The Yanks are in the Tank
Now, as we've talked about before, their 40 man roster is screwed up with old players, marginal players, hurt but not hurt enough players and relief pitchers. The common meme is that Girardi really knows how to handle a pen. The truth is he's always had great relievers from Mo, Robertson and Hughes to Betances and Miller, usually much more than that. But his use of relievers has been nothing like efficient and most of the Yanks 101 callups this year have been for relievers, at least one of whom had to be DFA'd.
And beside the stuff with the kids on the farm, who are held to a false standard, the Yanks, who couldn't afford to, threw Warren and not Sabathia into the pen when Nova came back. Now Sabathia is hurt, Nova is awful and Warren has no regular work, though he clearly has starter stuff.
I'm hopeful that they will still make the playoffs, but this is a bad and unrepeatable formula. And it's a real shame because everywhere under the MLB level, the Yanks for finally stockpiling and developing talent again.
posted by Kalel9 @ 4:01 PM
44 Comments:
"Too many of the current Yanks don't do that and it has been endemic to the entire Girardi era." <--- 2009 was the outlier to that, and it's largely why they won the World Series that year.
I can only hope this is nothing more than a funk for Teix-Rod, because this team needs those two to do exactly what you described: Grind out at-bats. Of the rest, Gardner and Ellsbury are too streaky, McCann doesn't grind, Beltran is hitting better but is abysmal in the field (same with Headley post-ASB, though he stunk this week), Didi is OK for a plus defender at short, and Drew is Drew.
I remember reading on NYYFans that the Yankees' analytics department came up with a defensive measure for catchers that apparently suggested Jose Molina was a more valuable player than Jorge Posada. If true, it's indicative of a wrong-headed approach to constructing a team that over-emphasizes defense and under-emphasizes offense. I wonder if that's what has kept Drew around.
(And when Sanchez is inevitably sent packing because his defense doesn't measure up to this standard set for rookies, I just pray it's for a bat.)
Bold action is needed.
Mike, the comparison done between Jose and Posada was at the end of Posada's career. Molina was more valuable than Posada at that time due to his defense --- if there's 2 positions where hitting is the least important, it's 100% catcher and SS.
Thanks for the clarification, Billy. Still, if Sanchez isn't given a shot because he lacks the "plus, plus" defense that is required of farm hands, it's a mistake. They need guys who can hit.
I don't see why Sanchez won't be given a shot -- he just got to AAA and is still extremely young. I would expect him to finish off the year in AAA, start there next season and then be brought up once he starts to dominate.
I'm convinced they'll trade him because his defense isn't up to their standard, plus McCann is under contract for at least three more seasons after this one.
McCann is no longer good defensively.
As long as Girardi is here they are never going to reach their potential.
We will see if the GM ever realizes that.
Time is running out.
The "must be a plus, plus defender" rule doesn't apply to the likes of Beltran, McCann or Headley.
I'm not even aware of any advanced metrics that rate Drew as a plus at second, though that may just be my ignorance.
I was hoping the analytics department would help the Yanks realize the value of a plus bat at second...
That's why I view the problem as being beyond Hal and Levine. The top baseballl decision maker(s) have a skewed view of what wins games. They seem o think that offense is the tail rather than the dog. We know Girardi thinks that. We know what Cashman has said about keys and kingdoms.
Even though they have been wrong, smart people adapt and learn.
Will they?
We'll find out this offseason (when I fully expect the N.Y. media to begin churning stories about how the Yankees still need pitching first and foremost).
Off topic, but I want the Yankees to be all in on Shohei Ohtani if and when he's posted: https://twitter.com/pacificleaguetv/status/636568796321447936
I think something has to be done now, unless Teix and A-Rod quickly rediscover the fountain of youth.
And where are all those who said A-Rod has to be juicing? He got a bad batch????
What's his Japanese IP?
And really, Girardi is death on pitchers going back to the Marlins.
Jennings:
They’ve called up too many young relievers to name. If you’d like, be frustrated that the Yankees prefer Stephen Drew at second, but I don’t think it’s out of blind devotion to experienced players. The Yankees clearly just aren’t sold on Refsnyder. If they were, every indication is that they’d want to give him a chance.
_
What is overlooks is that the bar is set so much lower for veterans. They can suck forever and the patience remains.
It was that way with Roberts before Drew, and it's similar to Girardi making ridiculous excuses for Headley's defense.
So no, there is no indication of anything.
Bryan Hoch @BryanHoch 5m5 minutes ago
Regarding Rob Refsnyder & Stephen Drew, Brian Cashman also said that "no one is being called up to take anybody's current position."
Until I see otherwise, I'm going to have to think Jennings is onto something with that point.
Obviously, this is not Hal or Levine's call.
I agree with Jennings' conclusion, just not his rationale.
LINJ, to answer your question on Otani, it's 331.2 as of now.
And because they screwed up the 40 so badly, they can't call up Judge this year since they don't have to put him on the 40.
If they wanted to, they could cut Ryan, Drew, and Young and not miss much.
They're still gonna be jammed tight going into the rule 5 in December. They'll probably let their FA's expire, and then make some trades.
I'm just referring to the short-term.
And really, although I am not advocating it, do you think that some team would claim Ellsbury?
My guess is the wouldn't. And if they did, one less vastly overpaid, although talented, injury-laden veteran.
Mike
Tanaka was at 1315.0 IP
So yeah, that's a must have.
Sanchez pulled his hammy which may put Sept. at risk.
Cashy didn't rule out Capuano. This requires an EEOC investigation for NON-discrimination.
Hebert is pitching for Scranton today, while Davis and Coshow are pitching the Trenton Double Header (that should be brutal for their opponents) and Encinas who needs to be put on the 40 - maybe - is going for Tampa.
I don't know if Encinas gets another year for all that time he's missed.
Lawyer, that's as of now. Don't think he gets posted for several years.
Still some questions about Teixeira apparently. This is why it pays to have actual depth.
@DanBarbarisi: Girardi says yanks are so shorthanded & limited tonight that he may need to "ask some pitchers to put some spikes on" as pinch runners
And this is a clear example of how badly this team sucks at roster construction. Why not call up a position player if you're so short-handed?
Preferably one that can actually hit.
I try to be positive. I really do. And there has certainly been plenty of stuff to be positive about this season.
But this is flat-out embarrassing. Given their history of fragility, it really didn't occur to anyone that maybe, just maybe, they should call up an additional bench player for a three-game set in Atlanta? With an off day before the series, it's not like they couldn't make travel arrangements.
Or, better yet, use the thing called the DISABLED LIST for guys that are hurt when you have Triple-A depth in both the infield and outfield.
If I were Hal, I'd be blowing a gasket at this level of incompetence. I don't know who's making these decisions ultimately, so if Phil, Billy or someone else wants to clue me in, I'm all ears. But this crap needs to stop.
I refuse to believe the GM of 18 years (!!!) doesn't haven very significant input on the roster. In fact, except for the allocation of massive money, it's reasonable to think that he holds all the power unless he delegates it to others, and if he does, that is still on him.
They NEEDED this!
And Drew still sucks.
They have no depth because they don't DL injured players a call up healthy bodies.
Tanaka is giving it back...
Could not put a bad hitter away.
Seriously something is wrong.
Jordan Montgomery K'd 8 through 6 perfect innings for the Tampa Yanks tonight. They didn't let him try to finish it, but he may have mastered high A.
This game is an example of what we often say: offense sets the tone for pitching, and gives pitchers the space to correct any struggles.
Trade McCann back to Atlanta in the offseason.
Mike, I just came back to say, we can probably trade McCann back to Atlanta...
They'd have to eat salary but with Sanchez's surge this year I wish they would. I have no doubt he'd waive his NTC for Atlanta.
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