ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Yankees manager Aaron Boone said he believed Miguel Andujar had a “natural way about him” when he first made the transition from third base to left field in 2020.
But now that Andujar has added hard work and experience to that equation, the Yankees are reaping the rewards at a time when their other outfielders are banged up.
Andujar started a fourth consecutive game in left field Friday night against the Rays, filling a need with Aaron Hicks battling recent hamstring tightness and Giancarlo Stanton (ankle inflammation) and Tim Locastro (strained lat) on the injured list. Andujar showed off his defensive improvement Thursday night, coming in to make a diving catch in the first inning that got Nestor Cortes out of a jam in what became a 7-2 Yankees win.
“I feel really good,” Andujar said through an interpreter on Friday. “It’s been a long road of a lot of hard work and consistent work with my coaches in Scranton, here in the big leagues, especially [third-base coach Luis] Rojas. Those guys have given me really good pointers that keep adding on and making me better out there.”
Entering Friday, Andujar had registered one defensive run saved in left field, according to FanGraphs (albeit in a small sample size of 36 innings). While playing 347 1/3 innings in left field between 2020 and 2021, Andujar had recorded -2 defensive runs saved.
Though Andujar may still not be a finished product at the position, his play has his coaches encouraged.
“I’m very much impressed,” said Rojas, who also works with the Yankees’ outifielders. “You saw there were a few struggles [early on] in the transition and I think that’s normal. But to look as natural as he looks right now, this quick, you gotta give credit to him.”
Rojas also credited Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre defensive coach Raul Dominguez for the work he has done with Andujar.
“That’s been the perfect formula is Raul working with him, a lot of our outfield coaches and also Miguel getting himself ready,” Rojas said. “He worked a lot on his running form and athleticism in the offseason. I think that’s helped him to be the outfielder he is today.”
Rojas cited Andujar’s improved strength and conditioning, first-step quickness and body control in helping his route efficiency.
Andujar was also batting 5-for-17 in limited opportunities this season, including a key RBI infield single Thursday. Getting his bat in the lineup is why the Yankees added left field to his repertoire in the first place.
“It’s definitely tough when you have a lot of injuries,” Andujar said. ���It puts the team in a tough situation and it’s definitely not something that I want. At the same time, I got to understand the opportunity and have to give my best wherever the team puts me to play and try to contribute as best as I can.”