April 15th, 2024: Soto, Poteet, Berti, Bullpen, Infield Defense, Prospects

Would you believe Saturday was the Yankees’ first April doubleheader since 2014? They’ve had plenty of April postponements since then, but those games were all made up on off-days, or as part of doubleheaders later in the season. Saturday was their first April doubleheader since they shut out Anthony Rizzo's Cubs in both games on April 16th, 2014. The starting pitchers that day: Masahiro Tanaka in Game 1 and Michael Pineda in Game 2. I swear it feels like I watched those two pitch just last week. Anyway, here is Tuesday morning’s post Monday afternoon. I’m gonna be busy tonight and I don’t want this post hanging over my head, so I figured I’d hit publish now and get it out of my hair.

1. Weekend thoughts. Win the first two games and lose the third, and you feel letdown. Drop the first game and win the next two, and you feel pretty good about things. You’ve won two of three either way, but the sequencing gives you two different vibes, you know? Stupid loss Sunday. Anyway, make it five straight series wins to begin the season. No Yankees team has ever won six straight series to begin a season, if you can believe that. That’s the goal in Toronto this week. A sixth straight series win. Now a few thoughts on the Cleveland series.

The joy of Soto

I can’t remember the last time I enjoyed watching a player as much as I enjoy watching Juan Soto. Maybe not ever? Don’t get me wrong, Gerrit Cole and Aaron Judge and Derek Jeter and CC Sabathia and all those legends were awesome in their own ways, but Soto really is next level. It can be difficult to tell when you’re living through history, and reader, I am here to tell you you’re living through history. Soto is that good.

Sixteen games into his Yankees career, Soto is hitting .344/.468/.541 (197 wRC+) with 13.0% strikeouts and 19.5% walks. Know what’s really cool? It is completely sustainable for Soto. Well, okay, he’s probably not going to hit .344 all season, that’s really hard to do in this day and age (or any day and age), but the rest of it? That is well within Soto’s skill set. Consider:

• The .468 OBP would only barely eclipse his previous career high (.465 OBP in 2021).

• The .541 SLG wouldn’t even be a career best. He had a .548 SLG in 2019.

• The 13.0% strikeout rate isn’t wildly out of line with his 15.6% strikeout rate from 2020-23.

• The 19.5% walk rate is right in line with his career 19.0% walk rate.

• He has a 6.7% swinging strike rate. From 2020-23 it was 6.5%, 6.3%, 6.0%, and 6.3%.

• His 15.2% chase rate is almost right at his career average (16.2%).

• His 86.7% in-zone contact rate is also almost right at his career average (87.2%).

Soto is running career best exit velocity (95.2 mph) and barrel (15.4%) rates by a nice margin, so perhaps that’s an outlier, though a 25-year-old player hitting the ball harder than ever isn’t the most surprising thing in the world. Eventually the .344 AVG will come down. That’s really hard to maintain. The rest of it? It is all very real. Soto’s done this all before. This is who he is.

Add in the Soto shuffle, the “you got me this time” nods to the pitcher after they make a good pitch, and all the confidence, and it makes for an extremely fun baseball watching experience. It takes a special kind of player to play with this much confidence and swagger and Soto is that special player. I knew I’d enjoy the Soto experience and I’m enjoying it even more than I expected. What a player. This dude needs to wear pinstripes for the rest of his career.

The Cody Poteet Game

Friday’s rainout led to a doubleheader Saturday, and the Yankees called up Poteet to make the spot start in the night game as the 27th man. The rainout meant they would need a spot starter at some point during this road trip. Going with Poteet as the 27th man was the easiest and most straightforward way to do it. No need for wonky roster machinations later this week. The spot start has been made already.

I was intrigued by Poteet in Spring Training but I can’t say I expected him to do what he did Saturday: 6 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 4 K on only 77 pitches (he’d maxed out at 70 pitches in Triple-A, so that was about as far as he could go). The one run was an Estevan Florial solo home run – that was bound to happen at some point this weekend, right? – after the Yankees had built an eight-run lead. So not a big deal, in other words.

“To go six in the second game of a doubleheader, huge outing,” Aaron Boone told Greg Joyce. “He pitched. That’s what we know we got. He did a great job mixing the two-seam/four-seam, and then with the changeup and secondary stuff to get off the barrel. Really strong effort by him.”

Poteet faced 23 batters and 12 saw no more than three pitches. He did not throw more than 13 pitches in an inning until the sixth, when he threw 22 and appeared to be running out of gas. Also, only 12 foul balls! I swear we see 12 foul balls per inning against some pitchers. Here’s part of what I wrote after the Yankees signed Poteet in January:

Mildly bold prediction: there will be a The Cody Poteet Game this season. You know what I mean, right? A game when the guy no one expects to do anything goes out and does something, and we all remember him for that one game.

Does Saturday count as The Cody Poteet Game? I think so. Part of the The [PLAYER] Game shtick is no one expects the guy to do anything, and after Saturday’s performance, there are expectations attached to Poteet. Next time he comes up, we’ll expect him to pitch well because all we’ve seen him do is pitch well. As the proprietor of this blog, I hereby declare Saturday the The Cody Poteet Game.

Because he was the 27th man for the doubleheader, the rules say Poteet had to go back to Triple-A after the game, which seems unfair. The Yankees have an open-ish bullpen spot (currently occupied by Ron Marinaccio) and a need for relievers who can give length, and Poteet can fill that role. Keep him around! He earned it! Poteet had to go back to Triple-A though. The rules say so.

And that’s fine. The Yankees will keep Poteet stretched out as their sixth starter and we all know they will need a sixth starter at some point. They begin a stretch of 17 games in 17 days Friday and the Yankees like to insert a spot starter during those long stretches to give their guys extra rest. The 15-day rule doesn’t apply to the 27th man for doubleheaders, so Poteet can be called back up at any time.

For now, Poteet gave the Yankees more than I think they expected Saturday. My guess is they would have been thrilled with 2-3 runs in five innings. One run in six innings? Incredible. The Yankees’ pitching apparatus is at a point now where they can find and/or create useful arms pretty much out of nowhere, and Poteet looks like the latest find. There’s no glory in being a depth starter, but those guys are really important in a 162-game season.

“Just being back out there on a Major League field, it’s such a privilege and not a guarantee. Just very thankful to be able to be out there tonight,” the 29-year-old Poteet, who threw 58.2 innings with the Marlins from 2021-22 before having Tommy John surgery, told Joyce. “... I always had the belief in myself that I was a Major League starting pitcher. Just go out there tonight and put a good foot forward. It’s a good step forward for the rest of the year. Just thankful for the opportunity.”

(Luis Gil was available out of the bullpen Saturday. If he was needed in relief, the Yankees would’ve started Carlos Rodón on Monday, Marcus Stroman on Tuesday, and Gil on Wednesday. Instead, Poteet going six innings meant Gil was not needed out of the bullpen, so he’ll start Monday with Rodón and Stroman lined up for Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively. Poteet gave Rodón and Stroman an extra day of rest.)

Berti injured (and the latest roster moves)

The Yankees announced a whole bunch of roster moves between doubleheader games Saturday. Here’s the latest (in addition to Poteet coming up and then going back down as the 27th man):

• UTIL Jon Berti placed on 10-day injured list with left groin strain

• IF Kevin Smith added to 40-man roster and called up (to replace Burdi)

• LHP Josh Maciejewski DFAed (to clear 40-man spot for Smith)

• RHP Ron Marinaccio called up (to replace Maciejewski in the bullpen)

• LHP Clayton Andrews cleared waivers and sent to Triple-A (had been DFAed for Maciejewski)

• RHP McKinley Moore activated off the injured list and optioned to Triple-A (had been out with a knee injury)

“I don’t think it’s overly severe, but I don’t have a timeline for you,” Boone told Joyce about Berti’s injury. Does Boone ever think an injury is severe? Everything is “I don’t think it’s too bad.”

Anyway, Berti’s injury means Oswaldo Cabrera is now the third baseman. No more platoons. Not unless the Yankees plan to play the right-handed hitting Smith entirely too much. Cabrera starting against the lefty Logan Allen on Sunday suggests he’s the guy at third. And he should be. Oswaldo’s hitting well and should get as long a look as possible given the third base alternatives (i.e. Smith and Jahmai Jones).

DJ LeMahieu is with the Yankees on the road trip and could start a rehab assignment this weekend. The best case scenario puts him what, 7-10 days away? The Yankees come home this weekend and then head back out on the road next Friday. LeMahieu being active for that next trip would be swell. At that point the Yankees can give Cabrera a platoon partner at third. Until then, play him every single game.

Moore’s Spring Training knee inflammation apparently was not too severe. He has a history of elite strikeout rates in the minors and boy do the Yankees need some of that in the bullpen (more on that in a sec). After a few Triple-A innings to get his feet under him, maybe we’ll see Moore in the Bronx. Also, I’m glad Andrews cleared waivers. He’s mildly interesting. He’s now in Scranton as a non-40-man roster player.

Berti’s injury is the big one. The Yankees could play him just about anywhere and he’s good enough to be a starter for a few weeks at a time. I don’t think he’ll ever hit .294/.344/.405 (103 wRC+) like he did last year again, but Berti is better than Smith and Jones. Hopefully this groin injury isn’t anything bad. Berti’s a speed guy. Anything that compromises his legs or lower half is a bit worrisome. Get well soon, Jon.  

A bad combination of bullpen and infield defense

The Yankees have to get more swing-and-miss in their bullpen. It is a must, and it is not a “wait until Scott Effross, Tommy Kahnle, and Lou Trivino get healthy” thing either. This is something the Yankees should look to remedy sooner rather than later. The strikeout rates of this year’s bullpeners: 

• Nick Burdi: 30.0%

• Ron Marinaccio: 25.0% (1 IP)

• Jake Cousins: 23.5% (3 IP)

• MLB RP AVG: 23.0%

• Ian Hamilton: 22.2%

• Caleb Ferguson: 19.4%

• Clay Holmes: 17.1%

• Dennis Santana: 16.7%

• Jonathan Loáisiga: 15.0% (out for the rest of 2024)

• Luke Weaver: 12.2%

• Victor Gonzalez: 8.3%

Holmes’ strikeout rate has been trending up and his track record (26.1% strikeouts from 2022-23) says we can expect more whiffs moving forward. I hope Hamilton can get back to last year’s 28.9% strikeout rate, though it wouldn’t be the most surprising thing in the world if the slambio is not quite as effective in Year 2. Everyone else? That’s more or less who they are, strikeout-wise.

To make matters worse, the infield defense has been shaky all year. Gleyber Torres muffed the ground ball with the infield in Sunday, which was the biggest miscue, though Anthony Volpe bobbled the transfer and didn’t turn a double play earlier in the inning. That was very costly. Cabrera’s bounced several throws to first. Once or twice a game a ball clanks in out of Anthony Rizzo’s glove. Rizzo’s glovework has been shockingly poor early on.

To their credit, the bullpen is getting the weak contact it is designed to get – 87.0 mph average exit velocity as a unit, fourth lowest in baseball – and it has a 2.49 ERA, fourth best in baseball. There is no substitute for missing bats in the late innings of close games though, and the Yankees don’t do enough of it. Bad things can happen when the ball is put in play (see: Sunday) and the bullpen allows way too many balls in play. 

It is easier to fix a bullpen on the fly than an infield defense – what are the options right now, bench Torres* and play Kevin Smith? nope – but that doesn’t mean it’s easy. Clayton Beeter and Cousins are the best swing-and-miss artists in Triple-A. So, Beeter instead of Marinaccio? Cut ties with Santana and go with Cousins? Put Poteet in the rotation and Gil in the bullpen? Eh, no to that last one.

* Gleyber bunting in the tenth inning Sunday tells you his confidence is shot. This isn’t the first time he’s slumped and it won’t be the last, but sheesh, he’s going through it right now.

The bullpen has a 17.4% strikeout rate, third worst in baseball and better than only the Royals (17.0%) and Rockies (16.7%). That is not the company you want to keep. That the Yankees are the only bullpen in the bottom 16 (!) in strikeout rate with a sub-3.00 ERA speaks to their weak contact ability. But my gosh, this team needs to miss more bats in the late innings. Until they do, they're vulnerable to innings like Sunday's tenth inning.

Miscellany

What a job by the pitching staff in the doubleheader. The Yankees held the Guardians to four runs in the two games: two when Gleyber threw a potential double play ball into the camera well in the day game (there’s that infield defense again) and then two solo homers after the Yankees had already scored eight runs in the nightcap. Cleveland’s offense is not the most imposing, but holding any team to four runs in a doubleheader is good work … The GIDP thing is getting very annoying. The Yankees lead the league with 20 GIDP (they’re tied with the Padres, who have played two more games), though they are only – “only” – third with a 15.0% GIDP rate. The league average is 9.8%, and only the White Sox (16.9%) and Blue Jays (16.2%) have higher GIDP rates. The GIDP problem is worth a deeper dive at some point. For now, let me just say the GIDPs are beyond annoying. The Yankees keep finding new and creative ways to hit into them too, like Alex Verdugo going full Ronald Guzmán on Sunday (video) … Nestor Cortes has a new shenanigan. He pump faked Andrés Giménez on Sunday:

I would have bet a shiny nickel on that being an illegal pitch the umpires did not call, but it looks like it is legal. Rule 6.02(a)(9) says an illegal pitch occurs when the “pitcher, without having the ball, stands on or astride the pitcher’s plate or while off the plate, he feints a pitch.” I guess it's legal because Nestor had the ball in his hand? Seems like an oversight. Anyway, Cortes now has one great start against the Marlins and three mediocre to bad starts against everyone else. In the race to lose a rotation spot to Gerrit Cole, he’s at the head of the pack … Why no pinch-runner for Giancarlo Stanton in the tenth inning Sunday? At first base, I mean. They didn’t pinch-run for him until he got to second. A pinch-runner would have been able to go first-to-third on Rizzo’s two-run single, freeing up Torres to swing away (he had a hit earlier in the game) instead of bunting. First-and-third with no outs, even a GIDP scores another insurance run. I guess the Yankees wanted to keep Stanton’s bat in there in case the game continued? He’s so unlikely to get another at-bat though, especially with the automatic runner rule. The decision not to pinch-run immediately was low-key costly … And finally, Florial spent nine seasons in the organization. You’d think the Yankees would know better than to throw him a fastball, but nope, they threw him a fastball in the eighth inning Sunday, and he hit it out of the park for the go-ahead run. That ultimately did not cost the Yankees the game, but come on man. Throw Florial nothing but spin! Even I know that. For a smart team the Yankees do a lot of stupid things.

Up next

Three games in Toronto and then a seven-game homestand. After Thursday’s off-day, the Yankees will play 17 games in 17 days. Here’s what’s coming up between now and the next post:

• Monday at Blue Jays: RHP Luis Gil vs. RHP Chris Bassitt (7pm ET)

• Tuesday at Blue Jays: LHP Carlos Rodón vs. LHP Yusei Kikuchi (7pm ET)

• Wednesday at Blue Jays: RHP Marcus Stroman vs. RHP Kevin Gausman (3pm ET)

• Thursday: off-day

In parts of three seasons with Toronto, Kikuchi has a 2.45 ERA (4.02 FIP) against the Yankees and a 4.51 ERA (4.66 FIP) against everyone else. Annoying! Kikuchi shut the Yankees down in the home opener two weeks ago too (5.1 scoreless innings). Some guys just have your number, I guess.

The Yankees will see Gausman again Wednesday. They hit him hard last weekend (six runs in 1.1 innings) and so did the Rockies on Friday (six runs in 3.2 innings). His velocity was up a bit against the Rockies, but it was still south of last year. Gausman had a shoulder thing in Spring Training and still doesn’t look right. If the Yankees rough him up again, it wouldn’t shock me to see him land on the injured list.

2. Prospect thoughts. The Orioles’ Triple-A team in Norfolk is absolutely loaded. It’s one of the best and most prospect-laden teams in recent memory. They’re hitting .286/.379/.538 as a team, and you may’ve heard about them setting a franchise record for runs (26), hits (29), and home runs (eight) against the poor White Sox’s Triple-A affiliate on April 3rd. That Norfolk team is stacked. And Triple-A Scranton swept them in a six-game series last week. Outscored them 31-17 in the six games. We’re big RailRiders fans here, aren’t we folks? Here are a few early season minor league and prospect thoughts.

Jones finally debuts

OF Spencer Jones, my No. 2 prospect, woke up with a stiff neck on minor league Opening Day the Friday before last. He did not make his season debut until this past Saturday, so he sat out eight straight days. It’s a 7-day injured list in the minors! Double-A Somerset played shorthanded for a week. I guess Jones truly was day-to-day. The Yankees left open the possibility of him playing last week.

Anyway, Jones went 2-for-3 with a double and a walk (video) as the DH in the first game of Saturday’s doubleheader. He did not play in the second game and he did not play Sunday either, plus Monday’s the universal off-day in the minors. Was the plan to let Jones DH one afternoon, then sit the next two days? Or is his neck still bothering him? I gotta think it’s the latter. One day on, two days off is a weird plan.

I have no idea what’s up with Jones – it is impossible to get minor league injury updates from the Yankees – or when he’ll play again. Hopefully it’s Tuesday. Jones had a great spring (.444/.583/.722 with five walks and three strikeouts during Grapefruit League play) and was getting rave reviews. It would be nice to get him on the field and for him to stay there. Please let this neck thing be minor.

Ramirez on a rampage

Six home runs in eight games for C Agustin Ramirez, my No. 19 prospect. His 38 plate appearances are by far the fewest among the seven minor leaguers with at least five homers because the other six guys are all in Triple-A, and the Triple-A season started a week earlier than Ramirez’s Double-A season (the other six guys all have at least 60 plate appearances). Ramirez has six home runs and no other non-Triple-A player has hit more than four homers.

Ramirez is hitting .281/.395/.844 (215 wRC+) this season after slashing .211/.273/.313 (62 wRC+) in 31 Double-A games last year. The underlying numbers are encouraging, though I really don’t want to make too much of eight games. For posterity:

Those 2024 numbers could (and almost certainly will) look very different in another 2-3 weeks. You never know though, sometimes these early season changes in contact rates and spray charts are a sign of a breakout. Too early to tell, but maybe. For now, I’m just acknowledging Ramirez’s hot start. He’s been the best power hitter in the minors once you factor in his plate appearance total compared to the Triple-A guys.

The baby Tarpons

Low-A Tampa’s offense has been completely overmatched so far this season. The roster is loaded with teenagers – their position players are the youngest in the Florida State League with an average age of 20.5 years (weighted by playing time) – and it shows. The Tarpons are hitting .186/.330/.270 as a team. They’re 2-7 on the season and have been outscored 60-29 in their nine games. Yeesh.

SS George Lombard Jr. is hitting .207/.489/.207 (142 wRC+) with more walks (33.3%) than strikeouts (26.7%) in 45 plate appearances. He had a walk-off single the other day (video). SS Roderick Arias is hitting .194/.293/.417 (105 wRC+) with a home run (video) and also a scary bad 48.8% strikeout rate. This is not the minor league leaderboard you want to be on (min. 40 plate appearances):

Swinging Strike Rate
1. Rece Hinds, Reds: 24.8%
2. Roderick Arias, Yankees: 24.7%
3. Chris Roller, Brewers: 23.5%
4. Cade Marlowe, Mariners: 23.1%
5. Drew Lugbauer, Athletics: 22.2%

There were concerns about Rod-A’s contact ability in rookie ball last year, which is the primary reason I ranked him a little lower in my Top 30 Prospects than other outlets have him. It’s early and you have to give these kids a chance to get their feet under them and experience the league a little bit. Still, close to a 50% strikeout rate in a nine-game span is not ideal at any point during the season.

It’s very early in the season of course, but that Tampa team is extremely young, even by modern Low-A standards (i.e. no short season leagues). Things are not coming easy for them right now.

Miscellany

IF Caleb Durbin sure does like the automated strike zone in Triple-A. He has a 16.7% walk rate and a 6.1% strikeout rate through 14 games. He’s cooled off a tad the last few games, but his .340/.455/.547 (161 wRC+) slash line is impressive nonetheless … 2B Roc Riggio’s last four games with High-A Hudson Valley: 4-for-8 with one double, one triple, seven walks, and zero strikeouts … OF Jared Wegner, last year’s ninth round pick, hit a home run Friday that left his bat at 116 mph (video). There have been only four 116+ mph batted balls in the big leagues this year (Giancarlo Stanton has two of them). The kid has serious juice. Can he do enough other things to make it? … Very nice pro debut for RHP Brian Hendry, last year’s tenth rounder: 5 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 8 K in High-A. He’s a guy to watch this year. We don’t have Statcast at that level, and watching the video, I see way more breaking balls than fastballs. Jibes with how the game is played these days. 

3. Rapid fire thoughts. Fritz Peterson passed away last Friday, the Yankees announced. He was 82. In 2018, Peterson revealed to Kevin Kernan he had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. I think it’s fair to say Peterson is most famous for his family swap with teammate Mike Kekich. In Spring Training 1973, the two announced they were swapping wives, kids, and even dogs. Peterson and Susanne Kekich married a year later and were still together when he died (Kekich and Marilyn Peterson did not last). The family swap may be what most associate with Peterson, but he really was a terrific pitcher. The left-hander debuted with the Yankees in 1966, threw 215 innings with a 3.31 ERA that season, and had a 3.09 ERA while averaging 231 innings a year during his eight full seasons with the Yankees from 1966-73. The Yankees traded him to Cleveland in the Chris Chambliss trade in April 1974 and shoulder injuries eventually ended his career in 1977. Peterson retired with 3.30 ERA in over 2,200 innings. He and Mel Stottlemyre were rocks atop the rotation during the franchise’s leanest years. RIP to one of the better pitchers to ever wear pinstripes.

(Send your requests for Friday's mailbag to RABmailbag at gmail dot com. The random Yankee series is on hiatus, but feel free to send in requests for when it returns.)