Harrison Bader gets nod to bat leadoff in Game 2, Aaron Judge not selected as Gold Glove finalist – The Denver Post

MOVING UP

Harrison Bader has pushed his way into the top of the Yankees’ lineup. With four home runs in six playoff games, the “defensive” center fielder has made his bat a big part of the Yankees offense and Thursday night, for Game 2, the Bronxville native was leading off against the Astros.

“Lefty going obviously Framber…and yeah, just get another righty,” Aaron Boone said. “And obviously he’s playing really well and just gets us a little deeper in the middle of the order.”

It’s the 22nd time in his career that Bader has hit leadoff. A career .250 hitter with a .650 OPS, Bader has been  able to “control his swing mechanics,” according to Yankees hitting coach Dillon Lawson.

“I think he’s always had that exit velo, at least the top end exit velo it’s been there,” Lawson said. “This year especially, it had been down. The average exit velo was and I think a lot of that has to do with [the plantar fasciitis that had him miss three months]. He’s fully healthy now. And it’s really, I think, a matter of him being able to control his swing mechanics. Really get a good pitch to hit and I mean he’s an amazing competitor. He has this ability to talk about what he wants to do, ‘the process’, and all these things in the cage and then when it’s time to step in the box, I mean, he loves when the lights are on.”

His first career postseason home run came in Game 1 of the ALDS against the Guardians. This is the first time in his career he has hit four homers in any six-game span. In fact, Bader had just 52 career homers in 1,516 at-bats when the Yankees acquired him from the Cardinals at the trade deadline this year.

TAINTED GOLD

The finalists for the Rawlings Gold Glove were announced Thursday and the Yankees had five, but they also had one big, glaring omission. Aaron Judge did not get named.

“Part of that is obviously as many games as he had in center field. So had he played the whole year in right field, he’s probably a finalist in right field,” Boone said. “And maybe even the same can even be said for center so probably getting split up hurt him a little bit.

“And then [Josh] Donaldson not being a finalist to me, it’s a joke too,” Boone added. “It doesn’t take away from that. I think everyone realized what a good defender [Judge] is.”

Judge started 74 games in center and 73 at right this season.

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