His batting common is down and his strikeouts are up.
This isn’t the DJ LeMahieu the Yankees envisioned hitting in the midst of their batting order this yr.
The hope was he would rediscover his All-Star type from his first two seasons in pinstripes, or a minimum of construct off an honest season final yr that was lower brief by a extreme toe damage.
However a minimum of of late, that hasn’t occurred.
LeMahieu was given an evening off for the sequence finale in opposition to the Orioles on Thursday, supervisor Aaron Boone saying he rested the infielder to make sure he performs all three video games of this weekend’s sequence in opposition to the Padres on the Stadium.
The 34-year-old LeMahieu — who didn’t play within the Yankees’ 3-1 loss to the Orioles on Thursday night time on the Stadium — is hitting simply .250, which might be his lowest mark since his rookie yr.
He’s a lifetime .296 hitter and two-time batting champion (2016, 2020).
His slash line is a woeful .250/.313/.355 in Could with an underwhelming .669 OPS.
That features the baffling resolution to attempt to bunt twice with the Yankees trailing by one run and the tying run on third base within the seventh inning of the sequence opener with the Orioles.
Most regarding, he has struck out 49 occasions in 182 plate appearances, a 26.9 p.c whiff charge.
His profession charge is barely 14.9.
LeMahieu isn’t an influence hitter.
He’s finest recognized for hitting the ball to all fields, having the ability to put a pitch in play.
He’s doing that much less this season.
He has struck out 21 occasions this month and is on tempo to strike out over 100 occasions for the second time in his profession, and the primary time since 2015.
“I really feel like over the past week, the place he has gotten some hits and hit some balls laborious, perhaps fouling off some pitches that he’s gotten that he usually traces on the market for successful, fouling that pitch off,” supervisor Aaron Boone mentioned. “[He’s] getting in two-strike conditions he’s in all probability expanded [the strike zone] a little bit bit, which isn’t usually the case with him. He’s in all probability simply increasing a little bit bit extra. In consequence, when he does get a pitch to hit, [he is] not placing it in play the place he usually would.”
Boone made it clear that LeMahieu getting the night time off had nothing to do along with his latest struggles.
If not Thursday, he wouldn’t play in one in every of this weekend’s video games in opposition to the Padres.
“This one appeared to take advantage of sense,” Boone mentioned. “Nothing greater than that.”