Yankees: Q&A with Bryan Hoch, Yankees Beat Writer for MLB.com

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NEW YORK, NEW YORK – OCTOBER 09: Dellin Betances #68 of the New York Yankees throws a pitch against the Boston Red Sox during the seventh inning in Game Four of the American League Division Series at Yankee Stadium on October 09, 2018 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images) /

Marcus:
What are the Yankees’ greatest weaknesses? Where do they need the most improvement?

Bryan:
Well, first off, in the health department- It’s hard to find weaknesses on this team considering they’re in first place and they’ve been one of the hottest teams in the league. Now they’re getting their pieces back. You’ve got Hicks back. Judge is making forward progress. Stanton stalled here a little bit, and Didi is going to be back soon. I think that would have been the easier question to answer about a month ago.

I guess the bullpen can always be a little better. You’re going to get Dellin Betances back at some point in June. He could improve that. But, really, it’s hard to find a whole lot of weaknesses with this team. Like I said, I’m watching them take batting practice on the field here in Baltimore. If they don’t sweep this four-game series, I feel like that’s almost a disappointment. This team is firing on all cylinders. They’re playing against some weaker competition, and they’re taking advantage of it.

Marcus:
At the beginning of the season, we were all thinking that if they had a weakness it would be the starting pitching. The starting pitching has been excellent, and the one chink in the armor has been J.A. Happ versus Baltimore. He really has struggled against them, but in all other games he has a 3.34 ERA. Do you think this is going to be an issue going forward?

Bryan:
That’s the one thing that has surprised me most about this year is J.A. Happ’s struggle, because he was so dominant down the stretch for them. Gave them exactly what they wanted after he came over in a deadline deal with the Blue Jays. I think he was 7-0 down stretch.

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The playoff start against Boston didn’t go well, but other than that, he was terrific. I don’t think there were many people arguing against that signing except for his aides. He’s lost a little something on his fastball and he is a little more hittable. He has been forced him to go to his secondary pitches, but I find it hard to believe that he just fell off a cliff overnight. I think that’s changing.

But just like CC Sabathia can reinvent himself at a later stage, I think J.A. Happ can do that, too. He’s a veteran. He fit in this clubhouse almost immediately. So, I guess, to answer your previous question, that would be the one area where they could certainly upgrade, is if they can get back last year’s J.A. Happ, that will make a huge difference in the rotation.

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