The biggest concern when the Yankees acquired Ryan McMahon from the Rockies prior to the trade deadline was whether his bat — inconsistent even with the benefit of playing half of his games in Colorado — would provide enough at third base.
After a solid start with the Yankees, those concerns have proven to be warranted.
Though the lefty-swinging McMahon went 8-for-20 with a pair of doubles in his first six games as a Yankee, the past few weeks have been significantly worse.
And while he made several fine defensive plays at third base in Sunday’s 7-2 win over the Red Sox, he also hitless in his last 14 at-bats with nine strikeouts.
Entering Sunday’s series finale against Boston in The Bronx, he was stuck in an 8-for-53 rut, with 19 strikeouts over that period.
There was hope McMahon would be able to take advantage of Yankee Stadium’s short porch in right field.
While he’s pulling the ball more than ever, he failed to go deep in his first 52 plate appearances there.
At least McMahon’s defense at third base has been elite, as expected.
Nonetheless, an American League scout, who praised the McMahon trade when it was made and believed he would be rejuvenated by his new surroundings, has been disappointed.
“That first week was what I expected,’’ the scout said of his brief solid performance at the plate. “But I thought he would be able to be more consistent in such a potent lineup.”
McMahon made no excuses when asked about his failure to produce entering Sunday’s game.
“I’m just struggling and not feeling great at the plate,’’ McMahon said. “I’m just gonna try and go compete. I don’t really care what I do, as long as we win games.”
There wasn’t much of that in Colorado, and he was looking forward to the intensity that comes with playing in The Bronx.
“That part has been awesome,’’ McMahon said. “Feeling the energy every day in the stadium, you need that in the later months. They want to win bad here, and that’s definitely enjoyable.”
He’d just like to be a part of it.
“I’ve played the game a long time and had struggles worse than this,” McMahon said. “I know this game can be [tough] sometimes, so you’ve got to roll with it and grind through it. That’s what I’m doing now and why I’ve got blisters on my hands. I’m gonna get this thing turned around.”
Hitting coach James Rowson is trying to get him there, although the work he’s done with McMahon so far has not been overly complicated.
“When you get a guy midseason, you never want to go all-out with a reconstruction of his swing,’’ Rowson said of McMahon, who is under contract through 2027 at $16 million each of the next two years. “You take his strengths — and his strengths are good. You try to keep things easy to get him more comfortable.”
Rowson said he’s been impressed with McMahon’s attitude, as well as certain aspects of his offensive game.
“I love his athleticism and the way the ball comes off his bat,’’ Rowson said. “He puts a charge into a ball.”
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
