This season, the Yankees benefited greatly from having a pretty well stocked bench. Eric Chavez played well in limited time and Andruw Jones, though he assumed a more regular role at some point, mashed. And despite the frustration that he tended to induce this year, Francisco Cervelli still managed to hit to a 97 wRC+. Eduardo Nunez also displayed flashes of competency off the bench and put up a 92 wRC+. Chris Dickerson didn’t hit a lick, but he was a solid defensive replacement, and that’s all he really needs to be.
Next year, there seems to be one spot open on the bench, and that’s for a right handed bat that can play outfield. Manager Joe Girardi showed he was willing to do a more or less straight platoon with Brett Gardner this year, and I don’t think that’s going to change any time soon. What, then, are the options to fill that void? Before we get to what the bench will be, we should first establish what the regular lineup would be.
The only spot of contention, really, is going to be C/DH. My assumption–and I think many of you will join me on this–is that Jesus Montero will be the DH against right handed pitching while Russell Martin does the catching. When there’s a southpaw on the mound, I think we’ll see Jesus Montero catch to rest Martin while someone else DHs. That vs. LHP DH spot can be approached in two ways. If Girardi decides that Gardner can handle lefties, the RHB bench OF can just act as the DH. If not (more likely), I think we’ll see players in need of a day off play DH for the day.
So who could this mystery man be? Andruw Jones would be a nice choice. He was solid in the field and definitely crushed lefties (.400 wOBA, .254 Iso). However, he could parlay his productive season into a more full time role somewhere else. Looking elsewhere on the 40-man roster, there are minor league outfielders Justin Maxwell and Melky Mesa. Both have serious power, and hit right handed, but both have big holes in their swings. Maxwell ended up on the 60-day DL, though, and Mesa had a poor season. Both are probably DFA candidates, so I won’t count them as real options. We could include Brandon Laird if we’re being generous, but I don’t think he qualifies as an outfielder. That means the Yankees will probably have to look outward for my theoretical player.
Let’s look, as always, to Cot’s for the potential free agent list and see if there are any players who fit our mold of RHB/OF. The most attractive options–that is, the ones who would most likely take this role–seem to be Jonny Gomes, Conor Jackson, and Juan Rivera.
Neither had an exceptional season, but Gomes and Rivera hit left handed pitching well. Gomes didn’t hit for prolific power against them (.144 Iso), but he did walk 13.9% of the time against them (.407 OBP) and managed a .380/140 wOBA/wRC+ against them. Rivera hit for more power, .167 Iso, but had lower splits at .349/121, both still productive marks.
Jackson didn’t have a good year against lefties (.092 Iso, .297/86), but he did walk against them a lot (10.1%). This year is definitely the exception (.358/118 career split), but it’s worth noting that he’s still a few years removed from being solid against LHP (.328/96 split in 2010), and though he played in 114 games this year, Jackson’s never been a model of health.
Right now, this is just academic and I’m simply throwing names out there. This position isn’t of pressing need, but it’s not one we can simply throw aside, especially considering the manager’s desire to platoon Brett Gardner. Those three players are just three options, and luckily, a position like this isn’t a hard one to fill.
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8 Responses to Looking forward to the bench
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TIQ IQ
How does Jesus Montero project in right field? As long as he’s no Shelley Duncan, I think splitting him behind catcher, DH and right field should solve quite of few of the Yankees’ roster issues.
Considering the knocks against him as a catcher are lack of quickness, athleticism, and poor footwork, I doubt RF would be kind to him.
What’s yourlogic with the Martin and Montero catching split. Martin is going to do most of the catching. And if AJ is pitching what does it matter if the opposition is throwing a southpaw–Montero will be DHing. I assume he’ll break inthe way Posada did–catch maybe 50 games and then be ready when and if Martin leaves after 2012.
Because it keeps Montero’s bat in the lineup, which is a necessity.
Why wouldn’t you bat Martin vs. LHP, given his platoon split (wRC 103/86) and the fact that Montero was still a very good (128) hitter vs. RHP, while Martin was not?
Shouldn’t it be:
vs. LHP: Jeter, Swisher, Tex, Cano, A-Rod, Granderson, Montero DH, “Andruw Jones”, Martin C.
vs. RHP: Gardner, Jeter (just being realistic), Granderson, Cano, A-Rod, Tex, Swisher, Montero C, LH DH?
I envision it this way because it not only maximizes Montero’s bat, but also minimizes the negative potential of his defense.
Since I think we can agree that Montero will only see 40 G at Catcher next year (Martin 110-120, Montero 40-50, with the rest picked up by Cervelli or Romine), the Yankees’ best strategy will be to put him behind the plate for 40 Sabathia or Hughes starts with a RHP, then allow him to DH another 100 (with 20 going to A-Rod, 10 to Jeter, 5 each to Tex and Swisher, and 20 to “Andruw Jones”).
Montero should be pretty much handed the DH role I believe. However that still means you need to have a backup catcher in case of an in game injury to Martin, you don’t want to lost the DH spot. This catcher most likely won’t play often due to Martin and Montero taking his reps at catcher so all things being equal I vote for Cervelli. Romine has never played above the AA level. Let the kid get some consistent work down in a minor league level that will challenge him. If he fails, then you know that you need to keep Martin around for another couple of years. If he plays well and distinguishes himself, then you can take the risk and let Martin walk at seasons end.
Eduardo Nunez as the backup infielder, and as far as outfielders, can we all agree that Gardner is too valuable with his glove alone to be platooned? A Justin Maxwell, Melky Mesa, Greg Golson, or Chris Dickerson will do fine. No one in the outfield needs to be taken out for defense, and at least these guys can steal a base late in games if needed. Brandon Laird won a minor league Gold Glove at 3rd so at least we know he can field. He can play corner infield spots and supposedly corner outfield spots. This way we use our aging big league stars to help break in some of the kids from our farm system.