Yankees vs. Red Sox: Who has the edge at each position?
Miguel Andujar vs. Eduardo Nunez
Yankee fans are very familiar with Nunez since he broke into the Majors in New York. Ultimately, he was unable to establish himself as an above-average regular so he took his talents elsewhere. He’s been decent for Boston this year, but he’s certainly not a plus player.
Andujar has both thrilled and crushed fans all season long. He’s an absolute doubles hitting savant. When you break the Joe DiMaggio’s record for doubles as a Yankees rookie you know you’re doing something right. Some critics would like to see him be more selective at the plate, but no one in the organization is worried about that moving forward.
The nightmares for Andujar come on the defensive side of the game. His woes at third base have gotten so bad that Boone took him out of the Wild Card game early to put in a defensive substitute. Andujar had already made one error earlier in the game.
Despite his defensive issues, Andujar’s advantage at the plate powers him to a pretty easy win in this matchup. Nunez is better with the glove, but he doesn’t hit for a high average or provide much power. Third base is a matchup where New York feels like they can win pretty comfortably.