Yankees Didi Gregorius and Josh Rogers among those shaping the season

The Yankees started the season with high hopes for players throughout their organization. Now battles for positions are being settled while replacements rise, and even Sir Didi has added a new weapon to his already impressive arsenal.

The Yankees are starting to see themselves for who they really are.

Before the season, they and we made plenty of guesses about how players would do, especially the young and/or unproven. No one knew then there would be so many injuries and open competitions for spots, or even where prospects would end up playing.

But now we do. And we are starting to see the early returns. There are two or three minor leaguers making strong pushes to help the Yankees this season, and soon if needed, while the battle to fend off Gleyber Torres is almost settled.

However, it is with the ever-improving Didi Gregorius that we start.

Didi Has Added a New Weapon: OBP

Just how good can Sir Didi be?

Didi is hitting .327/.446/.796, which does not begin to tell his story. He is leading the team in HR (5) and RBI (16), as well as being second in both walks (12) and hits (16). His strikeouts (4), meanwhile, are minuscule compared to those of the other prolific hitters on this team: Judge 17, Sanchez 11, Stanton 27 and Austin 14.

But of all of those, the most significant is his OBP.

While Gregorius seems sure to remain a powerful bat in the lineup, his standing in many of these categories is likely to change. For instance, Didi spent much of the first half of last season hitting above .300. By the time it was all said and done, however, he ended at .287; the previous year, .276.

So he is likely to end the season somewhere lower than he is today, which would still be great. This is not to denigrate his wonderful 2017, merely to point out he will probably not sustain his high batting average.

And he is also unlikely to lead the team in most of these offensive categories when this season is over. Again, that’s fine; he doesn’t have to.

But his OBP, that he can maintain. I do not suggest he can keep its current value, no, just that he can keep the point differential between his BA and OBP the same. If he does that, he will add to a Yankees strength that can carry them back to the playoffs.

Git ’em On, Git ’em Over, and Git ’em In

That’s how important this one aspect of offense can be. Last season, the same five AL teams with the highest OBP were the same five that made the playoffs (HOU, CLE, NYY, MIN, BOS in order of finish).

In 2017, Gregorius did little to help in this cause. Of the ten Yankees players with the most AB, Didi finished seventh (.318), and was only percentage points above the tenth place finisher (R. Torreyes, .314).

That it was so meager is one thing; that it was only 31 points above his BA is another problem altogether. And while finishing so far behind Aaron Judge (.422) is understandable, being outshone by both Starlin Castro (.338) and Chase Headley (.352) is inexcusable.

Not so this season.

Didi’s OBP is, obviously, 118 points above his BA. If he maintains that gap, even when his home run proficiency and high average take a dip, he might help push the Yankees past their competition.

Excuse us for One Moment

A note for frequent readers: Some of you will laugh at the laurels I have placed on Didi’s head here because you know I have advocated for his trade at the end of this season. I still think that is what is going to happen.

Didi is an extraordinary player, but Manny Machado has one thing he does not: Years. He is three years younger than Didi, and teams will want to pay him to do what Didi just did and is doing. And not Didi for what he’s already done.

That means two things. One, this new and as always improved Didi Gregorius can still lead this team to a title this year. And, two, he is going to bring back a system-filling ransom when the Yankees trade him.

Didi’s surge in OBP is not the only pleasant surprise of the season. After an initial rash of injuries and uncertainty, players such as Tyler Austin and Miguel Andujar are starting to assert themselves.

Be Prepared

We all knew Gleyber Torres was coming at some point soon. The Yankees knew it, too. What they didn’t know was how many injuries they would sustain before then. Or how so many new or oft-injured members of the infield would do.

Turns out, not that well. Greg Bird was supposed to start the year at first; he went down before the season started. The Yankees told us we were going to see a new Tyler Wade at second. Instead, he looks like the second coming of the same over-matched player.

3B Brandon Drury, meanwhile, decided to wait until he was crippled by his chronic illness to disclose he even had one.

So, that’s cool.

Add to that Billy McKinney came and went in one day, and the infield production and depth has been disappointing. That leaves three bags open, and now Gleyber Torres is coming to take one of them. And it’s second he looks to be coming for.

Of course first was always his least likely landing spot. But now Tyler Austin is asserting himself, at least against lefties.

His .265/.359/.500 are marked improvements from just a few days ago, and again reflect his getting most of his AB against south paws. And his two HR and two doubles show him getting bang for his hitting bucks.

Even though he needs to platoon against lefties mostly, his recent resurgence has knocked a few more dominoes over.

Neither Neil Walker (.188/.264/.208) nor Wade (.094/.171/.156) has been good enough out of the gate to earn a bag. Again, it’s early but this is where they are today. That makes a Walker/Austin platoon at first a lot more sensible.

Wade has to be thought of as a pinch runner and defensive replacement at this point, at least until another minor leaguer replaces him.

Starting to Shine

Meanwhile, on the other side of the diamond, 3B Miguel Andujar is starting to rake.

His overall line still leaves much to be desired (.194/.231/.333), but in life, timing is everything. In the last two games, Andujar has been heating up: He has four hits and all of them for extra bases (3 DBL, 1 TPL).

That should be enough to give him a longer leash, at least until Drury returns. And that puts Torres on second. Yes, I know about his being pulled from the game, but that smacks of extreme caution with a soon-to-be promoted player.

Which means the Yankees should have a set infield for a while, until Bird returns. And—with Torres’ impact bat, Austin hitting overwhelmingly against lefties, and Andujar starting to collect extra bases—a greatly improved one at that.

There are things both seen and unseen in Yankees Universe, though. Like who is next in line for a replacement start. We thought it would be Luis Cessa, but that never materialized.

By the time the need arises again, however, it might be LHP Josh Rogers we see.

Gone and Mostly Forgotten

The Yankees have lost a number of their best upper-level pitching prospects recently. James Kaprielian was lost to injury, and then to the A’s, for instance. On the positive side, none of the dearly departed seem to have become big-time starters, making their losses more palatable.

So while it would be nice to have Nick Rumbelow, Dietrich Enns, or Caleb Smith at Scranton, they would not be looked on as quality replacements. That has mostly left Luis Cessa and Domingo German.

But German projects more as a bullpen guy, which the Yankees currently need, while Cessa is only good enough to pitch for the Marlins.

Now Rogers has risen to challenge for the next spot start. He was slated to start the season in Trenton, but was moved to Triple-A even before the first pitch was thrown. Since then, Rogers has only had two starts, but the results continue a trend.

Josh was the Yankees 11th round pick in 2015, and has been making his was steadily up the ladder. Last year at this time, I wrote 2017 would be the year we find out if he was a real prospect or not. Especially after he had put up these numbers:

Rogers, while at Tampa, threw 52 innings but gave up only 45 hits. He struck out 51 batters and walked only eight. It all added up to an ERA of 2.22 and a WHIP of 1.01.

Well, he proved it alright, especially to the Yankees.

I Yam What I Yam

Rogers is not a fire baller and lives in the low to mid-90’s, but he knows how to pitch. That was enough to earn him an early advancement to Triple-A, even though his ERA at Double-A was 4.62 after only seven starts.

The dearth of talent in Pennsylvania was also a factor, I’m sure. That and his career 2.77 ERA and WHIP of 1.07. Either way, he got the promotion that players such as Dillon Tate and Domingo Acevedo did not.

And Rogers has risen to the challenge.

Like his major league counterparts, Rogers has had but limited opportunities. But in his two starts and 12 IP, Josh has earned a 2.25 ERA and 1.00 WHIP. He has given up but nine hits while striking out 14, and walking only three. Unlike Chance Adams, Rogers is commanding his control.

Josh is one of those players you always expect to finally find a level that over matches him. He hasn’t found it yet. Come the next injury to a Yankees starter, though, and we might all get to see if that level is the majors; right now, I’m banking on Rogers.

He’s not an Ace but he might be capable of successfully starting in the show. He throws again on Thursday, and I’m sure I won’t be the only one curious about the outcome.

While there are at least three pitchers at Double-A who have come out of the cradle endlessly rocking—Dillon Tate (ERA 0.90/WHIP 0.30), Domingo Acevedo (2.61/1.16), and Justus Sheffield (3.60/1.10), we will instead take our last look at one playing baseball in Tampa.

Because he might soon switch to leapfrog.