Yankees second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. has had a disappointing season by his own admission.
After boldly proclaiming in spring training he thought he could become the second member of the 50-50 club, Chisholm is batting. 216 with 17 homers and 32 stolen bases. He’s also got 48 RBI and a .683 OPS.
Yet despite his struggles, Yankees legend David Cone believes manager Aaron Boone should continue to play Chisholm down the stretch against right-handed pitching because of what he could potentially do at the plate to help the team’s slumbering offense.
“Facing righties, you gotta give Jazz a chance to get going here down the stretch,” Cone said on the YES Network during the Yankees’ 4-3 win over the Toronto Blue Jays on Sunday. “He’s that kind of player if he gets hot.”
Boone opted to mix up the lineup on Sunday against the right-handed Dylan Cease, a Cy Young candidate along with the Yankees’ Cam Schlittler. In an effort to get some more offense, he started the right-handed hitting Jose Caballero (.242, 12 homers, 42 RBI) at second base over the left-handed hitting Chisholm.
Since the Yankees made George Lombard Jr. the starting shortstop on Aug. 4, Caballero’s playing time has been drastically diminished as a result. Before Sunday, he hadn’t played since last Thursday. And before that he hadn’t played in five days since Aug. 8.
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In the seventh inning, Caballero rewarded Boone’s decision by hitting a single that scored Lombard Jr. to make it 2-1 before Caballero was thrown out at second base. Caballero also had a strikeout and a walk in the game, and eventually shifted to third base after Paul Goldschmidt pinch hit for Ryan McMahon in the seventh.
In the ninth, Chisholm did have a single and a stolen base after pinch running for Goldschmidt in the seventh.
Cone and Michael Kay discussed the situation in the booth during Sunday’s game, with Kay wondering whether Caballero’s key hit would “warrant another start” on Tuesday against the Baltimore Orioles.
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“The Orioles will be starting a right-hander on Tuesday so in all likelihood it would be Jazz [starting at second base],” Kay said.
“You got two options with Caballero,” Cone said. “He can play third, too, when he’s spelling McMahon against a tough lefty.”
At that point, Cone endorsed Chisholm against righties, saying he could be a key player “if he gets hot.”
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