Talk about a monkey wrench. Based on their treatment of Phil Hughes so far, the Yankees probably planned on sending Ivan Nova back down to the minors regardless of how he performed. The six-man rotation used last time around might have been some schedule finagling designed to make sure A.J. Burnett didn't face the Red Sox in Fenway this weekend. After completing his duty, Nova would then be sent back down to the minors until the rosters expanded in September. However, the decision might not be so easy.
Here's the way the Yankee rotation would look if GM Brian Cashman and manager Jo Girardi could make decisions based purely on performance: CC Sabathia, Bartolo Colon, Freddy Garcia, Nova, and Burnett, in that order. Hughes had a great start his last outing, but that hardly makes up for the many times he's been plastered this season. In fact, Nova has far out-performed him this year. Unfortunately, the Yankees have to put Hughes in the rotation.
If Hughes gets sent to the bullpen again, there's no going back. It's time for him to make the move from a mediocre starting pitcher to a genuine major leaguer. He's old enough, and he's been around long enough, to finally take that last step and establish himself. If the Yankees send him to the bullpen, that's it. A stint in the bullpen would erase the little progress he has made in the rotation. If they send him down to the minors, his development as a pitcher would be put on hold. Hughes is good enough to get minor leaguers out, and he might not be able to learn much from pitching in the minors. It's only in the major leagues that he'll be able to hone his pitching skills.
Which brings us to the dilemma. The Yankees can't send Nova down, and they can't demote him to the bullpen. Because he's been so good, rewarding him with anything less than a spot in the rotation is just wrong. At the same time, the Yankees can't really do anything except keep Hughes in the rotation. There's only solution left: a six-man rotation. Critics say that Sabathia couldn't handle all those extra off days. Even if that were true, there's no reason why the Yankees can't give Garcia or Colon an extra day off once in a while. Neither is as young as he used to be, and Colon is pretty injury prone. It's not a perfect solution, but it's the best one out there.
To end on a positive note, the Yankees could have more to worry about. People complain about their high payroll, but at least they have the money to support their spending - unlike another entity we could name.
Hydra
6-4-3 double play... Ballgame over! Yankees win! Theeeeeee Yankees win!
Friday, August 5, 2011
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Steining Mistakes
Hal Steinbrenner has turned into his father. Rafael Soriano - who was signed at Steinbrenner's orders and against Brian Cashman's wishes - is going to be out until July at the earliest. Sound familiar? Does the name "Jaret Wright" ring a bell? How about Randy Johnson? Kevin Brown? There are a lot of common denominators for these infamous names (including big bucks and injuries), but the one we're interested in is Steinbrenner.
George liked to throw his weight around when it came to bringing in big names to play for New York. In a way, the approach of filling a team with superstars that came through other teams' systems makes sense. After all, why put the time and effort into developing talent when you afford to sign it while it's in its prime? No muss, no fuss, just a big check.
Unfortunately, big names often come with two big price tags - one tag has a dollar sign, the other does not. In the Yankees's case, the second price tags were injury tags. Wright, Johnson, and Brown all got injured and ended their Yankee careers rather miserably. (Granted, Carl Pavano seemed to be more Cashman's idea than George Steinbrenner's, and he's more infamous than the other three put together. However, everyone is entitled to one or two mistakes.)
In the end, Brian Cashman has proved himself to be a very intelligent general manager with the ability to put together a World Series team. If Steinbrenner keeps out of Cashman's way, the Yankees might avoid signing clunkers like Soriano.
Things could be worse. The Yankees could have Steinbrenner as an owner and Theo Epstein as a GM. Then they would Stein - we mean sign several clunkers a year.
Hydra
6-4-3 double play... Ballgame over! Yankees win! Theeeeeee Yankees win!
George liked to throw his weight around when it came to bringing in big names to play for New York. In a way, the approach of filling a team with superstars that came through other teams' systems makes sense. After all, why put the time and effort into developing talent when you afford to sign it while it's in its prime? No muss, no fuss, just a big check.
Unfortunately, big names often come with two big price tags - one tag has a dollar sign, the other does not. In the Yankees's case, the second price tags were injury tags. Wright, Johnson, and Brown all got injured and ended their Yankee careers rather miserably. (Granted, Carl Pavano seemed to be more Cashman's idea than George Steinbrenner's, and he's more infamous than the other three put together. However, everyone is entitled to one or two mistakes.)
In the end, Brian Cashman has proved himself to be a very intelligent general manager with the ability to put together a World Series team. If Steinbrenner keeps out of Cashman's way, the Yankees might avoid signing clunkers like Soriano.
Things could be worse. The Yankees could have Steinbrenner as an owner and Theo Epstein as a GM. Then they would Stein - we mean sign several clunkers a year.
Hydra
6-4-3 double play... Ballgame over! Yankees win! Theeeeeee Yankees win!
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Surprise and Prejudice
It's difficult to tell whether a team is good or not simply by looking at the first two games of the season. After all, the Orioles are 2-0 this year. However, much to the surprise of many analysts, the Yankees have looked pretty darn good.
With the exceptions of Boone Logan and Luis Ayala, the pitching staff has been good. CC Sabathia finally had a good Opening Day start, and A.J. Burnett gave five innings today despite a bad cold. David Robertson's performance was pretty typical; he pitched himself into a jam before sqeaking out without any runs. And, of course, Mariano Rivera is still Mariano Rivera.
The pitching staff has been merely good, but the Yankee lineup is back to the Bronx Bombers. Much to his chagrin, the media has been all over the little tweak in Derek Jeter's batting stance. Whether the minor adjustment has anything to do with it or not, he's batting .333 so far. However, Mark Teixeira has been the best bomber by far. Who knew that doing less weightlifting over the offseason would result in a better performance early in the season?
Aside from Teixeira's great start, the biggest improvement over last year's position players has to be at catcher. Russell Martin is far and away better behind the plate than Posada has been for several years, and is also a significant improvement over Francisco Cervelli.
According to analysts (who are, naturally, often prejudiced against the Yankees), the Yankees should be pretty much mathematically eliminated already. After all, Theo Epstein's offseason moves such as buying Carl Crawford (who's batting 0 for 2011 with 4 Ks) surely gives the Resilient Red Sox the edge over the Yankees, while the Rays are going to come out of the blue to surprise everyone. Oh, wait. The Yankees have a two-game lead over both teams after only two games.
Hydra
6-4-3 double play... Ballgame over! Yankees win! Theeeeeee Yankees win!
With the exceptions of Boone Logan and Luis Ayala, the pitching staff has been good. CC Sabathia finally had a good Opening Day start, and A.J. Burnett gave five innings today despite a bad cold. David Robertson's performance was pretty typical; he pitched himself into a jam before sqeaking out without any runs. And, of course, Mariano Rivera is still Mariano Rivera.
The pitching staff has been merely good, but the Yankee lineup is back to the Bronx Bombers. Much to his chagrin, the media has been all over the little tweak in Derek Jeter's batting stance. Whether the minor adjustment has anything to do with it or not, he's batting .333 so far. However, Mark Teixeira has been the best bomber by far. Who knew that doing less weightlifting over the offseason would result in a better performance early in the season?
Aside from Teixeira's great start, the biggest improvement over last year's position players has to be at catcher. Russell Martin is far and away better behind the plate than Posada has been for several years, and is also a significant improvement over Francisco Cervelli.
According to analysts (who are, naturally, often prejudiced against the Yankees), the Yankees should be pretty much mathematically eliminated already. After all, Theo Epstein's offseason moves such as buying Carl Crawford (who's batting 0 for 2011 with 4 Ks) surely gives the Resilient Red Sox the edge over the Yankees, while the Rays are going to come out of the blue to surprise everyone. Oh, wait. The Yankees have a two-game lead over both teams after only two games.
Hydra
6-4-3 double play... Ballgame over! Yankees win! Theeeeeee Yankees win!
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