Yankees Starting Pitching Looking Ugly
I understand that the Chien-Ming Wang injury was just bad luck, and that the Yankees are being careful with him. Still, can you believe a $190MM team has a rotation including Carl Pavano, Darrell Rasner, and Kei Igawa right now? The Yankees’ starting pitching has been atrocious. I don’t mean to overreact after a week but one can certainly picture below-average contributions from Pavano and Igawa all year. Even the Yanks can’t give away two games out of every five.
Maybe Igawa gets acclimated, posts a 4.50 ERA over the balance of the season. But you have to admit that paying $46MM over five seasons to get him was very questionable from the start. People spent the winter talking about the "New Yankees," who didn’t just throw money at mediocre players to solve their problems. They did just that with Igawa, and it was clearly a reaction to the Matsuzaka signing. Why not spend that same money to bring Ted Lilly back? At least with that move there would’ve been relatively certainty that you’d get 180 innings of 4.50 ball, since Lilly has done it before in the AL East.
As Joel Sherman writes, the Yankees may need to be rescued by Roger Clemens and Phil Hughes. The team needs to call up Hughes sooner rather than later. A front four of Mussina, Pettitte, Wang, and Hughes can certainly carry the team to the playoffs. Filtering between Igawa and Pavano for the fifth man and skipping his turn when possible would probably be sufficient. While Hughes would help, it’s Clemens who would really tip the balance of power towards the Yankees. They’ll still have to convince him to leave a comfy situation in Houston.
Project A13
Normally I wouldn’t link to something like this, but it doesn’t appear that this site is designed to make money.
There’s a movement to commit to unconditional support of Alex Rodriguez this year, with the interest of the Yankees in mind. It’s called Project A13. It makes sense to me – booing certainly has not been shown to motivate A-Rod. Cheering him no matter what can only help.
Of course, you can’t really convince all Yankees fans to adhere to it.
Carlos Zambrano a Met In ’08?
Ah, Big Z, always good for a quote. SI.com’s John Donovan got Carlos Zambrano talking yesterday and has an interesting column up.
Donovan describes a fan yelling "See you next year with the Yankees" to Zambrano, to which he pointed and smiled. Later asked about the Yankees, Zambrano said he didn’t see it because they have "too many rules." He seems to want to remain in the NL because of his love for hitting, and mentioned the Mets. Of course, for the right price, I’m sure the Yankees could lure him to the AL. Maybe they’d let him pinch-hit once in a while. Also, Paul Sullivan’s source said Zambrano wouldn’t mind playing for Ozzie Guillen and the White Sox after this year.
Zambrano’s next pact could approach a $16MM AAV. Donovan seems to believe he’d exceed seven years on the open market, though the Cubs and Zambrano are set at five seasons. It’s unclear whether those five seasons would include 2007.
Donovan writes that the Cubs and Zambrano are making progress on a deal for five years worth around $75-78MM. And last Sunday, BP’s John Perrotto said to look for Z to sign a deal in the $80-90MM range this week.
I think the Cubs will retain their ace; they’ve got about six days left to hammer it out. Jay Mariotti feels that a lack of a Zambrano contract would be a counterproductive distraction, yet that Zambrano would win a Cy Young. I see.
A-Rod And The Giants
Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News combines some inside information with informed speculation to conclude that the Giants will be major players for Alex Rodriguez should he opt out of his contract following this season.
The reasoning, summed up:
- With Bonds, Feliz, and Benitez off the books, the Giants will have money to burn.
- A-Rod would be every bit as big of a draw as Bonds, without the negative connotations. And the next two career home run kings could both be Giants.
- The Giants don’t have a problem dealing with Scott Boras; in fact, they just dealt with him for Barry Zito. And that Zito contract was nearly as crazy as Rodriguez’s will be.
- The Giants inquired as to A-Rod’s availability last winter.
That would be a ton of money tied up with two players, but it would help change the face of San Francisco baseball. I think the Angels will make a huge offer to A-Rod as well.
Yankees Won’t Renegotiate With A-Rod
In case you missed Jon Heyman’s scoop yesterday: Brian Cashman won’t renegotiate Alex Rodriguez‘s contract after this season. I imagine he went public with it in attempt to put the onus back on A-Rod when he leaves after the season. For once, Rodriguez is not biting and won’t discuss it further with the media. Heyman reiterates that Rodriguez will not consent to a trade if the Yankees are in contention. Other notes from the column:
- Out of all the relievers on the market, Jorge Julio seems the most likely to be dealt.
- Heyman thinks John Smoltz is done with team-friendly contracts and will leave the Braves after 2007. Could the Red Sox replace Curt Schilling with him?
- Devil Rays "second baseman" Jorge Cantu is on the block. I think he has been for some time. I believe there is a federal law mandating mention of his 117 RBI season in any Cantu trade rumor. Ooh boy, look at all those ribbies! Perhaps the Rays would shift Akinori Iwamura or B.J. Upton to second base. In any case, I don’t think Cantu is part of the long-term plan.
A-Rod To Angels Trade Possible?
The Los Angeles Times speculated yesterday that the Angels could be a frontrunner for Alex Rodriguez, obstensibly in the upcoming offseason. Bill Shaikin speculated that such an acquisition would make Orlando Cabrera the odd man out.
On the heels of that story comes an intriguing trade rumor from Halos Heaven. Yes, it is a blog, but I have known the author for some time and can vouch for the authenticity of his sources. He says Bill Stoneman and Brian Cashman have a tentative plan in place where the Angels could trade Dustin Moseley, Jose Molina, and Jered Weaver for Alex Rodriguez.
Instead of typical sixth starter Hector Carrasco, the Angels plan to use 25 year-old starter Moseley to fill in for Weaver as he misses one start in April. It could be Moseley’s audition for a future trade. He and Molina would be the complimentary pieces, with Boras client Weaver the centerpiece.
I think Yankee fans would be satisfied with such a deal, should Weaver pass his physical. So far this appears to be just the framework of a trade; big-time success by A-Rod or serious health issues for Weaver could get in the way. And, of course, Rodriguez has veto power. I imagine the Halos would try to hammer out a long-term deal with Rodriguez to make him the next great Angel for a long time.
A-Rod Mania
Alex Rodriguez, New York’s favorite villain, has again inspired a slew of articles. As always, MLBTradeRumors reads them all so you don’t have to.
Joel Sherman of the New York Post plays the greed angle, as if most baseball players, and people in general, shouldn’t want to maximize their earnings. Sherman thinks Rodriguez is destined to play for the Angels or White Sox, wanting to stay in the AL. Never say never, but the day Kenny Williams negotiates an eight-year deal with Scott Boras…well, let’s just say it’s a long shot. But Sherman lays out a scenario I also expect: Boras asks the Yankees to extend his contract, they refuse, and that is the justification for the third baseman’s departure.
Sherman contributed to a separate article that suggests Rodriguez tampered by learning about the five or six interested teams from a channel other than the Yankees.
Bill Madden plays the greed angle too, complete with a cheesy picture of Rodriguez and Boras smiling. Said Madden:
"A-Rod’s problem, from the moment he signed with Seattle as the first pick in the 1993 draft, is that he has never allowed his talent to do his talking for him – as, say, Derek Jeter has."
Is that so? Jeter didn’t sign a massive ten-year, $189MM contract in 2001? Did he take a discount to stay in New York, as Madden suggests? Madden also criticizes A-Rod for craving attention.
He did an interview. He did not ask for 16 newspaper articles about it for the following two days.
Johnette Howard of Newsday is more forgiving – she says A-Rod comes off much better if you simply listen to the interview.
Sick Of A-Rod Yet?
MLBTradeRumors reads the six daily Alex Rodriguez articles so you don’t have to. He gave the standard lines in his WFAN interview yesterday: he wants to finish his career a Yankee, he wants to win another MVP and the World Series with them.
Rodriguez still said enough to fan the flames. He explained how five or six teams expressed interest in him this offseason, and attempted to put the onus on the fans and Yankee management. If they don’t make him feel wanted, then it seems he will exercise his out clause. I’d be shocked if the booing stops, so this is probably his last year with the Yankees.
According to Jon Heyman earlier this month, interested parties included the Angels, Dodgers, Cubs, Giants, Phillies, Diamondbacks, and Indians, with the White Sox and Dodgers the most persistent.
Yanks Plan On Keeping Pavano
As always, plenty of clubs need starting pitching. As long as everyone is healthy, the Yankees may have a mild surplus once Phil Hughes and/or Tyler Clippard are ready. Whether Andy Pettitte and Mike Mussina can post healthy seasons is unknown, but at this moment everyone is fine. Another open question is whether Kei Igawa can act as a credible fourth starter.
Even oft-injured Carl Pavano is feeling good; he did a decent job against the Red Sox yesterday. It has been speculated for months that the Yankees want to trade the 31 year-old, perhaps this spring.
However, Peter Abraham of the Journal News says Brian Cashman has maintained since winter that he will not trade Pavano. Abraham quotes Cashman as saying he’s not in the business of selling low. The Yanks would prefer not to pick up $10-11MM of the $21MM owed to Pavano over the next two years. If they wait and he and the rest of the Yankee staff has a healthy, effective April, perhaps trade talks will be revisited. Otherwise the Yankees might wait to see what happens with Roger Clemens.
One thing’s for sure – the Yanks won’t finish the season with a Mussina-Pettitte-Wang-Igawa-Pavano rotation.
Alex Rodriguez And The Mets
John Brattain of The Hardball Times discusses A-Rod’s contract situation at length and considers the possibility of him joining the Mets after this season. Check it out.
Another good one is Joe Sheehan’s take on some various Jon Lieber trades he thinks the Phils could make.