Melky Not Done Yet

Melky Cabrera and Brett Gardner have a competition for the starting center field job this spring. The winner will be the primary center fielder for the season, and the loser will probably be sent to a fourth outfielder job, or the minor leagues. The winner of the competition will play center on most days, and Johnny Damon will play center when the Yankees need to get Nick Swisher some playing time, or when they want to go with a more offensive lineup for that day. When Brett Gardner got to a hot start this spring, most people immediately said, "this is our center fielder" and are expecting that he is a lock.

Not so fast.

Joe Girardi reported that Melky is "very much alive" in the center field competition, and it seems to be that, when most people thought Gardner had all but won the job, Girardi comes out and gives an indication that the battle is pretty much even. 

For me, I really like Melky Cabrera. Now, I like Gardy too, but I honestly believe that Melky deserves the job. I know that he struggled last year, but I think, overall, he is a better baseball player than Gardner. Melky has a stronger arm, can lay down a bunt, can play good defense, and is actually a better hitter than Gardner with more power. Gardner has more speed on his side, which can help him track down more balls. However, his arm is almost as bad as Johnny Damon, and I'm not even sure he's capable of hitting .220 in the majors. This spring hasn't changed my mind.

Remember Brett Gardner last year? Except for a little hot streak for the last 2 weeks, Gardner couldn't hit the broad side of a barn. I watched him, game after game, for the longest time when he started, watching him go 0 for 4, or 1 for 5. He had a good game here and there, but I don't think he's capable of hitting in the majors. He hasn't proven anything.

Melky Cabrera, however, has proven to me that he can hit in the big leagues. He was above average as our starting center fielder in 2007. He hit for the first month and a half of 2008 too before slowing down. However, he has worked hard this offfseason. It's a new year. There are a lot of guys that had off years in 2008. He's one of them. He's more than capable of coming around this year. Am I saying he will? No. For all I know, maybe Gardner will be a better hitter. But from what I've seen so far from both players, Melky is the better hitter. Thats all I'm saying.

My favorite thing about Cabrera is his throwing arm. It is probably the best arm I've seen us have since we had Raul Mondesi. And Cabrera has a better arm than Mondesi. He led the AL in assists in 2007. He saved us a whole bunch of runs that could have made the difference in some games. Gardner doesn't have nearly the same arm. I believe that Melky and Damon together give us range in the outfield that is as good as any team in the majors. Gardner would give us better range because he can just fly. I will give him that. He's one heck of an outfielder for tracking down balls. I remember him robbing a home run at Yankee Stadium last year against Baltimore. However, I think that Melky's arm makes a bigger difference than Gardner's range, simply because the difference between Melky's arm and Gardner's arm is much bigger than the difference between Gardner's speed and Melky's speed. Other people might disagree, but thats more than okay.

When you look at it all, I'm actually fine with either of them there. Both of them provide different talent with a lot of upside. I would prefer Melky because I think he can make more of a difference if he starts. I would actually like the Yanks to hang on to Gardner as a pinch runner, or back up outfielder for defensive purposes. Gardy can be great use there, pinch running in a big spot, or coming in to play defense in a close game. Thats another reason. What does Melky Cabrera do on the bench? Not really much. But Gardner can do quite a bit off the bench. I think we would be using more out of both of these players if Melky starts, and Gardy plays off the bench. I think that would give us the best chance to win.

What do you think?

With A-Rod Out, Yankees Should Get Figgins

Alex Rodriguez has opted for surgery rather than to play the year hurt, which will leave him out until May. The Yankees have a few options on who should replace him. One is Cody Ransom. Another is Angel Berroa. There has been talk about trading for a third baseman. I like that idea, and I think that the Angels third baseman Chone Figgins would be a great option.

Figgins has experience at third base. He is the starter there for the Angels, and would be a very suitable replacement for A-Rod for a couple of months. I'm not just thinking of a couple of months though. I'm thinking about after that. 

Figgins is a speed guy. They have Gardner, but another guy with that kind of speed off the bench, or in the lineup could be very helpful. Playing everyday, Figgins can steel 50+ bases every year. Off the bench, he can be a very effective pinch runner. As a manager, another guy on the opposing team with that kind of speed can change the way he manages. Figgins can win the Yankees extra games without even doing anything. His speed can really be helpful.

He also is very versatile. He can play third, short, second, and anywhere in the outfield. When A-Rod comes back, Figgins doesn't have to move to the bench. If Gardner or Cabrera doesn't work out, Figgins can play center field. If Johnny Damon gets hurt, he can play left. If Jeter gets hurt, he can play short. You get the idea. His ability to play a number of different positions can really help the Yankees.

He is also young. He is only 30 years old. If you ask me, he has about 4 years of his prime yet. He can be helpful to the Yankees for the next bunch of years too. Johnny Damon is a free agent at the end of this season. The Yankees will need a new left fielder. They will want Matt Holliday, who is a great player. However, the Yankees won't have to pay nearly as much for Figgins, and Figgins brings a different style of baseball that may be more helpful to the Yankees. I would much rather have Figgins leading off next year in left field, than Matt Holliday in left field. He's a great player, but I don't want another power hitter. We've failed to win the World Series the last 8 years because we have payed money for sluggers. Giambi, Sheffield, and so on. I much better like the speed idea. We have 2 power hitters, so lets leave it at that. Lets go back to the small ball idea that got us to 6 World Series in 8 years. The winning by manufacturing a run with a single, a sac bunt, a stolen base, and a sac fly, instead of always waiting for the 3 run home run. Getting Figgins, I think, will get us a lot closer back to that idea.

So, there is my case. Figgins can fill in for A-Rod, be a solid pinch runner for the rest of this year, and then be our left fielder and lead off hitter for a few hitters after that. I have always liked Chone Figgins, and always hated it when he hit against us. However unlikely it is that this will happen, I think the Yankees should at least attempt to get him. I like his style. He is a gamer, and he is the type of player we need to build our first dynasty since the late '90s. 

What do you think?

A-Rod: Get Surgery

Once again, the headline in Yankee camp is Alex Rodriguez. Nobody cares that CC Sabathia pitched well in his first start during spring training, or that the Yankees won yesterday. People care about Alex Rodriguez. But guess what? A-Rod may not be here for a while. Personally, I think he should get surgery.

You would know that Alex Rodriguez has a torn labrum in his right hip. Since then we have heard 2 different sides of the story. We have heard A-Rod's brother say that he is getting surgery, and we have heard the Yankees saying they want to take a "conservative" approach to A-Rod. Basically, what they are saying is that they want their third baseman to play through the season, hurt, for 7 months including postseason, and get surgery in the offseason directly after that, take 4 offseason months to recover, and be ready, completely healthy, for opening day in 2010. I have one thing to say to that. Big Mistake. I have many reasons, and if you hear them, it should be an easy decision.

First of all, remember, this isn't the 2008 Yankees. This is the 2009 Yankees. We've added a lot of great guys. Sabathia, Burnett, Teixiera, are all healthy and all be productive in 2009. Yea, Alex is really important, and the lineup really suffers without him. However, We have one of the best rotations in baseball. We don't need a great lineup to win ballgames. Does it help? Of course it does! But is it required? No. The Yankees of 2004-2008 really needed a strong lineup to win because they really had no reliable pitchers. 2004 they had nobody. 2005, they had Mussina, but nobody after that. 2006, they had nobody after Wang and Mussina. 2007, they had Wang and Pettitte, nobody after that. 2008, Mussina, nobody after that. We have had no more than 2 reliable starting pitchers in a season since 2003. Now, we have CC, Burnett (if healthy, which I expect he will), Wang, Joba (if he stays healthy), and Pettitte if he can have a comeback season. That is 4, possibly 5 reliable starting pitchers. Now that we have a powerful rotation, we don't need as much a powerful offense. Basically, my point is that this team is stacked and could swallow the loss of A-Rod for half a season.

Secondly, I think it will be good for A-Rod to get away for a little bit. Selena Roberts book on A-Rod comes out in April. The thought of his steroid use is fresh in everyones mind. Remember, no matter how much Rodriguez just wants to "get back to baseball," fans won't think that way. He will be booed everywhere, and it will be bad. Also, remember that he isn't the most emotionally stable guy in the world. He doesn't handle these things really well. I believe that it might be good for Alex to get away from the game of baseball a little bit. Let the stories die down. Let the thought of steroids go away from everyones mind. I think it would be good for him emotionally to miss a little bit.

Thirdly, remember at the end of 2007 he signed a 10 year, 275 million dollar contract. Thats a lot of time, and a lot of money. If he tries to play through this injury, and his hip blows up, it could end up being a lot worse. He would miss the end of the season rather than the beginning. He would miss postseason. And his future in baseball may start to be questioned. Will he ever be healthy enough to play again? We wouldn't know. I don't think it's worth the risk. This is a big investment. The Yankees shouldn't risk it. Remember, A-Rod is trying to prove himself again. It wouldn't be good if his career ended a year after his steroid episode, would it? All Hall of Fame chances would be destroyed, and 275 million dollars from the Yankees would be wasted.

I also need to say that Mike Lowell, the Red Sox third baseman, also had a torn labrum. He tried to play through it last year. What happened? His production decreased. Also, the pain got to be so much that he missed the postseason! So Lowell played worse than he otherwise would, and missed the playoffs. What if that happened to A-Rod? I would rather have a productive Rodriguez for the second half of the season and postseason, than a less productive Rodriguez for 5-6 months, with no postseason, and a possible chance of permanent injury. Mike Lowell is evidence that something bad is very possible. We wouldn't want that to happen.

Well, when you look at all this, it is an easy decision. We won't fall out of the AL East race without him, and it is too big of a risk. He should have surgery. Will it hurt our team without him? Of course it will! Any time you lose a player like A-Rod for an extended period of time it will hurt your team. But the Yankees have to look at the big picture. Keep him healthy in the long run. It may hurt the Yankees even more if he decides to play. Get surgery, come back in July, have a strong second half, and help the Yankees win a World Series!

Manny Finally Signed

Manny Ramirez has finally signed a contract. Finally. You know, when you look at the whole thing, this greed, and waiting that he's been doing did absolutely nothing but make him look bad. He signed with the Dodgers for 2 Years, worth 45 million. Remember the first offer, waaaaaaaaaaay back in November? 2 Years, 44.5 million was, I believe, the offer. Nice job Manny. Serious skill. You earned 500,000 dollars more. Let me ask you. What can you do with 45 million that you can't do with 44.5 million? Seriously, all Manny did was make himself and his agent look bad, make himself 2 weeks late for spring training, and show himself off as a completely greedy jerk. Seriously Manny, it's not worth it. I made a post in January about how he should be a Yankee, but that was then. A lot of people weren't signed then. He didn't seem like a jerk. I knew he loved money, but I thought he loved baseball more. Now that I've seen him sacrifice 2 weeks of spring training for an extra 500,000 dollars, which for him is like 50 cents to the most of the working world. What's wrong with him? He is a complete idiot. He doesn't care about anything but money. Now, I'm glad we never signed him. We didn't need him, and he would have just been a bad influence in the clubhouse. He would have been a liability defensively. He would have hurt more than he helped. I feel bad for Joe Torre. He's as good as anyone at handling people, and I still feel bad for him. He has to deal with a major headache. Another thing, Joe Girardi probably would never have been able to handle Manny. I'm really glad he's not a Yankee.

The guys a great baseball player, but thats all he is. The Dodgers are going to have a tough season. They don't care though, because they do need him. He, regardless of his personality, will be the reason the Dodgers are in the postseason this year.

What do you think?

A-Rod Comments Not a Big Deal

Once again, I am writing about Alex Rodriguez. I am not happy about what people have made with his comments, but I'll get to that in a moment. First I just want to say that A-Rod is a bloggers dream. He can't go 2 days without another story about him, whether he means to or not. 

First on the comments. A-Rod said, "I wish he (Jose Reyes) was leading off our team." These comments have been controversial because people have interpreted it as an insult to Derek Jeter, and/or Johnny Damon. First of all I want to say that it's unbelievable that A-Rod can't even say something nice without getting slammed. Second, this has been blown way out of proportion. This wasn't another diss on Derek Jeter, and he wasn't insulting Johnny Damon. He was just complementing Reyes. And he should. He's his teammate right now and should be supported. He doesn't wish Jeter or Damon wasn't on the team, and wasn't dissing either of them. I'd bet if you asked A-Rod that he'd say the same thing. Damon's already defended him. I would expect Jeter will defend him too. If you ask me, leave A-Rod alone, give him his space. Try saying something nice about him. Have you realized that he's the best player in the history of the game, and the media can't ever find one good thing to say about him. He's done nothing wrong lately. Just praise an opposing player and play baseball. Play baseball. Thats what he needs to do all year.