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The New York Yankees are in a bad position with Derek Jeter going down with a severe injury in Game 1 of the ALDS. Their immediate backup is Jayson Nix, and as Chicago White Sox fans know, that's not a name that inspires much confidence, at all. Nix was always a player who could rip the ball hard, it was just that when he did, the ball went into the stands to his immediate left or right.
SB Nation's South Side Sox has more on Nix and the kind of player he is for the Yankees and the kind of player he was for the White Sox:
The sight of Nix is not an inspiring one, as White Sox fans know. He hit .214/.301/.382 over 347 plate appearances with the Sox, and his OPS (and its components) are nearly identical with the Yankees this season. Offensively, he was best known for his ability to rip some hellacious foul balls into the stands. You'd see him do it a few times and think, "This guy's got some bat speed!" And then over a month or two, you realize hard foul balls were his thing.
They continue to talk about the Yankees' primary issue: namely that Nix was the best option available in regards to players who were willing to sit behind guys like Derek Jeter and Robinson Cano, who played 159 and 161 games in 2012, respectively.
The list of players willing to take that job is a short one, and for the Yankees, that means Nix is thrust into a starting role. For them to have success, they need him to produce in some form or fashion, and White Sox fans know it well: that's not a smart thing to count on.