45 replies to this topic

[thefiestygoat]

I figured with the re-signings of Kuroda, Pettitte, and Rivera, Martin's departure, and Swisher's inevitable exit it would be a good time to get this thread going.

First, I love that Cashman was able to bring back the 3 veterans before the winter meetings next week. With holes in RF and C, it's nice for him to know where he stands on other areas of the roster.

Secondly, I wish Martin the best in Pittsburgh. All in all he had a solid ride with the Yankees and I'm surprised that the Yankees didn't pony up the extra couple of million to keep him considering they don't have a ML capable catcher (sorry Whiteside, Stewart, and Cervelli). His deal was only for 2 years so while it would've cut into the 2014 plan, I don't think it would've been that great of an obstacle. It's especially frustrating when you consider how much money the Steinbrenner's got from selling a huge stake in YES recently. I understand being fiscally responsible but this just comes across as cheap. I wonder if this affects Kuroda at all. Unfortunately, Romine lost last year to injury and Sanchez is still a few years away. Cashman is going to have to get creative to get a decent enough catcher to start the majority of the games. At least this happened before the meetings.

Lastly, I wonder when and where Swisher will sign...I can't see him dragging his free agency out that much longer past the winter meetings. If I had to guess he'll sign elsewhere towards the end of next week. I won't be shocked if the Yankees make a significant trade this week, just a gut feeling.

Edited by thefiestygoat, 30 November 2012 - 01:04 AM.

[Hi, I'm VALUE!]

Being the #2 FA in a category is like being stuck in line waiting for someone to fix the roller coaster. I have a feeling Swish is waiting for the market to develop around Hamilton before he makes a signature. Though I have heard Boston is hot for him since he can play first...ugh...

[thefiestygoat]

I actually think Swisher is the #1 FA OF'er because of Hamilton's abuse issues. It seems a lot more teams are interested in Swisher and will be willing to fork over more money than they will give to Hamilton. Only Milwaukee seems truly interested in Hamilton at this point.

[thefiestygoat]

A-Rod needs surgery on his other hip, out 3-6 months, thanks Randy Levine! Looking like the Yankees are going into opening day without Jeter and A-Rod. Rumors that they are pursuing Stephen Drew hard.

Boston signed Napoli to a 3/39 deal, solid pick up for them. They're talking to Swisher now...

[thefiestygoat]

http://espn.go.com/n..._medium=twitter

So the Yankees are intentionally fielding a weaker team the next 2 years and now are setting 'restrictions' on getting tix on stubhub (price floor = face value perhaps?). Way to continue to price the fans out! Stubhub was the only way I could afford to get into games. Pardon me if I don't want to spend around $50 to go to a game and not be able to see 1/3 of the OF!

I viewed Hal Steinbrenner as someone who cared about the team as much as his dad, but its clear now that it is purely a business to him.

[thefiestygoat]

So the Yankees are nearing a deal with Youkilis - 1/12. A bit of an overpayment in terms of money but well worth it to limit to it to 1 year. Hopefully he can stay healthy enough to hold down 3B while A-Rod is out and then be able to rotate at the CI and DH spots later in the year. It's late and I'm tired so I'm going to steal some pro's and con's from River Ave Blues on him. It's going to be weird to cheer for him but I think it's a solid move given what was out there.

Pro's

Youkilis is one year removed from a .258/.373/.459 (126 wRC+) performance with the bat. He punished left-handers to the tune of .275/.386/.492 (135 wRC+) this year and .323/.436/.598 (174 wRC+) over the last three seasons. No player in baseball has been more productive against southpaws since 2010.

By know you know about the whole Greek God of Walks thing, and Youkilis has drawn a free pass in 12.1% of his plate appearances over the last three years (10.0% in 2012). He’s seen an average of 4.27 pitches per plate appearances since 2010, which is among the highest rates in baseball.

Youkilis offers some versatility, having started 220 games at third and 116 games at first over the last three seasons. The various defensive metrics says he’s about average at both positions, down from his Gold Glove days a few years ago.

Con's

Although he destroys lefties, Youkilis hit just .220/.316/.377 (89 wRC+) against righties this year and .242/.346/.424 (109 wRC+) over the last three years. Just look at his year-to-year graphs page and you’ll see that he’s steadily declining in every significant offensive category. Batting average, walk rate, strikeout rate, power numbers, everything is going in the wrong direction. His ground ball rate has been higher than his fly ball rate in recent years, which is a classic symptom is an aging hitter losing bat speed.

Youkilis isn’t exactly an iron man, and in fact he’s played in fewer games over the last three seasons (344) than A-Rod (358). He’s been on the DL five times in the last four years, including a lengthy stint for thumb surgery and multiple stints for back strains. The injuries have his defense on the decline just like his offense.

[thefiestygoat]

A trade that the Yankees weren't involved with today impacted them 2 ways. First, you can forget about getting Mike Morse as the RH part of a DH platoon. Secondly, the A's acquired John Jaso and designated George Kottaras for assignment. I hope the Yankees get George Kottaras for 2 reasons:

1) He's not named Cervelli or Stewart
2) LH C who can hit RHP (101 wRC+)

Pitchers and catchers report in 27 days and the Yankees still don't have a competent MLB level catcher because Hal was too cheap to spend a little extra on Martin.

[DH26]

If fellow yankee fans wanna beat their heads in over this team pocketing money like it's illegal to spend

http://riveraveblues...policies-81364/

[thefiestygoat]

An interesting thing to keep an eye on in Yankee land as we are less than 2 weeks away from pitchers and catchers...

Apparently the Yankees have some interest in the often injured, Travis Hafner. He wants a ML deal and for the right price I hope they give it to him given how bad their line up is. Sure he isn't the player he once was but he can still provide some value as a LH pull hitter that mashes RHP, a solid option for a DH platoon, especially at a place like New Yankee Stadium.

His career numbers vs. RHP: .287/.391/.534/.925 .247 ISO .391 wOBA 143 wRC+
Last 3 years ISO and wRC+ vs. RHP: 2012: .196 and 123 in 191 PA, 2011: .180 and 147 in 260 PA, 2010: .199 and 135 in 351 PA

Replacement Level Yankees Weblog has some CAIRO projections for Hafner. The baseline is projection is: 310 PA .260/.354/.449 .353 wOBA 2 BRAR (Batting Runs above replacement level). Check the link out because it has the 20% to 80% projections. Also if they were to platoon him against only RHP, then his wOBA would have a baseline of .364 (link also has the 20% to 80% projections). Could be a low risk decent reward signing.

[Devils Dose]

So are the Yankee fans thinking sabotage with the Blue Jays knocking out Granderson?

[thefiestygoat]

So are the Yankee fans thinking sabotage with the Blue Jays knocking out Granderson?

It was unfortunate but accidents happen. I'm more pissed that the Yankees intentionally downgraded at 2 positions (RF, C) and now Granderson being out will hurt them even more.

I'm hoping Ronnier Mustelier can win the job in spring training. 28 year old Cuban who has had success since coming to the States in 2011. Projects (pro-rated for a full year) to hit .336 wOBA and .350 wOBA vs LHP and can play multiple positions to be a utility guy. Projects to have 18.8 batting runs across 150 PA which is better than the rest of his competition. This may be his best shot he has to become a player for the Yankees and I think it would be wise of them to see what they have in him.

[Daniel]

I think this is the year that Yankee attendance will see a significant dip absent some extreme discounting into the season.  The team is boring and the stadium lacks any personality whatsoever.  They had noticeably empty seats for playoff games.  Now add to the mix the virtual elimination of Stubhub.  I used to go to two or three games every year by buying cheap tickets on Stubhub.  This year, and as long as I'll have to pay at least $35 for a bad seat, I won't go to a game unless someone gives me a ticket. 

 

Note, it's not because I'm an "angry fan", it's just that it isn't worth it for me to pay a lot for bad seats to watch an old team with no players that interest me at all.  Frankly, I'll probably end up trying to catch a few Mets games.  Citi Field is a much more entertaining venue than Yankee Stadium, the Mets have some young talent that I'm interested in seeing, and I can get cheap seats on Stubhub.  Count me in to catch a weekend Mets/Nationals game at Citi Field to watch Bryce Harper and, if I'm lucky, Strasburg v. Matt Harvey or Zach Wheeler. 

[thefiestygoat]

I agree with you Daniel. I used to make a few games a year by buying insanely cheap tickets on stubhub and splitting the price of parking amongst a car of 5 people so it was a great deal. I'll still probably use stubhub but the inability to print out tickets close to game time is really annoying and I'm not sure how many games I'll make it to. I just checked stubhub and there are still some nice deals available against teams like the Astros so I'll try to jump on that.

The new stadium will never feel right to me - it's more like a corporate hang out than baseball stadium. There is nothing intimidiating or special about it. Quintin Berry said it was an easy place to the play in the playoffs. I truly miss watching games in the bleachers right up against the black seats. I hate that the bleacher seats have a horrible obstructed view and you have to look on a tv screen to see part of the field because the Yankees had to put in a restaurant where people don't even bother watching the game.

[SMantzas]

I think this is the year that Yankee attendance will see a significant dip absent some extreme discounting into the season.  The team is boring and the stadium lacks any personality whatsoever.  They had noticeably empty seats for playoff games.  Now add to the mix the virtual elimination of Stubhub.  I used to go to two or three games every year by buying cheap tickets on Stubhub.  This year, and as long as I'll have to pay at least $35 for a bad seat, I won't go to a game unless someone gives me a ticket. 

 

Note, it's not because I'm an "angry fan", it's just that it isn't worth it for me to pay a lot for bad seats to watch an old team with no players that interest me at all.  Frankly, I'll probably end up trying to catch a few Mets games.  Citi Field is a much more entertaining venue than Yankee Stadium, the Mets have some young talent that I'm interested in seeing, and I can get cheap seats on Stubhub.  Count me in to catch a weekend Mets/Nationals game at Citi Field to watch Bryce Harper and, if I'm lucky, Strasburg v. Matt Harvey or Zach Wheeler. 

I'm far from a Yankees fan, but this doesn't seem logical to me.  You aren't interested in seeing Mariano, Jeter and Ichiro in their final seasons? Cano isn't a guy who interests you? How about going to a game where you can see Dickey/Johnson vs. CC? There are marquee matchups everywhere you look. 

 

This should hold true especially if you're a Yankees fan

[Daniel]

I'm far from a Yankees fan, but this doesn't seem logical to me.  You aren't interested in seeing Mariano, Jeter and Ichiro in their final seasons? Cano isn't a guy who interests you? How about going to a game where you can see Dickey/Johnson vs. CC? There are marquee matchups everywhere you look. 

 

This should hold true especially if you're a Yankees fan

 

None of that stuff really interests me, or at least not enough to pay more for tickets than I had in the past.  I've seen Jeter and Mariano play forever and when they were much better players.  Same way I could have cared less seeing Mickey Mantle play towards the end of his career when he was a shell of his former self.  Couple that with a blah atmosphere at the new stadium, and I'm just not that excited at the prospect of going to a game.  I suspect that's how a lot of Yankee fans feel, or enough that you'll start noticing a lot more empty seats.  Whether others will start going to Mets games like I might is another issue.

[SMantzas]

None of that stuff really interests me, or at least not enough to pay more for tickets than I had in the past.  I've seen Jeter and Mariano play forever and when they were much better players.  Same way I could have cared less seeing Mickey Mantle play towards the end of his career when he was a shell of his former self.  Couple that with a blah atmosphere at the new stadium, and I'm just not that excited at the prospect of going to a game.  I suspect that's how a lot of Yankee fans feel, or enough that you'll start noticing a lot more empty seats.  Whether others will start going to Mets games like I might is another issue.

I will say this; Citi Field is a great ballpark. I haven't seen the Mets yet, but I went to a Greece-Ecuador soccer friendly and the atmosphere really stood out. Of course that may have to do with the drunk/rowdy Greeks/Ecuadorians, but the sightlines are great and it's a first class ballpark

[nmigliore]

Citi Field has some GREAT food. The sightlines are good and of course it has everything you'd want in a newly-built ballpark. The atmosphere is at its best when a good crowd is on hand or when Darren Meenan and the 7 Line Army are out in force:

Haven't been to the new Yankee Stadium yet so I can't comment on it. Definitely want to go to a Mets/Yanks Subway Series game there soon.

Edited by nmigliore, 27 February 2013 - 03:35 PM.

[thefiestygoat]

I sat in the Pepsi Porch at Citi Field a few years back which was a tremendous view.

 

I understand completely where Daniel and other fans are coming from. We've seen the legendary Yankees like Jeter, Rivera, and Pettitte for years so I can see how some of the shine has worn off of it. There aren't any young and up coming players to get excited about or that will play in the Bronx this year. They have an old team of injured vets that will be in a tough playoff race. It's not like they are going to have one of those exciting, young underdog teams that will be in the playoff hunt - it will be more of a relief if they make it this year.

 

Hard to tell if Hal is serious about abandoning the $189M plan but clearly it hasn't set well with the fanbase.

[Daniel]

I sat in the Pepsi Porch at Citi Field a few years back which was a tremendous view.

 

I understand completely where Daniel and other fans are coming from. We've seen the legendary Yankees like Jeter, Rivera, and Pettitte for years so I can see how some of the shine has worn off of it. There aren't any young and up coming players to get excited about or that will play in the Bronx this year. They have an old team of injured vets that will be in a tough playoff race. It's not like they are going to have one of those exciting, young underdog teams that will be in the playoff hunt - it will be more of a relief if they make it this year.

 

Hard to tell if Hal is serious about abandoning the $189M plan but clearly it hasn't set well with the fanbase.

 

Honestly, I could care less if they make the playoffs, except maybe to give me something to follow when the Devils aren't playing.  But I could just as well see myself watching an episode of Jeopardy rather than a Yankee playoff game.  Overall, it's hard to put my finger on.  The only way I could ever see myself losing interest in the Devils would be if Lou is gone and we end up with bad management of Milbury proportions.  And even then, maybe not since there will be young talent simply by virtue of drafting so high.

 

I used to live and die with the Yankees as much as I did with the Devils.  The change has to do with a lot of things.  The boring corporate culture has something to do with it.  The people who run the team, for all I know, never threw a baseball in their lives.  Let's face it, since Stick Michael, the Yankees have been very shaky at evaluating young talent.  Cano was a nice surprise, but I'll always suspect he was a juicer.  But otherwise, this management has not been able to produce players like Jeter, Pettite, Bernie and Mariano.  You compare those guys to Eduardo Nunez (SS), Phil Hughes (best starting pitcher the Cashman regime has managed to produce), Brett Gardner (most significant outfielder the system has produced in a while) and Jaba Chamberlain/Nate Robertson.  Puhlease.  Even though I don't follow the farm system too much, from what I read, the talent level down there is extremely thin. 

 

Buying mega-free agent one after the other makes things a lot less interesting.  Most of them fan out so soon after they sign their deals that you keep having to find the next big ticket item.  Eventually that system becomes unsustainable, as we're finding out now.  Like a bubble, it's fun while it lasts, but the pop becomes painful. 

[thefiestygoat]

In fairness to the Yankees, what were the odds that Jeter, Posada, Pettitte, Bernie, and Mariano would all come up at relatively the same time and all go on to have great careers? I'd have to research it but that has to be something that has hardly happened, the Yankees were very fortunate.

Pitching wise the Yankees have been beyond horrendous in producing top of the rotation guys for a long time now. Hughes didn't turn out to develop into what he was projected to but has still been decent. The Yankees messed up on Joba beyond belief. Why knock David Robertson? He's been one of the better relievers in the game and he's been doing it while being cost controlled. He was a very good find by Oppenheimer.

Position wise they've done a fine job at developing ML players or using them in trades. I could be misinterpreting your opinion of Brett Gardner but he has been a very valuable player to the Yankees and is often overlooked by fans and media. In his 2 seasons with 150+ games and 560+ PA he was either average or above average at the plate and elite defensively. You can easily make the case he was the 2nd most valuable Yankees position player in 2010 and 3rd most in 2011 while making little compared to the rest of the team in $.

The farm system isn't great but it isn't atrocious. It's rated middle of the pack by Keith Law and Baseball America. They have quality position prospects but are weak on SP.