The Yankees are considering adding a left-handed hitter and could sign Raul Ibanez, Johnny Damon or Hideki Matsui within a week, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney writes. Adding one of the veterans would provide the Yankees with a weapon against right-handed pitching for their open DH spot.
Yankees manager Joe Girardi said last week that he would like to see GM Brian Cashman add a bat before Opening Day. The skipper suggested he'd prefer a lefty hitter, someone who can complement the right-handed hitting Andruw Jones. The Yankees will explore alternatives before the July 31st trade deadline if they aren’t getting enough production from their DHs, Olney tweets.
Breaking News!! Something MIGHT happen at some point. Maybe.
Yankees don’t need 1more hitter!!!!
Damon is the better choice
Damon has the most to offer out of those three. Under no circumstance should it be Ibanez.
Don’t look now…
Covering my eyes, and hoping it’s a tactic to force Damon’s price down, but concerned. Posada hit better against righties last year than Ibanez.
Damn…I bat right-handed…I guess that rules me out
They are bringing back David Justice…
“@Ken_Rosenthal: Sources: #Yankees in serious discussions with Ibanez. He is willing to take less to play for them than he could get elsewhere. #MLB”
J.D. Drew still available for hire
Wasn’t he thinking about retirement?
Matsui back to the yankees!
Damon back to the Yankees!
Ibandez is…
Would be bad if they were adding some right handed hitter named Lefty Bats
Rumors are not news? The shock!
Rumors are not news?! The shock!
i like that scenario but its too late in the game for the yankees to do all of that. A.J. Burnett isnt that attractive and adam dunn can still bounce back. one bad year in a new league shouldnt sour the white soxs on dunn. and mariners have no interest in a reliever when they have a deep bullpen and figgins is only valuable as a body to man the infield due to a lack of prospects ready to take his place.
What makes AJ attractive to the White Sox? Trades have to work for both sides. If the Mariners are going to take on $25-26M (Soriano’s 2 yrs), they would sign a hitter, not another pitcher.
What makes AJ attractive to the White Sox? Trades have to work for both sides. If the Mariners are going to take on $25-26M (Soriano’s 2 yrs), they would sign a hitter, not another pitcher.
Those are interesting moves. One problem with trading for Dunn is that the Yankees would be stuck with his contract for 2014, while AJ is off-contract in 2013, and there’s a chance they could get under the luxury tax threshold by then.
He has a strikeout rate of around 35% in AAA, is 30 years old, and has a sub-.300 OBP.
I see it just the opposite. The Yankees are looking at being done with AJ in 2013. Dunn, however, is signed through 2014 and is owed $44 million, compared to Burnett’s $33 milion. That’s an additional $11 million and one full year in additional committments to bad contracts. Worse, Dunn’s contract trails into 2014, when the luxury tax increases up to 50%, so adding Dunn’s $15 million salary in 2014 would pretty much guarantee the Yankees will go over the $189 million luxury tax threshold, costing the Yankees up to $50 million based on the new rules in the CBA, which greatly reward high-revenue, high payroll teams for getting below the threshold.
I also should add that Dunn’s year as a hitter in 2011 was substantially worse than Burnett’s was as a pitcher. There’s a better chance the Yankees will be able to move Burnett’s contract at some point in 2012. There’s almost no chance the White Sox can move Dunn.