-Derek Jeter has ditched his ‘no-stride’ batting stance that Kevin Long worked with him on this spring after just 7 games in the regular season. While I understand its tough to change something he’s done since little league, Long wanted him to change his stance for a reason. If he plans on doing things the same way he did last year, I guess we as fans should expect the same results. If he hits this year the way he did last year, he’ll be batting 8th by the end of July. Once #3000 is out of the way, there will be no reason to keep him at the top of the lineup.
-Ian Kennedy pitched beautifully last night against a potent Reds lineup, giving up just 1 ER in 8 IP while walking 1 and striking out 9. He also pitched fairly well on Opening Day, giving 3 ER over 6 IP. No regrets over Grandy deal, I’m just a fan of IPK (always was) and wish him well.
-Personally, I’m going to miss Manny Ramirez. The Yanks and Red Sox need characters to keep the rivalry vibrant, and no one was more colorful or more potent with the bat than Manny. I know he killed the Yanks more times than any of us can remember, but that’s part of what made Yanks-Sox rivalry so great from his tenure with the Sox from 01-07 . I loved the contrast he provided from the more corporate, professional Yankee image. He was a perfect foil, a great story and a great player. I’ll have a farewell piece going up tomorrow morning.
-Speaking of Manny, Robbie Cano is to Sox fans what Manny was to us Yankee fans. Career .367 hitter at Fenway, which is the highest ever for any Yankee with more than 200 ABs.
-I’m not ready to declare Russel Martin back to his pre-2009 form just yet, and won’t be for at least another month or so. But there are two obvious implications if Martin is back to being the All Star player he was back then. First, the Yanks have a surplus at the Catcher position and everyone above Gary Sanchez (who is years away) is expendable, including Jesus Montero. Next, Brian Cashman had a much better offseason than anyone gave him credit for. If Martin, Chavez and Andruw Jones just stay healthy and productive, he will have bolstered the team in depth and production at a very low cost.
-Link title of the day-”Yanks’ see a Silva lining”
-Keep an eye on Zach Britton, who is getting raves off his first 2 starts and dominated a potent Texas lineup yesterday. We all know the O’s can hit, but if they have now have a legit ace they become much more dangerous, and the AL East gets that much tougher. I’m not putting them in the mix for the division or Wild Card, but another tough opponent can pull down the win total for the favorites and make the Wild Card a bit more dicey. If you do the math, with the unbalanced schedule and a division of all .500 teams or better, it gets hard to break 90 wins unless you’re dominating the rest of the league. In past years, the Yanks and Sox always had a few cupcakes in the division (O’s, Rays) while they played each other to a standstill, which allowed them to win their 95+ games. That may not be the case this year.
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4 Responses to Sunday Notes and Commentary
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TIQ IQ
Even if Russell Martin is back to being an all-star, I don’t think that means everyone is expendable. It mostly means Romine is definitely gone though. Jesus can and will have a spot on the team as the DH, plus it doesn’t hurt the additional flexibility of having a player who can be a 3rd catcher in a pinch. It gives flexibility and he can bide time till he can play first base.
JR Murphy plays 3rd and outfield, as well.
Super Nova re: Ivan Nova? More like Super AAA Starter with 9 career nondescript MLB starts. If he turns out two more stinkers like the one he had yesterday for three strikes and you’re out, he should be sent back to AAA for further development, officially be made a trading chip (for the right player though), replaced by Carlos Silva, Bartolo Colon, or Kevin Millwood in the rotation (I’m guessing Silva so Colon can remain in the pen where he’s probably best suited at this point), and replaced by the Yankees best minor-league reliever in his roster spot. If Phil Hughes is indeed a #4 starter at best, the 2011 Yankees will be 2008 Yankees Part II unless Silva and Millwood can be the 2011 versions of 2005 Aaron Small and Shawn Chacon. Freddy Garcia cannot be counted on as anything more than a serviceable #5 starter, ditto for Colon if he could last a whole year as a starter which I doubt, and Burnett is a #3 at best, #4 or #5 at worst depending on how bad he sucks that day. Who knows what Garcia, Colon, Silva, and Millwood have left and don’t the Yankees have to make a decision on Millwood if he has a May 1 opt-out clause which I read somewhere? Silva, too?
I propose these moves:
Hughes to Minnesota for Francisco Liriano straight up. Minnesota would think they can prove the Yankees wrong along with clear a ton of salary. Anyone see “Mommie Dearest” where Joan Crawford’s contract is bought out by “Metro”? The head of Metro tells her other movie companies will go after her and give her five or six films, and she might even get a hit with one of them. Well, Joan had a hit with “Mildred Pierce” (Academy Award for Best Actress.) Maybe Hughes has his Mildred Pierce season one day. Or maybe he did last year and it’s all downhill like Crawford’s career was after MP, but actually, he blew last year. He’s been a 5+ ERA pitcher since 5-0 in his first six starts last year (4.98 ERA the rest of 2011 and this year.) Time to say goodbye and riddle me this: How are you getting maximum return on trading him if he sucks so bad Colon, Silva, or Millwood takes his job? Hughes’ trade value would plummet if he was replaced by Colon, Silva, Millwood, or one of the farm kids. That’s why you can’t take him out of the rotation while he’s a Yankee and Cashman would never, ever tell anyone that. You think I’m severe, well, when is Hughes’ fastball coming back since he’s not getting anyone out with his other pitches? Is it coming back? What if it doesn’t? This isn’t 2000 where the Yankees got away with an awful David Cone and needed only 87 wins to win the division, Oh yeah, the Yankees aren’t getting Liriano with Nova and Montero, so stop that noise. Hughes is enough to get Liriano.
A midlevel prospect or two to the Dodgers for Derek Lowe. The Dodgers would love to clear Lowe’s remaining 2011 salary and $15M due in 2012. The Yankees can offset Lowe’s $15M for 2012 by simply having Igawa finally off the books ($4M cleared), letting go of Marte (I believe $3M cleared), and if Posada has a nice 20-23 HR, 8X RBI season, getting him to take a year and $5M for $8.1M saved and there you go: $4M + $3M + $8.1M = $15.1M total cleared. The Yankees should’ve traded for this guy before the season (Sabathia/Lowe/Hughes/Burnett/Garcia.)
There you go for the rest of 2011:
1. Sabathia
2. Lowe
3. Liriano
4. Burnett
5. Garcia or whoever if Garcia can’t get it done
Colon remains in the pen as the swing/mopup/rotation backup man.
The Yankees retain Chamberlain, Nova, and all their top prospects.
Lowe and Liriano are signed through next year only.
The 2012 Yankees rotation is 4/5ths set. You cross the bridge named “Who’s The 2012 Yankees Fifth Starter?” when you get to it. Ideally it’s Nova or one of the kids, or Garcia if he has a good enough 2011 and is willing to come back for another year on the cheap (somehow I doubt it if he posts even another 2010 in 2011 and I guess why should he if there’s a shortage of starting pitching and he could get at least two years from a team desperate enough?)
The bottom line is the Yankees need two, possibly three starters to augment Sabathia and Burnett because if Sabathia falls to injury, the 2011 Yankees will be D-E-A-D DEAD and definitely the sequel to 2008. They need to stop pinching pennies with Hughes and Nova and get real. You need innings Lowe and Liriano can provide. Lowe is a winner with ice water and a deep hatred of the Red Sox flowing in his veins. Liriano also has the makeup to shine in NY. Colon has a 90+ mph fastball again. Maybe Garcia has something left.
Oh yeah, who do you have more confidence in in a postseason game against, Hughes or Lowe? Hughes or Liriano? Be honest. I’ll go with Lowe or Liriano, thank you.
I know alot of fans out there like the idea, the theory of a young-and-cheap-as possible Yankees rotation, but you have to get with reality, and the reality is the 2011 Yankees rotation is one sure thing (Sabathia) who could get hurt and four question marks of varying degrees with a couple of who knows? in the shadows (Silva, Millwood, farm kids.) That’s unacceptable and a fireable offense. Cashman and Girardi should be fired if this team misses the postseason again.
Derek Lowe pitches for the Dodgers?
2 starts or a whole season doesn’t make a pitcher a legit ace
Bill Madden ought to have his typewriter/computer revoked for what he wrote about Phil Hughes. By no means do I think he’s anything more than a middle of the rotation pitcher at best, but what Madden wrote just shows off his complete ignorance.