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The New York Yankees 2013 season has been one of trials and tribulation, testing the team’s morale from the beginning of Spring Training to today. Issues surrounding the team have ranged from a plethora of injuries, playing a number of players that don’t even belong on a MLB roster for long stretches of the season and dealing with the saga that has surrounded Alex Rodriguez since his return from injury. Despite dealing with all of these issues simultaneously, the Yankees have managed to come into Monday afternoon’s game against the Chicago White Sox only 3 1/2 games back in the AL Wild Card race.
The man responsible for keeping the team together during this rough 2013 season has been Joe Girardi and for this, he should be rewarded with the AL Manager of the Year Award. He repeatedly has shown why he is worthy of the award, but no more so than during Monday’s game.
Coming into the Monday afternoon game against the White Sox after a devastating loss to the Baltimore Orioles on Sunday, the first order of business was for Girardi to get the team in the right mindset to play. Whatever he said to the team after the loss clearly worked, as the Yankees came out and jumped to a quick 1-0 lead in the first inning, providing the struggling Phil Hughes with a needed boost. But when Hughes came out in the second inning, the weather quickly went downhill and eventually a rain delay was called.
After waiting over an hour and a half for the rain to end, Joe Girardi had a big decision to make. This decision was whether or not to put Phil Hughes back in the game after a lengthy delay, or to turn the game over to his bullpen and risk taxing them. What he decided would not only have a big influence on this game, but could have been the decision that turned the Yankees season downhill for good.
What resulted was that Girardi decided to put David Huff in the game, and he would go on to post 5 2/3 of one run baseball while the Yankees offense scored eight runs in the fourth inning to put the game in the bag. With the win, the Yankees got to three games behind the Tampa Bay Rays and started an important week off with a confidence boost that could be the difference maker in a playoff run.
This was once again a display of Girardi showing the Midas touch that has kept the Yankees in contention up to this point. Throughout the 2013 season, the Yankees have combined to lose 1449 man games from injuries, suspensions and personal reasons, including significant amounts of time lost to Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter, Curtis Granderson and Mark Teixeira. These players were supposed to be the stalwarts of the Yankees lineup and have been replaced for long stretches by a mix of journeymen and youngsters that is highlighted by Jayson Nix, David Adams, Eduardo Nunez and Zoilo Almonte. To say that any of the players who replaced the previously mentioned superstars even merit a starting spot on any MLB roster would be a stretch at this point.
On top of this has been the saga surrounding Alex Rodriguez that has taken both baseball and the Yankees by storm. Rodriguez has been the subject of an investigation due to his connections with the Biogenesis Clinic, which eventually resulted in him being suspended 211 games. Rodriguez decided to appeal the suspension, allowing him to return from injury on August 5 and put up a statline of .273/.360/.443 with four home runs and 10 RBI. During the time he has been surrounded by a media horde that has made life miserable both for him and the Yankees clubhouse as a whole.
For the Yankees to even be in contention after dealing with these issues is a miracle. However, it can be attributed directly to decisions that Girardi has made throughout the season. His decision on Monday to take Hughes out of the game despite the risk associated was a perfect example of the feel that Girardi has established for the team’s pulse, and cannot be understated. Even if this grip on the team does not result in a playoff spot, baseball writers should reward Joe Girardi with the AL Manager of the Year Award.
Tyler Leli is a Washington Capitals writer for Rant Sports. Follow him on Twitter, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.
