Here we are, halfway through April, with most MLB teams having played at least 15 games.
And if you were told one Big Apple baseball club was fourth in runs scored, with the other ranked 17th, you would nod in agreement.
If you were also told that one club was fifth in hits, while the other was 20th, you'd get it. Likewise, you'd get why one team was ranked fourth in RBIs, with 22 more than the other NYC franchise, which ranked 15th. All of these numbers and rankings are pretty simpatico with our preseason projections.
Problem is, it's the Mets with the bigger numbers, better stats and higher rankings than their rivals across the Harlem River. And it's the Yankees who are already mired in mangled limbs and tender tendons, with their mail forwarded to the IL. Meanwhile -- whisper it -- the Mets are pretty healthy. In fact, no MLB team with as many or fewer games played than the Mets (16) have scored more runs (93).
It tells us that the Mets are at or above expectations. And it tells us the Bombers are bombing. The Bronx isn't burning, but it's time to play better, even if they have an IL longer than "War and Peace."
The Yanks haven't had Giancarlo Stanton, Didi Gregorius or Miguel Andujar -- three pillars from last year's lineup -- wielding their big bats for most of these early games. So in the absence of their typical batting onslaughts, the Yanks will need to pitch better than the other team -- which won't be easy and was never the plan.
Though the bullpen was widely considered the best in baseball, the Yankees only have two saves, the fewest in the AL. (There are three NL teams with one save. None of them have a winning record and are a combined 18-28.) Part of the problem, of course, is the injury to fireballing setup man Dellin Betances. Another is Aroldis Chapman throwing flat fastballs, many of which are much slower than the triple-digit heat that made him so feared. To give you a sense of their paradoxical problems, the Yanks are the only club at least three games under .500 while scoring 10 total runs more than their opponents.
If you want to know the defining difference between the New York Yankees and the AL East-leading Tampa Bay Rays, just look at their arms. Though the Rays (12-4) have played one more game, they have surrendered 23 fewer total runs than the Yanks, and 19 earned runs. The Rays have fanned 27 more batters. Plus opposing clubs are batting just .203 against them, while the Yanks have a .243 batting average against.
Perhaps even more telling is the Yankees have just three quality starts, while the Pirates, Mariners, Astros and A's have 10 each. What do they have in common? All are over .500 with a combined record of 42-26. If you're proud of the Yankees' 10th-best 4.04 ERA, consider the Blue Jays, Giants and Reds have lower ERAs -- and 31 losses.
CC Sabathia is back from the IL, but the Bombers' alleged ace, Luis Severino, is still out of service, leaving Masahiro Tanaka and James Paxton -- the latter belching nine earned runs over his last two starts -- holding the bag. Domingo German is the only member of the rotation with at least two starts and an ERA under 3.20.
Paxton can ease local fears by winning a game Tuesday night against the scuffling Red Sox. Boston may be stumbling now, but they are the World Series champs and remain the hunted, not the hunter. It also doesn't help that Paxton has conveyed a certain anxiety from pitching in Gotham. It always sounds like high-pitch braggadocio, but there really is a difference between pitching in the Big Apple and the world west of the Hudson. Just ask James Paxton.
Makes you wonder why the Yankees didn't more aggressively pursue Patrick Corbin, who has had three quality starts in three games pitched with the Nationals, with an ERA lower than Max Scherzer's. Or why they didn't take a peek last year at former Cy Young winner and Cubs ace Jake Arrieta, who leads the Phillies in quality starts (3) innings pitched (20), and ERA (2.25), while yielding fewer hits (13) than any fellow starter with at least 13 innings pitched.
So the Yanks can either pursue their longtime tormentor, Dallas Keuchel, or call up a player already in the fold, Gio Gonzalez. Or since we're talking about the Yanks, maybe they can bag both. After a rough first outing in Triple-A, Gonzalez is pitching with his old stuff, but he can opt out of his minor-league deal Saturday. Maybe they trade for some arms before the July 31 deadline.
Or the Yankees can just hope for health and let the universe pick the lineup, rotation and roster.
Doesn't sound like the Yankee's universe.
Follow Jason on Twitter at @JasonKeidel.
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