Joe Girardi, intentional walks and David Ortiz: Three topics that individually will generate strong reactions from Yankees fans.
All three in one conversation? Fuhgeddaboudit.
But whether you think Girardi was right or wrong in issuing a free pass to Big Papi last night, a decision that led directly to the Yankees suffering an 11-1 loss to the rival Red Sox at Yankee Stadium, the greater point is this:
With this team he’s managing, Girardi can’t afford to whiff on such a big call.
“I feel like the bats have obviously done a great job up to this point,” said Phil Hughes (2-4), who followed the third-inning free pass to Ortiz by serving up a grand slam to Mike Napoli. “We’ve hit a little rut, but I feel like as long as we’re pitching well, we can sort of withstand that. We’re going to swing the bats.”
I don’t know about that. Though Mark Teixeira and Kevin Youkilis should eventually help — they each struck out three times last night — the Yankees currently rank 11th in the American League with 223 runs scored. This still is not a good lineup, and this is not a good stretch, as the Yankees (31-24) have dropped six of seven games and trail AL East-leading Boston (34-23) by a game in the loss column.
Did Girardi make the right decision in the third? One run already was in, the Red Sox had runners on second and third and up came Ortiz, who entered the plate appearance 9-for-21 (.429) with two homers and three walks against Hughes. Napoli, on deck, was 4-for-8 with a homer against Hughes. Ortiz struck out looking in his first at-bat, while Napoli lined a single to center field in his.
“You’ve got one guy that’s struck out 75 times in [203] at-bats and one guy that’s struck out [16] times in [134] at-bats coming into this series,” Girardi said. “To me, you’re looking for a strikeout in that situation. Napoli has struck out a lot more. But he wasn’t able to strike him out.”
I polled two scouts at the game last night, both on the condition of anonymity. One supported Girardi, arguing simply that Ortiz is a bigger threat than Napoli. The other called the maneuver “terrible” and added Hughes’ approach to Napoli, throwing a 2-and-2 fastball that Napoli drove over the wall to right-center field, was equally poor. A slider would have been a better choice, the scout opined.
Hughes, who said he agreed with Girardi’s call because of his career-long struggles against Ortiz, had less of a problem with the pitch selection and more with its location. He wanted it “just more down and away,” he said.
“It was in a spot that he could handle,” Hughes said. “He saw a lot of fastballs. It got a little more plate than I wanted.”
Said Red Sox catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia: “That’s tough. I understand obviously with David. He’s been hot. He’s been swinging a good bat. But with Napoli, you just never know.”
Napoli is now 5-for-8, with two home runs and two doubles, with the bases loaded this season.
Though the logic in Girardi’s thinking is clear, it’s hard to overcome this reality: By comping Ortiz’s trip to first base, the Yankees put a man on base at no cost, during a time when their offense simply isn’t equipped to dig out of large holes. Every opposing run counts more when your margin for error is minimized.
“What you’re trying to do is, you’re trying to keep the runner on third from scoring, is the bottom line,” Girardi said. “You’re not so much worried about the guy on first.”
Even with Teixeira and Youkilis back, against Boston lefty Felix Doubrount last night, the Yankees fielded a lineup with Vernon Wells, Jayson Nix, David Adams, Ichiro Suzuki and Chris Stewart hitting fifth through ninth. Such a group will be hard-pressed to slug it out with many clubs.
Everyone in a Yankees uniform, from the pitchers to the hitters to the manager, is operating on a tightrope. So far, the grades are high, particularly for Girardi and his pitchers. It’s amazing the club has been this competitive.
We’ve just entered the second third of the season, however, and those grades can fall far and fast. Hughes followed his last start, a strong outing against the Mets, by lasting just 4 1/3 innings.
“We need him to be more consistent,” Girardi said.
Girardi might have faced a no-win decision in the third. All that matters now is that he didn’t win, and therefore neither did the Yankees. Tonight, in the series finale, they’ll strive for better balance on that tightrope, knowing that one slip-up can ruin the work shift.