“Dude, IKF isn’t THAT bad.”
“I love Jameson Taillon” (#TaillonLover John).
Have you ever just had that gut feeling that a player was going to perform when everyone else was doubting them? Have you ever just had that urge to yell out, “THAT’S MY BOY!”?
Yea, me too.
It’s your boy, Barnes, here to give you three “My Guys” for the Yankees in 2023.
Before I get into the list of “My Guys,” I wanted to share this quick story and why I felt the need to publish this now. Long, long ago…well it was just about 18 years ago now, but that’s besides the point. Robinson Cano was in his rookie season with the Yankees. I was set on this guy being My Guy all season long, and essentially for the rest of his career. It was May 24th, 2005, and the Detroit Tigers were in town to play the Yankees. It was the bottom of the 8th inning, the Yankees were up 11-3, just cruising through the game. Doug Creek came in to pitch to Cano, a lefty on lefty matchup. Creek throws a waist high fastball down Broadway and Cano cranks it into the upper deck in right field.
ME (an excited 14 year old): “THAT’S MY BOY!”
DAD: “No son, that’s my boy.”
ME (a frustrated 14 year old): “What the hell, you don’t even know who that guy is!”
DAD, a true jimmy rustler: “Yea, I’ll learn his name eventually, but he’s my boy.”
Time went on, and my dad always liked to poke fun that anytime I was jacked up about a player, he of course knew about them before me, which made that player was his boy. In his rookie season, Robinson Cano went on to hit .297 with 14 HRs and 62 RBIs. He finished 2nd in the AL Rookie of the Year voting that season, and the rest is history.
All of that being said, Dad, if you somehow come across this, THESE ARE MY GUYS, NOT YOURS. But I’ll share them with you and everyone else. I avoided the layup choices like AL MVP Aaron Judge and Cy Young candidates Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodon. So, here we go. Here are “My Guys” for the 2023 season.
Luis Severino
When the Yankees signed Carlos Rodon, a lot of people identified the Yankees as a team that could very well have the best starting rotation in the league. Cole and Rodon are undoubtedly one of the best 1-2 punches for starting rotations league-wide. Throw in Cortes, and yes, it’s still one of the best 1-2-3s.
Now, here comes Luis Severino, who in the 4th spot in the rotation is going to be huge for the Yankees in 2023. I’ve been a Severino fan ever since he showed up in the second half of the 2015 season, and he’s been a “My Guy” ever since. I’m here to tell you to keep believing in him, and I’ll be tooting my horn all year because I think Sevy racks up 15 wins this season.
Severino needs to stay healthy this year, which I’m betting will happen. If that schlub Jameson Taillon could rack up 14 wins in 2022, Severino, who has better stuff, definitely can get one more. In 2022, Sevy had 9.9 K/9 which is close to what he posted in 2017 and 2018 (10.7 and 10.3). With 15 wins coming from the 4th spot in the rotation, the Yankees will definitely have one of the strongest rotations in the league. 15 wins in 25+ starts, an ERA under 3.25, and over 150Ks are coming in 2023!
Ron Marinaccio
THE DON. Ron the Don is going to be a “My Guy” this year. Ron showed a lot of potential in his 40 games in 2022. The Don is a guy who I hope can develop to become a strong and dependable arm that the Yankees will need. Emmanuel Clase was the best closer in baseball last year. I don’t think Marinaccio is in the same conversation as Clase…yet. Clase averaged 9.54 K/9 and Ron averaged 11.45 K/9. I know those numbers aren’t everything, but he did have a lower opposing batting average than Clase.
We are going to see an increased workload from Ron in 2023. The Yankee bullpen is always considered to be really strong, and they will need Ron to help keep it strong. The bullpen is a mish mash of a lot of guys that “could be really good,” but no one has really separated himself to become the guy. I think Ron comes out strong in 2023, and eventually becomes a staple in the 7th or 8th inning. I think this time next year, I’m writing about the new set-up man. The Don is “My Guy” for sure this year.
Oswald Peraza
Ok, ok. I know what you’re thinking right about now. How is Barnes going to tell us that Peraza is “his guy”? Volpe will be starting there. If there is any struggle, IKF is going to be there. Oswaldo can play literally anywhere in the field. Oswald Peraza is quietly the best shortstop on the Yankee roster right now. Defensively, he is the most sure handed of all the names mentioned above.
In AAA in 2022, Peraza had 33 stolen bases in 99 games. Every three games, he had a stolen base. Stolen bases aren’t really in the Yankee repertoire right now. I think with some of the rule changes, like bigger bases and the addition of the pitch clock, we could see an uptick in stolen bases league-wide, with Peraza being the guy to do it for the Yanks.
Yes, his batting could use some work. I’m going to use his AAA batting average at .259 because he had over 350 at bats there. You’re probably looking at that like, we don’t need that in the line up. But he also had 16 doubles in those 350 at bats, while IKF had 20 doubles in 483 at bats. I like the upside I’m seeing here with Peraza. An upgrade defensively with about the same batting average as IKF (.261 in 2022), who also had some extra base hit upside. This is why Oswald Peraza is a “My Guy” in 2023.
All of these things being said, there are plenty of other guys who are going to be contributors for the Stripes day in and day out. Harrison Bader and DJ LeMahieu are going to be a huge part of the Yankees’ success, in addition to the big names like Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, Gerrit Cole, and Carlos Rodon.
BUT, here and now, I’m planting my flag for 2023. You’ll hear me bragging about how back in February, I was pounding the drum for Luis Severino, Ron Marinaccio, and Oswald Peraza; and I expect all of you to say, “ya boy, Barnes, called it!”
Go Yankees, peace out!