Subject of rumors, Gardner on DL with broken thumb
ByPeteAbe has the news. It seems Gardner broke his left thumb yesterday sliding into second, and will be in a cast for two weeks before being reevaluated. Jon Albaladejo has been called up temporarily, but the team replace him with a position player in a day or two. Ramiro Pena has been playing some CF in the minors, but I’m not sure if the team thinks he’s ready to do it in the majors.
Meanwhile, in his Sunday column, Bob Klapisch reports on a Brett Gardner rumor. According to Klapisch, the Mariners asked for both Brett Gardner and Melky Cabrera for Jarrod Washburn. This move would have left the Yankees with another starter but neither of their center fielders. Despite his landing on the DL, Gardner could still be traded this week.
For what it’s worth, Klapsich also debunks Jon Heyman’s report concerning Joba Chamberlain and Roy Halladay. The Yanks, he says, are committed to Chamberlain and see him as a long-term solution to their number three starter spot.
Oh c’mon!
damnn
too soon for A-Jax?
I think so, but that’s just me.
It’d start the clock on him (not that that matters much to the Yanks) and there is the potential that he takes a few steps back rather than forward. Not to mention our next 4 series are: TB, CWS, TOR, BOS. Talk about getting thrown in the fire.
It could be a big boost of confidence if he plays well, but it’s more likely that he won’t unfortunately.
hope not.. I mean I love me some Shelley as much as the next guy.. but seeing AJAX would be GREATT
Seeing Jackson strike out every other at bat would not be great. He still needs time.
Yes, but seeing him hit every other time would be worth the k’s
nah, he’ll come up and go 4-4 in his first game and if he doesnt BUST
I wonder if Gardner was amidst any trade rumors. Would a trade even be allowed to go through if Cash told the team up front he’d have to go on the DL immediately? Interesting stuff.
I guess that Washburn rumor is debunked.
unless you’re getting a ML CF (not wells) in packge in return, its detrimental to the team to trade Gardner.
I was thinking more along the lines of two separate trades, but yes, trading Gardner and/or Melky for pitching hurts the team.
If Cash were going to do that, I’m pretty confident he wouldn’t do it blindly just to get Washburn and he’d be working the phones finding an adequate replacement/upgrade.
couldn’t he still PR?
(kidding.. sort of?)
Didn’t he break his thumb running???
HAHA
Is Albaladejo really temporary? What are the chances that they call him up, then when they know what position player to call up they send Melancon back down?
They’ll send Melancon down soon enough. Marte’s nearly ready to be activated.
Doesnt Melancon need to atleast be given a shot? Send robertson down
He does, but that does not mean he will get it. Not this year at least.
It’s been over 2 weeks since Melancon last pitched. Whenever he does pitch he’s probably going to get hit hard, if he can find the strike zone. He’s clearly the last resort guy right now. Might as well send him down to get regular work.
Good point. Forgot about that being factored into the equation.
I don’t want them to bring up Jackson, but what other options do they have unless they can pick up an adequate CF in a trade? And who would even be a possibility?
My sentiments exactly, we can’t let Melk think he has the job all to himself and watch him bat .190 the rest of the way…It may however be way too wishful of thinking that Jackson will exhibit ANY plate discipline whatsoever
well isnt Melky hitting something like .227 since April anyway?
I don’t know what your getting at?
my point was that Gardner was here and melky was slumping anyways
Since he’s hitting .281 in July, I’m gonna say probably not. His only really bad month was his .227 in June. He was great in April and OK in May and June.
well i was going by these updates by PeteAb
7/21 “MELKYMAN MISSES HIS DELIVERY: Meky Cabrera is at .230/.308/.365 since June 1 and is 2 of 13 since the break.”
7/22 “GARDNER RETURNS: Melky Cabrera (29 of his last 130, 2 of 17 since the break”
7/23 “MELKY’S MISSING: Melky Cabrera is 2 for 20 since the break and 29 of 130 (.223) since June 1 with a .299 OBP and 15 RBI.”
7/20 “Melky Cabrera’s first 128 at-bats: .328/.374/.492
Melky Cabrera’s last 128 at-bats: .234/.310/.367″
Pete can present the stats how ever he wants. Bottom line, Melk’s had one bad month.
http://www.baseball-reference......09&t=b
ok true. but the original comment about melky getting lazy and hitting .190 because he has the full time job isnt right. him and brett split time and he still fell into a slump, so if the competition isnt there then melky gets lazy argument doesnt work
Melky: 281/350/404 in July.
Swisher: 218/338/273 in July (which is actually better than his month of May).
Plus, it removes Melky as the late-game defensive replacement for Damon, which weakens them some more. And what if Melky gets hurt? They have to find SOMEONE who can play some center.
Oh right, I forgot Melky is a lazy unmotivated Dominican. Get real.
I don’t see what’s wrong with bringing up Ajax for 2 weeks or so. Worst case, he’s overmatched and has to go work harder in AAA. Best case, he kills it and goes back to AAA feeling like a million bucks. With JD out in left and Melky his only real sub, we need a center fielder until gritster is back.
how many games has pena played in center? by my count it is only 4. if that is the case maybe if melky can play for a week with 10-12 games under his belt maybe pena can grab 1 or 2 the following week and if he can do that will they just DFA ransom and have pena be the utility guy?
I don’t see how at this point Pena makes sense. The only reason he’d play is for a defensive sub or if the Melkster gets hurt. We need a real OFer, probably a centerfielder. Bringing up a guy that’s played a couple innings in the majors of outfield defense doesn’t do anything for us IMO.
its only replacing Gardner for 2 weeks not Ken Griffey in his prime.
You’re ready to throw Pena out there for JD in a major league park late in games? If not, what’s the point in bringing him up right now?
actually what i said was give him another week of games only in CF in AAA and see if they think he can cover for a game or two the 2nd week gardner is out. if he can they can dump ransom cause pena will cover 3b, ss and maybe cf in a pinch.
Okay, so who’s our back up for Melky/JD while Pena takes CF starts from Ajax? Swisher?
And it’s not just two weeks. We don’t know how long it will be until they know how the thumb will heal. He’s a lefty and he broke his LEFT thumb.
I’ve never broken my thumb but I’ve torn a ligament in it, and I can assure you that thumb problems make it extremely difficult to bat. I missed almost my entire junior season with that injury. I’m fearing the worst on this one – I’m not expecting Gardner to return this year.
I doubt it will be a real long DL trip, I’m just saying the dude can’t throw with a broken thumb.
I thought I read he chipped his thumb….
Not quite as serious….
Could be wrong, I’ll look for the link.
has Pena ever played the outfield before last month?
No, the plan was to make him a “super-sub.” Kind of like a poor man’s Chone Figgins. Or something.
Exactly. I don’t trust him to play CF right now because he just hasn’t done it yet.
Agreed. We’d have a guy who doesn’t have a major league level bat in center. His advantage is he can field, but he really doesn’t have experience in center. What good would that do?
Ajax doesn’t have to set the world on fire, just be an adequate replacement for grit sandwich.. He could pinch run and be a defensive replacement no problem.
Should he be relegated to pinch running and defensive replacement duty?
Gardner is going to be out for a minimum of 2 weeks. It’s probably more like a month. IMHO, if AJax comes up, he should be starting at least 4 or 5 times a week. He needs to continue to develop. I know that it’s only a month, but he can learn a lot right now and get a chance to show his ability for a month or so.
Bring on AJAX….
Lets test this kids mettle…
Worst case he struggles for a few weeks, then goes back down and continues his development….
Look what Pena and Cervelli did….
Worth a shot right??
are we talking Showcase of A-Jax, here?
my only issue is if they call him up then they have to play him the majority of the time or he should just be down in AAA developing.
thats probably the main concern with bringing him up, he most likely wont be playing every day
i would take 5 of 7. anything less leave him in scranton.
melky isnt exactly lighting the world on fire, neither is swisher. ajax will immediately make an impact defensively and could hit well if he continues his opposite field approach in the stadium. i could see jackson playing 5 out of 7 if swisher continues to slump and ajax performs well in his first game. maybe this is too optimistic?
IF hes playing 3 days a week, I think I’d be worth it. He’s not only going to gain experience at the major league level by playing the field and batting, ya know?
He can slide into the Gardner slot. That is, get some games in center, either instead of Melky or with Melky spelling Swisher or Damon.
And Jackson has played the corners often in SWB this year, so that helps.
yes, it is definately worth a shot. he’s a confident kid and takes things in stride. loook how many times the twins sent down torii hunter. alot of players dont succeed in their first time in the majors, it doesnt necessarily mean the experience of that failure ruins their career. give ajax a shot.
I love gardner, but this injury is a blessing in disguise. the austin jackson era of yankees baseball has hopefully just been ushered in
If that happened, I’d give it a week before people are complaining about how Austin Jackson isn’t back in the minors.
that could happen, i just have a very positive outlook on austin jackson
A week? First game, I’d bet on that. K with 2 on one out in the 2nd. Then K with bases loaded in the 7th when we’re down 2. AJAX SUCKS!! DFA THIS BUM!!
I think he’ll experience the Cody Ransom effect. He’ll have a good first game, then he will struggle. People will go from being in love with him on the first day and then want to run him out of town.
as much as we bag on ransom now he had much more than just a good first game last year.
IETC
Igawa and $ for Waldimir Balentien. Send down Roberson to make room for Balentien.
When Marte’s ready, send down Alby.
Gardner’s ready, send down Belentien.
Why on earth would Seattle want Igawa?
Who wouldn’t want Igawa? I say we save him for the Halladay trade.
They DFA’d Waldy. If we pay half of Igawa’s salary, why wouldn’t they want him? He could fit well out there on USA’s Japanese team in a pitcher’s park. Finding a AAA starter to replace Igawa shouldn’t be too tough. Did anyone take Tomok? LOL
Doesn’t the fact that he was DFA’d mean he has no options left? Can he be sent down if he’s traded? I don’t know much about him, but if he costs nothing and can play CF for a bit and then go to AAA, I have no problems…
If he can’t be assigned to SWB, I’m not sure how I feel about him over AJax.
the only positive of doing that is to get rid of igawa, and even that isnt very good cuz AAA needs starters. plus, what kind of message would that send if we were more confident with using wladimir balentin than our own top prospect?
Balentien would be a 4th OF so A-Jax could still play everyday in AAA instead of looking foolish during a pennant race, ala Melky ‘05.
Lets see him play before we start talking about all his failures.
Forget it. Just throw Hinske in center and end the controversy.
ajax shoud at least get an opportunity before we go the wladimir balentin route. at least give ajax his dues. by the way, i love the name wladimir balentin
That’s a good point about Wladimir Balentien. I doubt the Mariners take Igawa and cash. Maybe they’ll take a reliever like Edwar Ramirez.
Gardy hit a triple after the slide; perhaps he’s a better hitter WITH a broken thumb
dont forget the two diving catches late in the game.
i don’t see why bringing jackson up would hurt…it’d basically be like when we called up gardner last year – he wasn’t ready the first time but the major league experience obviously didn’t hurt his development, despite not playing every day during his call-ups. I think it would be good for jackson to know what he’s up against before going back down to work on being ready for it the next time. Even if he comes up and hits .220 with a .255 obp, which part of me sortof expects, i’d rather bring him up. he can always be pinch-hit for and of course if you platoon him with melky (melky being better as a lefty, jackson being a righty) then you could girardi some decent production out of the two of them.
this is a great point. plus kevin long was able to teach or at least give pointers to gardy bout driving the ball instead of slapping at it. maybe long can give jackson some pointers so he knows what to work on for the major league level.
on the a-jax front i dont think anyone questions his readiness on the defensive side and the questions are with the bat.
how much does A-Jax then gain being around and working with Kevin Long everyday he is up here and learning from the veteran hitters we have here? I dont dispute that he might be over his head to an extent, but that time with Long and the Jeter’s and A-Rod’s could be very valuable to his development as well, just as long as he is playing 5 times a week and not just pinch running.
With Ankiel now likely a 4th OF, any chance we try to get him, if he’s available cheap?
they are in first place
And? He’s a 4th OF now who’s a FA after the season.
I thought about it for a minute. Then realized it can’t work because what are you going to do when Gritmeister comes back.
Keep him in the minors if you have to.
Grit is much more important to this team then 2009 rick ankiel.
Not if he performs like 2008 Ankiel, which is certainly a possibility if 100% healthy.
That plays a terrible CF and isn’t hitting this year. If he were hitting like he has the past few years, I’d love to see him in RF and Swish in LF next year. But to trade anything more than Igawa for him? No thanks.
Playing a better CF than Melky this year per UZR, and far from terrible.
so why are they going to trade him and screw their team if they have an injury? and considering he started 2 straight games over Rasmus i wouldnt call him a 4th OF
Since the Cards are obviously making a World Series push this year, Ankiel still has value as a 4th outfielder/DH for World Series/pinch hitter. That kind of guy has plenty of value for a team trying to win it all. I doubt they just trade him for nothing or almost nothing.
Exactly. The Cards just made a major deal for Holliday – why would they dump Ankiel now?
Hopefully Albaladingo doesn’t need to pitch today.
Willie Harris of the Nationals could be useful if acquired. He’s a supersub who can play all over the infield and outfield. Once Gardner returns, Harris can unseat Cody Ransom as utility player.
This sucks about Gardner, but to me Ajax seems like the one to call up. He has played all 3 outfield positions this year and has had a damn good season. If he struggles badly, then you go to j rod or shelley.
IMO, J rod or Shellman are a lateral move. We already have guys that can play the OF corners in Ransom, JD, Hinske, Swisher and Melky.
so you want to see ajax?
Absolutely, I’m not too worried about his offense for a couple/few weeks. We need a late inning defensive replacement and a speed guy to PR for us late in games.
Sadly thats mainly what Joba will be a #3 starter like Hughes.
lol. The only reason they project him as their #3 is because they have CC Sabathia, and AJ Burnett.
not a stud like Buchholz will become
Rob Thompson (with Waldman on WCBS) just said he thought the team could muddle through with Damon and Swisher occasionally playing CF, and Melky getting the bulk of the workload
Girardi is quoted in the Daily News as saying that whoever would be called up would not be getting a ton of playing time – so he felt calling up AJax would not make sense
They also aren’t sure if Pena’s ready to play OF in the majors just yet
Link:
http://www.nydailynews.com/spo.....rdner.html
After reading all that, Colin Curtis seems like the one option remaining
there’s alot of ways to look at those comments
1. they feel like they can live with melky plus occasionally swish/damon
2. cashman is calling around and doesnt want his coaches saying ‘oh shit we’re screwed’ so the other GM holds him up for more
3. they’re not going to say “damn JD has no arm” “swish is horrible in center” and “melky isnt a full time player”
I wouldn’t trade Melky and Gardner for Washburn. I would make a Halladay deal. The Yanks have a chance to win this thing this year maybe next after that they will be doing some serious retooling at short, behind the plate and getting a new closer. The window will close and it may be awhile before they contend for a championship. I wouldn’t trade Hughes but if Joba and Jackson can get it done, I think you have to seriously consider it.
Am I the only one who doesn’t want this to happen at all? We’ve got a good thing going between Melky and Gardner this season IMO. They want BOTH our CF? That’s ludicrous.
No Halladay. And no Washburn if they want both starting centerfielders…Zduriencik lives on a different planet. The Mariners are really starting to piss me off.
Does anyone bother to look at how few runs Gardner actually scores for all that “speed” and when he scores those runs?
In the last 10 games “GGBG” has started, he scored 3 runs and those were in the 1st two games of the stretch – one game he scored 2 in a 10-2 Yanks win.
He’s easily replaceable in a minor trade and quite frankly the Yanks need to find a better everday cf option than him and Melky.
Its really laughable the amount of love so many mediocre Yanks “prospects” get on this board – from Gardner, to Robertson to Melancon.
And btw, those “great” catches Gardner made (that looked harder than they should have been since it seems GGBG did not get fgood reads on those ball) had no effect on the outcome of the game since the Yanks lost.
There are only 3 options for replacing gardner:
1) In Melky we trust: Melky is the starter. Should call up Pena just for another backup outfielder. (Damon and Swisher are emergency backups, but big drop offs defensively.) I’m not crazy about this move. While Melky’s numbers look better in July, this is mainly due to his 3-4 day a couple of games ago. Pena can replace the 13th pitcher (which the yanks don’t need…Girardi has trouble getting the 12th and 11th pitchers into games, so no need for a 13th)
2) Ajax: He’s not really ready, IMO, but should be able to replace Gardner’s defense and speed. (not as fast or maybe not as good defensively, but still replace) Only worthwhile if the yanks think he can hack it offensively, and plays at least half the time.
3) External options: A big no to Wells, but there may be other options out there. Not sure what, but maybe there’s something.
bret gardner just bcame bubba crosby
Let Igawa play center!!!