"Yankees had lots of problems against lefties" - MLB insider puts onus on Giancarlo Stanton to attack southpaws as teams opt to walk Aaron Judge
MLB and New York Yankees insiders Joel Sherman and Ryan Sampson recently discussed how Giancarlo Stanton should be manager Aaron Boone's weapon of choice when Aaron Judge is intentionally walked with a lefty on the mound. Stanton returned to the team on July 30 against the Philadelphia Phillies after missing a month due to a hamstring injury.
In Stanton's absence, catcher Austin Wells had been the one trusted with batting cleanup, a role which Wells, by his own admission, seems to enjoy. However, with Stanton's return, the Bronx Bombers now have an extra weapon in their arsenal.
On the "Pinstripe Post" on the New York Post Sports' Youtube channel, Sherman talked about why defenses choosing to walk Aaron Judge is not something that's going to go away anytime soon (TimeStamp: 3:25):
"They're not going to stop walking Judge, no matter how hot the No. 4 hitter is, because Judge is having a better offensive season than he had when he hit 62 homers. It's essentially like he decided to stop making outs in May."
Due to their best player being starved of plate appearances, Sherman added why it's hugely important for the Yankees to choose their No. 4 hitter wisely:
"Against righty pitching, Austin Wells has stepped in, and he's performed really well. When an opponent starts a lefty, who the Yankees have lots of problems against, Stanton has to deliver."
Sherman recalled Stanton's recent at-bat against the Texas Rangers to prove his point:
"It was a tough spot for Stanton yesterday, they brought in a late-inning reliever who got ahead of Stanton 0-2 before he did what he can do better than anyone else: hitting the ball hard. He made the Rangers pay for an intentional walk of Judge by hitting the key blow of the game to make the score five-nothing."
Aaron Judge hits 42nd homer of the season to power as Yankees beat Rangers
Despite visiting teams being booed by home fans for intentionally walking Aaron Judge, No. 99 smashed another home run against the Texas Rangers on Sunday, as the home team closed out a series win with an 8-7 victory at Yankee Stadium on Sunday.
Judge's latest blast brings up his season's home run tally to 42, the most in the Major Leagues by some distance. Along with that, The Yankees captain also leads the majors with 106 RBIs and is batting at a .328 average, which is second.
Judge, Stanton and the Yankees take on the Chicago White Sox on the road for their next game on Monday, in Game 1 of a three-game series. Facing a team suffering one of the worst seasons in MLB history, fans will be hoping New York can leave Chicago with three wins as the Baltimore Orioles look to take the Bronx Bombers all the way in the race for the top spot in the American League East.