Aaron Hicks continues to do very little to endear himself to Yankees fans.
The outfielder, who has struggled at the plate and in the field this season, appeared to lose a ball in the lights Thursday night during the Yankees’ win over the Rangers.
Hicks, who enters Friday with a slugging percentage of .147, slid to attempt to catch a batted ball from Texas’ Marcus Semien in the bottom of the third inning, and at the last minute pulled his glove away from the ball, letting the ball fly past him as he flopped to the ground.
The YES Network cameras then flashed to pitcher Gerrit Cole — who was pitching a shutout at the time — looking visibly frustrated when Hicks made the blunder.
The announcers speculated that Hicks may have lost the ball in the lights.
The play was ruled as a hit, and led to the Rangers plating two runs later in the inning after a fielder’s choice and infield single.
The Yankees held on to win the game, 4-2, with Cole getting his fifth win of the season.
Cole expressed confidence in his teammates after the game.
“[My confidence] comes from my teammates,” Cole said. “It comes from my preparation. And it comes from just being in a good spot to execute a lot of pitches. Obviously [a three-run lead] allows us to attack the zone. We’ve just played good baseball more often than not. It’s something you feed off of as a pitcher.”
Cole had a three-run lead in the third when Hicks committed the blunder.
Hicks is having a rough go of it at the plate so far in 2023, with just five hits in 38 plate appearances (a .147 average).
And it was just Tuesday night where he was unable to make a play on a double to the gap by the Twins’ Jorge Polanco.
All five hits have been singles.
“I understand it 100 percent,’’ Hicks said earlier this month of fans booing him at home. “Right now, I’m focusing on myself and trying to get off to a hot start and just play baseball and have fun.”
With Giancarlo Stanton injured (hamstring) and now Aaron Judge taken out of Thursday night’s game — with his status still uncertain after experiencing right hip discomfort — the Yankees still seem to have no choice but to play Hicks.
Hopefully for them, he can at least provide reliable defense in the outfield.
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