A three-game sweep of the Guardians left Aaron Boone encouraged by plenty of things he saw over the weekend, from the Yankees’ defense and pitching to their base running and the offense showing signs of clicking.
But the most important development, aside from Gerrit Cole finally pitching like an ace, may have been DJ LeMahieu continuing to look like his old self as a game-changing bat atop the Yankees lineup.
The veteran infielder had the end of last season cut short by a sports hernia that required surgery, but the Yankees were hopeful that the injury could partly explain the off year LeMahieu had in 2021 — the first season of a six-year, $90 million contract.
Through the first 15 games of this season, LeMahieu hasn’t wasted much time getting back to being a vital bat in the Yankees’ lineup. After a three-hit game in Sunday’s 10-2 win over the Guardians, he now has an 11-game hitting streak and is batting .333 with three doubles, two home runs, five walks and a 175 OPS-plus (100 is league average) on the year.
“I feel good — I’ve kind of felt good all year,” LeMahieu said before Monday’s off day. “But [Sunday] I was just seeing it good and put some good swings on it. Hopefully I can keep it going.”
If he can — getting back to the consistent offensive threat he was in his first two years in pinstripes — it would be a huge boost for an offense that scuffled for most of last season.
“[In 2019 and 2020], he was an MVP candidate,” Boone said. “I think everyone understands how great of a player he’s been for us, especially in those two years. So it would mean a ton.”
In ’19 and ’20, he hit a combined .336 with 36 homers, 129 RBIs and an OPS-plus of 146 in 195 games. In 150 games last season, he hit .268 with 10 homers, 57 RBIs and an OPS-plus of a below-average 96.
Boone wrote LeMahieu’s name into the leadoff spot for all three games against the Guardians after he had hit first just once in the Yankees’ previous 13 games. LeMahieu, who served as the Yankees’ leadoff hitter for 144 games last year, responded by going 5-for-11 in the series as the offense began to look like what the club believes it can be.
While Boone said he might continue to tinker with the leadoff spot — with Aaron Hicks, Josh Donaldson and Anthony Rizzo having seen time there too — he also “like[s] and dream[s] about DJ hitting in the middle of things.”
“I’m [just] intrigued by him up to bat right now,” Boone said after Sunday’s game. “The consistency of his at-bats, even on the days he doesn’t get three hits, I just feel like he’s on a lot of pitches. Putting the barrel on a lot of pitches, even when he doesn’t totally sting one. He’s just in a really good place. So I like him up to bat, wherever that is in the lineup.”
LeMahieu, who has also been sharp defensively, especially at third base, is hitting the ball harder than he has in recent years. His hard-hit rate of 58.5 ranked in the top 3 percent of MLB entering Monday, showing that he’s not just finding holes to collect hits.
While the at-bats from his teammates have often been hot and cold throughout the opening weeks of the season, LeMahieu has been the Yankees’ most consistent hitter. He’s hoping that after a mostly strong weekend for other bats in the lineup, too, the Yankees can start playing to their offensive potential.
“There’s definitely been signs of it the last few days,” LeMahieu said. “Great comeback [Saturday] and just kept it rolling [Sunday]. It was good to see.”
