The Yankees clinched another postseason berth in 2020 before falling short in the playoffs once again. They’re now facing offseason questions in their middle infield, at catcher and in their pitching staff. Those issues could be difficult to properly address if the club decides to tamp down its payroll, which seems likely.
Guaranteed Contracts
- Gerrit Cole, RHP: $288MM through 2028
- Giancarlo Stanton, DH/OF: $218MM through 2027 (including $10MM buyout for 2028)
- Aaron Hicks, OF: $50.5MM through 2025
- Aroldis Chapman, LHP: $32MM through 2022
- Zack Britton, LHP: $27MM through 2022
- Luis Severino, RHP: $24.25MM through 2022 (including $2.75MM buyout for 2023)
- Adam Ottavino, RHP: $9MM through 2021
Arbitration-Eligible Players
Note on arb-eligible players: this year’s arbitration projections are more volatile than ever, given the unprecedented revenue losses felt by clubs and the shortened 2020 schedule. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz, who developed our arbitration projection model, used three different methods to calculate different projection numbers. You can see the full projections and an explanation of each if you click here, but for the purposes of our Outlook series, we’ll be using Matt’s 37-percent method — extrapolating what degree of raise a player’s 2020 rate of play would have earned him in a full 162-game slate and then awarding him 37 percent of that raise.
- Luis Cessa – $1.1MM
- Clint Frazier – $1.6MM
- Chad Green – $1.6MM
- Ben Heller – $700K
- Jonathan Holder – $900K
- Aaron Judge – $9.3MM
- Jordan Montgomery – $1.3MM
- Gary Sanchez – $5.5MM
- Gleyber Torres – $2.5MM
- Gio Urshela – $3.5MM
- Luke Voit – $3.7MM
- Non-tender candidates: Heller, Holder, Sanchez
Option Decisions
- Exercised Zack Britton’s $14MM option for 2022
- Declined Brett Gardner’s $10MM option for 2021 in favor of $2.5MM buyout
Free Agents
- Gardner, DJ LeMahieu, Masahiro Tanaka, J.A. Happ, James Paxton, Tommy Kahnle, Erik Kratz
As Joel Sherman of the New York Post detailed last month, it could be a relatively low-spending offseason for the Yankees if their goal is to get under the $210MM luxury-tax line in 2021. They may only add around $30MM to a payroll that is already in the $170MM range with guaranteed deals, arbitration raises and rookie contracts. That’s problematic for a team with a pair of high-end free agents and needs to address.
The biggest possible departure for the Yankees would be DJ LeMahieu, who has been their premier player since they signed him to a two-year, $24MM contract before 2019. The move couldn’t have worked out better for the Yankees, with whom LeMahieu went from solid contributor to superstar. The 32-year-old is coming off a season in which he won a batting title, led the AL in wRC+ and finished third in MVP voting. Great timing for LeMahieu during a contract year, but it could price him out of the Yankees’ range.
The Yankees did issue LeMahieu an $18.9MM qualifying offer at the beginning of the offseason, but he predictably rejected it. According to Sherman, they might be reluctant to do much better than a three-year, $48MM offer on a long-term pact, and it’s hard to believe he’d accept that. For what it’s worth, MLBTR predicts a four-year, $68MM accord, but it’s possible he’ll do even better than that.
If LeMahieu does exit, where would that leave the Yankees? It’s hard to imagine them turning the reins over to the light-hitting Tyler Wade. Fortunately for the Yankees, they do have some flexibility in their middle infield because of the versatility of shortstop Gleyber Torres, who has also played extensively at second base.
Should the team decide to leave Torres at short, it could pursue any number of Band-Aid free agents at the keystone, including Kolten Wong, Tommy La Stella, Jurickson Profar and Jonathan Schoop. Those aren’t especially exciting options on paper, though remember that LeMahieu didn’t look like the most thrilling addition when the Yankees brought him into the fold. Perhaps they’d be able to strike gold yet again on a somewhat understated pickup.
Moving Torres back to second would also present some possibilities for the Yankees, as free agency features a few accomplished vets at short (old friend Didi Gregorius, Marcus Semien, Andrelton Simmons). Korea’s Ha-Seong Kim is going to be posted, so he could also pique the Yankees’ interest. And you can’t ignore the trade front, where the Indians’ Francisco Lindor is likely to wind up on the move. It’s also not unreasonable to think the Rockies could listen to offers for Trevor Story.
While middle infield is the main concern in the Yankees’ position player group right now, catcher isn’t too far behind. Gary Sanchez won their starting job with an all-world performance in 2016 and has held it down since. There have been defensive miscues and up-and-down offense since then, though, and now the Yankees may elect to pull the plug on the Sanchez era. They’re reportedly willing to listen to offers for Sanchez, whom they could non-tender if they can’t find a trade partner. They’ve also shown interest in free-agent catcher Yadier Molina, which doesn’t seem to bode well for Sanchez. Molina would figure to start ahead of Kyle Higashioka.
Molina’s aging, and his offense has declined of late, yet he’s still one of the top free agents at his position. J.T. Realmuto is No. 1 with a bullet, but whether the Yankees would dole out a $100MM-plus contract for him in their current situation looks iffy. They might not even be willing to go into the two- to three-year range for James McCann, the second-best backstop out there.
Meanwhile, the rest of the Yankees’ lineup looks pretty well set. Torres will be back to play somewhere. First baseman Luke Voit has developed into a star slugger. Gio Urshela remained a highly productive starting third baseman in 2020. His presence could push out Miguel Andujar if the Yankees find an enticing enough trade offer. Right fielder Aaron Judge and designated hitter Giancarlo Stanton aren’t going anywhere, though the team will need healthier seasons from the hulking duo next year. Clint Frazier finally broke out in 2020 and now looks like the Yankees’ answer in left field, while Aaron Hicks has center locked up.
There’s a question as to whether the club will bring back Yankees institution Brett Gardner as a reserve outfielder. New York bought out the 13-year veteran and saved $7.5MM in the process, but it could re-sign him for a lesser salary. If not, the Yankees might be content to plug in Mike Tauchman as their primary backup.
Whether or not LeMahieu, Sanchez and Gardner return next year, the Yankees should still feature a strong offense. Their rotation may be another story, however. Gerrit Cole delivered in the first season of a record nine-year, $324MM contract, though the Yankees don’t really have any sure things after him.
Of returning Yankees starters, Luis Severino has been an ace when healthy enough to pitch. The hope is he’ll get back to form next year, but he missed almost all of the previous two seasons because of serious arm injuries. Severino might not even be ready for Opening Day after undergoing Tommy John surgery in February. Domingo German sat out 2020 after a domestic violence suspension, though it appears the Yankees will pencil him in for some role next season. Jordan Montgomery is also an in-house front-runner for a starting job, but he had his struggles in 2020 after coming back from a TJ procedure. Otherwise, the Yankees have some younger hurlers they could turn to in Deivi Garcia, Michael King and Clarke Schmidt.
For now, the Yankees’ starting depth looks as if it’s going to take a hit in free agency. Career-long Yankee Masahiro Tanaka is on the open market, as are JA Happ and James Paxton. Tanaka, who has long been effective in New York, seems the most likely of the three to re-sign. He’s not going to come at an exorbitant cost – certainly nothing like the seven-year, $155MM contract the Yankees originally gave him. Other free agents who should be affordably priced include Jake Odorizzi, Charlie Morton, Corey Kluber, ex-Yankees farmhand Jose Quintana, Garrett Richards and Adam Wainwright, to name some familiar names. And the Yankees could explore trades for one of their former pitchers, the Rangers’ Lance Lynn, or the Pirates’ Joe Musgrove.
Considering the spending power the Yankees have typically shown off, perhaps you can’t rule them out for the No. 1 free agent available, NL Cy Young winner Trevor Bauer. Of course, that would require the franchise to hand out yet another massive financial guarantee. Notably, Bauer and Cole – who were teammates at UCLA – have not gotten along in the past. Bauer did, however, tell reporters this week that there is no feud with Cole (via Brendan Kuty of NJ Advance Media).
“I have nothing wrong with Gerrit,” Bauer said. “We had our differences in college and that was nine or 10 years ago at this point. I’m a different person now than I was then. I’m sure the same is true for him.”
Regardless of whether it’s Bauer or someone else, it seems probable the Yankees will sign or trade for at least one starter this winter. General manager Brian Cashman could also make an addition(s) to their bullpen, which wasn’t the lights-out unit the Yankees expected. They already retained Zack Britton, so he’ll be a key late-game piece again. Closer Aroldis Chapman isn’t leaving, while Chad Green, Jonathan Loaisiga and Luis Cessa should also be back. The Yankees would probably like to move on from the last year and $9MM of Adam Ottavino’s contract after a rough 2020, but it would be difficult to find a trade partner right now. If no team wanted Brad Hand for $10MM, why would anyone take on Ottavino at $9MM?
Hand is now looking for a job – as are several other well-known relievers – but that depends on if the Yankees are interested in throwing money around on bullpen upgrades. They could at least take a fairly low-priced gamble on someone like Greg Holland, Kirby Yates, Jake McGee, Joakim Soria or ex-Yankees Mark Melancon and Shane Greene. The top of the market includes Hand, Liam Hendriks, Blake Treinen, Trevor May and Trevor Rosenthal. Let’s not forget that the Yankees pursued superb Brewers reliever Josh Hader last winter. Maybe they’ll circle back there this offseason, though Hader would cost a significant amount in a trade package.
It was no surprise that the Yankees reeled in Cole, last year’s best free agent, an offseason ago. However, because of the economic issues the league is currently facing, this looks as if it will be a much less predictable offseason for the Yankees and just about every other team. If the Yankees actually are going to slash payroll, though, it could be a winter of discontent for their fans.
Propose your Gary Sanchez trade predictions below:
Tanner Roark, Travis Shaw, Patrick Kivlehahn for Sanchez, Torres, Severino, Loaisaga, Judge, Garcia, Urshela, Voit, Andujar.
Seems fair to me.
IDK Roark eats a lot of innings… I think the Jays’d say no.
yes, I would agree, you are probably 14 with this proposal…really stupid!
Wow Rocky, you really told him.
That’s because he’s 7. 14 year old stuff goes over his head.
Yes I did! Problem?
You can’t recognize sarcasm? That is a problem.
Sanchez will be non tendered.
I doubt it. I think he’ll be traded for a prospect. Don’t ask me which prospect.
Neither. Sanchez will be the Yankees starting catcher.
I hope so, i like him even if he’s had some issues catching, i believe from nagging injuries.
I think he’ll be traded for a bat with Mike Trouts signature on it and the Yanks will throw in a couple of million
They’re not non-tendering a 28 year old who hit 34 homers a year ago to save 5.5 million. Not happening.
Anyone who thinks this his clearly doesn’t watch the games.
Xactly
Agreed. Sanchez was actually decent after a Crush Davis type start to the season.
I’ll admit I’m not sure how hes been behind the plate, and the Yanks rotation was pretty sad overall.
But 5.5 mil is nothing for a guy like Gary
Sanchez hit 0 in JUly 155 in August and 171 in September. When exactly did the decent stuff happen. You can look this stuff up why would you say such a stupid thing. When someone hits 147 for a season there is no decent.
Exactly.
What an absurd notion, man. He’s a two time All Star who wayyyyyyy back in the good old days of 2019 hit 34 HR’s with an OPS of .841. Lots of good players (Yellich, Bellinger, etc) struggled in 2020.
It was a weird season.
Sometimes, MLBTR seems to resort to “controversial” takes in order to generate clicks.
I get it.
We all gotta eat.
Didn’t this whole thing arise due to some “speculation” by Joel Sherman? Whom I am clearly surprised still works as a sports journalist. I thought most Yankee fans knew he was an idiot.
Seems we’ve more proof of that, uh?
Other than the HRs he wasn’t that good. He hits bombs against young or bad pitchers. The good ones eat him up low and away.
This has nothing to do with Joel Sherman and if you think it does you clearly don’t watch every game. He is no major league catcher and he’s an easy out unless he changes his approach which he clearly refuses to do.
dobsonel: you make claims but do you have evidence? He only hits homers vs. bad pitchers? Let’s see the data on that, I’m calling B.S. He’s no easy out. Stats say otherwise. If you’re gonna double down on a controversial opinion that no professional scout would agree with, how about providing evidence? The info is out there. (And when they in fact DON’T non-tender him, I’m sure you’ll be nowhere to be found.)
Hat tip, @cosmodeus.
Dealing with these guys gets old. I will gladly go on record with saying that Sanchez will *not* be non-tendered.
&, man, @dodsonel I do watch or listen to at least some of every Yankee game. Sanchez – though certainly far from perfect – is a good player. The notion he’ll be non-tendered or traded for the proverbial “bag of balls” is laughable.
I definitely question your understanding of baseball, man.
I’ll go on the record with that too lol!
He hit a HR off Verlander in the 2019 ALCS. The talent is there, he’s just very streaky and sometimes seems to not be putting the effort in to improve.
Nobody in the mid Covid world just stepped up to the plate to claim Brad Hand at $10 mil. Why would they trade for a below average catcher both offensively and defensively for $6 mil?
No he did not hit a HR off of Verlander in the 2019 ALCS against Verlander. He was 0-5 in game 2 and 0-3 in game 5. Not sure how many of those ABs were against Verlander but clearly no HRs.
But he hit a 232 in that great year of 2019 so it isn’t like he was great in 2019. On top of that he hit 23 of those hrs in the first half of the year which means he hit just 11 hrs in the last three months plus a bating average of about 200. You add the last 3 months of 19 plus all of 20 almost a year and he’s a 190 hitter. If you think this year was just a fluke you haven’t been watching Sanchez close enough
I can’t believe we’re still doing batting average, man.
Yeah. .232 BA. However, that was accompanied with an OPS of .841 which is a *much* more useful stat than batting average, bro.
Okay lets use ops. He had a 681 ops this year and an ops of 785 the second half of 2019 which means in the last year approximately of baseball his ops has been below Kyle Higashiokas ops of 771.Yeah he’s a stud
Btw as to ops being so important Sanchez has a higher lifetime ops then Derek Jeter. I guess that means he’s a more valuable player right. Ops is a stat that overinflates power period bro
Sure…keep sliding those numbers around. What an “OPS of .841 in 2019″ means is *exactly” that. For that entire season that’s what he recorded.
Fyi, Higashioka had *48 AB’s* in ’20.
He has a *career* OPS of… .602. Wanna slide some arbitrary dates around with him, as well? (Perhaps you may want to focus all of your stats on his three homer game.)
I’ve watched Gary Sanchez hundreds of times, man. Lots of other players struggled last year, too. It was a weird season. Until last season he’s always been above average on both sides of the ball (& oftentimes elite with the bat).
He *won’t* be non-tendered.
He *won’t* be traded for a “bag of balls”, or whatever.
Bet.
It’s addition, bro.
That’s what the “P” stands for.
Not sure how that “overinflates” anything.
It means in his last season basically he’s been terrible. As a matter of fact after his injury after the first 2 months of 2019 he’s been terrible. As to your comment about ops you said its what smart people use and I pointed out that by that measure a hitter with power like Sanchez who does basically nothing else is rated higher then HOFer Derek Jeter. That shows you the worhlessness of the measure unless your only interested in determining whose the better power hitter. Sanchez has a high iops because he has power. He cant hit otherwise.. Any stat that rates Sanchez’s career better then Jeters career offensively is worthless DJ lemahieu who has led the league in batting twice has a 787 ops lifetime. Man he must really suck
“…you said its [sic] what smart people use…”
What? Where the heck did I say that?
I don’t think we are communicating very effectively.
Good hunting, bro.
I take it back How could I say such a thing I just assumed when someone says its a much more useful stat he was implying smart people would use it .In the future I will know thats wrong thanks Again I’m sorry.
Sanchez for a guy nobody has ever heard of that will become an All Star for the Yankees.
No.1 with a bullet
I wonder if the Yankees and Padres line up for a Sanchez for Mejia swap in some way.
Both clearly could use a change of scenery.
Braves trade: Acuna, Fried, Soroka, Waters
Yankees trade: Gary Sanchez, Aaron Hicks and whichever other undesirables the Yankees have. >=}
The Padres have Nola to start now I doubt they being in a six million dollar backup.
Rangers: Gary Sanchez
Yankees: Nick Solak and Nick Goody
Or
Cardinals: Gary Sanchez
Yankees: Paul DeJong and maybe a prospect
Pass on the Rangers deal. Yanks had both of those guys. I don’t think they’d be very interested in a reprise.
The DeJong trade proposal is certainly intriguing. He’s a good player & that would definitely address a need.
Saw one last night where a poster said Sanchez for Alfaro & a reliever.
I could see something like that.
Either way, Cashman is super obsessed with value these days. In both trades & free agents.
I think he would be that guy always grumbling about not getting his money’s worth about everything all the time.
Ya know, “jeez they sure charge enough for these drinks but they’re a little weak”, or “I don’t think this steak is actually 16 ounces”, “I paid for continental breakfast & we had to leave early”.
Ya know?
That guy sucks to hang out with lol.
*If* he moved Gary I bet the overwhelming majority of the fellas here will be talking about how the other GM got “fleeced”.
I’m a Yankee fan and I see no reason the Cards or anybody else would give up something like Dejong for Sanchez. You are trading for 6 million dollars worth of mediocre defense and bad offense, Anybody trading for Sanchez is hoping for a miraculous turnaround and if they are paying his 6 mill contract not much will be coming back.
Straight up for Matz.
Sanchez returns as the starting catcher
Omg i can not believe Domingo n Chapman back. They seriously do not deserve it. Britton should be closer. Coming from a Redsox fan who enjoys the Evil Empire too
I think we can all come to agree that MLB and their teams don’t stand on high moral ground with the recent managerial hirings.
Cora is not a criminal in a legal sense, if you didn’t think i caught that snide remark. I like the NYY players, but i have no use for the ones that did domestic violence.
The comment wasn’t snide. The truth is, teams care more about the bottom line than society’s ever-shifting sense of morality. Also, if you wanna get technical, neither Chapman nor German are “criminals” in the legal sense either. They were not convicted, if my memory serves correctly.
What you are saying makes no sense, The Yanks signed Chapman after the domestic problem so whats changed. Also someone who enjoys the Yanks doesn’t refer to them as the Evil Empire especially a Red Sox fan whose team in the last couple of years has spent much more money then the Yankees have.
At a predicted $5.5M salary for Sanchez, I don’t see how Molina nor McCann would be make sense as they have limited, if any, upside. Sure Sanchez has been abysmal but he still has youth on his side to get better or reach 1.5+ WAR next year which fine by me for his cost.
I would Molina or McCann. The Yankees have plenty of hitting already, there’s a reason Higgy started almost all playoff games. Stanton is the DH and Sanchez needs to go, it’s time…
lowereastsider:
Catcher is the most important position on the field. Teams that want to win can’t afford a bad catcher no matter how high his offensive upside. A young bad catcher is still a bad catcher.
Don’t most teams have bad catchers? What is your basis for saying it’s the most important position on the field? I feel like you are making this up.
Cosmodeus:
I don’t like saying things like this, and I usually don’t, but if you don’t understand the importance of the catcher, you don’t understand baseball that well. It’s isn’t just catching the ball, and blocking balls in the dirt. They can get their pitchers more strikes by how they frame the pitch.
A Catcher needs to be both a position player, fielding his position defensively, but also be part of the pitching staff. He has to know how 13 or more pitchers like to work the hitters. Sure, when a catcher call for a pitch that the pitcher doesn’t like, the pitcher can shake him off. But a pitcher constantly shaking off is a pitching game doomed for failure.
Ask yourself why so many managers come from the catching position. More former catchers are managers than from any other position.. It’s the only position that looks out on to the field and at every other position. Because of that they are a resource for the defensive coaches. They need to give the manager feedback on how well a pitcher is throwing, and if he’s starting to fade.
Why not take a 1B or DH and put him at catcher? Then you would have a catcher that hits. Most teams do not have bad catchers. Between a good catcher that doesn’t hit well and a bad catcher that does, most teams go with the good defender. Would you put a poor defender at SS just because he can hit? No, and that goes double for catcher.
And that’s not to mention trying to shut down the running game. There are so many more aspects to catcher, than any other position, by far.
I understand the importance of catcher. It’s the hyperbolic claim that it is clearly the most important position on the field that I take issue with. Sure, you can’t plug another position player in there the way you can at first or left or second, it’s a highly specialized skill, but beyond that is it the most important position? I wouldn’t say so. You can win with a below average fielding catcher. You are confusing specialized it’s important.
Last sentence should read “you are confusing specializatION WITH importance” …frikkin autocorrect
It’s like, for example a bar: say you have 3 employees. A bartender, a bouncer and a AC repair guy. Which is the most highly specialized employee? The AC repair guy. No one else can do that job. But is he the most important? Certainly not. His job is the most complex, the most intricate, but you CAN run a successful bar with a meh AC repair guy. Specialized does not equal important. Complicated does not equal important. And again, you CAN win with a poor fielding catcher. If you say otherwise I’m going to ask to see the research you’ve done to come to such a rigid hypothesis.
Nothing is absolute. The nature of baseball allows success with a light-hitting team, or less than the best pitching staff. One absolute truth though is that baseball is about playing the odds, even though you might fail with a 90% chance of success.
So, yes, you can win with a below average catcher, but your chances are much better with a good one. You need a lot of other things to happen to succeed with a bad catcher. And if you’re a team like the Yankees, who apparently aren’t happy with Sanchez behind the plate, that is the position where you try to improve the team.
Clearly, not all positions are equal in importance, so if catcher is not the most important fielding position then what is? SS is the only one that comes close, and that position does not nearly have the range of responsibility that a catcher does. Calling pitches and handling the staff alone makes catcher more important.
So I want to know, in your opinion, not counting pitchers, what is the most important position on the field?
I think you’re off the mark with the specialization angle. It’s only partly specialization, but it includes the range of responsibilities of which the catcher has the greatest.
And I’m sorry, but that is not a good analogy. The AC guy is not a member of the team. He is only there when needed. If you’ve hired a full-time AC repair guy, then your business is in deep trouble. You could replace the unit with a new one with much less than the guy’s yearly salary.
A more appropriate analogy would be if your 3 employees, were a bartender, a bouncer, and your assistant manager. The assistant manager runs the place when you’re gone. and does everything that you can’t. He’ll fill in for the bartender when he’s on a break, or call the cops if the bouncer needs help. Clearly, the assistant manager is the most important employee, the one with the greatest range of responsibilities.
And to put this in the proper context, the most important person is really not an employee. It’s you, the owner/manager, and catcher is the one that manages the game.
You’re picking apart the analogy too much, but as per your previous post, I don’t think we actually disagree all that much, it’s just a matter of wording. I don’t think any position is most important as a team can win with a singular weakness anywhere, including catcher. At this point we’d be debating the definition of “important” in regards baseball positions which seems like nitpicking. You seem to be saying catcher is most important cuz it has the most to do. By that definition I don’t disagree. My issue was with the original notion that a team can’t win with a weakness at catcher. I believe a team can win that way, just as a team can win with a poor fielding SS (cough, cough Derek Jeter). I think our only disagreement here is semantics.
I’m picking apart the analogy, because It was a bad analogy .
I agree that a team can win with a weakness at any position, Like I said earlier, nothing is absolute. But I don’t think it’s a coincidence that the Giants won 3 WS titles with Posey behind the dish. And those were teams that nobody picked to win it all.
I also think you underestimate how valuable FOs consider the position of catcher. JT Realmuto has a career OPS+ of 111. That ties him with current players Adam Eaton, and Wil Myers. Daniel Murphy has a 113 for his career So why are the estimates for his coming contract so high? It’s because he’s a rarity, a highly regarded defensive catcher who can hit.
Also, I saw a story about Ned Yost, a former catcher and long time manager. He told a story about when he was backing up Ted Simmons. He said this:
“He sat down and made me write out every cutoff and relay play that I could think of, starting with nobody on, base hit to left field. Not only what do I do, but where every player goes. When I was done, I had a book 2 inches thick. Catchers stay in-tune to all that stuff, and we’re basically helping the manager manage the game from the field.”
I know you do know baseball. I’ve seen your posts and agree often. I agree with some in this thread. But I think you seriously undervalue the catching position. Not that you’re alone. I’m sure many would agree with you, and not me. But I think a lot of people just do not understand how important the catching position is.
I agree with what you are saying. I think catching is underrated. It’s just that the conversation got off on a particular note with which I disagreed and I may have overstated my opinion on the subject and given the impression that I don’t value catcher defense. I do, I was only disagreeing with what I thought was a point of view that was stated a bit too extremely. I also tend to separate catcher defense (throwing, blocking) from handling pitchers, which I think is a very underrated aspect of the game but also rare are the catchers who particularly excel at that. But I see your points. (Re-reading, I definitely overstated my point and was a bit more snarky than I should have been, but I still maintain that it is possible to win with a bad catcher, beyond that I agree with you completely).
Well, I didn’t take your comments as being especially snarky. And maybe I overstated my case since there’s nothing I disagree with more, than primarily valuing catchers by their hitting numbers.
Not sure I made it clear, but I totally agree that it is possible to win with a bad catcher. In fact you can win with a bad anything as long as the team is strong enough in other areas to compensate. But, my theory is, if you want to build a team to take the WS title a really good catcher is good a place to start.
Sanchez is 28, not much youth on his side. His problem is pass balls and framing.. What P wants to throw to a C who can’t catch. Not Cole.
Gary “One Foot in the Grave” Sanchez, yunno, because he’s so old.
The Yankees need to do just a few things and I think they will be right there. First sign Trevor Bauer, then Trey Gary Sanchez then sign JT and finally re-sign Tanaka and Dj
Lol, yeah they’re gonna blow past the CBT by like 40 million with those moves
Bauer — 20-22
JT — 20
Tanaka — 13
DJ — 16
They’re 30 under the CBT and still have arb raises.
MetsKnicks49ers:
All your projected numbers are low except Tanaka’s. Bauer will be closer to 30, JT closer to 25, and DJ closer to 20.
Yea I love these genius plans fans come up with after like 2 seconds of thought: hey, here’s the plan, just spend a gazillion dollars and sign everyone and trade the player we don’t want for something valuable from someone else. Perfect! Derp.
Although in fairness there’s really no reason the Yankees can’t spend on all these guys of they want to. I don’t believe any of these billionaire owners when they cry poor much less the Yankees
But expecting an owner of any business to run it at a loss while dipping into their own pockets to beautify it is irrational and I’m not sure why so many fans can’t to see that. Payroll comes from revenue, not the owners pocket. Also spending a gazillion on payroll is a good way to get stuck in the cellar. Individual free agents don’t help as much as most think and fail more often than folks think. Then you’ve a maxed out payroll with no room to maneuver. This isn’t Nintendo, it’s real life where intelligent planning (see the Tampa Bay Rays) often wins out over wanton spending (see the Padres circa 2014).
@ Cosmo – Please DON’T write sensible comments, they’ll come for you with a straitjacket. Telling you it’s a tailored suit.
Couldn’t agree more about financial stability and viability. If you’ve seen what has happened to various EFL clubs – well, it’s a train wreck. My team – the mighty Coventry City (Roy Wegerle and Cobi Jones played for us in the 1990’s) – my team nearly went under with a debt three times that of it’s annual turnover. The result has been 20 years of pain as a fan (effectively we were relegated from MLB to single A in baseball terms, and only now are we back to AAA), and similar things happened to bigger names – Manchester City, Leeds Utd, Wolverhampton Wanderers.
You could make an argument for the A’s along similar lines from the late 80’s overspending to today but I’m not sure the financials under two or three ownership groups would necessarily support that.
I agree that a better product will produce more people wanting to watch and thus more revenue. I’m not sure we all want an A’s/Rays modus operandi but you don’t always solve a problem by throwing money at it.
Ask the Angels fan-base…
What did George Bush Snr say (about “big” government) “a giant alimentary canal at one end and a lack of responsibility at the other?” Oh and “no new taxes” but we’ll ignore that bit because it deflates my argument…
But that’s a baseball (or for matter any) fan-base. Very very demanding.
Except I’m not suggesting running it at a loss. This year possibly because of covid, but taking that as anomaly… All I’m saying is the revenue the Yankees make is ridiculous and the owners have an unbelievable amount of money that it seems like things such as the luxury tax or a few extra free agents is essentially nothing to them. The few million dollars in tax for going above even as a repeat offender is basically pennies to these guys.
Baseballallday:
You do know of course that since 1997, the Yankees have paid almost $358M in competitive balance tax.
They were a second time offender paying 30% last season when they were $37M over the threshold. If they exceed the threshold again that jumps up to 40% IIRC. That’s just money, but being $37M over is close to them having additional surtaxes and losing draft picks if they exceed $40M.
I don’t blame them all for wanting to dip below the threshold and reset any penalties to the lowest tier should they exceed the threshold in 2022. In fact that would be the smart thing to do.
Really thinking outside the box here.
Bauer has issues with Cole since college days. He’s using the Yankees to raise the price on him and may just go to the Mets to spit Cole. No, Cubs are the team the .yankees should speak to, Maybe Yu and the LF. That’s a P and Lefthanded hitter.
Darvish will cost a small fortune with his performance of late and relatively small salary for a pitcher of his caliber. If the Yankees are looking to give up say, Frazier, Garcia, and Jasson Dominguez, maybe then they have a shot at a Darvish/Schwarber package, particularly with how much Epstein has historically overvalued Schwarber. But beyond that sort of extreme overpay I don’t see that deal happening.
I don’t think Bauer will be using the Yankees to raise the price. I don’t think Cashman will bite, not so soon after Cole (in addition to the fact that the Yankee FO is on record saying they “would not do that (acquire Bauer) to Cole.” Cashman does not have a 9-figure deal in him this year.
Wasn’t that an anonymous source though?
Look, I don’t see us signing Bauer (unfortunately). That’s a financial decision, however. Not something based on some dubious rather overblown media trip.
Also Cole was Hal’s call. Not Cashman’s.
When Hicks gets hurt, who plays CF if they don’t bring back Gardner? Everybody seems to crap on the guy, but he has been solid for the Yankees and wouldn’t mind seeing him back at a reduced price to fill in when some combination of Stanton, judge and hicks are hurt.
I don’t see them signing Bauer as I think the price will be high. They need probably 2 pitchers. Wouldn’t mind if they can bring Tanaka back on a 2 or 3 year deal at a reasonable rate and even Paxton on a 1 year prove it deal.
Would hope they would resign DJ as they need some people who can do something other than hit a HR or strike out. Not sure where he fits unless they can trade urshella and sign a SS. Voit isn’t going anywhere (nor should he) and Torres has shown he’s better at 2nd and would probably do fine at third.
“When Hicks gets hurt, who plays CF if they don’t bring back Gardner?”
Mike Tauchman,
Or…Joc Pederson.
I know it’s probably not popular but the Yanks may be better served spreading the money around.
This is a good market for that.
I love DJ. Great ballplayer, man. But, Wong + Pederson + Galvis is >> DJ + Gardy + Wade.
& DJ is going to cost (by the estimate here) what all 3 of those other free agents will *combined*. That’s just one example.
The only thing I ever want to see from a Yankee off-season is that they bring back a stronger club. There are a lot of ways to do that. Some include bringing back LeMahieu but it’s certainly not a requirement, or whatever.
The problem with the Yankees has been the same problem for the last decade. They live and die by the long ball. It’s why they get killed in the playoffs. They run into good pitching and the bats go quiet. I’m honestly not that familiar with Joc Pederaon. I know who he is, but beyond that don’t know much more. I’m assuming stanton will be the primary DH, but he has been injured most recently swinging the bat and running the bases and judge hasn’t been much better in terms of staying healthy.
Not against the idea of tauchman being the backup to hicks after reading a little bit about his fielding ability and his offense seems to be roughly a wash with Gardner. I’d still like to see LeMahieu back, but understand he get better offers, but who knows what offers will be out there
I think 2019 Tauchman was an aberration. He was the only player *without* a single home run on the Yanks.
Ouch.
His defense wasn’t as good. By either metrics or the eye test. I read somewhere how he lost some foot speed. I hope the Yankees are not counting on him.
I think it’s midnight & his pumpkin arrived to escort him home from the ball.
2020 is a very small sample size for Tauchman. We don’t really know who he is yet, but he’s younger and cheaper than Gardner, while solid defensively at all 3 OF positions. I would think a backup OF would be obtainable if he doesn’t pan out in 2021. Easy place to save some money.
I love Popeye. Asa RS fan i know it sounds crazy, but i enjoy players who play hard, and he does 110% of the time. They should bring him back, and DJ, also, everyone else i have no idea.
They overpaid for Zack Britton. Could’ve gotten the same setup for less. The only thing wrong with the Yankees infield is DJ getting more money unfortunately he deserves. It’s staggering to lose him but the fact he can play three infield positions and still hit lead off that alone commands big bucks. Too bad he can’t play shortstop. Or can he? Shift Torres to 2nd and DJ to SS problem solved.
Britton is the best closer you have.
Agreed pasha. Britton > Chapman
As much as I love DJ, I think the fact he is going to be 33 next year is enough to pump the brakes on a long term deal. If there is a way to get Lindor, I tthink having Lindor/Torres up the middle is better long term than Torres/LeMahieu.
I don’t think many would disagree, but Lindor can’t be considered an actual long term piece.
Wow….deep!
You’re on fire today, champ!
$10 million buyout?! Jesus!
You gotta hand it to Stanton and his agent, I am sure the Yankees have people following Stanton every day just to find a technicality or dig up dirt on him to get out of the deal like they did with Ellsbury towards the end and A-Rod.
Prsr they didn’t get out of the A-Rod deal
They got him suspended for a year and a half in the middle of his deal then paid him to go away a year early.
A-Rod was a great player for the Yanks winning 2 MVPs, how many other players do that. His problem was he wasn’t liked by the fans. According to Baseball Reference he is the best modern day SS and 3rd basemen of all time. The reason the Yanks only one 1 world series is easy, it was the pitching in that time period. In the late 90’s they were loaded with pitching, some HOF pitchers and some borderline.
Both Arod deals are examples of long term contracts that worked out.
The same disdain that Yankee fans treat Stanton with is identical to the treatment Rodriguez was accorded. In the end, this is probably nothing more than envy.
Guys like that have way more talent & money, they have bigger houses, hotter girlfriends, & faster cars lol. There is a lot of jealously in this world, man.
The DJL situation is one where if he was good for 2 years he could’ve been good for 4 years at a happy middle ground price, but I agree giving him 3-4 more seasons at $16-24M a season is…. so so risky.
Here’s to the alternate reality where DJL signed with the Yankees in the 2018 off season for 4 years/$60M and we’re not having this discussion and he’s getting paid very fairly and when that contract started to run out he’d be in a decline that would make a much cheaper contract somewhere else a no brainer…
Uh, reality is that Yankees may not care about the CBT because there are impending changes to the structure, at minimum, and if MLB is truly equitable, they will remove it altogether.
Nonetheless, if the Yankees feel that picking up DJ, Tanaka, and JT in FA will secure a WS it’s exactly what they will do. The mistake many people make is to think the Yankees are limited in their spending. It’s a preference for them as they have demonstrated in the past.
They are not giving up Sanchez for a nobody prospect, and they are not non-tendering him, imo. Sanchez still has tremendous upside, so it depends on how confident a team is that they can leverage his talent (like the Rays tend to do)
The Yankees are not as smart as the Rays. They simply have more money.
Good point!
I guess us Yankee fans will have to be content with not having seen a losing team for over a generation & making the playoffs year in & year out.
How ever shall we manage?
😉
Love it Ducky, keep ‘em rolling, my friend.
Saw your post above and it’s a great point too. As you’ve said before, the best move for the Yanks may be neither returning DJL or signing JT, while most people (myself included) have incorrectly looked at this as an either or proposition, it may very well be something in line with your proposal.
Thanks, @clipper.
Don’t get me wrong. If the Yankees off-season plan is to re-sign DJ, & land JTR I certainly wouldn’t have any problems with that.
Ya know?
Since 2016 & we started seeing this group come together, all I’ve ever wanted to see is the Yanks bring back at least an arguably improved team than the previous version. Yanks are a *good* team, man.
So I understand that that’s not always easy to accomplish.
When I was 10 I was devastated when the Yankees traded Mickey Rivers. My first real position in little league was CF. Loved Rivers. Even leaned that baton twirl with a bat lol.
But I’ve seen a lot of good players come & go from the Yanks over the years. So I don’t get over invested in any one player anymore. Hell, Didi & Dellin were two of my favorites & they left just last winter.
I just don’t think if DJ goes or that we don’t get a new catcher that that would automatically mean we’d be a worse team. Gotta see what the finished roster looks like.
&, typically @hubcap is a pretty good poster.
Hubcap, your comment in the context of mine makes no sense. My point was precisely that a team other than the Yankees may succeed with Sanchez where they failed, but that Cashman’s smart enough to realize that so they won’t dump Sanchez for zero…..
They also won’t get a top-tier prospect, but something in the middle isn’t out of the question.
Sign Realmuto, trade Sanchez, let LeMahieu walk. Letting LeMahieu walk is tough, but Realmuto is real deal. Secondbase easier to replace than catcher. Also, pick up minor piece in Sanchez trade.
I may be in the minority but I think getting a trusted catcher (think Posada-like) and is going to be key for the Yanks to advance in ‘21. I don’t think Sanchez is quite the disaster everyone illustrates, at least that’s not what the stats reflect when viewed comprehensively, but he has certainly lost the trust of his teammates (specifically Cole) and apparently the FO.
There are other catchers that they can acquire outside of JTR, I just hope they consider defense/game-calling/pitch framing over offense, of which they have plenty.
Posada had a very crescendoing career. He wasn’t a JT Reamulto or a Gary Sanchez. He wasn’t a massive power hitter or a black hole at the plate but he was a phenomenal framer and very good defensive catcher. They’re not looking at any of that in the next guy they have start at catcher for them.
Posada was a poor defensive catcher and more than a few pitcher preferred throwing to his backups. Worse defensively than Sanchez in some respects. I watched his whole career and was a big fan. He made it up for it with consistently strong offense. Being a a bit of a late bloomer cost him a possible HOF nom, but for a good stretch his offense was elite for a catcher.
Just check out the catchers the Rays and Dodgers had in the series!
How is this for a trade scenario,
Amed Rosario for Gary Sanchez? Mets are pretty deperate for catcher and yankees could use a shortstop and put torres back to 2b. I think salaries are roughly the same too.
Hm, I don’t see the Mets doing that but it’s an interesting proposal.
If the Mets are desperate for a catcher, why would they trade for a guy who’s best spot is DH at AAA? Sanchez’s star has faded vastly, and, perhaps, irreparably.. The Mets would be way better off looking to acquire JTR.. & passing on the Gary Sanchez mirage..
In Cashman we trust. The Yankees will come out of this offseason competing in the ALEast for the top spot. Everyone can relax.
If the Yankees hope to compete for a title next year, they will need to blow past the $210M CBT mark. If they try to reset this year, they could easily miss the playoffs. Tampa is already better and Toronto is going to add significant pieces this offseason. Boston is still another year away from being relevant again (2022) but if they get healthy seasons from their stars then Boston & NY could be fighting it out for 3rd place in the AL East.
With that said, I do see NY re-signing a few key players and exceeding the CBT for the 3rd straight year. They just won’t go past the $260M mark as that’s when the penalties really hurt the team. The Yankees have plenty of money to pay Year 3 overage taxes and with 3 or 4 smart moves this offseason (like bringing DJL back) they can compete for the division. It all comes down to how much money Steinbrenner is willing to spend and whether or not he has faith that their core is good enough to win it all. I’m sure Hal is getting frustrated by their inability to make it to the World Series with all of the high priced players they have let alone win it. It should be a very interesting offseason for NY. One things for sure: they aren’t signing Bauer, JTR & DJL and trading for Lindor like a lot of Yankees fans are asking for. That puts them well past $260M and there’s no chance of that happening.
Thing is Dorothy (and I enjoy reading your posts) there are certain teams & fan-bases that will put up with 5 years of bombing for 2 years of success. Would a KC fan give up 2014/2015 for losing early in the playoffs or the wild card game(s) for 10 straight seasons? I know I wouldn’t…
Then again there are certain teams and certain fan-bases that expect to be competitive year on year on year. The Yankees and the Red Sox are two of those, certainly the Dodgers. The Yankees and the Red Sox – speaking obviously – are in the same division. When you’re only guaranteed one play off spot per division (until 2020) there are going to be tears annually on the East Coast.
We are headed for a covid recession worldwide and in a much smaller pond that’ll affect baseball too. Those with the deepest pockets will snag the best toys in the shop (as always) but they’ll get them for a better price. So I don’t rule out the Yankees getting back DJM and paying out for Realmuto. They can (to an extent) then sort out their rotation via trades and they do have pieces.
I’m guessing none of us are expecting that many long term deals this winter – throwing the question out there – does anyone expect anything longer than a five year deal for Realmuto? Bauer might get 5 years but supposedly wants to virtually play day to day. I don’t see anyone else getting anything more than three???
Cora is not a criminal in a legal sense, if you didn’t think i caught that snide remark. I like the NYY players, but i have no use for the ones that did domestic violence.
Only free agents I attempt to retain are Tanaka and DJ. Gardner would have to settle for as close to the minimum as possible. He just doesn’t have it anymore. I’m keeping Sanchez. Short season means he could’ve recouped some value if we had a regular 162. I also go after the Korean SS. I’m not blowing up the minor system for a possible 1 year rental. Get a mid level starter on the FA market and as much as I like Andujar, he has to be on the move for SP depth. I like the young arms, especially Garcia, who you’d have to give up to get Lindor.
Trade Voit,Ottovino,Andujar
DJ to 1B
Gleyber to 2B
Lindor or Simmons to SS
Sign Tanaka
Sanchez has one last chance. Show up in shape and leave the man alone. The Yankees have screwed this kid up. He’s been overcoached on both sides of the ball.
Resign DJ
Resign Tanaka
Work a package with KC with Voit for Perez
Give Gary and Andujar (If they aren’t in the Voit/Perez deal) both a 1b glove and some DH time
Stanton/Frazier DH/LF (most likely Frazier gets the bulk of the time with Stanton injured)
Mix it up with Wade at SS/CF sometimes (Hicks inevitably will miss a big chunk of time) we can fake SS one more year with Gleyber and wait for the big class or we can grab a cheaper option this year and shift DJ over to 1b full time
Roll with the arms they have – Cole, Tanaka, Montgomery, German, Garcia, Schmidt, maybe Sevy can play a role somewhere on the staff or in the pen
It’s tough to trade the reserve players when Judge, Stanton, Hicks can all be counted on to miss significant time.
Sanchez and Andjuhar for Lynn and a paid down odor.
That would be an interesting deal. Definitely not the worst that I’ve heard. TEX gets two potential long-term pieces, Yanks fill a hole at SP, and get a potential starter at 2B if he can turn it around. Yanks would want TEX to absorb a lot of Odor’s deal in order to make this happen, though. I don’t see that happening for Sanchez and Andujar.
Judge will be traded for pitching with the Marlins. Jeter makes the Yankess an offer they can’t refuse. Yankees lower their payroll and stay competitive but Marlins win 3rd WS in franchise history.
Also, Sanchez is non-tendered.
NYY sign Realmuto and Profar and Smyly. Resign Paxton.
Stay under $210M
Can you explain your math on how the Yankees could do all of that and stay under $210M?
Yankees are ~$155MM without Gary Sanchez and Aaron Judge. So that’s $55 million to spread to the players Dave wants to add.
Assuming Profer, Smyly, and Paxton can all be had at $10MM apiece. And Realmuto at $20MM, The Yankees would remain under the cap at $205MM.
Does that account for arbitration raises (projected $30-$50M) and player benefits (usually $14-$16M)?
bradthebluefish:
According to Sportrac the Yankees also have a commitment of over $26M to players released, bought out, or traded.
As much as I love DJLM, he will be too expensive to re-sign if the Yanks plan on staying below the tax threshold. Here are the moves I would love to see them make.
– Bring back Didi (my guess is around 3/$40)
– Try to entice Yadi to leave STL.
– When they fail to entice Yadi, sign McCann.
– Trade Sanchez for Cashman’s next reclamation project. Endure fan backlash, only to be proven correct after a few months into the season.
– Sign Brad Hand
– Find someone…. anyone… that will take Ottavino’s contract off them.
– Unless Gardy is willing to take a minimal contract (~$2 mil) and accept that he’s now the 4th outfielder, let him walk. LF belongs to Frazier now.
– Sign Taijuan Walker
– Sign DeSclafani
I don’t mind most of these.
I’m not in nearly the hurry some of you fellas are to be rid of El Gary. & the aforementioned Hand went unclaimed for 10 mil. Don’t see anyone biting on Ottavino.
Ya know though, his bad numbers were really only due to his outings in Buffalo. I think the Yanks are “stuck” with him. Which may not be all that bad. I think they need to kinda protect him and pick and choose his spots.
I think he can still be effective.
Totally understand your feelings on Gary. Obviously I would love to see him return to the Gary of a couple seasons ago. I’m just not sure if he is still in there. He looked completely lost at the plate last season. And while his defense has improved, he still allows too many passed balls for my liking. To me, it’s telling when the ace of the staff prefers the backup catcher over you. If the Yanks were somehow able to pry Molina away from StL and get him to come to NY, that would be a huge upgrade overall at the catcher position, even if Molina is nowhere near the hitter that Gary can potentially be. The handling of the pitching staff alone would make that swap worth it.
I agree with Otto. I was mainly hoping to be able to find a trade partner to help alleviate some salary to allocate elsewhere on the team (assuming the Yanks are looking to stay under the tax threshold). Hopefully the Yanks won’t have to play any more games in the minor league stadium, and Otto will be better this season. We shall see.
It will be interesting to see what Hand signs for. Obviously no team wanted him at 1/10, so I’m hoping the Yanks can take advantage of that and get him around 1/4 or so. Would be a steal for a pitcher with the potential that Hand has showed.
Yankees have the largest MLB television network. They should be spending and spending bigly. No exceptions.
Yes, on a normal year they make the most about 700 million,
This Outlook paint a rather bleak picture. I’d like to think Yanks are not going to be as concerned about going over the $210M as this article seems to believe. After 4 years of being close, I don’t believe ownership and Cashman will be content to let the team get worse by being too cheap to sign DJ and not spending to improve the pitching. Their offense is worse without Lamahieu no matter what else they do. They also can’t go to another postseason without a #2 starter they can rely on. I agree that they will likely shy away from spending on Bauer, but I think they can find a 2-starter somewhere in a trade (Andujar and prospects).. I think they could also trade Sanchez (somebody will take his power potential) and possibly Voit. A Voit trade allows them to move DJ to 1B, Gleyber to 2B, and sign a defensive SS like Didi or Simmons. Add one more bullpen piece like Brad Hand. Biggest challenge is finding a solid #2 starter (I don’t think Tanaka can be relied on for that going forward).
I don’t buy it, the Yanks have 78 million coming off the books, they could trade for Lindor and Lynn, and sign DJ and still add a catcher. If they trade Torres, Andujar, and Sanchez in thost packages along with others they might be able to land a young starter.
The “young starter” get could be part of the Lindor Deal in a similar fashion to the Red Sox capitulation of their payroll structure/team chances with the Mookie Betts trade.. It might be directly with the Indians or a third team.. The deal could be structured around Lindor coming to the yankees while Sanchez, Andujar, an OF’er and a prospect or two (not named Jasson) go out the door..
Yanks aren’t trading with the Sox!
I think the Yankees need a Defensive minded catcher. Someone the pitchers trust and want to throw to and someone who doesn’t allow passed balls and makes all the plays he is supposed to. The Yankees have a robust lineup so they can live with someone that doesn’t have great offensive stats. Mike Zunino would be an example of that. The pitchers relationship with the catcher is one of the most important and underrated aspects of the game. Game calling is huge and that’s something that isn’t talked about or measured by statistics often.
@Mr twotone
Agree with you 99%. Game calling is massive, and we all know why catchers make great managers.
The reason I think I think the Yankees should be throwing the house, the garage, the garden and the prized chlamydia bushes at Realmuto is that I think he is too good to miss. You get five years of Realmuton, you’ve got four years to sort your rotation & bullpen and win a title.
It was the Zunino bit I disagree on, but your point is more than valid….
I gotta disagree with Realmuto. Every team, even the Yankees, has a budget. Realmuto would hamper spending on other areas of need. The Yankees need to get DJLM signed, are expected to resign Tanaka and will still need one more starting pitcher. They should go with a defensive minded lower cost catcher and trade Sanchez. Sanchez will never succeed in NY. Their emphasis on analytics is giving Sanchez an information overload and the constant catching coach changes have gotten to him bad enough that it’s affecting his hitting.
The Dodgers just won with Barnes and a rookie Smith!
Yankees trade Sanchez for a pine tar rag and a rosin bag. Most teams might find that price to steep. Right now Sanchez is worthless!
So I guess my hopes of them resigning DJ and trading for Lindor will not happen. It would be one or the other at best, or if at all. It wouldn’t leave enough room to upgrade the pitching if they did both. If Lindor is too costly via the trade, perhaps they could resign DJ and sign Simons for 1 year. Simmons at least plays gold glove defense and hits for contact, I think strikes out less than 70 times per year. Then next year could go after a big SS free agent (there are a bunch). By doing this they would have to trade Voit, so maybe Voit and another player for a pitcher could happen. I was kind of hoping they would look at Michael Brantley since left handed, contact, .300 hitter. With Judge, Stanton, and Hicks always hurt there would be plenty of AB’s for Brantley and Frazier.
I think a trade with the rockies is a great idea. Trevor Story for a prospect, and maybe Voit or Andujar and Wade… throw in cessa or green.
Yankees get a top shortstop that bats leadoff and it really doesnt cost them much.
I believe Urshella would be a better shortstop. If we make that move, Torres goes to second base and Andujar back to third base. I would re-sign Tanaka and concentrate on the bullpen. That means counting on Severino to be effective by mid-season or making a trade for a frontline guy near the break and count on the kids improving.
Yanks will sign a shorstop, either Lindor, Didi, or Simmons. The question is do they trade Torres or sign DJ. I think they go with Lindor or Didi and resign DJ.
slider32:
You can’t sign Lindor; he’s not a FA. The price will be high, and you’ll have him for only 1 year before he becomes a very expensive FA.
Can they afford both though? Lindor will earn about $20m this year in arbitration, and DJ will cost $17-$20m per year. So that’s adding around $40m this year to the payroll which would put them right around the $210 threshold. That leaves no room for acquiring pitching or possibly a catcher.
…which is why he won’t be traded. A year ago, Yankee threads were filled with “trade Clint Frazier for a bucket of balls”. Cashman doesn’t sell low. Frazier restored his value and is now the projected starter. There’s also a better chance Frazier is traded THIS offseason because he restored his value. Neither Sanchez nor Andujar will be traded. Both will contribute to the Yankees in 2021.
^this^
I have been saying for the past 5 year or so to let Gardner walk and let Frazier play full time and what do I hear. I’m crazy, Fraizer defense is no good. etc etc.
Anyone here will tell you what I think of Brett Garbage.
So…you were saying that *before* the Yankees even acquired him?
That’s awfully prescient.
4 years that better for you?
Or you one of those guys that wanna run Gardner out there every day?
Clint LF 20201!
Gardner in the nearest Garbage BIN! 20201
We get it Louie, you hate Brett Gardner. You hate him so much, you’d rather play another team’s Double-A LF’er. Have you ever considered the Yankees lack of success actually coincides with your hatred of Brett and not Brett himself? I know this may be asking a lot, but have you ever considered “maybe it’s me, not him”?
I rather play
M Brantley and Clint Frazier over Gardner going into 2021 and beyond.
Brantley
Judge
Fraizer
Hicks
Mike Tauchman
Unless some thing better comes along.
Stanton DH
Since Louie’s hatred of Gardner started is when the yankees stopped making it to the world series.
Louie lets assume you get brantley and you have your outfield as listed above. Here are some questions for you.
Hicks has not played a full season ever in his career, in fact he has only made it to over 100 games 2x in his 8 year career. Who is your CF when he inevitably goes down?
Judge is always out seems like 1/3 of the season
Brantley he seems to have pretty bad injury history and getting older Stanton probably seems to avg a million dollars per game with yanks
Tauschman is a cheaper version of Gardner
Frazier has never played 100 games a season (ill give you opportunity on this one but can he handle 100+ games)
that is one hell of a depth but i like players that are on the field more than they are off it. Gardener has played 90% of the games each season since 2013 and been above average player for a relative cheap cost.