The 2018 season is all wrapped up for the New York Yankees, so let’s take a look at how their second basemen performed this past year.
When Giancarlo Stanton put on pinstripes, one of the biggest questions the Yankees had to answer was, “Who will replace Starlin Castro at second base”? Would Ronald Torreyes step up and be the starting second baseman? Would the Yankees have to go out and get a proven man to stand behind the pitcher?
Shockingly, the second base position was one position that raised no questions by the end of the season. Before we continue, I will not be including Ronald Torreyes and Neil Walker in this article as they will be covered in the Utility role grades.
Tyler Wade
Tyler Wade could also be defined as a “Utility man” but played most of his games at second base. Tyler Wade is in no way a wizard with the bat, with a .161 batting average lifetime. Wade would often be subbed in to pinch run in crucial situations but even in that role, Wade only has two stolen bases in his career.
So you might be asking yourself, Is Tyler Wade good at anything? The short answer is yes. Wade was a decent second baseman in 2018. Wade would commit only one error in fifty defensive chances. The thing about Tyler Wade is that I truly believe with more opportunities, Wade could be a fine ballplayer but as a member of the New York Yankees, I don’t see that happening anytime soon. A Utility player such as Neil Walker or Torreyes is the much more attractive option than Tyler Wade.
Grade: D-
Gleyber Torres
At 22 years old, Gleyber Torres shot onto the scene with a bang. Torres was traded to the Yankees in 2016 while the Chicago Cubs would we receive Aroldis Chapman in a winning effort to win the World Series. In my opinion, this was one of the best Yankee trades in the past 20 years.
When Torres was called up, the question of who would start every day at second base was finally answered. The first three months of Gleyber’s major league career was amazing. In those three months, Torres averaged a .345 batting average and launched nine long balls. Gleyber would suffer an injury not long after this. Torres was hitting .294 with 15 home runs and 42 RBIs in his first 63 major league games.
The injury would cause a drop in his stats a bit but with most rookies, this happens. It’s amazing to think that Yankees would add another young piece to this dynasty. In ten years, Sanchez, Judge, Andujar, Severino, and Torres could potentially still all be Bronx boys and that’s something to smile about.