A Month of Fundays

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Sunday, October 22, 2017

Yankee Offseason, Week 1

This is coming a week or so sooner than I'd hoped, but let's face it, this run was all house money and well ahead of schedule.  Most of us didn't think this was a year to add at the deadline, but indeed, so far so good.  The Yanks have a bunch of roster issues to address (rotation, a 2B who can't turn DP's or get on base much, and a back-up catcher who can't throw or hit a lick, for starters) but first thing's must be straightened out in the front office, minor league system and coaching staff.

I think the Yanks must re-sign Cashman, and, if possible, make him President (and dump Levine), like the Cubs have done with Theo.  That could be a way for them to promote someone else and prevent more poaching. They also have to address the manager position, as well as replace Gary Denbo.  They also need to extend their scouts, who have kicked total ass lately.

That's the housekeeping, and that can be taken care of right away.  Also, Tanaka can opt out within three days of the close of what will be a low rated World Series, so they should lock him up now, and go into free agency with one less issue.  Could be an interesting week.

44 Comments:

At 2:45 PM, Blogger Rich said...

Hal isn’t a guy who likes frictions. I expect few non-player changes.

Kay says they still like Castro a lot. Maybe it is in-house spin, but maybe there are still a few negative biases in evaluating players. We will find out.

They MUST get Otani if he is even marginally interested.

 
At 3:48 PM, Anonymous yankyfan said...

A solid starter and fill the rest in house..

 
At 4:07 PM, Blogger Rich said...

Sev
Tanaka
Gray
Montgomery

So no CC?

 
At 4:08 PM, Blogger Kalel9 said...

I don'tr think CC is a necessity.

 
At 4:09 PM, Blogger Kalel9 said...

Also, if we end up with both Girardi and 6 starters it can only lead to more problems.

 
At 4:54 PM, Blogger Rich said...

No, he’s not. Just wanted to clarify what he was thinking. Otani is the preference. It becomes trickier if he wants another location, or if Tanaka leaves. Sentiment should play no role.

 
At 5:00 PM, Blogger Rich said...

The Sawx notwithstanding, it may be that the way to get a great pitching coach is to make him the manager.

 
At 11:08 PM, Blogger Mike in Mississippi said...

Sorry for this LENGTHY post but I wanted to share some thoughts on the offseason so far...

So, it looks like getting under the tax is a huge priority this offseason. Can’t say I blame ownership given the savings it would bring, though I really hope the money is put back into the team.

The Yankees are now free of the following from the payroll:
A-Rod ($21M)
CC Sabathia ($25M)
Matt Holliday ($13M)
Jaime Garcia ($12M)
Todd Frazer ($12M)
Michael Pineda ($7.4M)

That doesn’t include Chris Carter ($3.5M) and Tyler Clippard ($6.16M) that took up space at some point this past season. After next season, Headley ($13M), Gardner ($11.5M + $2M buyout) Robertson ($13M) and McCann’s supplement ($5.5M) are off the books.

That’s approximately $100M coming off the payroll automatically this offseason. If Tanaka opts out, that’s another $22M. After the ’18 season, an additional $45M comes off the books.

Let’s look at the remaining contracts of significance that will be on the 2018 Yankees as of now:
•Brett Gardner — This is the most interesting case. You keep him around no matter what if you can get rid of a certain other outfield (more on that below). If you can’t though, you have to ask yourself whether or not you think Clint Frazier is going to be a big-league hitter. If he is, then he needs to play. If he needs to play, then isn’t it in Gardner’s best interest he’s traded? The team would also shed $11.5M in payroll plus the $2M buyout.
•Aroldis Chapman — He recovered nicely after an iffy middle of the season. Hope he can keep it up for two more years and then opt out after ’19.
•Starlin Castro — If the Yankees view him as anything more than a holdover for someone better, they’re making a huge mistake. He has a good hit tool, but he also has a terrible approach at the plate and is a negative defensively. I would trade him while his value is high this winter even if it means starting the season with Wade as your second baseman while Torres gets at-bats in the minors. The team would shed $10.8 million off the payroll.
•Headley — I doubt Todd Frazier takes a one-year deal, which means Headley is here one more year before a prospect takes over at third. I’m OK with that.
•David Robertson — One more year of an elite reliever. Keep him. He’s worth it.
•Jacoby Ellsbury — You could probably convince him the outfield is too jammed and he’d be better off accepting a trade. But would the Yankees be willing to eat enough of the contract for a team to acquire him? And if they were, why not just go all the way and buy him out? The Rangers and Red Sox bid approximately $52M just as the posting fees for Darvish and Matsuzaka, respectively, and the Sox also ate $48M on Pablo Sandoval’s contract, so it’s not like there isn’t precedent to spend a lot on one player at once for either getting him on or off your roster.
•Bonus: Dellin Betances — His value is at its lowest, true. Still, they’d save several million next year off whatever he’d get for arbitration, and I still think a team exists that would give the Yankees something of real value for him, even if it isn’t what they got for Miller/Champan.

 
At 5:46 AM, Blogger Rich said...

I wouldn’t trade Betances barring a blow away offer. I cannot envision that.

Subsidizing Ellsbury’s contract to facilitate a trade will be cheaper than keeping him and playing him.

 
At 2:56 PM, Blogger Billy Martin said...

This will be an interesting off-season - I don't expect them to spend much but in reality there's not much quality out there to spend it on.


A few things that Cashman needs to do:

1 - Trade Castro. Coming off an AS appearance & only 2 years left, now is the time.
2 - Move Ellsbury via trade/buy out. Would probably have to swap bad contract or eat majority of salary.
3 - Sign a defensive minded backup catcher; Romine's bat is a 0 which means he should be elite defensively. He is below avg defensively, which in turn makes him a terrible backup.
4 - Explore deals for Headley if you can resign Frazier to a 1-2year deal
5 - Re-Sign CC to 1 year deal - Give him the Andy treatment.


Longshot moves:

1- Sign Otani. Promise to give him the chance to DH in 50 games. This is a no-brainer but obvy other factors will impact whether this happens.
2 - Trade Clint Frazier for Christian Yellich. If this happens, I would be ecstatic.
3 - If Headley is moved, resign Todd Frazier.


 
At 3:08 PM, Blogger Rich said...

It would take considerably more than Clint for Yelich.

I would not give Frazier two years. One, he isn’t much better than Headley.

Two, Machado may be here in ‘19.

 
At 4:53 PM, Blogger Kalel9 said...

I don't think Otani is a longshot at all. I think he might even be better than even money.

Definitely have to upgrade back up C. Though, Higgy might be that guy.

Willing to trade Frazier for the right piece.

 
At 5:56 PM, Blogger Mike in Mississippi said...

If they don’t trade Frazier, then he needs to play, bottom line.

Higgy could be that guy, except he can never seem to stay healthy.

My main concern with CC is, let’s say Tanaka is still here and they do sign Otani. Does that make JoMo the odd man out? I think he needs to be in the rotation no matter what.

 
At 7:59 PM, Blogger Billy Martin said...

Marlins are cutting payroll, Clint can headline a package for Yellich. There would obviously be other pieces but he would be the biggest piece.

Todd Frazier is also a 3-4win player - Headley is barely a 1, there’s significant difference. I don’t love Todd but he can play 3b/1b/DH next year and is a great clubhouse guy.

Frazier wouldn’t hinder a signing of Machado, so 2 years isn’t an issue.

Phil, do you know something about Otani? I put it as a long shot because simply put it’s not entirely up to the yanks. We can make our pitch and he will ultimately decide what he wants which makes it risky to count on.

I think resigning CC to 1 year is good, every team needs pitching depth. We also don’t know what Tanaka is going to do and if he does stay, he still carries a high level of injury risk.

 
At 8:21 PM, Blogger Rich said...

Their WAR is much closer if you look at it over several seasons.

With the Hal Cap, CC isn’t the easy move it might otherwise be.

 
At 9:00 PM, Blogger Mike in Mississippi said...

The good thing with Tanaka is the team will know fairly quickly what his plans are, as he has until three days after the World Series ends to opt out. Hopefully CC is patient enough to wait out whatever decision Otani makes.

 
At 9:18 PM, Blogger Kalel9 said...

Billy, just have heard a few places that the Yanks are the favorites.

Also, I seriously think the Yanks will keep Tanaka and he won't opt out.

And I do think we might do some business with the Marlins this offseason.

 
At 9:19 PM, Blogger Kalel9 said...

And as I've mentioned before, I don't want 6 starters, especially if Girardi remains manager.

 
At 5:31 AM, Blogger Rich said...

Given the way they are structuring their spending because of the Hal Cap, they really can’t afford to give marginal players two year deals.

 
At 6:57 AM, Blogger Rich said...

As for the Marlins’ payroll, if they are able to move Stanton, the need to trim elsewhere lessens.

 
At 11:20 AM, Blogger Mike in Mississippi said...

Someone named Jomboy on Twitter: “I'm not in the business of breaking news but I just heard from a good source that Joe isn't coming back as Yankees manager. #yankees”

One of the people I follow on Twitter vouches for this guy, FWIW.

 
At 11:29 AM, Blogger Billy Martin said...

Interesting. The 1 guy I wanted as a replacement was Mickey Callaway and he's now across the town.

 
At 11:57 AM, Blogger Rich said...

So more credibility than incarcerated Bob? ;)

I agree with Billy, as I alluded to yesterday, a great pitching coach may be the way to go, and to do that you may have to make him and the manager.

As with anything, I’m skeptical of this report until it’s confirmed.

 
At 12:35 PM, Blogger Mike in Mississippi said...

Doubt we hear anything until after the World Series.

 
At 12:37 PM, Blogger Billy Martin said...

In regards to Otani, if he can DH and be league-average, that would be such a HUGE benefit to roster construction going forward.


If Girardi does end up leaving/retiring, am I crazy to think that A-ROD would be a great manager?

 
At 1:15 PM, Blogger Rich said...

He would, but it’s hard to believe he would do it. The life is a grind and he is probably worth 200 million? More? And where is Jenny from the Block going to fit in on those road trips?

 
At 3:21 PM, Blogger Mike in Mississippi said...

I agree he would, but I’m not sure NYC is the place for his first managerial job. And I agree with Rich, I haven’t seen any indication from him he’s willing to return to the grind.

 
At 7:06 PM, Blogger Kalel9 said...

It would't surprise me if Girardi is out. I found game 2 and other stuff completely inexcusable. I think ARod might be good eventually, but might still have some growing up to do. Also, immortals have not made good managers/head coaches in many sports. I think of Ted Williams and Bill Russell for starters.

I wouldn't mind seeing ARod in the Denbo job, but it might be too thankless for him. I would like to see him as a roving member of the brain trust.

 
At 10:31 AM, Blogger Rich said...

His brother says the young Yankees may make him want to return. Barf.

 
At 1:30 PM, Blogger Rich said...

Mike’s source is hedging.

 
At 4:45 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

This is his latest:
@Jomboy_
This will most likely be announced during the World Series off day tomorrow.

-Mike K. at work

 
At 6:15 PM, Blogger Kalel9 said...

Seems likely.

 
At 5:03 AM, Blogger Rich said...

They’re meeting today.

 
At 7:36 AM, Blogger Rich said...

http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/21166583/joe-girardi-not-returning-manager-new-york-yankees

 
At 7:41 AM, Anonymous yankyfan said...

I am shocked. Al Pedrique should be a candidate for the job.

 
At 7:43 AM, Blogger Rich said...

Make Don Cooper manager.

 
At 7:51 AM, Blogger Billy Martin said...

I'd be interested in Kapler with LAD

 
At 7:53 AM, Blogger Rich said...

https://twitter.com/garyhphillips/status/923561089169805312

 
At 7:57 AM, Blogger Rich said...

“With a heavy heart, I come to you because the Yankees have decided not to bring me back.”—statement from Joe Girardi #Yankees -- @YankeesWFAN
via http://cbssportsapp.com

 
At 8:03 AM, Blogger Rich said...

The one choice that would definitely disappoint me is Thompson.

 
At 8:07 AM, Blogger Rich said...

Cashman: "Everything this org does is done w/ careful and thorough consideration and we've decided to pursue alternatives (for manager)." -- @eboland11
via http://cbssportsapp.com

 
At 8:21 AM, Blogger Rich said...

According to Buster Olney: "Sources: The recommendation of Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman to owner Hal Steinbrenner was to change" -- @RiverAveBlues
via http://cbssportsapp.com

 
At 8:23 AM, Blogger Rich said...

Some people are citing views on Sanchez as a major source of the split.

 
At 8:44 AM, Blogger Kalel9 said...

There's a new post about it.

 

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