DJ LeMahieu went hitless in four at-bats against the Reds on Tuesday night, and C-Mac is ready to declare that the aging infielder simply may not have it anymore, and should see his role diminished.
After watching LeMahieu put two quality swings on the ball that amounted to no slug whatsoever, C-Mac says it is clear that the two-time batting champ is near the end of his quality career.
“I’m probably not gonna play DJ LeMahieu much anymore,” C-Mac said. “I saw him take two of the best swings he’s taken in the last two weeks…he put everything he had into those swings, and they didn’t make the warning track. He has zero pop in there.
“The juice is gone. Just watch him. I’d rather play [Oswaldo] Cabrera, and when [Jon] Berti comes back, I would rather play Berti.”
LeMahieu was solid for the Yanks as recently as the second half of last season, but he is now in a fourth straight season where injuries have hampered his production, and he has not found any kind of rhythm since returning from a non-displaced fracture in his foot. C-Mac believes it may not be a matter of getting his timing back, rather a sign that his best days are long behind him.
“He had two good swings on mistakes up in the zone, and he can’t get it to the warning track,” C-Mac said. “That wasn’t a mishit or a mistake. He wasn’t fooled…he doesn’t have the ability to drive the baseball.”