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Gio Urshela, Gleyber Torres & DJ LeMahieu / Credit: Getty Images

Lockout continues as meaningful negotiations remain evasive…

Normally, the end of the Super Bowl signals the switch of our full attention to America’s favorite pastime, but sadly, the MLB Lockout has forced us to look elsewhere for our sports addictions. The frustration of the short, meaningless meetings that have occurred between the MLB Owners and Players Association is worsened by the fact the MLB Owners could end the lockout with a snap of their fingers. The absence of a new collective bargaining agreement is not the cause of the lockout; it is the owners trying to squeeze the Players into a new owner-friendly deal. Now that spring training has been delayed, the pain will soon begin to reach into wallets. Since nothing else seems to be working, the loss of actual dollars will hopefully motivate the two sides to negotiate, in good faith and with a degree of urgency, to hasten the return of Major League Baseball. It is unfair, in my opinion, that it is the Players who will be hurt more than the Owners until a new CBA is reached.

On Thursday, the MLB announced the postponement of spring training games until Saturday, March 5^th. They had originally been scheduled to begin a week from today. To avoid further delays, next week looms as the most critical week to-date for the extended lockout. I do not understand why the two sides cannot lock themselves into a room (figuratively speaking) and burn the midnight oil until they can hammer out an agreement. I know, it is because the Owners want on new agreement on their terms and their terms only despite the pain inflicted on Players and Fans. Nevertheless, I hope they can find common ground next week so that we can be assured of a full 162-game regular season…and labor peace for the next five years.

As for the MLB postponement announcement, I felt the MLBPA’s response was appropriate: “MLB announced today that it ‘must’ postpone the start of spring training games. This is false. Nothing requires the league to delay the start of spring training, much like nothing required the league’s decision to implement the lockout in the first place. Despite these decisions by the league, Players remain committed to the negotiating process.”

Regardless of whether you side with the owners or the players, I think the MLB fans have suffered the most. The Owners’ disregard for the Fans, except for our money, has been apparent throughout this ordeal. I am tired of the lockout, I miss baseball, and I am ready for Owners and Players to work together for the good of the game.

Can reliever Matt Bowman be this year’s Lucas Luetge? Originally drafted by the New York Mets and claimed by the St Louis Cardinals in the Rule 5 draft before his release led him to Cincinnati, the righthanded reliever carved out an unremarkable career in his four Major League seasons. He underwent Tommy John surgery in 2020. The Yankees signed him as a free agent in December 2020 (two-year minor league contract), knowing he would not pitch in 2021. Bowman appeared in 134 games for the Cardinals in 2016 and 2017, amassing ninety-eight strikeouts in 126 1/3 innings. Unfortunately, injuries have curtailed his career since that time. Blister issues plagued his 2018 season which limited his availability and led to his release by the Cardinals. He did rebound in 2019, but 2020 was lost due to elbow soreness which ultimately led to Tommy John surgery. He will be 31 in May but here is hope he will find the fountain of youth and magic in his arm like Luetge did last year. I know he has worked on cutters in recent years and will surely seek out Mariano Rivera for advice when (if?) spring training finally gets started. It is hard not to feel empathy for guys like Bowman who have worked hard to achieve their dreams despite a series of challenges.

Matt Bowman

So, DJ LeMahieu feels badly for the fired Yankees hitting coaches. I read the New York Daily News article this week which quotes LeMahieu saying “We didn’t play up to our capabilities, it’s that simple. It wasn’t their fault by any means. It’s not on them. There were the guys that helped us get to where we were the previous few years…”. Honestly, the shift in organizational philosophy over the last few years put on expiration date on former hitting coach Marcus Thames and assistant hitting coach P.J. Pilittere. Maybe the disappointment of last year’s hitters hastened their departures, but it was inevitable. Once the Yankees brought Dillon Lawson into the organization and the shift toward analytics-driven coaches transformed the minor league system, it was only a matter of time until Lawson was elevated to Major League hitting coach. If the Yankees had not promoted him, it is very possible another team would have poached him. I am happy for both Thames and Pilittere. They both quickly found new homes in their same roles. Thames as hitting coach for Donnie Baseball’s Miami Marlins and Pilittere as an assistant hitting coach in the Mile High City (where he can hang out with Greg Bird and his hairless cat).

My disappointment with Aaron Boone’s return and the new coaching staff. I was ready to move on from Boone this off-season until an extension guaranteed his return. I am not going to go into hate-Boone mode. I will support him as manager of my favorite team, and I will always pull for him to have success. I like Boone, but my biggest disappointment is the return of bench coach Carlos Mendoza. Mendoza should be part of the coaching staff, just not the crucial role as Boone’s chief lieutenant and in-game strategist. I was in favor of experience. Bring in a bench coach who had managerial experience to give Boone better options. Mendy and Boone seem too much alike. Boone needs a guy who can make him better. Watching my favorite football team (the Minnesota Vikings) so closely the last month while they assembled a new coaching staff, it really stood out to me that the Vikings chose to hire an experienced assistant head coach to support young, first-time coach Kevin O’Connell. When O’Connell was formally announced as the Vikings new head coach this week, the team also announced that former Cleveland Browns head coach Mike Pettine has been named assistant head coach. I do not really care that Pettine did not have success as a head coach, but he brings perspective to O’Connell, a very bright and talented guy. I feel Boone could have benefited from a similar arrangement.

The shortstop stopgap solutions took a hit this week. Much of the off-season has centered on the Yankees’ plans for shortstop entering the 2022 season as almost no one except Gio Urshela expects the third baseman to be the Yankees starting shortstop this year. Aside from Andrelton Simmons (ugh), the most frequent name has been Isiah Kiner-Falefa of the Texas Rangers. Kiner-Falefa was expected to be available due to the Rangers free agent signings of Corey Seager and Marcus Semien. However, this week it was announced that Rangers third baseman Josh Jung may need shoulder surgery, and Kiner-Falefa is the most likely replacement at third base. With each passing day, my hope for an elite shortstop like Carlos Correa or Trevor Story fades. While it is possible the starting Yankees shortstop could be young Oswald Peraza, the more likely scenario is a starter that is not currently in the Yankees organization. God, I hope it is not Simmons. I am not energized by a potential return of Didi Gregorius even if he has been working out with Gleyber Torres and Gio Urshela in Tampa. Presently I am praying for Story while bracing for Nick Ahmed. I hope the eventual answer is not worse.

Trevor Story / Credit: Matthew Stockman, Getty Images

As much as I hate to see Aaron Judge get to free agency, I think the Yankees would benefit from waiting until next offseason to extend Judge. If he stays on the field this season, he should be rewarded accordingly. I hope it is with the Yankees since he is the current “face” of the franchise. The premature extensions for Luis Severino and Aaron Hicks have not worked out and I would hate to see the Yankees make another poor financial decision that will impact the organization for years to come. But with that being said, I truly hope Judge is a Yankee for life.

Aaron Judge

Let us hope and pray that the upcoming week brings good news for baseball fans.

As always, Go Yankees!

Nick Ahmed? Really?

I seriously don't get it. The Yankees reportedly would consider trading for 27 year-old shortstop from the Diamondbacks, who's put up a batting line of .221/.268/.329 in 842 MLB plate appearances, rather than hand the job over to Tyler Wade, Starlin Castro (while putting Rob Refsnyder or somebody else at 2B), or any of their other in-house candidates.

You're telling me Wade couldn't hit .221/.268/.329? Refsnyder has already shown that he could hit better than that in MLB. In fact, Daniel has already talked about a number of options to replace Didi until he's healthy, which you can read here and here.

Hey, Cashman! Stop wasting time on looking for trades like this and start thinking about the starting rotation, not just for this season but for the future. Because that is the one place that concerns me, and should concern all Yankees fans.

Replacing Didi Gregorius: Part One

The New York Yankees will be without their starting shortstop for at least the first month of the 2017 campaign after losing him to a sore shoulder while with Team Netherlands in the World Baseball Classic. Now before you think this is about to turn into another “The WBC is played too damn early in the season” rant, and trust me I feel another one of those coming but I’ll refrain for now, I’d rather spend my time and energy into discussing and plotting on how to replace Didi Gregorius. We will break this down into a two-part sessions and focus on potential trades in one post, this post, and later on we will discuss internal options. Enjoy them both.

The Cincinnati Reds have made basically anyone and everyone that isn’t tied down available and reportedly the New York Yankees have already shown preliminary interest in Zack Cozart. The Detroit Tigers are also in the midst of a rebuild and have at least began discussing deals for Jose Iglesias although the New York Yankees have not publicly shown any interest in pursuing a deal with the Tigers for their shortstop.

Both players make more money than the Yankees are presumably willing to take on for a month of the season. Cozart is a free agent following the 2017 season and is set to make $5.325 million this season which should be more money than any team is comfortable paying for essentially a bench player. Now the financial hit is a little less significant in the case of Iglesias, the Tigers shortstop is set to make $4.1 million in 2017, but is still in the area of discomfort when it comes to paying a glorified bench player.

Looking around the league the possible shortstops that could be acquired for a decent price include the Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Freddie Galvis and Arizona Diamondbacks shortstop Nick Ahmed with the usual dark horse thrown in there, as always. The bottom line is though that it’s just for a month and as I explain later on today the Yankees have plenty already on the roster to fill in for a month. There’s no need to make a panic move here ladies and gentleman. Period.

Get well soon Didi.

Bird Hunting On A Warm March Day…

From Tyler Austin’s foot to Didi Gregorius’ shoulder, I prefer when the talk is about things other than injuries…like Greg Bird’s cat, Mr Delicious.  I can’t say that I’d want a hairless cat but Mr Delicious, or “Lish”, has an interesting background.  He is the grandson of Mr Bigglesworth of Austin Powers fame.  Mr Bigglesworth, a Sphynx cat named Ted NudeGent, was in a deleted scene in which holding him was “like holding somebody’s ass” according to Dr Evil.  I guess I know what Bird likes to hold when he’s not catching and throwing baseballs.  But seriously, I wonder if Lish can play shortstop?  I found it funny when there were a number of stories written about Lish on Tuesday so I am doing my part to add to the fodder.

Speaking of shortstops, the Yankees have been linked to shortstop Nick Ahmed of the Arizona Diamondbacks as a possible trade candidate.  The 27-year-old Ahmed reminds me more of a Brendan Ryan-type.  Good defender, below-average bat.  Maybe he has better upside than Ryan did, but I’d prefer to stay with the in-house candidates, all things considered.  I realize that my favorite, Tyler Wade, is only 22 and was only in AA ball last year for the Trenton Thunder, but I like his potential as a long-term Ben Zobrist-type.  He has performed well during spring training and I feel he deserves first crack at replacing Didi in the line-up, with an assist from Ronald Torreyes. 

I saw a column on Bleacher Report yesterday that has Chad Green and Adam Warren winning the final two spots in the starting rotation.  Although they have not been my choices, I can’t argue with Green’s results this spring.  Through four appearances and ten innings, he carries a 1.50 ERA and has struck out eight batters.  He hasn’t pitched more than 3 1/3 innings in any appearance so I’d like to see him stretched out a little longer.  If he is in fact one of Girardi’s final candidates, there’s no doubt he’ll be featured in a couple of upcoming games.  For whatever reason, I just can’t get excited about Warren in the rotation.  I love the guy as the swingman in the bullpen, with the occasional spot starts.  But as a ‘take the ball every 5 days’ pitcher, I am less enamored.  I still prefer the potential of Bryan Mitchell at this point.  I had felt Luis Severino was on the right track, but after his recent performances, he’ll need to impress during the final days of camp.  Otherwise, he could find himself in Scranton/Wilkes Barre.

I haven’t written much about DH Matt Holliday but I have been quietly very impressed with him this spring.  He brings an attitude and confidence that a young team needs, and so far, he’s shown he has a clutch bat.  I watched Holliday from afar when he was with the Colorado Rockies and the St Louis Cardinals, but I think he’s better than I had given him credit for.  We know that he is no longer able to play the field on a regular basis.  His injury history in recent years with the Cardinals proved that.  But as the team’s primary DH, he’s a perfect fit.  Time will tell if this is Matt’s one and only season in pinstripes or if he’ll be here for a few.  Nevertheless, I feel 100% better about the DH position this year than I did last year at this time.

On Tuesday, in an intrasquad “camp day” game between the High-A Tampa Yankees and the Low-A Charleston RiverDogs, top pitching prospect James Kaprielian put on a show for the Yankees.  He pitched 3 official innings, throwing 30 strikes in 38 pitches, striking out 7 RiverDogs.  I hope this is a healthy year for Kaprielian as he begins his ascent to the Bronx.  I can’t wait for the day that the California Kid pulls on his pinstripes for his first appearance at Yankee Stadium.  

Farewell to former Yankees manager Dallas Green.  Green passed away yesterday at age 82.  He briefly managed the Yankees in 1989 (for 121 games) before being replaced by Bucky Dent.  Green was a great baseball guy and I remember him most as the manager of the Philadelphia Phillies when they won the World Series in 1980 (with images of Tug McGraw leaping in the air still fresh in my mind).  Green was Old School until the end.  May he rest in peace.

New strategy.  Before every game, give Greg Bird good news.  Prior to yesterday's game against the Philadelphia Phillies, manager Joe Girardi acknowledged that Greg Bird will be the starting first baseman for the Yankees on Opening Day (to the surprise of no one).  Gregory Paul Bird promptly proceeded to smash two homers, driving in five runs, in the Yankees' 7-3 win over the Phillies.  If Bird keeps playing like this, he's setting himself up to be a fan favorite!  

Masahiro Tanaka pitched another great game, shutting out the Phils for 5 1/3 innings.  But he did allow three hits...the nerve of him!  I got used to those perfect frames. I guess we'll just have to deal with a few hits now and then.  Seriously, I think Tanaka's primed for a tremendous year.  Tyler Wade started at short but went 0-for-3.  

The Yankees improved their record to 19-7.  

Jordan Montgomery gets the start on Thursday in Port Charlotte, FL against the Tampa Bay Rays.  A strong performance could very well place Montgomery in the thick of the competition for the final rotation spots.  

Congratulations to Team USA for their 8-0 victory over Team Puerto Rico in the WBC Final!  It was a great pitching performance by Marcus Stroman of the Toronto Blue Jays.  Not looking forward to facing that dude this year.

Credit:  Getty Images

Have a great Thursday!