Friday, May 9, 2014

Yankees Catcher McCann: "I've got to be more productive"

When the Yankees signed Brian McCann to his five-year, $85 million contract last December, it's a safe bet they didn't think he'd struggle as much as he has.

Through 33 games this year, McCann, a career .275 hitter, hasn't done much for his new team, batting just .209 with four home runs and 12 RBI.

Those stats, though coming early in the season, have made some Yankee fans doubt McCann's worth all that salary, as he's not contributing or, unfortunately, making his presence known on the field.

Just ask the man himself. 

"It's a give and take sometimes when you're hitting," McCann told MLB.com's Bryan Hoch earlier this week. "Basically, I've got to get better. That's the bottom line. I've got to be more productive."

That last line pretty much says it all. To put into perspective just how bad McCann has been so far this year, it's easy to look to his current backup John Ryan Murphy.

In just 23 PAs since being called up April 15, Murphy has already collected a home run and five RBI, while McCann, as I mentioned before, has just four homers and 12 RBI in 115 PAs. When you do the math there, you see that JR is currently on pace to have five homers and 25 RBI by the time he has played as long as #34, meaning that yes, the backup has been better so far this season for the Yankees. And considering that he's getting paid just $502,700, that's definitely not something that should happen.

3 comments:

  1. If you watch the games though, and I know you do so I am talking to other people, McCann is hitting the ball extremely well. The problem is that shift is killing him. It probably took 10+ hits away from him this season. A home run always beats the shift but still..

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    1. May I add to that? He is trying to hit the other way now but, the pitchers pitch him as they use to, inside half of the plate. I'll give him credit for trying to hit the other way! He hits a few the other way and puff the shift goes away.

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    2. A few bunts would go a long way with getting a few more pitches to drive the other way.

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Sorry for the Capatcha... Blame the Russians :)