The best individual seasons for New York Yankee players

The Yankees have had many great players who have had record-setting individual seasons. While there are intangible factors to consider when looking at a player's individual success, for this article available statistics, post-season honors, and the team's overall achievement during the season were considered. Since most players have had more than a few outstanding years, only one season has been included for each player. 

10) Roger Maris, RF, 1961: Named Most Valuable Player, Maris led the American League with 61 home runs, 141 RBI's, 132 runs scored, and 366 total bases. He batted .269 with a .372 on base percentage and a .620 slugging percentage. 

9) Don Mattingly, 1B, 1986: Donnie Baseball batted .352 with 31 home runs, 113 RBI's, 117 runs scored, and a .394 on base percentage. He led the major leagues with 238 hits, 53 doubles, 388 total bases, and a .573 slugging percentage. Mattingly also won a Gold Glove. 

8) Whitey Ford, SP, 1961: Winner of the Cy Young Award, Ford's record was 25-4, for a .862 winning percentage. He struck out 209 batters while leading the league with 283 innings pitched. His ERA was 3.21. Ford was named MVP of the World Series, as he went 2-0 and held the Reds scoreless in 14 innings. 

7) Ron Guidry, SP, 1978: Louisiana Lightning won the Cy Young Award with a 25-3 record, a .893 winning percentage. Guidry struck out 248 batters in 273 innings. He led all pitchers in ERA with 1.74, an amazingly low number for a starter, and also led the majors in tossing 9 shutouts. 

6) Alex Rodriguez, 3B, 2007: Winner of the MVP award, Rodriguez hit .314 with 54 home runs, 156 RBI's, and a .422 on base percentage. He led the American League with 143 runs scored, 376 total bases, and a .645 slugging percentage. 

5) Joe DiMaggio, CF, 1937: It's difficult to select any one season for DiMaggio, since he had a number of outstanding years. But in 1937 he batted .346 with 215 hits, 167 RBI's, and a .412 on base percentage. He led the American League in runs scored with 151, home runs with 46, total bases with 418, and slugging percentage at .673.       

4) Aaron Judge, RF, 2024: The MVP of the American League batted .322 and scored 122 runs while leading the major leagues with 58 home runs, 144 RBI, and 133 walks. His .458 on base percentage and .701 slugging also led MLB, and 392 total bases led the AL. 

3) Mickey Mantle, CF, 1956: The AL MVP, Mantle won the Triple Crown with a .353 batting average, 56 home runs, and 130 RBI's. he also led the league with 132 runs scored, 376 total bases, and a .705 slugging percentage. Mantle also walked 112 times and had an on-base percentage of .464. 

2) Lou Gehrig, 1B, 1927: Gehrig had many incredible years so it's tough to pick just one as his best. In 1927 he batted .373 with 46 home runs, 218 hits, 149 runs scored, 109 walks, 18 triples, and 10 stolen bases, with an on base percentage of .474 and slugging percentage of .765. He led the American League with 52 doubles, 175 RBI's, and 447 total bases, and was named Most Valuable Player. 

1) Babe Ruth, RF, 1921: Ruth's numbers were astounding in just about every season that he played. So we'll pick 1921 as the best. He batted.378, and led the American League with 59 home runs, 171 RBI's, 177 runs scored, 145 walks, 457 total bases, on base percentage at .512, and slugging percentage at .846. He had 204 hits, 44 doubles, 16 triples, and 17 stolen bases. Ruth's statistics sometimes do not even seem real.

The Best 50 New York Yankees of All Time

The best 50 New York Yankees in history Trying to rank the best Yankee players in franchise history isn't easy. The top four are pretty obvious, but placing the others is not. There are a number of variables to look at, including length of service, career statistics, single season records, individual awards, and contributions to championship teams. Taking all those factors in account, below are the best fifty players to wear the pinstripes: 50) Allie Reynolds, P: "SuperChief" had a 131-60 record, a .686 winning percentage, with a 3.30 ERA and 27 shutouts during his eight years with the team, 1947-1954. 49) Frank Crosetti, SS: Crosetti played 1,516 games at shortstop in 17 years. A member of six World Championship teams in the 1930's and early 1940's, he led American League shortstops with .968 fielding percentage in 1939. His 792 walks rank tenth all-time on the Yankees. 48) Clete Boyer, 3B: An excellent fielder who led the American League's third basemen in range factor each season from 1961-66, Boyer appeared in 1,068 games during eight years with the Yankees. 47) Waite Hoyt, SP: A 157-98 record - a .616 winning percentage - and 15 shutouts as a starter from 1921-1930 lands Hoyt among the best Yankees of all time. 46) Bob Shawkey, P: A 168-131 record with a 3.12 ERA and 26 shutouts from 1915-1927 places Shawkey among the best Yankee starting pitchers in their history. 45) Herb Pennock, SP: From 1923-1933 Pennock posted a 162-90 record, a .643 winning percentage, along with 19 shutouts as a starting pitcher. He also had a 5-0 record with a 1.95 ERA in five World Series games. 44) Reggie Jackson, OF: In 653 games in his five years with the team Jackson batted .281 with 144 home runs and 461 RBI's, although his true value was in October when he batted .328 with 12 homers and 29 RBI's in 34 post season games, contributing to world championships in 1977 and 1978. 43) Robinson Cano, 2B: During nine years and 1,374 games in pinstripes Cano hit .309 with 204 homers and 822 RBI's. He was five time All Star and a Gold Glove winner in 2010. 42) Red Rolfe, 3B: Playing his entire ten years, 1,175 games, in the majors with the Yankees, Rolfe was a member of five world championship teams in the 1930's and batted .289 with an on-base percentage of .360 during his career. His fielding average of .956 was higher than the league average of .943. 41) Mel Stottlemyre, P: In eleven years Stottlemyre tossed 40 shutouts, good for second in team history. A five time All Star, he compiled a 164-139 record with an outstanding 2.97 ERA while pitching for some not so good teams. 40) Dave Righetti, P: The American League Rookie of the Year in 1981 and two time All Star during eleven seasons, Righetti tossed a no-hitter in 1983 but was then converted into a closer. He ended up second in team history in saves with 224. 39) Bobby Richardson, 2B: Winner of five Gold Gloves and named to seven All Star teams, Richardson played in 1,412 games during his 12 seasons, contributing to three world championships in the late '50's and early '60's. 38) Roger Maris, OF: A three time All Star and a Gold Glove winner in 1960, in 850 games during seven years with the Yanks Maris batted .265 with 203 home runs and 547 RBI's. He won two American League MVP awards and contributed to two World Championships. 37) Joe Gordon, 2B: Gordon played 1,000 games at second base from 1938-1946, contributing to four World Championships. Named an All Star for six consecutive years, Gordon won the MVP award in 1942. He averaged .271 and hit 153 home runs and drove in 617 runs during seven seasons with the Yanks. 36) Hank Bauer, OF: Appearing in 1,196 games in right field during his 12 years with the team, Bauer hit .277 with 158 home runs and 654 RBI's in his Yankee career. He was a three time All Star, and contributed to seven World Series titles in the 1950's. 35) Bill Skowron, 1B: A five time All Star, Skowron appeared in 1,087 games during nine years with the Yankees, contributing to four championship titles in the 1950's and 1960's. He batted .294 with 165 homers and 672 RBI's. 34) Bobby Murcer, OF: Playing in 1,256 games during 13 seasons with the team, Murcer won a Gold Glove as a centerfielder in 1972, and was named to four All Star teams. He batted .278 with 175 home runs and 687 RBI's in his Yankee career. 33) Alex Rodriguez, 3B: Rodriguez was the winner of MVP awards in 2005 and 2007. During twelve seasons and 1,509 games with the Yankees, he had a .283 batting average, 351 home runs, and 1,096 RBI’s. 32) Tino Martinez, 1B: Playing in 1,054 games in seven years, Martinez drove in over 100 runs in five of those seasons. A key member of four World Championship teams, he averaged .276, hit 192 home runs, and drove in 739 runs in his Yankee career. 31) Dave Winfield, OF: Playing in 1,172 games during nine years in New York, Winfield was named to eight All Star games and won five Gold Gloves. He batted .290 with 205 home runs and 818 RBI's in his Yankee career. 30) Rich Gossage, P: In seven years with the Yanks Gossage had a 42-28 record with 151 saves and a 2.14 ERA. A four time All Star, he struck out 512 batters in 533 innings and held opponents to a .207 batting average. 29) Sparky Lyle, P: Winner of the 1977 Cy Young award, Lyle saved 141 games and had a 2.41 ERA in his seven years with the team. A three time All Star, he was an important contributor to the team's championship seasons in the 1970's. 28) Tommy Heinrich, OF: A five time All Star, contributing to four World Series championships in the late 1930's and 1940's, Heinrich batted .282 with 183 homers and 795 RBI's in 1,284 games during his eleven year Yankee career. 27) Charlie Keller, OF: A five time All Star, Keller played in 1,066 games during eleven seasons with the Yankees, from 1939-1949. Batted .286 with 184 homers and 723 RBI's. His on-base percentage of .410 ranks fourth in team history, and he is eighth with a .518 slugging percentage. Keller also drove in 18 runs in 19 World Series games, contributing to three titles. 26) Paul O'Neill, OF: Playing in 1,254 games during his nine years with the Yankees, O'Neill batted .303 with 185 home runs and 858 runs batted in. A four time All Star, he was a key member of four World Championship teams. 25) Lefty Gomez, P: A seven time All Star, Gomez had a 189-101 record in 13 years with the Yankees, for a winning percentage of .652. He is fourth among pitchers with 28 shutouts. Gomez shined in the World Series, with a 6-0 record and 2.86 ERA., contributing to five World Championships in the 1930's. 24) Elston Howard, C: A nine time All Star and winner of the 1963 American League MVP award, Howard played in 1,492 games in 13 years with the Yanks. He batted .279, hitting 161 home runs and driving in 733 runs while contributing to four World Championships in the 1950's and 1960's. 23) Bob Meusel, OF: Playing in a total of 1,294 games in ten years Meusel contributed to three World Series titles in the 1920's. He ranks eighth all time on the Yankees with a .311 batting average; is tenth with 338 doubles; and twelfth with 1,005 RBI. 22) Andy Pettitte, P: Ranking first in team history among pitchers with 2,020 strikeouts, Petitte's Yankee career record of 219-115 gives him a winning percentage of .633. A three time All Star in 15 seasons, he was a member of five world championship teams. 21) Ron Guidry, P: A four time All Star, winner of the 1978 Cy Young Award, and recipient of five Gold Gloves, Guidry is third among Yankee pitchers in strikeouts with 1,778 and sixth in shutouts with 26. In 14 seasons he compiled a 170-91 career record for a winning percentage of .651 and was a key member of two World Championship teams. 20) Willie Randolph, 2B: Appearing in 1,694 games during his 13 seasons with the team, Randolph's batting average was .275 and his on-base percentage was .374. He ranks fifth in team history with 1,005 walks and third in stolen bases with 251. Contributing to the team's championship years in the late 1970's and early 1980's and a five time All Star, Randolph was also a steady defender. 19) Roy White, OF: A two time All Star, during his fifteen years with the team White delivered a number of key hits and was an important contributor to the Yankees' championship teams of 1976, 1977, and 1978. On the all-time records' lists for the Yankees White ranks seventh in games played with 1,881, eighth in walks with 934, fifth in stolen bases with 233, second in sacrifice flies with 69, and fourth in the power-speed category with a number of 189.7, behind only Jeter, Mantle, and Williams. 18) Jorge Posada, C: A five time All Star, Posada played in 1,829 games while contributing to four Yankee World Championships. In a 16 year career he batted .273 with 275 homers and 1,065 RBI's, and is seventh in Yankee history with 379 doubles. 17) Graig Nettles, 3B: A five time All Star who drove in more than 90 runs for four consecutive seasons, Nettles played in 1,535 games with the Yankees. He won two Gold Gloves for his defensive excellence, and also hit for power, belting 250 home runs with 834 RBI's during his eleven year Yankee career. 16) Phil Rizzuto, SS: The 1950 American League MVP was selected to five All Star teams. Rizzuto played in 1,647 games in 13 seasons with the Yankees. The shortstop on seven World Championship teams, he has a career batting average of .273 with an on base percentage of .351 and 149 stolen bases. 15) Earle Combs, OF: Ranks third in Yankee history with a .325 batting average, and his outstanding .397 career on base percentage is eighth all time. Ranks second all time in team history with 154 triples as well as seventh in runs scored with 1,186. Combs led the American League in hits with 231 in 1927, which is second in team history for a single season. Batting .350 in 16 World Series games and a member of three world championship teams, he played in 1,455 games during his 12 year career. 14) Tony Lazzeri, 2B: Lazzeri appeared in 1,659 games during his 12 seasons with the Yanks, averaging .293 with an on base percentage of .379. He drove in more than 100 runs in seven seasons and his total of 1,154 RBI's place him ninth on the Yankees all time list in that category. Lazzeri was a key player on five World Championship teams from 1926-1937. 13) Red Ruffing, P: A six time All Star, Ruffing's career record with the Yanks was 231-124 for a winning percentage of .651. He is second in team history with 40 shutouts, second with 3,168 innings pitched. and fourth with 1,526 strikeouts. In ten World Series games he was 7-2 with a 2.63 ERA, contributing to six World Championships in the 1930's. 12) Don Mattingly, 1B: A six time All Star, awarded nine Gold Gloves for defensive excellence, and winner of the 1985 American League MVP award, Mattingly played in 1,785 games in his 14 year career, all with the Yankees. His .307 batting average ranks ninth on the Yankees all time list. He holds the team record for sacrifice flies with 96, is fourth in doubles with 442, seventh in hits with 2,153, eighth in total bases with 3,301, tenth in runs scored with 1,007, and tenth in RBI's with 1,099. 11) Thurman Munson, C: Winner of the 1970 Rookie of the Year Award, and named the American League MVP in 1976, Munson led the Yankees to three pennants and two World Championships. A seven time All Star selection as a catcher and winner of three Gold Gloves, in his career Munson threw out 44% of baserunners attempting to steal (better than Johnny Bench's 43% and Carlton Fisk's 34%). He also hit .373 and drove in 12 runs in 16 World Series games. Munson had a .292 career batting average while playing in 1,423 games in eleven seasons, and was recognized by pitchers for his ability to call a great game. 10) Bill Dickey, C: An eleven time All Star, Dickey's .313 batting average places him seventh in Yankee history. His 1,209 RBI's rank eighth and 1,969 hits are good for ninth. In 17 years Dickey caught 1,708 games, the most in team history, while contributing to seven world championships in the 1930's and early 1940's. 9) Bernie Williams, OF: A five time All Star and winner of four Gold Gloves while playing 1,857 games in center field, Williams contributed to four World Championship titles. In Yankee history he ranks third in doubles with 449, fifth in hits with 2,336, sixth in runs scored with 1,366, sixth in RBI's with 1,257, and seventh in home runs with 287. 8) Mariano Rivera, P: The all time major league leader in saves with 652, Rivera was 82-60 with a 2.21 ERA during the regular season. A 13 time All Star and member of five World Championship teams, he pitched 141 innings in 96 post season games, with an 8-1 record, 42 saves and 0.70 ERA. 7) Yogi Berra, C: Selected to the All Star team 15 times in his 18 years with the Yankees, Berra contributed to 10 World Championships in the late 1940's, 1950's and early 1960's. He caught 1,699 games, and his 358 home runs and 1,430 RBI's each rank fifth in team history. Berra also won three American League MVP awards. 6) Derek Jeter, SS: A fourteen time All Star, winner of five Gold Gloves, and a member of five World Championship teams, Jeter is the only Yankee with at least 3,000 hits, totaling 3,465. He also holds Yankee records in games played with 2,747 and stolen bases with 358. Jeter's 544 doubles rank second in team history; 1,923 runs scored are third; 1,082 walks are fourth; 1,311 RBI’s are sixth; and .310 career batting average places him eighth. 5) Whitey Ford, P: With a 236-106 record - a .690 winning percentage - Ford is not only the Yankees all time leader in wins, but also innings pitched with 3,170, games started with 438, and second in strikeouts with 1,956. An eight time All Star and winner of the 1961 Cy Young award, he had a 2.75 ERA in the regular season and 2.71 ERA in 22 World Series games, contributing to six World Championships. 4) Mickey Mantle, OF: A 16 time All Star selection, the American League Triple Crown winner in 1956, a three time league MVP, and winner of a Gold Glove in 1962, Mantle played 2,401 games. He led American League centerfielders in assists with 14 in 1952 and 20 in 1954, and his .995 fielding percentage led all centerfielders in 1955 and 1959. Mantle hit .298 with 536 home runs and 1,509 RBI's in 18 years with the Yankees, contributing to seven World Championships. The Hall of Famer holds a number of World Series batting records including the most home runs with 18, RBI's with 40, runs scored with 42, and walks with 43. 3) Joe DiMaggio, OF: Despite missing three seasons while serving in the military during World War II, DiMaggio still ranks in the Yankees' top ten in most batting categories. He is third with a .325 batting average, third in RBI's with 1,537, third in triples with 131, third in slugging percentage at .579, fourth in home runs with 361, fifth in runs scored with 1,390, and seventh in on base percentage at .398. Playing in 1,736 games, DiMaggio's .997 fielding percentage in 1947 led all American League centerfielders, and he also led in assists with 21 in 1937, 20 in 1938, and 15 in 1946. An All Star in each of his 13 seasons with the team, DiMaggio won three league MVP awards and contributed to nine Yankee World Championships. 2) Lou Gehrig, 1B: Named the American League MVP in 1927 and 1936, and winner of the Triple Crown in 1934, Gehrig played in 2,164 games during 17 years with the Yankees, leading the team to six World Championship titles in the 1920's and 1930's. In 34 World Series games he hit .361 with 10 homers and 35 RBI's. He is first in Yankee history with 534 doubles, first in triples with 163, first in RBI's with 1,995, and second in hits with 2,721. His .340 batting average, .447 on-base percentage, .632 slugging percentage, and 1,888 runs scored are second in team history. 1) Babe Ruth, OF: Playing in 2,084 games during 15 years with the Yankees (he played right field, left field, and pitcher) Ruth is first in Yankee history in a number of hitting categories, including: batting average, .349; on base percentage, .484; slugging percentage, .711; runs scored, 1,959; total bases, 5,131; home runs, 659; and walks, 1,852. He is second in RBI's with 1,971. In 36 World Series games with the team Ruth batted .348, hit 15 home runs, and had 30 RBI's. What else can you say about someone who may be the game's greatest player ever?

Yanks' Gardner not making a difference in centerfield so far

Baseball's sabermatricians often talk about range factor, zone fielding, and runs saved when calculating defensive statistics. I'm not sure if any of it actually translates into wins on the field for a team, but if it does matter, it doesn't seem like the Yankees made the right decision about moving Brett Gardner to centerfield and shifting Curtis Granderson to left field this season.

While it's somewhat of moot point being that Granderson has missed the first month of the season due to a broken arm and Gardner has had to play centerfield, since the Yanks have no one else who could really do it everyday, taking a look at Gardner's defensive stats seem to show that he hasn't made much of a difference.

In 19 games and 172 innings to date Gardner has been minus 6 in runs above or below average that a fielder is worth based on the number of plays made. Over the course of a 162 game season that means he would cost the Yankees 40 runs.  Hardly the type of stat that you would want from your regular centerfielder. His current range factor is 2.30, only slightly above the league average of 2.26.

While it's obvious Gardner's speed allows him to cover a lot of ground and get to balls that other fielders would not, at the moment the statistics don't support the idea that he is an outstanding defensive centerfielder.  On the other hand, it could mean that sabermetrics don't mean all that much. As long as the fielder doesn't make any obvious errors on fly balls or throws, perhaps the .04 percentage difference in range factor isn't going to translate into a championship for a baseball team.

Yanks will regret signing Hafner

Signing Travis Hafner to a $2 million contract is one of Yankee GM Brian Cashman's sillier moves. Cashman, baseball's most over-rated general manager, is trying to make up for some of the team's lost home run production due to the departure of Nick Swisher, Raul Ibanez, and Russell Martin, as well as the absence of Alex Rodriguez.

However, Hafner has played in less than 100 games the past two seasons due to injuries, and at age 36 can hardly be expected to play 140 games a year, even if it's only as a DH.

Hafner hasn't played in the field since 2007, and hasn't even bothered to take ground balls at first base during spring training.  He's unable to throw due to a past shoulder injury.

So Cashman has saddled Joe Girardi with what will basically be a 24 man roster - assuming Hafner doesn't land on the disabled list first. Hopefully the Yankee manager won't have to deal with any major injuries during games, or be involved in many extra inning games. If that happens Girardi may end up using one of his pitchers in the field.

Yankees were swinging the bats like slow pitch softball players during the playoffs

Yankee manager Joe Girardi said during the playoffs that his hitters had to make "adjustments." Unfortunately none of them did. All they did do was stand at the plate and hack away like they were playing slow pitch softball.

None of the Yankee batters tried stay back in the box, drive the ball where it was pitched and into the opposite field, or not hit lazy fly balls. It should be obvious that the Yankee hitters had success during the regular season because they were smacking around fastballs from mediocre pitchers.

But when a pitcher would throw a changeup or curveball in a fastball count, the Yankees appeared helpless. They were way too aggressive and chased bad pitches. Even in hitters' counts, the Yankees flailed at pitches out of the strike zone.

Some so-called baseball experts believe that a strikeout is no worse that grounding out, but with men on base it's always better to put the ball in play, since it can move runners around the bases, or maybe a fielder makes an error which can keep an inning going.

Curtis Granderson had a couple of good all-around seasons while playing with the Tigers, so next year  instead of just to hit a home run every time he's up, why not just wait on some pitches and try to make contact. Singles, doubles, and triples are good to hit, too.

Yankees' lazy Cano one of MLB's most over-rated players

There was plenty of blame to go around in the Yankees' losses in the 2012 American League Championship Series against the Detroit Tigers. No one really hit well so it's unfair to get on any one guy such as Alex Rodriguez. Of course, we must recognize that the Yankees did win 95 games in the regular season and 26 other teams in baseball wish they were in the Yanks' shoes. Plus, the Tigers are hardly slouches.

Still, Robinson Cano is one player who gets a lot of accolades from some members of the media (well maybe just the Yanks' TV and radio announcers) but doesn't really deserve them. Yes he's a good hitter most of the time and provides solid defense in the field.  But he's not the kind of player who can carry a team and doesn't always hit in the clutch during the regular season. He hasn't done much in any of the Yankees' post-seasons, batting .222 with a .267 on-base percentage in 203 at-bats. The 2009 world series was won without any help from Cano, as he went 3 for 22 with one RBI.

He's been defended as appearing lazy when he's really just making plays look easy; that may be true, but it’s also true he doesn't always run out ground balls.

Cano can be included among the fifty greatest Yankees of all time because of his numbers, but let's not get his plaque ready for Cooperstown just yet. He still has a ways to go to be included among the game's greatest second basemen of all time.

Yankees' Swisher Never Would Have Lasted with George Steinbrenner

Yanks' Nick Swisher Can't Take the Heat of New York City

Funny how current Yankee players who never met George Steinbrenner have praised him; guys like Swisher would have been the object of the owner's ire.

How can a baseball player who makes $10.25 million a year and has a career batting average of .167 in 45 postseason games be upset about being booed?

Last week the New York Yankees Nick Swisher expressed his disappointment at being booed by fans at Yankee Stadium as the Yankees fell behind two games to none in the American League Championship series against the Detroit Tigers.

Swisher was quoted as saying, "The last thing I ever thought in this ballpark was that people would get on me that bad. It hurts. Sometimes I'm a sensitive guy and some of the things people say get under your skin."

Yikes. Get under your skin? How would he have handled George Steinbrenner's wrath at his 4 hits in 30 at-bats performance in the 2012 playoffs so far?

Swisher has been a consistently good hitter for the Yankees in four regular seasons with the team, but his bat has been silent in each postseason series with the team. Even while he was with Chicago and Oakland, he was 5 for 24, a .208 average, in playoff games.

I'm not sure what Swisher expects fans to do. Why would anyone cheer if you're not getting it done? Especially when tickets to a game cost $300-$400 each.

Get over it, Nick.  You're just lucky old man Steinbrenner isn't alive. He's the one who would have run you out of town, not the fans.

How can Yankee relievers be "fatigued" when there's 12 of them in the bullpen??

After the Yankees' loss to Minnesota the other day catcher Russell Martin agreed that "fatigue" may have been a factor in relief pitcher Boone Logan's uncorking a wild pitch that led to a run and then getting hammered by several Twins batters that resulted in the Twins taking the lead in the seventh inning. Granted, Logan has pitched in a lot of games this season (76). But there's a total of 12 guys in the bullpen due to the expanded September rosters, so are we to believe there wasn't someone else who could have gotten the job done? Another pitcher who wasn't as "fatigued?"

Manager Joe Girardi has done a good job this year and in past seasons managing the workloads of his relievers. So to blame "fatigue" on not making pitches is a bit of a stretch. Logan's hasn't pitched badly but he's never been overly tough on lefty batters, either. Sometimes managers rely too much of matchups; out of all the pitchers in the bullpen there's got to be at least one who isn't "fatigued." Come on.

The Yankees need to start hitting some singles

The Yankees lead the major leagues in home runs and have remained in first place in the American League's East division for most of the 2012 season, but their inability to deliver singles with runners in scoring position may come back to haunt them for the rest of the season, and in the post season - if they make it..

Derek Jeter is the only Yankee who has been consistent this year. He can hit singles, get on base and drive in runners. The problem is though, there isn't always someone in scoring position when he gets up to bat. Unfortunately the Yankees have a number of regular players with low on base percentages (see Curtis Granderson .322, Ichiro Suzuki .314, Russell Martin .313, Andruw Jones .297, and Raul Ibanez .294) which doesn't help if a team is trying to manufacture some runs.

Robinson Cano is player that can and has hit singles, but he's been somewhat inconsistent this season. Alex Rodriguez and Mark Teixeira have delivered clutch singles in their careers, but both have missed time this year because of injuries.

George Steinbrenner never really understood that giving a player a big contract meant that they would always deliver at the plate when it counts, and right about now it appears that Yankees GM Brian Cashman doesn't get it either, unless he was expecting something different when he put this team together.

The Yankees have a few weeks left to turn things around, so let's see if they can earn that big money they're all getting. The price of a a beer at Yankee Stadium is twelve bucks, but the Yanks have to still be playing in October if the franchise wants to collect some of that dough from their fans.

Hey Yankee-Haters, why don't you buy some of those empty seats at Yankee Stadium?

Hey Yankee-Haters, why don't you buy some of those empty seats at Yankee Stadium?  There's plenty of space to boo the team you hate.

Contrary to what Michael Kay and the YES Network say, there are some empty seats at New York's Yankee Stadium during games. Why don't Yankee-Haters buy some of those empty seats, jeer the Yankee players, and cheer for the opposing team?

"A sold out Yankee Stadium..." Well, maybe the tickets have been bought by brokers, but the seats are still empty. Fans who are Yankee-Haters ought to buy all those tickets, then go to the game and boo the Yankees. They could applaud when a Yankee strikes out or makes an error, and cheer when an opposing player gets a hit or makes a great defensive play.

Now, I know most reasonable fans don't want to spend their hard-earned money on going to a lot of baseball games to watch a team they don't even like, but think of the consternation that it would cause the Yankee management. They wouldn't be happy to hear people cheering the Yanks' opponent. And on the other hand, for the seats that aren't being bought by brokers - would they want to not bring in more money, by not selling those tickets? That would be quite a dilemma for the Steinbrenner clan.

So Yankee-Haters, put your money where your mouth is. Literally. Here's your chance to get some satisfaction and put your energy to good use.

http://www.mlb.com/http://www.yankees.com/http://www.mets.com/http://www.redsox.com/http://web.yesnetwork.com/index.jsp

Why does Major League Baseball even bother playing the All Star Game?

Major League Baseball's All Star Game has become nothing more than a silly exhibition game at this point. It's almost as a bad as the NFL's Pro Bowl.

Some of the players don't seem to approach the game as a competition. Just a different generation, perhaps. People and culture change, so maybe today's players just don't feel the same type of emotion about the All Star games as those 40, 50, and 60 years ago.

Then there's the money factor. Today's players earn so much in salary that the extra dollars that they collect from winning the All Star Game is almost insignificant. Why expend the energy and risk getting injured for a small amount of money? Forty years ago, those extra bucks could mean something to a player.

Inter-league play that began in 1997 has also diluted the excitement surrounding the All Star Game, as well as the World Series. It used to be that fans would see players from the American and National Leagues compete against each other only in the World Series and the All Star Game, so the midsummer classic had more drama and intrigue. Now that we've seen mixing of the leagues, the All Star Game has lost some of its luster. Even the Yankees-Mets rivalry isn't as intense anymore. Back in the early 1980's George Steinbrenner put a halt to the annual New York Mayors Trophy game between the two teams because it was so upsetting for him to have the Yankees lose to the Mets. Today, it's just another series against another team. Ho-hum.

The All Star game began feeling more like an exhibition in 1997 when pitcher Randy Johnson let a pitch fly over Larry Walker's head, just as entertainment, since Walker had previously expressed his fear in standing in the batter's box against the hard throwing lefty.

Major league's baseball's All Star Game accelerated its downward slide due to two incidents in 2002. Outfielder Tori Hunter made a sensational catch on a fly ball hit by Barry Bonds, robbing Bonds of a home run. Bonds picked up Hunter on his way off the field, with the two laughing. That display enforced the idea that the players weren't taking the game as seriously.

Then when Bud Selig ended the game in a tie, due to both sides running out of pitchers, the All Star game was seen as somewhat of a farce. Managers Joe Torre and Bob Brenly felt it was more important to get everyone on their rosters into the game - meaning winning the game was on the back burner.

Selig's lame attempt to instill some competition into the All Star game by declaring the winning league would have home field advantage in the World Series hasn't had much of an effect. Why would a player from a last place team even care about that? And, what if he was traded by the July 31 deadline to a team in the other league that had a shot at the postseason? Where would his allegiance be then?

Inter-league play has become meaningless and should be ended. For the All-Star game, give the players on the winning team a ton of money, like $300,000 each. Players on the losing team would only get $15,000. That would make them compete and take it seriously. Maybe then it would again become the Midsummer Classic.

http://www.mlb.com/

Memo to Joe Girardi: update the chapter in the Binder about utility players

Poor Eduardo Nunez. Asked to play the outfield without any experience. Joe Girardi and the front office have all that material and statistics, yet they throw a guy who's never played the outfield before into the fire. Just because he wanted to get another right-handed bat into lineup against a lefty pitcher? That's a questionable strategy.  I understand they're short players because of Swisher's injury, but put Andruw Jones and Raul Ibanez in the outfield and just let Nunez be the DH. While Jones and Ibanez aren't gold glovers, at least they can still make the routine plays. The Yanks could have given Nunez more time in the outfield during spring training, if they had wanted him to be more of a utility player. Time to update the binder, Joe.