Yankees Have Contacted Kelly Johnson

Earlier in the season I posted a post about the worst case scenario for the Yankees hypothesizing what the Yanks would do if Andy Pettitte, Mariano Rivera, and Derek Jeter all retired as well as Robinson Cano walking away in free agency. In that post I noted that the Yankees could still compete if they filled in and upgraded everywhere they could and signed maybe the second best offensive and home run hitting second basemen in Kelly Johnson. This all but confirms that Brian Cashman and/or Hal Steinbrenner reads The Greedy Pinstripes because the Yankees have contacted Johnson about being a possible backup plan if Cano walks in free agency, basically making me a prophet.

Johnson is 31 years old and is coming off of a .235/.305/.410 triple slash with 16 home runs last season for the Tampa Bay Rays. Johnson plays multiple positions including two positions of need for the Yankees, second base and third base, including a little bit of left field. Johnson figures to take a one year deal with a low AAV, which makes him more attractive then Omar Infante or Stephen Drew, and his left handed swing could see a jump in stats in Yankees Stadium. Johnson strikes out a little too much, over 26% of the time, and does not walk as much as you would like, a little less then 10% of the time, but he may be the best offensive second power threat we could get if Cano walks.