The New York Yankees’ offensive struggles have reached another frustrating point, as they dropped their latest game 4-1 against the Toronto Blue Jays. This was their third consecutive defeat, and the Pinstripes managed just two runs combined in those games. Despite strong pitching, the slide persists, and Aaron Boone refuses to attribute the losses to a lack of quality contact.
Instead, he has a different explanation.
“I don’t sense guys pressing in their at-bats. I feel like I know what that looks like. I’ve been there, done that. I’ve seen that from guys before,” Boone said in Saturday’s postgame interview with YES Network. “We’re just having a hard time getting some results right now.”
New York has a 14-12 record in the second half, and while that doesn’t look so bad on the surface, a deeper look reveals some concerns.
They have a .203 batting average and .626 OPS since the All-Star break, and have had 15 games with 2 or fewer runs in that span. On the other hand, their rotation is still incredible with a 2.03 ERA (in the last 17 games). But the same cannot be said about their offense.
“It’s a hard season,” he added. “We know adverse times are going to come in different kinds of ways, and for a position player group, it’s been a tough time.”
The Yankees have been struggling since June.
They had a batting average of .243 at the end of May, but then the Bronx Bombers lost their captain, Aaron Judge, to injury (a stress fracture in his first right rib), and it all went downhill.
Other key hitters like Cody Bellinger (left hamstring strain) and Giancarlo Stanton (right calf strain) are also on the injured list.
Without some of their biggest sluggers, the Yankees haven’t been the same. They are still second in the AL East with a 68-55 record and are chasing the Tampa Bay Rays with a 6.5-game difference. Meanwhile, the Boston Red Sox are just 2.0 games behind the Pinstripes.
That’s why Aaron Boone noted, “It’s been playoffs every day, it feels like, you know, these games” after they lost the third game (1-0) against the Seattle Mariners.
Since then, they have dropped two more and lost the series against Toronto with 1 game remaining.
Lately, the rotation has been the only bright spot for the team. They are at the top of the league with a 3.28 ERA. The New York Pitchers are the reason they still have a +84 run differential, but the existing lineup has to step up.
Ben Rice was hitting well previously, but he went 0-for-4 on Saturday. And he has gone 3-for-26 in his last 7 games. Jazz Chisholm Jr has also been struggling for some time. He has a .214 batting average, while Trent Grisham is hardly better, batting at .223 this season.
Since June, the team has hovered near the bottom of MLB in batting average, on-base percentage, and runs scored, averaging just around 3.3 runs per game over a 40+ game stretch. This is how the team’s offensive ranks since June looks like:
- .218 AVG (30th)
- .668 OPS (29th)
- .284 OBP (30th)
- .383 SLG (25th)
- 3.78 runs per game (28th)
But the Yankees manager refuses to forfeit faith in his boys.
“You know, these are our guys. And I continue to believe wholeheartedly,” Aaron Boone exclaimed, but he did look a little uneasy on camera.
Aaron Boone has indicated towards some shakeup, as well. Now, it’s probably just a matter of time for that, while the Yanks hope for their captain’s return this season.