New York Yankees Editorial: Carlos Beltran swinging a hot bat, Yankees hope it continues

By Caleb Gebrewold | Jun 1, 2015

Following the 2013 season, Robinson Cano left the New York Yankees for the Seattle Mariners, signing a contract worth $240-million across ten years. To help offset the loss of Cano, the Yankees responded by adding Jacoby Ellsbury and Carlos Beltran (Brian McCann was going to sign even if Cano stayed).

While Ellsbury struggled at the plate at times in 2014, he was still able to provide solid value due to his baserunning and defense. Much of his struggles also seemed correlated with hitting third in the lineup. Back in his usual leadoff spot in 2015, Ellsbury was off to a tremendous start before hitting the disabled list.

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Beltran, however, struggled mightily in his first season in pinstripes, largely due to a bone spur in his right elbow. For the first time in his career, Beltran played below replacement level, and his contract was considered as having the potential to be a major disappointment.

After a poor April which saw him hit .162 with no home runs and only seven RBI’s, some Yankees fans were calling for Beltran to be DFA’d to pave the way for Aaron Judge. In May, however, Beltran has looked like the player the Yankees signed to a $45-million contract.

Beltran hit .298 in May, bringing his average up to .241. He also added four home runs and 14 RBI’s, while posting an OPS of .816, far better than he did in April where his OPS was only .481. Beltran also has cut back on his strikeouts, punching out only 11 times in May, compared to 21 in April.

Beltran, who has been around the game of baseball for a very long time, was never worried by his slow start:

"Everything is magnified when you start the season slow. At the end of the day, it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish. I’m healthy, I feel good. I still get nervous every at-bat, it’s great to produce."

As the offense attempts to cope with the loss of Ellsbury, having Beltran’s turnaround continue would help the offense enormously, something Joe Girardi admitted:

"He’s had a great month of May. We just need it to carry over. There was frustration [in April], but he is at full strength now and you are seeing Carlos."

As the calendar turns to summer, the Yankees have to hope that Beltran will remain hot, and help keep the team in the playoff race.

Next: New York Yankees Editorial: Chase Headley's Defense Failing Yankees

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