The New York Yankees are not playing good baseball right now, losing 10 of their last 12 games.
The Yankees picked up a win against the Tampa Bay Rays on Monday, but managed to strike out 17 times in the game. On Tuesday, they once again struck out 17 times, but did not have the win to hang their heads on. The 34 strikeouts in a two-game span are an unfortunate franchise record.
"You're going to have nights where you're up against a dominant pitcher," manager Aaron Boone said after the game. "Especially in today's game, where you're going to have those double digits here and there, but we have to do a better job of getting the ball in play."
Boone's solution is simple enough, and he's not wrong. If the Yankees put the ball in play more they won't strikeout, but it may not fix the overall issue with the offense. Right now, the team is playing without Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton. They also have not gotten anything great out of Anthony Volpe at shortstop, who seems to have a very long leash once again.
Yes, putting the ball in play will help, but the reality is that without Judge in the lineup, the Yankees are not able to generate much offense. In their last 19 games, they are averaging under three runs a game. That includes the two games against the Tampa Bay Rays this week, but what about the other 17? The Yankees did not strike out at an abnormal clip in those games, but still struggled.
The Rays are a good team and are looking to pull away in the American League East. Their staff is not known for huge strikeout numbers, but they managed to pad their stats against the Yankees.