There
is no measurable statistic that supports Andruw Jones’ spot on the 2012 New
York Yankees roster. None. There has to
be something that I am missing so if somebody can explain it to me, I am all
ears. More importantly though, someone needs to tell it to Girardi. Don’t get me wrong, he was fantastic last
year in his role. Against southpaws, Jones put up an OPS of .923 as well as an
OBP of .384 in 126 at-bats.
It
is now September (almost October) 2012, and for the life of me, I cannot wrap
my head around the reasoning behind him getting playing time. He should have
been shown the door a long time ago but if he is still here on September 29th,
I do not expect him to be cut with only one series left in the regular season.
What the Yankees can do though is not put Jones on the postseason roster. It
won’t excuse the ridiculous amount of leeway that he has received from the
organization, but at least he won’t be able to hurt them when it matters most.
Against
lefty pitching, Jones is sporting an OPS of .713 to go along with an OBP of
.297. Since the All-Star Break, those numbers turn into .524 and .262. Just for
kicks, check out his numbers in September. If you don’t feel like it, .593 and
.259. He has walked more than he has struck out but when you are putting up
numbers like that, there is not even a way someone can say “Well at least, he
has drawn a couple walks.” The more you break him down, the worse he looks, and
that is not even taking his lack of hustle when he does play. On the rare
occasion when he has to hustle, we’ve seen him strolling down to first
seemingly without a care in the world. I know that is just pseudo-psychology on
my part, but I am just sick to death of watching this guy play.
I
just cannot understand what the Yankee brass sees in this guy. I would kind of
understand if he was a lifetime guy like Jeter or Posada but if the Atlanta
Braves can let him walk, I don’t see why the Yankees can’t. Let Melky Mesa get
some at-bats, he is an upgrade over Jones. His base running blunder aside, he
has excellent speed, can swipe a bag, and play great defense while showing some
good power. I would be fine with Chris Dickerson playing, I don’t really care
who it is. When you consistently do the same thing over and over again while expecting
different results that is insanity.
The
New York Yankees need to keep him as far away from the postseason roster as
possible but I doubt that will happen. For some reason, they think that being a
veteran trumps inexperience even if that veteran is completely useless.