Oh yeah, he was on the team.
Grade: D
2014 Statistics: 49 games, 124 plate appearances, .167/.211/.202, 0 HR, 8 RBI, -0.7 WAR
2015 Contract Status: Signed through 2015 at $2 million, with a $1 million player option.
While it sometimes was tough to remember, Brendan Ryan was actually part of this team in 2014, and aside from some nice defensive plays here and there, Ryan didn't exactly do much this season. During the 2013 offseason, the Yankees decided to give the all-glove man a two-year contract worth $4 million, plus another $1 million in a player option for some reason. Of course at the time the Yankees figured they needed some insurance in case Derek Jeter were to breakdown, as well as a nice late-inning replacement for Jeter. And as expected, Ryan didn't really do much of anything.
In just 124 plate appearances, with the majority of at bats making us question whether Ryan was actually a major league player, Ryan was pretty abysmal to the surprise of no one. Ryan hit just .167, knocking in 8 RBI in the process, which is pretty shocking in itself. Now the Yankees didn't sign Ryan so that he could tear the cover off the ball as he would actually have to hit the ball to do that, the Yankees got Ryan to have someone actually cover ground up the middle and make some fantastic plays. The problem was that Ryan barely made any appearances as Jeter played the majority of the time during his farewell season. Ryan would make an appearance sometimes, but most of the time it was just a "hey, I'm still here" appearance.
Ryan somehow made it through the season without being moved as the Yankees had some options down in the minor leagues that could have done better, but the Yankees didn't budge. Partially because Ryan still had another year on his contract, although thankfully Jeter didn't miss an extended period of time or because this is what the Yankees do. We could have seen Ryan in the lineup everyday.
You might all be wondering why I gave Ryan a grade of a 'D' instead of an 'F'.' Well, that's only because Ryan at least kept his teammates entertained on the bench with some impressions and other shenanigans, and he had the occasional sparkling play, which has to count for something especially with the amount of ground ball pitchers we had on the staff this season.
Going into 2015, we can expect to see more of Ryan in his "backup" role unless the Yankees decide to cut him in order to make room for someone else. Ryan will not be the starting shortshop as the Yankees might hit the free agency market for that one, or simply call up Rob Refsnyder to play second and plug Martin Prado at short. But of course all this remains to be seen and it will be interesting to see who this team decides to plug in at short.