Back In First Place - Where We Belong!

Even if we have a 3 way tie.  This is what happens when you beat the team in first place twice in a row...Surprisingly it was Baltimore.

In a game that was 7-2, I had a lot of things that annoyed the heck out of me.

The top 3 in order:

1. So yesterday I wrote, "I think Gleyber stays back on ground balls too much; he needs to have more of a sense of urgency."  Then today, he fields a grounder on what should have been the final out of the game and I counted 5 or 6 (depending on whether you count the one he took as he fielded the ball) steps before having to fire to first where the ump called him safe and the review upheld that call.  It was one of those that I thought he was still out but it was not 100% clear as to when the cleat touched the bag because he hit the middle of the bag.  This was a time where he beat the throw but the foot came down in the wrong spot.  Anyway, Torres needs to have a sense of urgency all the time, especially as he is not a good fielder to begin with...just get the darn ball over there asap!  Baltimore hit a 2 run HR after this.  BTW, Kay actually said, "Torres didn't lollygag on that play."  This was almost as frustrating to me.
2. As a catcher, Kyle would have made #1 on most days...Higgy made an awful tag on a very nice play by Bruce who backhanded a hard-hit ball and cut down the runner with a hard-thrown strike.  Kyle for some reason took a hop step toward 3rd base and then reached for the runner instead of dropping down and getting the glove to the front of the plate and then moving toward whatever part the runner slid home with.  He ended up correctly being out, but a play where he was dead to rights ended up being one where at one point I thought he was safe, but the replay showed he was clearly touched before the hand touched the plate.  
3. In the first inning, the Yankees have bases loaded after a bullet up the middle by DJ and then a bullet Judge hit right into the pitcher.  The pitcher stayed in and walked Gardner to load the bases with nobody out.  Stanton K'd, Torres K'd (correctly called check swing that he didn't hold up on) and then Frazier had a clueless AB where he watched strike 1 and then watched strike two which was pretty close to right down the middle and then watched strike 3 that was right down the middle.  I would like to know what the heck Frazier was thinking?

These were not nearly as bad and in no particular order:

• Higgy had a very touch block on a bounced ball by Cole and he tried to glove it rather than move his body and block it.  On a positive side, he made a perfect textbook block on a tough play later where he got his body all the way around a very bad curve and used the chest protector to send the ball down and toward home plate perfectly...no runner advanced
• Judge didn't run hard on a ball that was down the line and then eased up and didn't get to the ball.  I was fine with him easing up at the end in a less meaningful game, but I would like to see him run full speed and then ease up and not go slower than go fast and then slow up.  He also did something that many guys do and that is on a 3-2 count kind of cruise at first and then turn it on after a hit.  I would like to see a SB effort on 3-2 counts.  In this case, Judge might have been able to score as it was a close hold on a double by Gardner.
• This last one was me questioning why Boone didn't have our weakest hitter bunt with 1st and 2nd nobody out, in the 4th inning, up 1-0 and Cole on the mound?  As it turned out Higgy ended up working a 3-2 walk after being down 1-2.  So what I wanted to do would most likely not have turned out as well, but I call them as I see them.

Other positive points:

• In the second, bases loaded and nobody-out situation where Higgy should have bunted, DJ ended up hitting into a DP but the run scored.  Then Judge came through with a line single to make it 3-0.
• Bruce had a porch shot for our first run which was exactly what everyone was talking about of why he was a good fit for the short porch (pull hitter)
• Cole (and Higgy) were in command and Cole threw 101 mph a few times while mixing in all his pitches.  He does such a good job of throwing from the same arm angle and release point that even when he makes mistakes, he gets away with him because of that and his stuff.  No walks and 13 K's is awesome!
• Gardy had a good game going 1-3 with 2 walks and using his still good speed to score from 1st base on a 117 MPH double by Stanton.  He also saw 26 pitches in his 5 AB's and the last one he saw only 2 pitches as the score was 2-0 and he was up with 2 outs.  He saw 24 on his previous 4 AB's.
• Judge added to his two singles with a garbage time dinger, but he swung the bat well today.

Odor Trade - This may be a nothing trade.  The 23rd best prospect and another not in the top 30 for Odor.  Texas is paying the salary so it is really about these 3 players.  As I have said, the Yankees could use a righty killer and not just a lefty bat.  I would be fine with a guy who is awful against lefties but is dangerous against righties.  Career-wise, Odor is better against righties (.748 against .682).  I would like it to be more lopsided, but he is a better against righties for his career.  However, the issue is that the 27-year-old Odor had a .737 OPS against righties in his 90 AB's last year against righties and a .678 against righties in 2019 where he had 357 AB's.  He actually had a .815 against lefties in 2019 in 165 AB's, but that appears to be an aberration.  He has pop and has hit 30 hr's 3x including in 2019, but a .721 OPS (2019) with the 30 HR's and 30 doubles tells you that he doesn't walk and doesn't hit for avg.  Finally, he isn't known for his glove and doesn't play SS, so I don't think he helps us unless we have an injury.  If he were a stellar fielder I would have a different outlook.