Author: Nick Ashbourne

In all likelihood, we’ve only seen the best Gary Sanchez has to offer. Sure, he’s young enough to improve aspects of his game, but it seems improbable that he’ll slug over .650 next season and look like the most dominant offensive weapon in the sport. It could happen, but it won’t. Instead, Sanchez will show […]

In the world of writing in general, and baseball writing in particular, platitudes get a bad rap. The expectation is that someone who is paid to create words, whether those words are projected on paper, on the web or elsewhere, is creative enough to form thoughts in a way that is more adventurous. It’s a […]

Part of what makes baseball so interesting is that the sport allows for completely inexplicable things to happen all the time. Hockey, football and basketball are played in more restrictive and uniform spaces. You’re less likely to see a hockey player do something you’ve ever seen before because there are only so many ways to […]

In most of the ways a pitcher can be great, Dellin Betances was in 2016. Despite having put together absolutely ridiculous seasons in 2014 and 2015 he set personal bests in K%, K-BB%, ground ball percentage, infield fly percentage and fastball velocity. In most cases, that makes for a career season, but that’s not how […]

Billy Butler is a guy you’ve heard of. He’s recognizable for a being six feet tall and weighing 260 pounds. He has a rather awesome nickname, “Country Breakfast,” which reflects his shape. All of this has made him into what you might call a “name.” When the New York Yankees acquired Butler, some ears certainly perked […]

Is it better to be loved or feared? This is a question that has been asked consistently by mankind’s greatest leaders. It’s an exceedingly difficult dilemma. One that has never been adequately resolved, although the “rule by fear” camp has a pretty poor record on a few things; human rights for instance. Baseball players do […]

We are at a moment when the New York Yankees franchise is overflowing with reasons to be optimistic about the future. The team currently possesses probably the best farm system in baseball, a mountain of mega contracts are about to come off the books and they employ a man by the name of Gary Sanchez […]

The first thing you notice about Aaron Judge is that he’s massive. Unfortunately, there’s no two ways around it. You might feel more polite noticing something else about him, perhaps something more reflective of his character, but a 6-foot-7 275-pound human being has a physical presence that just draws the eyes. From an evolutionary point […]

At this very moment Didi Gregorius is in the midst of a textbook breakout. It’s worth questioning what kind of educational literature would contain the definition of a breakout for a baseball player, but presuming that it exists, Gregorius is certainly conforming to its demands. The 26-year-old is an above-average offensive contributor for the first time […]

Since December 2 1992, Gary Sanchez has been, absolutely, 100 percent, a real person. There is documentation to support this claim and very few would rise to argue the counter point. However, for New York Yankees fans he’s just now making the transition from abstract concept to concrete object. Most fans don’t watch a great […]