The New York Yankees suffered their second consecutive loss against the Toronto Blue Jays. Despite not having their best defensive performance, Gleyber Torres was chosen not only by the fans, but also by the statistics, as the worst player for the Yankees during the 5-4 defeat.
Boone’s vote of confidence
Even more surprising was that before the game, Yankees manager Aaron Boone had already spoken about Gleyber Torres’ poor form in the MLB during the first month of the regular season. In an interview with YES Network earlier this afternoon, Boone conveyed his confidence in Torres’ ability to overcome current challenges and regain his offensive prowess.
“I think he’s been really close all year,” Boone remarked. “I mean, like, he’s not far off from really popping and, you know, he’s one of those guys that offensively I’m not too worried about. He’s going to get it rolling.”
Boone’s comments come amidst a stretch of games where Torres has faced some struggles at the plate. Despite this, Boone emphasized Gleyber Torres’ positive approach and solid decision-making, noting that he has been making good swing choices overall.
“I think he’s making good swing decisions overall,” Boone commented. “He has squared some balls up where, you know, he’s hit a ball good to right or, you know, just kind of just missed a little bit.”
Boone’s remarks highlight a sense of patience and belief in Gleyber Torres’ ability to bounce back. While acknowledging that Torres may not be “all the way locked in” just yet, Boone stressed that it’s only a matter of time before Torres starts producing consistently.
“I feel like he’s in a pretty good place,” Boone concluded. “It’s just a matter of time with Gleyber Torres.”
Gleyber Torres’ stats vs. Blue Jays
It’s interesting to note that before the game, Gleyber Torres had impressive numbers against Yusei Kikuchi, such as a .400 batting average, 4 RBIs, and a 1.023 OPS. However, in the game, his stats were 1 AB, 2 R, 1 SO, 2 BB, and a .205 batting average. It was clear that Gleyber Torres felt he was in a bad moment, as evidenced by his worried look after Trevino’s error in the seventh inning, which demonstrated a slow defensive performance by the Yankees, but above all, the awareness of the athlete’s poor performance.
The Gleyber Torres dilemma: Yankees fans weigh in
As the 2024 baseball season kicks off, a palpable sense of frustration lingers among New York Yankees fans regarding infielder Gleyber Torres. Once hailed as a rising star, Gleyber Torres has failed to live up to the lofty expectations set by his early successes. The sentiment among the Yankees faithful seems to echo a common refrain: “They should have traded him last year.”
For some fans, like user @seantalkssports, it is unacceptable for some fans and people to continue defending his continued presence on the Yankees roster.
Some have even gone so far as to say that their patience with the athlete has run out, while others point to Anthony Rizzo as a factor of concern.
The contrast between Gleyber Torres’ pre-game numbers and his in-game performance was stark, highlighting the inconsistency that has plagued his play. His worried expression after a Trevino error in the seventh inning further underscored the player’s awareness of his own struggles, as well as the team’s defensive lapses.
As the Yankees strive to regain their footing in the early stages of the season, the focus will undoubtedly remain on Gleyber Torres and his ability to recapture the form that once made him a rising star in the league.
What do you think? Leave your comment below.
I saw Torres play 5 times with the AA Trenton Thunder (I live 20 minutes from the Trenton stadium & 45 minutes from the Somerset Park), and Torres had the same careless approach to fielding back then. and he showed his early penchant for losing focus on the field, as the following example illustrates.
Torres was “playing” shortstop & Thairo Estrada was playing 3rd. There was a runner on first & a VERY Routine grounder was hit DIRECTLY at Torres; he didn’t even have to move, all he had to do was bend with his legs low enough to field the ball, which did half-heartedly, allowing the ball to dribble off his mitt & between his legs.
Okay, a stupid error, but everybody makes them, right? Except the ball weakly rolled to a stop about 4 feet behind Torres, and Torres stood like Lady Liberty at short & NEVER turned to see where the ball was!
So, the runner on first was rounding 2nd & heading for 3rd, and Torres Still Didn’t Move! So, Estrada RAN full gallop from 3rd to field the ball that was sitting all pretty like on the cusp of the outfield grass. (Btw, Estrada always hustled!)
Meanwhile, the guy on 1st scored & the batter was now rounding 2nd & heading for 3rd. If it hadn’t been for Estrada’s Hustle, that runner would have scored too, because Torres didn’t move until Estrada went speeding by him.
When the inning ended, I turned to a friend & said, the AA manager better Reprimand Torres for that BS stunt & bench him for the rest of the game to send a message to him that THAT’S NOT the way to play winning baseball.
I kept my eyes peeled on the dugout to see if the manager talked to Torres, and NOTHING was said to him. Not a word! And next inning he came trotting out to shortstop, as if nothing bad had happened the previous inning.
That Ridiculous Incident & the fact he wasn’t Immediately Undressed by the manager was the beginning (in my view) of Torres thinking that Hustle & Baseball Acumen were things only lesser players had to worry about, NOT Gleyber Torres. No, sir, if “Manny can be Manny,” then “Gleyber can be Gleyber” & not give a flying **** about showing anything approaching Baseball Smarts or Hustle.
And now we’re paying for Torres’ mishandled minor-league development at the MLB level because Torres was viewed as a top prospect, so why upset him by teaching him baseball basics, right? How Stupid is that?
Torres frequently runs the bases like a deranged Little Leaguer, and he even more frequently seems to go on a mental vacation in the field, loosing focus in key situations: “Hey, a butterfly! Ah, isn’t that pretty. What’s that Cole? The ball? It’s not a ball. it’s a pretty butterfly.” @#&^ @#*!!!
And it’s NOT like this is something new; Torres has been making these Indefensibly STUPID mistakes for his entire career, in the field, on the bases, and at bat. And it goes on & on, Unchecked, because Boone doesn’t hold his players Accountable for Stupid Plays; instead, he’s defended Gleyber’s stupidity on the bases, saying he didn’t want to curtail his “aggressive” play. Hey, Boone, Stupid is not Aggressive: it’s just @#&%ing Stupid!
Boone’s maddening defense of poor play Guarantees that those stupid mistakes (by any player) will be repeated over & over again.
Your title is MANAGER, Boone, not DEFENSE ATTORNEY. How about Actually Managing how your players conduct themselves on the field for a change? Stop with the knee-jerk defense of any & all mistakes by your players & let them know when they made a mistake.
And don’t say, they’re major leaguers, they know when they’ve done something wrong because Torres Obviously doesn’t know that because Torres NEVER learns from his mistakes. He just keeps making the same Mindlessly Stupid mistakes at bat, in the field, and on the bases, year after year, after year, which is why I wanted the Yankees to trade him two seasons ago for Pablo López & trade him this past off season for pretty much anybody!
If Torres hasn’t learned how to play smart baseball after 6 years in the majors, while he was surrounded by class players like Judge & Cole & (now) Soto, then he’ll NEVER learn.
I laughed (derisively) this past off season when some “experts” said the Yankees couldn’t trade Torres if they wanted to contend. BS! BS! BS! BS! Torres has already cost the Yankees 2 possible wins with his “glove” (or lack, thereof), and we’re only 19 games into the season; and that’s not even factoring in how many wins he might have cost us with his Inept Hitting this year.
Btw, the Yankees AAA second baseman, Caleb Durbin is leading the team in BA (.305), Runs (11), and RBIs (15), and is 2nd in BB, 1st in fewest Ks (50 ABs or more), 2nd in steals (10 for 10), 2nd OBP, 3rd in SLG, 2nd in OPS (.923); and he has a 1.000 field average in 51 innings at 2B. So, he’s basically doing EVERYTHING Torres doesn’t do!