The mailbag opens back up
Posted by: Peter Abraham - Posted in Misc on Aug 18, 2008 
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Doug writes: Do you think there’s any chance the Yanks would sign Francisco Rodriguez to be the 8th inning guy, and would he be open to that role?
Answer: That sounds good for the Yankees. But K-Rod is going to want to close in the prime of his career and make big money. The Yankees are already paying Mariano to close.
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Daniel writes: I wanted to ask you if you knew anything about the Washburn situation. I just heard that he was claimed but it’s unknown which teams did that. Given the interest of the team in Washburn previous to the trade deadline, I am surprised they did not move to claim him, especially when the rotation is in dire need of an arm.
Answer: The Twins claimed him, Daniel. Seattle wanted either Kevin Slowey or Nick Blackburn back in a trade. Obviously that’s ridiculous. The Mariners have an inflated opinion of what Washburn is worth and the Yankees don’t want to give in to their demands.
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Dan writes: Do you know how many Yankees have been put on/cleared waivers? Do you see them possibly becoming sellers for any reason?
Answer: At some point, probably all of them were placed on waivers. That common at this time of the year. No idea who cleared. I don’t see them become sellers in the next two weeks before playoff rosters must be set. Any players who might be worth trading are either players they want to keep or guys who have no-trade clauses. I don’t see any trades coming down at this point.
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Marc writes: Somebody needs to ask Girardi why he refuses to hit and run with Jeter while Damon is on first. If a guy is hitting a lot of weak ground balls to second and GIDP, why don’t you hit and run to stay out of the double play? Jeter would fist one though the hole left open at second half the time, and you would have runners on the corners with nobody out. Also, A-Rod needs to bat third, and move Abreu to fourth. You have to do something to try and get Alex out his slump. And Abreu is the team’s best clutch hitter.
Answer: Marc, are you available to manage the rest of the season? I’m forward your e-mail to Brian Cashman.
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Dave writes: If the Yankees continue to play poorly, do you think the front office will forego the playoffs this year and call up some of the young prospects and let them play? As a fan, I really do not think the Yanks are going to make the playoffs this year; but I would enjoy watching the kids play.
Answer: There are two problems with your idea, Dave. I don’t think they’ll give up and I don’t think they really have any MLB-ready prospects. The players in Scranton are pretty much organizational players and not prospects. You’ll see a few new faces on Sept. 1 but no wholesale changes.
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Eric writes: I love the Yankees, you should not give up on them! They’re my boys. I feel very strongly about this.
Answer: Moving right along …
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Vinnie writes: Pete, who do you think is the one free agent they should go after next season?
Answer: I was very impressed with Mark Teixeira when the Yankees were out in Anaheim earlier this month. But the guy to get is CC Sabathia. The new Stadium will be the same dimensions as the old Stadium, making lefty starters important. Sabathia would give them a true No. 1 starter as Chien-Ming Wang recovers from his injury. A rotation of Sabathia, Wang, Andy Pettitte and/or Mike Mussina and the one or two most deserving of the kids (Joba presumably) would be formidable.
That would put everybody in their proper slots. It also would enable you to trade a young pitcher as part of a package to get a good young hitter.
Thanks for all the great questions.
“Sabathia would give them a true No. 1 starter.”
Wow..this is the first time that I heard you say that CMW is not a true No.1
I’m shocked that you don’t automatically put Joba in next year’s rotation. Even if you don’t consider him a top of the rotation guy yet, you have to at least consider him a #2 or #3.
I’d love to see CC in a Yanks uniform, and obviously they can throw the most cash at him (and likely will). I just wonder how deep his SoCal roots go, and if money really talks. The Yanks better hope it does, and loudly.
This was my favorite answer….
Eric writes: I love the Yankees, you should not give up on them! They’re my boys. I feel very strongly about this.
Answer: Moving right along …
That was great. I enjoyed that.
The first base problem ?
Get Casey Kotchman in a deal with Atlanta.
Re: The K-Rod signing to be the setup man question.
K-Rod is going to test the open market, and if money is the primary issue for him (and it sounds as if it is), he is probably going to get the largest/longest contract ever for a relief pitcher.
I believe the team that signs him is going to begin regretting it very soon and will have that contract haunting them for years.
Rodriguez has ALWAYS had a very violent delivery… If you check his numbers from earlier in his career, his strikeouts are on the way down and his walks are on the way up… And then pile on what this pursuit of destroying Bobby Thigpen’s record is going to do to him.
Somebody is going to give him a massive contract… I would avoid him like the plague, and I think the Angels (Moreno) are VERY smart to be already positioning themselves/bracing their fans to lose K-Rod, saying things about how “no closer deserves to be paid more than Rivera” (something K-Rod has publicly said he wants).
True, but I also think they are setting the table in advance.
Just my $.02…
“Cody Ransom’s seventh-inning home run made him the 11th player in the expansion era (since 1961) to homer in his first plate appearance as a Yankee.”
Would love to see that list…I remember Marcus Thames blasting the first pitch he saw into the bullpen off the Big Unit.
Andy Phillips did it too.
When you say ‘first appearance as a Yankee’ that doesn’t necessarily mean ‘first major league at-bat’, right? If I’m not mistaken, aside from Thames and Philips, John Miller is the only other Yankee to hit a homer in their first major league at-bat post 1961.
Not sure about the ‘first home run in first appearance as a Yankee’ list.
Bobby Murcer’s first and last hits as a Yankee were HRs. (I’m in the middle of reading his book, btw, and it’s like hearing his voice.)
We’re going to Saturday’s game in Baltimore. Who else here is making the trek? From a purely selfish angle, I’d love to have been seeing Phil Hughes pitch. However, practically speaking, I’d rather Hughes remain where he is, and have him to count on for next season. And I’ve never been on the Carl Pavano bash-wagon. It would be a good turn of events, I think, if he can end his tenure with the Yankees by pitching well enough for them in the waning weeks of his contract. I saw Chase Wright pitch in Trenton this season. He was pretty good, I’d say, but he’s pitching in AA against AA hitters. I don’t think he’s being punished for that 4-in-a-row game; I just don’t think he’s quite good enough to rely on at this stage of the Yankees season. If Carl is ready, bring him on, I say.
I posted this in an earlier thread:
I understand what you’re saying, G Love, but the Yankees did not make that trade for he-who shall reamain nameless (to me, anyway, lol) because they were thinking beyond this year (forget the $$$). We’ve been through this before and I truly don’t want to rehash this, but I honestly do not think the Yankees would trade Phil for you-know-who now. Do you think they didn’t realize there would be struggles? In any case, Phil only had a few starts early this year and I think he must have been somehow affected by the beginnings of his injury (despite what he says). Up until his dead arm yesterday, he’s been throwing much better than at any point even last year.
Clearly, there is split among fans as to how good Phil is going to be. I still believe in him because I think we simply have not seen him at his best……and he’s still very young. We just have to be patient.
Looking back, I agree about putting Ian in the rotation after only 3 starts; that was not a wise decision.
Doreen,
Have fun in Baltimore. It was good to see you and Murphydog back slogging through the comments this weekend. We need everyone for the stretch run.
KIm Jones in on WFAN this morning said a few interesting things.
1. Melky isn’t doing the on the field workouts with Alex anymore. Said he should be made to wear a tighter uniform, is standing at second, when he should be on third adjusting his uniform.
2. Doesn’t think Mussina will be back, just has a feeling.
3. Gave an indictation that Hughes will still get the nod on Saturday. Although would love to have a recorder if Pavano walked into the Yankee clubhouse.
“Said he should be made to wear a tighter uniform, is standing at second, when he should be on third adjusting his uniform.”
Not sure I understand what that means. Melky’s biggest problem is his uniform is too big for him to run the bases?
pat- thats how I understood it. That he had to adjust his uniform so he couldn’t make it to third.
Todd -
Thanks.
We were on vacation, and although I brought a computer, I decided it was best to forego the blog for awhile.
I never even opened the case.
Betsy -
I agree that with Phil, we will all have to be patient. I think some of what happened with Hughes was that it was so long since the Yankees had a pitching prospect that was “can’t miss” material that the PR machine caught fire. It wasn’t just the Yankees themselves; I remember spring training reports for 2 seasons prior to this one, with reporters seeking out Posada’s comments, and Posada himself saying that Phil was the real deal and he thought he was ready then (3 spring trainings ago). Perhaps what this “situation” will do is help to temper expectations among all of us, fans and media both, which can only be a good thing in the long run, as far as prospects go.
I was surprised Kennedy was slotted into the rotation from the get-go as well. I thought he’d be sent to SWB for a month or so first. Hindsight being 20/20, of course that’s probably what should have happened. But when they named him as the #5 starter, I figured, well, there will be growing pains, but the offense will cover it much of the time. Hah! Also, for whatever reason, Kennedy was blind-sided himself by his own inability to slide right in, and I think the situation snowballed for him. It may be a very good thing for him that he has now had to deal with things not going quite so well or so easily for him.
On another topic, we went to a game in Toronto last week, well almost 2 weeks ago. Seeing that stadium in person is an eye-opener. The field is a patchwork quilt of artificial surface with visible seams throughout. I guess I never realized before that even the warning track was artificial surface! I don’t know how the attendance will be for the Yankees, but we were there for the A’s and also the beginning of their series with the Indians, and I can tell you, there is almost no one in that stadium. The roof was closed for the game we saw, and it’s an interesting environment. More comfortable than I thought it would be, but indoor baseball is a little strange. And the stadium looks 100% better when the roof is open. Alas, Toronto has had its wettest summer ever this year, and we can attest to that – all 4 days we needed umbrellas – so I expect the Yankees will be playing indoor baseball.
That he isno longer working out with Alex I think says more than anything about BOTH Cano and Melky. When you have the opportunity to be under the wing of someone like Alex who work ethic is without equal and learn from someone like him and do not take advantage of the opportunity it says a lot about your makeup as far as I am concerned.
the yankees arent out of it by any stretch.
5 games back with 6 weeks to go and everybody is giving up? and conceding to the red sox?
what a bunch of sissies!
K-Rod in the eighth? Well jeez, why not see if Ryan Howard wants to be the first baseman? Would Aramis Ramirez be A-Rod’s backup, all for the honor of wearing pinstripes? Maybe Brandon Webb wants to be the long reliever if the Yanks offer him enough money?
Sox suck i really dont think they will get in.. If yanks dont make it i rather see Twins and whitesox
Jennifer –
I get the feeling with Moose that he’d rather go out on this successful note than stick around longer than he should, and in that book, “Living On the Black,” he seemed very definite that he wants to be home with this kids while they still wanted him around (and believe me, as a parent, the day the decide you’re only good for transportation comes too, too soon!
), and that’s certainly understandable. He doesn’t need the money, he’ll have quieted his critics and satisfied himself that he was not washed up and could still pitch.
Pettitte – you have to wonder. He’s had quite a mixed year, but I know he’s said he wanted to pitch in the new stadium.
It’s a very interesting statement about Melky’s uniform being too baggy. Couldn’t hurt to wear a tighter one, I guess. But why couldn’t he just run to third and adjust it there?
I’m more interested in why he no longer was working out with Alex.
red sox nation wakes up today losing two games to the yankees in two days with the number 15 spinning around loosely in their heads.
it does not take much to send them into free fall.
stranger things have happened.
…like carl pavano coming back to help in a play off push.
the last three games of the year are at boston where pavano got his start.
hmmm.
gonna have to read the tea leaves on that one.
we may be on a collision course… bad choice of words in any thinking about pavano. let me rephrase that.
why do i have this feeling in my old yankee bones those last three games at fenway are going to matter?
anyone who watched torrez take the mound for the red sox and dent hit the homer knows anything is possible.
I think it’ll come down to C.C or Ben Sheets.
I don’t think the Yankees will go after both though.
would yall sign moose to another 1 yr contact next year?
Sox won’t make the playoffs? What a retard, look at the record my boy. Looks like the Yanks are in trouble. So what they beat up on the woeful Royals!
i would take CC over Sheets anyday..
I think the Yanks will make a hard push for C.C., their main competition will be the Dodgers & the Angels since he is from SoCal.
royals are the best second half team this year.. they always play the yanks hard.. thats the start we needed.. Good job Bret.. Trade Melky!!
Doreen
I was there in early July. It was a bright and sunny day and we couldn’t see the ball at all. It would be hit and we didn’t know where the heck it went. I don’t know if it was cause of the side of the stadium we were on, or if is always like that.
pete, who’s not even a yankees fan,has thrown in the towel so, this entire blog goes over to what to do about next year.
i wouldnt concede if we were 5 gb with 2 weeks left, let alone 39 games.
I love it when athletes want “to spend more time with my family”. That is a load of horsebleep. I see it as a negotiating ploy. These guys know that they have a finite live as far as sports are concerned and will hang on, for the most part, until they are locked out of the clubhouse.
CC is a Yankee next yr, if not Cashman is going to be fired..
The thing about baseball, Derek, is that you really never know until the fat lady has sung who is going to come out on top. There are so many instances of improbable winners throughout the history of the game that you really can’t count anyone out until it’s mathematically impossible for a team to pull the rabbit out of the hat.
Sure, looking at the standings, and taking into account the really dismal season the Yankees have had thus far, things don’t look all that good. But even those fans who think it’s improbable that the Yankees will make the playoffs (myself included), know that it is not yet impossible, and dare I say all of us still harbor a glimmer of hope.
I posted this in response to Hughes Dynasty in a prior thread:
you’re giving up on Phil as a potential stud because he has one bad start in AAA, probably due to a dead arm period? Now he’s gone from a possible #1 to a #3? He’s only just turned 22. I’m not directing this to you, but wow – Yankee fans are impatient. They love to label young players without even giving them a real chance. It’s amazing to me that just a few starts from earlier this season completely wipe out what we saw from a 21 year old last year.
I certainly acknowlege that Phil to this point appears to be injury prone, but he has had no arm problems (which Joba has had – yes, his current injury is mild, but still……). Anyone can pull a hamstring and sprain an ankle – they are not career-affecting injuries, nor is the rib fracture.
I think people have fallen in love with Joba because he’s a fireballer and, therefore, have fallen out of love with Phil because he’s not. I find that fans have very little patience with Phil. It’s really a shame. This kid has terrific stuff and a good repertoire plus he’s got a great head on his shoulders. I almost get the feeling sometimes that some fans want him to fail.
name one pitchers big money contract of over 5 years that has been worth it.
I am happy Arod finally hit a HR when we needed it.. he needs to play the song “this is why i am hot” more often..
Doreen-
I agree I think Mike wants to go out on a postive note. He doesn’t want to go through a season like last year, and I know he doesn’t want to go through a season like Glavine is going through.
I think if he wins 20 he’ll retire.
Pavano is coming up this weekend.. i cant wait.. just hope he doesnt get a blister from the bench..
randy
The Yanks picking up 2 games might be of some concern but
the half game lead in the WC over the Twins/White Sox can’t be making for a comfortable feeling in Boston either.
Y’s Guy
Mike Mussina
Jennifer, thanks for posting.
Nuff said about Melky; that says it all.
If Moose retires, perhaps he wants to end on a good note. I don’t blame him a bit.
While I think Phil needs another start in AAA, if the Yankees bring him up for a Saturday start in the majors, I think they must be fairly confident that last night’s start was just due to a dead arm and that his stuff and command are generally there. I would imagine they’d listen to what Nardi recommends.
Depending on what moves are made over the winter, Mussina will be offered a reasonable 1-year deal with incentives and Pettitte much the same.
Hughes, Kennedy, or no young pitcher will be handed a job in spring training. It’s earn it or work on what’s needed to be worked on at AAA.
moose is not ready to retire.. he wants HOF.. he will need to win at least 275 or better to get in
Doreen, you are very right that it’s possible for a comeback. But looking at the body of work that the Yankees have produced over the first 4 and a half months make it hard to all of a sudden play so much better over the final 6 weeks of the season. This next road trip to Tor. & Bal. should provide some evidence as to whether they are really headed in the right direction.
Doreen, I totally agree about Phil. You guys know by now that I am his biggest fan, so I am truly hoping he succeeds. He’s a good kid besides being talented. One good thing – he’s not like Ian in that he doesn’t read the papers nor does he pay much attention to what people are saying about him. If he did, he might get the idea that he can’t pitch, LOL
Mike Mussina will DEFINITELY be back in the Bronx next year.
Fire that fake manager call Joe! we need the real Joe back.. i rather see my boy Sweet Lou, any day..
Jennifer -
When you went to Toronto, did you stay in the Rogers Center? We did, and as a result, we got to see at least parts of every game while we were there. It’s just so cool to sit behind plexiglass above centerfield, sipping a drink or having a coffee, watching the game. Paradise! Only thing wrong was the Yankees weren’t in town at the time. (My husband gets his vacation from work the 1st 2 weeks of August. Believe me, we wish we could have gone this week instead!)
mussina should be with Jason next yr.. he will be a flop like tommy glavine.. they throw abt the same speed..
Derek
In general I agree about negotiating ploys but in Mussina’s case, I don’t.
ok ill give you that one although his $88M didnt break that bank, it was a good one. it still pales in comparison to the # of them that have been disasterous. and cc will want twice what moose got.
“Also, A-Rod needs to bat third, and move Abreu to fourth. You have to do something to try and get Alex out his slump. And Abreu is the team’s best clutch hitter.”
I wonder how good Abreu is without ARod’s protection….
Derek -
I know. It’s a longshot for the “real” offense to show up at this point. And too many teams in the mix – so much has to break right. But the season lasts another 6 weeks, and at least I’m hoping it will be an interesting 6 weeks.
Betsy -
Worst thing a young player can do is read the papers! Or most players, for that matter. Newspapers and fans blow with the wind.
i would have flipped arod and abreu a few weeks ago, but now that matsui’s coming back, i’d leave them 3 and 4 and put godzilla 5th.
“The thing about baseball, Derek, is that you really never know until the fat lady has sung who is going to come out on top.”
… and you just hope it’s not the fat lady.
Pat, Just wondering why? I know he comes off as a somewhat different brand of athelete, but I can’t see anyone retiring after a season like this one. He has 16 wins and should probably have 17 or 18. Given the stuff he has this is the best season of his career.
im pretty suprised they’re ready to bring pavano back so soon. he ran out of gas early in his first 2 appearances, obviously didnt yesterday, but id like to see him pitch at least one more in scranton before we bring him up.
As far as CC goes, the Dodgers don’t usually give out those kind of contracts, and if they go after Sabathia, they won’t be able to resign Manny. The Angels need a bat more than pitching,as they are loaded, and they might need a closer if KRod leaves. The only other West Coast team who might make a play for him are the Padres.
i think its too early to have godzilla hit 5th.. leave nady there and make him hit 6 or 7th.. nady has proved he can hit..
If Pavano isnt ready to pitch 6-7 innings yet, put him in the pen. He has one month left on a 4 year deal, and we certainly arent bringing him back, so why keep him down. Our pen needs a breather, so 3-4 innings from him should be ok. UNless he gets drilled of course, then we get a mob together and run him out of town.
Oh and Matsui will be a great addition back for the team hitting. He is major clutch.
Doreen,
I’m holding out hope only becasue they have 6 games left vs. Boston and Tampa. You NEVER know!
Yanks need CC and Mark Tex, next year, i would even go after my Big brother favorite player Manny..
ok, Matsui is coming back. What happens to young Mr. Gardner?
Doreen- No I stayed at the Sheraton.
I agree I don’t think Mike would use staying at home with his family as a negoitating ploy. Heck the man still lives in the town he grew up in.
Randy l -
JohnC -
I don’t think Manny necessarily wants to return to the Dodgers, anyway.
Carl Pavano will NEVER be ready to pitch 7 innings for the Yankees. …and stay healthy.
Going after Manny would be an interesting call. You have to balance “Pinstripe Pride” (for lack of a better term, and unwillingness to type pages about what being a Yankee should encompass) and “Manny being Manny” with what having Manny in the lineup with ARod could mean.
I rather see Pavano than Rasner anyday..
Yankee Pride some of the “yankees already given up there pride”, Melky is one, i bet he didnt think he would have been sent down..
In order to compete with the Angels, the Dodgers will have to make some decent signing. The Angels are probably going to be going after Teixeira hard being that they gave up their firstbaseman to get him.
Its going to be an interesting off season with CC, Teixeira, Manny, Giambi, K-Rod, Abreu…
im pretty suprised they’re ready to bring pavano back so soon.
the Yankees actually HAVE to bring Pavano back. once a player goes out on a rehab assignment, and the assignment is over, the Yankees have to put him on the 25 man roster or come up with a valid reason not to.
it’s the rules.
I am very worried about CC here in NY. For some strange reason, Cali guys to not have great careers here (Perhaps they are too laid back?). Who was the LAST guy from Cali to have a Hall Of Hame career in NY? Ricky Henderson, that is who. I would rather have Tex (Unless Bora$$$$$ wants $200m and opt out clauses, then forget it). I would just as soon keep my draft picks, cut payroll, and bring in Matt Holliday in July 2009.
the yankees did ok with David Wells.
what a crazy argument.
“I would just as soon keep my draft picks, cut payroll, and bring in Matt Holliday in July 2009.”
Why not try to acquire him in November 2008 and keep him for all of 2009?
Also, to answer what happens to Gardner now that Matsui is back, my guess is he gets to be the #1 defensive replacement/pinch-runner in favor of Justin Christian. Also, Matsui presumably can’t even DH every day, so there will probably be games where Damon is DH and Gardner plays the field.
Clearly the Yankees need to do heavy recruiting in Michigan and Oklahoma so we can get more True Yankeesâ„¢
@David Brown
Nady, Hughes, Giese, and Giambi are all from California. They have all played well at some time or another in their Yankee careers.
Additionally, Matsui, Damon and Nady would all be free agents in 2009 so it wouldn’t stop the Yankees from going after someone like Matt Holliday because they would have the cash and be looking for young outfielders.
Joe DiMaggio was born and raised in California.
Not a Yankee, but Ted Williams was a SoCal kid who did pretty well playing in a major East Coast city.
Joe Dimaggio? What year is it?
So….
Players from California=bad??
FYI
“Josh Hamilton adds another milestone to his amazing season by joining Barry Bonds as the only hitters in the past 60 years to receive an intentional walk with the bases loaded”
Pitching matchups for Toronto:
Rasner vs. Burnett
Pettitte vs. Purcey
Ponson vs. Halladay
For all the hitting the Yankees did yesterday, the fact is that when the Royals threw the only two decent starters they have, the Yankees did nothing with them. If they can jump on Burnett or Halladay, I’ll feel a little better about getting back into this race.
Just imagine a playoff rotation of Sabathia/Joba/Wang.
#4 being Pettite/Moose/Hughes depending on what happens between now and then.
I just peed a little thinking about it.
HOLYYY SHNIKE.
Yanks got about 80mil coim off payroll this offseason.
& they REALLY, need to sign only 3 players, who all happen to be SP. Anything else wpould just be icing on the cake.
CC
Moose
Petitte
anyone else worried that the Brewers may be burning out CC
this year?
JJ, They are running that horse into the ground, baby!
“anyone else worried that the Brewers may be burning out CC
this year?”
Yeah, its been discussed. He also had a lot of mileage on that (young) arm before this.
It is something the Yankee staff is going to really have to evaluate before they sign him to a long term deal, but he shows every indication of being a horse.
anyone else worried that the Brewers may be burning out CC
this year?
Maybe in year 3-5 of the 6-7 year deal they will offer him, but in the next two or three i wouldnt worry. And i think we all agree we dont want to worry about winning 6 years from now, and we want to win much sooner than that.
“Josh Hamilton adds another milestone to his amazing season by joining Barry Bonds as the only hitters in the past 60 years to receive an intentional walk with the bases loadedâ€
Interesting move, but one I’d generally disagree with. I suppose one could argue the end justifies the mean, but what Maddon did was allow the winning run to get to the plate. Fortunately for him, Marlon Byrd torments only the Yankees and Boston.
Derek
“Pat, Just wondering why?”
I just don’t see Moose as being someone who would stick around for just a money grab. He strikes me as someone who would continue to pitch if he was still having fun and thought he could compete. He would expect to be fairly compensated but it would be about more than the money.
Pat,
You are absolutely correct, and he has pitched like someone that can definitely compete. He will be back next year and I think he will get to 300 in 2010 and then retire.
remember CC is like Clemens in the fact he is a big man.. alot of pitches still use there legs just as much as there arms.. CC will be fine he is abt 275, (being very nice on the weight).. lol
OK, Its official. Fox Sports says the Yanks won’t make the playoffs.
http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/s.....8;MSNHPHMA
Now maybe the guys can relax and go out and win the WC.
Moose isnt that good to win 300games.. i think we as fans have been spoiled this year.. yankees wont sign him again.
“anyone else worried that the Brewers may be burning out CC
this year?”
A little. This will be his second consecutive 240+ inning season. Factor in postseason, and you’ll have a guy with 500+ IP over two seasons. Tribe was somewhat careful with him early on as he averaged about 194 IP per season over his 1st 6 years, hitting 200 only once. They road him pretty hard last year (and he was cooked by the postseason) and the Brewers are going to ride him home this year, but he’s a big guy, has a pretty easy motion and should be able to handle it. He’ll be looking for 6-7 years. To me, anything after a 4th year could prove disasterous, but that’s the risk you take for 4 “ace type” seasons.
There’s a report that the Marlins are selling house again.
YESSS !!!
anybody interested in the talent the Yanks could steal for cheap prospects ?
Uggla, Willingham, Cantu, Jacobs, Hermida, Olson,etc. basically anyone not named Hanley Ramirez is available.
http://www.miamiherald.com/1262/story/645426.html
“The Yanks picking up 2 games might be of some concern but
the half game lead in the WC over the Twins/White Sox can’t be making for a comfortable feeling in Boston either.”
I’d think they are a lot more concerned over the Twins/White Sox issue right now than they are about the Yankees.
Going after Manny would be an interesting call. You have to balance “Pinstripe Pride†(for lack of a better term, and unwillingness to type pages about what being a Yankee should encompass) and “Manny being Manny†with what having Manny in the lineup with ARod could mean.
This one is easy, No. Especially w/ work ethic being the main objective w/ a 35 yr. old seeking his last contract. No.
a 5 game winning streak …will be only a START to a road back…..the next game ( on the road ) will be another GUT CHECK for these “stars”….
Pete, out of all the emails you received, you posted 7, 2 of which required terse, sarcastic replies that don’t take a beat writer’s inside knowledge to answer. Good job…
There’s a report that the MArlins are having another fire sale.
YESS !!!!!
anyone not named Hanley Ramirez is available.
& everyone who is available can be had for cheap prospects.
The Marlins have a lot of good MLB ready talent, unlike we do.
http://www.miamiherald.com/1262/story/645426.html
Beat the Jays twice and call me in the morning!
beating the jays twice wont prove anything if they go to Bmore and get swept..
Report,
MARLINS ARE HAVING ANOTHER FIRE SALE !!
anyone not named Hanley Ramirez is available.
shweet
Even if the Yanks don’t sign him, Moose is going to pitch somewhere next year. I think he will win 300 before he retires.
We will lose Tuesday (score 0 or 1), crush them Wednesday and beat Halladay 2-1 Thursday.
The Yankees would be absolute fools to bring back Giambi for another season.
The opportunity is there to cut ties.
The only chance he has is to accept a minor league deal with a spring training invite plus his $5M buyout or hope another team wants to chance him. Age and injuries have caught up. Time to turn the page.
Giambi could get a major league deal for decent cash with a near .400 OBP especially when his average is like .250 so he has a .150 points from just walking.
So heres a crazy idea I’ve been thinking of for the past few days. The Yankees need a center fielder for next season, what if they move Jeter to CF and sign Rafael Furcal to play SS. I think Jeter has enough range to play CF and his arm is certainly good enough.
Furcal had a major injury this season but he has a lot of talent. He can hit for average, power, steal bases and he’s a very good fielder. Before he had the injury this season it was looking like he was going to have a career year.
There are multiple problems with my plan (Furcal’s health, he will cost a lot, would Jeter be happy moving?) but I think its an interesting idea to consider.
“Giambi could get a major league deal for decent cash with a near .400 OBP especially when his average is like .250 so he has a .150 points from just walking.”
Yeah he could get that deal, as long as it’s not with the Yankees then great for him. 2 out of 3 against Toronto and Baltimore is what this team needs. Baltimore series looks dicey considering Rasner and TBA are two of the 3 starters–Yankees haven’t done too well in TBA’s games this year.
“So heres a crazy idea I’ve been thinking of for the past few days. The Yankees need a center fielder for next season, what if they move Jeter to CF and sign Rafael Furcal to play SS. I think Jeter has enough range to play CF and his arm is certainly good enough.”
Jeter didnt move for A-Rod, so i dont think he’ll move for Rafeal Furcal.
Jeter will never move to center field, it would be like admitting he couldnt play up to jeterian standards anymore. But the idea of adding some grinders works. Not a single post about trading Cano today?
Phelps Phan I posted that yesterday.
Apparently Scott Olsen Josh Willingham and Jeremy Hermedia will be available in the offseason and now if a team can get it through waivers.
Another guy and say what you want Yankee fans Gary Sheffield is available. (I sort of miss his bat) and the Yankees better c**k block Boston from getting him.
Patrick,
I don’t think Jeter will want to move to CF, and I think the plan begins and ends there…but, Furcal did play 2B for a while. The only scenario I could see Furcal in pinstripes would be if Cano was traded away in the offseason, and they landed Furcal on a cheaper/shorter deal to play 2nd instead of short. It’s not a crazy or bad idea, though, I just think Jeter will shoot down any conversation about switching positions.
Jeter to center field?! Are you out of your mind?!
So heres a crazy idea I’ve been thinking of for the past few days. The Yankees need a center fielder for next season, what if they move Jeter to CF and sign Rafael Furcal to play SS. I think Jeter has enough range to play CF and his arm is certainly good enough
No chance.
furcal has had constant lower back problems. i would not even think about going into the season counting on him as a starter.
“(I sort of miss his bat)”
I’m sure that Gary misses it, too, considering how it has vanished completely this year. His body is breaking down, his power is starting to dry up, and it is looking like the fork is hovering inches over his back, so I don’t think there is any reason for the Yankees to pay him to be grumpy and not come to grips with the fact that he’s almost done.
“Another guy and say what you want Yankee fans Gary Sheffield is available. (I sort of miss his bat) and the Yankees better c**k block Boston from getting him.”
Boston won’t claim him. He doesn’t offer them anything and he cost $14M in ’09. You wonder if Tampa might consider it, but probably not.
Brandon
The guy who is saying no way to Manny is advocating the Yanks claim Sheff to block Boston?
And if the Tigers say okay, he’s yours in a salary dump, then what?
Jeter to CF was mentioned in a Joel Sherman article over the weekend when he was essentially saying that if Brett Favre can be traded, why not DJ in 2010.
If Jete’s defense had continued to slide than there would be a better chance of this imo. He has been better this year though and he is about to cross over .300 for the season – even though it is all singles.
I’m not sure how much ego is wrapped up in a move like this – I was down here in DC when Ripken got moved from SS to 3B and it was a major major struggle and didn’t happen until about 2-3 years later than it made sense.
If we could just get Gardner to hit league average he could hold down the spot until AJAX is ready and we won’t have to deal with a bunch of A-Rod/Jete ‘who is the better SS’ crud.
Brandon, my bad
“Another guy and say what you want Yankee fans Gary Sheffield is available. (I sort of miss his bat) and the Yankees better c**k block Boston from getting him.”
where would he play ? They have two corner outfielders Bay & Drew, Youk(god i hate him) at 1B,& Big Sloopy at DH. even if they found a place for him to play it coudn’t be everyday & didn’t Sheff cry cause he doesnt feel like a real player when he DH’s, let alone not playing everyday.
Jeter didn’t move for A-rod but that was almost 5 years ago. Perhaps he realizes this team is very flawed and needs some significant changes. I’ve always thought Jeter was a better fit in CF and theres no shame in that as far as I’m concerned.
Even though Jeter has been basically league average in the field this season, he has never been great and he will continue to get worse as the years go by. I hope he can put the team before his own ego if they approach him with an idea similar to mine.
I don’t know if some of the west coast people listen to Jason Smith on Late Night (espn radio). He’s got some off the wall ideas, but he’s usually on target.
A couple of months ago Jay Gibbons (former Oriole busted for PED) wrote letters to every front office in baseball. He was begging for a chance, any chance, to prove himself. It was apparently a very personal, moving letter according to Smith.
Smith said that after the Mitchell Report a lot of the fringe guys haven’t been able to break back into baseball. Of course you still have guys like Tejada and Giambi playing, but that’s because they’re big money guys and the teams want to get their return.
Furthermore Smith doesn’t think that players associated with PEDs or the Mitchell report will get too many opportunities to play. Players like Sosa and Bonds are on the outside looking in.
Now Andy will be the one name, I feel, that will test that theory. I think the Yankees wouldn’t put the Mitchell Report into their thought process. I’d guess it’ll come down to health and whether or not Andy still has it.
So anyway, it was an interesting show and I think Smith’s theory made a lot of sense. I think Giambi gets one final big payday. A $5M payout!
Just for once, I’d like to see us beat Halladay. Why does this guy have his off days against everyone else except us?
and Andrew Furcal is a proven SS he’s not coming to another team to ride coat tails. His FA year he has playing SS in his mind, and before anyone saids anything yes he would turn down the Yanks if they told him move to 2B..The kid was from la Loma de Cabrera has been a SS all his life played in Da Jabon DR if anyone knows anything about De Jabon they play baseball to an extreme sun. Anyway point is he told his family he’ll play SS from now on. He didn’t like that the Braves moved him to 2B w/ his arm and range he hasn’t played there since 04′ and doesn’t intend on it anymore.
jeter in CF?? lol i heard it all
detroit will gladly give you shef’s bat back, maybe even throw in a few prospects to get out from under his $14M contract, considering he is DONE!
If for some reason Boston wants Sheff, they can have him.
a SS coming off lower back surgery? no thanks.
“furcal has had constant lower back problems. i would not even think about going into the season counting on him as a starter.”
2002 – 154 games played
2003 – 156 games played
2004 – 143 games played
2005 – 154 games played
2006 – 159 games played
2007 – 138 games played
2008 – 32 games played
So he’s had one major injury, I don’t see evidence of “constant lower back problems”
Brandon
The guy who is saying no way to Manny is advocating the Yanks claim Sheff to block Boston?
And if the Tigers say okay, he’s yours in a salary dump, then what?
Pat would you want the Red Sox to add another power bat ? especially now ? I’m not advocating we take him, I’m advocating we block him.
How about we get Sabathia and deal Kennedy in the offseason? That’ll work for me!
“Furcal had a major injury this season but he has a lot of talent. He can hit for average, power, steal bases and he’s a very good fielder”
“Very good fielder” is a tremendous stretch. So is “power”. Polite way of saying it is that he has good pop for a little guy. He has a career OPS+ of 96, which puts him squarely in the ordinary category as an offensive player.
This may seem impossible, but the Yanks could take the $80 million coming off this year and reach deals with CC, Sheets, Teixeira, and Dunn. You add two ace level pitchers (one with some injury history, but not the level of Pavano and Harden), an everyday 1B with a great bat, and you replace Giambi’s production with basically a younger version of him at DH.
i kinda miss winfield’s bat too, but he’d have about as much chance of helping this team as sheff would
Brandon, if we so much as put a claim on Sheff, the Tigers are going to dump his salary on us. Then we’re stuck with him.
“I’m not advocating we take him, I’m advocating we block him.”
I thought if you put in a claim and they say he’s yours for nothing there is no backing out. Sheff for $14 million next year. I’ll take my chances with Boston having him.
This may seem impossible, but the Yanks could take the $80 million coming off this year and reach deals with CC, Sheets, Teixeira, and Dunn.
CC = Yes
Sheets = maybe
Tex = No
Dunn = HELL NO (This is what we definitely need to stop getting)
“jeter in CF?? lol i heard it all”
I don’t understand these reactions at all. Why do you dismiss the idea immediately? Face it, Jeter is a below average SS at this point in his career. He’s having a good season but still that only puts him in the middle of the pack defensively.
One thing that he has always excelled at is catching fly balls. Do you think maybe that skill might translate well to CF? Hmmm…
Moving Jeter to CF and getting a better defensive SS with good offensive ability (Furcal) improves the overall defense of the team and solves a major problem (lack of a legit CF).
“I’m not advocating we take him, I’m advocating we block him.”
Can’t do it Brandon. You’d run the risk that the Tigers just let him go, at which time the Yankees would be on the hook for about $18M thru the end of next season.
power and defense arent furcal’s game, he’s an igniter. the dodgers collapsed when they lost him at the top of thier lineup, he was easily thier mvp the first few weeks. but c’mon, we’re talking BACK SURGERY on a ss here!
I rather have Manny instead of Dunn
I thought if you put in a claim and they say he’s yours for nothing there is no backing out. Sheff for $14 million next year. I’ll take my chances with Boston having him.
If it’s by trade you can block him. If it’s a FA pick up then that is the case.
IMO:
For us to get beack in yhis race we need to sweep 1 of the next 2 series and go no less than 2-1 in the other.
Then a sweep of Boston in NY would be a must. I really hope they have this in them, but at any rate…in 1 week we will realy know what is going to happen in the AL east..We must win 8 of the next 9 games……That is a huge order for these guy’s, but that is the predicament they put themselves in.
Did anybody hear Sterling’s call of Ransom’s HR yesterday? He called it a 2 run HR for Xavier Nady. Then Suzyn said to him “John that was not Nady. It was Cody Ransom.”
John answered “I don’t know where my head was. Ransom replaced Giambi. Nady wasn’t even up.”
I knew he was bad, but to not even know who is up..
We need to stop getting guys in their prime who play everyday, hit 40 homers a year and OPS .900 for their career?
And do you care to elaborate on why no Teixeira? You don’t want a guy who can OPS the same and play terrific defense?
there is no block, he already passed through waivers and nobody claimed him, b/c they knew the tigers would have let him go for nothing.
Brandon, I was just playing devil’s advocate more than anything on Furcal to 2B–makes sense that he would want to stick at short. And, bigjf, your scenario doesn’t seem impossible, it just is.
“If it’s by trade you can block him.”
Only way to block him is to put in a claim. If they put in a claim, their is a GREAT chance that Detroit would not pull him back and let the Yankees have Sheffield and his contract.
“jeter in CF?? lol i heard it allâ€
This discussion will probably be a few years off but it is a discussion that will be had.
Unless something terrible happens to Ortiz, I can’t see Boston signing Sheffield.
Add him to the list who won’t be able to get a contract again because of the Mitchell Report.
Sterling was just surprised to see all the offense hasnt happen much this year give him a break we all was happy..
there is no getting back in the race. we ARE in the race.
just win the next game and then do the same thing the next day.
“I rather have Manny instead of Dunn.”
I would agree, except Manny is older and more likely to decline at a faster pace. But it’s definitely a reasonable argument.
“If it’s by trade you can block him. If it’s a FA pick up then that is the case.”
Then how did the Yankees end up with Canseco? I thought it was a block gone wrong.
And do you care to elaborate on why no Teixeira? You don’t want a guy who can OPS the same and play terrific defense?
The Yankees FO is finally thinking w/ thier head and not the wallet
Teixeira = $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ bidding starts at 20 million !
You’re right, pat. If a team wants to dump a player and his salary, the qualifying team that put a claim on him is stuck with him.
I love the smugness of the guy above who posted “no trade Cano posts today”.
Yeah, he has a good weekend against KC, proves the theory that we all thought him and Melky together was part of the reason he sucked all year but in that posters eyes he’s finally shut up all his critics with one nice weekend.
Here’s the deal — if Cano finishes this season on a tear and we miss the post season, every Yankee veteran in the clubhouse should be allowed to kick Cano repeatedly in the head for playing like a dog and an immature child because his buddy was on the team with him and the team needed to demote his friend to get stupid Cano to focus.
If that’s the kind of headcase player you want to come to message boards crowing about, I feel sorry for you.
I don’t know how any fan can not be irate at Cano for the pathetic act he’s put on this season.
tex is great. but he’s not $20M for 6 yrs great.
ditto for cc at 7/$150M
Brandon, $20-25 million fits into the $80 million coming off. The only reason I could see them not going for it is if they are looking to lower the payroll significantly. I guess Ben Broussard would be available…
“Add him to the list who won’t be able to get a contract again because of the Mitchell Report.”
Add him to the list who won’t be able to get a contract because he has worn out his welcome everywhere he goes. What’s the record for most teams played for? Sheff is at 7 so far.
guys, lemme say this again:
Shef already cleared waivers!
there is no block, there is no claiming.
Y’s Guy, there’s big money coming off the books this year. This team ain’t the Marlins…
If everyone is so mad at Cano, theres a fella named Dan Uggla in florida who can be had for the right price, then you can do whatever you want w/cano.
so instead of paying the money for CC you rather resign Andy and Moose?
IMO:
If you move Jeter at all, it would be to 2nd, then trade Robbie.
The Yanks are obviously trying to reduce the payroll, I doubt they will replace the absurd contracts that are finally gone(Giambi, Pavano, Farnsworth) with new contracts that are equally terrible.
G.Love –
Let’s limit the number of people that can kick Cano at the end of the year to the players that have hit well w/ RISP and haven’t made new career highs in GIDP.
Cano will be unbruised.
Enough of the Cano hatred – the entire team has come up short so far.
uglla can rake the ball but the errors that come with that, esp at the big stage of Yankee stadium is alot harder than playing in the fish pond..
I think Marbury is going to have a breakout season this year.
G Love
You are pointing the blame in the wrong direction.
If sending Melky to SWB was the only way to get Robbie’s attention, the Yanks need to replace the manager and all the coaches too.
“The Yanks are obviously trying to reduce the payroll, I doubt they will replace the absurd contracts that are finally gone(Giambi, Pavano, Farnsworth) with new contracts that are equally terrible.”
COULD NOT AGREEE MORE.
Y’s Guy, there’s big money coming off the books this year. This team ain’t the Marlins…
Yet Hal and the main players that hold the money in the Yankees FO don’t want to do this anymore. It hasn’t worked and it’s going to be put to a stop. I know I hear the Tex is this great player NOT FOR 20 MILLION ! …. This team ain’t the Marlins but don’t expect them to continue to burn dollar bills for an unflexible option. There are alot of players that play a part in Tex not being a target.
Jesus Montero and Jorge Posada to name a few..You can’t expect Jorge to play C for the remainder of his career he’s going to need that 1B for his bat and health (namely the shoulder)
Why do you think replacing all that “big money coming off the books” with other long-lasting ginormous contracts is such a great idea? Has the formula of assembling a bunch of highly paid free agents ever paid dividends for the Yankees in the last 7 years that they’ve been trying to do it?
One big contract this offseason is enough. Pick your poison out of CC or Teixeira (I pick CC, personally). Also, people are mad at Cano due to mental lapses and lazy defense–so I don’t think Dan Uggla’s defense is going to win him any fans in NY, regardless of how many HR’s he hits.
Y’s Guy:
Great idea, but not doing that has put out of the race, get to 3 back in the WC, 5 in the Div, then we will be in th “RACE”.
pat,
Haven’t looked it up, but Lofton has to be right up there. I love that DHL commercial with the Lofton punchline.
Nice article in the Post about Jeter’s calm influence on the team. Talking about how this is Jeter time and the younger guys learning from him how to handle a (hopefully) playoff race. Especially after the Sherman hack job TK referenced earlier. I know the writers blame the copy editors for the lame headlines, but Sherman’s fingerprints were all over that one.
Fran -
I heard that. I don’t think Sterling’s head’s in the game anymore – at all. I would have to think there’s someone out there with talent and intelligence that would appreciate the gig and not take it for granted…
This is a damn good free agent class. You can’t tell me this team is just going to let payroll go and leave it there. This is not a small market team, and the farm system clearly isn’t there yet. I’m glad that this organization has taken to valuing the prospects more, that way when the real deal does come along, he’s not necessarily with some other team, but these kind of FA’s, especially the ones that fill areas of need, should not be ignored.
I’d target Hermidia, Willingham or Salty before I’d target Uggla. No offense but I saw his faults.
The notion of moving Jeter to center field is not just a matter of whether or how much his SS play has deteriorated. Jeter has skills that are important for center fielders to have. Not only does he catch fly balls and have a preternatural ability to predict where the ball is going to be, he’s not afraid of walls. But perhaps most importantly and never discussed here, he keeps the players around him aware of what’s going on. Whenever he’s out (maybe the reason people don’t notice much is that he’s rarely out) you see the other infielders, including AR, throwing the ball to the wrong place and consistently miscommunicating. The CF is the captain of the outfield just like the SS is the captain of the infield. If Jeter was out there we’d see a lot less of the OF miscommunication that has been way too common. I think there is merit to considering the possibility that when Jeter is done at SS the team might make good use of his skills in CF.
If the yanks get CC and TEX and make a move to upgrade CF with the likes of Kemp, McLouth, ect.
We would be talking about the one of the greatest teams to ever be assembled at least on paper.
If each player as an above their career average type of year they would be the best team ever. Better then 27′ Yankees.
Bottom line is Cashman needs to find a way to fix the lineup. We have too much age, bad defense, terrible with RISP/fundamentals, inept against lefties, no speed, etc.
We cannot go into the season with this same core that is on pace to score 200 less runs than last year (and Abreu who has been our best player might be gone and Giambi is definitely gone).
So if Cashman wants to stay away from a Teixeria contract then he has to be prepared to deal prospects (even good ones) for some young hitters and find some decent role players as well. This is his biggest challenge. CC won’t make much of a difference with this inconsistant offense next year (a year older), just like Santana wouldn’t have this year.
Sterling is cooked – I don’t know if his vision stinks or he has just lost his focus.
I would guess he will hang on for the first year in the new stadium and then we will get someone who actually pays attention to the game rather than focus on his campy HR calls.
too bad paper dont win games.. look at the Tigers and there great paper team.. lol
preternatural is a cool word – I salute you Joey!
Get Cano’s head in the game and he is one of the best. Just a matter of smacking him around a bit.
everybody thought the giambi 7 year contract was great when they signed him, too.
IMO:
Getting Hideki back now will not help this team…..
This is a damn good free agent class. You can’t tell me this team is just going to let payroll go and leave it there. This is not a small market team, and the farm system clearly isn’t there yet.
Yeh FA like Milton Bradley and CC Sabthia and Oli Perez and Casey Blake (who can stop gap at 1B until Montero gets to the majors). We also have a glut that were trying to stay away from. Matsui, Damon, Georgy (they all will use DH and 1B part time)
Anyway CC is a priority, Tex isn’t.
mel
Good call with Lofton. He’s had a lot of 1 year contracts so he’s probably played for 7 in the last 7 years.
IMO, the only way Mussina comes back is if we sign Sabathia and show we are committed to winning. I don’t think he wants to be apart of another rebuilding year when he can get multi-year deals from NL teams who have an easier road to the playoffs.
Did we ever have a chance of getting Torri Hunter I can’t remeber?
God that guy is one of the best CF’s I have ever seen play (25 years old)
Just imagining him in pinstripes in CF makes me drool
big apple
guess you can stop droooling we wont get him..
Well, Montero hasn’t proven to be for real yet, but I can live with that Posada to 1B argument. Still, these FA’s are proven players who have remained healthy (except Sheets to a point). The Yanks have spent big money foolishly in the past, on old pitchers, Pavano burned them, Jaret Wright, Igawa was a foolish attempt to counter Matsuzaka, Giambi was a known juicer (whose contract has worked out for the Yanks, to an extent). The problem isn’t that they’re spending big money, it’s that they’ve tossed it around foolishly in the past.
These guys we’re talking about this year are legit superstars. Obviously I can’t tell them how to spend the money, but I think these are guys worth going after, since they are proven, in their prime, and healthy, especially when more money is coming off with Matsui and Damon.
I never saw Uggla as the answer to 2B. The Yanks need someone with defense. I can put with a fewer homers & RBI for a better fielding percentage. I’ve always liked the O-Dog, but idk, i dont see the yankees going for small names this offseason, with the 80mil coming off the books, and the big names. i kinda hoped they would be looking for a different mold of players other than superstars. I think they should only be thiking of adding 1 maybe 2 players this offseason. CC & Casey Kotchman from ATL. & the O-Dog ONLY if they get rid of Cano, but i dont think they should quit on him.
I know but when he moved from Minnesota to LA I can’t remeber if the yankees were involved in trying to snatch him up
Doreen and TK – I think that Sterling’s head is just not in the game anymore. When you listen to him you are never really sure where the ball actually is because he doesn’t know! At least on TV I can see it for myself. The games have become unlistenable on radio.I really think that the Yanks should think of having someone else in the booth with him who can do play by play.
So, getting back a good hitter to add to a lineup that has been floundering and unable to drive runners in or do anything productive, will not help the team? This is not exactly like when Matsui came back in September 2006 when the team was clicking and his addition threw everything out of sync. This team can use any help it can get. Honestly, if his knee holds out for a few weeks and he helps them win a few games, that will be something considering nobody thought he was even coming back again this year.
lets get one thing straigh, uggla is not a second baseman, he’s a dh playing in the national league. if you watched the all star game you got an idea of what kind of 2b he plays.
Go after one of the Florida OFs, Saltalamachia, and Kemp.
matsui is the best hitter on this team.
Hideki is not MLB ready and asking him to hit aginst Burnette and Roy is not going to help the Yanks IMO. He will need at bat’s to be ready he has had BP and 8 at bat’s. This will mess up the new line-up, with Gardner in CF. I just don’t think it will help right now, I hope I’m wrong.
Y’s -
I would guess that that all-star performance cost him a lot of money – it is one thing to hear a guy stinks defensively – it is quite another to see how inept he is on the big stage.
Matsui will help. He knows how to hit with people on base, unlike the rest of the team.
we dont need a corner OF.
we have Damon, Nady, & Matsui.
Damon cant play CF full time so add a 4th outfielder to the mix.
tim, who you gonna put in the lineup instead of matsui’s, betamit or chritian?
Who do you suggest leaves to make room for Hideki??
I see a lot of man love for Saltalamacchia (sp?). Please explain?
So let me get this straight, you’d rather have Gardner in the lineup to face Burnett and Hallady instead of Matsui, because you think Hideki will be too rusty to be productive? What “new lineup” is he messing up? The one that had one good game offensively, but otherwise stunk up the joint on Friday and Saturday? I don’t think anyone is expecting him to be the savior, but it’s addition by subtraction, no offense to Brett Gardner who did a nice job this weekend–but his talent kind of pales in comparison to Matsui’s abilities with the stick.
garner. i love the kid but he’s no matsui. damon in cf is tough, but with gardner for a late inning replacement and/or pinch runner we address the lack of clutch hitting that has plagued this team since matsui left.
Britton
Christian may go down for matsui
Please don’t get me wrong, I know Hideki is great (when Healthy) this KC series would have been a better test to me, not on the road and artificial surface in Toronto, with AJ and Roy.
“Who do you suggest leaves to make room for Hideki??”
Chris Britton?
mel –
As a purely marketing angle – the nickname ‘Salty’ is GOLD!
(and you thought moose bars were a snack sensation!)
congrats on the LL win for the Hawaiians.
does toronto have artificial turf batter’s boxes?
funny thing with all this talk abt Bret.. i bet with our fearless leader Joe.. he will start in Center and Damon will be on the bench again, and just like before we all will ask why is he sitting…
Andrew:
Gardner has just start to hit the ball, and bunting…..Here we are again with now fundamental player’s in the line-up.
for 1B i can see Posada / low buget defensive player. I also wanna see Jose Molina catching Mussina & Petitte, giving posada 2 days of rest a week. We all see how good of a game Molina calls for Moose.
dont act like the team you saw yesterday is how they always are. they always get shut down by burnett. they need all the good hitters they can get and ill take dh matsui over cf gardner for the time.
world series game 7;
yanks down a run in the 9th with the bases loaded;
who do u want up there?
i’d take matsui.
Y’s Guy:
If Hideki does get a hit, does he have a have someone running for him at home plate?
hey Phelps
i dont think Moose will be back next year.. we need more lefties..
Who leaves? Justin Christian or Cody Ransom. Or, if they don’t want Gardner collecting dust while Matsui plays, then they can send him back to Scranton until the rosters expand. Either way, though, it’s not like Matsui will be able to even DH for every game throughout weeks–he will have rest days just because I don’t think they will push his knee too aggressively and mess it up worse than it already is.
I do definitely agree re: bringing him back in Toronto, though. I was surprised they didn’t have him wait until this weekend in Baltimore to come back just to avoid the turf, but since he isn’t playing the field I guess they figure only running the bases won’t make much of a difference on turf.
i just hope hideki dont go 0-3 with 3 k’s Wednesday you guys will be ready to send him down to hit with melky
If Joe sits Damon again after a day off against a quality pitcher, he will need to watch him back on the next hometrip.
Y’s Guy:
If we get to the WS, I’m with you…9 back Div, 5 1/2WC back and slipping……
“hey Phelps
i dont think Moose will be back next year.. we need more lefties..”
really ? even if he wins 20 games ?
TK,
Thanks! Win or lose the next game, they’re into the next round.
Did you hear about the Mexican pitcher? Perfect game, struck out every batter, AND he hit a grand chorizo. Yowza.
“dont act like the team you saw yesterday is how they always are”
Exactly. Think to Friday and Saturday when they could do nothing with Meche and Greinke, the two legit MLB starters on the Royals. Beating on the miserable Brian Bannister and assorted bullpen punching bags doesn’t mean much. Just ask the Red Sox how well beating on crap pitching served them when the Blue Jays followed Texas into town.
“Here we are again with now fundamental player’s in the line-up.”
But it’s silly to value playing a “fundamental player” over Matsui. And honestly, adding Matsui is adding a fundamental player to the lineup–I guarantee he could lay down a bunt if he had to and wouldn’t say “he didn’t feel comfortable” doing it afterwards. Granted, Girardi would never have Matsui bunt, but he knows how to play the game, and adding him to the lineup will help even if he’s rusty at first.
moose better fit in NL i doubt he will have another great season like this one.. sorry to say so.. i wont count on it next yr..
No question, Matsui should be in the lineup Tuesday instead of Gardner. Gardner has impressed the last 2 days, but I see him overmatched against Burnett tommorrow and Halladay on Thursday. Bst lineup is to have Nady in left, Damon in center and Matsui DHing.
The last time the Yankees score high in a game, i feel like they went on a nasty losing streak.
a ‘fundamental batter’ with speed who cant bunt?!?!
Andrew:
I agree I thought Balt, would have been a safer bet for Hideki. I agree maybe Ranson/Britton but in Toronto pitching is what we will need. Toronto has 10 more games against Boston and 9 with us…
if Joe sits Damon tomorrow night i think Hank and Hal will be on the first thing smoking to Canada..or he may even get a call in the dug out.. lol
Here’s my deal w/ people on the Gardner thing, when we have trouble playing smallball you cry for someone to do the little things then when you have that guy the minute a 15 -20 HR comes available you want him out the lineup, the other night GI Joe asked Damon to get a damn bunt down AND HE COULDN’T DO IT ! meanwhile w/ Gardner you have a player unproven but will literally run through a wall to do w/e you ask of him. Again WHAT DO YOU GUYS WANT !
I know one thing don’t start bit**ing about no small ball or bunts when Matsui forces Damon to be an everyday CF, this one is on you guys.
Retroclutch, these guys (Nady, Hughes, Giese, and Giambi), are NOT exactly what I refer to as Cooperstown material. I can expand this list if you like: Please give me a Giant, Jet, Knick, Net, Islander, Ranger, or Devil from California, that is a Hall Of Fame type player (Since Henderson retired?). David Wells (And Daryl Strawberry for that matter) had above average careers, but NOT Cooperstown bound.
If I am giving $20m to a player, they better be a player that will put my team over the top (Such as Jeter), puts up obscene numbers (Arod, or BETTER YET, BOTH. Sabathia will cost the OVER THAT. PS: Do you think Giambi is WORTH $20m?
our problem isnt an inablility to play small ball, our biggest problem is driving in baserunners and matsui is our best guy at that.
also driving home runners from 3rd with less than two out
again matsui’s our best guy at that.
How about a key guy who refuses to bunt?
I didn’t like how Joe deferred to JD’s veteranness by not calling the bunt because JD struggled with it (translate: balked) in a previous game.
In that extra inning game 1st & 2nd, zero outs, it’s your job to move the guys over.
also, i think matsui batting behind arod is gonna really help arod see better pitches
“moose better fit in NL i doubt he will have another great season like this one.. sorry to say so.. i wont count on it next yr..”
Right because it’s not like he hasn’t had a losing season since 1991 or won at least 11 games 17 seasons in a row. The lack of respect, and appreciation Moose gets from some Yankee fans is ridiculous.
mel, thats no slam dunk
damon has the highest avg on the team with RISP and jeter’s is very high too.
the book said bunt but considering our problem bringing in runners with RISP, its no sure thing either.
sorry meant to say * our problems bringing in runners on 3rd w/ less than 2 out.*
Toronto also has 6 games left against Tampa, that’s 25 game of the guy’s right in front of them with 30 something left to go and they have pitching…They are a much better team with Cito at the helm….I could be wrong and I hope I am, but having some speed in the line-up that has been playing everyday would be helpful. Puttuing Damon in CF significantly weeken’s the defense…
“I know one thing don’t start bit**ing about no small ball or bunts when Matsui forces Damon to be an everyday CF, this one is on you guys.”
For me, I don’t think the team needs to flat-out play small ball or bunt more. I want them to improve productivity with RISP and with men on base, period. If that could be improved by playing Brett Gardner full-time, I would be all for it. But, I don’t think that is the case. However, I think that Matsui will help the lineup in those situations based on his track record and his willingness to do whatever it takes to get runners home.
I understand that the loss will be Damon making 15-hop throws to the infield from center, and I can live with about 5 weeks of that if it means the offense gets going, which is the only real hope of saving this season anyway. I also don’t even know if Matsui’s knee will last, so I figure you have to take the chance to catch lightning in a bottle and put him in the lineup and see how it goes.
Y’s guy,
C’mon, you absolutely cannot argue this one. I see your point, but you got to go with the higher percentage play. A wild pitch, passed ball, sac fly, ground out, error on a pickoff throw, base hit, or a squeeze play scores a man from third. You would need a base hit or a crazy series of events to score a guy from second.
Furthermore, we’ve seen 1st & 2nd, zero outs go to a man on third, two outs.
How about a key guy who refuses to bunt?
I didn’t like how Joe deferred to JD’s veteranness by not calling the bunt because JD struggled with it (translate: balked) in a previous game.
In that extra inning game 1st & 2nd, zero outs, it’s your job to move the guys over.
It doesn’t matter to them mel, remember some of these posters are the same bozos that scream in the gamethread
Fire Girardi ! how can he not bunt ! (BECAUSE SOME PLAYERS JUST CAN’T DO IT !)
or if Damon throws the ball for a 16 hopper and runners run the merry go round on his arm. (OMG Damon’s arm sucks !) So many things, even GI Joe on his show said Johnny is feeling the wear and tear on his legs now they want that in CF just amazing.
i’ve always been in favor of solid OF defense but the way this team is not driving in runs, we have no choice but to put our best hitters in and hope damon’s defense doesnt kill us.
and we have gardner for defense once we get ahead late. and garder on the bench in late inning situations when we’re down gives us an excellent pr guy.
Gotta love the Yankees schedule. They play every day for what seems like months and hten they have 2 off days surrounding a 3 game set. It makes no sense.
Y’s Guy:
If Damon did the SAC bunt instead of trying to work the count, Christian is a 2nd, Jeter got a base hit, we win the ballgame. Small ball right now is a very important aspect to the game, that the Yanks won’t have.
We still poking fun at Santana these days????
brandon
i was (maybe the only one) on here defending joe for sitting damon in minny. i think his excellent year can be credited to a great extent to joe’s resting him regularly. now i say start him in cf 5 days a week, dh him one and give him one day off to get the most out of our offense.
i know people are panicking b/c we are behind but there are alot of games left and you cant expect damon to play every day. at the same time, putting minor leaguers in the lineup everyday is not gonna help our offensive problems.
Here is an idea. Why not try Nady at 1st base like Girardi did yesterday? Then you can have Damon in left, Gardner in CF and have Matsui DH. Bench Giambi.
Timothy why do you bother don’t you know Matsui gonna blow the doubles record away when he returns, Damon is gonna have 7 assists from the OF, watch all this happen, Matsui back 11 runs per game I say !
i dont think matzui should bat behing arod.. i like Nady there..
tim,
true at that point in the game, but if he hadnt left, what 13 runners on base before that, we wouldnt have been in that situation.
Let’s remeber who is pitching for us, Rasner and Sidney have been good but our defense has kept us in his games.
We just got a line-up that offer’s small ball, and we had it for 3 games of which we won 2. Now we are gonna go back to what has us in this position, nobody to move over a runner. I’m not saying Hideki won’t help, but putting him in line-up hurts in other spots that we have been getting better at defense and speed in the line-up…..
i LOVE small-ball, but this team needs to be able to play big ball first. small ball includes moving runners and having productive outs, which the guys other than gardner have shown they cant play. you have to have the right guys to play small ball and we dont.
and remember, christian, who is apparently now mr. small ball, can’t even bunt.
Y’s Guy meanwhile that kid from the minors for whatever reason has already helped us pick up 2 games in the chase vs the WC Red Sox. Again hey choose what you want that kid got the GW on Saturday when the WHOLE FRICKIN’ OFFENSE WAS AIMING FOR THE 3RD DECK. I KNOW THAT BECAUSE I WAS THERE !
you’re crediting yesterday’s win to small ball?!?!
“i was (maybe the only one) on here defending joe for sitting damon in minny.”
Y’s Guy:
It was inexcusable not having Damon in the game. Don’t want to hear about the need for rest when two off days within a week of that game were afoot.
id rather drive in runners in the 6th than depend on bunting to win it in the 10th.
Next year we clear $20mil for Giambi and we can replace that with a contract for Texiera. I say we choose Moose or Pettite, not both (unless one is willing to come back for under $10 mil). Pettite isn’t worth $16 mil. anymore. We also clear Pavano off the books to put that money towards CC. I may be crazy especially because it’s not my money, but we should be able to sign Texiera and CC without increasing the payroll too much. I also think we can resign Abreau for less money (2yrs-$24 mil. or so).
Damon
Jeter
Texiera
ARod
Abreau
Cano
Posada
DH
Gardner
Rotation
CC
Wang
Mussina or Petitte
Joba
Hughes
I’m talking about Saturday when a an actual SP shuts you down.
blah:
Now that is a good idea, but I doubt Joe G will do that.
Brandon,
I was puzzled by your Brett love. Now I know why, he released your from your Yankee Stadium incarceration.
BTW, what’s so appealing about Salty that you want to trade for him? No one has answered and I can’t figure it out myself as he is hovering above the Mendoza line and lost the starting job to Laird. That’s Gerald Laird, folks. Please explain so I can fall in love, too.
“Let’s remeber who is pitching for us, Rasner and Sidney have been good but our defense has kept us in his games.”
Say what??? This is one of the 5 worst defensive teams in baseball.
id rather drive in runners in the 6th than depend on bunting to win it in the 10th.
And then people like you wonder why they can’t score, this team w/ that method will never ever equal what a team like Minnesota or the Angels can do.
Y’s Guy:
No not yesterday but Fri & Sat, Sat small ball and fri would have been……..
get me furcal, chone figgins and jose reyes and then ill be the small-ball king.
we dont have small ball players, if we did, we wouldnt be making first round exits every postseason.
i was a huge fan of the cards in the 80′s when i went to college at mizzou.
but we dont have guys who can play that. nobody cant bunt, nobody makes productive outs. we dont have the tools for that game.
Fredo Corleone:
Yes one of the 5 worst? Gardner wasn’t playing CF for those stats.
I was puzzled by your Brett love. Now I know why, he released your from your Yankee Stadium incarceration.
mel I wish you were there seriously everyone on that field tried to hit a 900 foot HR, you saw so many F’n uppercut swings w/ RISP that it made you wonder are they trying to play HR derby !
BTW, what’s so appealing about Salty that you want to trade for him? No one has answered and I can’t figure it out myself as he is hovering above the Mendoza line and lost the starting job to Laird. That’s Gerald Laird, folks. Please explain so I can fall in love, too.
catching upside/1B upside and is young and a good hitter w/ fundamentals. This season he’s been bad, you buy a guy like Salty when that stock is low especially if Texas is willing to deal.
All I’m going to say is this, Hideki was part of the RBI’s last YEAR!!! He’s not healthy has a bump wheel, maybe leave the line-up alone and pinch hit him off the bench. Adding him to the line-up right now is a mistake IMO. Like I said I could be wrong, but going back to what we had in Jun and Jul is what’s gonna happen. Especially now he has had 8 real at bat’s in the minor’s…. He’s not ready…
So i was looking at the remaining shedule this morning. It seems like Minny has the easiest path to the playoffs. So it looks like we have to hurdle chisox and bosox to make the playoffs. I still think that Tampa is going to go into a long losing streak. Who thinks we still have a shot at the wild card?
BTW. With Melky being demoted. It looks like it wiped the smirk of off Cano’s face. He seems to be more business like. As some have pointed out about his party rep. Maybe he is getting more sleep and less hang overs. All i know is that the 2 amigos need to stay seperated. Maybe we can get maple bats for Melk in the offseason.
Fredo: Well, I guess that Johan figured to not trust the bullpen and just finish the job himself
but we dont have guys who can play that. nobody cant bunt, nobody makes productive outs. we dont have the tools for that game.
A guy like Brett Gardner does but lets throw him to the back of the scrap heap. Again it amazes me what this team has turned into. A stupid situational hitting team, w/ a couple of players that can play small ball and hit behind a runner. I loathe this roster for the way they try to force runs I hate fans that continue to call for superstar sluggers in every position then B**** about how a team like the Angels own us ! They don’t just beat us , THEY OWN US ! and soon Tampa will too !
how long did it take big papi to get his timing back, 2 days?
Actually our defense this year has been decent!
Brandon (FIRE LONG ! clapclap clapclapclap, Ian Kennedy for Lastings Milledge give me the piece I’ll pull the trigger)
August 18th, 2008 at 12:48 pm
Y’s Guy meanwhile that kid from the minors for whatever reason has already helped us pick up 2 games in the chase vs the WC Red Sox. Again hey choose what you want that kid got the GW on Saturday when the WHOLE FRICKIN’ OFFENSE WAS AIMING FOR THE 3RD DECK. I KNOW THAT BECAUSE I WAS THERE !
We picked up two games because Boston gave it up. A win is a win, but they still have to beat teams not from KC and win on the road since they would be the wildcard team if anything and facing the Angels. We know how that went last time.
i agree, i was against the all-star-at-every position idea all along. but this is what we have and you cant change it today and tell abreu, arod and giambi that from now on, we’re going with bunting and moving the runner.
this is the team we have, brett gardner, if he can even hit at this level, isnt gonna change that, especially considering he cant bunt.
this team needs to drive in runners, especially with 2 outs and especially with runners at 3rd with less than 2 outs.
matsui is our best hope to improve in our worst offensive areas, not brett gardner.
and garder is a weapon on the bench. (would be alot better weapon if he could bunt, but oh, well!)
We picked up two games because Boston gave it up. A win is a win, but they still have to beat teams not from KC and win on the road since they would be the wildcard team if anything and facing the Angels. We know how that went last time.
From what I see from this team and the lack of multiple ways they can score a run it is a bubble gum card lineup, it will never exceed in situational hitting because it’s not built for it. They just don’t know how to manufactor a run. The minute we get a non power threat who adds a different dimension to this roster the majority really like to write him off, why because they have no pop or because the replacement can drive it 350 ft. and it has never worked that way.
“Fredo: Well, I guess that Johan figured to not trust the bullpen and just finish the job himself”
I’m just busting balls on some who’ve been killing him this year. I still would not have done that trade, but to suggest he’s been bad, or that Mussina has pitched as well as he has, is just stupid. The guy has had a great year and has been screwed by his new teammates. To wit.
In his 11 wins, he has an ERA of 2.49
In the 15 starts in which he did not win: 0-7 with 2.95 ERA
He’s Top 5 in ERA and WHIP and #2 in innings pitched. He’s had a helluva year.
Seriously, if I were him, I’d just go for complete games the rest of the way; Mets bullpen be damned
Y’s Guy:
It took Big Papi 2 games, we don’t have the luxery of 2 games against Toronto. If we lose 2 to them guess what, they will be tied with us.
DAMMIT PEOPLE WE’RE YANKEES FANS!
wtf is this about bowing to the alter of the great angels?
and giving up cause it would be too hard to catch the freaking devil rays?
and the sox? have we become like the sox fans used to be, assuming that even if we catch them, we’ll fold?
get some intestinal fortitude people, theres alot of baseball left and enough time to catch these guys.
and if we pull it off and play well enough to make the wc, then GIVE ME THE ANGELS!!!!! im sick of those cali boys. time to reestablish the correct world order. they aint s(%&
I DON”T CONCEDE A DAMN THING TO ANY OF THEM!
Y’s Guy:
Then they will have a ton of incentive for the ROY game to go ahead.
Y’s Guy:
No one is conceding anything, this is not the time to change the LINE-UP again.
and if we pull it off and play well enough to make the wc, then GIVE ME THE ANGELS!!!!! im sick of those cali boys. time to reestablish the correct world order. they aint s(%&
They’ll kick our ass in 16 different ways and you know it
No one is saying “throw Brett Gardner back to the scrap heap”. The fact of the matter is, Matsui is coming back and he is going to play–why would he bother trying to play through pain and deal with a knee that needs surgery if all the team wants him to do is sit on the bench and pinch hit, because Brett Gardner and his small ball approach has made him a more valuable asset?
The way that anti-Matsui returning line reads is that because other guys have underperformed all season long with situational hitting and driving runners in, Matsui deserves to be punished by being kept out of the lineup because he’s just going to add to the problem instead of fixing it. And yet history and past performance dictate that he wouldn’t be part of the problem, but you say spit in history’s face and would prefer someone who can bunt and move runners over because you don’t want to see another overpriced former All-Star try to carry the team and fail miserably at doing so.
Isn’t this all just a little bit premature? All this chest-bumping over Brett Gardner losing at-bats? Seriously? Why don’t you people wait and see what happens before you are declaring Matsui’s return another bad addition to the lineup.
there has to be a place for Grander when this is all through. He’s earned it with his 2 game winning hits. his average is that bad because he had a terrible begining.
we finally get a “clutch” hitter, and no one thinks twice about throwing him on the bench.
This is a game of momentum they have just destroyed Boston in Fenway…We don’t have the best raod record, IMO we should leave the line-up alone, have Hideki off the bench in case we need a good situational hitter late to win. Our BP hasn’t exactly held leads before, so weekening the defense is not a good move. IMO
Andrew what I’d wish it be is a decision day by day rest between Damon and Matsui or Abreu and Matsui..it hasn’t gotten us anywhere. I’m tired of the bubble gum lineup give me fundamentals over slugging.
I actually think we can take the Angels.
Look last 2 years.
We have gotten the team we thought we could beat. And they turned around and whooped us. I think facing the tough team will force us to get into the game. I say, bring on the Angels.
Andrew:
Gardner just got back in the line-up and is helping, now you want to bench him for a rusty, unhealthy option that drove in 100 rbi’s LAST YEAR…..IMO that is a bad move.
“i dont think matzui should bat behing arod.. i like Nady there..”
If only that were true but Girardi hasn’t figured out that Giambi is not getting the job done batting behind Arod. So, Nady hasn’t been batting there anyway.
“No one is conceding anything”
have you not been reading this blog the past week? just about EVERYBODY has conceded.
nobody even complained about the tombstone!
“This is a game of momentum they have just destroyed Boston in Fenway…We don’t have the best raod record, IMO we should leave the line-up alone, have Hideki off the bench in case we need a good situational hitter late to win. Our BP hasn’t exactly held leads before, so weekening the defense is not a good move. IMO”
There’s no way Hideki stays on the bench. He’s the DH and #5 hitter starting tomorrow and that’s the best thing that could happen to the Yankees. Even if he doesn’t hit right away, just his presence in the lineup gives us something extra that Gardner can’t give us.
WAIT!! Gardner earned something with 2 game winning hits? Name someone on the team who hasnt had two game winning hits in their Yankee career? He is still under .200 and it will really take more than two games against the Royals loousy pitching to earn something. (While i was happy for his hit in boston off Pukelebon, it only made it through because pedroia dove too early. Lets not crown Brett yet.
I remember reading from these same poster’s “let the kids play” exactly let the KID play.
“and if we pull it off and play well enough to make the wc, then GIVE ME THE ANGELS!!!!! im sick of those cali boys. time to reestablish the correct world order.”
What the heck, I agree. We have to beat them eventually. In addition, everyone will expect them to win.
Also, if anyone is interested, great video on my blog about the real reason that Abreu is afraid of getting too close to the wall.
“we finally get a “clutch†hitter, and no one thinks twice about throwing him on the bench.”
did you mean matsui, an established clutch major leaguer or gardner, a guy who may or may not play 100 games in the majors?
Looking at all the teams’ we’re chasing schedules… we cannot afford to lose more than one game this week.
It’s that dire a situation right now.
jason needs Roids to get the job done.. since he cant have roids he using excuses like gold thongs a darn mustache, to look for power.. i cant wait till he is gone and takes pavano with him..
If Melky Cabrera were on this team would he be the everyday CF or now regulated to the bench ?
If Matsui is gonna be used in the lineup alternate his use
on one day Damon sits Matsui DH
on another Bobby sits Nady to RF, Matsui DH
on another Gardner sits, Damon in CF, Matsui DH
and on other days Matsui rests Damon DH, Nady LF, Gardner CF, Abreu RF
There is no point in benching the kid that is starting to get it and if he does becomes a dangerous starter/defensive upgrade.
My god let him lose his job first. These stars have to earn thier time don’t they ?
So you want Matsui, a guy who even WITH a bad knee was batting .323 with 7 homers and 34 rbi, who went onto the DL with that bad knee when he was tearing the cover off the ball, to sit on the bench? Should I also point out he’s batting .338 with RISP this season, including .424 in the 7th inning or later? I’d take my chances with the guy on one leg just knowing he was doing all that even when he was hurt, than a kid who has done well 2 games. I like my chances of winning more with Matsui playing than Gardner. I’m not saying Gardner is a scrub or anything, but I’d want to see Matsui any day of the week, even on one leg.
This is what happens when the yanks sign too many stars to long term deals. Towards the end you dont get the flexibility to do what you want wihtout hurting someone’s ego. I doub’t Abreu would give his job up to Matusi or garnder, but he should.
too many stars who aren’t producing. & Matsui DESERVES to play. he hit .323 so far. Matsui AS WELL AS garnder should both be playing, not one over the other.
If Gardner play’s we get 9 innings of defense, Hideki maybe 3-4 at bat’s…..The ball moves fast on the Jays outfield surface, Damon in CF, I don’t know if Hideki was totally healthy absolutely, with a balky knee….IMO it’s not the right move.
It will be a day by day thing, and I don’t think it can be anything BUT a day by day thing. Matsui isn’t going to be playing EVERY day–his knee is all kinds of messed up in spite of him coming back, and he will not be in the lineup day in and day out. He also could be gone again if his knee swells up or if his pain skyrockets after playing consistently.
Baseball is NOT a game of momentum because any supposed “momentum” changes in one inning or with one pitcher or with god knows what going on in a game. The rationale of “we have a 2 game winning streak’s momentum as reason to not change the lineup!” is not going to fly. Also, up until that abysmal trip out west the Yankees were one of the only teams in the league with an over .500 road record which means that not too many teams (except for God’s choice the Angels) have sparkling records on the road. And, finally, the bullpen HAS held leads all season long you are just plain wrong with that statement, the record when leading after 5 or 6 innings is pretty impeccable. The problem is the offense getting them leads.
We have gotten the team we thought we could beat. And they turned around and whooped us. I think facing the tough team will force us to get into the game. I say, bring on the Angels.
And nothing changes the Angels would have whooped us harder. They had situational hitting but Boston’s pitching was better and chances are they would have kicked our ass too.
This upcoming Jays series will give us an indication of whether a real run is coming.
The ball moving fast is the reason why we can survive with Damon in CF for 3 days. The speed of the hits will allow him some extra time to throw
Defense is important, but if they dont score, THEY LOSE!!!
Even if it is 1-0. I dont know about you, but i feel like AJ Burnett has utterly dominated the Yankees. We need every hitter we can get.
If he’s ready to pitch well enough to help and can carry his weight, I can see Pavano being used to help in the stretch run to the playoffs.
I wouldn’t cheer for Pavano specifically in any of his games with the big team, although I would be cheering for the team. It’s vaguely like applauding Jon Lester’s post-cancer no-hitter while not cheering the Red Sox, except it’s the other way around.
If he wins the Yanks win and it’ll help him get a contract elsewhere. That would be good for everyone involved but I just can’t consider him to be a true part of the team.
I would NOT want to see Pavano have the honor of starting the last regular season game in Yankee Stadium. Whether or not it turns out to be the last YS game ever, that would just be wrong. Whoever starts, Mo just HAS to be the final man to walk off the mound at the end of that game.
On Pavano pitching for this year’s Yankees:
I think it would be a disaster… You won’t find many people who multiple players in that clubhouse have PUBLICALLY torched in the media… But Pavano is one of them.
They are all “big boys,” but I don’t believe the potential return is anywhere near worth the risk… If push came to shove, I’d rather just designate Pavano and be done with him.
Andrew:
Excuse by no mean’s was I talking about our momentum, yes it is a game of momentum ask the Rockies about it.
Even if it is 1-0. I dont know about you, but i feel like AJ Burnett has utterly dominated the Yankees. We need every hitter we can get.
Then alternate Matsui w/ cold hitters instead of just trotting them on the field, example Giambi stinks w/ RISP he plays DH instead of wasting a spot put Matsui for Giambi, or on days Bobby needs rest because you can see Bobby is nearly spent out there use Matsui as the DH move Nady to RF and vice versa. Matsui here doesn’t mean that every but Gardner plays, have players earn thier time out there. And we all know Johnny can’t survive in CF we know that lets not act like he can.
matsui should have had season ending surgery but instead, because his team needs him, he rehabbed it, knowing he was still going to have to have surgery and rehab it again! risking his contract year!
BECAUSE OUR TEAM NEEDED HIM!
hideki matsui has more heart than anybody on this team not named jeter, mo or posada.
this team, which has shown no hear all year needs him much more than he needs this team.
he may not lead them to the playoffs, but he’s earned his pinstripes yet again.
funny thing is, if they told him that they thought they’d be better off with gardner in the lineup and him on the bench, he wouldnt say a word about it.
Andrew:
BP holding leads, ok in the past 3 weeks which games have you been watching?
Right except the Rockies actually carried their momentum for 2 months. A weekend series is a little different.
On NOT trading for Santana:
I was one of those most excited about the prospect… But I will tell you that I have COMPLETELY changed my mind after watching Santana pitch this season.
It has NOTHING to do with Hughes and what he will or won’t be, and it has nothing to do with what Melky has or hasn’t done – will or won’t do…
I know Santana just 3-hit the Pirates (who traded away all their best hitters at the deadline)… But has anybody else WATCHED this guy pitch????
His fastball is often at 90 now, and the few sliders he throws anymore are very rarely sharp. And this is the FIRST YEAR!
There is NO WAY I would want to be committed to 6 more years at $20 mil+ for THAT guy… NO WAY!
“on one day Damon sits Matsui DH
on another Bobby sits Nady to RF, Matsui DH
on another Gardner sits, Damon in CF, Matsui DH
and on other days Matsui rests Damon DH, Nady LF, Gardner CF, Abreu RF”
Although it makes sense, Girardi has already changed the lineup a million bagillion times & has gotten criticized over it. The Veterans dont like it.
What games have you been watching all season long? The bullpen struggles on a road trip and you are ready to say that they can’t hold a lead? That’s a good reactionary way to look at things. It’s convenient to ignore all those games earlier in the year where the bullpen didn’t actually cough up any leads.
Andrew:
Toronto’s momentum is waht I’m talking about, they won 5 out of 6, they beat Detroit and just beat Boston on the road, now they are home.
Andrew:
Check the schedule our next 6 games are on the road…..
Although it makes sense, Girardi has already changed the lineup a million bagillion times & has gotten criticized over it. The Veterans dont like it.
This is 2006 all over again except this time Melky is Brett Gardner and Sheff is now Hideki Matsui.
I’m not dogging Mo but let’s be real he has blown 2 in a row. And I believe 1 in Texas.
“This is 2006 all over again except this time Melky is Brett Gardner and Sheff is now Hideki Matsui.”
Which is why this cant happen again. Don’t sign so many stars.
Oh right so now that the next 6 games are on the road, the bullpen won’t be able to get anybody out again, that’s what I’m failing to comprehend. Thanks for clearing that up for me, I guess the venue will dictate how the bullpen will pitch.
Also, great for Toronto, maybe they’ll finish ahead of Baltimore in the standings. I don’t care about their momentum. The Yankees need to win games, and trying to bring fear into the hearts of fans because Toronto has won 5 out of 6 has nothing to do with the Yankees winning games.
So that’s 3 out of the last 12 games he blown it, ok I guess your right let me try to remember April and May instead.
this lineup thing is the biggest lie going. i guess pete thinks if he keeps saying it, people will believe him.
damon bats first, jeter second, abreu third and arod forth and giambi fifth everytime they play!
so is thier complaint that they want molina batting 9th everyday or what?
Brandon,
Isnt Milledge a head case? I thought we were done signing club house cancers.
The new Lara Croft charecter is pretty hot. Not like i play video games or anything.
“Also, great for Toronto, maybe they’ll finish ahead of Baltimore in the standings. I don’t care about their momentum. The Yankees need to win games, and trying to bring fear into the hearts of fans because Toronto has won 5 out of 6 has nothing to do with the Yankees winning games”
You do know that Toronto could EASILY finish ahead of the Yankees, right? And over the past 3 weeks, Toronto has been better than the Yankees? So Toronto’s momentum has a lot to do with the Yankees winning games, when, right now, today, they are a better team than the Yankees.
Minnesota was his first blown save of the year, K.C. on Friday was another tie game, and he didn’t blow anything in Texas. Marte gave up a walk-off grand slam in a game that the Yankees were trailing in and had come back to tie. And, you are dogging Mo so why try to say that you aren’t? He isn’t going to go a whole year without pitching poorly for a little while, but apparently in your mind he should. Also, in 2006 the team was already in the playoffs when they “messed up the winning formula”. In 2008, no winning formula has conclusively been found yet. But, of course, it sounds as dramatic as possible given how adamant you guys are about how much damage Hideki Matsui will do to the lineup.
Timothy I dont think there has been an August where there has not been a few posts about Mo and concern for how he is doing.
I dont worry about him until I have to worry about him if you know what I mean.
Brandon I am with you on the whole fundamental baseball thing. I posted a rant about it the other day and that was befopre Saturdays game when I left in the 4th inning.
Andrew:
Exactly which leads us back to why Hideki shouldn’t get an automatic spot in the line-up for a healthy CF…….You bought up the “venue” I just pointed out they are road games.
This was your quote:
“The bullpen struggles on a road trip and you are ready to say that they can’t hold a lead?”
Brandon,
Isnt Milledge a head case? I thought we were done signing club house cancers.
No he’s not, your thinking of Elijah Dukes… Milledge hasn’t been a head case Billy Wagner and the Mets locker room basically hazed him all year before getting dealt. It wasn’t all his fault, just youth and a bad rap.
remember when matsui apologized to his team b/c he broke his wrist and wouldnt be there to help them?
the rest of the team should appologize to hideki when he gets back for doing such a poor job while he’s been gone.
gayle:
IMO we need to start woorying about him as well, his last 3 outings he has not been Mo.
i say we give mo the week off
by scoring a ton of runs!
“Exactly which leads us back to why Hideki shouldn’t get an automatic spot in the line-up for a healthy CF”
So a guy who could have easily had season ending surgery, but gutted it out and fought his way back just to help his team try to win, should have to earn a spot back from a “healthy CF” who’s batting .192 with a strikeout per game? Matsui was absolutely raking and he’s been injured ALL season. They wouldn’t run him back out there unless they really felt he could contribute to this team RIGHT NOW. Which is why he’ll be in the lineup as often as his knee permits him to.
Andrew:
Your right it wasn’t Texas, it was the Halo game he blew the game.
“it sounds as dramatic as possible given how adamant you guys are about how much damage Hideki Matsui will do to the lineup.”
Matsui coming back SHOUDN’T damage anything. Abreu should give up his spot to Nady, so Matsui can go to left. So then we can go to having 0 clutch hitters last week, to 2 in the starting lineup.
this will never happen of course cause no one wants to bench a star(even though Abreu wont be back next year)
for Gardner.
Mike Mussina: “But we’ve had some injuries and the young guys struggled and got hurt, so me and Andy (Pettitte) are the two old guys that’ve been going out there and hopefully we can just keep going.”
Nice grammar, Stanfurd genius. Me not so impressed!
Easily? I don’t think they would easily finish in front of the Yankees if the Yankees actually beat them, which is what I’m saying is the point, and what they need to be focused on, not how hot Toronto has been and how they better watch out or they’ll overtake them in the standings. Toronto playing better, I understand the point that they aren’t a terrible team like K.C. and they have bigtime pitchers, but how is it so unrealistic to expect to win 2 out of 3 games from them if you’re a team trying to be in the Wild Card race? Toronto’s 3 weeks of great play is not going to dictate how the Yankees play them. If the Yankees lose 2 out of 3 or get swept, it’s on the Yankees, I don’t chalk that up to Toronto being red-hot, I blame the Yankees players for again coming up short.
“Matsui coming back SHOUDN’T damage anything. Abreu should give up his spot to Nady, so Matsui can go to left. So then we can go to having 0 clutch hitters last week, to 2 in the starting lineup.”
That can’t happen, not for the fact they won’t bench Abreu (even though i don’t understand why he should be), but because Matsui can’t play in the field. He’s only able to DH for us, from here on out.
Brandon I am with you on the whole fundamental baseball thing. I posted a rant about it the other day and that was befopre Saturdays game when I left in the 4th inning.
The worst game I ever had to sit through. Literally unbelieveable how this team was situationally dumb ! The one hitter that got it was Brett all he had in his mind was just get a hit ! a damn hit ! not 3 run HR, not a blazing double ! not a grandslam ! A HIT AN F’N HIT ! I guarantee if the bases were loaded he would have known to sac fly for a win instead of swinging for the downs like the rest of these clowns do !
THEN PEOPLE WONDER WHY THEY CAN’T AND WON’T BEAT TEAMS LIKE THE ANGELS (gayle you know I know that Angels team can kick our asses in 16 different ways)
via hit n run, squeeze play, SP, defense, baserunning, slugging, bunting, sac flying, moving over the runner, BP, baserunning IQ, aggressiveness, patience, managing, situational hitting, player depth, matchups, experience..etc…
Damon CF
Jeter SS
Abreu RF
A-rod 3rd
Hideki DH
X-man RF
Giambi 1st
Pudge C
Cano 2nd
I hope it works, no at bats for the kids I don’t like it. I hope it works.
“That can’t happen, not for the fact they won’t bench Abreu (even though i don’t understand why he should be), but because Matsui can’t play in the field. He’s only able to DH for us, from here on out.”
Damon in LF, NADY IN RF, GARDNER in CF, MATSUI DH
ABREU–> BENCH.
I like all these fantasy lineups and I hope some of them come to fruition, but I fear it may take the jaws of life to dislodge Giambi from batting 5th for Girardi.
Why would Abreu go to the bench? Why does Gardner all of a sudden deserve to play over the guy who’s batting almost .300 with 80 rbi? Because he’s a nightmare to watch in RF?
Abreu to the bench?
Does a 2-game winning streak + off day = madness?
Seriously, somebody tell me why Abreu should go to the bench? That’s the most absurd notion I’ve ever heard in my life.
“Why would Abreu go to the bench? Why does Gardner all of a sudden deserve to play over the guy who’s batting almost .300 with 80 rbi? Because he’s a nightmare to watch in RF?”
Its not so much Garnder as it is Matsui / Damon.
Garnder deserves to play, doesnt he ?
I guess since Matsui can only DH (which is usually Damon’s spot), you have to move Damon into the field. Since he can no longer play center you have to move him into the corner outfield, which is either Nady or Abreu.
this is gone completly out of control
bret gardner is going to start once, maybe twice a week. he’s gonna get into alot of games late.
thats it.
matsui, damon and abreu will play every day, except occasionally for a one game spell. none of them will be benched for brett gardner.
we all like the kid, we all appreciate his game winning hits and we all hope the yankees get something for him when they trade him. but none of these guys is going to be benched for brett gardner, period.
Y’s Guy, i agree entirely.
Tanyon Sturtze getting another shot in big leagues
http://www.latimes.com/sports/.....1476.story
Twenty-seven months removed from major shoulder surgery that ended a three-year run with the New York Yankees, Sturtze was about to be called back to the majors. His contract was purchased by the Dodgers from triple-A Las Vegas the next day.
“It’s hard to explain how happy and excited I am,” said Sturtze, who was 2-2 with a 4.38 ERA in 39 games in double and triple A.
A veteran who played 11 seasons in the big leagues with six teams, Sturtze nearly called it quits in the spring when he didn’t make the Dodgers’ major league roster out of camp as a non-roster invitee. But Torre asked him to consider spending time in the minors.
Only problem with Matsui being back is the defense. Matsui has to be full-time DH because of his knees so the lineup will look like:
Damon CF
Jeter SS
Abreu RF
Rodriguez 3B
Matsui DH
Giambi 1B
Nady LF
Cano 2B
Rodriguez C
Thats a great lineup but perhaps the worst defense in the league.
good for sturtze! hope the guys gets himself a major league contract for next year!
This will be a hilarious post section when we watch these 35+ yr. old OF wear out. I’m adding to favorites right now.
Hahahaha Sturtze back under Torre’s control – the guy that caused him to have major shoulder surgery to begin with. Quantrill, Proctor, Sturtze, Vizcaino, Karsay are all guys Torre has DESTROYED. Who else am I forgetting?
we dont even know if matsui is gonna be able to DH everyday…who knows how his knees will hold up to even DH’ing daily….plus damon is not gonna be able to handle playing the field everyday…gardner will still see his share of games started
The defense won’t matter because the return of Godzilla will defeat the awful bad-RISP monster, which appears to mortals in the shape of a giant Mothra.
http://www.godzillaondvd.com/m.....thra-9.jpg
With Mothra defeated, the awesome power of the Yankees’ offense will be unleashed and creak knees and weak outfield arms will be of little consequence. And Tokyo will be saved.
hey, i agree, putting damon in center is not good. if this offense had hit the way its supposed to, melky would still be there and nobody would care if he batted .240.
but we need all the offense we can get, especially of the clutch variety. gardner can be a very important part of this team and going in for defense late in games will help alleviate the damon problem. but we have no choice at this point, we need the offense.
Nady will not be able to reach his potential unless he hits in the 5th hole.
don’t understand the matsui dilemma for some…
damon in left.
gardner in center.
abreu in right.
nady at first.
matsui dh.
giambi is the pinch hitter.
nady in the 6th hole behind matsui.
Brandon dont get me started again about Saturday I have never left a game in the 4th inning but when you cant get a single ball out of the infield to score a run when you have 3 chances that was the last straw for me.
It was hot, the sun was pounding. I had been there since 1030 and that was at my last straw. I commend you greatly for lasting all 13 innings. I just didnt have it in me.
“nady at first.”
Not that we’d be able to tell the difference, but Nady has only played 80 games at 1B because he’s not very good at it.
Bench Gardner. He’s a fringe MLB player anyway and you can always use him late for defense if need be.
We should only be concerned about the Angels because they’re opening up a set in St. Petersburg. Garland v. Sonnanstine.
Any locals have a storm update? A tropical storm is supposed to hit Florida late tonight.
Lord, Pavano’s only 32? That means we acquired him at his physical peak? Lay your bets. I say they call up Hughes before Pavano. No rhyme or reason. Other than the Yankees hate Carl.
Garnder is gonna get benched, no doubt about it. He Shoudn’t be, but he is.
I find this hilarious as well putting Gardner in for defense, yeah take Damon out of the line-up for defense, then BP lets them tie, and now Damon is on the bench the league leader in hitting…. LOLOLOLOLOL
Once upon a time, Torre would sit Abreu against tough lefties. Like all of them. Did anyone else think that was retarded?
pavano ran out of gas early in the two starts before his last one. also he’s coming back from major surgery and hasnt pitched in a year and a half. i think he’s probably still 2 starts away. no doubt they bring up phil first.
“Garnder is gonna get benched, no doubt about it. He Shoudn’t be, but he is.”
Actually, he should be. He’s not an everyday player at this level. His bat isn’t good enough. He’s worth keeping around to spot start, pinch run, be a defensive replacement, etc. He’s a 4th outfielder. Yankees should use him as such.
“We should only be concerned about the Angels because they’re opening up a set in St. Petersburg. Garland v. Sonnanstine.”
We should be attentive, but not concerned. If the Yankees get to the playoffs, they’re playing the Angels in the ALDS, so we may as well watch ‘em when we can.
dont worry about that, we get to see the angels up close and personal in 2 weeks.
tim wants to build the lineup with the assumption that the bullpen will blow the game. that’s a revolutionary strategy, why not send it off to bobby v. or the genius and see if they’ll adopt it?
Y’s Guy:
I’m just going off the most current track record.
“Actually, he should be. He’s not an everyday player at this level. His bat isn’t good enough.”
ehh you may be right. Granted he’s hitting under .200, most of that came his first few games when he went like 1-12 or something like that. I say, he’s earned a chance to prove whether or not he has the ablility to hit or not.
Y’s Guy:
Never mind it’s ok if they tie we will have the potent Betemit on the bench.
“Once upon a time, Torre would sit Abreu against tough lefties. Like all of them.”
He played in 158 games in 2007. Torre couldn’t have sit him too often. Looks like there were 6 games in which he made 2 or less plate appearances, and 5 of those were started by lefthanders. Of course, it’s worth noting that Abreu put up Melky-like numbers against lefthanders that year.
by the most current track record, mo is one of the worst closers in the history of mlb.
Y’s Guy:
That is why they need to sit either Hideki or Giambi, not Gardner.
“dont worry about that, we get to see the angels up close and personal in 2 weeks.”
True enough. My “between the lines” point was that the Yankees aren’t making up 10 games on Tampa over 38 games and are playing for the Wild Card and the right to play thew Halos.
Y’s Guy:
They need an option for the what “if” BP scenario…
For the record, CC is from NoCal (Bay Area) — the Pride of Vallejo! And we should go after him, no brainer.
Premonition: Our boys nail the wild card. The ‘ghosts’ will not allow the old joint to shut down without one last shot at October glory. After Labor Day, they’ll start pullin’ some of their old tricks…
O/T
Where is Jose Reyes? There’s another Reyes playing 2B and Easley playing SS. Haven’t heard about Reyes in a while.
Also, just read a heartbreaking OTL article at espn.com about “hazing” (rape) by the varsity baseball team on the team bus in upstate New York. Sad, that the town is more concerned about the media exposure than the welfare of the two boys who came forward. Terrible, terrible story.
Y’s Guy:
Trust I know they won’t and your probably right, Joe G. will sit Gardner, they will hope they mash like last year, he will have that sinking feeling when the Defense sucks, or BP gives up the lead.
Then everyone here will say why was our defense so poor?
How come we had no options on the bench?
Why didn’t he use Mo in the 9th for the tie?
And so on………..
tim, i like alot of what you write, but you’ve gone off the rails here….
you get the lead, you put in your defensive replacements and you assume you will close out the game. thats the way you play. you dont start your bench so you can have your starters if you need them in extra innings.
It’s true that Gardner has a low batting average, but that’s only based on the percentage of times that he’s gotten a hit in all of his at-bats.
If you take that out of the equation, he’s done very well at the plate both times he’s been up from AAA.
In case anybody didn’t know, Abreu is one of our few clutch hitters. I remember a stat from the game about two days ago, Abreu has I think a .413 w/RISP and 2 outs. Why in the hell would you bench him especially since he is usually a second half hitter. I think Giambi deserves to be benched and I also believe this isn’t an issue becaues matsui won’t play everyday because his knees and Girardi likes to give everyone rest.
Why did he take Damon out of the line-up in the 8th?
Gardner is 5 for 14 in the last few games. That matters, what he did before doesn’t matter. We all know he takes time to get used to a level.
Not that it matters, but what is Brett’s avg in his second tour in the Bronx?
Timothy,
Yesterday? Most of the guys got replaced.
“If they can jump on Burnett or Halladay, I’ll feel a little better about getting back into this race.”
Agree.If Yankees hitters meet the stronger team or sharp pitcher,then get a win,I’ll feel a litter better too.
Y’s Guy:
Hey I agree with about evrything you say as well, I just really don’t like Hideki in this particular series, but I know your damned if you do and damned if you don’t, I think Mo is concealing an injury, just a hunch… I honestly hope it all works, there’s just nothing to gage it on at this point…Hideki could be a huge jolt, but if he gets hurt in Toronto, that will really suck for this team…Maybe I’m being to cautious…
just read most of this thread and of course a new post pops up just when i get to the end here…
good posts Y’s guy! agreed with about 98% of them
mel-go, go, Waipio!:
Yesterday was BP, I don’t think that KC was going to mount an attack and come back…
Y’s Guy:
I truely believe someone els should be on the bench not Gardner, with who’s pitching for us, the OF should be pretty busy even if it fly balls….
I guess you load it with everything you’ve got and fire, we’ll see what happens….I’m pretty positive that unfortunately, IMO he will bench Gardner, he will probably use him and Christian off the bench.
The best the Yanks can really hope for is 4 runs off Halladay. He’s that good. Everyone else, not really.
I should be the manager. Thanks Pete good idea!