Yankees do it by the numbers as Bombers keep producing despite anemic offense
Within striking distance of first in AL East as bats take time to heat up
Comments (5)BY ROGER RUBIN / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/yankees/yankees-numbers-bombers-producing-anemic-stats-article-1.1089940#ixzz1wvyeDoWV
Numbers don't always tell the story.
The Yankees went 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position on Sunday and that makes it sound like it was an unproductive afternoon. To the contrary, it was a successful one as Phil Hughes delivered the team’s first complete game of 2012, Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez hit home runs and the Bombers downed the Detroit Tigers, 5-1, to finish a nine-game road trip with six wins.
The same can be applied to the first two months of the season. The Yankees are hitting an anemic .218 with runners in scoring position, but they are just 1-1/2 games behind the AL East-leading Rays with three games coming up against Tampa Bay beginning Tuesday night at the Stadium.
Anemic numbers or not, the Yanks are 8-3 over their last 11 and were 5-1/2 games out of first place before that stretch.
They are the hottest team in a division where all five teams are at least two games above .500 and within three games of one another.
“I know what the numbers say, but I don’t think I am having bad at-bats,” said second baseman Robinson Cano, whose .140 batting average with runners in scoring position has become the symbol of their struggles . “Every person goes through stretches like this. It will end. I can’t think about it. I have to concentrate on the at-bat I am in.”
“(Cano’s) personality is loosey-goosey and real relaxed,” hitting coach Kevin Long said. “He probably feels like ‘I have to be the guy who picks up these runs.’ He hits in the middle of our order. We have to keep him relaxed. The more relaxed, the better he hits. . . . He’s trying a little too hard. It’s human nature.”
Games like the three coming up have a more-pronounced impact because of the bunched-up standings.
“You can’t afford to get too far down,” first baseman Mark Teixeira said. “There are years where you might be five down, but there’s only one team in front of you. This year every team has a winning record. You get too far down. You could have four teams to jump over.”
“Every year (our division) is tough and it seems like this year it’s the toughest,” third baseman Alex Rodriguez said. “This division has unbelievable parity and it just keeps getting better.”
Situational hitting aside, the Yankees have a lot of things going for them right now. They lead the AL in home runs (80) and are second in on-base percentage (.338). The last time through, the starting rotation got at least 6.2 innings out of each pitcher and threw to an aggregate 3.92 ERA. Rafael Soriano has been an effective closer with Mariano Rivera out for the season and David Robertson out with injuries, going 6-for-6 in save opportunities and has not allowing a run since they went down.
Still the situational hitting looms. In a 4-3 loss to Detroit on Saturday, the Yanks tied the score in the ninth without a hit when Teixeira drew a bases-loaded walk off Jose Valverde. They did, however, fail to get in the go-ahead run.
“There’s been a lot of grinding at-bats, things we need to do, things that have been part of our DNA for a long time,” Rodriguez said. “You’re not always going to get a big hit, but the one thing we can do is grind out at-bats . . . and make the pitchers work.”
“If we get some of these hits, we’re going to score 9-10 runs a game,” Long said. “I know it’s going to turn.”
BRETT BEGINS
Brett Gardner (elbow strain) will play five innings in an extended spring training game Tuesday and should follow with a minor league rehab assignment. He could rejoin the team to face the Mets Sunday or the Braves in Atlanta Monday.
The same can be applied to the first two months of the season. The Yankees are hitting an anemic .218 with runners in scoring position, but they are just 1-1/2 games behind the AL East-leading Rays with three games coming up against Tampa Bay beginning Tuesday night at the Stadium.
Anemic numbers or not, the Yanks are 8-3 over their last 11 and were 5-1/2 games out of first place before that stretch.
They are the hottest team in a division where all five teams are at least two games above .500 and within three games of one another.
“I know what the numbers say, but I don’t think I am having bad at-bats,” said second baseman Robinson Cano, whose .140 batting average with runners in scoring position has become the symbol of their struggles . “Every person goes through stretches like this. It will end. I can’t think about it. I have to concentrate on the at-bat I am in.”
“(Cano’s) personality is loosey-goosey and real relaxed,” hitting coach Kevin Long said. “He probably feels like ‘I have to be the guy who picks up these runs.’ He hits in the middle of our order. We have to keep him relaxed. The more relaxed, the better he hits. . . . He’s trying a little too hard. It’s human nature.”
Games like the three coming up have a more-pronounced impact because of the bunched-up standings.
“You can’t afford to get too far down,” first baseman Mark Teixeira said. “There are years where you might be five down, but there’s only one team in front of you. This year every team has a winning record. You get too far down. You could have four teams to jump over.”
“Every year (our division) is tough and it seems like this year it’s the toughest,” third baseman Alex Rodriguez said. “This division has unbelievable parity and it just keeps getting better.”
Situational hitting aside, the Yankees have a lot of things going for them right now. They lead the AL in home runs (80) and are second in on-base percentage (.338). The last time through, the starting rotation got at least 6.2 innings out of each pitcher and threw to an aggregate 3.92 ERA. Rafael Soriano has been an effective closer with Mariano Rivera out for the season and David Robertson out with injuries, going 6-for-6 in save opportunities and has not allowing a run since they went down.
Still the situational hitting looms. In a 4-3 loss to Detroit on Saturday, the Yanks tied the score in the ninth without a hit when Teixeira drew a bases-loaded walk off Jose Valverde. They did, however, fail to get in the go-ahead run.
“There’s been a lot of grinding at-bats, things we need to do, things that have been part of our DNA for a long time,” Rodriguez said. “You’re not always going to get a big hit, but the one thing we can do is grind out at-bats . . . and make the pitchers work.”
“If we get some of these hits, we’re going to score 9-10 runs a game,” Long said. “I know it’s going to turn.”
BRETT BEGINS
Brett Gardner (elbow strain) will play five innings in an extended spring training game Tuesday and should follow with a minor league rehab assignment. He could rejoin the team to face the Mets Sunday or the Braves in Atlanta Monday.
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/yankees/yankees-numbers-bombers-producing-anemic-stats-article-1.1089940#ixzz1wvylQdqG
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