Clint Frazier Blue Jays Yankees

3 Things to Watch for Against the Yankees

Written by Joshua Howsam, Andrew Munn, and Gideon Turk

Running Wild

With the acquisition of former Cubs catcher Miguel Montero – and the likely option of Luke Maile – the Blue Jays now possess one of the least successful throwing tandems in baseball. Incumbent Russell Martin has thrown out just six of 40 attempted basestealers (15 percent) this season, yet Montero has been even worse, catching just one runner in 32 attempts. The latter’s issues led to his eventual release after he publicly blamed his struggles on the slow efforts to the plate from Chicago’s starting pitchers. Depending on which pitcher he gets with Toronto, it might not be much better.

Oddly enough, Martin and Montero used to both be among baseball’s best at throwing out would-be basestealers. Martin led the league with a 44 percent caught stealing rate in 2015 and Montero led the NL in 2011 at 40 percent then followed that up with a 42 percent rate in 2012. That’s quite the fall from grace, at least partially attributable to injury for Montero, but more likely just the march of time.

The Yankees thus pose an unfortunate problem, as they currently sit tied for third in the AL in stolen bases with 52, having been successful on 78.8 percent of their attempts (second only to KC, who has attempted 18 fewer steals than New York). Aaron Hicks and his seven stolen bases are currently on the shelf, but the rest of the top five Yankee thieves are very much active. In particular, look for Brett Gardner (10 SB) and Jacoby Ellsbury (9) to take advantage of the Toronto catching duo.

As such, it will be key for the Blue Jays pitchers – starting with Marcus Stroman on Monday – to keep those men off base. If they do reach, the Jays will have to be creative with pickoffs and pitchouts in an effort to keep those runners away from scoring position ahead of big bats like Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez.

The Eternal Fountain of Yankees Prospects

Much has been made of the Yankees quick and efficient reload of their farm system. Young guns Aaron Judge, Gary Sanchez, and Greg Bird have all introduced themselves rather loudly to the league over the past couple of seasons, giving people reason to fear the resurgence of the Evil Empire in the Bronx. Now, due to a string of injuries to Matt Holliday, Aaron Hicks, Starlin Castro, and Tyler Austin, the Yankees have called up yet another young, heralded prospect in the form of outfielder Clint Frazier.

The 6’1, 190-pound right fielder was originally drafted fifth overall by the Indians in 2013 and began his professional career by immediately tearing up every level of the minors he played at. By July 2016, Frazier had made his way to Triple-A as a 21-year-old when was traded to the Yankees as the centrepiece of a package in exchange for the services of Andrew Miller. After initially struggling to make contact after the trade, Frazier earned the nod to the majors by hitting .257/.345/.474 with 12 homers at Triple-A this season.

Part of the legend of Frazier comes not only from his play in the minors, but also from his demeanor and presence on the field. There are two reports for Frazier available on Baseball Prospectus, where he is likened to an explosive football player with biceps the size of Popeye the Sailor. In other words, expect Buck and Pat to have a field day raving about Frazier’s athletic body this week. While he has been lauded for his explosive bat speed and raw power, some scouts have questioned whether this will translate to major league success given Frazier’s swing and miss issues. However, nobody is divided on his energetic and intense approach to the game which have made him an exciting prospect to follow through the minors.

Clint Frazier will likely get playing time this series due to the aforementioned injuries to several Yankees starters. The Yankees have seen some outstanding play from their recent call-ups to the majors; specifically Gary Sanchez’s insane run in late of August last season that almost won him AL Rookie of the Year for two months of play and Aaron Judge’s 2017 campaign that thus far has been MVP-worthy. Frazier could provide a similar impact for the Yankees and he got off to a great start on Saturday with two hits, a home run, and one bawling mother.

While we may not get to see him play with his long and fiery red mane, Clint Frazier’s hyper-athleticism and substantial hype entering the majors could make it another long series for the Blue Jays in the Bronx.

You Better Like Dingers

Despite the Blue Jays being decidedly awful at playing the game of baseball this season, they do have a few players that are actually quite entertaining to watch. One of those is Justin Smoak, the failed prospect who will start for the American League in the All-Star game next week in Miami. Although Smoak’s overall game has been good, what has made him the best first baseman in the league has been his power numbers, with 22 home runs and a .292 ISO thus far in 2017.

For the Yankees, their big bopper is Aaron Judge, the phenom who has taken MLB by storm with 27 home runs through the first half of the season. However, their power doesn’t stop with Judge. Even if one were to remove Judge’s bombs, the Yankees other 98 bombs would still rank 16th in MLB. That’s a lot of home runs, and they are a big reason why the Yankees are in a playoff position right now. 

Then, there’s Yankee Stadium. By 2017 Park Factors, it is the second most friendly ballpark in the majors for hitting home runs with a park factor of 1.413. That’s all a recipe for a lot of home runs, though chances are most of them will come from the New York side. The Blue Jays, who have familiarized themselves with the top of the long ball leaderboard over the course of the past several seasons, now find themselves more towards the middle of the pack in 13th place after Sunday’s games. But hey, maybe the Blue Jays will decide that this is the series where they will play like everybody thought they would and home runs will be hit for both sides of this battle!

Lead Photo © Shanna Lockwood-USA TODAY Sports

Related Articles