Silent Days and Nights...

  

MLB Lockout begins but when will it end?...

November was so much fun with the flurry of free agent signings, even if the Yankees chose not to participate, but then, thud, it all ended with the expiration of the Collective Bargaining Agreement and the subsequent lockout unanimously imposed by MLB owners.

As a fan, this really sucks. I know the fun of the free agent signings in November would not have happened without the impending lockout, however, my favorite time of the MLB off-season is the Baseball Winter Meetings which were cancelled this year. The Rule 5 Draft was also postponed so catcher Josh Breaux stays in the organization a little bit longer.

It sounds as though the labor dispute will extend into 2022 and perhaps even into time allotted for Spring Training. The gap between the greedy owners and the players seems so wide. To an outside observer, there have been no signs, at least to me, that the two sides are willing to compromise. After the lost revenues of 2020, it seems almost unconscionable the owners would risk harm to their game rather than negotiate in good faith with the players. Even though the fans pay for the sport, we are the least represented party in this dispute. Everybody wants our money and more of it, and we have no voice except not to pay.

I am hopeful there is progress before the end of the year, but time will tell.

Lindsey Adler of The Athletic reported yesterday the Yankees have promoted Minor League Hitting Coordinator Dillon Lawson to Hitting Coach on Manager Aaron Boone’s staff, replacing the fired Marcus Thames, now hitting coach for Derek Jeter’s Miami Marlins. This is the move I had expected the Yankees to make with their commitment to analytics and the rebounding success of hitting in the Yankees’ farm system this past year. As time moved on, I thought maybe they were looking at guys like Tim Hyers, the former Red Sox hitting coach who joined the Texas Rangers last month, or Brian Snitker’s son, Troy, the Houston Astros hitting coach. With Eric Chavez’s name on the rumor mill, I thought he might be a possibility, but at the end of the day, Lawson makes the most sense to me. The Yankees, due to the MLB Lockout, have not confirmed the promotion but I trust Lindsey and fully expect the formal announcement when MLB business resumes.

Photo Credit: Quad City Times

There is no word about the two assistant hitting coaches the Yankees plan to add, but I remain convinced Rachel Balkovec would be a brilliant and inspired addition. Her connection to Lawson, who brought her into the organization, makes it a natural choice.

Photo Credit: New York Yankees

To assist Pitching Coach Matt Blake, the Yankees, per Adler, will promote Minor League Manager of Pitch Development Desi Druschel to assistant pitching coach. As a native Iowan, I like Druschel’s connection to the University of Iowa. He served the University for five years ending in 2019 as, first, director of baseball operations, and, later, as pitching coach. Go Hawkeyes!

Druschel, right / Photo Credit: Brian Ray, HawkeyeSports.com

Note: With today’s Big Ten Championship looming between the Michigan Wolverines and the Hawkeyes, I had to find a way for a shameless plug of my favorite college football team.

There is no word who will fill the first base coach vacancy, although I will be disappointed if current bench coach Carlos Mendoza is not moved to the position to allow for a more seasoned veteran bench coach to aid Aaron Boone. Some of the names are probably holding out to see who gets the Mets managerial gig. As much as I would hate to see it, Buck Showalter makes the most sense to me. Whomever gets the job is going to benefit from the billionaire owner’s passionate desire to raise his club to greatness. Gee, I wish we had one of those kind of owners…

I get there was no reason for the Yankees to make splashy moves in November, and there are plenty of reasons why the Yankees should not have paid the exorbitant sums of money to the players who were signed. Yet, I was hoping for at least one move that could give us good feelings during this lockout. Sorry, shortstop Jose Peraza is not that guy. Fortunately, there are still plenty of unsigned players who could make the 2022 Yankees better so not all is lost.

My personal feelings about a stopgap shortstop are that it would do nothing to improve the Yankees, currently looking like the fourth best team in the AL East. Carlos Correa is going to cost a lot of money, but he brings greatness to both sides of the ball and would clearly improve the Yankees. He is young with heavy championship experience (regardless of your thoughts about how he got it) and would not be intimidated by New York. He makes the most sense to me, although I remain of the opinion that I would be incredibly happy to see Trevor Story as a Yankee. Either way, the Yankees need one of them. The whole idea of keeping the position warm for the young prospects (Oswald Peraza and Anthony Volpe) seems ridiculous. They are probably five years from potentially becoming what Correa and Story are today. For a win-now team, we need the best possible players now.

If the Yankees make the long-rumored trade with the Oakland A’s to acquire first baseman Matt Olson, it is pretty much a given Oswald Peraza would be included as part of the package. Everybody is getting excited about the rumors possibly linking Freddie Freeman to the Yankees, but I am skeptical on that one for no other reason than I feel he should and probably will stay in Atlanta.

I do not blame Masahiro Tanaka for declining to exercise the opt-out in his two-year contract with the Rakuten Eagles considering the MLB Lockout, but there was a little sadness when I saw it. I will admit there was a part of me hoping for a reunion with the Yankees. I would love to see Tanaka win a championship with the Yankees. With so much uncertainty surrounding Major League Baseball, Tanaka would have been foolish to opt out of a sure thing. I wish him the best of luck in 2022. Kind of funny that former Yankees first baseman Chris Gittens, released last month to play in Japan, will be Tanaka’s Rakuten teammate.

All I want for Christmas is Major League Baseball. Rob Manfred and Tony Clark, please man up and make it happen. For once in your lives, please think of the fans.

As always, Go Yankees!

Spring Training, So Close Yet So Far Away...

  

Camps open in a couple of weeks, I think…

The final day of January means, generally speaking, we close the book on the last month without baseball (hopefully) until after the World Series. It has been an eventful January, all things considered, in the Yankees Universe. The official additions of Corey Kluber and Jameson Taillon (“TIE-own”), the unofficial addition of Darren O’Day, the re-signing of hitting machine D.J. LeMahieu, and the sad farewell to Masahiro Tanaka.

When the Yankees didn’t aggressively pursue Tanaka after the season and then made the plays for Kluber and Taillon, it was fairly obvious there would be no return to Pinstripes for Tanaka. With some talk about the Toronto Blue Jays having interest in Tanaka, it was best case scenario for his return to Japan (if the Yankees weren’t going to bring him back). I am surprised more teams didn’t publicly express interest in Tanaka. He would make almost any rotation better. I get that he is no longer the pitcher, at age 32, he was at 25. The home runs could get annoying at times, but it was clear he loved New York and he loved the Yankees. When he had his opt-out a couple of years ago, I know the market conditions dictated his decision to some degree (or all of it), but I was proud of his choice not to opt-out. Time and again, we see players take the money and run (see Robinson Cano). Tanaka showed loyalty but sadly it didn’t really mean anything when it came time for the Yankees to make a business decision. 

Personally, I held out hope the Yankees would bring Masa back until the news of the official announcement of his two-year contract with Japan’s Rakuten Eagles. Suspecting his return was unlikely, I did try to hold some hope for the impossible.  For most of the off-season, I had said that I wanted one of Tanaka or James Paxton back. Now that Tanaka is gone, I can say I am not really interested in a reunion with Paxton. I like the guy and I think he’s a talented pitcher, but the first inning struggles last year wore on me and of course the injury cloud that seems to follow him is not very appealing.  Knowing that Jordan Montgomery is the team’s fourth starter behind Gerrit Cole, Kluber and Taillon, I’d rather see one of Clarke Schmidt, Deivi Garcia, or Domingo German (or even Luis Medina) take the fifth spot over a more expensive Paxton. So, I thank the Big Maple for his time in Pinstripes and wish him the best for good health in his future opportunities with other teams. It would be great to see him put together a healthy, productive season with no injured list stints. I’d hate to see him go to Toronto to do it, so I am hopeful he’ll find a new home outside of the AL East. 

Another player I am ready to say goodbye to is Brett Gardner. I know he has been a loyal, productive soldier for the Yankees, but I think it is time for the younger guys. Left field clearly goes to Clint Frazier, and with Mike Tauchman on the roster, there really isn’t any need for Gardy at this point. Not that I am all that enamored with Tauchman, the Yankees need to open opportunities for younger guys. At this point, I’d rather see the Yankees protect the checkbook and reserve more funds for potential July trades when they can better assess their needs. Not that I care how much Hal Steinbrenner spends, but it is clear the team is intent on resetting the luxury tax penalties again. 

I like the pickup of former Baltimore Orioles and Atlanta Braves reliever Darren O’Day. After the trade of Adam Ottavino to the Boston Red Sox, the Yankees clearly had a need and O’Day should prove to be an upgrade. That’s tough to say because I had really wanted Ottavino to succeed as a Yankee. There’s always a sting when a former Yankee goes to Boston, especially when that player is a native New Yorker, and it probably added some salt to the wound that it was the Yankees who sent him there. I could be wrong, but I think his stay in Beantown will only last the duration of his current contract (more probable even less when the July trade deadline rolls round if the Red Sox, as expected, are toiling at or near the AL East cellar). I don’t think he’s a Red Sock beyond the 2021 season. Stranger things have happened, and Ottavino has a connection to Boston, having played college ball at Northeastern University. 

MLB made a proposal to the Players Association today for a delayed start to the 2021 season with a modified 154-game schedule. If the proposal is accepted, spring training would not start until late March so scratch what I said at the top of this post. I do feel the players need to be guaranteed of full pay regardless of what happens, but setting that aside, as much as I want baseball to return, I think a delayed start might be for the best as we try to move forward with the pandemic. With each passing month, we get closer to broader distribution of the vaccines. I know I don’t want any disruptions during the season, so I’d rather have caution at the start to ensure the enjoyment of a full and uninterrupted schedule. Given baseball used to only play 154 games, it’s not like sacred tradition is being broken.  The cream is still going to rise to the top with 154-game schedule. But conversely, the major downside is players are preparing for mid-February arrival and the delay could adversely impact preparation. We saw a number of players last year that didn’t have the years we expected and there’s no question in my mind the delays were a common denominator among the root causes. Not solely, of course, but the delays played a part and there were players who were not at their best from a physical conditioning standpoint.

I guess more than anything, I am trying to say I am ready for baseball to start in a couple of weeks but if it is delayed, I am not going to scream. A mutual decision must be made between MLB and the Players Association and I’ll respect said decision regardless of the outcome. 

I do really want baseball back. Yet, the greater priority is the health of players and fans. 

I feel bad Colorado Rockies fans. After living among them for the four years (before moving to Los Angeles last year), I know how much they love their team and its players. I am sure it was very difficult for them to hear the new the Rockies were putting the final touches on a trade to send star third baseman Nolan Arenado (and $50 million in cash) to the St Louis Cardinals. I have to credit Daniel Kramer, a Seattle-based MLB reporter, on Twitter (@DKramer_) with the best tweet analysis of the Rockies organization: “Let’s review: The $70M Ian Desmond Experiment. The $106M in 3 bullpen arms that they all eventually released. Inadequately evaluating DJLM and letting him turn into an MVP elsewhere. Signing Dan Murphy for same $ as DJ. Paying $50M to get rid of your franchise star.” Well, I am okay with their inadequate evaluation of DJLM. Yankee fans continue to salivate over German Marquez and Trevor Story, sensing a fire sale in The Mile High City. The talk is they’ll use Nolan’s money to lock up Story, but it’s hard to see him staying in Denver for the long term. Todd Helton was a rare exception. It seems that most Colorado superstars eventually move on to other cities to make their mark.

Congratulations to Didi Gregorius on his new two-year deal with the Philadelphia Phillies. The Phillies recently signed another former Yankee to play for manager Joe Girardi when they gave a non-roster invitation to Ivan Nova. Ronald Torreyes will also be in Phillies camp on a non-roster invite.

As always, Go Yankees!

The Men of No Emotion...

Photo Credit: Getty Images, Corey Sipkin (via NY Post)

Yankees sign LeMahieu and Kluber… 

Hey, Cashman woke me up from my nap. C’mon, man… 

After months of crickets, last Friday turned out to be a very productive day in the Yankees Universe. Getting out of bed on Friday morning, I saw the reports the Yankees and D.J. LeMahieu were nearing a deal. A pleasant way to wake up.  Sure enough, it came to fruition in the form of a 6-year, $90 million deal. Some fans were freaked out about the length of the contract, but there’s no doubt the Yankees are looking at this as a four-year deal and the extra two only served to lower the average annual value. As much as I love LeMahieu and as happy as I am he’s back, there is no way LeMahieu is still a Yankee by Year Six. Well, unless he keeps on hitting like a machine. I think the Yankees probably feel anything they get in the last two years is gravy. If not, they’ll just cut bait and move on.    

I had hoped the Yankees and LeMahieu could find common ground because it certainly seemed like both sides like each other. I did have my fears he’d take his trade across town to join Francisco Lindor and the New York Mets or even head north of the border to play for the looming beast of a team that is beginning to take shape in Toronto. The Los Angeles Dodgers also loomed as a threat and I am sure D.J. entertained thoughts about what it would be like to play in Colorado every year wearing enemy gear. 

The news later in the day that the Yankees had reached agreement on a one-year, $11 million contract with Corey Kluber was hardly a surprise. Given how much the Yankees have coveted Kluber in the past, despite his recent run of injury problems, it seemed like they always had a leg up on everybody else if for no other reason than pitching coach Matt Blake (from their time together in Cleveland) and his long-time history of working with Yankees’ director of player health and performance, Eric Cressey. There are reports Kluber had offers for more money but he chose the Yankees. 

Regardless of how he got here, I am glad Kluber is a Yankee. But it does come at a cost, there are now reports the Yankees are unlikely to re-sign Masahiro Tanaka. That makes me sad. He’s been a good Yankee. Sure, he can be frustrating at times and it was evident in the playoffs last year the Yankees didn’t trust him at that point. Yet, I would have gladly accepted his return to be a third or fourth starter.  It kind of sucks to think he’ll most likely be pulling on a different uniform this year. I only hope that he does not sign with an AL East rival. I’d probably feel better if Kluber was a sure thing but he’s not. The Texas Rangers made the investment in Kluber and got almost nothing to show for it other than a few pics of Kluber wearing different versions of Rangers jerseys. I know Tanaka is always a bad pitch away from Tommy John surgery, but he does seem like a healthier option than Kluber at the moment. This of course could change if Kluber shows he is still Klubot.  

After word of Kluber’s signing circulated (hasn’t been officially announced yet), Yankee fans almost immediately began clamoring for Cincinnati’s Luis Castillo. Yes, I’d love to have Castillo in the rotation with Gerrit Cole and Kluber (and eventually Luis Severino), but I’ve learned whenever there is this much noise about a player and the Yankees, it almost never comes to fruition.  Brian Cashman just doesn’t work that way. He strikes quickly and quietly as we know so well. So, the more people talk about a possible Castillo trade, the less likely I see it really happening. 

I do think The Greedy Pinstripes’ Daniel Burch is onto something with his campaign to bring Trevor Bauer to the Bronx. Unlike Kluber, you can count on Bauer to give you innings. He’ll also be one of the better pitchers in the league which positions him nicely to be the #2 rather than Kluber. I doubt the Yankees spend the money, but they need more than one superstar, a roll of the dice with a former Cy Young Award winner and a bunch of kids.  Sorry, Monty, I know you’re not a kid but…we need more. Which is EXACTLY why we need Kluber's former (future?) teammate.

Photo Credit: AP

It was so fun having certainty in one rotation spot last year. I know, Cole is going to lose from time to time and yes, he’ll give up the dingers like anybody else, but when he was on the mound, you felt confident about the Yankees’ chances. It’s been a very long time since I had that feeling. It would be nice to have the same feeling about two spots in the rotation. So, Hal, please sign Trevor Bauer. It’s only money and you’ll earn it back with the next championship.  Get Greedy! 

I suppose that if it is unlikely Tanaka will be back, there’s a snow ball’s chance in hell that we’ll see James Paxton again. SNY reported earlier today that Tanaka is seeking a one-year deal in the range of $15 to $20 million. If he does sign for that level of money, then it is probably best the Yankees decided to part ways. I personally don’t think he’ll get it, not in this depressed market…I just don’t want to see him sign for an unusually low amount that the Yankees could have easily matched.  

I think the Yankees are not done yet, even if I don’t believe there’s any traction for a Luis Castillo trade. I think Cashman recognizes the team has holes, and there are other teams that have gotten substantially better. I don’t exactly remember how the quote goes, but it’s akin to being unrealistic if you expect a different result when you do keep doing the same thing over and over. The Yankees proved they couldn’t win last October and they do need to do something different to change the outcome. Betting on Corey Kluber is not the smart play. Hence, my belief that Cashman is getting ready to pull his magic act again.  

I’ve seen a few articles predicting a major breakout this year by Clarke Schmidt. While I recognize it could happen, I remain in the ‘I’ll have to see it to believe it’ category. Not trying to diss Schmidt and I certainly feel he can be a dominant pitcher, but he hasn’t done it yet. Until he does, I will carry some skepticism (or maybe realism). I’d love to see him explode in 2021 like nothing we’ve seen since the Summer of ’78. He’ll certainly have his opportunities this year and I truly hope he makes the most of them. 

As always, Go Yankees!

Dissecting Trevor Bauer’s Free Agency Wants & Needs

 

Trevor Bauer is the top available free agent starting pitcher on the market and has vowed to do things differently this offseason in his approach to his own free agency. Rather than doing things like most/every free agent available before him, Trevor and his agent Rachel Luba are trying to control more of the flow of information themselves rather than letting rumors and “fake news” dictate the narrative. Personally, I love this approach because through his social media platforms, Twitter and YouTube specifically, Trevor can engage the fans and keep them in the loop. It is also fun to watch him and Luba replying to Jon Heyman calling out his inaccuracies and falsehoods because who doesn’t like to see that? To take that one step further, who wouldn’t enjoy watching Heyman having to credit me with breaking the news on where Bauer signs, and for how much? You want to do things different, then be different. Chris Cotillo breaking the Doug Fister to the Washington Nationals was different, watching all the national Baseball writers having to credit a High School kid was different. Selling yourself on YouTube and creating your brand is also different, but which one is more different? I guess that’s Trevor’s decision, Day 14 of me asking him to allow me to break his news comes tomorrow on Twitter regardless though.

 

Day 13 of me asking @BauerOutage to leak me info on his free agency so Jon Heyman has to credit me when I break the news.

Please support so we can do this! pic.twitter.com/jsS6XWxQhw pic.twitter.com/qPzUdiDEFn

— Greedy Pinstripes (@GreedyStripes) January 11, 2021

Bauer released a video on his YouTube channel last night outlining what was important to him in his free agency search, as well as what may not be as important as much to him. I took notes and will cover as much as I can here in this article, but I encourage you to check out the video below and I encourage you to subscribe to his channel, even if he doesn’t end up signing with your favorite team. It’s a great follow and it’s the inside information and content that I think we, the MLB fans, have been clamoring for forever.

 

First of all, Trevor wearing a shirt that says “Spin Rate” with a spinning top in the middle was the perfect shirt for the video and the perfect way to get his brand out there a little more, in my opinion. I’m an analytical and advanced metrics guy, plus I make t-shirts on the side, so this one touched me personally as a fan. It made me want to buy one, whether he comes to the Bronx or not, and that, in a nutshell, is what Bauer wants to accomplish with his brand. Kudos to him, it’s working.

 

Trevor wants to build a partnership with his next team. Trevor wants a team that is willing to let Trevor be Trevor, but he also wants a team that is willing to listen to him to garner ideas, philosophies, etc. because he thinks he can bring a lot to any team that he signs with. How can you disagree with that given his history, which is something he also specifically touched on in his video. His performance, his durability, his increase in spin rate, etc. were all specifically touched on in the video, as well as his ability to grow his brand, to be able to vlog to his fans, to be able to help people through charities (HOPE WEEK for the win, am I right?), and to help his teammates get the recognition that they deserve. Trevor used being an inspiration for kids and getting his teammates to their favorite concerts as examples of this. Trevor wants to be a great teammate and grow with everyone, which spits in the face of the narrative that he and former teammate Gerrit Cole being on the same causing a ruckus in the Bronx. Trevor has stated multiple times that he has no issues with Cole and that playing on the same team as the Yankees workhorse would not be an issue for him, or for the rest of the team. Trevor is a genuine guy and I believe him. Could he just be saying that to keep the dream alive that the Yankees and their checkbook are still in the fold potentially? Sure, but again… Trevor seems like a genuine guy. If he had an issue with Cole I don’t think he would go out of the way to trash him, but at the same time I think his responses would have been much different when asked as well.

 

Trevor outlined what is important to him, and what isn’t so important to him, in the video, but stated that he didn’t want his “important” list to be construed as a demand list. Trevor mentioned multiple times that it was a preference of his but continued to stress that this would be a partnership between him and his new team. What isn’t so important to Trevor is geography and the size of the media market that he would be entering via free agency. Trevor knows he can build his brand on Twitter and YouTube whether he pitched in the Bronx or whether he pitched in Bismarck, North Dakota. Trevor has proven this, we are all sitting here talking about him this winter after being drafted by a small market team in the Arizona Diamondbacks before making a name for himself in equally smaller markets in Cleveland and Cincinnati.

 

What is important to Trevor is his happiness. Trevor stated that he has spent a lot of time, both his personal life and his baseball life, unhappy and that he doesn’t want to waste more of his time staying that way. Kudos to him. Life is short, way too short, and every second you spend unhappy is a second that you won’t get back. Trevor also wants a team that is willing to accept the way Trevor goes about himself and the way he goes about getting ready for the game. Trevor mentioned how he was told he shouldn’t throw weighted balls by the Diamondbacks because he would throw his arm out, and how that now most pitchers throw with weighted balls. Bauer wanted to emphasize that this didn’t mean that he was necessarily un-coachable, but instead emphasized the partnership with any potential team he signed with. Bauer is open to ideas from his next pitching coach and organization but wants it to be a two-way revolving door with the organization and pitching coach also willing to listen and potentially implement some of his ideas. I think this is where the Yankees may gain a slight advantage, given that former Indians pitching coach and current Yankees pitching coach Matt Blake know Bauer very well.

 

Trevor knows he has a finite number of years to play at the MLB level and he wants the opportunity to not only compete for a World Series every year, which he would get in the Bronx, but he also wants to win a World Series. In my opinion, the Yankees window to win the World Series is two years, subject to change. After two years the contracts of Aaron Judge, Gleyber Torres, etc. begin getting expensive through arbitration and that will dictate how long the window stays open. Adding Bauer, depending on the length of the contract of course, potentially extends that window accordingly.

 

Bauer also wants to at least have a discussion about pitching every fourth day, stating that he tracks everything about his body and his performance. Bauer thinks he can be even better pitching every fourth day, which in a lot of ways would work best for the New York Yankees. The Yankees need innings and Bauer pitching every fourth day instead of every fifth day could solve a lot of problems in the Bronx. Bauer specifically touched on how him pitching every fourth day could potentially allow a pitcher who pitches better on five- or six-days rest (check Masahiro Tanaka’s stats with the extra day of rest for an example. We all know he prefers to come back here and could presumably be had for “cheap”) or a pitcher on a team-imposed innings limit (Clarke Schmidt, Domingo German, Deivi Garcia, and eventually Luis Severino come to mind immediately) could benefit from having Bauer pitch more often.

 

What it will come down to is money. Bauer has a pretty good idea what he is worth, and he wants to be compensated fairly for it, not only for his projections into 2021 and beyond, but from his past as well. Bauer noted and recognized that he has had good seasons and down seasons, but his durability and uptick in spin rate, etc. This is where I believe it gets dicey for the Yankees, specifically. Is the mandate to get under the $210 million luxury tax threshold posturing, or is it a real mandate? I am leaning towards the former and not the latter, but unfortunately, I know just as much (or as little) as the rest of us. I do know one thing though, if the Yankees want him here and if Bauer wants to pitch for this club, they can get creative and work something out. Defer money, whatever needs to be done.

 

We learned a lot by listening to Bauer, more than we ever learned from Jon Heyman tweets this offseason, so I compiled them into a PROS and CONS list specifically linked to my favorite team, the New York Yankees.

 

PROS:

 

• Yankees HOPE WEEK
• A seemingly fun, young(er) clubhouse based on the love of the game and unity.
• A media market and fan base that would embrace Trevor’s ideologies on the game in terms of social media, analytics, and the desire to win a World Series every single year.
• Former Indians pitching coach Matt Blake is the pitching coach in the Bronx

 

CONS:

 

• I don’t think the Yankees will meet the fiscal needs of Trevor outlined in his video so that he can continue to grow his brand. The $210 million mandate is real, whether they say it out loud or not.

 

Will the Yankees sign Trevor Bauer this offseason? In my opinion, the only thing keeping them from signing him will be his fiscal demands. I think given a two-year championship window that the tax shouldn’t be a concern, especially with the new CBA presumably coming after this season (and all the fiscal unknowns that come with it), but I am not in those war room discussions. I personally would buy a Bauer shirt/jersey day one if he signed in the Bronx and I think a ton of others would, but none of us know what’s going on inside the mind of Hal Steinbrenner. One thing I think we all know for a fact, though, is that the Yankees need pitching and Bauer is the best pitcher available. Bauer would make every single player on that team better and he would make every decision that Matt Blake, manager Aaron Boone, and GM Brian Cashman makes that much easier. It is the perfect storm, and the storm is here, now it’s up to the Yankees to walk into the eye of that storm and grab the most coveted piece on the free agent market… you know, like George would have done.

 

Get Greedy, Get Bauer.

 

The German Indifference Factor...

Photo Credit: Frank Franklin II, Associated Press

Domingo German preparing for whatever comes his way…

I am not sure how I feel about Yankees pitcher Domingo German. Character is an important quality, nearly as important as talent and ability in my mind, and he lost my trust with the incident that led to his suspension. Granted, none of us know the exact details, but the severity was evident with the length of the suspension (one year). It is hard to simply embrace him because he has served his time. Aroldis Chapman served a 30-day suspension for his episode of domestic violence. I don’t want to underplay Chapman’s domestic violence, which was wrong…so very wrong, but a year-long suspension illustrates the greater severity of German’s actions. For his part, I do feel Chapman has earned his redemption. To the best of my knowledge, there have been no further reports of domestic violence for the Yankees closer. Redemption for losing last year’s final playoff game? I’ll have to get back to you on that one. For the record, I don’t blame him, but I want to see his return to late inning dominance.

The ultimate decision-maker on the topic (German), Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner, is quoted as saying, “I have to absolutely feel comfortable that he deeply, deeply regrets and is sorry for what he did, and I absolutely have to be comfortable with the fact that he’s turned his life around. Those two things for sure.” I am sure German deeply regrets and is sorry for getting caught, but I am not so sure about his feelings for his actions. If someone is prone to domestic violence, it is not exactly like they roll out of bed one day and become Mr. Rogers. 

German can help the Yankees, sure, but is it worth it? That’s the question he’ll have to answer in the days and months leading up to next season. If the Yankees make the decision to trade German, I would not object. If he stays, I will try to support him. Either way, I trust Yankees management for having the full details and making the decision (does he stay, or does he go?) based on the facts as they know them.

The reports of German’s strong performances in the Dominican Winter League are inspiring but he’ll need to do more than just throw the ball well if he wants to be a Yankee again.

I’d rather see the Yankees give either Clarke Schmidt or Deivi Garcia a shot in the rotation and make a trade for a solid #2 starter to slot in behind Gerrit Cole.

George A. King III of The New York Post floated the idea this week the Yankees could bring Didi Gregorius back. Didi is unlikely to re-sign with the Philadelphia Phillies, and the 31-year-old shortstop will be looking for a new home. I respect George and I always loved Didi’s time as a Yankee (I can never say enough about the great job he did taking over for Hall of Famer Derek Jeter), but I do not see the Yankees bringing him back. I say this regardless of what happens with DJ LeMahieu. Personally, I think there are better options. I know, my dream of Francisco Lindor is equally unlikely, but there are other roads the Yankees could take. I still believe Gleyber Torres can and will improve as the team’s starting shortstop, but I would not be opposed to his return to second base if DJ does leave. 

I am pleased to see MLB has re-scheduled the Field of Dreams game for August 2021. After last season’s cancellation of the game to be played in Dyersville, Iowa, near the site where the movie Field of Dreams was filmed, I thought the opportunity had passed. Born in Iowa, I was/am excited to see my favorite team set foot on my native soil. I was a little disappointed last year when MLB tried to replace the Yankees with the St Louis Cardinals in effort to play the game during the pandemic shortened 60-game season but plans for the game were eventually scuttled. MLB could have stayed with the Cardinals as the opponent for the Chicago White Sox next season, but I am glad they returned to the Yankees as the team of choice. Of course, we are not out of the pandemic and it’s not 100% certain the game will actually be played, but I am cautiously optimistic the tide will turn early next year when the coronavirus vaccines start to make their way into the general population.

The game is tentatively scheduled to be played on August 12, 2021. If the regular season is shortened from 162 to 120/130 games, it is unknown how it would impact a ‘nice to have’ game like the Field of Dreams game.

My reaction to reports the Boston Red Sox are interested in free agent J.A. Happ…go ahead, sign him. I am done with Happ, regardless of where he goes. I generally do not like Yankees signing to play for the Red Sox, but it is not like I ever really considered Happ a true Yankee despite spending several years in Pinstripes. It hurt much more to see guys like David Cone and David Wells sign to play in Beantown after their successful tenures in the Bronx.  Happ is not and will never be in their category as elite Yankees. He pitched well at times and I am thankful for his contributions, but I moved on months ago.  

I cannot say I am disappointed the Tampa Bay Rays are losing players. Speaking of the earlier topic (character), their post-season hero last year, outfielder Randy Arozarena, was recently detained in Mexico after allegations of domestic abuse were made by his ex-partner. Arozarena will most likely be back next year unless he is suspended, but his presence on the Rays roster stains the clean image the Rays try to project. Given how MLB reacts to domestic abuse allegations, it is probable Arozarena will miss at least part of the season.

The Rays recently cut outfielder Hunter Renfroe, the slugger they acquired from the San Diego Padres in the Tommy Pham trade last off-season. Renfroe underperformed in Tampa which led to his release, but he’ll get another chance elsewhere. I wouldn’t be opposed to the Yankees making a minor investment in him. We always need back up support for Aaron Judge and I am not sold on Mike Tauchman despite his versatility. Clint Frazier, yes, but I think he should be the team’s starting left fielder.

The biggest loss for the Rays so far is starter Charlie Morton who signed a one-year deal with the Atlanta Braves. The Rays remain solid up front with Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow, but now there’s talk the Rays could trade Snell. It is inevitable they eventually will move Snell for monetary reasons, but I think we’re probably still a season or two away before it happens. Snell signed a 5-year, $50 million contract with the Rays in March 2019 so the issue will be how long can they continue to carry Snell’s contract. Success is a double-edged sword. It means the Rays will have to spend more money elsewhere to keep the team competitive. The Rays will be expecting a healthy return for Brent Honeywell to help fill Morton’s shoes. 

I always like to get on the other side of Thanksgiving. Not that I am purposely disregarding today’s holiday. I am grateful, but the arrival of December is generally the opening of the active news for the Hot Stove League. This year’s Winter Meetings in a few weeks will be different, certainly, as Zoom meetings won’t have quite the same impact as in-person meetings but there will still be a few free agent signings and trades. Will the Yankees play? I guess we’ll see on that one. I haven’t heard or seen anything that makes me hopeful the team will be able to retain any of its free agents, most notably DJ LeMahieu and Masahiro Tanaka. Then again, I haven’t seen anything that points to their respective exits. I guess we’ll know in the coming weeks.

I hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable Thanksgiving!

Next week opens the door to potential news about our favorite team as they look to arm up for the 2021 run. I can’t wait to see breaking Yankees news again. It’s been too long, and I am ready to see how Brian Cashman intends to overcome last season’s October disappointment. I am ready to close the door on the 2009 World Series Championship and celebrate a new one just like the Dodgers erased 1988 last season.

As always, Go Yankees!

Waiting Until Next Year...

 

Baseball is no fun without the Yankees…

I miss the Yankees.

 As the AL and NL Championship Series play themselves out, we, the fans of the greatest franchise in the history of baseball, can only sit around and wonder what could have been. Or, like many of the self-appointed GM’s on Twitter, we can deconstruct the Yankees for an imaginary rebuild. 

What rebuild? This team doesn’t need to be rebuilt but they do need to make some changes. I know that many called for the head of Manager Aaron Boone, but even before Managing General Partner Hal Steinbrenner proclaimed that Boone would be back next year, it was apparent Boone has a long leash. I was disappointed with some of the manager’s moves in the playoffs, but I am convinced he can and will get better. I am not ready to close the door on Boone’s career with the Yankees. Unlike some Yankee fans, I am certainly not pining for the return of Joe Girardi. Look, I liked Girardi when he was the Yankees manager and I had been hopeful the team would have re-signed him when his contract expired after the 2017 season. But they didn’t and I trust the decision-making process in the Yankees’ hierarchy, and I’ve moved on. I wish Girardi well, and I hope his stay in Philly cements his legacy as good Major League manager, but you won’t find me looking for a reunion. My desire for manager reunions lived…and died…with Billy Martin.  

Maybe you can say GM Brian Cashman has been on his job too long. Perhaps. If I was Hal Steinbrenner, I’d probably re-structure the front office and basically kick Cashman upstairs. In other words, make him the team President and send Randy Levine on his way. Then, appoint a new GM to work with the analytics team and serve as the face of the organization. I don’t know if I have a specific candidate in mind. It could be an insider like Tim Naehring, a former insider like Billy Eppler, or maybe a fresh, new voice from the outside. I am a little disappointed that Kim Ng has never gotten an opportunity to be the first female GM. The last part of that sentence, in my mind, is irrelevant. Kim deserves an opportunity because she knows baseball and will be an elite general manager if she is ever given the chance. Maybe the Phillies hire her to replace the fired Matt Klentak, but I’d love to see her come back to the Yankees. It won’t happen as Hal Steinbrenner seems devoted to Cashman in his current role. “Obviously, I’ve known Brian forever, and the way he goes about doing things in a very objective way,” Steinbrenner said recently. He went on to say, “He listens to everybody—pro scouting and analytics and anybody else that wants to get into his hear. I know the people that work under him respect him, and Boone respects him, and it’s been good. We’re just going to have to keep plugging away.” It is Hal’s money.  As long as Hal is happy, it doesn’t really matter what you or I think.

The first order of business must be re-signing DJ LeMahieu. I love DJ as a Yankee, and I was a big fan of his when he played for the Colorado Rockies (I lived in Denver at the time). But for as much as I’ve called for the Yankees to re-sign him (almost with each post), the talk of a five-year contract does put me off a little.  I am completely fine with a three-year deal but five years seems to be pushing it a little too far. LeMahieu will be 33 next July. Maybe he ages well, but the thought of a 38-year-old second baseman bothers me. If the Yankees have proven anything in recent years, they’ve generally avoided extended-length contracts (unless your name is Gerrit Cole, of course). I think a three-year deal is fair for both player and team. You can build the necessary dollars into the contract to provide long-term financial security for the player, while keeping the team’s options open should the player regress with age, or if the Yankees were to go five years, I’d want to see some options in those latter years so the Yankees would have an ejection button without the contract becoming an albatross.  So, now that some dollars are being tossed around as ideas, I’ll modify my position to say I want the Yankees to re-sign LeMahieu as long as it makes financial sense to do so. I’d be devastated if he leaves, but I do believe the team needs to protect its flexibility to make future roster enhancements without the dead weight of bad contracts. 

Exercising the team option to bring back Zack Britton is a no-brainer and a must move. I’d be in favor of moving Britton into a co-closer’s role with Aroldis Chapman. Chappy seems to be getting more vulnerable with each passing year. Unfortunately, not everyone…well, in fact, no one…is Mariano Rivera.  But to make Britton the co-closer, the Yankees must make bullpen improvements. I honestly do not know what to expect with Adam Ottavino. I’ve always thought he was a great player, even when he had his struggles in Colorado, but it was difficult to have any trust in him after last year. Can he rediscover himself like he once did in Colorado? I wouldn’t bet against him, but like LeMahieu, he is older now. It gets harder.  Given Tommy Kahnle will miss the 2021 year, the Yankees have to find an elite replacement.  This isn’t a job for the young arms in the farm system. Team Cashman needs to find their next gem with a reliever that is ready to explode. The next Josh Hader is preferable. I don’t know who that is, but I am sure the Yankees have a board of non-Yankee prospects they rank for target acquisition purposes. The Tampa Bay Rays have had great success with their seemingly shot-in-the-dark acquisitions which have turned out to be brilliant discoveries. 

I don’t like Mark Teixeira’s idea of trading Luke Voit to move LeMahieu to first, Gleyber Torres back to second, and re-sign Didi Gregorius to play shortstop. I wouldn’t be opposed to Didi coming back but I don’t want LeMahieu pushed to first to make it happen. Conversely, I’d hate to see LeMahieu leave in order to bring Didi back. I think all of us were disappointed with Gleyber’s results at shortstop this year but like Aaron Boone, he will get better. Gleyber has proven to be a player who puts in the time, the commitment, the work to get better. He’s not just living the high life as a wealthy young man…he is dedicated to his craft and I think he will be successful. I get Teixeira’s belief that Luke Voit’s value has never been higher, but I am hopeful the next Yankees championship includes Voit.

Photo Credit: Rich von Biberstein, Icon Sportswire

With the disappointment of Masahiro Tanaka’s October starting performances starting to fade, I think the Yankees bring him back. They almost have to given the current state of the rotation. I’d love to see the Yankees sign a guy like Trevor Bauer despite the baggage he brings, but I don’t think they’ll spend that type of money in free agency this year. They’ll spend the money on guys in-house, and they’ll use potential trades over making any big splashes in free agency. Luis Severino offers hope but of course we won’t see him until next summer and then there’s always the caveat that it takes some guys a year to get back to their previous level. If he could provide at least the stability of a #3 starter when he returns, I’d be very happy.  It will most likely be 2022 before we can talk about him being second only to Gerrit Cole. By then, I am hopeful Clarke Schmidt and/or Deivi Garcia have fully blossomed into Major League starters.  Through all this, Tanaka offers some glue (stability) so I am convinced he’ll be back. 

I wish I had a crystal ball to see the state of Yankees’ catching in 2021. I am not sure Gary Sanchez is long for life in Pinstripes. I had hoped the new catching coordinator, Tanner Swanson, could work some magic with Sanchez, but the results were less than ideal to say the least. Losing the trust of his manager and the team’s best starting pitcher does not bode well for Gary unless he has a miraculous off-season and comes into Spring Training on a mission to awaken the Kraken. I am starting to give up hope we will ever see it happen. I am not ready to hand the keys to Kyle Higashioka yet, so I really hope this is an area the Yankees figure out this winter. I want Gary to succeed and I want him to do it as a Yankee. But if Cashman has made the determination it is not a salvageable situation, then I’ll trust him to make the decisions to make catching a strength once again. This will certainly be something I’ll be watching closer as we move into the final months of the year. 

J.A. Happ, please don’t let the door hit you on the way out.

I don’t have a grand map for how the Yankees can improve. I trust Cashman and his team to make those decisions. It will be interesting once the World Series is over and off-season planning begins to take shape. Early November moves can often be a precursor to the team’s off-season blueprint. I think at that point, we can start to make better projections for potential moves. I think the Yankees WILL be better next year. I certainly don’t think they will tear it down a year after signing Cole to the monster contract. They need to maximize the potential of the team during the best years of Cole’s contract. There is talent on the roster and there must be a focus to address the team’s weaknesses. With the right moves, the Yankees, on paper, will be among the greatest teams in MLB. Throw in the right chemistry, and 2021 could be a very special year for Yankee fans…the year we’ve been waiting for.

As always, Go Yankees!

TBT: Masahiro Tanaka’s Partially Torn UCL & Why You Should Chill the F Out

 Throwback Thursday, Masahiro Tanaka and his partially torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right throwing elbow edition. Over two years ago I told everyone to "chill the F out" over it, how does it look two years later? Enjoy! 

ORIGINAL POST SEEN HERE

You know what Daniel Burch hasn’t done in a while? Rant (or talk in the third person while Daniel Burch is on the subject). He hasn’t ranted in a while, although he has come close, but that is all about to change. I have been hearing it for years, and I have argued against it for years, but for whatever reason this is not registering in some people’s heads. I am so sick and damn tired of hearing about Masahiro Tanaka’s partially torn ulnar collateral ligament and I am even more tired of hearing it used as an excuse for every time the guy throws a ball out of the zone, let alone struggles in a start. The partially torn UCL is not the reason for all his struggles and you are not smarter than a team of doctors that advised against him getting Tommy John surgery. Deal with it and get over yourselves people.

Let’s start at the beginning, the diagnosis.

Tanaka was diagnosed back in 2014 with a slight tear of his ulnar collateral ligament. Tanaka visited three different doctors including Yankees team doctor Christopher Ahmad and Tommy John surgery specialist and expert Dr. James Andrews and all three doctors came to the same conclusion, the need for Tommy John surgery and a new ulnar collateral ligament was not needed. While each doctor had their own plan for how to treat and how to rehab the elbow the consensus was the same, no surgery. The Yankees ultimately decided on a platelet-rich injection on the elbow and rest and rehab, a treatment that at least to date has worked for Tanaka’s particular case.

Despite this diagnosis there are still fans, not doctors, who say the most outrageous and off-base things about Tanaka, his elbow, and about Tommy John surgery in general.

“Tanaka cannot pitch at a high level with a partially torn UCL!”

WRONG! Now that this is out of the way let me tell you all a story. There once was a man named Adam Wainwright who not only pitched once with a small tear, like Tanaka’s, in his UCL, but he did it twice. Wainwright dominated Major League hitters for six seasons before needing the surgery which included 182 games, 99 of them as a starting pitcher, 874 total innings including 233 innings pitched in 2009 alone, and a second place (2010) and third place (2009) finish in the National League Cy Young Award vote. Wainwright was first diagnosed with the partial tear in his UCL as a High School pitcher where doctors advised against surgery. Wainwright tore his UCL partially again while in Triple-A and was once again advised against an ulnar collateral ligament replacement surgery. Both times Wainwright took the conservative route, like Tanaka, and came back throwing harder and stronger than ever. Wainwright pitched for six seasons with a partially torn UCL before completely blowing out his elbow and requiring the surgery.

“So, Tanaka will need the surgery eventually.”

No, not necessarily. Tanaka was never ridden like a horse like Wainwright was and has never approached 233 innings in a Major League season. Tanaka also sat out ten weeks after the diagnosis where Wainwright sat out only six weeks while Tanaka also received a platelet-rich plasma injection to promote healing in the elbow where Wainwright did not. Tanaka was closely monitored by a team of doctors and is still monitored closely to this day by the New York Yankees. Tanaka had multiple checkups after the diagnosis and every time he was told that there was no new damage to the elbow or the ligament.

“Why not just get the surgery done, sit out a year and come back strong in the final two seasons of his contract?”

If it were only that simple. While the success rate for Tommy John surgeries are as good as they ever were it doesn’t mean that they are 100%. Not yet, anyway. For every success story with a pitcher coming back in 15 months or so and coming back stronger and better than ever there are horror stories that contradict that line of thinking. It seemingly took Ryan Madson three-or-four years to fully recover from his Tommy John surgery, and he is just a reliever who isn’t relied upon every fifth day like Tanaka. Also, it is worth mentioning that there’s a ton of instances and stories of pitchers NEVER coming back or being the same after a torn UCL surgery. Why just go cutting on a ligament and take that chance when it has deemed unnecessary by a team, not just one, of doctors? Why take the risk? You don’t. Getting what is deemed as an unnecessary surgery like having your tonsils removed or a circumcision is one thing, having the ligament that essentially holds your elbow together ripped out and replaced for no good damn reason is another.

“But, but, but, Wainwright needed the surgery eventually. Tanaka will too!”

Wrong again, Yankees fans. Let me tell you another story. A story about a man many know as “King Felix” but a man I prefer to call Felix Hernandez. Hernandez has been pitching with a torn ulnar collateral ligament for God knows how long. Bob Nightengale of the USA Today has reported on it and Andy Van Slyke opened up about it in that interview about three years back where he claimed the Los Angeles Dodgers wanted to trade Yasiel Puig. It seems to be common knowledge around the league, yet Hernandez has yet to undergo the ulnar collateral ligament replacement surgery. And, FYI, Felix’s velocity did drop to around 92 MPH, yes. It was AFTER his velocity drop that he found his changeup and truly morphed into the “King” that he was nicknamed recently. The velocity drop did not coincide with the partially torn UCL, not even close.

“I know more than Daniel Burch.”

No, you don’t. Next.

Okay, so again on a serious, and less cocky, note you can sum up this entire article in just a few sentences. Every elbow is different, every person is different, and everyone’s body is different. Just because Adam Wainwright was able to pitch through the elbow injury and didn’t immediately require the surgery doesn’t mean Tanaka will, although he has thus far. Just because Felix Hernandez has reportedly a 25% tear in his UCL and has yet to require the surgery it doesn’t mean that Tanaka won’t require the surgery. No one knows. What the point of this post was is to show people that their opinions mean very little in the grand scheme of things. Doctors told Tanaka not to get the surgery, specialists in fact, and I trust them way more than I trust a casual fan. I trust the specialists more than I trust my own knowledge and opinion, so please stop acting like you know more about Tanaka, his elbow, UCL’s, and Tommy John surgery than someone who went to school for the better part of a decade just to learn the trade. You don’t, and neither do I. Thank you for listening to my rant while learning a little bit about Tanaka, ulnar collateral ligaments and the history of pitching with a tear in it.

AL Wild Card Game 2 - New York Yankees @ Cleveland Indians

 The New York Yankees slugged their way to a victory in Game One of the 2020 American League Wild Card Series with the Cleveland Indians, hitting the first home run of the season off Cleveland ace Shane Bieber while knocking him out of the game after just 4.2 IP. Tonight the Yankees offense will look for much of the same, and a series victory, while they back Masahiro Tanaka. Playoff Tanaka tonight on the mound with the series on the line, let's do this. 

Masahiro Tanaka owns a career 1.76 ERA in the postseason along with 37 strikeouts across eight starts since 2015, thus earning the nickname of Playoff Tanaka. Tanaka also finished the 2020 campaign strong with a 2-1 record over his last three starts, compiling a 2.25 ERA over that span. Tanaka looks to send the Yankees into the American League Division Series with a victory tonight. 

Carlos Carrasco will make his third career playoff appearance tonight for the Indians with their season and backs against the wall. In his two previous postseason starts, one in 2017 and one in 2018, Carrasco has posted a 1.64 ERA with 10 strikeouts in 11 innings pitched. 

The game will be played at 7:08 pm ET inside Progressive Field and can be seen nationally on ESPN. Go Yankees!

The End of the Wrong Season...

 

Photo Credit: Associated Press

Yankees stumble to the Finish Line…

Well, there is one more game to go, but this is my final regular season post. I’ll be back for the play-offs but no plans for a season recap after tomorrow’s game.

Suffice it to say I’ve been disappointed with the uneven play of the Yankees this shortened season and the errors lately have been atrocious but there are a few bright spots. I am grateful, incredibly thankful, Gerrit Cole is a New York Yankee even if we couldn’t deliver him a division championship. For his part, he tried. The middle linebacker at first base, Luke Voit, has been a shining star for much of the season. And D.J. LeMahieu just continues to do what he does best, playing pretty damn good baseball with both bat and glove.

I wish we could say this is Aaron Judge’s team. I know, it is when he is healthy (which he is right now) but, unfortunately, we didn’t get to see much of that this year.

When I say ‘Wrong Season’, I am not really implying what I think about the Yankees’ chances this year. Then again, maybe I am. My intent is mainly based on the fact it has just been a fucked up year with the Pandemic, the unnecessary loss of lives, total disruption of sports as we know it, empty stadiums, ballparks and arenas while games are played, the trials and tribulations of the Presidential election coming up in November (regardless of who you are voting for), and so much more about what went wrong this year. I am not a political person and I am certainly not going to make a political stand here but suffice it to say that I’ll be glad when 2020 is in the rearview mirror. 

As the Yankees continue to hang onto the fifth spot in the AL seeding order (by the narrow margin of the pinstripes on their jerseys). Maybe the Toronto Blue Jays, who are currently 1 ½ games behind the Yankees pending the outcome of their game tonight with Baltimore Orioles, will lose to make Sunday meaningless for the Yankees. But if the Jays beat the O’s tonight and tomorrow and the Yankees drop the season finale against the Miami Marlins, the Yankees fall all the way to eighth in the seeding order. It’s really hard for me to get excited about a team that can’t seem to win when it matters most. I have to admit that when the Marlins broke out to an unlikely 3-0 lead today, it felt like ‘here we go again’. Fortunately, the bats came to play and the Yankees took what turned out to be a cakewalk in the 11-4 victory. 

As crazy and pathetic as this year has been, it seems like a year an improbable team will emerge victorious. It could be the Tampa Bay Rays, well experienced with playing in empty stadiums long before the Pandemic, the Oakland A’s who have always fielded good but not great teams with a limited budget, the pesky Minnesota Twins and their thunderous bats, the Cleveland Indians and their pitching factory, and the Chicago White Sox, the up and comers, all seem to have a better chance than the Yankees in my mind. People like to laugh at the Twins and how the Yankees have owned them over the years. True, but I believe in the law of averages and inevitably the tide will turn. I don’t want it to happen this year, but that’s out of our control. The only team that can control it is the Yankees and of course the Twins.

Maybe everything changes when the playoffs start. The Yankees dominate every opponent. The starters hold the opponents to a run or two, and the bullpen slams the door game after game. The hitters spray the balls all over the playing field, with many going yard.  Everyone fields like they are Gio Urshela or D.J. LeMahieu. And Aaron Boones consistently makes the calls that no one can second guess. But then again, maybe not.

Depending upon the game tomorrow, the Yankees will either finish with 34-26 record or 33-27. If they hold onto the fifth spot, it is looking like they’ll be playing the Chicago White Sox or the Cleveland Indians. If they fall to eighth, there’s a date with the AL East Champion Tampa Bay Rays who didn’t really have any difficulty beating the Yankees this year. From my perspective, I don’t really care who the Yankees draw. To be the best, you have to beat the best. Very simple formula. I don’t believe in free hand-outs. 

Going back to the players, D.J. LeMahieu leads Major League batters with .359 batting average. His closest AL competitor is Tim Anderson of the Chicago White Sox at .337. This should give The Machine the AL batting title to go with the one he won in the National League a few years ago. If the Yankees do anything this off-season, they need to bring LeMahieu back. I hope they do more, but that’s certainly at the top of the list for me. Masahiro Tanaka is a very close second. I lived in Denver during LeMahieu’s final season with the Colorado Rockies. I was amazed they were going to let one of their best players walk. I know they were saving their pennies to sign Nolan Arenado to an extension, but D.J. is a guy his Rockies teammates and fans alike loved. I get keeping Arenado but they should have kept D.J. too. Glad they didn’t, of course, but at the time, it seemed foolish they didn’t try. 

Luke Voit is the only Major League hitter with at least 20 home runs (22). He enters the final day of the season with a three-homer lead on Jose Abreu of the White Sox and, surprisingly, five more than the great Mike Trout. Abreu has the edge with RBI’s at 57 while Voit stands at 52 (with a couple of Braves hitters, Marcell Ozuna and Freddie Freeman, in between them). I like Voit but I honestly didn’t think he’d be one of the best players on the team. It wasn’t that long ago everyone had great debate about whether the first baseman should be Voit or Greg Bird.  With no disrespect to Bird who is currently quarantined with the coronavirus, I am so glad the Yankees didn’t bet the farm on Bird’s health and success. I will always love Bird’s swing but I like knowing Luke Voit, and not Bird, is the first baseman for the New York Yankees. Maybe Bird can eventually find some healthy success with his current team, the Philadelphia Phillies. I am not rooting against him, I just think it’s an uphill battle for him and his hairless cat. 

Sunday’s game against the Miami Marlins will also be noteworthy for another reason, aside from the potential playoff seeding implications depending upon what the Blue Jays do tonight. Top Yankees pitching prospect Clarke Schmidt will make his first Major League start. The first of many, I hope. Every great success story has a beginning and although Schmidt has sampled Major League hitters through bullpen eyes, he has a huge opportunity as a starting pitcher for the Yankees as soon as 2021. We know James Paxton is gone, we might lose Masahiro Tanaka, and hopefully J.A. Happ finds his way to the exit, so there will be plenty of room in the rotation, even if the Yankees grab someone like Trevor Bauer out of the free agent pool.  

Photo Credit: Charles Wenzelberg, The New York Post

I can’t say I was surprised Giancarlo Stanton will not be exercising his opt-out in the off-season. There is no way that he could have commanded a seven-year, $218 million deal (the money he is still owed on his existing contract). I know how agonizing those last few years of Jacoby Ellsbury were and he was never the player Stanton was. If Stanton has a continued downward decline, it’s going to hurt more than Ellsbury ever did until it reaches the price point the Yankees bite the bullet and cut him free. I keep hoping we’ll see 2017 NL MVP Stanton show up at some point. I remember that year. Stanton was blasting ‘em out of parks on almost a daily basis or so it seemed. When I was (much) younger, I always loved the way Dave Winfield would get hot and carry the team on his back. Stanton certainly has that ability. I am not talking about Winfield’s post-season history with the Yankees. He had to go to Toronto to win a ring, but when he went on one of those regular season tears, it throttled the team into better performance. 

A hat tip to Daniel Burch, the owner of the Greedy Pinstripes blog. He said that Gary Sanchez would not catch another game for Gerrit Cole a few weeks back and took much heat for making the statement. In the end, his take on Sanchez stood the test of time. If the Yankees want to dump Sanchez in the off-season to go after J.T. Realmuto, have at it. I have wanted Gary to be great for so long and we’ve seen it in brief flashes, but I am tired. I am ready for greater consistency and a backstop who draws raves from baseball’s highest paid starting pitcher. 

I am not sure what 2021 will bring for the Yankees. No doubt the lost revenue will impact the game for years to come. I can’t imagine the Yankees maintaining their current salary level. There will be cuts, for sure. For now, it’s best to have near-sightedness and cheer on the Yankees for post-season success from the confines of our living rooms. Despite my pessimistic attitude, the Yankees are a good team and they have the players and pitching to be successful. The new season, the post-season, is nearly upon us. Time to saddle up for the ride. Let’s win this damn thing.

As always, Go Yankees!