Bleeding Yankee Blue: BIG CHANGES AT SHORTSTOP & MAYBE GLEYBER TORRES FUTURE

Thursday, September 16, 2021

BIG CHANGES AT SHORTSTOP & MAYBE GLEYBER TORRES FUTURE

This season hasn't gone the way the Yankees analytic department thought it would go. This season hasn't gone the way fans EXPECT it to go either. Now with three AL East teams fighting for Wild Card spots the Yankees are making big changes in hopes to get to play October baseball.

Sunday was the last time we saw Gleyber Torres at shortstop. The Yankees hope that moving Torres back to second base, Gio Urshela to shortstop and DJ LeMahieu to third base will help strengthen the defense and also get Torres out of his head....because that's where he is and it's dragging everyone down.

It's not a big surprise that the Yankees made the change, but maybe WHEN they made the change is the surprise. Over the winter Brian Cashman himself said he thought Torres was a better second baseman but the Yankees stuck with Torres an we all hoped that he would prove Cashman wrong. but it didn't work out. He has 18 errors this season, the third highest of any shortstop in the league. The last were against the Mets and the Yankees knew it was time for a change. This change was a long time coming though.

"I talked a little bit with Gleyber a little bit earlier in the season and was considering it and I talked to him today, and he feels ready to go there," Aaron Boone said HERE. "And hopefully that’s something that gives us the best look and sparks us a little bit." But should a change have come sooner? Even if it wasn't this configuration?

I've always believed that the Yankees activity in the shortstop free agent market would heavily depend on what Torres 2021 season looked like. The Yankees were taking a risk with this experiment but early on I was comfortable with it. The Yankees could have some patience in May, but not this late in the season. There's no more room for mistakes.

The switch needed to be made because I believe his defensive blunders were carrying over into his at-bats. He has become his own worst enemy. He needs to get back to making contact to all fields instead of trying to swing out of his shoes.

I like the change....I just hope it works and we get Torres back to the guy we saw in 2019. I still think Torres is young, moldable and an asset to the Yankees just not at shortstop. The Yankees need to look for the right guy for the position next season and beyond. That doesn't mean that the Yankees need to spend big money. The Yankees just need speed, defense and athleticism. Those guys do exist without having to spend big money.

Who do you think should be the Yankees future shortstop? The possibilities are endless. Big free agent or even someone internally. Comment and tell us who you want and why.