meager 22.8% chase rate, so he’s obviously seeing the ball well at the moment.
It’s somewhat intriguing to wonder about a version of Tauchman that maintains the power — he owns a hefty .264 ISO — while drawing down the strikeouts closer to his upper-minors levels. But that probably isn’t realistic. True, he has done it before, but never to this extent … and only in high-powered offensive environments against sub-MLB pitching.
The biggest red flags come when you look at the contact outputs. Tauchman is carrying a .378 batting average on balls in play — an obviously unsustainable number, but one that can reflect the fact that a player is absolutely stinging the baseball.
That’s not really the case here. Tauchman does have a strong 9.2% barrel rate, but he’s carrying an unremarkable 88.5 mph exit velocity. Statcast credits him only with a .316 xwOBA, vastly lagging his .384 wOBA and suggesting that there has been no shortage of good fortune in outcomes. Indeed, Tauchman’s ten long balls have flown an average distance of only 384 feet — a Sogardian level that doesn’t exactly portend an ability to sustain a whopping 27.0% HR/FB rate.
Odds are, Tauchman’s hot streak will subside. This probably isn’t a true breakout; it’s not the result of some major change to mechanics or approach that might support a sustainable power boost. But that doesn’t mean Tauchman is destined to be dumped at season’s end. It’s possible he’ll feel the roster crunch and end up elsewhere — notably, he’ll be out of options next year — but it isn’t too hard to imagine the Yanks giving him an ongoing role. Tauchman has an excellent hit tool and at-least-decent pop. He comes with loads of minor-league experience in center field and (as noted) has graded quite well this year with the glove. There’s a potential path to a left-handed-hitting fourth outfielder role that’d fit the roster quite nicely… depending upon how things turn out with long-time Yankees stalwart and pending free agent Brett Gardner, who has enjoyed a renaissance year at the plate thus far.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
I don’t think Tauchman is a keeper in New York because there’s no room in the OF for him. Judge is in RF and not going anywhere. Hicks just signed the extension. And I imagine Stanton would be in LF. Tauchman stays if Stanton becomes the every day DH but i think going into this season the plan was for him to be in LF.
Tauchman could be used as a trade chip this offseason as part of a package for SP. If he stays great but I just don’t see room for him going forward
Stanton is always hurt. Maybin’s gone after the season, so Tauch is the 4th OFer. After Maybin and Gardy are gone, Tauch is the best option to be on the Bench, and could start if Stanton is hurt.
When Gardy and Maybin are gone, Tauchman is the starting LFer. Stanton will be the primary DH like last year. If anyone gets traded it will be Frazier. He can’t play defense but Tauchman can play all three OF positions well.
This is assuming he stays hot.
Plus he’s a much need LH bat with pop.
Frazier has been improving his defense, but does Tauchman have any real trade value?
As far as left field is concerned I think I read somewhere that the plan was to start Gardner their and have Frazier knock the rust off in AAA with the hopes he would then take over mid-season.
As for Stanton, he was adequate in LF but not great. i think we need to encase him in bubble wrap, cut slits on each side so arms call slide through and make him ther everyday DH.
Talk is cheap and so is Tauchman. If they keep Frazier then Tauch should be the 4th OF and we move on from Gardner if Tauch can also back up CF. If we move Frazier then let’s consider Tauch for fulltime job in LF in 2020 with Gardner as the 4th.
“If” they keep Frazier, Gardner is gone. Tauchman is more than fine as a platoon LF, and Stanton is the DH.
Platoon implies he only hits against RHP’s. He’s actually hitting over .400 vs lefties and his ops is much better against them.
Why would you want to move on from gardner when hes second on the team in War ?
Love Gardy, but he’s an aging speedster. Want him at the right price, but wouldn’t be sad if he hung it up #yankeeforlife
@costergaard2
I think Gardy would be open to a role as the 4th OF.
The Tauch of the Town! Ride him with him hot.
Is Sterling using that as his home run salutes?
No way. John is using something much more lame: “Tauchman, the Sock man!”
Seems like he flubs the best names. So many better options. Austin romine’s call is one huge cringe: “romie, my homie”
Sterling is an embarrassment to the Yankees organization.
+1
It’s interesting how a bunch of dumpster diving turns into a bunch of keepers, and no one ever seems to question it. They all magically seem to either actually try once they get to NY, or it’s the needle. No coaching staff is that good.
While drug use (both legal and illegal) is undoubtedly a factor in MLB, as it is in every facet of contemporary life, I’m not sure attributing the Yanks’ success to the “needle” is fair. It’s more likely a combination of good scouting and a whole lot of luck. The Yanks are far from the only big market team to get into dumpster diving, formerly the purview of small market teams; see Dodgers (Muncy, Taylor, etc.).
It’s a small sample size for Tauchman. MANY AAA-types can come up and have a couple of good months. But either way, they at least found themselves a 4th OFer, and considering that they usually carry a veteran roster, that’s a pretty good get. The glove works, as does the in-game skills.
since when are the Dodgers a small market team?
Where did he call the Dodgers a small market team? He was referring to big market teams taking a page out of the small market handbook
you are correct. i skimmed thru it. my bad.
Tauchman showed excellent plate discipline throughout the minors, so it’s not like this came out of nowhere. Need another example?
Tom Murphy is was also let loose by the Rox. He was one of the top catching prospects, but hardly given much of an opportunity. Now he’s in Seattle being utilized to his strengths in a platoon role (mostly facing LHP’s) and he’s flourishing.
But sure, assume drugs because it makes it easier to hate the Yankees.
If you comprehended his post it didn’t claim Tauchman was on PEDS. Don’t get jumpy after seeing the word. It was a clear joke.
Check that, I didn’t see the roid post above Bob’s. My fault there.
Yeah, who was the jumpy one here?
Sorry, John. Didn’t mean to ruin your day here.
Lennon seemed pretty calm in his rebuttal. Doubt you could ruin his day.
Just a joke there Trim. He could say whatever he wants to me after that comment.
Oh, you didn’t ruin my day. I’m used to seeing you dig for arguments and make a fool of yourself in the process. It’s entertaining.
I’m sure it’s the needle! #sarcasm
that’s some fascinating insider information there. i mean, how can you even become a serviceable MLB plauer when
one team lets you go? your career is essentially over if anyone gives up on you for any reason.
Lol thats how a lot of fans think. As if there is no way a player can improve
Take a look at jd Martinez early in his career. He was nothing but a fringe player
Just moronic conspiracy theory. Yankee haters whine too much.
This is a joke, right? Are we really still pulling the card of “any unexpected success+yankees=steroids” bs? We’re so beyond this. I didn’t know people still dusted off the cobwebs on that argument, but it’s a fun walk down memory lane.
Easy tiger! It clearly was a joke.
If that’s the case then Jose bautista , jd Martinez and max muncy must all be juicing too..there is no possible way a player can adjust and improve if hes not hitting well right out of the gates.
I guess Puig would ne the anti tauchman…came up hitting over .400 now hes garbage and can barely get on base 30% of the time
Robluca, as I’ve noticed is a recurring trend, you are one of the few rational voices I bump in to on these boards.
He will be back to AAA after the season. Besides Stankees will not survive this post season.
Only one team does. They have as much chance as any contender.
whichever round they face the stros in will be their lastm they are the second best team in the AL but there’s no question the Astros are at least winning the pennant, and just about as high a chance they win the world series.
Bitter pill overload!!
nothing is guaranteed. that’s why the games are played. The 1999 and 2000 Yankees each had about 100 starts from pitchers who had ERAs well over mid 4.00 and they destroyed the vaunted pitching staff of the Braves with 3 future HOF starters and Kevin Millwood and the Mets staff with 4 starters with ERAs 4.10 or less with Leiter and Hampton being in the low 3s. Now the trio of Verlander, Cole and Greinke are crazy dominant but we do have an excellent offensive squad that’s not completely swing and miss like last year and an improved defense. All we need is for Pax, Happ, Tanaka and German to keep us in the game. Anything can happen.
as great as Glavine, Maddux and Smiltz were they only won 1 world series.
that’s always the line, but such teams tend to be the victors more often then not. take the 2017 Astros for their example. just how many people believed they were championship bound after that offseason? its not always right, but it certainly isnt wrong terribly often.
Well games aren’t won on paper. Check the 2014 Tigers loss to the Orioles or the 2015 Mets loss to the Royals. Two teams with Cy Young caliber pitchers losing to teams with mid rotation starters at best. Orioles and Royals won those series with clutch hitting and deep bullpens. Things the Yankees have as well.
Of course i would consider the Astros the favorite , especially if they have home field, but it’s definitely no guarantee.
Except Papp and Tanka are a mess, especially Tanka. I’m not saying the Yankees don’t havr a chance. But it’s highly unlikely the Yankees can win thr pennant let alone the WS with that staff. In the post season dominate pitching always shuts down the best offense. See the Red Sox last year and the Giants 3 WS titles.
I remember the tigers losing a postseason series to the Orioles and the tigers had Verlander, scherzer and price ..the Orioles countered with I believe tilman, wei yen chen? And maybe Scott Feldman?
So nothing is won on paper as you stated
The Red Sox relievers had an ERA a full run lower than their SP in the postseason, and that includes a disastrous postseason by Craig Kimbrel, not to mention they had many IP thrown by some of their SP like Eovaldi. Not to take away from their SP, but Good offense and good Middle relief pitching helped them just as much if not more than their SP. in the postseason.
Anyway, anything can happen in the postseason. I’m sure you were aware of how horrible David Price was in the postseason until the ALCS/WS when he won for the first time ever in the postseason.
I agree dominant pitching always shuts down the best offense, but I think that goes for SP and RP in this era.
Yanks should never have traded for Stanton. wayyyyy overpaid for what he brings to the table and cant stay healthy.
Agreed. His lack of durability hints at an “enhanced” history a few years back.
wouldnt go with a claim like that but you never know. His body type just screams injury for a baseball player. Tall and lanky is the ideal body type for a MLB player. Stanton looks like a UFC fighter and doesnt have the durability to be a player that plays 150 games.
There’s no direct correlation between using PED and having the injuries he’s had. With as much testing as they do hee would’ve been exposed by now.
I never understood that trade. The Yankees were rebuilding the right way from their system and smart trades. The Boss lost two decades window shopping for high visibility players while mostly ignoring the pitching staff. Mistake repeated.
They already have a guy that hits like stanton and cant stay healthy in Judge. Pretty sure they were just trying to keep him away from Boston
He’s not really overpaid if you compare him to other comparable hitters past their 6 year of control. But everyone seems overpaid if they agebt available to play. Trout would bet overpaid if he missed 140 games. But let’s not forget he was hot off of being the NL MVP with 50+ homers.
a small price to pay for the Yankees. they could go well beyond the top tax bracket each year and still maintain a top-5 team and a top-15 farm. that’s just what they do.
I wonder if Stanton would waive his NTC could he be moved ? The yanks are paying 20 million of his salary I believe and hes signed for 8 more seasons after this one . I’m sure the yanks would have to eat some of the money. But maybe San Diego would take him on. I once they have a surplus of outfielders but just seems like a move the Padres would jump on since they’ve been giving out high priced contracts of late .
Yanks could take back will Meyers to even out some of the money and maybe a prospect or two.
Dont get me wrong I loved the Stanton trade at the team but so far it hasn’t worked out and hes headed into his age 30 season next year
Yankees could make the popcorn guy a player and he would be good
what does that make Greg Bird then?
That’s because popcorn boy is playing the orioles and blue jays 34 times a year, half of which is in that Cracker Jack stadium of theirs.
Excellent zing. Upvoted for quality and delivering harsh reality.
Using that same rational he is also playing the Red Sox and Rays 34 times a year.
Sox starting pitching and bullpen is a dumpster fire too. Rays pitching is good though.
Right, cuz no other divisions have doormat teams and every Yankee home run is a wall scraper in the right field corner.
He’s an interesting player. Never was a top 30 prospect, but always carried good minor league numbers. I dont think he will be this good, but I’m impressed what he has already done for the club.
Isn’t interesting who ends up on top prospect lists and who doesn’t? i could never understand that. he’s a perfect example of how we put too much faith in them. Yanks sign a 16 year old whos never touched minor lge ball but because of his potential was listed as a top 70 prospect and then you have Tauchman, a career .303/.375/.453 hitter with good defense and speed yet goes unranked. Power is only thing that was lacking as he didn’t hit double digit homers until 2017 and 2018.
a career .303/.375/.453 hitter with good defense and speed yet goes unranked.
——————————————————
Those numbers have to be taken in context of having played in the PCL for so long. His AA stats, at a kind of old 24, were 3 HRs in 563 PAs, with a .736 OPS. That’s probably not even top-250 as a prospect.
His 1st year in the PCL was even worse with a .714 OPS. He was 26 before he had even a decent season in the minors, and that’s too old to become rated.
Lmao, yeah. He’s 28 and the underlying numbers suggest he’s going to regress quite significantly as well. It’s no wonder this guy never made a top prospect list.
He did make KATOH’s 2018 top 100 list which is a computer model not based on any real scouting. It’s based on minor league stats and puts a premium on proximity to the bigs as well as size/defensive position. You can read up on it for a more accurate description. But as you can see even if you preferred to use a computer generated list based on stats there’s a million swing and misses there. No system would ever be perfect. Nor is Mike Tauchman close to being a “miss” yet.
I was also looking at the regression. He has a .378 BABIP, which is likely to regress, and a 27% HR/FB, also due for regression. Even then, he probably looks valuable as a #4.
Which again makes one wonder why the NYY held onto Frazier.
Trade bait for the starting pitching in the off-season perhaps?
Power was the last thing to manifest but he wouldn’t be the first to develop power once in the majors. that slash line was .294/.355/.381 with no power but good bb/k rate of 47/69.
i don’t think it’s a matter of luck. Cashman and his analytic teams have been able to find guys nobody really wanted them abnd turn them around. Didi, Hicks, Voit are examples.
Usually someone not on a top 30 list isnt going to blow you away. Usually its someone who gets a call to the bigs, struggles, and then gets dfa’d the next day. Even,though he will probably regress, I like the numbers he has put up
Tauchmann is this year’s Luke Voit for the Yankees. Got for next to nothing, and has quietly been huge for them.
Urshela* is this year’s Voit. – What in the world to do with Andujar next year? Also, he may not be held in a positive light with the media and some fans, but Clint Frazier is still the true 4th OF (possibly starting LF?) of the Yankees moving forward. Tauchman is getting the nod now because he is almost out of options and he is swinging a hot bat.
I have to feel Cash is taking things personal with Frazier he was having a great season with the bat. Hopefully he’ll call him up and Frazier’s defense and hitting warrant him staying.
I think that they try to trade Andujar for a SP. I just don’t know what SP would be available in a trade. Maybe Kluber. Andujar and Frazier for Kluber sounds fair. But, if it was me. I’d try to get Detroit to trade one of their young guys like Mize or Manning. Andujar and Frazier for Manning would probably work out for both teams. Btw, I think Manning will be a stud in a couple of years.
Again, more delusion from Yanks fans. Andujar and Frazier for Kluber? You’ve lost your mind.
Never get excited about a player in the first year. Teams adjust and find that player’s weakness. Not long ago another team found a player on the waste heap and he had a great first year. the next year he struggled and third year out of baseball. Just wonder why the guy who wrote this thinks its a surprise because if you watch baseball this happens every year and they fall back down to earth.
They won’t get Manning either for that package.
gb85….that’s not fair …I’m a Yankees fan and I know that trade proposal is ludacris. I think fans of every team over value their own players . It may seem like Yankees fans do it more often because of your destain and or jealousy towards the Yankees
With that being said Frazier and andujar were the 2 pieces the pirates wanted for Cole. Now in 2019 those pieces lost a bit if value but I do think andunsr and Frazier is a good starting point for Kluber…but the Yankees would most likely have to include Garcia or florial along with 2 other top 30 prospects
Andujar
Frazier
Florial
Schmidt
Breaux
That’s a more likely package for Kluber
lofl, Yankees fans are the worst.
@GB85
Ummmm……Kluber has pitched in all of 7 games to an ERA above 5 and has yet to come off the IL. He’s owed $18 next year and $17 the next, both options with $1 mil buyouts. Indians can either let him walk, pay a damaged 33 yo pitcher they obviously don’t want to pay or they can trade him and get something useful. My guess is that the Yanks would want to see him pitch for a while and show he can still perform at a high level before trading either Andujar or Frazier let alone both.
Kluber’s value is no where near what it was this off-season so if anyone’s delusional it’s you.
I hate to say it but the balls they are using this year is causing a lot of average guys to have careers years. He is at best a fourth or fifth outfielder. Yankees need to sell high on him in the offseason. They do didn’t Frazier for a reason. Maybin is also enjoying a stack lineup with a great year, Cleveland is hating they traded him away with he was with their Triple A team. The Yankees in the late 90s won with role player which what is Tauch, Maybin and Gio are.
i wouldn’t put it on the ball. he showed this ability his entire minor league career. no way to know for sure until we see him next year. not sure if his trade value is high enough to get something better back in a trade tho. the rest of the league might be cautious too.
he showed this ability his entire minor league career.
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Not really. In his first 4 seasons in the minors, he hit 8 HRs in 1,622 PAs.
He also repeated AAA 3 times and played in Colorado Springs which isn’t exactly a pitchers paradise.
Maybe you’ve found another Chris Taylor. Which would obviously be a perfectly fine outcome for NY. Taylor is a productive player. The underlying numbers are telling you regression is on the way. There’s no doubt about that.
The short answer is yes. Gardner’s done after this season, Frazier will most likely be traded and Stanton will rotate between getting some action in LF but mostly at DH. There are plenty of opportunities for Tauchman.
Why is gardner done after this year? People said the same stuff last year but the yanks brought him back..why would they not bring him back on a 1 year deal in 2020?
This is an extremely well written article. Thanks Jeff as always.
I agree. Excellent work JT.
Who knows what will happen when the regulars are back from the IL, but for now, he’s the Tauch of the town. 🙂
Here come the Mets, here come the Mets, we are the real savages
look, i get the line about all Yankees being juiced, and i loathe them as much as the next guy. but really, not everyone associated with the Yankees juices. what if i told you i wouldnt vote for Jeter because he was a Yankee and I cant assume any Yankee doesnt juice? I rest my case.
No serious baseball mind actually considers this run of Yankees success a result of steroid use. Now, as always, very stupid people say very stupid things.
I think it is fair to at least conjecture about who might be using. In his first 4 seasons in the minors, he hit 8 HRs in 1,622 PAs. That’s 3 per 650 PAs. In the low minors. Now he is on pace for 34/650 PAs, in the pros.
A guy like Voit, while he could be suspicious, always had a modest amount of power. He’s gone from 19/650 PAs to 30/650 PAs. It’s suspicious, but not on a scale like Tauchman.
Plenty of players develop power once they get to the majors.
Gleybor Torres hit 24 homers over 5 minor league seasons and has hit about 24 in each of his first 2 seasons,
Jose Altuve had 30 homers in 7 years in the minors. Are we going to accuse him too?
As much testing as they do I think a player would have to use state of the art PEDs to go undetected.
But where will ellsbury play?
Right next to Cespedes!
I am SO glad that Jeff Bridich signed Ian Desmond instead of giving Tauchman an extended look at the MLB level.
So very, very happy!
I loved the Desmond signing.
“Where’s he going to play?”
Well, we have Story at SS, Parra, Blackmon, and Cargo in the OF. Dahl as our #4 OF. LeMahieu at 2nd, and Arenado at 3rd. McMahon coming up.
Maybe we’ll try being a backup 1B. After all, it’s only $70,000,000.
I like feel-good stories, especially when they seem to pop up from nowhere at a time of crisis. I don’t know if Tauchman is anything more than a Shane Spencer, but he, and some of the other fill-ins like Gio, make the Yankees for fun to watch.
Gardner 3.2 bwar
Tauchman 2.7 bwar
Bryce Harper 1.8
Wow.
On the bright side, Harper only has 12 years left on his contract.
Yeah that same gardner everyone wants gone next year and cried when they resigned him last offseason
Time and again I’m reminded how awful the Yankees would be if the overreactive, mindless fan base was allowed to make decisions.
(duunnn nuh…dunnn nuh….dunn nuh, dunn nuh, dunn nuh) is that a shark, no it’s @louiebeans
You mention Gardner, the Gardy/CC hater shall appear.
Anyone who made a big deal about 1 year contracts for a backup OF and a 5th starter is a clown. No way did those deals inhibit the Yanks from making other moves.
bWAR sucks. But, point taken. They’re all roughly the same in terms of fWAR.
Mlbtr links to bref, so it’s just more convenient. I also prefer fwar even though, outside of a few glaring examples, they don’t tend to differ all that much.
Yeah, I mean it’s roughly similar. WRC+ is used instead of OPS+ in the offensive WAR which is enough to make a better calculation to me. FIP instead of RA9 on the pitchers side and UZR instead of DRS. I believe those are the only calculation differences off the top of my head. But like I said, WRC+ over OPS+ is the biggest pro for me.
can we let tauchman play some more before anointing him the next luke voight or dare i say mickey mantle?
so far he’s been way better than expected, and kudos to cash the genius for finding him, but let him have a larger body of work first!
@geeson
I agree. Live in the moment and just enjoy the team. I know they played the O’s today but wow, today’s game was amazing. I was looking at the lineup and with Urshela batting 3rd and Maybin 5th who thought that in a 14 run game 11 of them would come from those two (6 runs) and Higashioka w/ 2 homers and 5 rbi? And yet, with the buy low acquisitions and subsewuent success of Hicks, Didi and Voit it doesn’t seem like pure, dumb luck that Urshela, Tauchman and Maybin are contributing. Yeesh.
I wasnt a big believer in Tauchman at first, even though I knew he had great AAA numbers, but he’s been changing my mind as of late. I just wonder if he will be able to keep it up. If so, him and Frazier can battle it out for the 4th OFer spot next year and whoever loses gets shipped out for pitching help (or even whoever wins gets shipped out since they would have more value). Though, with all the injuries this year I wouldnt be surprised if they hung onto both no matter what
@begamin
Battle out for the 4th spot? I think that if Tauchman can end the year with good numbers then it shouldn’t be a question that one of them should be the starting LF. Stanton should be an exclusive DH. I wouldn’t mind keeping Tauchman as a 4th OF if they decide to let Gardner walk.
Sorry, but we gotta take this to task:
“It’s only fair to note that defensive metrics are also fans of his glovework in left field, boosting him to an eye-popping 2.0 fWAR over just sixty games of action.”
fWAR requires 370-380 games to stabilize. Technically you cant even use fWAR unless a player has played that many games.
Also 28 years old with a .380 BABIP? Yeah, this guy is nothing. I feel like every 1-month wonder the Yankees have gets 10 billion words about them, when almost every team has a player like that.
He’s already good for 10 DRS this season. If Im not mistaken, he is tied for 4th or 5th most. For reference, Betts has 11 DRS so far, Kiermaier has 14 DRS
@Strike Four
I certainly won’t sit here and argue what Tauchman will be but you’re being a bit dismissive. Who cares what his age is? He was drafted at 22,. put up a career minor league slash of .303/.375/.453 with little power until the last 2 years. He didn’t wow anyone in Colorado with his brief callups and now that the Yanks were forced to play him because of injuries he looks more and more comfortable at the plate. He was brought up for his glove and a bit of speed but his bat has been impressive.
Trust me, people were dismissive about Voit last year too. While the hotting coach get rave reviews I think that Cashman’s team does a good job of finding guys with redeemable skills and they give them a shot when open. He’s had a great walk/k rate and I think that bodes well. I wouldn’t be shocked if Mike Ford get’s hot the more and more at bats he gets too.