The man is scary without a hat

Top 2: Brett Gardner called out on strikes against Jake Arrieta

Top 4: Gardner called out on strikes against Arrieta

Top 7: Gardner flew out to left against Koji Uehara

Top 9: Gardner struck out swinging against Kevin Gregg

Top 11: Gardner struck out swinging against Jason Berken

Final Line: 0-5, 4 strikeouts, 3 LOB

NOTES: Gardner’s golden sombrero on Sunday was another red flag in what has a been a disconcerting start to the season for the Yankees’ left fielder.  The 0-5 performance dropped his slash line to .140/.197/.263 for the season.

Total 2011 Sombreros: 13

For as many hot starts as there have been across Major League Baseball, there have also been an alarming number of terrible starts.  Considering that we are now two and a half weeks into the season, it may be time to borderline-panic with some players, or if you are big league or fantasy manager, at least begin to consider an alternative.  For some players that may mean a trip to the minor leagues, while for others it may mean more days off and a possible platoon scenario.

One thing I’ve noticed thus far: several players known for their wheels simply aren’t hitting, and more significantly, aren’t getting on base.  So, I thought I’d poll our readers to find out which speedster’s slow start has been the most concerning: Brett Gardner, Chone Figgins, Austin Jackson, or Carl Crawford.

[poll id=”6″]

Last evening on The Baseball Show, co-host Clint Evans from Diamond Hoggers and I welcomed Derwood Morris from Off Base Percentage & The Bobby Classifieds onto the show for the first time. This came along with a return visit from our good friend MTD, also over at Off-Base Percentage.

We talked Jose Canseco, Manny Ramirez, Yankees, Reds, Dusty Baker, Vernon Wells, Phil Hughes, Jason Heyward, Atlanta Braves, Buster Posey, Off-Base Percentage, Bobby Classifieds, Fantasy Baseball, Joe Mauer heading to the DL, and much more!

If you had some laughs with us, give Derwood or MTD a follow on Twitter. Thanks to the crew from Off-Base Percentage for coming on the show!

Recently we received a comment from a reader regarding our predictions, and I think the topic he brought up is probably worth its own piece.  The reader felt like I unfairly predicted that the Yankees would finish the year third in the AL East behind Boston and Tampa, who I predicted would both finish 2011 in the playoffs.  Before I continue, I would like to mention that I think the AL East will be a very tight division, particularly in the battle for second place.  The Yankees are one of the best offensive teams in baseball, and they certainly deserve a great deal of respect for that, but everything else they do is far from representative of a playoff-caliber team.

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#7 Jesus Montero – New York Yankees

C

DOB: 11-28-89

ETA: 2011

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