Pete Abe comes through with a list of suggestions for improving the Yankees now:
More Brett Gardner: The Little G is 15 of his last 43 and has his batting average up to .284 with a .358 OBP. Melky Cabrera is 12 of 62 since his shoulder injury in Texas. He is down to .282 with a .340 OBP. Melky has more power and should play his share. But Gardner could add the energy the Yankees have lacked lately and is a superior defender.
Definitely agree with this. Brett Gardner at an OBP near .360 is a huge asset. I still like Melky and think that he should be given a shot to pull out of his slump, but Gardy should probably get 3-4 games a week subbing in for the three outfielders and Hideki Matsui.
More Dave Robertson: He has 23 strikeouts in 14.2 innings (59 in 45 career innings) and deserves more late-game, high-leverage opportunities. Joe Girardi is in love with Phil Coke and that is going to come back to bite him someday soon.
I think Joe is using Robertson properly at this point. Robertson seems to lose the plate a bit in big spots, and Joe is easing him into tighter spots. I would not rush things, and am much higher on Coke than Abraham is. Phil needs to stop walking people in one run games, but he is doing a nice job when used in one inning stints.
Release Angel Berroa: Is this guy actually going to play once a week when A-Rod rests? Ramiro Pena is not much of an offensive player, but he can play defense and add a little small ball from the No. 9 spot.
Call up Shelley Duncan or John Rodriguez: Shelley is at .294/.369/.628 for Scranton. J-Rod is at .292/.377/.521. Wouldn’t they be more helpful than Berroa? How could they not be, especially in National League parks over the next six games?
With Alex getting regular days off from here on out, the Yankees need the extra infielder at least for this period where they are playing in NL Stadiums. When Xavier Nady returns, this should become moot.
Release Brett Tomko/Call up somebody else: Mark Melancon, Anthony Claggett, Zack Kroenke, there has to be somebody in Scranton who would be better. As Tomko himself said yesterday, everything he’s throwing is getting hit lately.
I cannot get too worked up over the last guy in the pen. Melancon has struggled a bit since returning to the minors, and I am not so sure those other guys will be better than Tomko. I guess I could see them fast-tracking Mike Dunn to the majors.
Move Swisher up: Yes, Nick Swisher is an adventure in the outfield, but his 132 OPS+ is second on the team to Mark Teixeira. It’s a waste to bat him seventh or eighth, which he has 20 times. Second or sixth would be better.
I would move Swisher to 6th, with Posada hitting 5th, and Cano 7th. A guy who is better than most on the team at reaching base should be in the top 6.
More Phil Hughes: If they’re going to use him in the bullpen, then use him in the bullpen. Let him pitch when it’s 2-1 in the eighth inning, not when they’re down by a few runs. If he is not going to be used in vital situations, he might as well be starting in Scranton.
Totally agree. Either use him in the bullpen full time, or send him down. His current usage pattern will stunt his development and make it difficult to count him in as a member of the rotation next season.
Do you have any suggestions?
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7 Responses to Ways To Improve The Yankees Now
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TIQ IQ
Good suggestions. I’d take the Swisher suggestion further and move him to clean up behind Texeira and move A-Rod down to 6, insert between Cano and Posada until he proves that he is healthy enough to effectively be a cleanup hitter again. Sure, at first it will hurt his ego, but he’s had enough at bats this year to suggest he’s not fully back to form. If its acceptable to DL Wang when he was struggling or move Big Papi down in the order when he’s struggling, why isn’t it acceptable to move A-Rod down in the order? After getting over the ego aspect of it, maybe it will lessen the pressure, which he clearly does not handle well, and allow him to relax more.
It is not an awful idea, for a couple of weeks, but almost certainly will not happen.
“…not an awful idea…” I think that’s the closest you’ve come yet to agreeing with anything I’ve had to say. I knew that I’d get through to you guys one of these days.
Ha!! Let me amend that- I agree with you that A-Rod may benefit from being dropped, but I dont know if I would put Swisher 4th- probably would go Jorge 4th, Cano, Swisher, A-Rod, Matsui, Melky/Gardy.
Agree on most of the above, and on D-Rob I’m with you and not PA. I like D-Rob, but I don’t love him. Low leverage sounds about right to me. I also would knock Coke down a notch or two in the pecking order. I’d really prefer to see him as a lefty specialist.
He’s actually been slightly better vs RHBs, but I want those SO.
I like D-Rob, and think he can be a cog here for a long time, ala Stanton or Nelson- very good but for the most part not dominant relievers. I just don’t think he can be that guy yet. he is fine in the 6th-7th innings right now, in the right game situations. His stuff is much better than I thought (his curve is wicked, and the fastball has late life), and he certainly is showing enough to get me excited about his future. But right now, Aceves, Bruney, and Hughes are better options.
I really like this part;
“More Brett Gardner: The Little G is 15 of his last 43 and has his batting average up to .284 with a .358 OBP. Melky Cabrera is 12 of 62 since his shoulder injury in Texas. He is down to .282 with a .340 OBP. Melky has more power and should play his share. But Gardner could add the energy the Yankees have lacked lately and is a superior defender.”
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Many times it has been pointed out, this guy can change the game in more ways then most fans think…not just speed. I think he should be playing as much as possible…as stated, there are 4 positions. Play him 4 out of 5, then start over again…8 of 10 games.
As for Berroa, once we are out of these inter league games…drop him. Tomko…who do we have that is ready to come up?