Gleyber and Andujar

[jacksonianmarch]

Last year was the year of the Baby Bombers which took us 1 game from the world series. This year, it's the addition of 2 baby bombers that has us poised to be title contenders again. With Sanchez slumping badly this season and with Stanton being good enough but not what was expected, the Yankees needed a jolt from the bottom of their order, and boy did they get it. We started the year with Drury at 3b and Walker at 2b. Drury got Wally Pipp'd by headaches and Walker was clearly rusty after getting off to a late start with his signing. We had Wade out there as well who struggled and was sent down. Enter Andujar and Torres.

Andujar 23 yrs old .303/..332/.540 with 8HR 22 doubles and 2 triples
Torres 21 yrs old .295/.351/.577 with 13HR and 5 doubles

Torres has shown the ability to be a plus defender (+2 defensive runs saved) but his 8 errors have left him with a minus in that column this season. Andujar has proven most doubters wrong as he has clearly shown the ability to at least be a league average defender. These guys look to be the future for a very long time. Now, there are some things to look at for both.

Andujar was a highly touted INTL signee who started off his career in the minors with middling production, but always showed a knack for making contact. Once he started driving the ball and hitting more doubles, his BABIP rose past the .300 mark. He finally broke through into a solid hitter at the age of 22 last yr between AA and AAA. His BABIP rose to the .330 mark. His K% stayed very low (13%) yet his power started to arrive (16HR in 125 games). In the majors, he is striking out about 4% more than his minor league track record indicates, but he is still sitting at that .330 BABIP mark. This is likely due to his ability to hit line drives and hard ground balls. His LD+GB percentage is a full 5 percentage points above league average. My anticipation for him as he gets acclimated and the league gets used to him is that the K% will fall down another 3-4%. His BB% is down a touch from his MiLB numbers as well, so I expect his walks to tick up a touch. He is a .300 hitter long term, IMO. I think the BABIP will drive itself downward with the decrease in K's but the BA should stay in the .300 range. If he is able to make gains on the discipline end, he very well may end up becoming a perennial all star 3b. I think Andujar's peak projection is a .300/.350/.500 hitter who tops out in the 25HR range but challenges for the league lead in doubles every year

Torres was stolen from the Cubs for a half season rental of Chapman. He's been a top prospect since his debut in the Cubs organization and has been as high as #1 in the game on some publications. He turned 21 in December. The whole package of Torres is absolutely impressive and has evolved as he came to the bigs. He wasn't a HR hitter in the minors (max was 11HR in a season) but he has always hammered the ball at high rates. He had shown a knack for walking but also a penchant for striking out with average rates from 16 and 17 around the 20% mark. He has always shown a knack for walking in the minors as well posting in the mid to high .300s or even over .400 OBPs over the past few minor league seasons. When he came up to the Yankees, his power came. 13HR in 2 months is a career high for him. And these aren't wall scrapers, these are bombs. With the HR approach has come a higher K rate, 26%. His walk rate is down, but that's expected with him batting 9th and murderers row behind him. Torres has shown the ability to maintain a higher than average BABIP in the minors and he is around the .330 range as well mostly due to a 5% higher than average line drive percentage (26% vs average 21%). That might come down a bit if he gets back to his minor league levels of strike outs. The other thing about Gleyber is that he can steal bases. He will never be a 30SB guy, but his max is likely in the 15 range, just enough to be a threat without being a burner. Torres, IMO, will be a perennial All Star and will likely be in the MVP conversation as he grows into his body. I anticipate he plays 2b for us for this season and next, then shifts over to SS after Didi departs in FA. Everyone thought he would hit for average and reach base a ton. His projection was limited by his power. Now that he is showing the ability to go yard and show significant exit velo and distances, his peak projection is a .300/.400/.550 kind of player capable of hitting 30+HR.

These kids have been absolutely awesome. Thankfully, this isn't the end of the train. With Frazier killing it in AAA and Drury doing the same, we are likely to see Frazier replace Gardner and Drury replace Didi (Drury is a 2b/3b) going forward the next few seasons

[Carpin]

Very excited to see those guys in the ML, they look like the real deal; losing on Cole last offseason was painful but it looks like Cashman was right (again) in holding up on Andujar.

Reports say that the Muts are asking for both +some other prospects for DeGrom, they wish lol

[jacksonianmarch]

Very glad he didn’t include Andujar. He’s got the rare ability to make consistent contact. The kid is going to be special

[bkzwhitestrican]

I think Drury will be packaged for a pitcher before the deadline. The Yankees are constantly looking for power lefties so I can't see them moving on from Didi in his prime.

[Carpin]

I don't think Drury holds a lot of value lately, he won't be the center piece in any major trade

[jacksonianmarch]

Gleyber at .296/.353/.560 with 15HR and 26EBH in 216AB's.
Andujar at .282/.312/.511 with 12HR and 38EBH in 280ABs.

Kids are leading us

[Carpin]

Gleyber at .296/.353/.560 with 15HR and 26EBH in 216AB's.
Andujar at .282/.312/.511 with 12HR and 38EBH in 280ABs.

Kids are leading us

I love them

If Andujar can get a few more walks he could be an all-star every year, he's close to that now imagine if he improves his OBP

[jacksonianmarch]

He will but not by much. Andujar doesn’t have bad pitch recognition, on the contrary. Thing is, he doesn’t play the count. He’s a true see ball, hit ball guy. If he sees a pitch he likes, he hits it. He doesn’t try to bait a pitcher into giving him a pitch he can drive. He just tries to drive everything

[Fan_since_Boggs]

Wow, I didn't realize Andujar was such a terrible defensive player:

the Yankees have no complaints about rookie third baseman Miguel Andujar’s offense. However, his -22.0 UZR/150 is the worst in MLB by any player at any position.
https://www.beyondtheboxscore.com/20...ankees-machado

The Yankees interest in Machado and Moustakas is starting to make more sense.

[Fan_since_Boggs]

Joel Sherman:

Multiple executives told The Post that Andujar’s free-swinging penchant and poor defensive metrics are areas of concern, with one saying, “Andujar is a horrendous third baseman. This all feels like the Yankees building up a player’s value to trade him for a young, controllable starter and then they will revisit the issue of third base in the offseason with [Brandon] Drury, an outside third baseman or signing Machado.”

Andujar also had drawn just 15 walks in 327 plate appearances and the metrics on FanGraphs have Andujar as by far the worst defensive third baseman of the 21 qualified.
https://nypost.com/2018/07/13/yankee...r-rival-execs/

Reading that article, I think it is strange that Cashman references Cano:

"Robinson Cano was able to develop into a bigger, better player for us."

Cashman heard that Cano is a PED guy, right? You shouldn't compare a young player to an older player who improved and gained an advantage by cheating. Mention Bernie Williams or someone like that, not a PED guy.

[bkzwhitestrican]

Wow, I didn't realize Andujar was such a terrible defensive player:



The Yankees interest in Machado and Moustakas is starting to make more sense.

Andujar's issue is his range. He's not over there making errors and looking like a dumbass but he doesn't get to a lot of balls that most other third basemen would get to. I don't know if range is something that can improve given time and experience.. but I hope it does.

[jacksonianmarch]

Andujar’s issue isn’t range IMO. It isn’t arm either. He’s got the tools to be at least an average defender. He’s just far too capable of making a boneheaded play. A ball he should charge, he lays back on. A ball to his left he should lay out for, he stays up. A routine ball he throws in the dirt or up. He’s someone I can legitimately say has the tools to be a good defender, he’s just not executing enough to be even an average defensive 3b right now.

In terms of the offense approach, Robby Cano is a good comp. Guy capable of hitting for a high average and some power who develops some patience and a lot more power. I’ll say it again, Andujar has the swing to be a .300 hitter with 25 HR. He has the tools to be a positive UZR 3b.

[bkzwhitestrican]

Andujar’s issue isn’t range IMO. It isn’t arm either. He’s got the tools to be at least an average defender. He’s just far too capable of making a boneheaded play. A ball he should charge, he lays back on. A ball to his left he should lay out for, he stays up. A routine ball he throws in the dirt or up. He’s someone I can legitimately say has the tools to be a good defender, he’s just not executing enough to be even an average defensive 3b right now.

In terms of the offense approach, Robby Cano is a good comp. Guy capable of hitting for a high average and some power who develops some patience and a lot more power. I’ll say it again, Andujar has the swing to be a .300 hitter with 25 HR. He has the tools to be a positive UZR 3b.

Not to start an argument but I disagree, range is his biggest area of concern. Sure he makes some rookie mistakes, but so has Gleyber. The difference is that Gleyber also makes tons of difficult plays whereas with Andujar I can't even recall a single good play where he has moved to his right or left.

Per Fangraphs, he has a -7.2 UZR but only -0.1 is attributable to errors made. -6.2 of it is due to his range (or lack of range) which is far and away the worst of all MLB third basemen. Per Mike Axisa: "He’s sure-handed, as evidenced by his ranking 8th in converting routine plays at the position per Inside Edge fielding data – but he’s third to last in ‘likely’ plays, and last in plays with ‘even’ odds. And that matches the eye test."

I agree with you on his offensive potential, he's a pure hitter with a lot of upside.

[Fan_since_Boggs]

I'm starting to see Andujar as a future 1b. That would open the door for Manny Machado at 3b. Or would that be too many right handed bats: Stanton, Judge, Machado, Andujar? You still have Hicks (better from the left side this year) and Didi.

If they moved Andujar to 1b, I don't know what they would do with Bird.

Perhaps a better strategy: trade Andujar in the offseason in a deal for a SP and sign Machado for 3b, keeping Bird at 1b.

Would Hal support signing Machado to an enormous contract? Machado will definitely want a 300 million dollar contract, and might even expect more than that.

[jacksonianmarch]

This is getting scary. We got off on the wrong foot, but I do agree. Andujar’s latest defensive gaffes have him spending time at DH rather than working on his craft at 3b. The frustrating thing about Andujar is the tools are there. He’s quick laterally. He’s got a cannon. His hands are smooth. He just makes stupid decisions. He backs up on a ball he should charge. He lolly gags a throw with 2 outs in the 9th from the 3b line. He just seems like a defensive moron rather than a kid who can’t cut it. Some teams can wait for his glove. We can’t.

In terms of what to do with him, there’s an even more obvious spot to put him. Gardner is done with us as a starter after the season. His option will be declined and that’ll allow Stanton to move to LF. That opens DH. Machado to 3b, Andujar plays 3b when Machado rests but otherwise plays 1B vs lefties and DH’s otherwise. Or, we deal him for pitching.