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.

A-Rod Off to Nice Start

Yankees Third Baseman Alex Rodriguez got off to a nice start during spring training of 2009, after hearing boos from over half the fans, one guy wearing an "A-Fraud" shirt, and having one fan yell out "that was a steroid induced foul ball" after he fouled off a 2-1 pitch to foul territory, belting a home run in his first official at bat of the season (walked his first time) on the next pitch after the fans comment. This is a really good sign. He showed, on the first day, that he is capable of blocking fans out. Now, I know that there will be a lot more fans when the regular season starts, but it's a good start.

The Yankees need A-Rod to win. That is a simple fact. They have a lot of money invested in him, and he is one of the most important players on this team. I know that because of his steroid allegations he is going to be treated horribly at most every park except Yankee Stadium, especially Fenway and probably Citi Field. He has to meet with MLB Investigators, so this clearly isn't over. However, for me, I won't pay attention to steroids anymore. A-Rods taken enough heat right now, he's had enough shots taken at him. However, he came out and admitted that he did it, and he wants to move on. I think that for baseball to move on from this issue, we need to move on instead of continuing to look back, because if MLB continues to look back, we are never getting passed this problems (one of the reasons I think Bud Selig is one of the worst commissioners we've ever had). 

Alex came out today and knocked a two run homer in the first game of spring training, to tack on to Brett Gardner's lead off homer (I'm actually surprised he could hit it out). The Yankees went on to beat the Blue Jays 6-1, for a nice start for A-Rod, and the Yankees to the '09 Spring Training season. For pitching, they started a Brett Tomko, who pitched two shutout innings, giving up one hit. Only Jose Veras had trouble, giving up the only run the Jays got. The rest of the relievers (even Igawa) managed to pitch shutout innings. 

Well this was a good first day. The Yankees managed to win the first spring training game, A-Rod shut those fans up, and we got pretty good pitching from guys who might make an impact in a few years (there weren't many pitchers who pitched today who will be on the opening day roster). Austin Jackson got a hit, Brett Gardner hit a homer, and it seemed that things just went right for the Yanks today. With this new team, thats what I expect for the whole season!

Alex Rodriguez News Conference - Good, but Could Have Been Better

Yankees Third Baseman Alex Rodriguez reported to Spring Training today, and had to give a news conference where he confronted his use of banned substances. He gave an opening statement, and then he answered questions from the audience. 

"The last couple of weeks have been difficult and emotional," A-Rod said, "on one hand, it's difficult to admit mistakes, but on the other hand, it feels good to be moving forward."

Good start, I thought. First he thanked his teammates, then went with the comment above. Now, we all know that we will not be moving forward with this today. This will stick around, at the least, for a couple of months. It may never go away. However, this was a difficult day for him and I thought that is a good way to start.

Also in his opening statement, he issued a few extra details we did not see in the Peter Gammons interview 8 days ago. He said that his cousin injected him with a substance called "boli" which he said was an "over the counter" drug from the Dominican Republic. He never gave reporters his cousin's name.

"It was his understanding that it would give me a dramatic energy boost and otherwise harmless," he said. "It was pretty evident that we didn't know what we were doing."

He stuck to his story from the Peter Gammons interview. He said he didn't know exactly what he was injecting into his body. He avoided one problem there. People won't be saying that he contradicted himself. However unlikely it is that he just didn't know, at least he didn't change his story. He said that his cousin said they were harmless, yet he was very secretive with it and didn't share it with anybody. That is going to be a big question coming out of this. "Why were you so secretive if you thought what you were doing was okay?" He was asked that during the Q&A and seemed unable to answer the question. He ended up saying that there are some things that you don't want to get out into public, and that this was just one of them. Not a great answer.

"We went without the team doctors, team trainers, just two guys doing it. I'm not even sure if we were doing it right."

Not very believable at all. I believe that he wasn't telling the doctors about it (obvious), but to not know if he was even doing it right, I mean, come on Alex! His cousin didn't explain anything to him? However, I guess if his cousin is just as stupid as he says he is then it isn't very surprising. I guess I could believe that. To a certain extent. I do believe his cousin exists, by the way. How much he was involved in this, or whether there were other people involved too, we may never know.

"I stopped taking it in 2003 and haven't taken it since. I stopped taking the substance for several reasons. In 2003, I had a serious neck injury and it scared me half to death. I was scared for my career and truly my career after baseball - my life after baseball. Secondly, after our voluntary test, all the players voted for a major league drug policy. At that time, it became evident to me how serious this all was, and I decided to stop then."

Now that, I believe! He gave us a good time frame, told us exactly when he stopped, and gave us good, detailed, believable answers as to why. I really liked this part of the opening statement. 

"Since that time, I've been tested regularly. I've taken urine tests consistent with Major League Baseball and blood tests for the World Baseball Classic. Before I walked here today, I took a test as part of my physical, and I';; take another blood test next week for the Classic."

You don't really need to believe that, it's a fact. All players have been tested a lot since the new policy came to place.

"It isn't lost on me the good fortune I've received from playing baseball. When I entered the pros, I was a young kid - the major leagues. I was 18 years old, right out of high school. I thought I knew everything, and clearly I didn't. Like everyone else, I've made a lot of mistakes in my life. The only way I know how to handle them is to learn from them and move forward. One thing I know is for sure is that baseball is a lot bigger than Alex Rodriguez."

"And to my teammates -"

"Thank you."

Well, thats the most of his opening statement. I thought it was pretty good. There was a little in there that was tough to believe. The fact that he didn't know what he was injecting into his body is really tough to believe. However, there was nothing in there that was absolutely terrible. I think it was a pretty good opening statement. As far as the way he answered the questions, that was his biggest problem. A couple questions just absolutely stumped him. I think it was a mixture of that he was wondering what to say to make the answer come off with the least suspicion, and that he just didn't know what the answer was, maybe for a number of reasons. A few questions he knew right away. The questions that stumped him usually resulted in 5-10 seconds of silence, and I think really hurt his press conference more than anything else. Overall, the opening statement I think was great, and the questions were mixed. The reactions he has been getting has been mixed as well. The Yankees continue to give him mostly praise and encouragement. Most other players also supported him. Cliff Lee, Grady Seizmore, Ryan Braun, and Angels Manager Mike Scioscia. Then there is the middle category, where most reporters are. I watched MLB Network after the conference, and they were all talking a bit more about the bad parts, about how he didn't know about what he was taking, and how they were upset because he kept going back to saying that he was "young" and "curious" and "stupid" and "naive." For all those excuses, I can believe curious and stupid, and, if his far-fetched idea that he didn't know what he was injected into his body is true, I can believe naive too. I can't believe young though. The reporters were right when they said that the "young" excuse could only take him so far. He was 25 years old, that isn't that young. So they were right on that. Anyway, they kept focusing on the bad parts on the interview, but, in the end when asked if it was a good day or bad day for A-Rod, they all said good. And then, you have the people who are giving him no sympathy at all. Roy Oswalt wants all his stats erased, as he said that A-Rod "cheated me out of the game." Lance Berkman said "I don't feel the least bit sorry for him." Cubs First Baseman Derrek Lee said "there should be zero tolerance." David Ortiz (Loser, I'm going to boo him twice as loud when I visit Yankee Stadium this season) suggested that he be suspended for a whole season. And also, a few reporters have been absolutely unfairly bashing him and giving him zero credit, but just pointing out every bad part of his interviews and making them 100 times worse. Overall, it's been pretty balanced to what the reaction to A-Rod has been across the baseball world. I would expect fans reactions would be balanced in a similar way. 

So when you look at the overall way Alex Rodriguez has handled this situation, it certainly could be worse. He could have denied, denied, denied, and may have eventually found himself facing perjury charges like Roger Clemens. He went out and told the truth. Maybe not the whole truth, that is for others to decide, but he went out and told people he used steroids, went into pretty good detail, tried his best to explain himself, and sounded sorry and regretful. No matter how much of this you believe, you can at least see that he is sorry for what he did. The way he is talking, the way he sounds, the way his body language is, I honestly think he looks sorry and very regretful. The press conference could have been better, but it wasn't terrible. I don't think it hurts him in any way, I think this only helps him. Alex wants to move forward, he wants to get back to baseball, and he wants to win a championship!