In an effort to find a new deal, Drew might be ready to willing to play other positions.
Free agent shortstop Stephen Drew could be willing to change positions in an effort to find the right fit on the open market, according to Peter Gammons (via Gammons Daily).
Last offseason, the Yankees were interested in Drew, but were told that he would only consider clubs that could offer him a job as a shortstop.
Boston was able to make that offer, and after signing with the Red Sox, Drew performed well enough to have earned a qualifying offer from the club this offseason. The one-year, $14.1 million deal would've been the highest salary of Drew's career, but he turned it down, choosing to join a shortstop-light free agent class with the hope of landing a long-term deal. Now, it appears as though his position has become something of a hangup for interested teams.
Boston has expressed interest in bringing him back, but it might have to be in a utility-type role.
Early on in their negotiations, Red Sox GM Ben Cherington let Drew and Boras know that the plans are for Xander Bogaerts to be the Boston shortstop, which might limit Drew to games at first, third and short against righthanded pitching.
The Yankees would like to sign Drew, but Derek Jeter is locked in as the everyday shortstop, even though he doesn't have as much range as he used to. Drew could fill in at second or third in New York, and spell Jeter at short or DH from time to time.
Drew might not start out the year at short in New York, but he's been a much better defender than Jeter over the last several years according to advanced fielding metrics. Drew can help his case for a new deal by being flexible, but the Yankees could probably help their case for another AL East pennant by asking Jeter to make a switch.
We might finally have an answer to the closer game.
For a very long time, everyone has been guessing as to who the next Yankee closer will be. Mariano Rivera has retired and it would make perfect sense for David Robertson, one of the best relievers in baseball over the last few seasons, to take over, however no official announcement has ever been made to name him the successor. Many have taken the lack of endorsement as a sign that the team doesn't fully trust him and they will/should look for an experienced closer elsewhere.
Hal Steinbrenner has officially come out and said, though not in the clearcut words Robertson advocates have been waiting for, that the right-hander will be the closer in 2014. "'We're going to rely on [David] Robertson. I'm sure he'll do a good job for us'...Pressed whether he thought Robertson would be the team's closer, Steinbrenner said, 'I think you'll have to ask [Joe] Girardi that, but that's my understanding. He's the number one candidate. Rightfully so.'" By coming out and saying this he might not be definitely declaring Robertson the closer, but it doesn't seem like they plan on signing anyone who could take the job away.
Grant Balfour has had success, but after the Orioles backed out of an all-but-finalized deal because of concerns over his knee and wrist, it seems that adding him would be an unnecessary expenditure for a potential risk they don't have to take. The only other definite closer on the market would be Fernando Rodney, and the Yankees have never really shown much interest in him. If Joe Girardi has the ultimate decision it seems that Robertson will indeed be the closer, unless he somehow prefers Shawn Kelley or Preston Claiborne.
One possible reason for the previous silence might have been to do with Robertson's 2014 salary arbitration. Closers make more money than middle relievers, so to keep his salary down, which MLB Trade Rumors estimated to be $5.5 million, the Yankees would keep quiet on his role in order to undersell his importance to the team at an arbitration hearing. Steinbrenner coming out now just after players have filed for arbitration is some peculiar timing. Perhaps the two sides have already come to an agreement on a new deal, but it's a weird time to finally break the silence.
Hopefully the Yankees have the backend of their bullpen figured out, because they really need to work on the rest of it. The loss of Mo and Boone Logan have thrown the corps of relievers into uncertainty for the first time in years. Right now Robertson, Kelley, Adam Warren, and Claiborne have been joined by Matt Thornton, with the like of Dellin Betances, David Phelps, and Vidal Nuno in contention for the remaining spots, but it would be nice if they could add someone a little more impressive than this underwhelming bunch. Who to name their closer is the least of their problems, and always has been. They need to worry about everyone else.
Easy to say when it isn't your $61 million, but is keeping him around worth the headache?
Assuming that Alex Rodriguez does not get his 162-game suspension reduced or overturned in federal court, the Yankees' third baseman will not see the field again until Opening Day 2015 at the earliest. By that point Rodriguez will be just a few months away from his 40th birthday, having only played in a handful of games since the 2012 postseason. How much can the Yankees reasonably expect out of A-Rod once he's able to play baseball again after such a long absence?
It's without question that Rodriguez's body seems to be breaking down, whether as a result of the natural aging process or because of past (or present) steroid use. He was unable to even finish the 2013 season after rejoining the squad after the All-Star break due to another hip surgery that kept him out of the entire first half. The Yankees could allow A-Rod to play baseball with some other entity while he serves out his suspension, but it seems unlikely that they would do so when he has three years remaining on his contract. Sitting around while only able to do baseball drills and training doesn't seem like a way for an aging player to get into shape for 162 games in 2015.
The Yankees have a very difficult choice to make, and it extends even beyond whether or not they think Rodriguez will be able to play at a high level, or at all, in 2015. With $61 million dollars being owed to Rodriguez after his suspension is over, the Yankees would need to fork over that sum to make him go away forever. If they think he will not be able to play after sitting out for what will virtually amount to the length of two seasons or just don't want to deal with the general headache that seems to surround his presence on the team at this juncture, it's going to cost them up front.
If Rodriguez's level of play the past few seasons has been because he was on some magic potion from Anthony Bosch, what level will he be able to reach without it?
A grand total of $61 million dollars is an incredible amount of money to pay someone to not play for the Yankees, but it seems like the relationship between player and team is just too strained to ever function normally again. The questions about Rodriguez's most recent run in with steroids and Biogenesis are not going to go away because he doesn't play in 2014. If Rodriguez's level of play the past few seasons has been because he was on some magic potion from Anthony Bosch, what level will he be able to reach without it? A-Rod was not rolling along like Barry Bonds, continuing to be a superstar far past his prime. Rodriguez struggled to be Alex Rodriguez as baseball fans know him, and beyond that, he even struggled to be on the field enough to struggle. If the Yankees have to pay him anyway, and barring some crazy events transpiring, they will, it could be in their best interests to pay him to make himself scarce.
The flip side to that coin is that the Yankees have to pay him anyway and could easily see if he can't be slightly useful for the duration of a contract that will only continue to look worse. If the team feels that Rodriguez gives them the best chance to win at third base, and that having him around for over $20 million per year makes more sense than to pay him to hang out in Miami on their dime, maybe the two sides find a way to grin and bear it for the remaining years on Rodriguez's deal. Are they mature enough to do that? Judging by everything that has transpired as of late, probably not.
Any decision will likely come down to whether or not the Yankees are a better team with or without Alex Rodriguez and the baggage he brings on a daily basis. It's difficult to imagine him playing for the Yankees again as of January 2014, but maybe that landscape ends up looking different by this time next year. Alternatively, maybe it only ends up looking worse. Rodriguez has filed a lawsuit against the Yankees' team doctor, accusing Dr. Ahmad of many serious medical infractions. It doesn't seem like having that play out will do anything to endear Rodriguez to his teammates or the team itself. Can the Yankees stomach the loss of $61 million and keep a contender on the field? Probably, they are certainly rich enough to do so. However, would the media fallout of releasing Alex Rodriguez be more than they want to deal with? If answering questions is uncomfortable now, they certainly wouldn't magically come to a stop after that.
It's easy to be on the side of release when it isn't your $61 million to part with, but it's difficult to imagine a scenario in which Rodriguez suits up for the Yankees and everyone carries on as if none of this happened in 2015. It's unlikely that Rodriguez will be able to be a productive player that stays on the field after missing so much time when he wasn't even able to finish half a season last year. The Yankees could see a release as the easy way out of the ongoing Rodriguez drama, and they probably wouldn't be wrong. Media members would descend for incessant questioning at first, but when the dust all settled, they'd be free of a contract that has done nothing but weigh them down for years. There has to be some feeling of relief in that.
The good news is that no decision needs to be made for now. Rodriguez is as far in the background as he can be at the moment and it doesn't seem like any judge will be willing to overturn that for 2014. All this means is that the Yankees have a year to come up with the best plan for them, and deciding whether or not that plan involves Rodriguez. If their plan does involve Rodriguez, there's going to need to be a lot of fence mending on A-Rod's part after throwing the Yankees under the bus when it came to his injury and the entire sordid mess with MLB and Biogenesis that has been played out publicly ever since then. As hard as he may have had it from the fans and media before, that is only going to be intensified if he plays professional baseball again.
It's possible that the Yankees want to avoid the risk of releasing A-Rod only to have him join another team. Determining just how big of a risk that is will be for them to decide, but it wouldn't be too far out of reach to imagine Rodriguez getting the Barry Bonds treatment and kind of fading away. Fear of another team taking on a constant headache shouldn't prevent the Yankees from doing what is right for themselves, though. Can 40-year-old A-Rod who hasn't played in nearly two years really be that much of a threat to them?
Do you think the Yankees should release Rodriguez before he suits up to play again as a Yankee? What would you do in their position?
Major League Baseball has set down the official rules and procedures for replay review.
Here, via press release from Major League Baseball, are the official rules and procedures that will be in effect for the 2014 season for replay review.
Managers will have at least one challenge to use. If any portion of a challenged play is overturned, then the manager who challenged the play will retain the ability to challenge one more play during the game. No manager may challenge more than two plays in a game. Once the manager has exhausted his ability to challenge plays during the game and after the beginning of the seventh inning, the Crew Chief may choose to invoke instant replay on any reviewable call. Home run and other boundary calls will remain reviewable under the procedures in place last season.
A designated communication location near home plate will be established at all 30 MLB ballparks. There, the Crew Chief and at least one other Major League Umpire will have access to a hard-wired headset connected to the Replay Command Center, which will remain at MLB Advanced Media headquarters in New York. Major League Umpires will be staffed as Replay Officials at the Replay Command Center. After viewing video feeds, the Replay Official will make the ultimate determination of whether to overturn the call, based on the continuing standard of whether there is clear and convincing evidence.
Instant replay will be utilized during some televised games in Spring Training for the purposes of educating on-field personnel on the rules of the new system.
Other protocols of the new system for instant replay are as follows:
PLAY TYPES
The following play types will be subject to review:
· Home run· Ground rule double· Fan interference· Stadium boundary calls (e.g., fielder into stands, ball into stands triggering dead ball)· Force play (except the fielder’s touching of second base on a double play)· Tag play (including steals and pickoffs)· Fair/foul in outfield only· Trap play in outfield only· Batter hit by pitch· Timing play (whether a runner scores before a third out)· Touching a base (requires appeal)· Passing runners· Record keeping (Ball-strike count to a batter, outs, score, and substitutions)
All other plays will not be reviewable; however, the Umpires may still convene on the field at any time to discuss the play.
INITIATION OF INSTANT REPLAY
· Field managers may initiate replay review on one reviewable play per game by verbally indicating his intention to challenge, in a timely manner, to the Crew Chief. Guidelines will be established to determine whether a challenge is timely. · The manager may request that the umpire review multiple portions of the same play, but he must specify exactly which portions of the play he is challenging. · If any portion of a challenged play is overturned, the manager who challenged the play will retain the ability to challenge one more play during the game. No manager may challenge more than two plays in a game.· Once the manager has exhausted his ability to challenge plays during the game and after the beginning of the seventh inning, the Crew Chief may choose to invoke instant replay on any reviewable call. In that circumstance, the Crew Chief is not obligated to invoke instant replay if requested by the manager.· Home run calls that are currently subject to instant replay review will continue to be reviewed at the Crew Chief’s discretion. Managers may request that an Umpire review a home run call, but managers cannot challenge home run calls.
REVIEW PROCESS
· Once instant replay review is invoked (either by the Manager or the Crew Chief), the Crew Chief will signal to the official scorer that the play is under review.· The Crew Chief and at least one other umpire will then move to a designated communication location near home plate, where they will have access to a hard-wired headset connected to the Replay Command Center in New York. · Major League Umpires will be staffed as Replay Officials at the Replay Command Center, located at MLB Advanced Media headquarters, for all Major League games.· The Replay Command Center will have direct access to video from most cameras in the ballpark in real-time, regardless of whether they are shown on the live broadcast. · The Replay Official will look at the video feeds and determine if there is clear and convincing evidence to overturn the call on the field. If the Replay Official overturns a call on the field, he will also use his judgment to determine where to appropriately place runners if the play had been called correctly on the field.· The umpires on the field will not have a monitor to review the play and they will not leave the field at any time.· The Replay Official will make the ultimate determination of whether to overturn the call.· On-Field personnel may not argue with the decision of the Replay Official.
CLUB ACCESS TO VIDEO
· To determine whether to challenge a play, personnel in the dugout will be permitted to communicate with a video specialist in the Clubhouse who has access to the same video that is available to Replay Officials. This communication will occur via the dugout phone. · Both the home and visiting Clubs will have standardized technology to ensure each Club has equal access to all video.· No monitors or additional electronic equipment will be permitted in the dugout.
SCOREBOARD REPLAYS
· Clubs will now have the right to show replays of all close plays on its ballpark scoreboard, regardless of whether the play is reviewed.
That's a lot to get through; I assume you'll have many comments. Wrigley Field doesn't have a Jumbotron -- yet -- but that last point could wind up being a real point of contention among umpires, who don't want to be shown up. Fortunately, bad calls can now be overturned, so maybe this won't be a bad thing.
It sounds like they've covered almost everything they could, and the system sounds like it'll work without any serious delays to games. You might remember the call made in the photo at the top of this post -- it's from the 2009 ALDS between the Twins and Yankees. Joe Mauer hit the ball which clearly landed fair, but was ruled foul by umpire Phil Cuzzi. If the play had been ruled correctly, Mauer would have had (at least) a double and would have scored on a subsequent single. Instead, he wound up stranded and the Yankees won the game and the series (and eventually the World Series that year). Who knows what might have happened if Mauer scores and the Twins win that game?
Hallelujah! As you know, this has been something I've been writing about and wanting MLB to do something about for years. I'm grateful that MLB is joining the other North American team sports in reviewing bad calls. We have the technology -- have, in fact, for many years. Thanks to MLB for finally using it.
The MLB owners have unanimously voted in favor of expanded replay for the 2014 season. The Players Union and umpires have already approved it, so the new system is finally official. Expanded replay has been the talk around baseball since the 2009 season, when home runs were first deemed to be reviewable. Now, under the new system, virtually all plays, other than balls and strikes, can be reviewed by the umpires.
Baseball will use a challenge system, similar to the NFL, where the manager can challenge a play they deem to have been judged incorrectly. Each manager has one challenge per game, but if the umpires reverse their decision on the field, the manager gets their challenge back for a maximum of two challenges. While the umpires review the play, replay will be made available on the scoreboard, regardless of which team is calling for the review.
The umpires will serve as the replay officials, deciding whether or not a play under review should be overturned. MLB is also hiring two additional umpiring crews of eight umpires who will be stationed at the central replay location in New York. Most replays are expected to take a minute to a minute and a half to rule on. Once the game gets into the seventh inning or later, the crew chief can decide to use replay in any reviewable call, so essentially the umpires will be able to police themselves, to some degree.
This new system will hopefully help end the controversy in catch/trap, fair/foul, safe/out, black and white calls, but also plays like the neighborhood call, which can be more of a judgement call. The replay system would also help enforce the new rule outlawing home plate collisions. Players can no longer collide with the catcher and catchers can no longer block the plate, so having a way to review a play that can happen in seconds is not only helpful to the game, but essential for the players' safety.
While I agree that expanded replay has long been needed, using challenges essentially limits the amount of times the umpires can get it right. I understand they don't want every play to be challenged, but a really bad umpiring crew could make more than two mistakes against one team before the seventh inning. It's nice to see that the umpires can police themselves, but limiting it only to the last three innings of the game puts too much value in the idea that only the happenings of the 7th, 8th, and 9th innings are important. Game-changing events can happen at any time, so the umpires should be free to correct their mistakes whenever they can.
No system was going to be perfect, and it will be interesting how they will make changes in-game, but In the end, this is a great step forward. What do you think?
Those two players are in no way relevant to the potential acquisition of Masahiro Tanaka.
The Yankees have a long and storied history of signing players to contracts that don't work out. This comes with the distinction of (once upon a time) being the most aggressive and wealthy of all MLB franchises. A side effect of that history of failures is that any time the Yankees sign/might sign a player, comparisons will be made between that player and one of those "failed signings". For example, when word of just how many years Robinson Cano was seeking began to leak out, some pointed to Alex Rodriguez's huge 10-year contract as evidence as to why approaching the length of that deal would be folly. Now, I'm not trying to stump for the concept of giving 31-year olds 10-year deals, it's just I don't see the usefulness in comparing two completely dissimilar players that way. Apples to moon rocks, says I.
That's where Hideki Irabu, Kei Igawa and Masahiro Tanaka come in. The first are two highly publicized, failed Yankees signings. Both pitchers happen to be from Japan. And those facts, in my opinion, have zero relevance when it comes to the discussion of signing Masahiro Tanaka. Irabu and Igawa were different pitchers with different personalities and different pitching attributes. In fact, Igawa's projections as a starter were so inferior to those of Tanaka that his even being brought up at all is absurd. At least Irabu had something of a pedigree. All of those distinctions are more than enough to render any similarities that the two share with Tanaka completely superfluous. Just being Japanese imports should be no more a factor in acquiring a player than if they were born in the same state as famed draft pick flameout Brien Taylor. Judge the player on their own merits.
Let it be said that I'm not arguing Tanaka's being an import or pitching only in the NPB are to be ignored. His career statistics, usage and quality of opponent during his time there should all be considered. But even then, his resume is so different from Irabu's and Igawa's that they are to be totally removed from the discussion. Even comparing him to a more recent contemporary, Yu Darvish, is of questionable usefulness considering the types of pitchers they are. It will be mostly up to the scouts to attempt to try to predict how well Tanaka should translate as a MLB starter.
We can only hope that the Yankees are over whatever possible anxiety disorders the failed acquisitions of Irabu and Igawa have caused. Any sort of misgivings they have because of those players from times past can only serve to cloud their judgment in coming to a decision regarding Tanaka. And these sorts of vital, franchise-altering decisions are complicated enough as is without letting mistakes of years gone by impair your judgment.
The Yankees had five players file for salary arbitration yesterday, including David Robertson, Brett Gardner, Francisco Cervelli, Shawn Kelley, and Ivan Nova. Players can begin exchanging figures for their 2014 salary with their teams on Friday, but they're free at any time to negotiate a deal for a sum to avoid the arbitration process entirely and stillmake both parties happy. The Yankees have done just that with Francisco Cervelli.
After a season filled with injury and suspension, it was possible that the Yankees would simply non-tender Cervelli and cut him loose at the non-tender deadline, like they did with Jayson Nix. The team has five other catchers on the 40-man roster, four of which could easily replace him. However, the two sides came to an agreement for a one-year $700,000 contract, which represents a raise just shy of $200,000 for the season. MLB Trade Rumors projected him to make $1 million in his first year of arbitration eligibility, but his rocky 2013 campaign likely killed any leverage he had going for him.
Cervelli will head into spring training as the likely backup catcher, due to his lack of minor league options. Brian McCann will be the starter, while Austin Romine and J.R. Murphy will be his biggest competition. The 27-year-old hit an impressive .269/.377/.500 with three home runs before his season was lost to injury and a Biogenesis suspension. It's unlikely he would have continued that success all year, but after several seasons of bad luck it would be nice to see what exactly he can contribute on a consistent basis. Now that Vernon Wells is gone, his right-handed bat could also end up being useful if the final roster lacks significant options off the bench against lefties.
If so, which Yankee would you want to see honored first?
On Wednesday afternoon, Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner gave an interview mostly about Alex Rodriguez. He also made some comments about the Yankees' upcoming season and how they will honor 2014 Baseball Hall of Fame inductee Joe Torre, their former manager from the dynasty years of the late '90s. These plans are unsurprising; regardless of merit, the Yankees have a history of honoring their managerial greats who wore numbers, like Casey Stengel and his number 37 and Billy Martin and his number 1. Shortly after the Veterans Committee voted Torre in, Brian Cashman hinted that the Yankees would likely be honoring Torre sometime in the future. However, Hal revealed perhaps some bigger plans than just retiring Torre's number 6:
The Yankees hope to address shortly a non-Rodriguez matter, Steinbrenner indicated. With former manager Joe Torre set to be inducted into the Hall of Fame in July, the Yankees appear poised to use that milestone to retire the numbers of not just Torre, but some of those who played under him. "We’re going to figure out just who. He may not be the only one," Steinbrenner said. "We haven’t gotten into it yet."
The Yankees haven't had a double-number retirement ceremony since Roger Maris's number 9 and Elston Howard's number 32 were retired on July 21, 1984. That was the last time they retired multiple numbers in one year, too. If the Yankees are making plans to honor more than just Torre, my curiosity is certainly piqued about who else's number might be retired. The three obvious candidates are Jorge Posada's number 20, Paul O'Neill's number 21, and Bernie Williams's number 51. (The only other possibilities I can think of are Andy Pettitte's 46 and Derek Jeter's 2, but it seems too soon after his retirement for Pettitte, and Jeter's would have to be in his final game, a la Mariano Rivera.)
The Yankees have not issued Bernie or Posada's numbers since their careers ended in 2006 and 2011, respectively. O'Neill's number 21 was kept out of circulation for seven years following his retirement in 2001, but brief attempts in 2008 by the Yankees to return 21 to the regularly-issued uniforms via Morgan Ensberg and LaTroy Hawkins were met with scathing fan criticism. Ensberg simply received the number without request as a non-roster invitee in Spring Training, then switched to another number due to the boos. Hawkins snatched it up because he wanted to honor Roberto Clemente and he started the regular season donning 21. However, he received the same harsh treatment from the fans. (His piss-poor 5.71 ERA and replacement-level play didn't help.) He soon switched numbers and for better or for worse, the Yankees have never issued 21 again.
It would be a bit much to honor O'Neill with a retired number; while he was an excellent player during his nine years in pinstripes, it's difficult to say whether or not he was that much better than other solid championship outfielders of the past, like Hank Bauer or Tommy Henrich. Love ya Paulie, but give him a day and a plaque, return 21 to circulation, and carry on. Bernie and Posada have much more legitimate arguments for number retirement having each spent their entire 15+ year careers as Yankees with tremendous production.
If I had to guess which one the Yankees are leaning toward honoring besides Torre, it would be Bernie. At this point, it's evident that even if Bernie gets elected to the Hall of Fame, it won't happen anytime soon. He fell off the ballot with just 3.3% of the vote in his second year of eligibility during the 2012 no-show elections, and deservedly or not, per BBWAA rules, he won't be eligible for the Hall of Fame until at least 2027. Meanwhile, Posada has not yet appeared on the ballot (he will in 2017), and with hard-hitting catchers such a rarity, he might have a shot at actually hanging around on the ballot with induction a legitimate possibility somewhere down the line. If Posada is elected to the Hall of Fame, he'll have his day in the sun; he might very well have it anyway even if he doesn't make it.
Amusingly, Bernie never officially retired, so he never received a day of honor to himself, let alone even a retirement press conference. If the Yankees decided to retire Torre and Bernie's numbers on the same way, it would be an amazing day in Yankees history. Bernie's was the first great star to emerge from the farm system and lead the Yankees from under .500 to World Series champions. It would only be fitting that he be the first of the '90s Yankees to have his number retired. Who do you think deserves number retirement most out of these three players?
For more on Sabathia and the Yankees, head over toPinstripe Alley
Sabathia left The Legacy Agency and Greg Genske, who negotiated the star hurler's seven-year, $161 million deal with the Yankees prior to the 2009 season, to join Jay-Z's faction. Roc Nation Sports has Seattle Mariners second baseman Robinson Cano under its umbrella, in addition to NBA star Kevin Durant and notable NFL players Victor Cruz and Geno Smith.
The Legacy Agency will still receive its cut of the money from Sabathia's deal with the Yankees, but Roc Nation will profit from any endorsement deals or future contracts signed by the 33-year-old veteran.
Sabathia also provides big-name recognition for the agency, although he's coming off his worst big-league season. He allowed a league-leading 112 runs and ended the year with an ERA+ of 85, per Baseball-Reference, not to mention finishing with his lowest single-season win total since 2006.
A.J. Pierzynki, while speaking at the same event that Swihart attended, says he's ready to learn Boston's pitching staff, his third different pitching corps in the same number of years. (Brian MacPherson; Providence Journal)
Giancarlo Stanton-to-the-Red Sox rumors have yet to come to an end (and probably never will). Here's a potential 2015 Red Sox roster with Stanton penciled in. (Ricky Doyle; NESN.com)
Former Red Sox prospect Ryan Pressly has lost his biggest supporter, as his father recently passed away. Pressly was poached from the Red Sox by the Twins in the 2012 Rule 5 draft. (Rhett Bollinger; MLB.com)
Can this catcher turned first baseman build upon his 100-walk breakout campaign last season in 2014?
Background:
Greg Bird was selected by the Yankees in the fifth round of the 2011 draft out of Grandview High School in Aurora, Colorado. Originally a catcher, Bird drew a lot of interest from scouts as Orioles draftee Kevin Gausman's battery mate at Grandview. Bird was regarded as the best prospect in Colorado heading into the 2011 draft after he'd committed to Arkansas, which he decided to pass up in favor of signing with the Yankees.
Injuries have kept Bird off the field a bit in his young Yankees career, with only four games of Rookie Ball and 28 games between Rookie Ball and Short Season-A Staten Island under his belt until playing a full season in 2013. A back injury forced the Yankees to permanently relocate Bird from behind the plate to first base but his bat has always been his calling card to the Major Leagues. His defense may still be a little rough around the edges as he continues to adjust to his new position, but he has a good arm and the strong work ethic to continue to improve his glove at first base. Charleston's coaches were complimentary of the strides Bird made defensively to improve his range and footwork.
A healthy season was a productive one for Bird with the Charleston RiverDogs. He managed to stay on the field for the entire year for the first time as a professional and the results landed him a spot at #8 on Baseball America's Top 10 Yankees Prospects list. Bird led the Minors in walks with 107 and clubbed 20 homers despite Charleston's home ballpark hampering his production. Away from the unfriendly confines of The Joe, Bird hit a spectacular .328/.470/.608 with 15 of his home runs coming on the road in an equal amount (65) of games. He put up a .248/.383/.412 batting line at home.
Bird received South Atlantic League Player of the Week and Post-Season All-Star awards with the RiverDogs. He walked only 25 times less than he struck out and managed to not be neutralized by left-handed pitchers despite being a left-handed batter himself. His OPS against each side (.867 vs. LHP and .959 vs. RHP) being comparable in 2013 is a comforting sign.
2014 Outlook:
Bird should begin the 2014 season in Tampa with the High-A Tampa Yankees, but another season like he had in 2013 could warrant a mid-season promotion if the numbers are there. Having just turned 21 years old in November, it's not unreasonable to think that he could traverse more than one level this upcoming season if he continues his hot-hitting ways in the Florida State League. The big thing for Bird will be whether or not he can stay on the field again in 2014, which will be important for him development, and whether his bat can carry him to the Majors as a first baseman. First basemen have to hit and Bird has done a lot of that in his time with the Yankees. He doesn't have the flashy tools to wow you like some other prospects do, so a lot will ride on how far his bat can take him.
With Mark Teixeira firmly entrenched at first base for the next few years in New York, Bird has some time to develop and continue improving upon on his defense at first base. His lefty swing is pretty much made for Yankee Stadium if he can prove his worth against better pitchers at the upper levels of the Minors. First basemen aren't as highly regarded as other position players because of the mentality that anyone could play first base if given the chance, but Bird's bat has the chance to be special and it's easy to dream on a prospect with his kind of home run power and patience at the plate even at the lower levels of the system.
Fun fact: Did you know that Greg Bird once hit three home runs for me? He did, and you can read about that and an earlier profile I wrote on Bird by clicking right here.
He was our last hope before the Yankees had to rely on a pile of garbage
Now that Alex Rodriguez has been suspended for the entire 2014 season, the Yankees need to figure out a way to fill in the hole left at third base. There were never any enticing options on the open market to begin with and a trade seemed unlikely because New York lacks any useful trade chips, so it seemed like the answer would come in the form of cheap major league deals for the few options out there.
Mark Reynolds was thought to make a lot of sense for the Yankees before the suspension was announced, however, afterwards it became apparent that the they were not planning to add any more infielders on major league contracts. They offered Reynolds a minor league deal, but it was widely believed that the slugging corner infielder wouldn't accept that. To them, they had already signed Brendan Ryan, Kelly Johnson, and Brian Roberts, so I guess they felt that three was enough. Unfortunately, that still leaves an open platoon position somewhere, whether at second base or third, and gives Eduardo Nunez a shot at a roster spot.
Now Reynolds has signed with the Milwaukee Brewers on a minor league contract, though it is believed that he has a much better chance at making their roster than he would on the Yankees. I don't know why he would think that, considering the shape the Yankee infield is in, but if he prefers to play first base, then he made the right choice. Reynolds would have been needed to play third base in New York, though his ability to play first would have been an added bonus.
At this point, the Yankees are basically out of options, unless there is some kind of unforeseen maneuver that Brian Cashman is planning. They were briefly interested in Michael Young, but he's closer to retiring than accepting a minor league deal to play below-average baseball. That would be the end of any significant signing they could have potentially made, so instead it will be up to the scrap heap, once again. Cashman loves to go dumpster diving for players he might be able to squeeze value out of and then throw away. He's collected Zelous Wheeler, Russ Canzler, Dean Anna, and Scott Sizemore and plans to find someone productive out of that lot.
It's not like the Yankees really had much of an alternative for third base, not like second, where they let Mark Ellis and Omar Infante sign elsewhere, but it's disappointing to see them let Reynolds slip away. He wouldn't have been perfect, by any means, but he's at least a major league-caliber player when used correctly. The Yankees now only have hope on their side. Hope that one of their options even turns out to be better than Eduardo Nunez.
Cross another player off the arbitration to-do list.
After avoiding arbitration with Francisco Cervelli yesterday, the Yankees moved on to settle with strikeout artist Shawn Kelley on a one-year contract. Jerry Crasnick reported the details on Twitter:
Shawn Kelley settles with #yankees for $1.765M, plus $25K bonus for appearing in 55 games.
The contract was a little bit more value than MLB Trade Rumors projected; Matt Swartz predicted a $1.5 million contract for Kelley and the Yankees offered a little bit more to avoid the messiness arbitration. It almost entirely negates the $300,000 saved from Swartz's overestimate of Cervelli's contract, but in the grand scheme of things, the extra $265,000 should be chump change for the Yankees.
Despite a 4.39 ERA and 107 ERA-, Kelley was actually far better in 2013 than the statistics indicate. The runs allowed tended to come from relievers following him not doing their job and letting runs score. Meanwhile, Kelley was otherworldly good at stranding runners; just four out of 40 inherited runners scored with Kelley on the mound in relief this year. His terrific strikeout abilities (12.0 K/9, 13th in baseball and better than even David Robertson) came in handy in those situations, as they often prevented batters from even getting sacrifice flies. In a year of dark spots and old players falling apart, Kelley was a rare bright spot: a 29-year-old with major league talent under a few years of arbitration control. He could stand to work on his command somewhat, given his 3.9 BB/9, but bringing Kelley back into the fold is obviously a good move. He very well might serve as D-Rob's setup man this year, and he wouldn't be a bad choice.
Signing Kelley brings the Yankees' payroll by AAV up to $166,854,547.23. With arbitration cases to settle for David Robertson (update: done), Brett Gardner (update: done), and Ivan Nova and pre-arbitration coming for numerous other players like Michael Pineda and David Phelps, the Yankees are far from done settling their team. (The full projected payroll is up to about $183.6 million without bonuses; it's doubtful they finish under $189 million.) Hopefully they'll have a Tanaka to add to the mix by next Friday.
This time, MLB Trade Rumors underestimated the player by $1.6 million. It's a bigger drop in the bucket than Kelley's extra $275,000, but it's what it took to get the case done. The extra mileage on this contract pushes the Yankees even closer to $189 million. If they do indeed pass it, as they seem quite likely to, Yankees fans should have a party.
Healthy again in 2013 after an injury-ravaged 2012, Gardner had a season quite similar to his 2011, though not as good as his defensively magnificent 2010. He showed a little more power than in years past, setting career-highs in doubles (33), triples (a league-leading 10), homers (8), and slugging percentage (.416). However, this surge came with a decrease in plate discipline, which was Gardner's calling card in years past. His walk rate has dipped from 13.9% in 2010 to 10.2% in 2011, and 8.5% in 2013. Meanwhile, his strikeout rate jumped to 20.9%. His .344 OBP was roughly equal to his 2011, but it paled in comparison to his .383 OBP in 2010. His stolen base total was also a bit of a disappointment in 2013, as after reaching swiping 47 in 2010 and a league-leading 49 in 2011, he fell to 24 stolen bases in 2013. Gardner was also thrown out eight time, a 75% stealing percentage quite below the superb 82% career success rate he had entering the season. He'll have to recapture some of that previous patience and speed to be more valuable in 2014. Nonetheless, Gardner ended the year with a .273/.344/.416 triple slash, a 108 wRC+, 3.2 fWAR, and 4.2 rWAR thanks to his annually-excellent defense, this time in center field.
Hopefully, Gardner can also avoid another season that ends in injury. A sudden left oblique strain in an early-September game against the Orioles cut his season short at 145 games and was arguably the death knell to the Yankees' dwindling playoff hopes, as they were forced to play the presently far-inferior Ichiro Suzuki as a starter for the rest of the season. Gross. Assuming they don't trade him, Gardner will be the Opening Day left fielder, acquiescing to Jacoby Ellsbury, who is an even better center fielder than Gardner. Perhaps this move will be for the best for Gardner anyway, since defensive stats rated him a far superior left fielder than center fielder. He was no slouch at all in center, but nothing like the two-time Fielding Bible winner in left.
Gardner's contract brings the Yankees' payroll by AAV to $172,454.547.23. As previously mentioned in the Kelley post, they still need to settle cases for Ivan Nova, David Robertson (update: done), and other pre-arbitration players. As also mentioned in the previous post, ideally they will have a Tanaka on their roster by next Friday, too.
The Yankees have avoided arbitration with David Robertson just ahead of today's 1:00 pm deadline, agreeing to a one-year deal worth $5.215 million with their presumed closer-to-be. Robertson gets a little more than a million dollars more than he was making over his $3.1 million salary in 2013. The final amount is just under the $5.5 million that MLB Trade Rumorsprojected Robertson would make in arbitration this season.
Robertson is set to become a free agent after this season unless the Yankees are willing to offer him some kind of contract extension this season. Their willingness to do so may depend on how he does when moving from set-up man to closer in the absence of Mariano Rivera. Robertson has been one of the best relief pitchers in baseball over the last few years and has already received endorsement from Hal Steinbrenner as the Yankees' next closer.
In 66.1 innings for the Yankees last season, Robertson pitched to a 2.04 ERA with three saves while striking out 10.45 batters per nine innings, good enough for 1.6 fWAR. D-Rob was able to lower his walks for the second straight season, leading to less heart attack innings for those watching at home or from the stands.
ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball schedule for the first half of the season has been released, and the Yankees are featured three times.
ESPN has officially released their Sunday Night Baseball schedule for the first half of the season, which at least makes it feel like baseball season is quickly approaching. Pitchers and catchers report in 29 days!
According to ESPN's press release, the Yankees will be featured in three Sunday night games during the early part of the season. Every other game on the schedule features the Red Sox, the Dodgers or the Cardinals. The relevant part of the schedule so far is:
Curt Schilling will be joining the Sunday Night Baseball team of Dan Shulman, John Kruk and Buster Olney. Interesting tidbit: Curt Schilling and John Kruk will be teaming up again after being teammates on the Phillies when they won the NL Pennant in 1993. I'll be interested to hear Schilling during the Red Sox/Yankees game (or I'll be really interested in muting it).
Do you like watching the Yankees playing in primetime on Sunday nights, or does having to suffer through the ESPN broadcast teams ruin the whole experience?
The Yankees had five players file for salary arbitration for the 2014 season this week, including Francisco Cervelli, Shawn Kelley, Brett Gardner, David Robertson, and Ivan Nova. Before the Friday deadline, Cervelli agreed to a $700,000 contract, Kelley signed for $1.765 million, Gardner for $5.6 million, and David Robertson agreed to a $5.125 million deal. Finally, Ivan Nova signed a one-year contract, meaning the Yankees will be avoiding any arbitration hearings with their players this season.
Nova will make $3.3 million, which represents one of the larger raises the Yankees handed out in arbitration this season. After making just $575,600 in 2013, the right-hander will make an additional $2.7 million this year. MLB Trade Rumors projected him to make around $2.8 million, but he ended up earning $500,000 more than expected. The Yankees must believe that he's going to have a big season in 2014, otherwise they could be regretting their decision to give him such a large raise in his first year of arbitration.
After missing significant time at the beginning of the season, Nova returned and proved to be impressive. He had a 3.10 ERA and 3.47 FIP in 139.1 innings and ended up being worth 2.5 WAR, which translates to $12.7 million. If he can repeat this performance he will be well worth the $3.3 million price tag. According to Oliver, he projects to be a 2.0 WAR pitcher with a 3.95 ERA and 4.06 FIP. Solid, for a back of the rotation arm, but nothing spectacular. Nothing to get excited about.
Right now the Yankees have a rotation of CC Sabathia, Hiroki Kuroda, and Ivan Nova. It sounds like a good start on paper, but then you have to consider whether or not CC can rebound and if Kuroda will be more like his first-half self or his second-half self. A big season from Nova could seriously save the rotation from being a big disappointment. If Masahiro Tanaka joins them, then Nova will be bumped down and with it, our expectations.
Nova's projections don't look very comforting to Yankee fans if he ends up as the No. 3 pitcher in the rotation. Maybe he can be one of the more impressive No. 4 pitchers in baseball, but anything higher and the Yankees could be setting themselves up for disappointment.
How do you replace a legend amongst an unforgiving fanbase? David Robertson will find that out this season.
This moment has been coming for a long time. It is a period that no Yankee fan had been looking forward to, even before the Great One announced his retirement plans. It was only a matter of time before we got to this point. Here we are, though, just a little under a month until pitchers and catchers report for training. The greatest reliever in the history of baseball, Mariano Rivera, will finally not be reporting for duty. His time has passed and new era has begun. It's not 2014, but rather Year 1 A.M. (After Mo) in the Yankee Universe.
There are those of us who remember a time before Mariano Rivera was the closer, or even the set-up man for John Wetteland. The days of Steve Howe and Bob Wickman and Steve Farr – names many fans of this generation know nothing about. Even though I remember the names it's hard to remember those days due to how insanely incredible Mariano Rivera was. I'm not really anxious to go back to the pre-Mo days, either. If you watch other baseball besides Yankees baseball, you realize that we've really been living in a wonderful bubble of mostly stress free ninth inning relief pitching. The bubble is gone.
That brings us to David Robertson who, as the title of this article suggests, has the most unenviable task in all of baseball this season; D-Rob has to bring us back down to Earth. Earth sucks. It's got gravity, it cannot decide whether it wants to be hot or cold, and it's full of unforgiving Yankee fans, a lot of whom have never experienced a world without Mo or even remember that Mo use to be a set-up man in the first place. As Jason wrote yesterday, Hal Steinbrenner has already endorsed Robertson as the new closer. It's great for some fans to hear. For others, they still don't think D-Rob has the "closer" mentality. I'd like to address the latter as bluntly as possible:
It. Doesn't. Matter.
Barring the hilarious and amazing illogic that goes into the whole "closer" mentality thing, being that Mariano Rivera was a set-up man before a closer, it's just truly amazing what a sheltered world Yankee fans live in. It's hard to blame Yankee fans, though. Mo really was that good. So good, in fact, that I'd take a 42-year-old Mariano Rivera over just about every reliever in baseball. The key thing to remember is that it's not that Mo was that good, but that he was that good for so long, and he retired on top.
This brings us to the real problem: The Yankees have to replace the mindset just as much as they have to replace the man. That "Mo" level of comfort of going into the 9th inning with a lead, hearing Enter Sandman come on, and feel like you have a warm, heated blanket wrapped around you. "Hey there, Timmy. It's going to be alright. Rivera's coming in." That's what the Yankees have to replace, and it's irreplaceable. The odds of there being another reliever like Rivera is extremely low. They not only have to be fantastic at the craft, but they have to be fantastic at the craft for almost two decades.
The ultimate point is this: someone has to pitch the 9th inning for the Yankees not named Mariano Rivera, so it might as well be David Robertson. Despite what you think of D-Rob, whether he can handle the role or is just a "set-up" man, it doesn't matter. David Robertson is not going to replace the comfort level of Mariano Rivera. No one else will either, no matter how much "experience" in the role they supposedly have. Rafael Soriano had experience in the role when he replaced an injured Rivera and Robertson in 2012. Not once did he make me feel as comfortable as Rivera did.
All this talk about David Robertson's lack of experience in the 9th inning reminds me of the unenviable task of looking for a job. Job hunting is one of the worst things to do in life, and one of the most annoying things to hear when you're looking for your first job in any field is "Sorry, but you don't have enough experience." This usually begs the question, "Well, how the hell do I get experience if no one is willing to give me a chance?" This is precisely where David Robertson is at right now. He has the resume, he has the skills. He has the desire to grow beyond what he's already doing. Thankfully, Hal Steinbrenner is willing to give him that chance. Yankee fans should be as well. If we don't another team like the Oakland Athletics will instantly swoop in to give him that chance.
There will be bumps along the way, just like there were for Mariano Rivera when the Yankees gave him his chance in 1997. Look how well that turned out. David Robertson needs to be given the same chance as Rivera was, but with tempered expectations. We're asking him to take over for the greatest reliever in the history of the sport. A man whose last name will soon be the new address for Yankee Stadium itself. For the love of everything that is good and just in this world, I really do not want to hear any "Bring back Mo" chants from the fans at the stadium. Be kind, be fair, and let David Robertson be D-Rob and not Mo.
However, if he'd could please change his entrance song to something other than Sweet Home Alabama, I'd appreciate it.
Mark Newman, Yankees vice president of player operations, dishes on where to expect some prospects to start the 2014 season to LoHud's Chad Jennings.
Chad Jennings at LoHud spoke to the Yankees' vice president of player operations, Mark Newman, to try and sort out where a few prospects of interest could be expected to start the 2014 season, as well as just checking in on the status of players that had been injured or participating in various winter leagues.
Perhaps the biggest news out of the conversation between Jennings and Newman was the idea that two of the Yankees' first round picks from last season could begin the year in High-A Tampa. Eric Jagielo got some time in with the Staten Island Yankees last season after a hamstring injury delayed his start, hitting .266/.376/.451 in 51 games at the Short Season level. Being regarded as a polished bat coming out of Notre Dame at the time of the draft likely helps the decision to move him through the system quickly in hopes of him being able to take over at third base in the near future.
Aaron Judge was unable to play a single professional game for the Yankees after being drafted last year but his college status could allow the Yankees to be similarly aggressive with him the way they hope to be with Jagielo. It's possible that one or both of them will ultimately end up in Low-A Charleston to begin the season instead, and how they perform in spring training may end up being the deciding factor. Either way, it's nice to see that the Yankees are willing to move them along through the system quickly. The Yankees' third and final first round pick Ian Clarkin's assignment will depend on how spring training goes.
Other players' destinations of note from Newman include that second-rounder Gosuke Katoh will likely start 2014 at Staten Island instead of Charleston. Taking Katoh in the second round drew questions on draft day but his impressive start to his professional career, hitting .310/.402/.522 in Rookie Ball last season, makes it seem like the Yankees may have actually made a nice selection. Newman said that Slade Heathcott could begin the year at Double-A or Triple-A after playing in a career-high games in 2013. Heathcott was also just married, according to Newman, so congratulations are in order for him.
Ty Hensley, Jose Campos, Michael Pineda, and Manny Banuelos are all healthy and ready to pitch, according to Newman. Each of them has missed significant time due to injuries of varying severity with Ty Hensley having barely pitched for the Yankees since he was drafted two years ago. Pineda will almost certainly be vying for a spot on the Major League roster and Banuelos is likely destined for a refresher course at Triple-A for the beginning of 2014.
Jose Pirela and Zoilo Almonte drew praise for their accomplishments in the Venezuelan and Dominican Winter Leagues, respectively. Pirela put up a .322/.415/.514 slash line in Venezuela this offseason, putting him in line for a promotion with his versatility likely working in his favor. If he can add another strong season or half-season to his recent accomplishments it's possible that he'll be knocking on the door of the Majors before long. Mason Williams didn't get such good reviews from Newman, who said the outfield prospect's numbers were just "so-so". Newman did, however, think that Williams swung the bat well. Williams needs a bounce back season in 2014 to regain his stock.
The Yankees have a few prospects who dabbled in playing third base at various points but none of them are expected to make the switch there for good. Tyler Austin, J.R. Murphy, and Peter O'Brien have worked out at third in the past, but Newman maintains that Austin is an outfielder and Murphy and O'Brien are catchers. O'Brien was moved to third in his time with High-A Tampa last year to accommodate Gary Sanchez, but it sounds like he should be moving back there in the coming season. Adonis Garcia, on the other hand, is one prospect who has played primarily as an outfielder that could be used at third base or elsewhere on the infield. Newman said that Garcia was signed as a guy who could play second or third and all three outfield positions, two of those being positions the Yankees could desperately use some help at immediately.
