if we are talking about HRs, no. when i hear the term “masher”, i don’t necessarily think 40+ HRs. i think of guys who put up OPS+ around 125 or higher. that means high OBP, lots of XBHs, even if that means 20 HRs instead of 45 HRs. i DO think of Bernie Williams in his prime. the guy was just a terrific hitter.

but if i misinterpreted your intended meaning, i apologize.
we are arguing semantics.

I didn’t say you get exact replicas of those players, I assumed you would understand that I meant those type of player. The point remains that you need several excellent players, whether they’re position players or bench players who can put up numbers “situationally.”

I also never said this team as constructed had great chemistry. Just that making a lot of changes at once is a gamble.

OK, now thats dead.

I think the Yanks are playing a double game with A-Rod. On the surface they would like to re-sign him, he is the best player in the game without a doubt.

But Cashman, who is on the hotseat, has to punish A-Rod if he decides to leave. He has to make it look like A-Rod is an A-**** to Yankee fans and Steinbrenner or else he is going to be hooked.

If he signs his man, then he wins. But if Boras/A-Rod insist on exercising the option then Cashman is going to make them look like money-grubbing scum!!!

I like it.

Also, scroll up to my post where I refuted your ridiculous argument. You have ignored my points, and I don’t expect you try and counter them, because you can’t.

Correllation does not imply causation.

Doreen:

Two things:

1) My point all along has been that you don’t absolutely “need” A-Rod’s numbers to win…So, it follow that you don’t need players that are going to completely replace his numbers. Morever, we don’t need exact replicas of Tino, O’Neill, etc. Rather, we need guys in the same general mold as Tino, O’Neill, etc. – guys with decent (but not HOF-caliber) talent who are good at situational hitting and otherwise mesh well as a team.

2) When you say “gambling on chemistry,” I guess you’re saying the team has awesome chemistry as it is… Can you really be serious? This team has no chemistry at all! So, I can only hope that the Yanks will “gamble” with the team chemistry this offseason…

And as far as “missing the point” about A-Rod…Sorry, but I’m not “missing” anything. Rather, I think you haven’t really read what I’ve been writing all day. But that’s OK…

You have a good point, but who are your O’Neill, Tino, Bernie, Strawberry, etc. going to be?

At this point in time, you would need several players to replace A-Rod. Several A+ quality players. Who have never played as a team before, so you’re gambling on the chemistry.

There’s no easy answer here, but right now, and looking at the immediate future, the Yankees are no “Murderer’s Row plus Cano,” and A-Rod is the only player they have hitting with power on a consistent basis. So, I think that’s why you start there. Not to mention, without him who are the right-handed bats?

Hmmm, YanksSox & Bob from NJ –

This Park Factor is really confusing me, because it seems to have to do more with the pitching staff that inhabits a particular park and not just the park itself. Looking at the Yankee Stadium Park factor from 2001 to the present, it fluctuated from being a hitter’s park to a pitcher’s park, but it seemed to be a pitcher’s park when the Yankees had a plus pitching staff, and now that pitching is not so great, it’s hitter’s park. The park itself has not changed. So, I’m a little dense here, and I don’t understand why the park factor is not a static statistic.