SATURDAY, 3:12pm: Yanks GM Brian Cashman denies that the club is waiting on Damon before looking into other outfield options, reports Chad Jennings of the LoHud Yankees Blog.
Additionally, Cashman stressed that the team has "had no discussions on Jermaine Dye" and is "not on Jim Edmonds at all."
2:30pm: In a text to Marc Carig of the Star-Ledger, Damon says that he "should have a team in a week" (via Twitter).
1:56pm: Heyman reports (via Twitter) that Damon has "days" to take a "low deal" from the Yankees. Assuming he says no, the club will sign another outfielder from the group of Reed Johnson, Xavier Nady, Randy Winn, Jim Edmonds, and Jermaine Dye.
FRIDAY, 6:17pm: SI.com's Jon Heyman was on MLB Network's Hot Stove show tonight, and said that the Yankees and Johnny Damon have spoken recently. Here's his exact quote:
"He did meet or talk to the Yankees in the last couple of days. Still doesn't look like a great chance of happening though believe it or not. They are talking, but the Yankees have these budgetary constraints. They've been telling other teams they have about 2 million dollars to spend. I think for Damon they would probably go over that. I mean this is a guy who's had 100 runs scored 9 times and 24 home runs. Terrific player, but I would still say more likely Braves or Tigers, at this point."
Two days ago we heard from former Yankee Jerry Hairston Jr. that the team never made him an offer because they're "waiting on Damon's price to come down," however GM Brian Cashman shot that report down.
It's certainly getting late in the offseason, however just for a frame of reference, Bobby Abreu didn't sign with the Angels until February 12th of last season. Damon might have a little more waiting to do.
He wouldn’t make it past 130 games in the NL
He played over 130 games in LF last year.
Damon looks like a pretty fit dude.
Well would the Braves even need him for more games than that? You have to assume that Heyward will be in the bigs at some point this year, and we can’t forget about Schafer yet. Could be slot of platooning late in the season.
He is going to the Orioles.Bet on it!
Are you referring to Damon? I predicted this a few days back, and I think it would be a good fit for them, and I think they have a little money left to spend (4-5m).
what???
he will be back with the yankees watch the yankees have more then 2 million to spend
I really can’t take anything Heyman says seriously when it comes to a Boras client. In one ear and out the other.
The Braves have said it would “take a miracle” to sign Damon, Tigers has said they aren’t interested.
The Braves never said it would take a miracle to sign Damon, Mark Bowmen did. And even that was pure speculation on his part. Do I think the Braves will end up with Damon? Probably not, because Wren said he was done making moves. But I simply cannot think of another team that matches up better with Damon than the Braves or Yankees.
Yankees Lineup:
Derek Jeter SS
Johnny Damon LF
Mark Teixeira 1B
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Jorge Posada C
Curtis Granderson CF
Nick Johnson DH
Robinson Cano 2B
Nick Swisher RF
Yankees Rotation:
CC Sabathia
AJ Burnett
Javier Vazquez
Andy Pettitte
Phil Hughes
Joba Chamberlain
Yankees Bullpen:
Damaso Marte
David Robertson
Mariano Rivera
is that even a good team?
Was that actually a question?
Try this one on:
Yankees Lineup:
Derek Jeter SS
Nick Johnson DH
Mark Teixeira 1B
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Jorge Posada C
Curtis Granderson CF
Jim Edmonds LF
Nick Swisher RF
Robinson Cano 2B
or
Yankees Lineup:
Derek Jeter SS
Nick Johnson DH
Mark Teixeira 1B
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Jorge Posada C
Curtis Granderson CF
Nick Swisher RF
Robinson Cano 2B
Brett Gardner LF
JIM EDMONDS? AS THE STARTER? WHAT?
hell yeah
Damon going back to the Yanks seems inevitable. He just has to cut his asking price in half.
Lets call it 1 year at $5.5MM + some PA incentives
If the Braves sign Damon I’ll eat my hat.
1 year @ 3.5 plus 1.5 in incentives – if it happens. Jim Edmonds/Brett Gardner looks good to me
Jim Edmonds as a yankee doesnt make any sense. The guy didn’t play at all last year and he has to be atleast 40.
edmonds makes no sense whatsoever. the reason we want an extra outfielder to platoon with gardner is to hit lefties. edmonds cannot do that. or anything else for that matter. edmonds would be probably be the worst option possible.
Please do not resign this egomaniacal has been!!! He is a dh at best and will actualy cost wins if allowed to play in the field.
Ignorance at its finest?
Not entirely. While Damon’s offense while playing in Yankee Stadium is very good, statistically, his fielding last year was somewhere between that of Manny Ramirez and Jason Bay last season.
UZR/150 had him at -12.1. You’re right, that’s just bad. But other defensive metrics rate him as above average (which I can’t find at the moment). CHONE has him projected as a +7 for next year, for example.
Those batting lineups look awful. You seriously trust Posada behind A-rod? If I’m a manager I walk A-rod in the playoffs if he’s hot to pitch to a slow catcher behind him. Posada is nice because he’s an offensive catcher, but not #5 hitter material.I’d goR-Jeter L-Damon (LF/DH when Johnson is 1B)S-TeixR-RodriguezL-CanoL-Johnson(DH. 1B when Teix gets day off)S-PosadaS-SwisherL-Granderson(CF)1-I’d much rather have Cano who is a better hitter behind A-rod. Teix, Rodriguez, Cano is one of the better middle orders in all of baseball.2-Johnson, Posada & Swish get on base and provide the power at the bottom of the order. 3-Granderson, Jeter, Damon when the lineup turns over. Mmm.4-four lefties, 3 switch hitters present batter match-up problems all over the lineup.That lineup is honestly frightening.
Cano can’t buy a hit in a big spot. I would have no problem with Jorge there. Besides A-Rod can steal bases in front of him.
Knock Damon and Boras for misreading the market but let’s not act as if Damon is less than a good/very good all round player. I can’t stand the “knock a guy when he’s down” stuff.
i was saying the yankees should be interested when i heard he wanted to come back jimmy can still play d and smash a ball not like he use to but it will be a advantage over any other team cause the yankees have the short porch in right and edmonds could still give the fans homerun balls. i would rather have damon but a platoon of gardner and edmonds isnt bad either but i wonder who would hit second when edmonds is in cano? granderson or posada?
How would platooning to lefties work exactly?
Gardner is a contact hitter with speed and edmonds can hit righties pretty well for power the short porch would have a better offense for jimmy agianst righties since he cant hit lefties that well
There are two questions to ask re: Johnny Damon:
1) Who are the Yankees competing with for his services? It looks like no other team is interested. If that is the case, why should the Yankees out-bid themselves? If no other team is interested, remove the Yankees from the equation and his market value is zero.
2) As currently constructed, is it a reasonable expectation for the Yankees to be in playoff contention at the July 31 trading deadline? If yes, why waste the money when you can truly find out if Gardner is the real deal? Come July 31, Cashman can re-assess and determine whether or not to pursue a rental.
Now is the rumor that Damon is likely for the Braves have a reasonable backing to of or is it just writers speculation that his bat would fit in their lineup?
All I can say is, Braves have yet to say no. They’ve only had Bowman say it’d take a miracle. Damon would have to lower his price a lot.
Damon would have to lower his price anyway. He’s too old and the 5-7 mil he’s asking for is way too much. I don’t care what Yankee fans say, their park is like a little league field and he isn’t gonna hit 20 bombs anywhere but there. Especially in places like Turner Field and Citi Field where he’d have to play if he was on the Braves. He’s gonna have to come way down. I would say the very most he is gonna get this year is 3 mil
Agreed, like I said before, he’d have to lower his price a lot. Braves wont need him for his 14 HR’s outside of Yankees Stadium over a year. Braves will need him for his OBP, BA, and lead-off speed. Unless Cox will use Diaz/McLouth or Diaz/Cabrera in the lead-off, Damon is the next best thing. I see him worth 3.5 to the Braves.
hahahahah at the kid suggesting the edmonds thing. if they were going to do something like that, theyd just sign reed johnson. hes hits righties and crushes lefties. and he played last year and isnt 40. there is NO point in signing edmonds. but really they should just get this done. 1 year $5 million with another 3 or 4 million in incentives.
SS Jeter
LF Damon
1B Teixeira
3B Rodriguez
C Posada
CF Granderson
RF Swisher
2B Cano
DH Johnson
The reason I like Johnson batting ninth is because of his .400+ OBP. Putting him at the bottom of the line-up gives us a guy who will continuously get on base in front of the top of the order. If he gets one at a .400 clip again, he will essentially be doing what he was going to do in the #2 spot, setting himself up to get driven in by the big hitters. Sort of the same idea of having the pitcher bat eight in the NL and someone batting ninth. Getting a guy on base to get driven in. Of course, ANY of those nine players hitting in the last hole in the line-up is crazy because they are all ridiculous hitters, but Johnson makes sense in the 9th hole if they get this done.
Trade Gaudin. Problem almost solved.
yea i agree 100 %
If I were Wren, I would simply trade Melky or Diaz and use that cash along with the 3MM the Braves currently have to spent and that should get Damon signed. His veteran presence in the lead off spot would benefit the Braves greatly in my opinion. Although it’s highly unlikely at this point, I’m still hoping for a Damon, McLouth, Heyward outfield.
I agree, but until June I would like to see an outfield of Damon, McLouth, Diaz. Bring Heyward up then and control his services for another year
I think the only thing scaring off the Braves other than possible budget restrictions is having to have Damon and McLouth in the same outfield. He was better last year in the outfield than in 2008, but I think they want to have Melky play center, McLouth left and Heyward right. That would be a drastic improvement in the outfield defense. I could be wrong, but it makes sense to me. In the limited action McLouth has played in left, he has been wonderful statistically.
McLouth’s defense improved dramatically after being traded to the Braves last year. I don’t think the Braves have any intentions of moving him to LF unless Schafer is ready.
The Braves don’t use statistical metrics when evaluating defense anyways, which is why I think they will sign Damon if his price drops low enough.
I think the Yanks are fairly strong 1-9 w/ Gardner being the weakest link. The starting 5…..strong. Bullpen should be ok, if you can carve out a strong 5 from RObertson, Marte, Aceves, Hughes, Loogan, Gaudin, Melancon. I wanted them to add Mike Gonzales but I really can’t cop a fit over not getting him. What worries me the most as of Jan 22, is the lack of depth and experience on the bench. Right now our bench consists of Ramiro Pena, Francisco Cervelli and Jamie Hoffman. With Brett Gardner being somewhat of a question mark, Nick Johnson being injury prone and an 3 starters at demanding positions over 34/35 in Arod, Jeter and Posada, Cashman needs to find a way to round out this team with viable backups. I have zero problem with Cervelli replacing Molina. I know that Pena can play 2b, SS and 3b with at least average or better defense. Offensively we can carry 1, maybe 2 weak bats in the lineup. But let’s now kid ourselves. Damon make this team much, much deeper. We went into 09 with an OF of Damon, Swisher, Cabrera, Nady and Gardner. People were crying for a trade of Swisher and Nady. Nady and Gardner both went down for a while and we ran Cabrera into the ground in July/August. Now we’re set to go into 2010 with Gardner, Swisher, Grandy, Hoffman and, assuming we stick to our “budget”, the likes of Reed Johnson or Rocco Baldelli in the mix. Am I the only one a little conerned about the lack of depth of this team? Can we really assume that none of out starters are going to go down this year?
People assume we can just pick someone up. That’s true. But what calibe of player are we talking about if we need to replace one of our starters? Chances are that’s going to require more prospects leaving. After thinning out the farm a little with IPK, Ajax, Vizcaino and Dunn and the majority of our top 10 prospects being virtual unknown quantities (2009 draftees/IFA’s Heathcott, Murphy and Sanchez plus 18 year olds Banuelos and DeLeon) what do we really have to offer to acquire suitable replacements that can be REAL contributors, as opposed to a warm body like the crap we used to keep 3b warm for Arod (Berroa, Ransom)? The Yanks greatest asset is cold hard cash. Well here we are, shopping in Saks 5th with $5 in our left pocket and the black Amex card tucked away in our wallet and it’s 30 minutes to closing. No way in the world should Cashman and company sit there claiming broke with a sign at the cash register saying “We accept credit cards”. I’m all for budget restraints but I’d rather come in $5 or $7 mil over the set budget feeling comfortable that we’ve prepared ourselves for a long season, rather than hoping no one gets hurt, which will then create the expense of added salary and prospects to fill those holes. The great thing about last years teams was the fact that the Yanks were able to turn to Cervelli, Pena, Hughes, Ransom, Aceves and Robertson to fill holes caused by injury or ineffectiveness. Expecting to do that again next year when AAA is a little thinner with some of those guys either already on the 25 man or used in trades this year seems a little suspect. Sign Damon and you can afford to move Gardner to the 4th OF spot and have some protection if Nick Johnson goes down. Sign Nomar or Belliard to be the primary veteran bat on the bench and to lend some IF depth along with Pena. If Damon accept a $5 mil deal and you get Nomar or Belliard for under $2 mil then that’s not a bad price to pay to round off a team looking to repeat. COming in $6 or $7 mil over budget (incl. lux tax) isn’t the worst thing in the world for the Yanks. Let’s not be cheap now just so we can stick out or chest and say we came in under last years payroll.
test
Yanks are clearly repeating in 2010. There is no one even close.
What about the… oh wait. How about the… no, never mind. Well of course the… I guess you’re right.
I would be surprised if the Yankees did not sign Damon for 1/6 mil. They would be playing with fire by having Gardiner hit 9th every day. Any injury to 1 or 2 guys would seriously leave a black hole at the bottom of their lineup cuz of their weak bench. Trust me, I’ve seen a lot of potential big innings fizzle cuz of Tek and Lugo anchoring the Sox lineup!
not 2 mention the padres entire lineup
For all those speculating about the 2010 Yankees lineup, it will most likely be Jeter – RJohnson – LTeixeira – SArod – RPosada – SGranderson – LCano – LSwisher – SGardner – LJohnson got on base at a .426 clip last season, .402 for his careerDerek Jeter got on base at a .406 clip last season, .388 for his careerTex got on base at a .383 clip last season, .378 in his careerArod got on base at a .402 clip last season, .390 for his careerThat is the highest 1-4 OBP in all of baseball next season, the Yankees aren’t going to pass that up by putting Nick Johnson anywhere else but that #2 hole, pitchers are going to be working hard and sweating from the start of the game to get through that part of the order right from the start of the game.He is just too good at working the count deep at bat after at bat. 3rd best in baseball last season in pitches per at bat, 3rd highest OBP, 7th most walks in the game in only 457 at bats, all the guys ahead of him had far more at bats. The Yankees are not going to pass those numbers up in the #2 hole hitting behind Jeter and in front of Tex and Arod, that would be foolish to bat Johnson way down in the order with his ability to get on base and having such discipline of taking pitches and walking more than he strikes out. Also having Johnson as the #2 working the count so deep will make the pitcher work a lot and allow Tex and Arod to see the pitchers repertoire from the on deck circle.The reason to put Posada 5th is he is a very good hitter with runners in scoring positionLast season with Runners on – .333 AVG, .406 OBP, .602 SLG, 1.008 OPS in 186 at batsScoring Position – .328 AVG, .399 OBP, .603 SLG, 1.002 OPS in 116 at batsIf a manager wants to walk Arod then good luck with that. Arod will be affected more by what the guys in front of him do, If Jeter, Johnson, Tex are getting on base at their excellent OBP’s, Arod will have to be pitched to.Granderson would be between Posada and Cano because both Posada and Cano hit lefties well, Posada hit .290 AVG, .360 OBP, .476 SLG, .836 OPS vs lefties, Cano hit .309 AVG, .335 OBP, .541 SLG, .876 OPS vs lefties. Having guys around Granderson who hit lefties so well minimizes managers bringing in lefties just to face Granderson alone.Also with Granderson’s speed and power in the middle of the lineup, that is a unique thing, usually guys with power are slow and base cloggers, but not with Granderson. The Yankees could stay out of double plays with Granderson hitting behind Posada, they can hit and run with Cano when Granderson is on base, because Cano is an excellent contact hitter who can hit a pitch virtually anywhere around the zone, up down, in, out doesn’t matter to Cano. Granderson in the middle of the order provides power, speed, versatility in situational conditions.
Swisher will continue to do his thing, how many #8 hitters can put up 30 HR and get on base at a .371 clip. Swisher at the bottom of the order will provide power, rbi’s and lots of walks, he had 97 last season.
Even though Swisher has a low AVG, he still gets on base and slugs at a high rate, putting up lines of .249 AVG, .371 OBP, .498 SLG, .869 OPS and he is the #8 batter next season.
Gardner is the wild card here. You don’t know what he may be. The Yankees want terrific defense in the field from him and on offense if he can be a real pest by using his best asset speed it will be a plus from the 9 hole.
Expect Gardner to bunt a lot more this season, he recently did an interview with a Yankees blog from his home in South Carolina where he states he is working on bunting, bunting, bunting. He had gotten away from it towards the end of his time in AAA and he wished he hadn’t. He is also expecting pitchers to throw him more fastballs as the #9 batter, because the last thing they want is to walk him and so he says he has to be more aggressive at the plate and be more aggressive on the bases when he gets on.
Gardner has the kind of speed that can turn an out into a single, single into a double, double into a triple. If he can get on base he will be a pest and distraction for pitchers on the bases, having them constantly throw over to keep him close and distracting them and losing concentration with Derek Jeter and Nick Johnson batting, followed by only Tex and Arod. š
So there you go 1-9 barring Damon’s return. Looks good to go to me with a rotation of
Sabathia – L – who you can expect 200+ innings from
Burnett – R – who you can expect 200+ innings from
Pettitte – L – who you can expect 195+ innings from
Vazquez – R – who you can expect 200+ innings from
Joba – R – who you can expect 185+ innings from
and a bullpen of
Gaudin – R – Long Relief / Spot Starter
Aceves – R – Swingman / Long Relief / Short Relief / can be used for multiple innings, 1 inning or 1 batter
Logan – L – Secondary Lefty
Robertson – R – Power Arm to bridge to the setup man
Marte – L – Primary Lefty
Hughes – R – Setup man
Rivera – R – Closer
I agree with everything you say but why are you going to waste Phil Hughes in the bullpen? Joba should be in the bullpen and Hughes should be the 5th starter. I think Joba is the next closer.
I agree with Morris- everything you said was golden, but I do not want Phil Hughes or Joba Chamberlain in the bullpen. The Yankees (and I) expect these guys to be top of the rotation starters one day, and I do not want them in the bullpen to retard their progress yet again.
Injuries will ALWAYS happen to the starting rotation, and the guys still have options left (especially Joba), so I would like to see one of Joba/Hughes in AAA starting until an injury puts them into the rotation.
Robertson is absolutely good enough to be the setup man with his clutch performance in October and absolutely ridiculous K rates in the regular season.
I hear what you guys are both saying but the difference is Joba pitched 157 innings last season and will have no Joba rules any longer. He is free to go out and just pitch like any other pitcher. They will at least give him the chance in the rotation since he can give them more innings next season than Hughes at this point. Joba last season was7-2, 3.62 ERA, 110.2 IP, 105 H, 44 ER, 50 BB, 97 K, .256 BAA, prior to August and September when the Joba rules came into play and the Yankees started messing with his turns in the rotation. One day they wanted to skip his starts, another they would let him only pitch 2-3 innings, etc. No consistency can be developed that way. This was his monthly break down last seasonApril – 1-0, 3.13 ERA, 23 IP, 22 H, 8 ER, 13 BB, 17 K, .265 BAAMay – 1-1, 4.84 ERA, 22.1 IP, 24 H, 12 ER, 12 BB, 29 K, .286 BAAJune – 2-1, 3.79 ERA, 35.2 IP, 33 H, 15 ER, 15 BB, 27 K, .244 BAAJuly – 3-0, 2.73 ERA, 29.2 IP, 26 H, 9 ER, 10 BB, 24 K, .232 BAAIt wasn’t until the innings count started to rise and the innings limit rules started coming into play that he started to faulter.August – 1-2, 8.22 ERA, 23 IP, 31 H, 21 ER, 15 BB, 18 K, .323 BAASeptember – 1-2, 7.15 ERA, 22.2 IP, 31 H, 18 ER, 11 BB, 17 K, .320 BAACashman has said the 5th spot is going to be open with Joba/Hughes/Gaudin/Aceves/Mitre all involved, reality says though that Joba because he pitched 157 innings last season and will have no more rules the Yankees will give him the opportunity to go out and start as the 5th starter.Also Hughes is younger than Joba and so can be held back at least 1 more season in the pen, with plans to still make him a starter. He will turn 24 next June, while Joba is 25 next September. As you said the Yankees could move Robertson up to the setup role but the fact that Hughes had so much success there last season in order to have a deep and strong pen the Yankees may utilize him in that role once again. All this will be sorted out in Spring but I expect Joba to get the 5th slot because he can provide more innings next season and is a year older than Hughes so Hughes can still be utilized for 1 more season in the pen since he is 23 going on 24.
Also remember Joba was essentially the number 4 last season after Wang was dreadfully ineffective and then got hurt.
The rotation became
Sabathia
Burnett
Pettitte
Joba
Hughes/Mitre/Gaudin/Aceves
Next season Joba would be the #5 barring injury, providing him lots of room to develop with guys like Sabathia, Burnett, Pettitte, Vazquez all pitching in front of him, instead of being the defacto #4 starter he was last season.
jeter ss
damon lf
tex 1b
Arod 3b
cano 2b
swish rf
posada c
nick johnson dh
Granderson cf
gardner gives damon a rest,
and thats 20 steals, homers, or a gold glove at every position.
People don’t realize how much Girardi loves alternating right handed and left handed batters in his lineup. People also underestimate how important it is for two left handed batters to sandwich a switch hitter or right handed hitter in between them. A pitcher who is ONLY tough on lefties can only face one batter if the lineup is properly alternated.
If the Yankees resign Damon, I see it looking like this:
Jeter- R
Damon- L
Teixeira- S
A-Rod- R
Granderson- L
Posada- S
Johnson- L
Swisher- S
Cano- L
If the Yankees don’t resign Damon I think this will happen:
Jeter- R
Johnson- L
Teixeira- S
A-Rod- R
Granderson- L
Posada- S
Cano- L
Swisher- S
Gardner- L
Both teams look extremely good, but it is what people value more; speed and defense, or offense. Both Damon and Gardner have their strengths. I think Granderson will be a good fit in the five hole, and after hitting 30 homeruns in Comerica Park, it isn’t too far fetched to believe that he can come close to 40 homeruns this year at Yankee Stadium.
Well, since one never really knows I can not actually speculate on any of the Yankees possibilities.I was hopeful that Gardner would get a chance (I remember when people were screaming for blood when Cano took over at second) in left….but again there’s stilltime for change. Edmonds is intriguing . . . so is Nomar . . . NO on Belliard . . . Reed and Rocco . . . maybe as a last resort, but I doubt we will get there and finally . . . Damon – not for a penny over a base of 4M with 1.5 in incentives . . . off to dry up the boss now.
this looks better
LF Damon
SS Escobar
3B Jones
1B Glaus
C McCann
CF Mclouth
2B Prado
RF Diaz/Heyward/Cabrera
then this:
McLouth
Escobar
Jones
Glaus
McCann
Prado
Diaz/Heyward
Cabrera
Escobar doesn’t hit #2 anymore and hasn’t for a while. And while the lineup maybe gets a slight upgrade with Damon over Diaz, it takes a serious hit on defense and blocks a Schafer midseason callup.
I would really love to see Diaz hit lead-off. I just don’t think Cox will do it.
the way the yankees have handle this damon situation is borderline classless. Either tell the guy to take a hike or resign him. To lowball him like this is flat out wrong, IMO.
furthermore…how much did the yankees give Andy Pettitte? $12 million? Knowing full well Pettitte was going anywhere else, they overpaid for him. Leaving themselves in this “budget” crunch.
I have no problem with the Yanks “bidding against themselves” and giving Damon 1/$7 mil. However, why are viewing this as classless? If any team says “we can’t sign you unless you’re willing to sign for “X” amount”, then what is classless about that? Seems like they are betty pretty clear about the situation.
i just hate when a team offers up a deal they know the player won’t take. Its the wrong way of doing business, IMO.
Just my opinion.
If you don’t want the guy back then let it be known. Don’t play shadow games to try and save face with the fans.
You do realize the Yankees were overpaying Damon for years at 13 million per season for the past 4 seasons.
He didn’t earn that in Kansas City, Oakland or Boston at any point.
The Yankees orginally got him to play CF and he could no longer play that position, his only value is offense, he brings nothing on defense that is worthwhile.
His greatest value is as a Yankee because of the Stadium he hits in, the lineup he has around him hitting between Jeter and Arod and Tex. The problem is he is now a one dimensional player and has no defensive value to a club. The Yankees by virtue of having a dominant offense could afford him in LF because they could outscore other teams on most nights.
If you are a team with a weaker offense you can’t afford to give away outs and runs with poor defensive players.
Its not like the Yankees weren’t rewarding Damon well for years. Now they called in the gravy train and Boras and Damon seem dazed and confused about it.
Remember when the offseason began Boras stated to the Yankees come to us with multiple years at the same deal or don’t bother. š Cashman said fine by me and hasn’t come.
Andy Pettitte last season at age 36 took a 5.5 million dollar base salary with a host of different incentives that could raise it to 12 million max.
If Damon wants to come back to New York I’m sure he has Cashman’s number and would have instructed Boras to work towards that but it seems he wants the most money he can get at any cost, so be it.
i want jermaine dye for a one year deal!!
What exactly is the low deal offer? Since Ankiel got $3.25 million, it better be at least $5 million anything lower Damon won’t accept (maybe $4 – $4.5 million he will take)
Damon has “days” what the hell does that even mean? 2 days? 100 days?
The implication seems pretty clear to me. If they’re saying “days” instead of “weeks,” you can pretty much rule out anything more than two weeks. My guess is by mid-week.
I think it’s safe to say that if he doesn’t respond by Tuesday then they will sign someone else probably.
1 year/ 2 million, can reach 6 million in incentives
Getting tired of hearing Dye and Yanks involved with other. Please no.
1. Damon
2. Nady
3. Badelli/Edmonds
We have enough offense, you can never have enough defense(Gardner).Thanks Johnny but your noodle arm is just pitiful, and we have a #2 hitter.Pass.JeterDamonTeixRodriguezCanoJohnsonPosadaSwisherGrandersonWould rip the MLB though.
If the angels didnt sign Abreu so quickly or if they traded rivera for a pitcher earlier it would make sense for him to go to the angels. It could still happen, i just dont know how that rotation would end up working with Damon, Abreu, Rivera, Hunter, and Matsui for 4 spots
Yeah but Boras wouldn’t have allowed Damon to sign cheaply. Damon would’ve made a good replacement for FIggins leading off.
Damon
Aybar
Abreu
……..
There is little suspense here….Damon is going to have to swallow his pride and take whatever scraps Cashman offers him. No one else is going to want him at higher dollars.
In fact, no other teams feel he has any interest in leaving New York. So why bid? Why let him play unacceptable defense in exchange for whatever his OBP produces in the way of extra runs?
The Yankees are so strong they don’t need to get 140 games out of him. If he breaks down he can be cut at the sub-$5M salary he will get.
Damon 1/5?
Yes please.
yankees.lhblogs.com/2010/01/23/cashman-denies-damo…
Cashman denies Damon deadline
Why does everybody have Granderson hitting 9th? Dude can’t hit lefties, but he absolutely KILLS right handed hitting. Also, Johnson doesn’t make sense anywhere else hitting 2nd, and now that Damon seems to have more power he’s probably better suited hitting lower in the order.
Jeter
Johnson
Tex
ARod
Granderson (ninth against lefties)
Posada
Damon
Swisher
Cano
…and that lineup has the chance to score 1000 runs.
I fully agree dude, I don’t know why Granderson would be moved to 9th under any circumstance, the guys that would surround him hit lefties well in Posada and Cano, so that fact that he struggles against lefties is minimized by placing him between guys who hit lefties very well.
Matter of fact the whole Yankees lineup hits lefties well
Jeter hit .396 vs lefties
Nick Johnson hit .316 vs lefties
Tex hit .305 vs lefties
Arod hit .277 vs lefties
Posada hit .290 vs lefties
Cano hit .309 vs lefties
so as we see the Yankees won’t die with Granderson struggling against lefties, plenty of guys to pick up the slack, after all the majority of Granderson’s at bats will be versus righty pitchers over the season since that is more prevalent day to day. Last season Granderson had 631 at bats (11th most in MLB) and 451 came vs righties, 180 vs lefties.
Wow…..Cashman is really laying the cards on the table, almost to a fault if you ask me.
“āHow long itās taking certain people to wake up and smell the coffee, thatās what surprises me,ā Cashman said. āWhen you get on the phone with agents, they tell you one thing, and certain agents canāt honestly believe what theyāre trying to convey. Do they think Iām stupid?ā
What good comes of stating that you want to obtain an OF’er but then publicly state that who you’re not interested in? By the quotes āHow long itās taking certain people to wake up and smell the coffee, thatās what surprises me,ā and “certain agents canāt honestly believe what theyāre trying to convey. Do they think Iām stupid?ā sounds as if he’s speaking directly to Damon and Boras. That can’t be a good thing to say, especially if you’r entertaining the idea of him coming back and what him to be happy about eating crow.
Cashman is stupid for saying that period. All he had to do was “thats not true, we are lookin at other options”
I think what Cashman is saying is the market is pretty obvious for players of Damon’s elk and he is not going to overpay just because they are the Yankees and folks have gotten accustomed to that over the years.
The Yankees could easily say hey lets sign Damon to a 1 year 9 million dollar deal, with an option for the following season, but why should they when Damon’s market is nowhere around that.
Cashman is saying I know what I will pay and if you look at the market you aren’t getting a better deal anywhere else.
Damon is an offensive bonus but not a necessity for the Yankees to succeed in 2010.
Would I like him back, YES, but at any cost, NO.
Well for years guys rode the fatback of the Yankees to their big pay days and the Yankees would pick up bad sorry contracts of over the hill veterans. If Damon wants to play in New York he will make it happen by looking at the market, seeing what the Yankees have to offer and tell Boras to make it happen, if he wants the most money that is his choice and he can see whom out there will overpay for him and not many teams on the market will even give him that 5 million, maybe with some incentives in it as well that the Yankees may have offered, may.I don’t see the Braves or Tigers or any other team out there doling out 5 million plus for Damon next season or we would have heard about it by now given the market.
As I mentioned earlier the Yankees showed Damon love at 52 million for 4 seasons when they signed him to be their CF and yet he could no longer play that position early into the contract and had to move to LF. Its not like the Yankees were getting Damon on a sweetheart deal for the past 4 years. Damon needs to look at what guys like Abreu, Vlad, Matsui got and decide to be smart as well as to what the market is. In the market 4 years ago he was amply rewarded by the Yankees.
Even if Damon returns at say 1 year, 5 million plus incentives, and this is all rampant speculation given Jon Heyman’s involvement and usual ballwashing of Boras, I would still hit Nick Johnson 2nd and have.
Jeter – SS – R
Nick Johnson – DH – L
Tex – 1B – S
Arod – 3B – R
Posada – C – S
Granderson – CF – L
Cano – 2B – L
Damon – L
Swisher – S
Now you might say huh, 3 lefties in a row. Well Cano hits lefties well at a .309 AVG and Nick Johnson is just too good at getting on base to move him out of the 2 spot in the order when he can get on base at a .400 clip.
The team excelled with the combo of Jeter and Damon at the top. Filp flop Damon and Johnson and I like that lineup. Having Johnson and Swisher in the 8th and 9th spot makes this lineup turnover well with the top of the order coming up. Damon in the #2 spot allows them to make the best use of his speed whereas Johnson might clog the bases a little. Now if Damon doesn’t come back, the fine move Johnson to #2 spot.
I just think with Nick Johnson’s OBP ability he would be wasted at the bottom of the order. I would rather him on base in front of Tex and Arod who will be our two big sluggers as opposed to on base at the bottom of the order at his usual .400 clip.
Also the Yankees could have a 9,1,2,3,4 of Swisher, Jeter, Johnson, Tex, Arod with OBP’s of
Swisher as the #9 hitter – .371 OBP
Jeter as the #1 batter – .406 OBP
Johnson as the #2 batter – .426 OBP
Tex as the #3 batter – .383 OBP
Arod as the #4 batter – .402 OBP
That is 5 players in a row with .370 or greater OBP’s. That is unheard of.
Swisher even though he strikes out a lot works the count deep and gets lots of walks
Jeter hits for average, puts the ball in play and gets on base at a high rate
Johnson sees lots of pitches, works the count deep every time and walks more than he K’s
Tex and Arod will be one of the deadliest slugging combinations next season. They can hit for average, get on base at a high clip and slug with anyone.
I look forward to seeing Teixeira and Arod hitting together for the entire season from the start of the season, unlike last year when Arod missed the first month and a half and the Yankees used Posada, Matsui, Cano, Swisher all behind Tex in the cleanup spot until Arod returned.
It’s sort of a moot point to argue but if they did bring Damon back and went with a lineup of:JeterDamonTexArodPosadaGrandersonCanoSwisher/JohnsonJohnson/SwisherThen you have 6 guys in a row (8,9,1,2,3 and 4) who had OBP’s of .365 or higher and your 1 and 2 guys have 20-30 SB ability. A good manager puts players in a position to succeed and capitalize on their full abilities. Damon, if healthy, can be good for 15-20 SB. Why hamper that ability? Once the lineup turns over it really doesn’t matter. But if the Yanks could have a 8th and 9th hitter, who are on average, on base 40% of the time then that’s just amazing. If somethings works, then why change it? Damon and Jeter thrived togther in the 1 and 2 slots. Keep it that way. Johnson should enhance what has already been proven to work. You slot Damon in the 7th or 8th spot then you’re asking him to be more of a run producer rather than a run creator.
Yeah guess you have a good point there. All of this is contingent on Damon even resigning, but I could see
Jeter – R
Damon – L
Tex – S
Arod – R
Posada – S
Granderson – L
Cano – L
Johnson – L
Swisher – R
The issue of 3 lefties in a row at 6,7,8, is not a big deal since Cano hit .309 AVG, .335 OBP, .541 SLG, .876 OPS vs lefties and Johnson hit .316 AVG, .440 OBP, .444 SLG, .884 OPS vs lefthanders.
The only guys in the Yankees lineup with weak OBP’s would be Cano and Granderson, but those guys have other dimensions to their games, both guys can hit lots of Homeruns and doubles, Cano can hit for high average, Granderson has speed as well.
twitter.com/Buster_ESPN/status/8128577182
twitter.com/Buster_ESPN/status/8128598358
More frm Cashman throuh Damon. So what exactly is the offer? IF its the projected $2 million thatYanks wan to spend might as well forget i.
I have said this before and I would say it again. I can bet my life that the yankees will sign Damon. it is so obvious what they are doing. just waiting for his price to come down.
No offense but what do you mean Posada “can’t bat 5th”? What exactly do you need to be as a #5 guy other than power and ability to make the pitcher throw strikes? Given, Matsui was a better #5 guy but with regards to Posada vs Grandy I don’t see your point. You say Posada isn’t a slugger but Grandy is? Posada hit a hr ever 17 AB’s while Grandy hit them once every 21 AB’s (30 in 631 AB). Posada is also a better contact hitter and has a higher obp (.283/.363) compared to Grandy (.249/.327). Oddly though, they both have almost identical walk/ko rates. I’d rather see the 2007 version of Grandy where he hits 20-25 hrs, 35 dbls and 20 triples, a higher bat avg/obp and strikes out less, rather than one swinging for the fence constantly, trying to live up to 40+ hr expectations. If he can prove himself to be a more consistent hitter then I can see him gradualy moving up into the middle of the order.
I agree I’m amazed how people undersell Posada, when he actually hits well with men in scoring position in his career. Last season with
Runners On – .333 AVG, .406 OBP, .602 SLG, 1.008 OPS
Scoring Position – .328 AVG, .399 OBP, .603 SLG, 1.002 OPS
He slugged .522 last season which was better than Matsui at .509
Posada also had a .363 OBP last season and .379 for his career.
If anything a case could be made that Posada is pushing time for a catcher and it will catch up eventually, but until then he can still hit.
I don’t know why one would say Posada isn’t a slugger looking at those numbers above.
I think Randy Winn is a possibility for the Braves. Maybe a stopgap/platoon until Heyward is ready?
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