BOONE'S CUTE LINEUP IS FOR THE BIRDS, LITERALLY

I am going to be honest—like I have held back in the past. Anytime we play Baltimore it is a hot mess. The Yankee offense shuts off. Pitching becomes subpar. And the Yankees become submissive to a team they should easily beat. Now to add salt to the wounds, we have Aaron Boone creating these "cute" inconsistent lineups. He thinks he is just getting creative, playing the numbers and seeing what sticks. But I am much more old school. And I say, try something for a while and see if it is working—like gather evidence and make that kind of decision-making—you know authentic assessment. Instead, Boone likes to get cute with his lineup and its benefits are nonexistent.

Source: Yahoo Sports 

According to the New York Post, "Most of the Yankees’ issues came from their lineup, which produced just a run in the third inning and then were blanked by Baltimore’s bullpen, their execution with runners in scoring position still a problem that seems to have hung around from last year." So if the issues are with the lineup just not in the right position to produce runs, why keep shifting it around? Why not try something that seemingly looks good on paper and stick with it for a couple of weeks? I mean why does Aaron Judge need to sit out a game when the Yankees have been home for the last seven games, and by the way, it was only seven days into the season. Why is lifeless Aaron Hicks batting in the leadoff position? Try something and analyze the data. Very simple but Boone likes to make everything complex.

Source: Clutch Points

"The Yankees went into Saturday night’s game ranked 26th out of 30 in runs scored per game. Their 3.12 runs per game is only better than the Brewers, Diamondbacks, and Orioles. They’ve had the sixth most runners left on base with 59 this season and ranked the fifth-worst with runners in scoring position, hitting .180. They have the third-worst run-scoring percentage in the big leagues, meaning only 20% of their runners who reach base eventually score a run — they are better only than the Orioles and Diamondbacks," reported the New York Daily News. 

Source: USA Today Sports

The other stat that is a thorn in my side is that the Yankees ground into double plays instead of getting clutch hits to take advantage of runners in scoring position. They are second in the MLB with nine for grounding into double plays. Last season they held that second-place position in the American League with 154 GDPs overall. Guess what, Boone did the same thing. Never consistent with his lineup, always making it more complex than it needed to be.

Earlier today I commended the 1986 Mets and the consistent lineup that manager Davey Johnson stayed with because it worked. "In 1986 the Mets infield consisted of players who could start on any given day with almost no falloff both offensively or defensively," reported FanSided. These scrappy players included Lenny Dykstra and Wally Backman who were referred to as "Spark and Plug." Sure they also had iconic players in Keith Hernandez and Gary Carter. They stayed healthy, played in their specific positions, and held the same place in the lineup pretty much every night. It bowed well for them. Maybe Boone can rip a page out of Johnson's playbook. Might serve him and the Yankees well.

What you are hearing is that I am tired of the mix it up attitude—try something new every night delight. There is something to be said for consistency, collect some data, and see how the analytics play out. I realize the Yankees have depth, but you need to use that as a backup to the regular formula. Stop, Boone. Just stop. Make a lineup and stick with it. There is no cute to this lineup. Pick a flow and let it roll. 

--Suzie Pinstripe
BYB Senior Managing Editor
Twitter: @suzieprof