The New York Yankees are an unmitigated disaster right now, having lost 12 of their last 17 games and are tied with the Toronto Blue Jays for second place in the AL East and are in danger of slipping into the eighth seed in the American League.
Among the biggest problems the Bronx Bombers face is the lack of production from catcher Gary Sanchez.
Sanchez was not in the lineup on Sunday as the Yankees geared up to close a four-game series against the Orioles at Camden Yards.
While it is typical for catchers to receive a day game after a night game off, the Yankees could still DH the right-handed slugger if he were hitting the ball well. Manager Aaron Boone also suggested Sanchez could sit out multiple games.
"Just kind of deliberated on it a lot last night," Boone said when asked about the decision to sit Sanchez. "Just feel like this is the way I need to go right now and hopefully a day off or two or however I decide to do it here can help get him going."
Sanchez went 0-for-4 in Saturday's 6-1 loss to the Orioles with four strikeouts and has struck out in his last seven consecutive at-bats and 10 of his last 13 plate appearances.
He has just 13 hits this season – seven home runs, five singles and a double – and 48 strikeouts. With injuries plaguing the bulk of the Yankees lineup, Sanchez was needed to step up and be the hitter he was when he first got called up into the league in 2016 when he blasted 20 home runs in 53 games.
Erik Kratz, the 40-year-old journeyman catcher, was in the lineup on Sunday instead of Sanchez and was batting eighth. The Yankees are currently carrying three catchers with Kyle Higashioka as the other.
The absence of Gleyber Torres also stood out in Sunday's lineup against the Orioles. Torres was activated from the injured list on Saturday after he was sidelined with a hamstring strain, but Boone assured there was no setback and that this was a planned day off for the All-Star shortstop.
Boone told reporters there was "no temptation" to play Torres on back-to-back days, and that he was either going to come up a day early on Saturday or activated from the IL on Sunday.
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