The defensive statistics sabermetricians use to calculate runs a players saves or cost his team are riddled with fallacies, unproven assumptions, and flaws in validity and reliability.

Bill James will even confess, when asked, his defensive metrics are still rudimentary and in the preliminary stage of development, and shouldn’t be accorded the same merit as his offensive metrics.

To illustrate, many of these same defensive statistics rated Derek Jeter the worst defensive player in baseball last year.

But when Brian Cashman says, on the one hand, the Yankees can’t afford both CC and Teixiera and then, on the other, tenders (or is set to tender, or is planning to tender, or is imagining he’s tendering or is discussing paramenter or playing with his pud or whatever)– and then tenders a $75-$80 million offer to Burnett and perhaps a $45 million to Lowe, I begin to wonder whether he can add.

You tell me which is the more prudent way to spend $120, (i) offering $80 million on a five year contract for a 32-year old pitcher who has pitched 173 innings or more 3 times in his 8-year career and (ii) offering $45 million on a 3-year contract to a 35-year old pitcher (I would have though Pettitte and Mussina’s recent inconsistency would have cautioned about the risks of 35+ year old pitchers) or (iii) offering a 6-7 year deal worth $20 million to a 28-year-old position player who has been healthy his entire career, is among the best at his position in both offense and defense, and will be in his prime for almost the entire duration of his contract.

Burnett @ $80 million + Lowe $45 million or Teixieria at $125 million.

If you’re going to spend $125 million either way, it’s clear to me you maximize your value with the 28-year position player who’s among the top 5 or so all-around players at his position in the league.

“How many right fielders for Boston or Tampa hit 20+ homers, steal 25-30 bases, hit .300, score and drive in 100 runs a year?”

Next time don’t be such a jerk and insult someone because you have poor reading skills.”

I will refer you to a CB post from a few days ago:

http://yankees.lhblogs.com/200.....ent-589822

“Its inaccurate to say that giambi and abreu created 200 runs and that losing them will leave a gaping 200 run deficit. That’s not the way you do the calculation to assess their loss…Both swisher and nady are likely to be at least league average as replacements to abreu and giambi. The loss is not close to 200 runs.”

How many right fielders for Boston or Tampa hit 20+ homers, steal 25-30 bases, hit .300, score and drive in 100 runs a year?

I’d have gone 4 years and $64M (same $16M per) and hold on to that 5th year until the point where it became necessary.

I like where your heads at on KRod setting Mo up.

I understand your point perfectly, you don’t make sense.

Pitching and defense wins ballgames always had, always will.

The first female pro pitcher? I think not!

Here’s the first.

http://tinyurl.com/56zvmp

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/.....id=3709884

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She could truly be the first player to go on the DL with a broken fingernail.