A-Rod’s Newest Dilemma

With the announcement of yesterday’s sobering news that Alex Rodriguez will be missing all of April and possibly most of May, Yankee management must decide how this problem will be addressed. Options from within include Cody Ransom and Angel Berroa. Considering that these two options have combined for a total of 8 major league games at third base, I do not see this as a viable option.

Many have also noticed that Mark Teixeira came up with the Texas Rangers in 2003 as a third base prospect. So a possible solution would have the Yankees moving Teixiera to third base. Not so fast. Teixiera has played only 15 games in his career at third base, with 7 errors in those games. When you move a player from their natural position to a new position, you are creating a defensive liability at that position. On top of that, you have to find a replacement for a gold glover at the first position. With this move – two places on the field have decreased defense rather than one.

THE SOLUTION: Send Melky Cabrera and Ian Kennedy to the Dodgers for Juan Pierre and Blake DeWitt

The signing of Manny Ramirez has also pushed Juan Pierre to a bench roll. Pierre, also having served in the backup role for the majority of last year has asked the Dodgers for a trade and his agent has been given permission to find a new team for his client. It will also be difficult to find a new home for Pierre because he is owed: 10M in 2009, 10M in 2010, and 8.5M in 2011 a total of 28.5 MILLION DOLLARS. The Dodgers have a very young staff that have very big question marks in the back end of the rotation with fifth starter, Jason Schmidt, who’s health problems have plagued him the last two seasons, and another question in Randy Wolf, who has not thrown 200 innings since 2003. Ian Kennedy could be the guy to step in and start every 5^th day if Schmidt or Wolf get bitten by the injury bug again. Melky Cabrera could give the Dodgers a solid backup option for all outfield stops, and a decent pinch hitter/runner for critical late inning situations. This moves gives the Yankees a third base option that will not complain about playing time when A-Rods returns, and a utility option to give all of the infielders a day off once in a while. Juan Pierre (though his high salary and lousy defense are reason to question bringing him to the Bronx) would give the Yankees an everyday center fielder, who can provide great speed to a power heavy lineup. Pierre’s speed around the base paths would provide an instant threat to opposing pitchers, thus resulting in a lot of fastballs for any Yankee at the plate while Pierre is on base.

Other Possibilities:

Garrett Atkins: The Rockies have made it known that they are trying to move Atkins and his $7.05 million salary. Currently the Rockies do not have a place for 2^nd/3^rd basemen Ian Stewart, who turned the heads of many with his excellent play at the end of last season. Atkins ability to hit outside of Coors Field would defiantly be in question, especially after a down year last season. I’m not sure what the Rockies would want in return for Atkins, but he is definitely a viable option at 3^rd for the Yankees.

Adrian Beltre: A free agent after the 2009 season, and making $12 million for a team expected to do nothing. This one could be a pure salary dump, or yield a small return for the Mariners.

Chone Figgins: The Angels have the highly touted power hitting Brandon Wood well along his way. Figgins is set to become a free agent after next season and the Angels may be looking to get a return on him while they still can. The Yankees may be able to offer them Nick Swisher and a prospect or two for Figgins who would provide excellent speed to the lineup.

Dallas McPherson: Maybe its time to give the former megaprospect another shot. Second to Jorge Cantu at third base for the Marlins, McPherson’s great defense and offensive potential may be a great ‘lighting in a bottle’ type move for the Yankees.

Reasons for Yankee Fans to Laugh, and Cry

As we whiff the freshly cut grass of George Steinbrenner Field, the best named and most  grandiose of all the Spring Training Complexes from Tampa to Tuscon, Yankee fans have much to be happy about. Despite a sub-par end to the season that saw the club miss the playoffs for the first time since I was learning algebra in the 6th Grade, the Yankees have re-tooled and spend enough money to bail out the economy of Costa Rica on AJ Burnett, CC Sabathia and Mark Texiera. This should effectively shore up two major problems that the club had last year- namely run production and starting pitching, and, unless you’re hallucinating vividly, the Yankees are certainly a bona fide title contender any way you slice it given these moves.
 
But not so fast.
 
These aren’t the Paul O’Neill/ Bernie Williams Yankees that were able to gel as a cohesive unit no matter who, or what befell them (see Wells, David). Not in the least. If the Yankees are to win this year, they need to learn to be selfless and help each other, not act as the most expensive, ego-driven assemblage of baseball talent in the Universe. If there is not a serious alteration in the way the Yankee clubhouse is run, I am still worried about the team I have spent an inordinate of time watching, analyzing and defending for my entire adult life.
 
It is for this reason that I like what Joe Girardi is doing with his centerfield situation, and to a less extent, with his bullpen. With the rest of the lineup pretty much established, and Jasper’s favorite ballplayer Phil the Phranchise destined to at least begin the season in AAA, a bona fide position battle might, at the very least serve to invigorate.
 
In one corner, you have Melky Cabrera, who, despite flashes of brilliance, has not been able to hold onto the job since the reigns were handed to him last season. Melky has shown a penchant for untimely strikeouts and poor plate discipline combined with the occasional defensive gaffe that got him demoted last season. Too much palling around with fellow slacker Bobby Cano might have something to do with that.
 
In the other, you have Brett Gardner, who reminds you of Rey Ordonez without the jaw-dropping defensive acumen. In 1923, Gardner would have been a great asset to any team- a classic slap and dash hitter who plays good defense and is tough on the basepaths. In the 2009 Al East, I’m not too sure. This kid has one thing on his side- he hustles like there is no tomorrow. That’s something you can’t teach, not matter how hard you try.
 
But at the very least, these two guys duking it out will hopefully serve to remind us all of the spirit of friendly competition that makes baseball great. On a team of highly compensated megastars, this can sometimes seem lost. Maybe if everyone can channel some of their inner Brett Gardner, I would feel a little better about the 2009 Yankees.

Joba - A Bullpen Liability?

JOBA GAME LOG FROM LAST YEAR (AS A STARTER)

START #	Date	Opponent	IP	ER	Total Pitches	Pitches/Inning	Pitches Per 9	IP / 100P	IP / 110P
1	6/3/2008	Blue Jays	2.1IP	1ER	62	26.5
2	6/8/2008	Royals	4.1IP	2ER	78	18.0
3	6/13/2008	Astros	6.0IP	1ER	88	14.7
4	6/19/2008	Padres	5.2IP	1ER	100	17.6
5	6/25/2008	Pirates	6.2IP	0ER	114	17.1
6	7/1/2008	Texas	4.0IP	2ER	91	22.8
7	7/6/2008	Red Sox	6.0IP	3ER	101	16.8
8	7/11/2008	Blue Jays	6.2IP	3ER	108	16.2
9	7/19/2008	A’s	6.0IP	1ER	96	16.0
10	7/25/2008	Red Sox	7.0IP	0ER	103	14.7
11	7/30/2008	Orioles	6.0IP	1ER	98	16.3
12	8/4/2008	Texas	4.2IP	5ER	93	22.1
TOTALS	INCLUDES	GAME 1 & 12	5.1IP			17.3	156	5.2IP	6.1IP
TOTALS	EXCLUDES	GAME 1 & 12	6.0IP			16.5	148	6.1IP	6.2IP

I don’t really count starts #1 or #12 because Joba was on a serious pitch count (and got injured game 12 and was obviously pitching hurt) but whatever - you can if you want - I have included stats for both.

This game log proves that Joba is consistant. Here is the stat breakdown. With the pitch count games, and the injury game Joba still averaged 5.1 innings per start. If you take away those two games (and really I could take away more on this argument because he really didn’t get a decent pitch count till game 4) Joba averages 6.0 innings per game, which is pretty economical for this stage in a power pitchers career. With time, Joba should learn how to decrease his walk totals, and learn how to be more efficient in getting batters out, but his existing numbers show that he is currently economical in getting through innings with relatively few pitches.

Another way to look at this is in terms of quality starts. According to this game log Joba had 7 quality starts in 12 opportunities (58%). Again, three starts can be taken off the bottom end of this due to pitch count limits from being translated from the bullpen to the starter roll (and the injury game), which would give him 7 quality starts in 9 opportunities (78%).

Now if we take these numbers and translate them to ask the question - based on Joba’s average pitch count how deep would Joba go in a ball game with a 100 or a 110 pitch limit? If you look at the above chart, you can see that this pitch average brings Joba to 6+ innings pitched in most situations.

Bottom line, the Yankees want Joba for 200 innings a year rather than 70. He may only be with 10 wins out of the rotation this year - but not everything is about this year. Next year his innings pitched count can rise if he meets 170 this year, then he will rise to 200 next year.

Love it or hate it, this is the new breed of baseball. All young talent will be brought up and broken into the major leagues this way. If a starter can go six innings consistently - that should take away any questions about him being a consistent bullpen liability because any team would be jumping through hoops to find a 5^th starter to deliver a 6 inning performance to the tune of an ERA under 3.

The state of the 2009 New York Mets

Are the 2009 New York Mets ready to put down the critics, and quiet the World Champion Philadelphia Phillies? If they start the season with the current roster, I do not think so.

The acquisitions K-Rod and JJ Putz have helped to strengthen the primary weakness that forced the Mets collapse last season, but does it completely fix the problem? The Mets have undoubtedly, the best back end in  MLB, but what about the rest of the bullpen? If you compare this middle to long relief to last years it doesn’t look much better, unless you count the absence of Aaron Heilman in the Mets pen as an improvement (though, it could very well be). Pedro Feliciano is an unreliable option at best, while Duaner Sanchez proved that he was no longer the dominant middle reliever he was in 2006, before injuries kept him out of the next two seasons. Read more