The Yankees lost a lot of their core guys in their bullpen from 2013, it is well documented everywhere so I won't touch on it again and pile on, and they have done very little to replace them. Now while I am a huge advocate for Joe Girardi and his ability to build a bullpen on the fly, especially with prospects, I think everyone would like a little more certainty. Francisco Rodriguez signed a minor league deal last season with the Milwaukee Brewers, and using my "there is no such thing as a bad minor league deal" mentality, and the Yankees should jump on it with K Rod if he is willing to do so again.
Every pitcher comes with pros and cons obviously. Rodriguez strikes out guys, has closing experience, doesn't walk many batters, has not given up many home runs in his career, and gets almost enough ground balls to survive in Yankee Stadium. He has also pitched in the New York market before with him time with the New York Mets which while it probably does not compare it cannot really hurt.
The cons are painfully obvious especially looking at his half a season in the AL East in 2013. While K Rod finished with a 2.70 ERA in 2013 he also had a 4.50 ERA while in an Orioles uniform. He gave up over twice the home runs in the AL as he did in the NL, and was average according to WAR.
Should the Yankees take the plunge and the chance? Absolutely! As much as I love David Robertson he could falter, it's baseball and anyone not named Mariano Rivera could falter, and having a suitable back up plan is never a bad idea. Who cares if he beat his father in law, can he get batters out with consistency? On a minor league deal I would love to find out...
Why not? Get him on a minor-league deal. Get Johan on one too
ReplyDeleteJohan wont be ready until June, no rush on him
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