Oswaldo Cabrera had never played the outfield at any level before this summer, and had never played left field until just before he was called up to the Yankees. However, he has found himself as the starting left fielder for the Yankees in the postseason, a challenge he has taken on – just like every other one thrown at him – with an aptitude that is uncanny.
Just look at the catch he made in the fourth inning of Game 1, where he went into foul territory, lost his hat, still came up with the ball, and was able to high-five the fan who gave back the hat.
“I just try to help the team in whatever thing that I'm going to do that night, so I feel good about it,” Cabrera said about the catch.
“Down that left field line, I'm right in line from where I stand. As that ball is going up there with a slice on it, I'm feeling like he's got a chance with this ball,” manager Aaron Boone added. “Felt like he approached it very well. Was very much under control. And then you never know how the crowd comes into play and things like that. Just a really under-control play, and more of the same of what we've seen ever since we brought him up.”
There was only one problem when he got his hat back, though: the defensive positioning card was missing.
“People think that the fans give me other hat, but no, we have something inside the hat. So when I drop the hat to the outside of the field, and when I check the hat, it's not the thing that I have inside of the hat,” Cabrera said. “And I say, like, what is that? You know, but that was my hat.”
He never got the card back, and doesn’t know if a fan grabbed it or if it was swept off the field…so he simply got a new one in the dugout, and got back to work.
Just like he always has, even when that has meant a position change mid-season that led to him becoming a starter at a new position on a playoff team.
“I was training so much from the last year in the off-season, and I was just like, I have to be ready for the time that they need me in the outfield, you know. And during the season, too, talking with the coaches, different coaches, talking with some veteran guys and my brother all the time, like giving some tips before I play. I was just like preparing, I think that I know the things that I have to do to play here, and just making the adjustments and those things. Trying to help the team.”
And his switch to the outfield – where he led the team in outfield assists despite not coming up until August – has been a pleasant surprise for everyone.
“Honestly I'm surprised by that. But at the same time, it's the work that we was putting on it. I never thought that I going to make plays like that, but we was working for it,” Cabrera said. “I just try to be there, just breathe. That's all that's in my mind all the time, breathe, that's it. It's the same game. Nothing's changed. Just more people in the stands but it’s the same game.”
Aaron Boone had a bit longer of an explanation of how it happened – noting that it wasn’t just anyone they would’ve considered it with, but Cabrera’s makeup was different.
“We love his makeup. So in spring training, we felt like if we ever had a need in that kind of utility-type guy at any point in the season, even though he had not experienced even a ton of AAA yet at that point, just his makeup suggests that, well, this guy is going to be able to handle this,” Boone said. “So it was a little bit of, let's do it. You know, when he got up here, and the need all of a sudden arose for a right field start, it was like, you know, player development felt like he would be able to handle it. We felt, again going back to what we think of his makeup, like he's not going to be overwhelmed by this, even though it may not be perfect.”
Not only was he not overwhelmed, he took to the outfield like a fish to water.
“Credit to him. He's very mature. He's a very confident baseball player. He works really hard. He processes information really well. You've seen that, I think offensively, too. I feel like he's made really good adjustments as these couple months have unfolded,” Boone said. “He's just a really good player, and he plays the game with a lot of confidence, with a little bit of a swagger to him, and just he's a really good worker, too. Like he gets after it, and you know, he's not afraid.”
One other player who has been impressed with Cabrera’s defensive versatility is the Game 1 starter, Gerrit Cole, who spoke about it after the win – and gave Cabrera a rare moment of outward pride.
“That means a lot, but from the first day that I've been here, everyone in the clubhouse gave me confidence and made me feel that I am a part of the team,” Cabrera said. “That made me feel so happy and that made me feel I could play with so much confidence on the field. I feel so happy hearing those things about me. I feel so proud about myself.”
Unless Andrew Benintendi can somehow return this postseason, left field appears to be Cabrera’s for now – and it’s very possible that given his performance this year overall, he and Harrison Bader could be standing next to each other, whichever side Cabrera may be on, in 2023.
“It was the makeup of saying, let's rip the Band-Aid and put him out there,” Boone said, “and the rest is history.”
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