How 'fearless' Gleyber Torres has impacted the Yankees' strong start to the season

NEW YORK – The sequence perfectly reflected what’s made the start to Gleyber Torres’ season so productive.

The Yankees second baseman led off the bottom of the eighth inning Wednesday with a double off Phillies reliever Gregory Soto, then he promptly stole third base.

It’s only been six games, but Torres has been getting on base consistently and then doing some damage on the basepaths once he’s on them.

“I think he’s doing a great job,” manager Aaron Boone said following his club’s 4-2 win over Philadelphia at Yankee Stadium. “He’s fearless on the basepaths and instinctual.”

Torres went 3-for-4 with a pair of RBI singles on Wednesday, extending a hot start to the season. He’s now 8-for-19 (.421) with five runs, one double, two home runs, six RBIs, six walks and five stolen bases. He’s reached base multiple times in five of the Yankees’ six games so far.

“Just not trying to do too much,” Torres said. “Just trying to hit the pitch I can do damage with and just try to get a pretty good at-bat every time I go to home plate.”

It’s been an impressive showing for Torres, who’s frequently been in the middle of trade rumors and speculation. His future with the organization has been in doubt.

Torres said he doesn’t exactly use that as fuel for motivation – but he also made it clear his desire is to remain a Yankee.

“Motivation is every day,” Torres said. “Every time I’m in the lineup, just try to give 200 percent. I just want to be here a long time. I feel at home here.”

Torres had all-star seasons in 2018 and 2019, but then regressed the following two seasons. He mostly bounced back last year, but still endured some struggles.

He played winter ball in Venezuela this off-season, which he said he used to fix some “little things” with his swing and also improve on hitting breaking pitches.

“Just be a little more patient,” Torres said.

Torres also played in the World Baseball Classic, which he believes is also contributing to his early-season productivity.

Boone sees a player who’s locked in at the plate.

“Just been really patient, under control at-bats,” Boone said. “That’s what he’s capable of. We’ve seen that and hopefully we’re seeing a guy that’s really starting to enter the prime of his career. It’s a young man. But I just feel like every at-bat has been super competitive whether it ends in a good result or not. There’s a lot of calm to what he’s doing up there right now.”

But his ability to wreak havoc on the bases has also stood out.

Torres has impressed Boone with his aggressiveness, knowing when to pick his spots. The 26-year-old had 10 stolen bases all of last season. His career high was 14 back in 2021. Torres has nearly half that mark already.

“I’ve just been really pleased with him on the bases so far this year,” Boone said. “It’s absolutely been a factor and it’s a credit to him and working on different things. I think just continuing to gain experience and learn from things, because he is instinctual out there. As he continues to gain experience with it, hopefully that continues to serve him well to where he’s now real accurate. He’s done a really good job this year.”

Torres is taking advantage of Major League Baseball’s rule changes – from the bigger bases to the limited pick-off attempts allowed for pitchers.

“Any opportunity I have just try to get,” Torres said.

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: NY Yankees: How Gleyber Torres has impacted strong start