Shane Greene For Didi Gregorius?

It happens all the time...

Somebody here at The Greedy Pinstripes reports on a bit of news, and I go to the comment section to give my thoughts on it. I get a few sentences into my reply before I finally realize that I might as well write a post instead. So here I am.

I like Shane Greene, but I'm not about to shed a tear over losing him. While his strikeout rate was pretty good last season, it was actually better than what he did in the minors, which isn't a good sign. Not that he'll for sure strikeout less hitters in 2015, but a betting man would land on the pessimistic side of that gamble.

And while trading away Greene makes things a little more sketchy when it comes to what the team's starting rotation will look like next season, the fact is there are a number of guys available to replace him.

In the Yankees' system you have guys like David Phelps, Bryan Mitchell, and Manny Banuelos. And while the team was surely going to acquire at least one pitcher in free agency, be that a stud like Max Scherzer or good pitcher like Brandon McCarthy, they can instead look to get two of them.

But just because the team isn't that hurt by the loss of Shane Greene, doesn't mean they did well in the trade. I mean, is Didi Gregorius any good?

Well, if any of you out there believe Gregorius is going to hit like Derek Jeter in his prime, I'm sorry to inform you that the odds of that happening hover barely above nil. Sure, Didi is only 25 years old, so he could figure something out and replicate his AAA numbers (.278/.350/452), but chances are we're going to get somebody closer to the Gregorius that hit .252/.332/.373 in 2013.

As for Didi's defense, we're in for a treat there. Especially if you compare him to what we had at shortstop the past few years. His arm has been rated a 70 out of 80, and along with some good range, he's sure to save a few runs throughout the season.

To sum it all up, the Yankees are definitely in a better position now than they were a few hours ago. Now it looks like they will go out and sign a couple of starting pitchers, which could be Max Scherzer and Brandon McCarthy (yummy).

I'm not sure if they will stick with the offense they currently have in place, meaning one of Refsnyder or Pirela at 2B with Prado at 3B, or if they'll bring back Chase Headley. Either way I'm okay with it.