New York Yankees’ second baseman Gleyber Torres is under fire for his recent struggles at the plate, which appear to be impacting other parts of his game.
During the Subway Series opener against the New York Mets, Torres missed a key opportunity following Aaron Judge‘s grand slam in the eighth inning. Judge’s hit had cut the Mets’ lead to 9-7, positioning Gleyber Torres to keep the rally alive as the cleanup hitter, a role he assumed for the first time this season.
Instead, Gleyber Torres hit a ground ball and notably didn’t hustle to first base, ending the inning and missing a crucial chance. He softly tapped the ball toward shortstop Francisco Lindor. Initially charging, Lindor slowed upon noticing Torres’ lackadaisical pace. Lindor easily threw out him to end the inning.
The play sparked controversy as Gleyber Torres could have potentially beaten the throw or forced an error had he run at full speed. Statcast data revealed his top speed on the play was just 21 feet per second, significantly below his 26.4 ft/sec average. For context, the slowest average sprint speed among 470 major leaguers this season belongs to former Yankee Mike Ford at 22.8 feet per second, still faster than Torres’ effort on this play.
This lack of effort immediately drew criticism from the YES Network’s Michael Kay, who deemed the behavior unacceptable. “I mean, you can’t do that,” Kay shouted in the Yankees booth.
Yankees voices vocal against Gleyber Torres’ sluggish hustle
Gleyber Torres’ ongoing slump is raising questions about his mental state and overall contribution to the team during this tough stretch.
During a recent YES Network broadcast, commentators turned their focus to Gleyber Torres’ performance and mindset. Paul O’Neill and David Cone took a more understanding stance on Torres’ struggles, highlighting the mental strain that prolonged slumps can impose on players.
O’Neill remarked that the pressures of the game can sometimes overwhelm players, leading to occasional lapses in effort.
“This game will beat you down to the point where—you’re right Michael. You can’t, you shouldn’t. But the game just wears you out,” he said.
Cone suggested that the second baseman’s emotional state might indicate he could benefit from a break. According to him, “He’s just wearing it right now emotionally, and that’s generally a sign when, you know what, maybe you need a little break”
Gleyber Torres’ stats reflect his ongoing difficulties: a .217 batting average, seven home runs, and a .632 OPS, alongside leading all second basemen in errors.
The commentators stressed that while Gleyber Torres’ failure to hustle on a ground ball is inexcusable, it may be a symptom of his current issues. They highlighted that such behavior is especially concerning given that Torres is in a contract year.
His error-prone defense and sluggish sprint on Tuesday led to manager Aaron Boone confronting him in private.
“That’s a play he should make,” manager Boone agreed. “In and around the last two weeks after the (dropped) popup, there’s been a lot of really good defense that no one ever asks about. It’s a play he has to make. It’s as simple as that. He didn’t make it tonight. It happens. We have to get him going.”
The analysts concluded that not running out a ground ball is always problematic and likely to be poorly received by Yankees fans, regardless of whether it would have impacted the outcome of the play.
What do you think? Leave your comment below.
Either Torres is hurt and he hits the IL, or, simply, he just needs to be sat down for more than a day.
AlanFromQueens, unless Torres has been hurt for the last 7 years, he didn’t run because he’s LAZZY, STUPID, and CARELESS, not because his hammy was acting up.
He’s been doing this crap for his ENTIRE Yankees career, which is why he leads ALL Second Basemen in Total Errors, Fielding Errors, AND Throwing Errors, the Trifecta of Gross Incompetence as a position player.
And he doesn’t lead in all those categories because he’s had more chances than any 2B because he’s 9th in Total Attempts, with 49 Fewer Attempts (!) then the player who has the most attempts:
* Marcus Semien, who leads in attempts at second, has 216 Attempts with 4 Errors for a .988 Fielding %.
* Gleyber Torres has 167 Attempts with 12 Errors for a Pathetic .960 Fielding %.
* Jose Altuve has 178 Attempts with ZERO Errors for a 1.000 Fielding %, which ranks him #1 among 2Bs.
Torres’ .960 Fielding % ranks him 19th among 2Bs. Not Bad, Right? WRONG!
Only 19 2Bs had enough attempts to qualify for the ranking. So, Torres ranked 19th out of 19, putting him, appropriately, in the Toilet Bowl of Second Basemen.
Torres is the EX-LAX of Second Basemen. He’s The Crappiest of the Crappy. The Undisputed Queen of the Dung Heap. No one craps out on Fielding or craps out on Throwing more than Gleyber “The Human Laxative” Torres.
Torres Can’t Field! Torres Can’t Throw! Torres Can’t Hit! Torres Can’t be bothered to Run the bases! So, why is this walking EX-LAX AD still squatting & crapping at second base for the Yankees?