The Grandy Man Can

Granderson homered in his first at-bat as
a Yankee against the Red Sox last
year.

The New York Yankees may have pounded Toronto Blue Jays left-hander Jo-Jo Reyes in Wednesday's afternoon game in the Bronx, but they couldn't have done it without center fielder Curtis Granderson. Granderson had two of the five hits surrendered by Reyes in his three innings, they were his sixth and seventh doubles on the year. The more important thing for Granderson and the Yankees is Reyes is a left-handed pitcher, something he has notoriously struggled with. 

     Where would New York be without the great start from their All-Star center fielder?

    Granderson was acquired by New York in a three-way trade from the Detroit Tigers in December of 2009, adding another big bat to their already potent order. The Yankees saw Granderson as someone who hit 30 home runs the year before in the spacious Comerica Park, maybe he could potential hit 40 in the short right field porch at Yankee Stadium. Granderson homered in his first at-bat of the 2010 season on Opening Night in Fenway Park, and it looked like general manager Brian Cashman had struck gold once again.

    That would be one of the only good highlights for Granderson in the first half for New York. Granderson suffered a hamstring injury in early May and was placed on the disabled list missing a good portion of the first half.

    Despite the injury heading into the All-Star Break, Granderson had hit a disappointing .240 with 7 home runs and 24 runs batted in, well off his pace from a year ago with the Tigers.

    Still struggling in late July and early August, Granderson went to the masterful Yankee hitting coach Kevin Long to find a solution. Long and Granderson worked for hours on in to fix his swing and bring back the player Cashman traded for in December.

    Following the revamp of his swing, Granderson soared through second half all the way into the postseason. He batted .253 with 17 home runs and 43 RBIs in the second half, but his postseason was even better. In the nine postseason games the Yankees played in '10, Granderson hit .357 with a home run and 6 RBIs. Four of ten hits Granderson racked up in the postseason were for extra-bases and that has carried over into 2011.

    In the spring the center fielder had suffered a strain to the internal oblique on the right abdomen and his status for Opening Day was in doubt. Granderson fought through the injury and was in the starting lineup for manager Joe Girardi, and thank goodness he was. The left-handed swinger launched a go-ahead home run off ex-Yankee lefty Phil Coke to give New York the lead and send Yankee fans home with an Opening Day victory. The home run was the second straight year he had homered on Opening Day with New York and his third straight overall dating back to '09 with Detroit.

    After only batting .234 against lefties in '10, Granderson has improved greatly to start '11 batting .296 compared to his .273 clip against righties. Granderson is currently batting .280 with 16 home runs and 36 RBIs. His 16 homes are second in the majors behind only last years home run king, Toronto's Jose Bautista.

   Following Wednesday's series finale against the Blue Jays, the Blue Island native had reached base nine times in his last 12 plate appearances. Too go long with that, twenty-seven of his fifty-one hits this season have gone for extra-bases.

Granderson's defense goes overlooked
because of his offensive
production.

Even though the Yankees are first in the majors in runs scored (250), home runs (75) and slugging percentage (.445), the offense has been inconsistent most of the season relying solely on the long ball to win games. Granderson has been their most consistent player all year, wondering were the Bronx Bombers would be without him, putting his name in the early MVP discussion.

    Still only thirty years old, Granderson may be entering the prime of his career and developing into the superstar player New York thought he would be. The Grandy Man is looking to cement his legacy with the legends that have roamed center fielder in the hollowed walls of Yankee Stadium.