Archive for Irresponsible Rumormongering
Rumor of the day: Who watches the Wanger?
Posted by: | CommentsWhen the Yankees nailed down Chien-Ming Wang’s first win of 2009, the team breathed a collective sigh of relief. The psychological benefits alone for a pitcher who, two months ago, was 0-3 with a 34.50 ERA in six innings, are immense, and the Yankees need their cost-controlled sinker ball specialist, once among the game’s best pitchers to rediscover his form.
Since returning from the disabled list in late May, Wang has looked better than he did in April. Over eight games, five starts, he has thrown 30.2 innings and is 1-3 with a 5.28 ERA. As we’re used to seeing Wang twirling over six innings a start to the tune of a sub-4.00 ERA, that’s still not quite up to par for the Taiwanese hurler, but instead of looking epically bad, it resembles a rough patch. We generally wouldn’t worry about a rough patch.
When push comes to shove this season, Wang’s final numbers won’t look pretty. His ERA stands at 10.06 through the first three months of the season. If Wang makes his final 17 starts and averages six innings per start, he will have to pitch to an ERA of 2.38 just to get his season mark to 4.50. I don’t think anyone expects that.
Yet, despite these inflated numbers, Wang is still attracting interest from other teams. Today’s rumor du jour comes to us via the Daily Dish. Per the rumors site, Jim Salisbury of The Philadelphia Inquirer noted yesterday that the Phillies have been scouting Wang. The pitching-starved defending World Champs need some arms, and as Salisbury reasons, the Yanks, with Phil Hughes waiting in the wings, could opt to trade Wang.
While it’s awfully flattering of the Phillies to look, chances are close to nil that the Yanks would trade Wang this year. First, while the Yankees have long been reluctant to give Wang a long-term deal, his value is at an all-time low. He is coming off of a bad foot injury and a three-month winless bout of ineffectiveness. His sinker isn’t quite doing what it needs to be doing, and he’s still getting his legs under him. The Yanks could probably land something decent for Wang, but nothing the Phillies would be willing right now to offer could replace Wang’s potential.
Furthermore, Wang is still a big part of the Yanks’ plans. By most accounts, this will be Andy Pettitte’s last year in pinstripes. The Yanks have the younger pieces waiting in the wings to supplant Pettitte, and to do that, they will rely on Wang to anchor the middle of the rotation. Right now, the Yanks view the 2010 rotation as featuring CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, Wang, Joba Chamberlain and Hughes. They won’t give up on Wang, cost-controlled through the end of 2011 and with a good track record, so easily.
Of course, in the end, everyone has a price. If the Phillies make the right offer, they could probably land Wang. But I wouldn’t read much into this. Ruben Amaro, the Philadelphia GM, is simply doing his due diligence on a potential acquisition, but the Yanks won’t give up on this one so easily.
Rumor of the Day: Huston Street
Posted by: | CommentsWith July on the horizon, the Yankee rumors are going to heat up. The team right now has the second best record in the AL but is facing some tough competition for that final playoff spot. Brian Cashman knows that, after a winter spending spree, expectations are high this year, and he’ll do what it takes to improve the team.
Today’s rumor comes to us from Marc Carig. The Yankees, he says, are very interested in Huston Street. Writes Carig:
A major league source, who requested anonymity because he isn’t authorized to comment on other teams, told me that the Yankees’ reported interest in Street was serious.
The source said that Yankees general manager Brian Cashman approached the Rockies about a deal as early as the middle of May, as the Yankees’ bullpen struggled. Meanwhile, the source said the Rockies had already begun combing through the Yankees’ minor league system, mining for possible trade targets.
A few weeks ago, the Yanks would have been considered the leaders in the Huston Street sweepstakes, but then the Rockies started winning. With Clint Hurdle out and Jim Tracy in, Colorado has gone 21-7 and find themselves one game out of the Wild Card. They’re not going to trade their closer until they’re out of it.
Street is an alluring target. Since a tough start in April, he’s been nearly untouchable. He has converted 17 of his last 18 save opportunities over 25.2 innings. He has 29 strike outs and a 1.40 ERA, and opponents are hitting .157/.232/.236 off of him. Talk about an 8th inning solution.
What Street would cost is another question. The Rockies sent Matt Holliday to the A’s for Street and two prospects. As sellers in a tight market, they could demand a decent package from the Yanks. For now, though, with 33 days left until the trade deadline and in a tight market, nothing’s doing.
Revving the mill: Xavier Nady, Nick Swisher
Posted by: | CommentsAs July approaches, the pace of rumors about potential trades will increase. A lot of what we hear and read is simply noise, and as we have in the past, we’re not going to reproduce every single rumor involving the Yanks. What we will do is highlight the ones from reliable sources that carry some newsworthiness. Sometimes, we’ll highlight rumors of what the Yanks don’t plan to do as well.
Today, we have one of the latter stories, this one from Buster Olney. In his Saturday blog post, Olney dropped in a “heard this” note about the Yanks’ July plans:
The Yankees are unlikely to trade Nick Swisher or Xavier Nady after Nady returns — probably in the first week of July — because of the other needs of their club, and because it’s unlikely they would get anything close to full value for Nady if they put him on the market, in light of his elbow injury. The Yankees had discussions with other teams about Nady during the offseason, after signing Mark Teixeira.
This is an interesting item because, honestly, it doesn’t make too much sense. Getting Xavier Nady will do wonders for the Yanks’ depth, but is he really that integral a piece that they need to hold onto him? I don’t think so.
When Nady returns in a week or two, the Yankees will have a very deep team. They can jettison Angel Berroa or option Ramiro Peña back to the minors. Either way, depending upon the lineup, they’ll have a decent backup catcher, Brett Gardner or Melky Cabrera, Berroa or Peña or Cody Ransom and Xavier Nady or Nick Swisher. Most teams would kill for that depth.
One of the benefits though of depth is recognizing when to use it to fill in parts. The Yankees may not, as Olney reports, be able to get “full value” for Nady, but that’s a rather amorphous concept right now. Nady is set to be a free agent at the end of the season, and if the Yankees don’t trade him now, they won’t get anything from him. They aren’t likely to offer him arbitration. In a weak economy, corner outfielders tend to suffer, and Nady would likely accept arbitration. Meanwhile, the Yankees aren’t keen on signing 31-year-old outfielders to multi-year contracts right now.
Trading Nady this July, if he comes back and proves himself healthy, makes good sense. If they can get a piece they need — a reliever, perhaps, to solidify the bullpen — I wouldn’t be opposed to moving Nady. Right now, in fact, that might very well be where his value lies.
Edes: Yanks scouting Pedro
Posted by: | CommentsPedro Martinez, after a strong showing for the Dominican team in the WBC, remains a free agent this year. He’s no longer the Pedro of the late 1990s, but to me, he seemed to be throwing free and easy against the international competition. Meanwhile, as the spring has stretched onto summer, Pedro is holding auditions in the DR. According to Gordon Edes, Yankee scouts will watch Pedro throw on Friday.
This is definitely interesting and intriguing news. As Edes notes, the Yankees are concerned with their pitching depth in light of an ineffective Chien-Ming Wang, and Pedro would help them shore up that hole. With Brian Bruney back and Phil Hughes providing some solid pen work for now, the team’s bullpen presents fewer concerns than it did a few weeks ago. So Pedro would be something of a luxury. While I pondered Pedro in January, I can’t see the team really finding a place for him. He won’t be guaranteed a role, and it’s doubtful whether he could still succeed in the AL East. It never hurts to kick the tires though.
Yanks considering trade for DeRosa
Posted by: | CommentsVia MLBTR, we learn that the Yankees might be considering a run at Mark DeRosa. With the Indians struggling, they could use DeRosa as a bit of trade bait, getting something useful for him before his contract expires after this season. Says Buster Olney: “One of the looming shadows circling below is that of the New York Yankees, who are weighing options and haven’t decided whether to take a shot at the versatile veteran.” So should the Yankees really get involved in talks for a utility infielder?
Make no mistake: DeRosa is a better option than any of the three current ones (Pena, Ransom, Berroa). He can also play the outfield in a pinch, and can do so reasonably well (11.5 UZR/150 in 451.2 innings in 2008). He can also play every position in the infield, and for the most part with competence — though his UZR is a bit down this year at second and third. His .333 OBA and .446 SLG make him an above-average utility player, if not average starter. Given the current state of the Yanks bench, should they make an offer?
Clearly he would represent an upgrade. His versatility would also help out the cases of Xavier Nady and Hideki Matsui, who figure to be DH-only options. It would allow the Yanks some pop off the bench if they needed it, while also covering them better in case of injury. With a 12-man pitching staff, the Yanks have a 5-man bench, one of whom will DH. This looks like a pretty ideal scenario:
Molina-DeRosa-Nady-Matsui-Gardner
Eitther Nady or Matsui DHs, leaving the other to pinch hit. Exactly who he’ll pinch hit for is another matter, since the lineup will be strong one through nine. Perhaps Swisher if he’s mired in a slump (won’t it be strange to see Swish hitting ninth when Melky and Posada are back?). Perhaps Gardner if he starts some games over Swish. In any case, this would also allow Gardner to pinch run, and then DeRosa to take over in the field. In other words, adding DeRosa would add some serious flexibility to the Yanks lineup. Not only is he competent in the field, but he has a major-league bat, which is more than we can say about Berroa, Ransom, and Pena.
Of course, the price tag is the issue. The Indians aren’t just going to give away DeRosa. He’ll likely be in demand by other contenders, so the Yanks will have to pony up a decent prospect. Since his name comes up every time we talk about non-Ajax prospects, would Zack McAllister do the trick? If he would, should the Yanks part with him for 1/2 a year of a utility infielder, even if he deepens the bench? It’s hard to justify that. After all, the Yanks could stick with the all-glove Pena as a replacement when Gardner pinch-runs for an infielder.
Yes, adding Mark DeRosa would be a nice luxury for the Yanks, but it is not at all necessary. If they can get him for a prospect of a lesser caliber than McAllister, they should consider it. However, if the price is Z-Mac or higher, they should probably back off. After all, we’re talking about a half year of a bench player vs. six controlled years of a mid-rotation starter. Which is not to say that is guaranteed for McAllister, but it is to say that dealing B+ prospects for bench players might not be the best idea.
Melky on the block
Posted by: | CommentsKen Rosenthal this afternoon reported on a development that isn’t much of a development: The Yankees are willing to move Melky Cabrera. According to Ken, the Yanks feel that Melky is a more attractive trade target than Nick Swisher or Xavier Nady and could be targeting the White Sox.
I can certainly see why the Yanks would want to trade Melky. He’s out of options, and the Yankees like Brett Gardner for his speed and on-base prowess more than they like Melky right now. By trading the youngster, the Yanks would also enjoy more flexibility for their bench while clearing up the Gardner/Damon/Cabrera/Swisher/Nady logjam. With Austin Jackson’s arrival in the Bronx looming, Melky is sliding toward superfluity, and this move could be a classic example of trading from your strengths.
At the same time, it’s tough to give up on a 24-year-old who has shown in the past that he can hit Major League pitching. He hit .280/.361/.391 during his age 21 season but has regressed in the two years since then. During Grapefruit League play this year, he is at .295/.392/.409. He’s also cost-controlled for the next four years.
In the end, though, what you see is what you get with Melky. He was never an elite hitting prospect and could be a stater on the White Sox, as Rosenthal speculates, but could be a fourth outfielder on many teams including the Yanks. We’ll see what comes of this.
Gammons sees Yanks in on Holliday
Posted by: | CommentsMatt Holliday stands to be one of the most sought-after free agents come October. Today, Peter Gammons checked in on the A’s outfielder. Holliday is concerned with his upcoming 2009 campaign, but Gammons speculates on the future. Early indications are that the Angels, Red Sox and Yankees will be competing for Holliday’s services if he proves he can hit outside of Colorado this year. Of the Yanks, Gammons writes, “There are scouts who believe Holliday’s natural center/right-center power is best suited for Yankee Stadium.”
Foreshadowing a 2009 bidding war
Posted by: | CommentsJohn Lackey, the 30-year-old Angels ace, is on the verge of free agency. While he and the Angels are currently attempting to negotiate an extension, the right-handers wants more money than A.J. Burnett because he, rightly so, considers himself to be better than Burnett. Says Lackey of the Angels’ efforts at retaining, “They’re not trying very hard.” Meanwhile, Theo Epstein, Brian Cashman and Steve Hilliard, Lackey’s agent are salivating at the thought of Lackey hitting the open market next year.
Yanks in on Mexican bidding war
Posted by: | CommentsVia MLBTR comes word of a Buster Olney report about the Yankees. The team is searching for a second gem out of Mexico.
According to the ESPN scribe, Yankee officials believe that Walter Silva would be a good fit for the team. Silva is 32 and according to Olney’s sources, had a strong season in Mexico this winter. Writes Olney:
Silva is the property of the Monterrey franchise, and went 7-8 with a 4.21 ERA for that team last year. He threw well in winter ball, pitching for Mazatlan; in 16 games, Silva had a 2.54 ERA, allowing 31 hits and striking out 29 in 35 innings.
Sounds like this is one of those no risk-potential reward signings. Why not?
Update 5:41 p.m.: The latest rumor is that the Padres are close to a Minor League deal with Silva. The odds of his making a contribution this year at the Major League level aren’t great, but it never hurts to kick the tires.
What’s one more outfielder between friends?
Posted by: | CommentsAs the 2009 season dawns, the Yanks have more outfielders than they need. Some combination of Hideki Matsui — who will mostly just DH — Johnny Damon, Melky Cabrera, Brett Gardner, Xavier Nady and Nick Swisher has to find its way into the lineup every day. This glut, however, hasn’t stopped Brian Giles. The Padres’ outfielder could be mid-season trade bait this year, and while Giles quashed a trade to the Red Sox last year, he told The Union-Tribune’s Tom Krasovic that he would be open to a deal to the Yanks (as well as the Red Sox and Angels) this year. The right fielder is currently facing legal troubles and is owed an additional $2 million if traded. I wouldn’t expect him on the Yanks this year. (Hat tip to MLBTR.)
