Hammerin' Cameron
John Sterling has coined many great home run calls over the years: spanning "Bern, Baby, Bern" (for Williams) to "It's Gleyber Day" (Torres). And his latest ranks among the greatest -- and most surprising. "Hammerin' Cameron" has become the handle for the Yankees fill-in outfielder.
Cameron Maybin has played for eight teams in 13 seasons... flashing traces of the "five tool" talent that long intrigued scouts and executives. But except for a 94-game stint with the 2016 Tigers, when he hit .315, he'd never lived up to expectations over an extended run.
While 39 games is not "an extended run" either, the well-traveled outfielder has opened eyes since joining the Yankees. He's delivered plenty of clutch hits, made sparkling plays in the outfield, and caught the eye of teammates as well as the play-by-play voice in the radio booth -- especially, the last four games.
On a misty Tuesday night in the Bronx, Maybin again sparkled like a ray of sunshine, as homered for the fourth consecutive game. That was his third hit of the night, raising his average to .315.
With Giancarlo Stanton back and Aaron Judge just days away from returning, Maybin isn't just in danger of losing his place in the starting lineup, but his spot on the roster. Aaron Hicks is back in center field. Edwin Encarnacion's arrival as the DH further tightens this game of musical chairs. Longtime Yankee Brett Gardner is the fourth outfielder. In an era of 13-man pitching staffs, you generally don't see teams carry five outfielders. So Brian Cashman has a difficult session of number-crunching.
Does Maybin's 39 game trial convince the GM to shape his roster differently? Has Maybin's stock risen to the point where he might be bring back some real value in a trade? Or, like Gio Urshela, still a veteran backup, will Maybin revert to 12 previous years of form?
We'll know more this weekend when Judge returns sometime during the Astros series.
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