Author: /u/StevenJeon

Today’s statline: 0-3, 2 K, BB

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At bat 1 (Top of second): 2 pitch groundout to first

Yordan initially showed bunt with the heavy shift, kinda surprising move, but he hit a low slider in the zone foul. He then took a good hack at the exact same pitch and grounded it deep down the line, but right to the shifted first baseman who got the out.

At bat 2 (Top of fourth): 4 pitch walk

Yordan saw just 4 pitches in this at bat, most of which were extremely borderline pitches. The first one was a fastball that could have gone either way, and the second one was a slider just a bit outside. He then watched two inside pitches, a slider kind of inside and a fastball way inside and near his hands to take the four pitch walk. He would not score though, as although Correa would drive in one with a sac fly Tucker grounded out.

At bat 3 (Top of sixth): 4 pitch strikeout swinging

The at bat started the same way the last one ended, with an inside fastball near his hands that Yordan took for a ball. Then Skubal pumped in a fastball that probably shouldn’t have been called a strike, as on the broadcast it looked an inch or so off the plate, but was called for strike one. Then Yordan got a perfect pitch, fastball right down the middle, but he was just a bit late, as he fouled it off opposite field to make the count 1-2. Then Skubal threw a slider way out of the zone that Yordan swung and chased badly for the strikeout swinging.

At bat 4 (Top of eighth): 4 pitch strikeout looking

Very interesting approach by the reliever this at bat, as he threw Yordan only fastballs. Yordan watched the first one go right down the middle for strike one, before watching an inside low one for ball one. He then again was late on a fastball right down the middle, before watching a 100 MPH fastball that probably should have been a ball, but could have gone either way. Given how the ump was treating the strike zone in previous at bats (notably at bat 2) it would have been reasonable to expect him to call that a ball. Yordan also seemed to be visibly upset with the call and had some words with the ump after the inning ended.

Total statline: 1-4. HR, 2 RBI, R, 2 BB, 2 K, DP

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Game one final statline: 0-2, 2 K, BB

At bat 1 (Top of first): 4 pitch strikeout swinging

Yordan took a classic Mize splitter for a ball low and inside, and then fouled off a hard fastball near his hands. He then fouled off another fastball, this time low and outside (but still in the zone) before swinging and missing pretty badly at a really high fastball that was closer to his head than his shoulders.

At bat 2 (Top of third): 7 pitch walk

Yordan started this at bat by fouling off a low slider inside the zone. He then took two high fastballs outside the zone, one near his head and one a couple inches above his shoulders. He then took a high, outside Mize splitter that was almost a wild pitch for ball 3, before watching another offspeed pitch, this time right in the zone to make the count 3-2. He then fouled off a high fastball and then watched another offspeed pitch fall outside the zone for ball 4. Great at bat here to shrink the zone and force Mize to work before taking his base. He would end up going to third on a Correa single but wouldn’t score, as Tucker grounded out.

At bat 3 (Top of fifth): 4 pitch strikeout swinging

This at bat started the way most of the last at bat did, with a high, inside Mize fastball that Yordan took for a ball. However, that would be the only ball Yordan would get in the at bat, as Mize threw him 3 consecutive splitters low in the zone that Yordan either watched for a strike (first one) or swung and missed at (last two) for the strikeout swinging. Honestly not much he could have done there, Yordan’s swings looked good, just that Mize’s splitters that at bat were nasty.

Game two final statline: 1-2, HR, 2 RBI, R, BB, DP

At bat 1 (Top of second): 9 pitch walk

Easily the best Yordan at bat I have seen today. He quickly went down 0-2 after watching a pair of middle-middle fastballs, but then once again did what he does best, taking a bunch of high outside changeups and fastballs for balls while fouling off 2 pitches in the zone on the way to a 3-2 count. Then after yet another foul ball on a high fastball, Yordan took a low fastball near his shoes for ball 4, completing the remarkable 0-2 walk. Just a great job adjusting his strike zone and only swinging at the pitches high but in the zone to force the pitcher to work. He would later be erased on a fielder’s choice/double play by Correa (Not really sure what it was and ESPN graphic doesn’t really make it clear), but that shouldn’t take away from the masterful display of baseball fundamentals he just had.

At bat 2 (Top of fourth): 2 pitch double play to shortstop

Yordan started the at bat by taking a low, outside fastball for a ball before swinging at a low fastball in the zone and hitting a grounder up the middle. Unfortunately the shortstop (who was literally named short) was there and he threw out Yordan and Gurriel at second for the easy double play.

At bat 3 (Top of sixth): 7 pitch home run to left, 2 RBI, R

Once again, another amazing at bat by Yordan here, and this time it showed with more tangible results. He took a low changeup for ball one, and then watched three straight fastballs, 2 of which were right down the middle for strikes, for a 2-2 count. Then Fulmer went to his offspeed slider inside and low, trying to put Yordan away, but he fouled off one in the zone and watched one sail in for a ball to make the count full. Then on a full count, Fulmer had no choice but to throw inside the zone, but he chose to throw an abomination of a pitch, a fastball right down the middle that Yordan golfed into left for the game tying home run, scoring Altuve. Another great job by him here to make the pitcher work, leading to him getting a hittable pitch and capitalizing on it.

Today’s statline: 2-6, HR, 2 R, 5 RBI, K

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At bat 1 (top of second): 2 pitch groundout to shortstop

Yordan watched the first pitch of the day, a low middle fastball, for a strike, before swinging at a nearly identical pitch. He hit a pretty good grounder but as usual, the shift was there and he was thrown out easily for the out.

At bat 2 (top of third): 2 pitch fielder’s choice, RBI

Yordan again started the at bat with a strike, this time by fouling off a changeup low and a bit outside for strike one. He then once again swung at the second pitch which was identical to the first one and hit a hard grounder, this time pulling it down the line to 1st instead of second. The first baseman threw out the runner at first, Gurriel, but wasn’t able to turn two, as Yordan remained a runner. He would end up driving in Brantley on the play though. He would also later end up scoring a run on a bases loaded Toro hit by pitch.

At bat 3 (top of fourth): 6 pitch groundout to second

Yordan did a great job on the first three pitches in the at bat, with all of them being offspeed pitches out of the zone. He took a slider low and away, and two changeups low and inside in that order for a 3-0 count. Then the pitcher seemed to adjust, and started to throw Yordan fastballs in the zone. Yordan took two fastballs right in his wheelhouse both low for the 3-2 count, before chasing a bit on a pitch similar to the 3-1 one and once again pulling a ground ball to second for the out.

At bat 4 (top of fifth) 7 pitch strikeout looking

Pretty interesting approach by the pitcher here, as he served only fastballs this at bat. Yordan took the first one for a ball inside and then swung and missed at one outside but in the middle part height wise. The pitcher’s cutter seems to be way slower than his fastball (at least 3-5 MPH difference) so it worked effectively as a secondary pitch, at least in this at bat. He would take two additional fastballs way off the plate and outside for the 3-1 count, but then watched a borderline strike for the full count before fouling off another cutter right down the middle. He then would strike out looking on a pitch right down the middle and nearly identical to the one before, just something I wish he did more with considering it was a bases loaded < 2 outs situation. Frustrating since he couldn’t do much and he definitely could have done more, but as we will see later, Yordan did seem to adjust and swing more at the mistakes in the zone in later at bats.

At bat 4 (top of seventh) 8 pitch single to right

Obviously while his later at bat was easily the most statistically impressive, in my opinion this was the best at bat by Yordan today. He took a low slider for ball one, before looking and swinging, respectively, at pitches 2 and 3 to get into a 1-2 hole. He then closed off the zone, simply refusing to chase anything under 90 MPH. He hard fouled off two high pitches in the zone to stay alive, and took two more low offspeed pitches to work from 1-2 to 3-2, a remarkable feat. He then got another high pitch in the zone, this time a 90 MPH changeup, and lined it into right and this time it found grass for a single. He did well controlling the zone and forcing the pitcher to throw a bad pitch, he wouldn’t score in the inning but it was great to see.

At bat 5 (top of ninth): 5 pitch grand slam to left, 4 RBI’s, R

The first pitch in this at bat was a low fastball but in the zone for strike one. Yordan’s eyes seemed to light up when he saw the pitch, this will be important later on. The next three pitches were all low curveballs that were inside and balls, leading to the 3-1 count. Then on the 3-1 the pitcher went back to the well one too many times, throwing Yordan a cookie low and inside identical to the first pitch. Yordan capitalized and hammered it opposite field, 417 feet for the grand slam. Great approach by him to go look for a low fastball and time it up after watching it once from the pitcher.

Today’s statline: 1-3, BB, K, HR, RBI

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It was another one of those “Yordan at LF, Brantley at DH” days, and it went pretty well, I don’t think he made any plays other than a routine throw after a double to left. Great to see him consistently out there though, hopefully next year on his Topps baseball cards it says “LF” instead of the dreaded one dimensional “DH”.

At bat 1 (Top of first): 5 pitch walk

Yordan started this at bat by watching a high outside curve for ball 1, before watching a fastball miss in the exact same location for ball 2. Then he watched an inside curve for ball three, and then watched a fastball right down the middle at 3-0 for the first strike. He then took another fastball, this time outside and high, for ball 4 and took the walk. He would later score on a 2 run double by Correa.

At bat 2 (Top of second): 2 pitch flyout to right.

Yordan watched a “high and up” fastball (how the ump described it) for a ball before getting a changeup right in his wheelhouse, inside and low. He got fooled a bit and hit under the pitch to create a looping fly ball to right that Santander easily caught for out number 3.

At bat 3 (Top of fifth): 4 pitch strikeout looking

The pitcher decided to pitch Yordan extremely carefully this at bat, throwing him only offspeed knuckleballs in the at bat. Yordan looked like he was mostly just trying to time up the pitcher here, as he watched the first two for strikes (highly questionable borderline ones at that) before fouling off another one right down the middle. He then watched another knuckleball sail right into the inside heart of the plate for strike three.

At bat 4 (Top of seventh): 3 pitch home run to right, RBI

Leading off the inning, once again, Yordan was fed all knuckleballs in this at bat, and he clearly adjusted to the previous at bat. He tapped a really low one foul, before slapping a high offspeed pitch opposite field foul for strike two. The pitcher then went back to the well one too many times, as he hung another knuckleball inside to Yordan that he annihilated to right for a no doubt home run to right. Just a beautiful swing, here‘s the instant reactions, you can clearly see that both Yordan and the hitter instantly knew that the pitch was out.

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Once again in the bottom of the seventh, Yordan was defensively subbed in for Chas Mccormick. I used to question when this happened, but once again, Mccormick came up huge later in the game as he drilled a home run in the next inning. Either Dusty knows something we don’t, or Mccormick coming in off a defensive substitution is the best hitter in baseball.

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Another good day for Yordan, remember to vote him for your 2021 American League designated hitter! Ballot is here: https://www.mlb.com/all-star/ballot, Yordan looks to still be in third but I think there’s still enough time for him to pass J.D. Martinez and secure 2nd place for his first all star appearance. Thanks for reading everyone!

Today’s statline: 0-2, 2 BB, K

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At bat 1 (Top of first): 6 pitch strikeout swinging

Yordan started the at bat by watching a high fastball sail inside for a ball, and then alternated between swinging at offspeed in the zone and taking a fastball outside for a ball. Then on a 2-2 count Yordan swung and fouled off a fastball low in the zone before swinging and missing at a low curve way out of the zone for the strikeout.

At bat 2 (Top of third): 5 pitch walk

This time up, Yordan decided to take a very different approach as compared to last time. While last time Yordan watched the fastballs for balls while swinging at all the offspeeds for strikes, Yordan this time watched all the offspeeds in this at bat, all of which were balls.

At bat 3 (Top of sixth): 6 pitch groundout to first

Yordan watched the first two pitches in the at bat, both of which were fastballs outside for balls. He then watched a low curve for ball 3. I didn’t really watch the next two pitches here, was busy trying to see the NBA draft lottery odds, but based on the ESPN graphic he watched a low fastball for a strike as he often does before fouling off a fastball in a similar spot. Then on a full count he swung hard and hit a liner that was pulled right to the first baseman for an unassisted out.

At bat 4 (Top of eighth): 6 pitch walk

Yordan watched the first pitch, 98 in the dirt, for a ball before watching back to back curves. The first one was a highly questionable strike and the second one was way inside for a ball. He then watched a borderline high fastball for a ball before fouling off low offspeed in the zone for a full count. Then on the 3-2 he watched a low curve sail low and away for ball 4 that he took to load the bases.

Once again, remember to vote Yordan as the American League all star DH! Would love to see him making it in his second healthy season, and he’s definitely deserving. You can vote here: https://www.mlb.com/all-star/ballot

First off, I’d like to apologize for the lack of DDoY posts in the last few days, I felt terrible the last 2 days and couldn’t get out of bed, so hopefully you can understand the lack of posts. Anyways back to analysis.

Today’s statline: 2-4, HR, SB, 2 R, 2 RBI

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At bat 1 (Top of first): 2 pitch flyout to left

Yordan took a middle middle changeup for a strike, before getting a changeup right in the exact same spot. He got a pretty good swing off but hit a routine fly ball to left, where the left fielder made the easy catch for the out.

At bat 2 (Top of third): 2 pitch flyout to left

Basically the exact same at bat as last time, as Yordan this time watched a fastball loft in at 89 for the first strike, and then swung at a changeup in literally the exact same spot as last time to left field for another routine out. Literally two identical at bats, very odd to see.

At bat 3 (Top of fifth): 1 pitch infield single, SB, run

Yordan jumped on the first pitch he saw in this at bat, a low fastball, and pounced on it, hitting a bouncer that probably would have been a routine groundball out, but the pitcher made an awkward grab for it that sent it high into the air, leading to Yordan being able to run to first with the infield single. He would later steal second when Gurriel was in a 2-2 count, making a smart move when the pitch was a low offspeed one that he could easily swipe the bag on. He would also score on a Correa double that became a triple when the left fielder made a throwing error.

At bat 4 (Top of sixth): 2 pitch home run to center, 2 RBIs

Yordan started this at bat by watching a low offspeed changeup almost in the dirt for a ball. Dobnak then hung another changeup, but it stayed in the zone, right in Yordan’s sweetspot, as he dug it out of the zone and deposited it 425 ft for a 2 run home run that scored Brantley. Just a sweet, classic Yordan swing there, and he once again capitalized on mistake pitches by the pitcher.

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Yordan would end up getting pinch hit in the 8th inning, most likely a defensive minded move as Yordan did play LF in today’s game. Kinda interesting move to make a defensive shift with a 10+ run lead, but it paid off both ways, as Yordan’s replacement Chas McCormick hit a solo pinch hit home run and a double in the 8th and 9th, respectively, and looked much more confident in the field, despite not making any plays.

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At bat 1 (Top of first): 1 pitch popout to third

Yordan swung at the first pitch, what looked to be an inside fastball, and popped it up sky high into the air. Devers appeared to lose it for a second, and as a result Correa started sprinting, but he recovered and caught it for the easy out.

At bat 2 (Top of third): 4 pitch double to center, 2 RBI’s

Eduardo Rodriguez served Yordan all fastballs in this at bat, and Yordan capitalized on that, as he worked into a 2-1 count with Rodriguez unable to locate the low fastballs. He was then forced to go back into the zone with a horrible inside fastball that Yordan crushed into center field for a 2 run double. Just a classic at bat by Yordan here, controlling the bottom of the zone in order to force the pitcher into a sweet spot.

At bat 3 (Top of fifth): 6 pitch walk, R

While this at bat wasn’t as statistically impressive as the previous double, it was in my opinion the best at bat Yordan had today. Rodriguez seemed to adjust to the previous at bat, as with the exception of the first pitch, all of the pitches Yordan got in this at bat were offspeed, a mix of changeups and sliders. Yordan worked into a 2-1 count by watching some inside offspeed pitches that were low and inside, and then made a terrible swing on an outside curve. He seemed to adjust though, and took the next two offspeed pitches, both outisde and low, for the crucial walk that led to Rodriguez being chased out of the game. He would later score in the inning on what appeared to be a triple by Kyle Tucker.

At bat 4 (Top of seventh): 5 pitch single to left

The reliever decided to pitch Yordan inside again, but most of his pitches missed, leading to a 3-1 count. He then hung a high outside fastball, that Yordan lazily swung at and lofted to left field. However, because of the green moster, it bounced off the wall. It probably could have been a double, but Verdugo made one hell of a throw to hold Yordan to a single. He would later be erased on a Gurriel double play.

Today’s statline:

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Important to first note that Brantley played DH today, with Yordan at LF. He did look a bit awkward out there in the field, but he regardless made some nice routine catches, in particular a flyout on a sac fly in the first inning. Good to see, something I want to continue.

At bat 1 (Top of first): 4 pitch single to right

Yordan took the first two pitches both for strikes, first watching a curve right down the middle and then swinging through a high fastball for a 0-2 count. He then watched an extremely low offspeed pitch for a ball, before swinging hard at another similar pitch in the zone and rocking it down the right field line for a single. It also could have been a RBI but Bregman was thrown out stealing to end the inning.

At bat 2 (Top of third): 2 pitch double to right

Yordan took a fastball low and inside, before taking the second pitch and dumping it above the head of the first baseman down the right field line for a double, scoring Correa, He would score on the next at bat, as Gurriel scored him on a ground rule double.

At bat 3 (Top of fourth): 4 pitch walk

Once again, Eovaldi tried to work Yordan inside, mostly with fastballs. Pitches 1 and 2 were both low and inside, the first one a fastball and the next one a curve. He then watched two more low outside fastballs for balls 3 and 4, drawing a walk that loaded the bases. He wouldn’t score, however, as Gurriel would ground into a fielder’s choice to end the inning.

At bat 4 (Top of sixth): 4 pitch groundout to shortstop

All of Yordan’s 4 pitches he got in this at bat were all fastballs, the first 3 of which were low and outside. The first one was a fastball outside for a ball, but the next two were in the zone and were strikes, the second of which was a foul. He then hit a bouncer up the middle, but right to the shifted shortstop who made the routine play.

At bat 5 (Top of eighth): 5 pitch groundout to first

The pitcher obviously once again tried to get Yordan to hit the outisde high pitch, as he worked into a 2-1 count with a couple outside offspeed pitches. However it looked like the pitcher adjusted and started throwing low offspeed, and it seemed to work, as Yordan watched a low changeup for a 2-2 strike and then swung and hit a grounder to first for the unassisted out.