Photo: The Slanch Report
Kevin Youkilis has only played in less than half of the Red Sox games this season. He hasn't had more than 491 at-bats since the 2008 season. With players like Will Middlebrooks making a huge splash already and (as much as I don't want to say it...) Nick Punto already on the bench, I think the Sox could do without Youk.
On Monday night, the Sox got themselves back to .500 baseball against the division-leading Baltimore Orioles, and on Tuesday, Youkilis is scheduled to come off the disabled list and rejoin the team at Camden Yards. There's talk of Middlebrooks staying even with Youk back because of the injuries to Cody Ross and Ryan Sweeney (with Sweeney being the only one on the DL as of now), but here's why Middlebrooks staying shouldn't even be a question.
Two years ago, Jacoby Ellsbury went down with a rib injury, thanks to Adrian Beltre's clydesdale-like frame, and spent time away from the team in Arizona rehabbing for most of the season. Youkilis has had a few injuries over the past two seasons, and rather than focus on getting better, he has taken some of that time to blast Ellsbury for time the centerfielder spent away from the team.
Playing in the same about of games (18), the stats looks like this:
Youkilis: 14 H, 2 HR, 9 RBI, 14 R
Middlebrooks: 22 H, 5 HR, 16 RBI, 12 R
As for the argument that Middlebrooks isn't ready to be an everyday player? Platoon him with Punto, problem solved. Youkilis could help almost any team in the majors, and has decent trade value. The Sox have a bunch of young players producing already this year, so if they could cash in on Youkilis for a few more, I'd say its now or never.
No comments:
Post a Comment