The Longer This Goes On The More Attractive Curtis Granderson Looks

I am the first person to admit when I am wrong or that I misjudged something, and the longer this thing goes on the more it looks like Curtis Granderson really is the only option for the New York Yankees this season. Now, I admit that I wrote a post detailing why the New York Yankees did not need Granderson, but keep in mind before flaming me or before accusing me that I am playing both sides and flipflopping that this was written while Judge was still on his original 3-week timetable, and not the unknown timetable that we are faced with today. It seems like Granderson may be more valuable to the Yankees than I originally thought, and here’s why.

The Yankees need an outfielder, period. I don’t trust Shane Robinson on the roster and I don’t trust him in the middle of a pennant race. Could the Yankees survive three weeks as originally planned with Robinson? Absolutely, but we could be looking at another three-to-four weeks for all we know, and the need for an outfielder has become more pressing. Granderson has cleared waivers and looks a lot more feasible for the Yankees than other outfielders that have cleared revocable waivers, including but not limited to Adam Jones and Andrew McCutchen. Why? Money.

Granderson is set to make roughly $1 million for the remainder of the season while both McCutchen and Jones will make roughly $4 million or a shade under for the remainder of the 2018 season. The Yankees reportedly have about $4 million to play with for the remainder of the season while remaining under the luxury tax threshold, something that is going to happen whether the fans think they are “not committed to winning” because of it or not. With Granderson acquired the Yankees would still have enough money on the books left to go out and add to the bullpen, to the bench, to the rotation, whatever. With Jones, who has a full no-trade clause with 10-and-5 rights, and McCutchen the Yankees would not have that wiggle room.

So, let me eat my crow and take my foot out of my mouth while you, Brian Cashman, go out and acquire Granderson. He is a left-handed veteran outfielder that is familiar with the New York market, the team and the postseason. He can still hit for power and play a good defense in right field. Make the move, and make me ultimately look dumb, because if it makes the team better then I am okay with that.

Hello… T-Minus Five Days and Counting…

Good morning Yankees family and welcome back to the blog. Five days, the countdown has begun. T-Minus five days until the July 31^st MLB trading deadline. Five days for the buyers to buy, the sellers to sell, and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim to stand pat like they always do. Five days to figure out if you’re a contender or a pretender. Five days to make or break and shape the rest of your 2018 season. No pressure and don’t mind the “tick, tock” in the background.

Five days for the rest of your season, potentially. Five days for the rest of my life with you my Kari, and forever still wouldn’t be enough. I love you.

Hello… Manny Machado & Disappointment

Good morning Yankees family and not only a welcome back to the blog this morning, but welcome back to baseball as tonight marks the official end of the All-Star Break for the New York Yankees. I have to say that I don’t have the same excitement to head into the second half that I have in years past, not after the news that Manny Machado would be heading to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

I fully understand that the Yankees didn’t need Machado, and truth be told I wouldn’t want to give up five prospects in order to acquire him since he is a rental, but I have to admit that after all the news, reports, rumors and speculations I began to get my hopes up about acquiring him just a tad. Oh well, water under the bridge. The rumor mill is silent for the Yankees and that is when Brian Cashman tends to do his best work, I guess we will just have to be patient and trust the process.

Welcome back! Let’s do this!

And baby, I love you! Always have, always will.

Luis Severino, Justus Sheffield and History Repeating Itself

“The Yankees didn't make a deal for a starter at the trade deadline, but they'll be adding a new pitcher to their rotation next time through. Brian Cashman announced today that top prospect Luis Severino would be called up to make his next start with the big league club, likely replacing the injured Michael Pineda. No date has been announced for Severino's big league debut yet, as Cashman says Joe Girardi and pitching coach Larry Rothschild will handle mapping out a schedule for the young right-hander.

Severino has dominated Triple-A since being promoted from Trenton earlier this season. In 61.1 innings with the RailRiders Severino has a 1.91 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, and 50 strikeouts. Those are certainly some dominate numbers that the Yankees could use at the big-league level right now with the state of their rotation currently up in the air and one of their best pitchers expected to miss at least a month.

Cashman showed a lot of faith in Severino by refusing to trade him for an upgrade at the trade deadline. He'll have a chance to reward that faith from the front office very soon. It's been a long time since Yankees fans had a top prospect to look forward to making their big-league debut. Severino is obviously a few cuts above Rob Refsnyder and that was very exciting before it was cut short. Hopefully we will all get a much longer look at Severino.”

That was a post written by Pinstripe Alley’s Tonya Bondurant on July 31, 2015. Take out Luis Severino’s name and put Just Sheffield’s name in its place. Is history potentially about to repeat itself here in the Bronx with a Yankees top pitching prospect? I have to believe so, yes. Why else would the Yankees be looking at potentially upgrading their bullpen and offense, but not their starting rotation? And why else, well there are a million and one reasons in my opinion why, would the team refuse to offer up Sheffield in any deal for Manny Machado plus potentially others like Zach Britton or Kevin Gausman? Because they are planning on calling him up on August 1^st after adding him to the 40-man roster, something the team will have to do after the season anyway to protect the left-hander from the Rule 5 Draft.

History is about to repeat itself in my opinion, and Justus Sheffield is coming. Stay tuned.

Hello… #MachadoWatch

Good morning everyone and welcome back to the blog. Boy, the Manny Machado potential trade to either the New York Yankees or one of seven-or-eight teams could really shake things up this month, couldn’t it? I mean, if the Yankees were to acquire Machado then I believe it would lead to an additional trade involving a pitcher of some kind, whether it be an ace like Jacob deGrom or a rental piece like Nathan Eovaldi or Cole Hamels. If a team like the Red Sox were to acquire Machado, although I don’t see this happening, then I could see a whole new set of dominos beginning to fall. This is going to get interesting, and probably a little annoying truth be told, as we all sit and wait on #MachadoWatch.

And my baby, my eyes are always on you… because love. I love you!

Predicting the 2018 Trade Deadline: Joakim Soria

The Chicago White Sox are not going anywhere here in 2018 and when teams are struggling in the midst of a rebuild they tend to sign veteran players only to trade them at a later time. It happens all the time, and it will likely happen again this summer when the White Sox trade away closer Joakim Soria to a contending team in need of bullpen help. The Milwaukee Brewers will need bullpen help if they want to stave off the Chicago Cubs and the St. Louis Cardinals making them a perfect match for a trade and for Soria’s services.

Milwaukee lost their closer Corey Knebel for a month due to an injury and while he has been solid since his return he is still sporting an ERA north of 4.00 this season. Having an inconsistent closer may win you some games in what many determined as a weak National League Central division here in 2018, but that will not win you many games in the postseason. Soria would give the Brewers the edge they need to not only reach the postseason, but to possibly advanced past the first round of the playoffs if they were to win their division.

Soria would come relatively cheap given that the White Sox are rebuilding in terms of prospects and will likely be atop the Brewers radar here in about a month. It is a foregone conclusion that Soria will be traded, and at this point it is also as close to 100% as you can get that the Brewers will look for bullpen help at the end of the game. Whether that search leads them to Soria, or another veteran closer, remains to be seen, but my money is on Soria pitching for Milwaukee before the end of the 2018 season and adding to his miniscule 2.0 innings pitched in the postseason throughout the 34-year old’s career.

Predicting the 2018 Trade Deadline: Mike Moustakas

"I am out of here!!"

Mike Moustakas has been about the only bright spot in the entire Kansas City Royals organization this season, at least as far as the Major League team is concerned. The team has struggled as a whole with the exception of Moustakas, who came back on a one-year deal after failing to find another suitable team to play for here in 2018 as a free agent this winter, and the Royals will undoubtedly cash in on his successes before this year’s July 31^st trade deadline. There will be many teams interested in his services but ultimately, I believe it will be the Boston Red Sox, as much as that pains me to say, who will acquire the man they call “Moose Tacos.”

Why would the Red Sox need to go out and acquire Moustakas from the Kansas City Royals when the organization feels like they have their third baseman of the future already on the team in Rafael Devers? Recently Kansas City has allowed Moustakas to play some first base, albeit just in a pair of games, presumably as a showcase for the natural third baseman in trades. The Red Sox recently let go of a first baseman in Hanley Ramirez in order to not only avoid his 2019 option from triggering, but also to give Mitch Moreland some more at-bats at the position. Since the designation of assignment for Ramirez the Red Sox first baseman has struggled mightily giving the team a need at first.

Moustakas could fit the bill rotating between first base, third base and the designated hitter position for the Red Sox while giving the team a much-needed boost in offense. Moustakas is well on his way to another 30+ home run season and he could touch 40 home runs and 100 RBI if half his games were being played inside Fenway Park. This would not only be great for Moustakas as it would give him an opportunity to play in a pennant race as well as showcase his talents for teams on a grand stage before his impending free agency, but it would also be a huge upgrade for minimal prospects for the Red Sox because he is a rental.

Moustakas comes with a $15 million mutual option for the 2019 season with a $1 million buyout that the Red Sox could easily either buy out, or exercise for next season without blinking an eye. As much as it pains me to say this as a Yankees fan, I truly believe that Moustakas will be playing for the Boston Red Sox once the calendar turns to August 1, 2018.

Hello… Buyers and Sellers

Good morning everyone and welcome back to the blog. Earlier in the week I laid out a plan to go over various things over the next month or so here on the blog, but none more important than the July 31^st trade deadline. I want to step outside my horizons some, not too much, and cover not just the Yankees during this hot stove season, but as many of the teams and players that could be making moves and moving as I can. That process started a couple days ago but I feel like before we get too far into it that we have to lay out who the potential buyers will be, who the potential sellers will be, and who won’t probably know what they are doing for a couple more weeks. That seems like a good starting point to me.

BUYERS:

New York Yankees

Boston Red Sox

Cleveland Indians

Houston Astros

Seattle Mariners

Atlanta Braves

Washington Nationals

Philadelphia Phillies

Milwaukee Brewers

Chicago Cubs

St. Louis Cardinals

Arizona Diamondbacks

Los Angeles Dodgers

SELLERS:

Tampa Bay Rays

Baltimore Orioles

Toronto Blue Jays

Chicago White Sox

Kansas City Royals

Texas Rangers

New York Mets

Miami Marlins

Cincinnati Reds

San Diego Padres

TO BE DETERMINED:

Detroit Tigers

Minnesota Twins

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

Oakland Athletics

Pittsburgh Pirates

San Francisco Giants

Colorado Rockies

Oh, and baby. I love you and I would buy you a million times over if I could. You are the most beautiful, most kind, most sincere and most awesome person that I know. I love you to the mailbox and back! A million kisses for you this morning.

So it Seems… August 31st Trade Deadline Day

Good morning everyone and happy August 31^st trade deadline day. While this deadline day is nothing compared to the July 31^st trade deadline day it is still a rather big deal nonetheless. Any player acquired today or before today obviously is eligible for postseason play with their new team while any player acquired after the trade deadline, because yes teams can trade up until the final day of the season if they would like, are not eligible for postseason play in 2017. Will the Yankees acquire anyone? It honestly seems very unlikely at this point and if they did it may be a third catcher for the month of September but probably nothing more than that. Don’t get too excited about today Yankees family because it is looking like it’s going to be just another day in the Bronx.

Every day with you is special though. HEY YOU. I love you!

Could the Yankees Seriously Make a Run at Yu Darvish?

The New York Yankees need starting pitching, this much we know. Who will the team go after, if anyone, though is anyone’s guess including the Yankees GM Brian Cashman. There’s that name again. With Michael Pineda done for the season after undergoing Tommy John surgery yesterday and top arms like Jose Quintana off the board to the Chicago Cubs the Yankees may look to either the Oakland Athletics starter Sonny Gray or a new name that is entering the fold, the Texas Rangers right-hander Yu Darvish. Could the Yankees seriously make a run at Yu Darvish? Keep reading.

According to Jerry Crasnick the Rangers are willing to listen to offers on both Darvish and Cole Hamels as the team slips further and further behind the Houston Astros in the AL West Division race. Crasnick also noted that the Rangers would like to retain Darvish beyond the 2017 season much like the Yankees did with Aroldis Chapman last season so this could be a true rental for New York, and the cost for the Japanese-born right-hander should reflect that.

What would the Yankees be acquiring if the team did pull off a trade for Darvish? The 30-year old sports a 3.45 ERA in 125.1 innings at the time of this writing here in 2017 and all his peripherals and sabermetrics paint a comparable story. Darvish is once again the model of consistency and would fit at the top or near the top of any MLB rotation. Darvish still issues a few too many walks for your liking which is evident by his 3.02 BB/9 ration but he makes up for that a bit with a 9.41 K/9 ratio and 3.73 FIP. Darvish is also a bit home run prone at this point in his career which may scare the Yankees a little but again this is a true rental and would only be until the end of this season. You can live with a 0.94 career HR/9 ratio for a couple months if it leads you into the postseason.

Darvish is not what the Yankees have openly expressed that they are interested in. He is on the wrong side of 30, although he isn’t old by any means, and he isn’t controllable beyond the 2017 season. You have to keep in mind though that the Yankees came up with this statement before Michael Pineda underwent Tommy John surgery. If the team wants to compete in 2017, and that is still a big “if” as the team looks to be also content with continuing the youth movement at any cost, the team will need to add a starting pitcher. Whether that pitcher is Sonny Gray, Yu Darvish, another name we aren’t talking about or Chance Adams remains to be seen but the Yankees need another starter. Period. I, for one, am not sold on Bryan Mitchell. Will that pitcher be Darvish and at what cost? Stay tuned. 

Yankees Potential Trade Targets: Sonny Gray

The New York Yankees are very likely to at least have some discussions with many of the available starting pitchers and their teams this summer as the Bronx Bombers look to make a legitimate run at the American League East Division crown. We have already discussed Jose Quintana until we were blue in the face in the offseason, and hell we may discuss him again just for old times’ sake, and we have begun beating the dead horse that will be forever known as Gerrit Cole here on the blog so for a little bit of a change of pace let’s talk about the Oakland Athletics righty Sonny Gray. Will this be the year the A’s finally move Gray at the trading deadline?

Gray had a down 2016 season so the Oakland Athletics decided to hold onto their ace in hopes of him turning things around to start the 2017 campaign. Gray still isn’t back to being the ace that he once was, which in a Catch 22 kind of way works in the Yankees favor as it keeps the cost in terms of prospects down, but at the time of this writing Gray is sporting a 3.97 ERA. While a 3.97 ERA isn’t something you generally want to give the farm away for you must remember that somehow Gray is still just 27-years old and only two years removed from being an unstoppable force in the American League West Division for the A’s.

The Yankees have shown interest in Gray many times before, as it seems like he is always on the trading block for the struggling Oakland Athletics, and Gray would fit well into the Yankees rotation behind Masahiro Tanaka and Michael Pineda. An acquisition of Gray would likely bounce CC Sabathia out of the rotation although I guess the Yankees could option Jordan Montgomery back to Triple-A to give Sabathia a bit of a longer leash. Who knows? What I do know is that you worry about those kind of things after he signs on the dotted line, not before.

I hate to say the Yankees could buy low on Gray because he would still cost quite a bit in terms of prospects but the cost as opposed to two years ago would be like night and day. Who wouldn’t want to give up a couple prospects for the chance at the Gray that was an ace for his first three seasons in the big leagues and a 27-year old arm with tons of MLB experience? I know the Yankees would and if I were the owner I’d sign off without batting an eye lash. Get it done Cash, before the price goes up. 

So it Seems the Gerrit Cole Trade Rumors Still Swirl

I kind of scoffed when I opened my Twitter on the day that I ran an article about the New York Yankees potentially trading for one of their former draft picks and current Pittsburgh Pirates arm Gerrit Cole. To paraphrase the tweet basically asked why my site was the only one to run this story. Well first of all is it that far out of the realm of possibilities that we could have an original thought or that we could break news? We’ve broken news before, we just never received the full credit we deserved because we are still considered to be the “little guy.” Secondly, and this is how I responded to the tweet, a simple Google search would show that we were not the only ones talking about it. We weren’t even the first to talk about it yet the trade winds surrounding the New York Yankees and Gerrit Cole this summer continue to swirl as we stand here talking today.

This rumor has gained so much steam and credibility that even Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports discussed it recently on his blog. Heyman was quoted as saying the following: 

“The Yankees have always loved him so they’d make sense. New York drafted him out of high school as a late first rounder, but Cole’s father told them then that there was no offer that could keep him away from UCLA.”

Now on the site and on Twitter I’ve seen some talks that would suggest that Cole wouldn’t be worth the prospect haul it would take the acquire him but I am on the fence about it myself. Cole has a career 3.20 ERA and has an uncanny ability of keeping the ball down and in the ballpark, which is evident by just 43 home runs allowed during his five-year career in Pittsburgh. I get that pitching in the NL Central is an entirely different animal than pitching in the American League East and I also get that pitching inside Yankee Stadium is much different than pitching in a pitcher-friendly ballpark in Pittsburgh so I did a little bit of research. Shout outs to Baseball Reference for the stats.

Cole actually has more wins on the road, has given up less hits, runs and home runs, strikes out more batters and has comparable stats otherwise across the board in almost an identical sample size. Cole is not a product of the stadium out in Pittsburgh, he is what he is.

Here is another interesting stat I found, and I’ll finish the article with this, regarding run support. When Cole gets two runs or less he has a career 5-23 record in 31 starts. When Cole gets 3-5 runs of support he is 25-11 in 50 starts. When Cole gets six runs or more, which he would a lot in the Bronx, Cole is a perfect 19-0 in 22 starts so please tell me again how he wouldn’t be a good fit at the top of the Yankees pitching rotation. I’ll wait. 

The Curious Case of the Yankees Outfield

The New York Yankees enter the 2017 season with a bit of a conundrum on their hands regarding their team, their focus and their overall goals for this upcoming season. Does the team want to compete in 2017 and if so will they be willing to trade off pieces that they have seemingly been unwilling to part with in the past before the trading deadline to make sure the team competes? Will the team, despite what the standings say, continue the youth movement and move pieces at the trading deadline? Do the Yankees even know what they are going to do or want to do? I’m leaning more towards the latter than the former and nothing gives me that feeling more than the current state of the New York Yankees outfield.

The Yankees outfield, on paper anyway as we are just beginning spring training this season, consists of Brett Gardner in left field, Jacoby Ellsbury in center field, Aaron Judge in right field and Aaron Hicks playing the fourth outfielder. Now excuse me if I’m confused but the team, as I said earlier, is in the middle of a rebuild and the team still currently employs overpaid and underperforming veterans like Ellsbury. I get holding onto Gardner, if it weren’t so soon after the retirement of Derek Jeter I would be beating the drum for Gardner to be the captain of the team right now if we’re being honest, but we didn’t even hear an inkling of news regarding Ellsbury this winter. Why? We see players with no-trade clauses who have underperformed and failed to live up to their outrageous contracts traded all the time, why don’t the Yankees ever do this?

Why don’t the Yankees ever eat half the salary and move their overpaid and underperforming players for mediocre and high upside prospects like the rest of the damn league does? Usually to us might I add, although not recently thank goodness. If the team is going to rebuild they need to rebuild, that includes trading Ellsbury to anyone who will take him and the bulk of his salary. If the team is going to compete in 2017 they need to trade Ellsbury to anyone who will take him and the bulk of his salary. Ellsbury does not make the team better, he doesn’t make the team younger and he doesn’t make the team more financially flexible going forward. He’s weighing the team down and he’s the next big contract that the Yankees will simply wait out rather than deal away, lick their wounds and move on.

Rebuild…. Compete…. Neither of them are being done right now with the current state and the curious case of the New York Yankees outfield. You can’t have your cake and eat it too, and in the case of Jacoby Ellsbury you wouldn’t even want to eat this cake if you could. It’s a bit… stale. 

If Watson Isn’t Available, What About Antonio Bastardo?

Hello again Yankees fans and welcome back! Earlier today we returned in a big way asking the New York Yankees organization to trade Michael Pineda to the Pittsburgh Pirates for left-handed reliever Tony Watson and once again we’re back with another idea. A Plan B of sorts because one always needs a Plan B. What if Tony Watson isn’t available? Who would the Yankees use in their seemingly depleted and thin middle relief core? What about Watson’s teammate and a target of the Yankees an offseason ago or two, Antonio Bastardo?

The New York Yankees were said to be interested in a Justin Wilson reunion earlier this offseason which brings me to one post I made which compared Wilson to Bastardo. The post in a nutshell showed comparable numbers across the board between the two players which means if Wilson was thought to be too rich for the Yankees blood that Bastardo could be a comparable, and arguably better, replacement for the Yankees middle relief in 2017.

Bastardo is a free agent to be at the end of the season meaning it likely wouldn’t cost much to acquire him and where the Pirates lack the most the Yankees may have a lot to give. Pittsburgh is severely lacking in the catching department meaning that a young catcher prospect with upside like a Donnie Sands could be used as trade bait for a season of Bastardo without the organization mission a beat. Sands was an 8^th round pick in 2015 and isn’t expected to be ready for the Major Leagues until around or after the time Francisco Cervelli becomes a free agent after the 2019 season.

The Pirates have a ton of left-handed bullpen depth and the Yankees would like some middle relief help heading into the season so it makes sense that these two teams could match up in a trade. Watson is the prize here but Bastardo wouldn’t make the world consolation prize the Yankees could fetch, and he’d cost a heck of a lot less too in the long run. Either way Cash, get one or both done. 

My Thoughts on the “Turned Down” Jose Quintana Deal

The New York Yankees need starting pitching and reportedly the team has had at least preliminary discussions with the Chicago White Sox regarding that very topic. The Yankees are interested in Chicago White Sox southpaw and former New York farmhand Jose Quintana. New York is so interested that apparently, according to a “source” anyway, the Yankees recently turned down a deal proposed by the White Sox for Quintana. The deal would have included Luis Severino, Jorge Mateo and Clint Frazier for the Yankees while Chicago sent Quintana and his four years of team control back to the Bronx. Here are my thoughts on the Yankees turning down this deal.

First and foremost, damn that’s a lot. The Yankees would send two of their top five prospects (arguably) to the White Sox including one of the top prospects in all of Major League Baseball along with a young pitcher in Luis Severino for Quintana. That’s a ton but as I’ve said many times this offseason the White Sox are not in the business of losing trades. Look at the Chris Sale to the Boston Red Sox for Yoan Moncada, Michael Kopech and two others trade as an example of that.

Now I know what you’re thinking, I think the Chicago White Sox are crazy for asking for that from the Yankees for Quintana. Well, you’re right. I do think they are crazy but honestly if and when they trade Quintana this offseason they are going to get a comparable package from whatever team acquires him. Why shouldn’t that team be the Yankees?

Sure, losing Mateo hurts but the team has Gleyber Torres. Sure, losing Frazier really hurts but when you are acquiring the type of talent you are in Quintana you can bite the bullet. Losing Severino really hurts in my eyes because I truly think the Severino we saw in 2015 is the version of Severino we will see going forward and not the 2016 version that struggled and refused to work on his secondary pitches. Why do I think that? I have no idea, I just do. It’s my opinion. That doesn’t mean I wouldn’t give up Severino for Quintana though.

I truly hope the Yankees find a way to get this done. Yes, I realize I am freaking some people out right now. The self-professed “prospect humper” is suggesting trading away two of the top five prospects in the Yankees system. The prospect humper also wants to make the postseason in 2017 and the World Series as soon as 2018. I want my cake and I want to eat it too and with the farm system that the Yankees have assembled I truly believe they can do that with this Quintana trade.

Pull the trigger. 

Brett Gardner, San Francisco Giants & the Trade Rumor That Just Won’t Go Away

So earlier on the blog, if you were paying attention anyway, you saw that the New York Yankees are “tapped out” according to reports and if any deals are to be made for the remainder of this winter that the team would have to clear out some payroll first so sticking with that as a theme here is an idea that involves the Yankees left fielder Brett Gardner and a potential trade partner. The San Francisco Giants seemingly love the Brett Gardner type, speedy outfielder that plays defense and can hit at the top of the order, and they may be the best and most logical fit for a trade if a trade were to go down so who would the Yankees be interested in and could both teams make it happen?

Now while Gardner is not going to be the teams saving grace when it comes to payroll he is owed $12.5 million in 2017, $11.5 million in 2018 and the team has an option on the left fielder worth $12.5 million for the 2019 season with a $2 million buyout option. That’s not nothing so they say, although I hate to use the double negative here on the blog. That’s not much to the Yankees in the grand scheme of things but that also works both ways, it’s presumably not much to the San Francisco Giants either who are in “win now” mode after signing Mark Melancon to a free agent deal.

The Giants everyday left fielder Angel Pagan is officially a free agent causing the team to, as it stands today of course, to go with either Mac Williamson or Jarrett Parker in the spacious left field grass at AT&T Park in San Francisco. If the Giants are truly desperate to win in 2017, and they should be as every year that passes is another year off of Buster Posey and Madison Bumgarner’s prime while Johnny Cueto can opt-out of his deal after this season if he so chooses, the team might be willing to part with a few intriguing prospects for Gardner.

I don’t pretend to be all-knowing in terms of anyone else’s farm system but from a quick look at MLB.com’s top Giants prospects list the names Chris Shaw (left-handed power-hitting first baseman) quickly stood out from above the rest. Obviously Christian Arroyo, an infielder and the Giants top prospect, did as well but you are definitely not fetching him for Gardner in my opinion. Not alone anyway.

The deal makes sense for both sides. Gardner’s gap power, speed and defense would fit the Giants roster well while the prospects the Giants would presumably send back would fit in with the Yankees newly found austerity and youth movement. So what are you waiting for? Make the deal already. 

Does the Ruben Tejada Signing Make Rob Refsnyder & Ronald Torreyes Expendable?

The New York Yankees signed former New York Mets middle infielder Ruben Tejada to a minor league deal with a presumed invitation to the Yankees spring training camp down in Tampa this coming spring. We’ll meet the man the Yankees signed here in a few hours on the blog but before we get to that I want to share my initial response, impression and the major question that came along with the signing. I also want to explore whether such a signing by the Bronx Bombers now makes both Robert Refsnyder and Ronald Torreyes not only trade bait but expendable as well.

I’ll start slow with my initial response. My initial response to the signing was not a real major one. It’s a minor league deal with an invitation to spring training. The Yankees will likely have many veterans and reclamation projects that they sign to similar deals this winter and spring so the fact that it’s Tejada is not a huge deal to me. I think it’s being made into a bigger deal than it is by most because he used to play for the Mets, and truth be told a little of it also has to do with the fact that news is slow right now around the Christmas holidays. This was merely a blip on the radar for me until I started thinking whether this was a precursor to something to come, something much bigger.

Let’s be honest, and this is coming from the biggest Rob Refsnyder fan besides his own mother, both Refsnyder and Torreyes are easily expendable. While I believe with constant and consistent at bats Refsnyder could become a line-drive hitter and an overall good hitter in the Major Leagues manager Joe Girardi has proven time and time again that this is not simply going to happen. With that said Refsnyder and Torreyes lend little to the team in terms of offense, their value is on defense at this point unfortunately and their versatility and ability to play multiple positions. Something that Tejada could also lend the Yankees in the middle infield.

Now we know the Yankees and their seemingly infatuation with having veteran players on the team, even in the midst of a rebuild on the fly, so it worries me that Tejada may get that 25^th spot and a young guy who still has some trade value like Refsnyder may be out the door in a deal for a starting pitcher. Of course Refsnyder alone, or Torreyes either for that matter, cannot fetch a pitcher on their own but when thrown into a package with someone else (Brett Gardner) you may have the makings of a deal on your hands. And that worries me if I am being honest. 

ICYMI: Explaining Matt Holliday’s No Trade Clause

Matt Holliday was signed almost a week ago to the day now by the New York Yankees to be the team’s everyday DH while also filling in at first base and left field whenever necessary. The team gave Holliday, the former St. Louis Cardinals, Oakland Athletics and Colorado Rockies product, a one-year deal worth $13 million and a very interesting no-trade clause that I want to discuss here tonight. Why? Because it’s interesting and I think it needs explaining.


Matt Holliday can block trades to a whopping ONE team with his limited no-trade clause. What team you say? The Oakland Athletics. What’s up with that? Is he bitter? Does he not believe the team can compete in 2017 and does he want to be on a contending team? What’s the deal? Maybe one day we’ll find out. I just thought it was interesting and I wanted to bring it to you this evening.


Enjoy.

Explaining Matt Holliday’s No Trade Clause

Matt Holliday was signed almost a week ago to the day now by the New York Yankees to be the team’s everyday DH while also filling in at first base and left field whenever necessary. The team gave Holliday, the former St. Louis Cardinals, Oakland Athletics and Colorado Rockies product, a one-year deal worth $13 million and a very interesting no-trade clause that I want to discuss here tonight. Why? Because it’s interesting and I think it needs explaining.

Matt Holliday can block trades to a whopping ONE team with his limited no-trade clause. What team you say? The Oakland Athletics. What’s up with that? Is he bitter? Does he not believe the team can compete in 2017 and does he want to be on a contending team? What’s the deal? Maybe one day we’ll find out. I just thought it was interesting and I wanted to bring it to you this evening.

Enjoy. 

Shock the World & Make THIS Trade

Hello again Yankees family. This morning we are coming to you live from the land of the crazies again as I bring you another trade that the Yankees could and possibly SHOULD make this offseason. Now remember when reading this that I was also “crazy” when I discussed the possibility of the Yankees making a huge splash this winter acquiring Mike Trout, well until Sweeny Murti “had the idea” and it was all of a sudden a great idea, and I’m back at it again with another off-the-wall trade proposal that would not only shock Major League Baseball and turn the game upside down but it also might just work for the New York Yankees.  

Brian Cashman, pick up the phone and ask the Arizona Diamondbacks what they want for Zack Greinke. The Arizona Diamondbacks almost need to trade Greinke this offseason in order to push the franchise forward and do really anything this winter. His contract is an organization buckling type deal for a team like the Diamondbacks and the team in the desert is already talking about trading him. Who could blame them, Zack Greinke is in no way, shape or form a $34 million pitcher in my opinion, especially through the 2021 season, but because of that not many teams besides the Yankees can and will take on a contract of that magnitude. For that reason the Yankees have their bargaining chip.

The Yankees have a ton of money coming off the books this season and next and while this could also hamper the Yankees for quite some time, especially if Masahiro Tanaka does not opt-out after this season, with the influx of youth the team could remain competitive while still getting under the luxury tax threshold. Remember, the team only has to get under the cap for one reason to reset all penalties which is something that can easily be done with the Gary Sanchez’s, Aaron Judge’s and Tyler Austin’s of the world on the roster. The Yankees have over $50 million coming off the books this season alone so $34 million for Greinke plus $16 million for Aroldis Chapman, for example, and the team adds minimal salary through arbitration while being better than their 2016 version tenfold. 

If the Yankees take on the entire contract the prospect demand would be minimal, extremely minimal. Greinke had a down season in 2016, and truth be told most free agents do after signing contracts like he did before last season, and should bounce back in 2017. He didn’t lose velocity on his fastball and he was relatively healthy last season, he just didn’t have the defense, the run support or whatever else he was missing from the Dodgers on the Diamondbacks last season. Simple as that, it happens. If the Yankees can get Arizona to pay down some of that deal and send a pitcher like Brady Lail, who was not protected from the Rule 5 Draft, Chad Green or Luis Cessa and a smaller prospect package I think the deal could ultimately get done. Quite easily actually. -

Oh and before anyone brings up his anxiety and inability to pitch in the big markets like New York let’s remember how long ago Greinke actually fought anxiety and depression and let’s remember how he has pitched on the biggest of stages, i.e. the playoffs, the All-Star Game etc. He’ll do fine. Trust me. Famous last words I know but do it anyway, Greinke will be fine in New York or wherever he goes. Let’s just hope Brian Cashman has the balls to make sure where he goes in 2017 is New York.