Pinstriped Trade Rumors Will Never Die...

Photo Credit:  Kevin C Cox, Getty Images

Red Thunder Gets No Rest…

Now that we don’t have Gerrit Cole rumors to fuel our days, it looks like we’ll be hearing more and more about Yu Darvish until he finally signs somewhere.  

John Harper of The New York Daily News floated a trade possibility this morning. In his scenario, the Yankees would send Jacoby Ellsbury and Clint Frazier to the San Francisco Giants for second baseman Joe Panik. By including Frazier, Harper figures the Yankees could get the Giants to pay $12-$13 million annually of what’s left on Ellsbury’s contract.  In his line of thinking, the trade would open the pathway for the Yankees to sign Darvish so he basically views it as an Ellsbury/Frazier swap for Darvish/Panik.  

Photo Credit: Lance Iversen, USA TODAY Sports

I am not sure that I’m crazy about the trade idea but if the Yankees were willing to send Frazier to Pittsburgh for Cole, they’d be willing to move him to bring in Yu Darvish.  

If the Yankees carried a fifth outfielder on the roster to start the year (assuming Ellsbury and Frazier are dealt), it would most likely be Tyler Austin, who could back up first and the corner outfield spots, or Billy McKinney, an outfielder who did work at first base during the Arizona Fall League.

Panik’s presence would allow the Yankees to take their time with Gleyber Torres or move him to third base as once planned. A native New Yorker, Panik, 27, hit .288 with 10 home runs and 53 RBIs for the Giants in 2017. He was eligible for arbitration for the first time this year and settled with the Giants last week for $3.45 million. He can be a free agent in 2021. His lefty bat would play well in Yankee Stadium.

No one is going to take Ellsbury in a straight one-for-one swap, even with boatloads of cash included. So as much as I’d hate to lose Frazier, this is probably a trade that I’d make so long as I knew that I could sign either Darvish or Alex Cobb for the starting rotation.

In an unrelated rumor, Jim Bowden is saying that the Milwaukee Brewers are interested in signing third baseman Mike Moustakas if they could trade Travis Shaw to the Braves, Mets or Yankees. I’m never too excited about adding an ex-Red Sock, but Shaw had a breakout year for the Brewers in 2017 with 31 home runs and 101 RBIs. He batted .273/.349/.513.  He is a left-handed bat and will turn 28 in mid-April. Not sure what level of interest the Yankees might have, but it bears watching. It would certainly cause much angst in the Red Sox Nation.

Photo Credit: Jim Davis, Globe Staff

Congrats Hideki Matsui…

According to The Japan Times, former Yankee (and Yomiuri Giant) Hideki Matsui has been elected to the Japanese Hall of Fame. At 43 years and 7 months, Matsui is the youngest entrant to the Japanese HOF, eclipsing former Dodgers/Mets pitcher Hideo Nomo, who was 45 years and 4 months at the time of his election.

Before heading to the United States to join the Yankees, Matsui won three Central League home run titles (1998, 2000, and 2002) and he was MVP of the CL in 1996, 2000, and 2002. 

This was Matsui’s first year on the Japanese ballot and he garnered 91.3% of the vote. He was joined by former Hanshin Tigers star Tomoaki Kanemoto and former Yomiuri Giants manager Tatsunori Hara.

In his prepared statement, Matsui thanked his mentor, former Yomiuri Giants skipper Shigeo Nagashima. “Day in and day out, (Nagashima) checked my swing, and those days formed the cornerstone for me as a baseball player.”  

Photo Credit: Kyodo

Hideki’s father, Masao, attended the announcement ceremony on his behalf.  Hideki is in New York and was unable to attend.

Congratulations to the great #55 for the well-deserved honor!

Stanton and Judge who?…

Aaron Hicks caused quite a stir on Instagram this weekend when he posted a workout pic that shows he is more than capable of holding his own in the Yankees outfield. I was a little shocked when I first saw the pic and there were plenty of people who questioned whether or not it really was A-A-Ron (it is). Justin Diamond (@justindiamond) had the best tweet:  “Sweet baby Jesus. @AaronHicks31 you on the juice this off-season?”…

Wow, what a football game!…

As a lifelong Minnesota Vikings fan, I’ve endured my share of disappointment over the years. The Vikings have found more unique ways to lose big games than any NFL team that I can think of. Well, outside of the Buffalo Bills. Yesterday’s NFC Playoff game against the New Orleans Saints was a game of atonement for me.

The Vikings jumped out to a 17-0 lead in the first half and I was getting congratulations from a number of friends. As a Vikings fan, I knew it was way too early to start getting excited.  Plus, Drew Brees is still one of the game’s great quarterbacks.  Sure enough, a couple of plays in the second half shifted the momentum to the Saints. The Vikings lost the lead and then re-captured it with less than 2 minutes to go. I was fearful that the Vikings had left too much time on the clock for Brees and Company and unfortunately I was right. Brees led the Saints to a field goal to re-capture the lead at 24-23 with 25 seconds left. Starting on their own 25 after a touchback on the kickoff, the Vikings moved to their 39 and faced a third down with 10 seconds left and no time outs. I was resigned to the agony of defeat when Vikings QB Case Keenum hit WR Stefon Diggs for a 61-yard touchdown to win the game. The Vikings won the game, 29-24. It was such an incredible feeling…something like Aaron Judge hitting a game-winning home run in the bottom of the 9th.  

Photo Credit: Pioneer Press

I am not sure what will happen next week in Philadelphia as the Vikings take on the Eagles for the NFC Championship but I am enjoying the ride. The Eagles are the only thing that stands between the Vikings and playing this year’s Super Bowl at US Bank Stadium in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota. So regardless of whether they win or lose, the Vikings are going home. I just hope it is with a game still be played.

Lastly, We Remember…

Today, we remember the late great Dr Martin Luther King, Jr. Actually, he is thought of every day, but today is officially his day. He had so many great words over the course of his life, but I’ll leave this post with one: “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”

Thank you, Dr King, for making a difference. We are a better country because of you and would have been even greater if you hadn’t been taken from us prematurely. We are forever grateful for you and your efforts to make this a better World for all of us.

Never forget MLK Jr...

Go Yankees!

Brian Cashman and the 1% Solution...

Earlier today on Jim Bowden’s SiriusXM radio show (Channel 210, Fantasy Sports Radio), GM Brian Cashman indicated it is possible no further moves are made before the team heads to Tampa next month.  “We stay engaged with the marketplace, but I think more likely than not – 99 percent likely – we are going to be going to camp with what we have”, Cashman told Bowden. 

Color me the skeptic but I think the odds just increased for the Yankees to make a move to add a veteran pitcher before camp.  The ‘1%’ Brian Cashman indirectly alludes to just became as wide of the Grand Canyon.   I take these comments as posturing, whether it is to get the Chicago White Sox to lessen their demands for starting pitcher Jose Quintana or a free agent like Jason Hammel to accept a lesser deal. 

Cashman’s comments kind of feel like the stereotypical team vote of confidence for a manager who is about to lose his job (and does). 

I am not buying the talk of simply throwing Luis Cessa, Chad Green, Bryan Mitchell, Adam Warren and Luis Severino into the mix to compete for the two open rotation spots.  To do so means the Yankees have complete confidence that two of these pitchers will rise to the challenge.  The more prudent approach would be to bring in a veteran pitcher to compete with the kids.

I thought earlier in the off-season, the Arizona Diamondbacks and their new GM Mike Hazen, made a very good move in picking up Taijuan Walker in a five-player trade with the Seattle Mariners.  That’s the type of trade that I’d like to see the Yankees make, rather than bet the farm on a trade for Quintana. 

I’ve heard the predictions that the Yankees could end up with anywhere from 75 to 85 wins depending on how well the younger guys play.  If the team truly has the potential to win 85 games, then it is not going to take much to secure at least one of the wild card spots.  If the Yankees feel that Quintana can make the difference, then they should pull the trigger on a trade.  I do not want to risk losing key top prospects, but recognize that the only way to pry Quintana lose would be to include prized talent.  That’s why I feel that Cashman is simply throwing a smoke screen to eliminate or at least reduce the perception of desperation.  His way of trying to turn this from a seller’s market to a buyer’s market. 

Odds are the Houston Astros or another team will overpay to win Quintana’s services.  Regardless of what happens with Quintana, the Yankees would be better served by focusing on other under the radar trade possibilities to strengthen the competition for the open rotation spots.  This is exactly what I think Brian Cashman is looking to do with his latest posturing comments.  He wants to make the right deal…on his terms.

We’ll soon see if 1% yields a veteran pitcher…