2021 hasn’t been a kind year for New York Yankees outfielder Clint Frazier.
He has struggled at the plate, with a .186 batting average, five home runs, and a paltry .634 OPS.
That’s actually a far cry from the .267/.394/.511 he had last season, with eight homers in 39 games.
In 2020, he was a Gold Glove candidate, too, but you wouldn’t know it because he has played terrible defense this season when healthy.
Those last two words, ‘when healthy’, are very important at the moment of evaluating Frazier’s performance in 2021.
I hope @clintfrazier feels better and makes a great comeback in 2022, with or without the Yankees. Vertigo is no joke and as someone who's experienced those symptoms, I can't imagine being a professional athlete and dealing with it as well. https://t.co/rzwp8iEz15
— Lance (@lancenyyc) August 16, 2021
Injuries Have Derailed His Season
It’s not fair to just chalk up his 2021 struggles to regression: injuries have played a big part, too.
In fact, he was currently transferred to the 60-day injured list after finishing his rehab assignment, and his rest-of-the-season outlook is very much in the air.
Frazier has been out since late June due to dizzy spells and vision issues.
He pulled himself from a rehab game Sunday because he wasn’t feeling well.
There are obvious medical concerns surrounding the young, talented kid.
In fact, at this point, he should take the rest of 2021 off and try to find what’s ailing him, and get healthy.
From a baseball perspective, it makes little sense for him to come back to the Yankees in 2022.
The Yankees have some serious depth in the outfield positions, enough that a talented but flawed player like Frazier will probably not play much if he stays in the Bronx in 2022.
For years, he has been the object of trade interest around the league, because he is a very talented player with legendary bat speed.
His Gold Glove candidacy was probably the result of small sample size, but if he is right, he can be a decent hitter.
He probably won’t have the chance to get a lot of at-bats for the Yankees in 2022 as things currently stand.
He Has No Place In The 2022 Yankees
Aaron Judge and Joey Gallo are both entrenched in the outfield corners, and that’s Frazier’s position.
Judge and Gallo are both difference-makers with the bat, their arm, their legs, and their glove, and they will play almost every day.
Aaron Hicks, currently out for the season with a wrist injury, should be ready to rock by the time 2022 spring training is upon us.
The Yankees also have Giancarlo Stanton clogging up the designated hitter spot, so that wouldn’t be a path toward, at least, semi-regular playing time for Frazier.
It’s possible that Miguel Andujar is still around in 2022.
Other outfielders under contract next season are Tim Locastro, Greg Allen, and Estevan Florial.
Florial is a prospect that the Yankees could want to see more of in 2022, and that’s already a difficult proposition.
There are several ways in which Frazier could get out of New York in his quest for regular playing time, and it seems like a trade is in his best interest.
However, he needs to get healthy first and foremost.
Really tough what @clintfrazier is dealing with. I’ve been dealing with it all year really hard to play like that especially on the level he does. I feel you bro. We can get through it.
— James Brogden (@BrogdenJames) August 18, 2021
After that, baseball decisions will come.
He doesn’t appear to have a place on the 2022 Yankees at this point.
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