Yankees: Clint Frazier did not deserve to be sent down to Triple-A!

Last Sunday the Yankees made the surprising decision to send OF Clint Frazier to Triple-A Scranton to open up a spot on the roster for Edwin Encarnacion. Did he deserve the demotion? 

Most demotions to the minor leagues occur because a player is not performing well. Rather than sit on the bench and waste a valuable roster spot, poor performers are shipped to the minors so they can get more time to work on their hitting and fielding than they would have if they remained in the big leagues. They can receive more focused attention by coaches and try to improve their game in a generally less stressful environment. So, how was Frazier doing at the plate before the Yankees sent him down? Was he one of those players?

In 191 at-bats, he had 11 home runs and 34 RBIs, and his batting average was .283. The 24-year-old had an OBP of .330, a SLG% of .513, and an OPS of .843. These are solid offensive numbers if you ask me.

But maybe he had been doing better before and these numbers actually represent a decline in his performance at the plate? The data reveal the reverse is true. Since entering professional baseball, Frazier’s batting average has increased by 20 points or more every year, his OPS has increased every year, and his SLG% prior to his demotion was the highest it had ever been.

Clearly, his offense wasn’t the reason he was sent down so what was?

Many pundits have pointed to his poor play in right field and how it must improve if he is ever going to be an all-around, everyday player rather than simply someone who fills the designated hitter (DH) role. Certainly, there were a couple of games when he looked awful in the field (especially one game against the Boston Red Sox). However, he only made three errors in 2019, and he’s had only nine errors in the outfield during his entire major league career spanning 87 games and 686 innings.

Frazier is still quite young and inexperienced, and one would expect him to have a couple of off days playing in the outfield every now and then. Yet, he is an excellent athlete so there is a reason to believe that he could work on his fielding as the season progressed and improve his skills and mechanics while in the major leagues without jeopardizing the success of the Yanks.

That being said Frazier isn’t a better outfielder than either Cameron Maybin or Brett Gardner. Both of them are still on the roster because of that and because of the fact that they’re better suited to contribute off the bench rather than play every day. Despite his great bat, there’s really no use for him on the bench because with the Yankees offense they really don’t need any pinch hitters off the bench. What they need is someone who can be a late-game defensive replacement in the outfield and that’s definitely not Frazier.

So why did the Yankees really choose to send him down?

They actually had no choice. Frazier was sent down in order to make room on the restricted active roster for the recently acquired Edwin Encarnacion. Brian Cashman and Aaron Boone knew that they could always recall Frazier from the minor leagues if and when the need arose. This option does not exist with Gardner or Cameron Maybin because the only way to remove one of them from the roster would be by designating them for assignment.

As we assess Frazier’s personality and character, let’s remember that he suffered an extremely serious concussion over one year ago and missed most of the 2018 season as a result. Yet, he tenaciously fought back from the severe side effects, including excruciating headaches and blurred vision. He worked hard, made it back to the Yanks, and was playing at a high level before he was sent down to Triple-A.

I personally like to hear that ballplayers, particularly young ones, are surprised by their demotion and are not happy about it. It shows that they deeply care about how well they are playing. Such an attitude suggests that they are likely to work even harder and want to return to the major leagues as soon as possible. Such persistence and fight turn already good ball players into great ball players.

Did Frazier deserve to be demoted? Absolutely not. He, like Gary Sanchez, could have worked out his fielding problems while in the majors. The DH rule in the American League makes it all that much easier to do.

This is a club with a wealth of riches, and Cashman and Boone had no room to keep him on the active roster. Thus, they decided to send him down to Triple-A Scranton so that they can recall him in the future when they need him.

Unless the Yanks are able to trade for a front-line starting pitcher like Max Scherzer (broken nose and all) or someone of similar caliber in return for Frazier, the club should continue to help him improve his fielding and not trade him. Trading him would undermine the team’s long-term future and would be a huge mistake in my view since he will be earning a relatively low salary for quite some time.

Clint Frazier is a very talented and extremely hard working athlete. He has a lot of potential, and he very much wants to be a great ball player for the Bronx Bombers. The sky is the limit for him.