The cleanup spot has been an issue for the Yankees for much of the season — and especially since Giancarlo Stanton went down with a strained hamstring.
On Saturday, Austin Wells became the latest to hit fourth, taking the place of the slumping Alex Verdugo, who was bumped back to sixth against Rays right-hander Taj Bradley.
Aaron Boone said Verdugo’s issues at the plate, coupled with solid at-bats from Wells — who walked three times Friday — went into the decision.
“[Verdugo] is pressing a little bit, so I hope this gets him going,’’ Boone said of the left fielder. “Maybe this takes some pressure off moving him a couple slots down.”
As for Wells, Boone said the catcher has “been stringing together quality at-bats now for a good, long stretch- whether he gets results or not.”
But the problem has existed for a while, with Boone pointing to Stanton’s injury as one of the reasons.
“Really since [Stanton’s] gone down, even though he was only hitting cleanup against lefties, the first couple months, the 4 [and] 5 spots were really productive for us,’’ Boone said. “Since that [injury] happened, the 4-hole has been a struggle for us.
“We’ll try to get a guy in a good place and have a little bit of presence there.”