The last month of baseball has been rough on my boys. The injury bug has plagued us, with 15 on the IL but in the absence of players, it has given a moment for some we wouldn't normally see to shine. One of these humans being Gio Urshela. With Andujar going down for a labrum tear (sliding back to 3rd base) we brought up this boy, Gio. Who is this child? Where did he come from? Well, humans, we got him from Toronto, on August 4th of 2018 the OG Brian Cashman made an exchange for cash considerations.
We beat on our team a lot from Hal Steinbrenner to the triple-A boys we call up and all in between. The one I believe that gets beaten up the most (other than Boone and Rothschild) is Cashman. Let's not forget the man grabbed Big Maple for nothing and Cash has to deal with stingy Hal! We all give Cashman the hardest time but this man has been building our Triple-A team for this very moment. I'm not saying he knew this dreadful day of a 15 IL list was coming but instead of going after the big names everyone wanted this year he focused on homegrown behind the scene.
Now back to Urshela and Andujar. During off season I was singing a massively different tune about Andujar (he's still my rookie of the year), but now seeing Urshela I’m saddened (not really) to say “Andujar stay on the IL as long as you need!” HOLD ON, WAIT! Hear me out. Not once last year watching Andujar was I ever flabbergasted by his performance in the infield. NOT ONCE. It’s only been one month into the season and Gio has probably only played 20 games, I think in this time my mouth has dropped 10 times with plays he's made at 3rd base! If you need an example I suggest you think back to the game where he caught the ball by 3rd base slipped on the grass and had to throw behind him to 1st base, which by the way he did effortlessly, or so it looked because the ball went right into Voit's glove without bouncing off the ground. This play got him the 1st spot on Sportscenter top 10. This kid defensively has blown Andujar out of the park!
Now when it comes to Gio and Andujar's bat there is no doubt I want Miggy at the plate, But Gio has started to prove himself in this area as well. Just like any other rookie, he had to get comfortable behind the plate and in his recent games, he has done just that. No, he's not a "home run" hitter but if you all know me I don't care about that. SMALL BALL. I preach this left and right and Gio apparently has heard me (though he doesn't speak the best English). Gio is a clutch hitter the guy that will give you an RBI double in a pinch and that's what I love about him.
Look I'm not preaching to get rid of Miggy, I love Miggy. What I'm saying is you can't ignore the impact Gio has had in this last month on the team. What our team decides to do with these boys I will stand behind because I don't have a choice but to. I’m just saying it better be a really tough choice for them because I want Gio at 3rd base.