Yankees: Thairo Estrada is Absolutely Crushing it at Summer Camp
![Thairo Estrada #90 of the New York Yankees in action (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_752,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape/cover/sport/https-3A-2F-2Fyanksgoyard-com-2Fwp-content-2Fuploads-2Fgetty-images-2F2016-2F04-2F1168470378-850x560-e945f19f46207238d93180af530bb601.jpg)
New York Yankees utility infielder Thairo Estrada is owning Summer Camp, FYI.
Hey, is it just me, or is Thairo Estrada kind of en fuego? Yankees, you watching this whole Summer Camp (Presented by Camping World) thing?
Estrada has had a wildly interesting career, which was very nearly derailed prior to his 2019 spark plug debut, and thus far during camp, he and Miguel Andujar appear to be the only Yankees hitters who have gotten up to speed as quickly as the pitching staff.
Estrada already has two homers in three intra-squad games, and his absolute moonshot that rocketed off the empty Yankee Stadium left field seats on Thursday really set the tone for the evening (and probably bothered Tyler Lyons to no end).
Thairo Estrada goes deep! pic.twitter.com/3xebZZhGS2
— YES Network (@YESNetwork) July 10, 2020
The kid’s simply not supposed to hit ’em that far! What gives?!
During his hot streak, it’s probably in Estrada’s best interest that we remember how he got here.
In January 2018, Estrada’s promising career was nearly ended — he was shot in the hip at age 21 in Venezuela, and though he survived with limited long-term damage, he didn’t get the bullet removed for six full months. Apparently, the initial operation may have damaged his thigh a bit, and Estrada decided to finally remove the offending bullet during another DL stint, figuring that he’d hurt his back by favoring his other leg.
Estrada recovered in full by 2019 to be one of the many replacement Yankees to steal fans’ hearts. He hit .250 with three bombs in 64 at-bats in ’19, and opened the campaign with a remarkable hot streak that may or may not be relevant to 2020.
Last year in the Yankees' first 60 games, Thairo Estrada had 2nd highest slugging pct (.565 in 50 PA) among all Yankees https://t.co/KQAoFbYgld
— Katie Sharp (@ktsharp) July 7, 2020
Many have considered the utility spot Tyler Wade’s to lose, considering he’s more of a base-stealing threat with more positional versatility than Estrada. But perhaps the roster spot we’ve all gifted to spring standout Rosell Herrera should go to Estrada, who’s actually performing, instead?
Next. 7 Prospects New York Can Afford to Trade in Blockbuster Deals. dark
We weren’t expecting to have our minds changed by Summer Camp, but then we remembered what it feels like to be living in the Summer of Thairo.