2011 New York Yankees: 5 Biggest Disappointments of the Season
After a season in which the New York Yankees won 95 games and lost in the American League Championship Series, expectations were unusually low for the Bronx Bombers.
With rival Boston Red Sox bringing in Adrian Gonzalez and Carl Crawford and the Yankees failing to land a big fish in free agency, namely Cliff Lee, the Yanks entered 2011 as underdogs in the AL East for the first time in recent memory.
As it currently stands, the Yankees are deadlocked atop the division with the surprising Tampa Bay Rays with the Sox lurking just a half game behind. Although the Yankees have certainly hung tough despite their offseason shortcomings, one can't help but wonder how good they might be if the following five players were performing up to expectations.
5. RP Pedro Feliciano
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The disappointment surrounding Pedro Feliciano has nothing to do with his performance and everything to do with a tough-luck injury that has prevented him from pitching at all this season.
Feliciano was considered one of the premier left-handed specialists in the game prior to the Yankees signing him and he would have likely brought a whole new dimension to the Yankee bullpen. Unfortunately for Feliciano and the Yankees, he suffered from a dead arm during spring training and has been in limbo ever since.
These arm problems likely stem from the fact that the Mets sent him out for 86, 88 and 92 games respectively over the past three seasons. Most of the blame falls upon the Yankee front office in this case, however, as they had to know that Feliciano had been overworked in recent years.
Feliciano is currently on a six-week arm strengthening program suggested by orthopedic surgeon James Andrews. If all goes well, there's still a chance that Feliciano could pitch this season. That would undoubtedly give a Yankee bullpen that is short of left handers a huge boost as the season progresses.
4. DH Jorge Posada
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Jorge Posada has been a disappointment this season for a couple reasons. Obviously his production hasn't been anywhere near what his career performance would dictate.
Although it was clear that Posada was on the downside of his career entering the season, many thought that the move to designated hitter would keep him fresher and allow him to focus solely on hitting. The results certainly haven't reflected that, though, as Posada is hitting a paltry .176 with six home runs and 16 RBI.
As difficult as it is to ignore those telling stats, on-field performance hasn't even been the most disappointing aspect of Posada's season. Last week, after being told he would be dropped to ninth in the batting order, Posada pulled himself out of the lineup and considered leaving the team.
This was particularly surprising as Posada has been a model teammate over the past 15 years and has never caused any such problems. Also, it isn't as if Joe Girardi was removing Posada from the lineup altogether. Posada wasn't performing and didn't deserve to be hitting seventh in the order. It's very likely that Posada would have regained his spot in the lineup once he straightened himself out anyway. Instead of accepting the role like he should have, Posada caused a stir and created a perception that there is dissension within the Yankee locker room.
It's sad to say, but it appears as though Posada's days as a Yankee are basically numbered.
3. RF Nick Swisher
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Since jumping ship to New York after an offseason trade prior to the 2009 season, perhaps no Yankee has been more popular with the fans than Nick Swisher. With his positive attitude and charitable work, it's easy to see why. It's this popularity, however, that may be veiling Swisher's extremely poor start to the 2011 season.
Swisher has been a consistent performer during his time in New York, hitting 29 home runs and driving in at least 82 runs in each of his two full seasons. This season has been completely different story, though, as Swisher is hitting just .214 with two homers and 19 RBI.
As a switch hitter, Swisher's righty/lefty splits are particularly troubling. Swisher has actually been quite good from the right side, hitting .333. Therein lies the problem, as the Yankees see so few left-handed pitchers compared to righties. Swisher's .170 average from the left side represents the overwhelming majority of his at bats, which in turn saps most of his power since it's difficult to reach the short porch in right field if you aren't hitting well left handed.
Luckily for Swisher many Yankee hitters have made up for his power outage this season, but he'll absolutely have to improve if the Yankees are to have the dangerous top-to-bottom lineup they've grown accustomed to.
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2. RP Rafael Soriano
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Rafael Soriano was considered the crown jewel of the Yankee offseason, but the more he pitches, the more he looks to be fool's gold. Coming off a season in which he saved 45 games for the Rays, Soriano was being counted upon to lock down the eighth inning and perhaps be the heir apparent to the great Mariano Rivera at closer.
Soriano's season got off to a dubious start, and after getting shelled in his third outing of the season, he's been unable to recover. Although he has dropped his ERA down to 5.40, he's hardly been the lights out bridge to Rivera that so many expected.
To make matters worse, Soriano was recently placed on the 15-day disabled list with right elbow inflammation. Yankee fans can only hope that the time off will be good for Soriano, both physically and psychologically.
1. SP Phil Hughes
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It's safe to say that no Yankee was expected to make a bigger leap this season than Phil Hughes. Coming off an 18-win season and an All-Star appearance, Hughes was supposed to cement himself as a top-of-the-rotation pitcher, especially since Andy Pettitte retired and the Yanks were unable to find an adequate replacement.
Things couldn't have started off worse for Hughes, however, as his velocity was way down during spring training. After three regular-season starts that saw Hughes fail to get past the fifth inning while compiling a 13.94 ERA, he was placed on the disabled list with a dead throwing shoulder.
Veterans like Bartolo Colon and Freddy Garcia have stepped up in Hughes' absence, but his presence would certainly give the Yanks a more well-rounded rotation. Hughes is optimistic for a June return after receiving a cortisone shot in his ailing shoulder.
Should Hughes return to form upon his activation from the DL, it's likely that the Yankee faithful will welcome him back with open arms.
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