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Yankees Decline Option On Andrew Brackman

By Tim Dierkes | November 1, 2011 at 1:25pm CDT

The Yankees declined their 2012 option on righty Andrew Brackman, GM Brian Cashman told reporters on a conference call today.  The 6'10" 25-year-old righty is now a free agent; ESPN's Keith Law explains that Brackman's contract called for the Yankees to release him if they didn't pick up his option. 

Brackman, 25, made his Major League debut this year with three relief appearances.  The Yankees drafted him 30th overall out of North Carolina State in 2007 and signed him to a $4.45MM Major League contract.  The Yankees knew at the time that Brackman needed Tommy John surgery.  Brackman made it up to Triple-A this year, where he was shifted to the bullpen.  He posted a 6.00 ERA, 7.0 K/9, 7.0 BB/9, and 0.9 HR/9 in 96 innings.

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88 Comments

  1. Guest 6290

    14 years ago

    Hmmm interesting.

    Reply
    • East Coast Bias

      14 years ago

      What’s your rationale?

      Reply
      • Guest 6288

        14 years ago

        I’m guessing his value fell to the point where management felt there wasn’t a decent enough return to be had with a trade, even as filler, which probably surprises me the most. I believe all together the option would have been for $1.5mm so maybe it’s just as simple as opening a little extra payroll and a roster spot. Apparently that roster spot is more valuable than we think. As I said yesterday, Cashman has everything mapped out, I’m sure and I don’t expect this decision was made this morning.

        Reply
        • East Coast Bias

          14 years ago

          I want to agree with you about Cashman having it mapped out… but if that’s the case, he should have gotten something back in return for a midseason trade.

          I mean, let’s be honest here. $1.5m is not a big deal to the Yanks. Like, at all. The roster spot is probably the bigger issue.

          That’s a sneaky clause in the contract. I hope there was a better reason than saving a roster spot or 1.5m.

          Reply
  2. garylanglais

    14 years ago

    Woww.  Did not see this coming. And before people get confused, yes Brackman under normal circumstances would still be under team control (Pre Arb player) but Cot’s says Team had clause in contract that if they didnt pick up Club Options they would have to release him.

    Can’t wait to hear the explanation on this

    Reply
    • strikethree

      14 years ago

      Depends on the options. No point in keeping the guy if his options were going to be expensive.

      Look at that walk rate.

      It’s not like they were going to keep him for league minimum.

      Reply
      • azdsnd

        14 years ago

        $500,000 if he was in the minors for the whole year.  So, yeah, basically league minimum.

        Reply
  3. 0bsessions

    14 years ago

    OMG BUT THE KILLER B’S ARE CAN’T MISS PROSPECTS WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?!

    Reply
    • nick1538

      14 years ago

      Obviously they aren’t “can’t miss,” because the Yankees just missed with Brackman.  

      Reply
    • East Coast Bias

      14 years ago

      Just goes to show… no prospect is can’t miss.

      except Manny Banuelos, now that guy is a lock for the hall!

      Reply
      • 0bsessions

        14 years ago

        He’s the next Felix Hernandez, don’tcha know?

        No, seriously, I’ve heard that one. I won’t say he won’t work out, he’s insanely young for AAA and holding his own, but people need to learn to temper expectations.

        Reply
        • mrjjbond

          14 years ago

          I wouldn’t call 24/25 “insanely young for triple A”.

          Reply
          • 0bsessions

            14 years ago

            In response to ECB, I was referring to Banuelos, who’s currently 20. He’s fast tracking extremely well. Any of the three could wash out, but Banuelos looks like the most sure bet of the three.

            Reply
          • FrankTheFunkasaurusRex

            14 years ago

            did you rtfc?

            Reply
          • Yankees420

            14 years ago

            And which Banuelos that the Yankees have is “24/25?”

            Reply
            • Mario Saavedra

              14 years ago

              Maybe he knows something we don’t…

              Reply
    • bonestock94

      14 years ago

      Did Brackman ever get praise that high?? Banuelos is the most promising. Betances might never get his control right and end up in the pen. Anyone with a modicum of prospect knowledge knows this stuff.

      Reply
      • 0bsessions

        14 years ago

        Rewind maybe eighteen months (Around when the Lee to the Rangers deal went down) and a lot of Yankees fans were referring to them as the Killer B’s and speaking as if they were all effectively can’t miss prospects.

        Reply
        • bonestock94

          14 years ago

          Probably the same people that were thinking Melky Cabrera could headline a trade for Johan a few years back

          Reply
  4. azdsnd

    14 years ago

    Wow. Whoever signs him now is going to have six years of control of the guy, which is definitely going to spike his value. Brackman’s agent just heard the best news of his life.

    Reply
    • Alex 18

      14 years ago

      Six years? How do you figure that?

      Reply
      • azdsnd

        14 years ago

        Because, with just three big-league appearances to his name so far, he hasn’t used up any of his control years.  Every player is under team control for at least six years (three minimum salary, three arbitration unless Super Two) after hitting the big-leagues.  Whoever signs Brackman now will still get those years of control that the Yankees did not use.

        Reply
        • Joshua

          14 years ago

          False.  He used up a full year of service while on the DL following his TJ surgery (Yanks chose to DL, so they wouldn’t waste an option year)

          Reply
          • azdsnd

            14 years ago

            Good catch.  Five years, then.  Do you know many options he has remaining?  That’s probably going to be the biggest point that determines his market value here.

            Reply
  5. Christopher Soto

    14 years ago

    He’s going to develop into a useful bullpen piece for SOMEBODY next year….

    Reply
  6. mgsports

    14 years ago

    A team That needs a Starter.

    Reply
    • azdsnd

      14 years ago

      Should not sign Andrew Brackman.

      Reply
  7. start_wearing_purple

    14 years ago

    Alfredo Aceves… take 2?

    Reply
  8. jmcbosox

    14 years ago

    hey ben!  are you paying attention?

    Reply
    • azdsnd

      14 years ago

      Boston’s bullpen is just fine…

      Reply
      • start_wearing_purple

        14 years ago

        We need a new definition of “just fine” then.

        Reply
        • azdsnd

          14 years ago

          Here’s my definition: Leading all of freaking baseball in fWAR among relief corps with 7.7:

          fangraphs.com/teams.aspx?pos=all&stats=rel�…

          I’m not exactly sure what your expectations are, but that seems awfully good to me, no?

          Reply
          • MB923

            14 years ago

            And the White Sox SP was ranked 2nd in that. Proof that WAR for Pitchers on Fangraphs is a joke.

            Reply
            • Yankees420

              14 years ago

              Really? 1 year of WAR for 1 teams set of starting pitchers is proof it’s “a joke?”  Methinks not.

              Reply
              • MB923

                14 years ago

                So you think the White Sox had the 2nd best rotation in MLB?

                Reply
                • FrankTheFunkasaurusRex

                  14 years ago

                  2nd lowest BB/9 in MLB and a half decent K/9 & GB%. Why not?

                  Reply
                  • MB923

                    14 years ago

                    24th in BABIP, 20th in BAA, 18th in ERA, 13th in WHIP, 16th in K%

                    So we base it all on walks?

                    Reply
                  • MB923

                    14 years ago

                    24th in BABIP, 20th in BAA, 18th in ERA, 13th in WHIP, 16th in K%

                    So we base it all on walks?

                    Reply
                • Yankees420

                  14 years ago

                  Where exactly did I say that?  I’m of the opinion that you are being quick to excuse a valuable (in my eyes) statistic based solely on the way it judged one teams SP staff in one season. 

                  Reply
                  • MB923

                    14 years ago

                    I know that’s not what you said, but it seemed as if you were arguing that Fangraphs WAR value (at least for pitchers) tells it all. Clearly you know something is wrong with it if it lists the White Sox rotation as the 2nd most valuable rotation in baseball.

                    Sorry, I guess earlier I should have said 2nd most valuable and not 2nd best. Point is, I don’t see any argument on how it is.

                    Reply
                    • Yankees420

                      14 years ago

                      Again, I don’t know how you gathered that I was claiming fWAR “tells it all.”  I don’t believe that it does, but at the same time I do think it is a valuable statistic, even if it happens to throw out the notion that the White Sox had the 2nd most valuable SP staff in 2011. I think it is better used on an individual comparison as well as in conjunction with other stats that help tell the complete picture. 

                      Reply
      • commenter3346

        14 years ago

        Yes, because having 2 reliable pitchers by the end constitutes as fine. Especially since one of those is a free agent. When you have to depend on guys like Andrew Miller, Matt Albers, and Tim Wakefield, your pitching depth is fine.

        Reply
        • azdsnd

          14 years ago

          Silly me, I forgot that every team in baseball has seven relievers who all throw 98 and strikeout every other batter they face.  Oh, wait a minute, that’s only in your MLB The Show Dynasty Mode!

          Boston ERA & IP in relief appearances only, min. 10 IP as RP:

          Papelbon: 2.94 ERA in 64.1 IP
          Bard: 3.33 ERA in 73 IP
          Aceves: 2.03 ERA in 93 IP
          Atchison: 3.26 ERA in 30.1 IP
          Albers: 4.73 ERA in 64.2 IP
          Wheeler: 4.38 ERA in 49.1 IP
          Morales: 3.62 ERA in 32.1 IP
          Jenks: 6.32 ERA in 15.2 IP
          Wakefield: 3.63 ERA in 17.1 IP
          Bowden: 4.05 ERA in 20 IP
          Doubront: 6.10 ERA in 10.1 IP

          So, by my count, that’s six relievers – Papelbon, Bard, Aceves, Atchison, Morales, and Wakefield – who each posted ERAs under 4 and combined for 310.2 innings of relief, much of it dominant.  Seems to me that, considering the fact that most teams keep seven or eight relievers on their roster at any time, that’s most of an incredible corps of relief pitching by itself.

          Sure, Jenks and Doubront blew chunks, but they also combined for just 26 relief innings.  I hardly see how the Red Sox “depended” on Miller and his 6.2 relief innings, and I hardly see the problem with Wakefield and his 3.63 ERA as a reliever.  Albers also posted a 4.00 FIP, so while his ERA was underwhelming, there’s no reason he can’t be a quality reliever going forward if the team decides to part ways with Wakefield.

          So, yeah, Boston’s bullpen is just fine.

          Reply
          • commenter3346

            14 years ago

            Bard blew up. Atchison was on the DL. Morales was on the DL. Wakefield sucks. None of them are consistent or reliable. 

            Reply
            • sf55forlife

              14 years ago

              the majority of relievers aren’t. In many ways building an effective bullpen has more to do with quantity than quality. The more options you have the more likely you can catch lightning in a bottle, so to speak. Corey Wade for the Yankees was a good example of this strategy.

              Reply
    • Ben_Cherington

      14 years ago

      I got this!  Curt Young is great with young pitchers….wait a second, nevermind

      Reply
      • brian mcgahan

        14 years ago

        Curt Young is good with young pitchers, and he’s on the A’s…

        Reply
        • Ben_Cherington

          14 years ago

          Thanks for the info…wait second, I already knew that, hence the sarcasm.

          Reply
  9. Chris Quinlan

    14 years ago

    Cot’s also said that his 2011 option only guaranteed him 400K if he stayed in the minors all year. Have to think the 2012 option was the same thing.

    More must have gone on behind the scenes. He’s sucked for the most part, but there’s a lot there to like.

    Reply
    • azdsnd

      14 years ago

      Probably a 40-man roster move.

      Reply
  10. Shu13

    14 years ago

    Guess he wasn’t as KILLER as the NYY fans touted

    Reply
    • East Coast Bias

      14 years ago

      in fairness, he was projected as a closer, not top-middle rotation starter like the others. Still… wish him the best where ever he signs.

      Reply
      • YanksFanSince78

        14 years ago

        Not really true. He was looked at as a possible starter who at worse would be an option out the pen.

        Reply
        • East Coast Bias

          14 years ago

          We’ve argued about this before. I always saw Brackman as a closer/reliever. Baseball America agrees.

          baseballamerica.com/today/prospects/rankings/organ…

          Damn, looking at that list, he was ranked as our 5th best prospect. There better had been a good reason for letting him go.

          Reply
          • Ben_Cherington

            14 years ago

            5th?  Ouch, what does that mean from 6th on down?

            Reply
            • notsureifsrs

              14 years ago

              nothin’. brackman had a good 2010 and a horrid 2011

              Reply
          • User 4245925809

            14 years ago

            Yeah.. This has gone on here several times before and as I (and a couple others posted above and days before) both he and Andrew Miller in many ways mirror each other. They are hard throwers who have issues with the strike zone way to often to be reliable (now) as closers, or even really late inning relievers and have troubles as starters. This is really a trouble area of extremely talented pitchers and a shame. Both these people have outstanding secondary stuff, top notch FB’s, yet lose all control of the zone way too often to be successful at this moment.

            This is not a knock on either of these guys, have been a huge fan of both since they played for NC/NC State and would love to see them get it together. Hopefully one day they can straighten their games out and become the #2-3 guys they were projected to be and face off with Boston-NYY as the outstanding pitchers they were thought to become at the MLB level.

            Reply
  11. East Coast Bias

    14 years ago

    On the surface, this looks like a bad move… but until more of the story comes forth, I’ll reserve judgement.

    Reply
  12. Dylan Zane

    14 years ago

    His stuff is so filthy, if he could just control it, he would be a very solid player. He has a big curveball and a pretty good fastball, he just has no clue where it’s going. If he went to the cards, I bet he would end up being ridiculous.

    Reply
  13. woadude

    14 years ago

    Boston will snag him and hope for Aceves 2.0

    Reply
    • roomwithamoose

      14 years ago

      except Aceves was established as good, and didn’t have control issues, the only concern was his shoulder which held up fine. Brackman has control issues which means someone better help his mechanics or he’s going nowhere fast

      Reply
  14. Jeff 31

    14 years ago

    He should have stuck with basketball- he had NBA talent.

    Reply
  15. East Coast Bias

    14 years ago

    Is there any way Yankees can still sign him? As a free agent? To perhaps a minor league contract? That should be legal, right? Why am I asking so many questions? I don’t know, do you?

    Reply
    • start_wearing_purple

      14 years ago

      Yes, yes, if he agrees, right, you’re on a roll maybe, and I don’t know do I?

      Reply
  16. wsox05

    14 years ago

    White Sox!!!

    Reply
  17. MattHollidaysForearms

    14 years ago

    Jays need to rebuild their bullpen, maybe all this guy needs is a change of scenery.

    Reply
    • notsureifsrs

      14 years ago

      striking out only 7 per 9 and walking just as many at AAA, he needs way more than that

      Reply
      • Lunchbox45

        14 years ago

        stem cells?

        Reply
        • notsureifsrs

          14 years ago

          beer

          Reply
          • MB923

            14 years ago

            Beer huh. I guess he is going to Boston. Time for some Sam Addams

            Reply
      • Lunchbox45

        14 years ago

        stem cells?

        Reply
  18. Beersy 2

    14 years ago

    It would make a ton of sense for the Padres to look at this guy.  Balsley has had a ton of success getting the best out of big middle relievers.  It would be a good move for both parties.

    Reply
  19. Sadiq Stuyroid

    14 years ago

    Make it happen Sandy!!
    It`s only 400k.. oh wait…. never mind…. too expensive

    Reply
  20. Noah Nash

    14 years ago

    Red Sox need pitching depth, I see a potential free agent signing.  If this happened and he ended up dominating, it would be the 1st of many great moves by Cherington.

    Reply
  21. nestleraisinets

    14 years ago

    declines brackman to retain mitre and proctor. It has got to be the reason…

    Reply

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