24 Robinson Cano, 2B

Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano clubbed his 16th home run of the season Thursday against the A's.

Cano took the first pitch he saw from Jarrod Parker out to center for a two-run shot in the first inning. He also added two doubles later in the game, and was intentionally walked twice. Despite being on base five times, Cano only scored one run. 

He's now hitting .282/.354/.521 in 259 at-bats this season.

Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano has struggled against left-handed pitchers for two straight seasons -- in 2012, Cano hit .239 with a .646 OPS against lefties; this season, he's hitting .206 with a .617 OPS. For his career, Cano has hit .285 with a .780 OPS.

To help combat this downturn, manager Joe Girardi has moved Cano into hitting coach Kevin Long's batting practice group, in hopes that seeing more pitches from a lefty (Long, in this case), will break his funk.

"It's hard to say (why Cano's struggling against lefties)," Girardi told The Journal News. "He's hit some home runs off them, but it has been somewhat of a struggle. There is no rhyme or reason. Some years it's just like that."

Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano was named Home Run Derby captain for the American League Tuesday, ESPN reports. David Wright is captain for the National League. 

Cano did the same job last year and was booed after he failed to pick hometown favorite Billy Butler for the team. 

Cano is batting .272 this season with 15 home runs and 40 RBI over 246 at-bats. He's gone just 4 for 30 (.133) in June over nine games, however. 

Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano has been in a hitting slump since hitting his 14th home run May 30 against the Mets. Cano is batting .100 (2 for 20) in his last six games, dropping his season average from .296 to .279.

Cano has no extra-base hits or RBI in his last six games. Before his six-game slide, Cano hit .280 (23 for 82) with a .512 slugging percentage, six home runs and 17 RBI in a 21-game stretch from May 9-30.