If there’s one thing that the New York Yankees can count on, it’s that Gleyber Torres will dominate the Baltimore Orioles. No matter what kind of slump he may be in, Torres mashes Baltimore pitching like nobody’s business. Thanks to Isaac Paredes, the Yankees are now on the other side of that.
Paredes hit three home runs for the Tampa Bay Rays in Tuesday’s game against the New York Yankees. In his first at-bat in Wednesday’s game, Tampa’s second baseman was right back at it.
No this is not a replay from last night… Isaac Paredes has homered again pic.twitter.com/AvQXHHHzjU
— Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) June 22, 2022
The continued outburst of Paredes caught the attention of the MLB world.
Isaac Paredes. HR. That is all.
— Erik Boland (@eboland11) June 22, 2022
We should have a Paredes for this guy. #Rays
— Neil Solondz (@neilsolondz) June 22, 2022
It's Isaac Paredes' week…..
— Kristie Ackert (@ByKristieAckert) June 22, 2022
isaac paredes against yankee pitchers pic.twitter.com/n8bc67mUMe
— ness (@nessuhhr) June 22, 2022
PAREDES IS BARRY BONDS
— 247 Rays (@24_rays) June 22, 2022
Isaac Paredes when he sees the Yankees pic.twitter.com/yKSZ5Nd8mK
— Razzball (@Razzball) June 22, 2022
Tampa got Isaac Paredes when they traded away Austin Meadows.
Meadows is worth a negative WAR this season and Paredes just hit his 4th HR in 2 days.
Why do teams trade with the Rays?
— Yankees Analytics Nerds (@YankeesNerds) June 22, 2022
Four home runs in less than two full games is a hot streak for anyone. For Paredes, though, it’s especially notable.
Heading into Tuesday’s game, Paredes had five home runs on the season. Five home runs in 67 team games translates to roughly 12 over a full season. It’s not completely crazy when a hitter like that runs into one, but he’s certainly not a hitter known for his big power.
Following Wednesday’s home run, his pace for the season moved up to 21. Paces can sometimes get dramatically altered in the early weeks of an MLB season. But in June, it’s more challenging to do that, especially over less than two games.
In his next at-bat on Wednesday, Paredes hit into a double play. All things considered, that had to be like finding gold for the Yankees.