This Week on the Blog
Yankees: Cash said they wouldn't re-start their search for a hitting coach until after the holidays. Now, unless he counts little Christmas, the holidays are over for couple of weeks. Can they get something done by MKL day? They also need a first base coach. They are also in that 6 month window of 2015 where they can still sign IFA's with impunity, so let's hope they keep doing it and that Moncada becomes available while they can. And it does seem like they'll be trading for another starter -- so none of the crowned jewels, please. Btw, it would be better to sign Scherrzer and lose the first 1 than to trade Judge or Severino.
Giants: The Giants still haven't made their coaching staff clear. And then they have to work on finding cap room, and perhaps extending Eli and re-signing JPP. They've announced extensions during the playoffs before, so perhaps they will.
Rangers: The Rangers begin a tough part of their schedule, where they will head to California and also play the Bruins. AV will keep playing Glass, though, and that will make it even tougher. Meanwhile, the Rangers prospects in the Junior Worlds have shined. Both forwards and both goalies have impressed.
Knicks: Who knows? Melo might sit out the rest of the year. That's a good policy for fans, too.
Should be pretty interesting around here, though I have no idea what the tenor will be if the Giants keep Perry Fewell.
posted by Kalel9 @ 8:31 AM
7 Comments:
What a terrible time to be a NY fan when so many teams are run by fools who somehow still get deference by the mediots.
The Rangers and Knicks get more rope from me right now.
The once great NYY, in particular, are the most frustrating and disappointing, by far, because: 1) their financial advantage wasn't muted more than at the margins until the most recent CBA; and 2) in combination with the unpredictably long careers of Stick and Buck's core afforded them the time and space to integrate other homegrown players on to the roster to form the next core, but Cashman largely failed at that. Because of the owners, however, there has been no accountability, except at the bottom, which is perverse.
So with that as a backdrop, it would seem that Hamels is the best fit in their warped world because he would be much cheaper in terms of dollars (which is all that matters) than Scherzer.
Just as they were willing to burn the potential upside of Banuelos for fungible relievers, they may be likely willing to burn a top prospect or three for Hamels because they care more about the present than the future, and the present requires the appearance of contending in order to max out as much present day revenue as possible.
They will worry about the future in the future (like Tony Manero).
It is beyond sickening that of their last six top pitching prospects (Hughes, Joba, IPK, Banuelos, Brackman, and Betances) none are a member of the rotation, and only one is a member of the organization.
That's putridly bad, and would get any other GM fired, but not with the NYY because Hal doesn't give a shit as long Cashless and Levine keep his yachts running on time and stocked with endless caviar.
So despite all the talk of development from Hal, although tellingly, not from Cashless, almost none occurs because development takes patience and follow-through, and they have been unwilling to show the organizational discipline to do that unless they are forced, with the exception of the pen because an out-pitch can shorten a learning curve.
Gregorius may be the beneficiary of that dead of urgency, which is odd because they need offense more than anything and he can't hit.
We can hope that Refs will be too, but that they even signed mL has beens like Noonan and Figueroa is dangerous because Joey G. loves loves loves gritty guys who can't hit, like himself, and so a hot spring training may give him the opening he needs.
Jeez, speaking of Joey G., the Yankee box scores are going to be crazy long with the relief options he has to overmanage.
I'm more optimistic about the Giants, although still guarded.
First, Reese was successful in identifying talent before he became the GM. Cashless, otoh, admits that he isn't a talent evaluator.
So that would suggest that Reese's difficulties have been managerial and/or organizational.
But since I think that being a good talent evaluator is a necessary but insufficient quality for a GM, I think there is reason to believe that he has started to turn the drafting process around, albeit after five years of a poor performance.
Second, the owner, although given way to much deference by the media (for what, I don't know), is fairly smart and engaged, unlike Hal.
So there has been some accountability, although not enough, imo.
Third, Coughlin is a good coach, unlike Girardi, but he has been held back by loyalty, or maybe a desire to micromanage; it's hard to know. But for a "great" coach to have such a sparse coaching tree suggests managerial deficiencies.
Fourth, they have some key pieces. A top, although aging, QB; a possibly dominant WR; some pieces on the OL (although not enough) and Williams at RB; some quality CB; and some DL, especially since they will probably franchise JPP, who may never be great again, but can be very good.
The issues that concern me, and the reason I wanted to see managerial changes, is that a lot hasn't worked, and it is often tough for existing people who made the mistakes to acknowledge them.
Mara has to some degree, but if they keep Fewell and Quinn, they are mere words.
Beyond that, I think they pinned way too much hope on Beason without a reasonable basis to do so given his injury history, and I think McClain stinks. So there is Kennard and not much else at LB.
Randle shows some flashes, and he is young, but can't be considered a sufficient 2nd option yet, imo; so they need one. There is no way to know what Cruz can be. If he can make it back, great, but how lucky will he be having had his career boosted by playing alongside a once top WR in Nicks and now Beckham.
It's disappointing that they didn't develop Washington because of ST, according to Coughlin. IMO, it's crazy to worry about ST over development in the waning weeks of a lost season.
So get OL, a TE, get S, get LB, another pass rusher and/or run stopper.
Of course, that may take two years (another reason to have changed coaches).
I would have liked to see Washington more, too. But he did get a full season of practice and will get a full offseason program to build himself up. Playing him more might have won us another game or two, which would suck for the draft.
So there are possitives contained within:
http://www.foxsports.com/mlb/story/yankees-finally-have-the-prospects-to-make-something-happen-010315
Their mL system could be heading back to the position it was in around 2008.
They blew it then.
We can only hope history won't repeat itself despite the GM.
Yankees resigne Slade Hearhcott
Slade epitomizes the system. Injuries happen, but not everyone gets injured. The problem is that the ones that haven't have regressed, or some shit happens before they get here. Or they get here, and don't blossom here like Melky and Hughes.
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