Sunday, January 4, 2015

Cole Hamels or Jordan Zimmerman Ready to Don Pinstripes?


During the Winter Meetings many Yankees fans were upset while New York and Brian Cashman sat on their hands and watched the rest of the league throw money around like they were printing it themselves. Before the meetings and ever since Cashman has been making moves and additions including adding Nathan Eovaldi, David Carpenter, Didi Gregorius, Chasen Shreve, Johnny Barbato and others that could potentially be a part of bigger deal for a starting pitcher. The Yankees don't seem interested in free agent RHP Max Scherzer but the Washington Nationals do and may need to unload Jordan Zimmerman to do so. The Philadelphia Phillies also need to rebuild and the only way that's done right is to trade Cole Hamels.

Enter the Yankees who now have, if there is such a thing, too many arms for too little spots in the bullpen and in the minor leagues. Just the LHP options alone include Jamez Pazos, Jacob Lindgren, Tyler Webb, Justin Wilson and now Shreve. The RHP options include Barbatos, Jose Ramirez, Chase Whitley, Bryan Mitchell, Branden Pinder, Danny Burawa and a ton of others I could list. The infield depth is materializing with Cole Figueroa, Robert Refsnyder, Jose Pirela and others while the catching and outfield depth has always been pretty present.

Are the Yankees lining themselves up for a trade or are they simply stockpiling and cornering the market? Who knows but if the Yankees want to send Refsnyder, Eovaldi, Wilson and a throw in for Zimmerman I think they are lined up to do just that. If the Yankees want to unload the farm with Gary Sanchez, Greg Bird and a combination of the above including Eovaldi for Hamels then they could. That's all due to Brian Cashman and his inactivity at the Winter Meetings, not that he will ever get the recognition he deserves.


10 comments:

  1. Ken Rosenthal wrote the same thing. They can, but will they?

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    1. Great minds think alike, lol. If they do I think, even though it doesn't make sense to many of us, it would be for Zimmerman and not Hamels.

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  2. I think the Yankees stock piled garbage from their trades. Not worth the hub caps fund on the cross bronx expressway or at Cheap Joe's Hub Cap Shop

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    1. Ask yourself one question, are the Yankees trying to get younger in their rebuilding enterprise?
      IF the answer is yes, why would they strip the farm for a 30+ player that is on the way out by the time his contract is up. In other words, like it is now. Plugging in an older guy with a long contract (6-10 year) is not good business, nor the future of the team.
      We have a few very good players on the farm right now, IF (and the odds are in our favor) one of four pans out we can have a formidable young team in the next few years. Add a player here or there and that makes for sound building blocks...and sound business!

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    2. They are rebuilding on the fly, not rebuilding. For example see the Boston Red Sox and the Chicago White Sox. Boston stays down a year, maybe two, and re-tools and rebuilds and is an immediate contender again.

      Chicago sold off everything and were terrible for years before this spending spree. We're not going into sell everything mode we are simply waiting out the 2016 and 2017 expiring contracts. We should/could be back in 2017 and def in 2018 when Cole Hamels would still be around.

      I don't necessarily want Hamels I'm just saying why the deal would make sense for THIS team.

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    3. I'm glad that you can ignore so many people and deem those guys "garbage". Or is that just more pessimism?

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  3. Just a thought to throw out into the void...
    I think the words, "on the Fly" fit our situation very well. A commenter or two have said, with the outstanding contracts of...A-Rod-$61m, Tex-$47m, Beltran-$30m, C.C-$48m. we have 4 spots tied up/waisted.
    The light at the end of 2015 is, after the 2015 season we can eat any two of the four contracts. The two worse performance players can and should be dumped. The team can eat, $40m without an eye blink. In this way they open up two more spots for the kids or adding a FA! The following year (2016) do the same thing again.
    One BIG Drawback is, eating that kind of $$$$, prohibits us from any FA, big contracts...balance the one against the other.
    This is all presupposing, one or more don't retire or medically, can't cut it anymore.

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    1. I believe Beltran will be a strong player for us this season, and Sabathia will be a solid starter (not an ace, mind you). As for Tex, his defense will be welcome, but his bat will continue to disappoint. And then there's ARod... ugh.

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    2. Bryan, on the Plus Side...
      I go along with your statements, and hope you are more right than I am...that is a given! LOL

      Beltran-if he comes to camp in shape, will be better than last year...that is a given.

      A-Rod--UGH, is right...but, I wouldn't count him out yet. $61m for a DH is one hell of a lot of money...UGH!

      The other two, unless things have changed for the better with them...they could be replaced.

      How was your trip to Cuba, young Mr. p sent you on?
      Go with a smile, and a twinkle in your eye...have a good day!

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    3. If the Yankees don't eat those contracts AND push $250 million next season we are what we are not only this season but next season as well. Just going off my memory so I could be wrong but I don't believe we had more than two free agents after this season, Chris Young and Chris Capuano.

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Sorry for the Capatcha... Blame the Russians :)