Monday Morning Food For Thought: Solarte Really Slowing Down

I knew this was going to happen eventually.  We all did.  I was hoping it wouldn't happen right after I suggested he be moved up into the 2-spot, but a month later that seems to be the case.  Yangervis Solarte is coming back to reality as a hitter.  After coming back from his late-May slump with 9 hits in his next 6 games, he has really fallen off in June and created another hole in the batting order.

Solarte went 0-3 with a walk and  R scored last night.  The run was his first in a week, but the 0-fer made him 0-18 in his last 5 games.  That dropped him down to a .178/.260/.244 slash line in June and a .274/.347/.420 line for the season.  Solarte has been trending downward every month since Opening Day, from .an 865 OPS in April to an .809 in May.  The acceleration of that downtrend so far this month has been a dramatic one though, and it's creating more lineup and roster juggling confusion for Joe.  He already doesn't know what he's going to get or who he's going to be without day to day in his infield.  Now he can't even rely on the one constant he's had for the first 2 months.

So what's the diagnosis now?  Is this just another rough patch for Solarte or is this the sign of natural statistical regression to the mean settling in and his true Major League talent level coming to surface?

Solate Is So-lumping Again

(Courtesy of Getty Images)

It was a tough night for Yangervis Solarte at the dish last night.  Hitting in the 5-spot behind Brian McCann, he went 0-4 (0-3 with RISP), banged into a rally-killing double play, and left 5 men on base.  He only saw 9 pitches in his 4 plate appearances, extending a little mini-slump he's stuck in to 6 games.  In his last 6 games, Solarte is just 2-23 with 1 R, RBI, and BB apiece.  His batting average has slipped to .285, and combined with the nagging injuries to Beltran's elbow and Teix's wrist, Solarte has helped expose the paper thin middle of the batting order.  Needless to say, he's no longer the ideal option for the #2 spot.

Yangervis Solarte Should Probably Be Batting Second

(Courtesy of the AP)

If you had Yangervis Solarte as your pick for the player who would be leading all qualified Yankees in batting average, OPS, wOBA, and RBI on May 13th, then congratulations.  You're a smarter person than I.  Even after cooling off from his smoking hot initial start, Solarte has maintained a level of consistent aboave-average production over the last month that nobody else on the team can match.  He's got a hit in each of the last 7 games (multiple hits in 4 of those 7), 11 of the last 13, and he's either scored or driven in a run in 6 of the last 7.

This latest stretch of good hitting has come at a time when the Yankees aren't getting much from the middle of their lineup, and in that respect Solarte has been a quiet lifesaver.  In looking at his overall performance and the spot from which he's producing, however, the question needs to be asked as to whether it's time to move Solarte up in the batting order.  His strongly balanced .330/.405/.473 slash line and the way he's gone about achieving it could probably be put to best use in the 2-spot.

AB4AR "Best Of The Month" Awards: April 2014

Just like that, 1 month of baseball in the books.  The Yankees wrapped up April with another rainout last night, and they find themselves sitting atop the AL East mountain as the only team above .500.  Their 15-11 record doesn't match up to their -11 run differential, but it's too early in the season to put any real meaning in run differential.  If anything, that number illustrates how inconsistent the Yankees were in the later part of the month, getting blown out by 10+ runs one day and then winning a 3-2 game the next.  They still don't have their offense clicking and their rotation situation has taken a turn for the worst, so to have a 2-game division lead despite all of that is plenty fine with me.  After the jump, the best of the month that was in Yankeeland.

The Talented Mr. Solarte

(Courtesy of Getty Images)

So Yangervis Solarte is really getting it done, huh?

- .373 batting average (2nd in AL)

- .444 wOBA (3rd in AL)

- 193 wRC+ (4th in AL)

- 19 hits (6th in AL)

- 7 doubles (2nd in AL)

The .429 BABIP is still unsustainably high, but there's reason to believe this is more than just Solarte getting lucky in a small sample size.  He's got a 10.3% BB rate and a 13.8% K rate, so he's displaying an understanding of the strike zone and some good contact skills.  He popped his first career home run last night too, and his .196 ISO is more than good enough to get it done in an everyday or bench role.  Eventually the BIP luck is going to turn and his numbers will go down.  For now though, he's fun to watch and he's giving the Yankees way more than they hoped for.  Strange to say, but he might be the most popular Yankee in town right now.

Now The Real Utility Bench Competition Begins

(Courtesy of the AP)

(Originally published at IIATMS/TYA)

The move to designate Eduardo Nunez for assignment was a long time coming.  After spending a few years earlier in his career as the media-anointed heir to Derek Jeter's starting shortstop spot, Nunez came to be seen for what he truly was over the last few seasons: a below-average hitter with a swing-happy approach and an almost unfathomably bad defensive player at any position.  The Yankees gave him plenty of chances to show signs of improvement and he didn't show them, so even though there does exist the slight possibility of him sticking with the organization, it's far more likely that we've seen the last of Eduardo Scissorhands in a Yankee uniform.