MLB | Bryan Hoch: Who said Giancarlo Stanton was just a stationary slugger? In Saturday’s 9-7 comeback win against the Marlins, Stanton showed that he has more tools in his bag besides clobbering homers. After drawing a leadoff walk in the seventh inning, Stanton took advantage of the Marlins’ lax defense and stole his first base since 2024, advanced to third on a groundout, and scored on a wild pitch. Stanton made his mark again in the eighth with two outs and the bases loaded, coming up with a two-run single that proved to be the decisive blow. Maybe a 40-steal season isn’t in the cards for Stanton, but just the fact that he’s willing to take a base if the other team gives it to him is a good sign for his health. Keep showing off those wheels, G; just don’t go too crazy.
FanGraphs | Dan Szymborski: Not every game is a must-win, but they do all count, even in April. Our very own Josh highlighted the importance of building a comfortable cushion in the early goings to soften the blow of any potential swoons down the road. Szymborski’s piece is written from a more general view, as he notes that the results from the first week have already had a sizeable impact on each team’s playoff odds. Yankees fans rejoice: the Bombers’ 5-1 start against the Giants and the Mariners have added a whopping 8.1 points to their playoff odds. I recommend reading the full article for a quick view on how the Yankees’ divisional rivals have fared.
ESPN: Finally, a quick update on the new ABS system. ESPN is compiling an ABS tracker which records the results of each player and team’s ABS challenges. A few Yankees appear on the individual leaderboards: through yesterday’s action, Trent Grisham is 2-for-2 in batter challenges, Max Fried is 1-for-1 in pitcher challenges, and Austin Wells is 5-for-6 in catcher challenges. As a team, the Yankees have a successful challenge rate of 66.7 percent, good for fourth in MLB. Let’s see if they can keep up this impressive performance in the coming months.
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