Depending on when you checked in on the Yankees, they could’ve been the most dangerous team in baseball or the most disappointing one. After being the first team to 50 wins, they fizzled, going 8-18 as lineup holes and pitching craters opened wide.
At 58-40 – still a good record, you doubters – they are one game behind the Orioles in the AL East, even after beating Baltimore in a three-game series at Camden Yards to end the first half.
Like this whole season, the Yankees were all over the place in that series, flattening the Orioles twice before blundering to a walk-off loss Sunday.
That’s kind of what their first-half report card looks like – all over the place. There are some high marks (Aaron Judge, of course) and some low ones. Read on to see how the Yanks grade out.
POSITION PLAYERS
Aaron Judge
He’s the best player in baseball. Fight me. He leads MLB in home runs (34), OPS (1.112), RBI (85) and more. No Yankee has ever hit 34 homers before the All-Star break. All this after Judge was so terrible early.
Grade: A+. If there was a higher grade, we’d give it to him.
Juan Soto
Soto is third in MLB in OPS, behind only Judge and Shohei Ohtani, and he and Judge are 1-2 in on-base percentage. Soto leads MLB in walks and is third in runs. He’d be the MVP of the league if it weren’t for Judge, and he’s brought some needed fun and swagger to the Yankees.
Grade: A+
Anthony Volpe
There are some positives – he’s 13th in MLB in runs and third in triples and he’s delivering good defense again at shortstop, Sunday’s gaffe notwithstanding. But he hasn’t bloomed into the dynamic offensive beast the Yankees perhaps were expecting. Among shortstops, he’s 17th out of 21 qualifiers in OPS (.666) and 16th in on-base percentage (.300).
Grade: C
Gleyber Torres
Is he having the worst platform year a free agent has ever had? Maybe. Torres is 14th among 18 qualified second basemen in OPS (.654) and 16th in slugging (.317). Only three second basemen have struck out more times. His 11 errors are the most among second sackers. Ugh.
Grade: D
Alex Verdugo
He was great as a first-half hype man, at least early on, and he had some nifty moments while adding sizzle to the staid Yanks. But he’s got to be better. “Up and down” is how he described his first half to reporters after his ghastly misplay cost the Yankees Sunday’s game in Baltimore. He’s last among 18 qualified left fielders in OPS (.670) and 17th in both slugging and on-base.
Grade: C-
Giancarlo Stanton
Losing him was a huge hit to a lineup that looks shallow without him. Stanton had 18 homers, 45 RBI and a .795 OPS in 69 games, but injuries have interrupted his rebound season and he hasn’t played since June 22.
Grade: B
Trent Grisham
He’s been mocked for a low batting average (.195), but he’s started to produce now that he’s playing regularly. Over his last 30 games, he’s got a slash line of .260/.337/.506 with five homers. As a spare outfielder, he’s perfectly serviceable, especially since he can play defense and provide bench power.
Grade: C+
DJ LeMahieu
The Yanks soon may face some uncomfortable questions about LeMahieu, considering his .497 OPS and .188 average in 36 games since returning to play. The 35-year-old infielder has only three extra-base hits in 117 at-bats.
Grade: D
Ben Rice
Rice has, ahem, cooked since his June debut, giving the Yanks a power lift. He’s got a .979 OPS with runners in scoring position and overall has six homers, 19 RBI and an .809 OPS in 24 games. Looks like he can help a lineup that’s been mostly a dud beyond Judge and Soto.
Grade: B
Anthony Rizzo
He’s hurt now, but he did not play well when he was healthy. In 70 games, he hit eight homers and knocked in 28 runs with a .223/.289/.341 slash line. He’s supposed to return in late August, but he might not get his everyday job back.
Grade: D
Austin Wells
Over his last 13 games, he’s got a .979 OPS and four home runs, so more regular playing time has activated his offense, though he’s still batting .216 overall with a .687 OPS. He’s league average (23 percent) in throwing out runners trying to steal.
Grade: C+
Jose Trevino
A terrific pitch-framer and game-caller, Trevino has struggled controlling opposing running games at times this year, notably in that Fenway debacle on Sunday Night Baseball. Still, he’s got a .713 OPS, two points off his career high, though he’s on the Injured List now, too.
Grade: C+
Oswaldo Cabrera
He’s played third more than anyone on the roster, thanks to injuries. He’s a jolt of energy, but probably miscast as a regular. He’s got a .629 OPS, a .238 average and five homers in 73 games.
Grade: C
STARTING PITCHERS
Nestor Cortes
He’s delivered innings, suppressed walks and been great at home. He’s also given up the 12th-most hits in MLB, the 13th-most homers and been awful on the road. He’s got the same FanGraphs WAR as Luis Gil (2.1). Weird season for Cortes, who is 4-8 with a nice 3.67 ERA – 1.81 at Yankee Stadium, 6.04 elsewhere.
Home Nestor: A
Road Nestor: D
Overall Nestor: B
Marcus Stroman
He’s a solid 7-4 with a 3.51 ERA, but there are some danger numbers, too – his HR/9 (1.3) would be a career-worst, as would his BB/9 (4.0). He’s got a 5.68 ERA over his last five outings. But he’s also got nine outings of two-runs-or-fewer in 19 starts, still gets buckets of ground balls and was a big part of the rotation’s early success.
Grade: B
Carlos Rodón
On June 10, after beating the Royals in Kansas City, the scene of the low point of Rodón’s Yankee career last year, the lefty was 9-2 with a 2.93 ERA. He looked like one of the best redemption stories in baseball. But in his last six starts, he’s 0-5 with a 9.67 ERA. He’s given up 20 homers overall, the second-most in baseball, and his ERA has ballooned to 4.63. Will he ever be the ace the Yanks hoped for?
Grade: C
Gerrit Cole
Not a lot to go on, considering he’s only made five starts since returning from injury. But the numbers aren’t great – 5.40 ERA and what would be career-worsts in HR/9 (1.9) and BB/9 (3.5). In fairness, the homer number is skewed by the Mets hitting four off him in his second start. Was he ready to return when he did? Whatever. Cole coming back means rotation hope and he flattened Baltimore’s dangerous lineup in his most recent start. If that was him nearing his full powers, we’re here for it.
Grade: B
Luis Gil
His grade would be higher if he stopped walking so many hitters – his 4.31 BB/9 is the worst among qualified starters. Still, it’s hard to deny the awesome stuff and he’s 10-5 with a 3.17 ERA (18th in MLB). Opponents are batting just .171 against him, second-best in MLB. He’s already in uncharted innings territory, so we’ll see how that might affect his second half.
Grade: A
BULLPEN
Clay Holmes
The Yankee closer has 21 saves, a 2.77 ERA and is an All-Star. But he’s not having a great year. He’s allowed 41 hits in 39 innings – no other pitcher with at least 18 saves has allowed that many hits – and opponents are batting .263 against him. He gets soft contact, but he’s sometimes hurt by bloops and flares, too. In his last 10 outings, he’s got three blown saves, a 7.45 ERA and has allowed 13 hits in 9.2 innings.
Grade: B-
Luke Weaver
This relief revelation is one of the best pitchers in baseball – his 0.80 WHIP and .160 opponent average lead all MLB hurlers who have thrown at least 50 innings and his 2.47 ERA is seventh. He’s gotten more than three outs in 24-of-his-36 appearances. Incredibly valuable pitcher for a team with bullpen worries.
Grade: A+
Michael Tonkin
If you knew that Tonkin, who has pitched for three teams this season, would become a bullpen stalwart, well, you should be hired by an MLB team. He’s been terrific for the Yanks after stints with the Mets and Braves. In 36.2 pinstriped innings, he’s allowed only 20 hits and has a 1.47 ERA.
Grade: A
Tommy Kahnle
His changeup remains his best weapon and hitters are batting only .180 against it while missing 43.4 percent of their swings against it. In 22 appearances, he’s got a 2.95 ERA and has fanned 22 in 18.1 innings. He’s allowed four homers, too.
Grade: C+
Caleb Ferguson
The bullpen’s main lefty has struggled with a 5.28 ERA and he’s allowing 9.3 hits-per-nine-innings and 4.0 BB/9. The Yanks need more from a pitcher they believed would be an impact relief arm.
Grade: D
Aaron Boone
Still radiates positive energy without fail, even when the Yankees are playing poorly. That may not satisfy bloodthirsty fans ravenous for scapegoats, but we bet it plays better in the clubhouse. Boone rightly benched Torres for a needed reset in June and Torres has batted .326 since. But the Yankees had several effort lapses on plays recently – Volpe, LeMahieu, Grisham – and, fairly or unfairly, those reflect on the manager, as well as those players. That needs to tighten up, and fast.
Grade: B-
Brian Cashman
The GM would get an A for the Soto trade alone, a mega-move that satisfied splash-hungry Yankee fans and transformed a sometimes-dull club. But there’s too much other work to be done now, before the trade deadline, to let that mark ride for the entire first half. Cashman can really have an impact on a team that has faltered just about everywhere, except the spots in the batting order manned by Judge and Soto. It’s imperative that Cashman improves the bullpen and adds a bat, at the minimum. If he doesn’t, what the heck was the Soto trade for, anyway?
Grade: Incomplete
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