I am sick and tired of Sonny Gray’s split personality on the mound. Make up your damn mind, woulda ya? Are you the All-Star caliber pitcher we saw in Oakland? (and maybe three times in New York) Or are you another AJ Burnett that can’t handle the Bronx?
Since he became a Yankee at the Trade Deadline last season… We don’t know who he is. We don’t know what to expect. That kind of inconsistency will get you serenaded with the Bronx Cheer and run… Quick.
When Brian Cashman made the splash last July to trade for Gray I thought it was a fantastic move. He is still young, has had some injuries but has had postseason experience and was controllable. The Yanks were ahead of schedule and he was the missing piece to help put them over the top.
Missing piece? Only thing that has been missing is Sonny Gray W’s. Going into his start against the O’s yesterday (who have traded their entire team away) he has a record of 12-14 in pinstripes. Sonny pitched in 31 games, posting a 4.55 ERA. Gross.
I loved the Sonny Gray deal for the Yankees. Oy.
— Adam Schein (@AdamSchein) May 27, 2018
Me too Adam Schein… Me too.
Do those look like front of the rotation starter numbers to you? Maybe at High A but not in the Bigs and definitely not in the Bronx. Before this week’s deadline Cashman added J.A. Happ (who won his first start as a Yank) and Lance Lynn who has started 181 games and is 79-55 in his career.
But he didn’t go after a top line starter like Chris Archer. Why? Because Dr. Sonny had been in one of his moods to actually pitch well.
Bob and Jack break down the keys to Sonny Gray’s success today. #YANKSonYES pic.twitter.com/RfotHPyx9B
— YES Network (@YESNetwork) August 1, 2018
In his three previous starts, Dr. Sonny had gone 3-0, with an ERA of 1.10, holding opposing batters to a .155 batting average. Now THAT is the type of pitcher Yankees fans were expecting when he donned the Pinstripes. He had also finally brought his record over .500 and was sitting at 8-7 on the season. Not great by any means, but trending in the right direction, something to be optimistic about.
It seemed like everything was “Sonny” in the Bronx. Until the skies got dark and Mr. Gray decided to show up and take the mound against the Triple-A lineup of the Baltimore Orioles yesterday. Ready for this stat line:
Mr. Gray went 2.2 innings, gave up 8 hits, 7 earned runs, walked 2, struck out 3 and picked up his 8th loss of the season. Oh and the game was AT HOME. The rest of the team battled back (through a rain delay) as they always do, but fell short and lost 7-5.
That is just unacceptable for a guy who knows the team is about to head to Fenway for a crucial four game series with the first place Red Sox. First, the Yanks need every W they can get to try and close this gap. Second it would have been really nice to go into that series on a high note. But, no. Instead Mr. Gray decided to get shelled and not make it out of the third inning… OHHH GOOD!
Remember I mentioned the Bronx Cheer earlier? Oh it was loud and proud for Mr. Gray at the Big Ballpark in the Bronx yesterday as he walked off the mound in the third inning. But instead of just hanging his head, realizing he sucked and taking it like a man… This guy (who again is now 12-15 as a Yankee) decided to smile and laugh. SMILE AND LAUGH!
Am I missing something? Why is Sonny Gray smiling after he just got shelled by a horrible Orioles lineup? @Yankees pic.twitter.com/JLuW04tTbd
— Anthony Gargano (@AddictedtoDD) August 1, 2018
Cashman did all he could to build up a new perception of @SonnyGray2.
– Pitched him on the road.
– Pitched him against really bad teams.Today. Bad team @ Yankee Stadium, he is who he is, but smiling as he is taken out of the game?https://t.co/SkXMm1sn7Z pic.twitter.com/NyqtjmZTVU
— The Bronx Zoo (@TheBronxZooNYY) August 1, 2018
As you could see… The Yankees Twitter world and I were not happy. But then to add salt in an already gaping wound. We are being trolled by the first place Red Sox media:
Sonny Gray actually laughed as he got booed off the mound at Yankee Stadium today. He gave up seven runs in less than three innings.
WATCH:https://t.co/YFOw1xz0Z4 pic.twitter.com/t9CQLXX2kq
— NESN (@NESN) August 1, 2018
I mean… I’ve got nothing to say. It is unacceptable. Maybe he was in shock? Maybe he was trying not to cry? But be a ball player, go in the dugout, grab a bat and take it out on the bullpen phone or Gatorade jug. Show us you are pissed. Show us you know you sucked. Don’t show us your goofy ass smile, because in the Bronx Zoo it’s easy to get tossed aside and nearly impossible to be let back in.
Now to make matters even worse, a lot worse if true. It is coming out on Twitter that after the game Gray may have deleted racist tweets from his past.
USA Today “After another poor outing on the mound, something funny happened to Sonny Gray’s Twitter account.
It appears two questionable tweets were deleted from the New York Yankees pitcher’s account before the game ended.
The first appears to be a racist slur in a tweet unearthed from 2012, when he was in the minors of the Oakland Athletics organization.
Gray told reporters after the game the tweet was an “inside joke” directed at a friend”
I guess somebody told Sonny Gray that some old racist tweets have been unearthed so naturally he deleted his twitter account…LOL #Yankees pic.twitter.com/rrx5RL1hWQ
— THE Curmudgeon NYer (@BabyBiird) August 1, 2018
This just went from bad to worse for Dr. Sonny and Mr. Gray. We already saw today that he can be a bum on the field and now we are seeing that he may be a bum off it as well. I believe in innocent until proven guilty, so I am not going to destroy him on this until more evidence comes out. But, that tweet is awful.
You need to shape up Mr. Gray and bring the Sonnshine back. If you don’t it’s not going to be chartered flights and MLB hotels. Its going to be the long bus rides, motels, and minor league ballparks for you.
So it’s either keep it Sonny and stay. Or make it Gray and don’t play… Your call.
-Kevin “Angry That Guy”
Feature Image right – SBNation