Tagged: Chien-Ming Wang
2010
Everyone have a good christmas? Kwanza? New Years? Alrighty then…
Yankees at Fenway to begin, and end the season?
Phillies and their new ace go to Toronto?
Manny returning to Boston?
Yankees at Dodgers?
This season will have no shortage of great games to watch.
…but since at the end of the day all I care about it what the Yanks are doing, lets take a closer look at what the future holds…and some lingering questions…
Yankees vs Red Sox: opening day/end of the season.
We got spanked by the BoSox early last year right before we turned around and gave it right back to them just as hard, and took the division right in front of them…
It seems the most likely scenerio will be CC vs Beckett, then AJ vs Lackey, then Pettitte vs whatever overrated bum they have next. Either team could win any of those games and Id be an idiot to guess who would before pitchers/catchers have even reported, but there will be no sweeps…unlike last year where almost every set was a sweep.
Yankees at Dodgers
This was the dream world series matchup last postseason, even more so than the Angels vs Dodgers possibility.
Joe Torre vs Joe Girardi, Matt Kemp vs Curtis Granderson, Mark Texeira vs Andre Ethier, Derek Jeter vs Manny Ramirez, C.C. Sabathis vs…uh…can any Dodger compete with any Yankee pitcher?
Point is, this would be a great matchup of managers…not so much teams. Dodgers didnt do much this offseason, and if I didnt think they stood a chance against the Yankees then, then they definatly dont stand a chance against the Yankees now…
Left Field?
Damons still up in the air, and right before he signed with the Cubs, I was telling my dad about how good Marlon Byrn might be for us. The list of available fixes is growing short…
Heres a short list of people I nominate(d) to play left for NY in 2010, in order of ranking…
DamonHollidayDeRosaDye
ByrdBayGardner
Cabrera
Guererro
Hoffman
#5 Starter?
CC-AJ-Pettitte-Vazquez-???
It seems to be between Joba and Hughes…but never count out Gaudin or even Mitre.
…any hey, with C.M.Wang gone, the Yankees have a vancancy at the position of “Once a great pitcher but got hurt too much” that Ben Sheets could fill.
Whos pitching?
1st up:
Do the Mets have no shame? Theyre going after EVERYONE like theyve stolen the Yankees check book or something. Who would wanna play there? Citi Field is where good players go to have bad seasons.
Anyway…Chien-Ming Wang is gone, joining a growing list of “departing Yankees who didnt exactly contribute much in 2009” which is a good thing…but…
C.C.
AJ
Pettitte
Thats the 1st part of the Yankees rotation next year. The question is, who gets 4 and 5?
-Joba Chamberlain?
I think its almost time to officially call an end to the debate: Joba should not be a starter. Yes he strikes out a ton whenever he pitches, but hes always good to surrender 4 or 5 runs. Hard to win with an ERA over 4 unless youre Andy Pettitte. Plus theres the whole thing about him being lights out out of the bullpen, cuz he knows he’ll only get 1 or 2 innings so he doesnt hold back.
The trouble is, the Yankees might not have many good options and Joba is at least somewhat reliable as a starter. The best case situation for him though is the bullpen for long relief and the occasional spot start, kinda like what Ramiro Mendoza did in the late 90s.
Joba is absolutly dominant when he gets enough rest, but he doesnt get that rest in a 5 man rotation.
-Chad Gaudin?
While our only 3 playoff starters were resting up in September this year, Gaudin was pitching and winning for them. He really just lacked the stuff to pitch deep into the game. Gaudin would make a solid #5 starter though. If he sucks, theres Mitre, and if they both suck, Jobas there.
-Roy Halladay
Cy Young caliber starter. The man would be an easy #2 in the rotation. Getting him would cost us. Specifically either Hugehs or Joba, plus a prospect. If we’re willing to pay that price and not wait 1 more year for when he becomes a free agent, the only way for him to justify that is to win the world series 3 times over.
Im willing to bet he’ll start 2010 as a Blue Jay. Seriously, this is the trade deadline all over again. Toronto just wants too much from everyone. And everyone knows he’ll be a free agent in another year anyway so theres no rush. There will be no winner.
-Phil Hughes?
When the Yankees needed him to start in 2009, he did not disappoint. When his time in the rotation came to an end, Girardi stuck him in the bullpen and never looked back. If Hughes can handle 6 or 7 innings then I say let him start. If he struggles getting through 5 innings: to the bullpen with him!
But with Hughes in the rotation, the Yankees lose their no-brainer 8th inning bridge to Rivera. Coke is gone and I dont really trust Marte-he seems to only be lights out against the NL (the man was great in Pittsburg, which is why we aquired him. He sucked afterwards until the World Series, when he easily handled the Phillies).
-Sergio Mitre?
If it comes down to him and Gaudin, I’d go with Gaudin. Mitre is sketchy. When hes good, hes GOOD. But when hes bad, its terrible. A little more time in AAA should help him control himself better, plus its always nice to have a backup ready in AAA.
If the season started tomorrow, and we all quit the Halladay dillusion, this should be the pitching staff:
Rotation:
Sabathia
Burnett
Pettitte
Hughes
Gaudin
Bullpen:
Aceves
Albaladejo
Chamberlain
Marte
Rivera
Robertson
Curtis Granderson
Not a few hours after my last post, the Granderson deal went though-sans the prospects we’d get from Arizona, which annoyed me a little.
My reactions to the deal ranged from “Sweet” to “What the f*ck is this sh!t?”
Curtis Granderson…pros:
-Speedy
-Plays a great CF so we dont have to juggle Melky and Gardner
-Decent replacment for Damon
Cons:
-cant hit lefties…at all.
-Strikes out waaaaaaaaaaay too much
-We gave up too much to just get him
-Cant ever hit lefties…ever
Heres the Yankees bullpen look now
Aceves
AlbaladejoBruneymaking a starter again
Chaimberlain CokeHughes
Marte
Ramirez
Rivera
Robertson
…elsewhere, Kennedy is gone in the beformentioned deal, but Pettittes back for at least another year. With him, CC, AJ and probably Wang and Joba, our rotation is all but set unless we get Halladay, which puts Joba back in the pen hopefully…Gaudin and Mitre will prolly head to AAA as a result…or maybe be long relief…
As for Halladay, Austin Jackson is no longer a trade chip for him, so I dont know how we’re gonna deal for Halladay now…
Free Agents
27 time World Champions!
Winning never gets old.
But its almost time to prepare for the future. Defending that championship in 2010, and to become the 1st team since the 2000 Yankees to win back-to-back (or in their case, back-to-back-to-back)
Theres no denying the Yankees have their weaknesses, mainly in the back end of our rotation. A 3 man squad may be enough to win the most important 11 games of the year, but you’ll need at least 2 more guys for the long season. With that comes the concern over where to put Joba, since hes clearly more dependable and dominant out of the pen, as is Hughes apparently. If those 2 stay in the pen, its a huge advantage, but getting to that advantage will be the question.
Whether or not we need to search the market for starters all depends on Pettitte and if C-M-Wang is willing to show up next year.
Theres also the outfield. I’m talking about some stability, which I believe the Yankees lack with the Damon/Matsui issue and Nady comming around.
Anyway, here a look at the Yankees who might be looking for new homes this winter…
Andy Pettitte (P)
Ok, not so much “look for a new home” as “retire” for him. Pettitte has made it crystal clear he wouldnt dream of pitching for any other team. So its either the Yankees, or retirement.
Pettitte should sign on with the Yankees again, because people who go 4-0 in the postseason clearly have something more to give. The Yankees staff could always use someone as dependable as he is, especially when CC has a rough start in April and Burnett pulls his good pitcher/bad pitcher routine…
Replacing Pettitte is near impossible, so I hope he sticks around.
José Molina (C)
Lets face it, AJ Burnett is probably the only person who would strongly fight for Molina to stay. Posada isnt going anywhere and Cervelli cant be ignored. AJ might have to start working with Cervelli instead now.
For the Yankees to bring Molina back, 1 of 2 things need to occur:
1: The Yankees go with 3 catchers, which would be a stretch
2: Posada becomes a full time DH and Molina becomes Cervelli’s back-up, which would also be a stretch…
Xavier Nady (OF)
Sucks to be him right now. The good news for the X-man is while the Yankees make a push to remove some old guys from their outfield, Nady might just stick around. But hes comming off surgery and no one really knows if he’ll be ready to contribute the same way he used to. The same goes for Nady’s hope to get signed by ANYONE. If Damon and Matsui both leave, that might leave room for Nady in the outfield picture. If one of those 2 stay, perhaps we’ve seen the last of him.
Hideki Matsui (OF)
He wouldnt want to play for any other AL team and yet he was a full time DH last year.
On the other hand, hes the World Series MVP.
I say in the war between Godzilla and Damon, I’d keep Godzilla, but since theres that push for Posada to take over the DH duties, Matsui might be forced to either play the outfield or die. I think he can handle it. He doesnt have to play everyday. He can always rotate between DH and the field. Yankees would be fools for letting him go.
Johnny Damon (OF)
Well isnt this akward.
If I want Matsui to stay so bad, I guess Damon would have to go. Lets not forget that he did steal 2 bases in game 4 and helped us win. Yankees definatly lose speed with Damon gone, but that would only make room for Gardner, which makes it easier to release Damon…
Jerry Hairston Jr. (2B/3B/SS/OF)
Something about trading with the Reds that always helps us win a pennant…
Lets face it, having a utility man like Hairston can be invaluble, but we’re not exactly losing a potent bat or a gold glove here. I’d say only let go of Hairston if we can replace him with another utility man who is better…like Felipe Lopez…
Fine, lemme put it this way: resign Jerry Hairston only if theres no way we can get Lopez…
or get both in case out outfield really needs it…and it might…
Eric Hinske (1B/OF)
I’m convinced he came up as a 3B…when did that stop?
Anyway, Hinske is a veteran bat on our bench thats tough to match with rookies. That alone should be enough to resign him. I doubt he can become a valuble starting outfielder like Swisher turned out to be, so his role should remain bench.
Losing him wouldnt be that harsh if Swisher returns to regular bench duty in light of more regular outfielders…
…The season may be over, but the hot stove is just heating up…
The Yankee Hater Hater 