Michael King’s lackluster showing weighs heavily on struggling Yankees

ANAHEIM, Calif. — Michael King addressed one issue, but inadvertently gave rise to another. His drop in performance compounds the Yankees’ challenges, as they confront mounting difficulties.

As of late, the Yankees’ reliever has experienced a challenging couple of appearances, deviating from his usual dependable performance. During Monday night’s game, Michael King found himself on the receiving end of Shohei Ohtani’s latest display of heroics. The Angels’ versatile star launched a game-tying, two-run home run in the seventh inning, ultimately contributing to the Yankees’ 4-3, 10-inning loss.

For the second consecutive game, Michael King faced a scenario where he walked the opposing team’s No. 9 hitter with one out and later allowed a two-run home run to their most formidable batter with two outs.

Michael King expressed his frustration, stating that the particular situation had affected him twice in consecutive outings. Both had led to the Yankees crashing to defeats.

Michael King’s dwindling performance

Following a strong start to the season with a 1.65 ERA in his initial 19 outings, Michael King’s performance has declined in his last 12 appearances. During this period, he has recorded a 6.27 ERA, conceding 13 earned runs in 18 ²/₃ innings, along with nine walks and four home runs allowed.

Amidst the challenging phase for the Yankees, Michael King has shown glimpses of strong performance, notably during a dominant 3 ¹/₃-inning display against the Cardinals on July 1. However, he has struggled to maintain this level of consistency throughout the difficult period.

Michael King: “If you’re going to tie the game that late, you can do whatever you want.” https://t.co/LXXay8rn62

— Bryan Hoch ⚾️ (@BryanHoch) July 18, 2023

Michael King acknowledged that he had been experiencing some mechanical issues, which in turn affected his confidence on the mound. Consequently, he didn’t have the same assurance in his abilities as before. However, the Yankees reliever expressed that he made some adjustments to address these concerns and felt that they had helped him get back on track to some extent.

The pitcher reflected on his performance, acknowledging that making a mistake to Ohtani had significant consequences. Despite the setback, Michael King emphasized the importance of maintaining a positive attitude, moving forward, and approaching the next opportunity with determination and aggression.

According to Michael King, he noticed that the rotation in his delivery had been slightly off earlier in the season, which resulted in a decrease in his pitching velocity.

After making the necessary mechanical adjustment to regain his pitching velocity, Michael King succeeded in increasing his four-seam fastball speed by 1.8 mph from its season average on Monday. However, this alteration unintentionally led to a lack of command over his pitches.

Michael King explained that he believes the key lies in learning the new rotation to ensure that he positions himself correctly, allowing him to consistently deliver pitches within the desired zones.

Aaron Boone discusses the Yankees' offense with @M_Marakovits following the extra-inning loss against the Angels.

The manager also reveals that he did not consider walking Shohei Ohtani when Michael King was on the mound.#YANKSonYES pic.twitter.com/wjBEj61vkk

— YES Network (@YESNetwork) July 18, 2023

Boone defends his decision on Ohtani

Following the loss on Monday, there was extensive discussion surrounding manager Aaron Boone’s decision-making. Many focused on his choice not to intentionally walk Shohei Ohtani in the seventh inning when the Yankees were leading 3-1. This decision came after he had intentionally walked Ohtani earlier in the game, loading the bases with two outs in the fifth inning when the score was still tied at 0-0.

However, in truth, Michael King had Ohtani in a 1-2 count before he decided to deliver a fastball that ended up catching too much of the plate instead of staying out of the zone.

Furthermore, there was a runner on first base for Ohtani to potentially drive in because Michael King had initially taken control of the count against Eduardo Escobar with an 0-2 advantage. However, he then encountered difficulty, throwing four consecutive balls to walk Escobar.

Boone commented that, in terms of his stuff, Michael King performed well, but he highlighted the pivotal moment of the game as the Escobar at-bat.

Following Ohtani’s home run, Michael King experienced a challenging sequence as he walked two consecutive hitters and later hit another, loading the bases. This situation prompted Boone to make the decision to remove him from the game, especially considering the bullpen was short-handed with Tommy Kahnle, Wandy Peralta, and Ian Hamilton unavailable due to their recent heavy workloads.

During a challenging period for the Yankees bullpen, Michael King’s struggles have contributed to their recent difficulties. This comes as a surprise, given that the bullpen had been considered one of the best in baseball during the first half of the season.

In recent times, the bullpen has displayed some vulnerabilities, particularly as the Yankees’ struggling offense offers them minimal room for error. Due to their decline, the Yankees found themselves in the unfortunate position of being in last place in the AL East as of Tuesday.

Michael King remarked that while he wouldn’t label it as a significant concern, the team is certainly displeased with being in last place. He emphasized the need to initiate a shift and get the team back on track to find their rhythm. He conveyed to the reporters that the atmosphere in the locker room is far from enjoyable when facing continuous losses.

He expressed that the team has a substantial amount of ground to cover, but he remains optimistic about the abilities and potential of the current group of players they have.

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