© Darren Yamashita | 2021 Aug 15
OAKLAND — Last year’s eighth most valuable player in the National League is hitting ninth for the Giants to start their Bay Bridge Series with the Athletics.
That might say as much for San Francisco’s deep lineup as it does for outfielder Mike Yastrzemski. At least in Giants manager Gabe Kapler’s eyes.
Still, Kapler was candid when discussing Yastrzemski’s 2021 struggles; the 30-year-old has seen his batting average drop from .297 in 2020 to .218 this year.
“I think it’s an indication that our lineup is much deeper than it has been,” Kapler said of dropping Yastrzemski down the batting order. “But I also think it’s fair to acknowledge that Yaz has struggled some here. I don’t think he’s been at his best from a timing perspective for quite some time. It’s something he’s working on hard to correct so that he can be at his most confident at the plate. He’s not that right now. I don’t think that’s any secret.”
The Athletic’s Grant Brisbee theorized Friday morning that some of Yastrzemski’s struggles could be due to the league adjusting to the lefty. Pitchers are throwing Yastrzemski fastballs 48.4% of the time this year, down from 55.6% last year and 58.5% in 2019. More offspeed and breaking pitches may have led to less production thus far.
Kapler agreed that pitchers have approached him a bit differently this year, but he also cautioned against holding Yastrzemski to too high a standard.
“We have had a tendency to compare Yaz to what essentially is superstar performance,” Kapler said. “And so that’s a really really high bar. I get it, that’s who he was for a calendar year, one of the better hitters in all of baseball.”
In his first two seasons — what amounted to roughly a full 162-game slate — Yaz slashed .281/.357/.535. Though his numbers are down across the board in 2021, he has still recorded a .831 OPS against right-handed pitchers. The expectations are much loftier than a platoon option, but Yaz still provides value.
“We’re going to keep grinding with him so we can get him back to the best performance, to the best version of him that we possibly can,” Kapler said.
Pregame notes:
- Johnny Cueto, who’s been on the injured list since Aug. 9 with a flexor strain, is continuing his rehab in the Dominican Republic at the moment because his mother in law passed. Kapler expects Cueto to be ready to make a start in next week’s Mets series.
- Kapler paused his interview with the reporter scrum in the dugout because a Greta Ven Fleet song was playing over the Coliseum loudspeakers. He’s a big fan and compared their sound to Led Zeppelin.
- Anthony DeSclafani underwent an MRI yesterday that found no structural damage in his right ankle. Kapler said the plan is for him to play catch tomorrow and go from there, but he doesn’t anticipate him missing his next start.
