Do Yanks Have Room For Damon And Giambi?
I think Johnny Damon’s comments yesterday have been overblown – he backed off a few hours after he made them. And when asked point blank if he wanted a trade, he said no. He did hint that a trade might make sense if he couldn’t play regularly, but calmed down after talking to Joe Torre.
Still, the Yankees will face a roster crunch once Jason Giambi returns to the club to act as the regular DH. Damon has lingering injuries that will keep him from starting in center field regularly. Between Giambi and Damon, that’s $34MM in 2007 salary spent on the designated hitter.
It’s not just Damon who could be traded – either player is eligible. Let’s start with Damon though. His name first came up on July 26th, with the Braves slightly interested. Damon’s contract pays him $13MM annually through 2009, so that’s an obstacle. And he’s owed another $4.4MM this year. His partial no-trade clause probably isn’t a big problem, because it sounds like he’d rather go elsewhere to play every day. The Yankees would have to eat some salary to trade Damon, probably around $8-10MM. Damon at $8MM annually through ’09 isn’t a bad risk.
The Angels were reportedly interested in Giambi back in May, though Bill Stoneman denied it. If healthy, he’d still supply the Halos a needed dose of OBP and power. The problem is that he’s still owed about $33MM from now through the 2008 season and has a full no-trade clause. The Yankees could eat half of the money, but that wouldn’t address a concession for waiving the no-trade. The other problem is that the Yankees and Angels could be battling for the wild card this year if the Mariners overtake the Halos.
Giambi would be harder than Damon to trade, and I imagine it’d be a pure salary dump. Chone Figgins was mentioned in the Angels rumor in May, but that’s a stretch and the Yanks have since acquired Wilson Betemit. Damon might net a better player in return with less salary relief. Both players would probably pass through waivers unclaimed, and I imagine the Yankees will at least go that far this month.
Prospects could be acquired, though probably in the form of a player to be named later realized after the season. Getting immediate help back seems unlikely.
Latest On Giambi
A slew of stories in today’s papers featured Jason Giambi, as reporters approached him yesterday regarding the Angels trade rumor. Giambi said, "News to me," which I find kind of hard to believe. I think it’s safe to say that someone in his camp told him about yesterday morning’s New York Post article from George King.
Giambi’s broken quotes seemed to indicate that he never asked for a trade, and that he has no desire to go to L.A. As you know, he has the right to veto any trade. An Angels spokesman denied interest, but what else is he going to say? Bill Stoneman did the same, and publicly passed on Troy Percival as well.
The MLB Players Association and Commissioner’s Office are currently trying to figure out how to interview Giambi about his recent steroid comments to USA Today. Giambi mentioned that he’s "probably tested more than anyone else," which is in part because of his amphetamine use.
This story is already getting kind of old…we need some more pristine trade rumors to surface. Give us some decent Ken Griffey Jr. rumors or something. Giambi has a no-trade clause, tons of baggage (including his age), and a nearly immovable contract. The Yankees are probably stuck with him.
Angels Interested In Jason Giambi
I definitely did not see this one coming. According to George King of the New York Post, the Angels are interested in trading for 36 year-old Yankees slugger Jason Giambi.
The interest surfaced prior to Giambi’s public semi-admission of steroid use and subsequent MLB investigation. The Angels will wait it out to see whether the Yanks are able to void his contract. As Peter Abraham said yesterday, it’s not likely.
Giambi earns $21MM this year and another $21MM in 2008. He has a $22MM club option for ’09 with a $5MM buyout attached. Now, no club would exercise the option, so essentially the Yankees owe $47MM for 2007-08. Take out the money Giambi has already been paid this year, and the remaining commitment is about $41.4MM.
In theory the Yanks could eat about $15MM, and the Angels would send over some fairly valuable players in Chone Figgins and Jose Molina. However, I don’t think Arn Tellum would instruct Giambi to approve the trade with nothing in return. That full no-trade clause could be a major obstacle. Typically a player wants his option exercised to waive his no-trade rights, and Giambi’s ’09 option is crazy. Yes, Giambi would be close to home once again, but I doubt that alone would be enough.
Assuming he can stay healthy, Giambi would give the Angels a much-needed dose of OBP and power. The Halos rank tenth in the league with a .326 OBP and also tenth with a .394 SLG. Giambi is just what the doctor ordered for their offense, and they might be able to get him without surrendering any top prospects or young pitchers.
Abraham On Giambi’s Contract
Good read over at the LoHud Yankees Blog: Journal News beat writer Peter Abraham discusses why voiding Jason Giambi‘s contract is highly unlikely. Check it out.
The only point on which I might disagree is the first – that the Yankees could not find a DH to replace Giambi. I’ll grant that they won’t dig up a .970 OPS guy, but we don’t know if the 36 year-old Giambi can still play at that level. Jack Cust has shown us that high OBP minor league lifers who can’t play defense are freely available.
Could Yanks Void Giambi’s Contract?
When I first heard this, I figured it was just idle talk. It seemed highly unlikely to me that Jason Giambi‘s recent comments – mainly "I was wrong for doing that stuff" – could get his contract voided. But with MLB now investigating, it’s starting to become a possibility.
Brian Cashman is still interested in getting out from under the contract. The Yanks tried to void the deal before, when Giambi was coming off an uncharacteristic .721 OPS. Even with an excellent performance over the last two seasons, no one wants to pay Giambi $47MM for 2007-08 (’09 buyout included).
The Yankees did manage to void Aaron Boone‘s contract because he got hurt playing basketball, so you never know. The pickle will be that Giambi’s contract doesn’t have language specifically referring to steroid use.
Truly odd would be to see the Yankees void Giambi’s contract, only to turn around and trade for Todd Helton. I suppose if reduced to $60MM over five years, Helton’s contract looks slightly better than Giambi’s.