Sonny Skies Turning Gray
Things have not gone well since Sonny Gray became a Yankee. Acquired in a deadline deal a year ago, he's had an up-and-town time in pinstripes -- clearly a lot more "down" of late. Facing an Orioles club that looked a lot more like Triple A than AL East on Wednesday, he was shelled -- giving up seven runs in 2-2/3 innings.
Gray had already established that he had trouble working against contending teams. But struggling against a Baltimore club stripped of its best players save for Adam Jones just won't fly for Yankee fans. After the game, Aaron Boone wouldn't commit to Gray making his next start -- especially after Lance Lynn's impressive relief stint.
Over the years, some pitchers -- most famously Ed Whitson, Jeff Weaver and Carl Pavano and Javy Vazquez -- learned that despite success elsewhere, they're just not cut out to do well in the Bronx. And Sonny Gray appears to be the latest in that line of "imports" to meet the same fate. In 32 starts as a Yankee, he sports a 12-15 record with an ERA just below 5 and a WHIP (base runners allowed) of 1.420 and an even uglier 1.524 this season.
Numbers don't lie -- and at this point, the cold cruel reality isn't looking good for Sonny Gray.
It will be interesting to see the next move Boone and GM Brian Cashman make to stabilize the Yankees rotation.
(This image is from the July 26th Yankees/Royals game.)
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