Although the Yankees hold a phenomenal 36-18 record against team over .500, they are only 27-16 against teams under .500. As the Yankees are now 98 games into the season, their loss against the Tampa Bay Rays last night may loom large.
Losses in a team sport cannot be pinned solely on one player, however, there were two key moments in which Gary Sanchez let his team down in the Yankees 7-6 loss against the Rays.
In the bottom of the 1st inning, Sanchez allowed a passed ball with a runner on second base. With Luis Severino on the mound, that play alone is not detrimental as Severino has the ability to strand runners on third base. However, Gary Sanchez slowly jogged to the ball, which then allowed Jake Bauer to score from second base. The lack of hustle from Sanchez put the Yankees in a 1-0 hole.
In the top of the 9th inning, Sanchez was up in a position to redeem himself with bases loaded. With the Yankees trailing by 1 run, Sanchez hit a ground ball to second baseman, Daniel Robertson. Robertson decided to throw to Willy Adames to get the force at second base, but the runner, Aaron Hicks, was able to reach second safely. Surprisingly, Adames then threw the ball to first base to easily get Sanchez to end the game.
A replay on the YES Network showed that Gary Sanchez did not run to first base. When he saw Hicks reach second safely, he tried to start running, but it was far too late.
A reporter after the game questioned if Sanchez did not run because he assumed Hicks would be out at second base. Sanchez replied through a Spanish interpreter: “Like I said, I hit the ball well there. Like I said, I should have run harder. There was a chance he was going to be out at second base, but it didn’t happen, he was safe.”
Sanchez was placed on the disabled list on June 25th due to a right groin strain. He returned in time for the Yankees first game following the All-Star break. Following the game, a reporter asked Yankees Manager Aaron Boone if Sanchez is either not fully healthy or if Sanchez is afraid to run hard and re-injure himself. Boone replied: “No, he should be able to get after it. He’s here, he’s back, and should be fine getting after things.”
The lack of hustle by Gary Sanchez has caused a lot of discussion on social media. Here are a few takes by MLB Network’s Pedro Martinez and ESPN’s Buster Olney.
Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez on Gary Sanchez not running out of the box and costing #Yankees a chance to tie the game says on @MLBNetwork That’s ugly for baseball’
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) July 24, 2018
Not running hard to first base on a groundball can't happen, especially in that situation when you have a chance to tie the game, because the alternative is just unacceptable: Quitting on the play. That's what happened on that last Sanchez groundball.
— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) July 24, 2018
Despite the poor effort from Gary Sanchez in last night’s game, he has not produced to the level the Yankees were anticipating this season.
Through 245 ABs on the season, Sanchez owns a .283 on-base percentage and a .416 slugging percentage. Through 471 ABs last season, he owned a .345 on-base percentage and a .531 slugging percentage. Since returning from the disabled list on July 20th, Sanchez is 2-14 with 0 extra-base hits.
It looked as if Sanchez had his first extra base hit in last night’s game after hitting a ball to the left-field wall in Tampa, but he was unable to make it to second base.
Gary Sanchez's RBI single in Tampa pic.twitter.com/ua9LKLX52h
— YES Network (@YESNetwork) July 24, 2018
On the defensive side, Sanchez is currently tied for the MLB lead in passed balls with Martin Maldonado and Omar Narvaez at 10 allowed. Last season, he was tied with Yasmani Grandal for the MLB lead in passed balls with 16 allowed.
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He has had the third most wild pitches while he has been behind the plate this season with 35. Last season, he had the second most in the MLB with 53. Jonathan Lucroy had the most last season and he currently has the most this season.
Although Sanchez is known for allowing passed balls and having wild pitches occur while he catches, he usually easily makes up for it on the offensive side or by preventing stolen bases. However, this has also not happened in 2018.
Sanchez has thrown out 8 runners in 31 attempts for a .742 stolen base percentage against him. This ranks him 52nd in the MLB amongst qualifiers who have caught at least 1 runner stealing a base. Last season, he ranked well at 16th in the MLB after he threw out 23 runners in 60 attempts (.617).
Next: Yankees Starting Pitching First Half Report Card
As Sanchez continues to struggle this season, will the Yankees be looking at available catchers prior to the trade deadline, or will they hedge their bets on Sanchez turning it around?
His drop off in numbers on both sides of the field have to be creating concern in the Bronx.