Yankees: Neil Walker proving his worth with clutch play

Neil Walker had a rough first half of the season, but since the All-Star break he’s really played well and continues to produce clutch hits for the Yankees. He’s been one of their unsung heroes over the last month and has proved his worth following the very slow start to his season.

As much as Walker struggled in the first half with a .197 AVG, 3 HR, and only 19 RBI the Yankees never considered cutting him at a time where many fans were hoping they would. Walker got off to the slow start in large part due to signing with the team very late into spring training, so it took him longer than most to find his rhythm at the plate.

Walker has been a very productive player for almost a decade now and it was only a matter of time before he got hot which is exactly what he’s done in the second half.

Walker post-All-Star break: .277, .485 SLG, 6 HR, 19 RBI

A lot of Walker’s success likely has to do with him getting more consistent at-bats, something he wasn’t getting a lot of in the first half. Once Greg Bird returned to the lineup from injury in late May Walker was reduced to a bench role for the first time in his career and was only starting once or twice a week. With rookie Gleyber Torres playing like an All-Star at second base (Walker’s usual position) there was no place for him to get a lot of reps and he struggled to adjust to his new role off the bench.

Now in the second half, the injuries have piled up for the Yankees and it’s led to more playing time and more at-bats for Walker. He’s played all over the field in August and has shown more versatility than he’s ever had to in his career.

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The biggest surprise has been seeing him play right field in the absence of Aaron Judge. Walker had never played outfield prior to this season, but the Yankees need his bat in the lineup without Judge. He’s actually looked ok out there.

He’s also spent less time at first base where he played predominantly during the first half and more time at second with both Gleyber Torres and Didi Gregorius missing time.

Most of Walker’s at-bats this season have come left-handed where he’s posted close to a .800 OPS throughout his career. It’s been a struggle all season from the right side but he’s really hit his stride batting lefty.

Walker has already doubled his home run total for the season in August with five of his six bombs this month coming left-handed. His last two have been extremely clutch. In Friday night’s extra-inning win over the Orioles Walker delivered a go-ahead solo shot and Tuesday night he hit his second career walk-off home run with a pinch-hit blast into the right-center field bleachers.

Walker didn’t waste any time swinging at the first pitch he saw to finish off a huge comeback victory for the Yankees in a game they couldn’t afford to lose.

As much as Walker really struggled during the first half of the season, even then he was finding a way to work big walks and pick up clutch hits to lead to some great comeback wins. Now he’s doing that on a consistent basis and he’s showing fans exactly why the Yankees were smart to hold onto him when they could have DFA’d him earlier in the season.

As he continues to step up and produce the Yankees have to keep playing him with Judge and Didi out and once they get back it wouldn’t surprise me if he takes the majority of Bird’s at-bats at first base. At this point in the season it’s a matter of what have you done for me lately, and right now Walker is outplaying Bird and deserves to start these important games down the stretch.

He’s been a team player and a veteran presence all season long and when he’s in the lineup he gives the team the best chance to win. The moment never seems too big for him and when the game is on the line Walker is a guy I want at the plate. That’s the type of player you want in your lineup come October.