The Yankees finished most of their offseason shopping when they traded for Javier Vazquez and Curtis Granderson, then signed Nick Johnson as a free agent, but the one spot left on the team that warrants an upgrade is left field.
At the moment, Brett Gardner and Rule 5 Draft pick Jamie Hoffmann are scheduled to start the season in a defense-heavy platoon and hit ninth. GM Brian Cashman has indicated that the team is approaching it's 2010 payroll limit, and it appears they're only willing to spend about $5-6MM for an upgrade. This morning we learned that they're planning to wait out the free agent market before making any moves.
Looking at the list of available free agents, there appears to be plenty of second and third tier outfield options available. What do you think the Yankees should do about their left field situation? Should they stick with the Gardner/Hoffmann platoon, or bring in someone like Reed Johnson or Ryan Church or Rick Ankiel?
wait until Johnny Damon’s price lowers and then re-sign him.
Jermaine Dye?
He can’t play defense anymore.
That’s certainly true, but he can still hit, and the Yankees would have Gardner to spell him late in the game.
jermaine dye wont work in new york…. the position on our team we have available would only b a smack in the face to dye. he would have to bat like 7 or 8 and plus he is a right handed hitter in our stadium that isnt very appealing. dye will sign with the giants probably or the angels. i am greedy i would love for the yankees to keep things the way they r so we can sign crawford next year… o yeah we got cliff lee coming next year as well.
I would LOVE to see Damon lower his demands, or pull an A-Rod and go behind Boras to negotiate the deal with the Yanks, and resign with them. If he agrees to a one year deal, perhaps he can still get around 7.5-8 mil a year, regardless of what Cash currently says.
However, I don’t feel like that is going to happen. Therefore, I would love to see the Yanks go after Reed Johnson. His defense is disgusting, and his career stats are phenomenal against lefties. At the beginning of the season, platoon him with Gardner in LF, until Gardner starts to perform poorly and then give Reed a shot at all-time LF.
Unless we can get an actual good hitter like Damon, I’d just stick with Gardner. I mean, Ankiel?? Church?? Johnson?? No, give the kids a shot.
i wouldn’t sign any of those guys for more than 500K. the yankees will get equal offensive production from any combined pair they run out there.
keep yourself flexible with roster and payroll for 2011 when thy will push to add carl crawford as the LF
Johnny Damon will be a NY Yankee next year. for 1 year @ 7mil. book it
whaddya think Ankiel is worth?
Damon is the ideal choice. If not, then Reed Johnson/Gardner platoon would be ok for now.
Ankiel is worth no more than $2 million on a one-year deal.
let the kid Gardner play! he has a lot of speed to play a great defensive LF, and he’ll probably get on base more than most think he will. if he gives them an OBP or .325-.350, he’ll be good for at least 30 steals, phenomenal for a 9th hole hitter.
the thing about starting gardner is that he doesn’t get on base that much. I think he is so much more valuable as a pinch runner. You saw it in the playoffs against the twins. They pinchran gardner, he got to second. Joe Nathan tried to spin and throw to second, it ended up going into centerfield… end of story
If he can get on base at the .325 mark he would be worth it.
What are you talking about? Gardner had a .345 OBP last year and he’s had great plate discipline throughout his minor league career (.389 OBP in the minors). A .350 OBP is certainly possible over 500 AB’s.
If Gardner star at left same citation only sooner, if we can’t get JD let the kid start. Everyone had to start at some point.
Reed Johnson would be a great fit….He has a career OPS against lefties of .841 and last year was at .903…..
Reed Johnson would be a great fit as a platoon with Gardner…..Reed has a career OPS of .841 against lefties and last year was at .903
Maybe look at Dye and even Vlad Guerrero, as long as the Yanks are willing to sacrifice some D. Guerrero or Dye could also DH some as well.
Nothing to worry about too much if the Yankees don’t do much, though. They could always do a trade during the season to upgrade, or even wait until Crawford is on the open market next year as Jarrod says. The cupboard is really pretty bare this offseason with free agent outfielders, so I say don’t overpay for a subpar player. Johnson, Ankiel and Church are NOT guys that I like at all in pinstripes. I am actually pretty intrigued by Rule V pick Jamie Hoffman. It could be a stroke of genious for the Yanks if he’s any good.
the thing about starting gardner is that he doesn’t get on base that much. I think he is so much more valuable as a pinch runner. You saw it in the playoffs against the twins. They pinchran gardner, he got to second. Joe Nathan tried to spin and throw to second, it ended up going into centerfield… end of story
If he can get on base at the .325 mark he would be worth it.
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How can he be worth more as a pinch runner than as a guy getting 500 AB? If he can steal 25 bases as a pinch runner then he should be good for 50 if he can maintain a .350 OBP which is certainly within his abilities.
honestly, i just don’t see him getting on base at .350, his career is exactly a .325.
His career?
You do realize that he has 425 PA’s in his career. That’s less than most other players’ individual seasons.
Last season, with 248 AB, he posted a .345 OBP. You really can’t see him doing .005 better?
Gardner’s minor league OBP: .389
I don’t expect him to post a .389 OBP but to say he can’t reach .350 based on his “career” 425 PA?
If he learned how to bunt better, I could see Gardner easily attain a .350obp.
I wouldn’t put much stock into that with it being a small sample that happens to include data from when he first came up to the majors. He has yet to play a full season in the majors. His 2009 season was interrupted with a broken thumb. In the minors Gardner never had a OBP of less than .343. In his AAA 2008 season during 94 games and 426 PA he had a .414 OBP. After the progress he made in the minors there is no reason the think he can’t make adjustments in the majors and get on base a lot.
give the kids a chance to play
Who even has a LF or LF/DH position open for Damon BESIDES the Yankees? The Giants?
Also: lol at the Yanks suddenly having a payroll “limit”.
My main hope, would be Reed Johnson, after that it’s a toss up. Maybe they should just save the couple million. Hoffman and Gardner could probably do ok. With that lineup, you don’t need a great player or even a veteran. I don’t know much about Hoffman, but i would expect gardner to bat .270 hit 45 rbi, get on base around .330, and get 35 sb (this is just against righties by the way).
Please cashman give us reed johnson. And Jerry Hairston Jr.
Jonny Gomes
Gomes has an intriguing bat but, with the exception of 2005, was rather unsuccessful in the AL Beast. His OBP is also a bit suspect.
I like the idea of Jonny Gomes too. He can hit.
What are you talking about? Gardner had a .345 OBP last year and one of his assets throughout his minor league career was his plate discipline (.389 career minor league OBP).
I say get Matsui or Abreu. Oh wait… Melky for Cano and the fans? No wait… Who can we trade Nick Johnson for on opening day?
Browser is acting weird. Sorry for the double post.
Right now I like keeping Brett Gardner at the position. He is a developing hitter. Other options I dont mind is Jonny Gomes, Rocco Baldelli, and Ryan church. The inflated stadium will help their numbers.
I’d wanna see Church’s power numbers in that stadium.
Yankees are just waiting for Carl Crawford to be a free agent after next year. They just need a one year stopgap to get there. That’s why they weren’t in on Bay or Holliday, they just would have been roadblocks to Crawford’s eventual arrival.
Marcus Thames should be a good pickup. Has some pop and plays solid defense. But getting Granderson was a bad move. He puts up numbers like Mike Cameron and Nick Swisher. Trading away Austin Jackson soon to be All Star and Rookie Of The Year guy and Ian Kennedy, bad move. Although Javier Vazquez was a good trade. Vazquez was a lights out pitcher last season. 4th in the CY vote, and had a better ERA and had more strikeouts then the yankees ace C.C Sabathia.
You’re judging Granderson based on only 1 season instead of his career. He is a career .272/.344/.484 hitter with speed and great defense and he’s only 28. Give him a year in this lineup in this stadium and I could see 2006-2007 numbers from him. As for Jackson, you are severely overrating him. I just can’t see him winning the ROY award with his strikeout rate and lack of power against minor league pitching.
Actually he has power to all sides of the field and plays as good as Granderson in CF. Grandson isnt 28, hes turning 30. Has for the Rookie of the Year award, you will see him emerge in the Tigers CF and then you will get to see what kind of a player he relly is. I wouldn’t be surprised to him Starting in CF for the American League All Star Game. Austin Jackson is a player who will hit 10-15 homers, 30-35 doubles, 25-30 steals, and bat 300. I would rather take that then Granderson who bats 250 with a ton of Strikeouts and smack 30-35 homers.
Where to begin? Lets start with your predictions for Jackson. He hit 4 homers and 23 doubles in 504 AB’s against AAA pitching last year. How do you figure he hits 15 homers and 35 doubles against ML pitching this year? Granderson will be 29 in March, he’s not 30. He’s also a career .272 hitter and has hit over .300 before. And if you don’t like Granderson’s strikeouts, you probably wont like Jacksons 123 K’s against AAA pitching last year.
Austin Jackson is Overrated. I’ll bet he’ll just put up similar numbers to Granderson with less HRs.
Where were all these Yankee fans when Jackson was in the fold? All we have heard about for the past 2 years is how special Jackson is. He was the centerpiece of every major trade speculation.
Now he’s gone and it’s like Yankee fans think the guy is trash. So classic and so typical. We saw the same thing with Tabata.
I’ve been saying Jackson is overrated for a while now. He can still develop into a good player, but he strikes out way too much and the power may never come.
You’ll see this season, that he really isnt overrated. Soon to be All Star and ROY winner
We dont think he is trash, but I dont think he will reach Granderson’s numbers. Also I don’t think they were going to wait on him until he fully develop. Most Yankee rookies that come up and stay, play well right away
“Now he’s gone and it’s like Yankee fans think the guy is trash. So classic and so typical. We saw the same thing with Tabata.”
Yeah and, um, how is Tabata doing these days? I get your point, but that wasn’t the most effective way to make it. That said, name one prospect the Yanks have traded away that turned into a SUPERSTAR??? (Crickets… crickets)
Damon’s coming back next year, no doubt about it. Anyone else who thinks otherwise is sorely mistaken.
Tabata is doing just fine. Not a lot of 20 YO’s holding their own in AAA.
Now, let me be clear – I’m not a Yankee fan. I DIDN’T think that Tabata was all that. Just like I don’t buy the Austin Jackson hype. I just think it is really funny to hear Yankee fans hype up their prospects, watch those prospects get dumped, and then talk about how bad they are. Tabata was just the most recent example of a severely over-hyped prospect.
Hated trading away tabata and ohlendorf. Broke my heart when they traded them.
i love tabata i thought of him as a manny type play :/
I still like Tabata, and although I’m not happy about trading him the Nady/Marte deal, Marte proved to be a very valuable asset for us.
What are you talking about? Granderson a bad trade? A. Jackson a future all star and rookie of the year? You have no idea what you are writing.
You’ll see this season, that he is a future All Star and rookie of the year winner. There is a reason that he was number 12 in all of baseball prospects
When was he #12? Baseball America had him at 36 prior to the 2009 season and I assume he’s dropped a bit since he hasn’t shown any of that power we heard he’d have. I think his ceiling is a .300 hitter with 20 steals, good defense, and no power, but I doubt that ever happens.
Well after the 2010 season, we will see who puts up better numbers, Austin Jackson or Granderson. And we will also see who will be the AL All Star CF. Austin isnt overrated but underrated.
Why report on who the NYY LF should be? This has nothing to do with rumors. Just more Yankee attention.
The Discussion series is for people who want to DISCUSS baseball. There has been a lot of DISCUSSes for various teams. Who we, the fans, think a certain team should sign for an opening on a limited payroll (lol) is a good discussion. I’m not a big fan of the Yankees, but I find this page interesting as it is very relevant to baseball and rumors all together.
This isn’t the first DISCUSS and they are not all about the Yankees. There was one a month ago on who my team, the Braves, should sign for their offense. Apparently, we didn’t have the money we thought we had and couldn’t sign anyone.
Point being, this isn’t more Yankee attention. To think so is just Yankism. Which is fine in my book, yet stupid.
Why are the Yankees even screwing around here. Sign Damon. Seriously, is a million or two out of a TWO HUNDRED MILLION DOLLAR BUDGET going to hurt anything? That’s like the Padres splitting hairs on a guy making the league minimum. Give Damon his 1+1 vesting option. $8m/year + $2m in incentives. Damon’s happy, the Yankees are happy, and more importantly, they are better. All of those other guys are huge question marks.
It’ll be Johnny Damon. I believe the Yankee Brett Gardner is our starter nonsense as much as I believed last years Nick Swisher is our first baseman nonsense. Gardners a bench guy, and a good one. As a starter on a 200 million dollar team, he’s a joke.
I’m still in strong favor of the Yanks signing Gomes to a one year deal. Something tells me the fans and the press would love him. How about Rocco B? I’m also all in favor of getting Sizemore or DeJesus. They are both on the trading block. Imagine Sizemore in left? I think the Yankees may get an automatic pass to the World Series at that point.
Sizemore is not on the block and he would cost half of the farm system. He has a gooc contract, Indians have no need to trade him. Rocco is a big risk even splitting time on the field.
I have liked Rocco Baldelli’s make-up as a ball player since he first debuted. However, if his hometown Red Sox aren’t interested in taking him back with a low-end contract, you have to believe they know something about what’s left in his tank.
That said … If Johnson and Damon don’t work out, we may want to give him a major league contract for just under a mil and see if he can make the team out of spring training.
They really need a Right Fielder because Swisher is terrible out there. Get a right fielder and put Swisher in LF and you’re golden
Not sure why that would be better. He’d have much more ground to cover in left than in right.
it has more to do with his terrible arm more than his range.
they should trade for Luke Scott 🙂
Let’s not switch things up now that Ajax has been traded. I can see him being a very good mlb player. However, if he becomes the next Curtis Granderson then he would’ve become a very good ballplayer. The kid will be all of 23 next year and for all the talk of him being a dissapointment last year he hit a decent .300/.350 w/excellent speed and defense. Please stop acting as if a 23 year old can’t improve after 1 year @ AAA. Some of you Yankee fans are being incredibley insane.
Also, Granderson turns 29 in March, not 30. He’s entering what should (hopefully) be his prime years and he’s signed to a relatively short term contract at reasonable cost.
Who in the world says Sizemore is on the block? Indians aren’t shopping him at all and probably won’t for another 2 years at least. He makes next to nothing.
I never said he couldn’t be good, but he needs to make some major improvements. For a guy who isn’t a power hitter he strikes out a lot (522 times in 568 games in his minor league career). His speed is good and he’s a good defensive outfielder, but given his high strikeout totals and rather poor approach at the plate I doubt he becomes a great player.
The Yankees could have Buck or Hairston or Cunningham from the A’s for not a lot at this point. They already have Davis, Crisp and Sweeney with Michael Taylor and Chris Carter nearly ready. Somebody will have to be traded from Oakland.
For everyone who says that Gardner’s a joke, he’s not that far off from Ellsbury. Don’t believe me? Look at their career road numbers (in an attempt to filter out the effects of the home park):Gardner: .288/.350/.397Ellsbury: .286/.333/.381I know you can’t completely disregard home numbers, but nonetheless, to this point, they appear to be fairly similar players offensively (on the road), and Gardy was much better defensively last season than Ellsbury. Gardner has been terrible at home, which is surprising given Yankee Stadium’s bandbox reputation (though in fact, it played as a slight pitcher’s park in 2009, below average in every aspect except home runs). Ellsbury has been better at home than on the road, likely benefitting from Fenway’s friendly confines (and the Monstah).To conclude my ramblings, the Yankees will be fine with Gardner in left, and he may be better than he is getting credit for.
what do you think about a trade for Ryan Braun? sounds a bit ridiculous, but a righty bat that plays left field…cant get better than Braun…the yankees have gotten rid of a lot of prospects, but for young talent (i.e. Granderson and Hoffman- Vasquez not so much) but by the time these traded players mature, the farm system will re-develop. Braun has an increasing salary like Granderson.
Braun can be inserted in the number three hole and everyone can move a slot down
Its either that or the Yankees offer Damon a contract for about $18M..$6M in 2010 and $12M in 2011 and with the signing of crawford and a possible trade for josh hamilton (getting rid of nick johnson and nick swisher) we can have four outfielders alternating time in the outfield and as DH
thoughts?
My thought on your post: YOUR INSANE
In my opinion Braun is at the point where if he isn’t the best leftfielder in baseball,than he’s top 3. Why would the brewers trade him when they have one of the best and youngest 3 4 combo in baseball in Braun and Fielder.
Next, Josh Hamilton, why would he be traded? I know people who have played with him in the minors, and they say in terms of just raw talent, he was the best. Why would he be traded?
The only legitimate possibility is Crawford, because he is a free agent next season. That is probably likely. I’m just curious, do you realize how much of the farm would be needed to be traded to get both hamilton and Braun? Lets put it this way, alot.
Ryan Braun is not getting traded from a mid-market team which feels it can compete every year. While he would be an absolute monster in the Bronx, even my Yankee-bias is prevented from even dreaming of something like this.
Braun is a difference maker. It would take Chamberlain, Montero, Nova, and (probably) McAllister on the table for the Brewers to stop laughing long enough to ask the question: Are you serious?
Ofcourse this is a big dream, but can be fulfilled with the right pieces. Maybe a re-signing of Wang, someone of lesser value at catcher like Romine, McAllister/Nova, and a good hitting prospect should do the trick. In this way, the yanks have great production from their youth in keeping Joba and Hughes.
well in regards to the best AVAILABLE, RIGHT HANDED hitting, left fielder who’s LOW ON BUDGET…Ryan Braun, like i said, is probably the best solution. I’m not saying that they will be traded, I’m just saying that they are possibilities with the right offer. Next, I didn’t say that the yanks should trade for both Hamilton AND Braun. Either trade for Braun this offseason OR for Hamilton next offseason.
still insane
Damon would be great on a 1-year, incentive-laden deal. But, that’s probably not going to happen.
Therefore, I support Johnson as the platoon with Gardy. Nobody can vouch for this Hoffman kid and Reed Johnson has proven productive versus lefties.
The added bonus: When Brett plays, Granderson would be able to shade to right field.
Sign Damon.
This has gone on long enough. I like Mike’s writing, but to omit Damon is ridiculous.
I’m just going to say something. I saw Jamie Hoffman here in Dominican Republic this winter playing for my team, and he sucks. I mean, he isn’t good defensively, no power, not a high average hitter. I just don´t understand what the Yankees are expecting of him.
Excuse my English
LOL are you serious? What a chach, can’t believe he’s almost guaranteed a spot on the roster.
The Brewers are a team looking to compete (see Randy Wolf signing), they have a loyal fan base and are profitable (see 3 mil in attenedance last year) and Braun is signed to a very affordable and team friendly contract @ 6/42 mil. He earns $1 mil in 2010, $4 mil in 2011 and $6 mil in 2012 and $8.5 mil in 2013. He doesn’t reach the $10 mil mark until 2014. He’s not going anywhere any time soon. And if he does then it’s because they have another kid coming up and are bowled over with mlb talent that can plug multiple holes. Can’t see him traded simply for prospects.
Damon or Johnson or Winn or Church or Baldelli
in that order.
Why would the Yankees worry about money? That is the best thing I like about the the organization. They do what it take to make the fans happy. That means you spend money sometimes. My vote: spend money and sign Damon. the other guys won’t make it through the season (because they suck) and they will have to trade for someone anyway. Do it now and save the trade deadline for small needs.
i love tabata i compared him to manny :/
Damon
From an Unbiased perspective, the Yanks are going to love Granderson. He is stellar defensively, potent offensively and has been so with limited protection in that Detroit line-up (outside of anyone named M-Cab). He is also one of the best clubhouse guys in the game. However, a shocking majority of baseball scouts all agree that A-Jax is going to be a super-star in 1-3 years. Detroit needed to get some value from Granderson while he still had some (his LH pitching stats have regressed) and maximized profit. They hated to do it, but by sending Granderson to New York, it enabled New York to send Kennedy to Arizona, which then made Arizona more willing to part with Max Scherzer. Outside of stubborn Yankee fans who think every player no longer on the Yankees sucks, most all agree that A-Jax will match granderson defensively, and is smarter on the basepaths offensively. I don’t think he will hit 30 homers like Granderson, but 20 and .300 BA is definitely likely and realistic. and thats what the Tigers always wanted out of Granderson, to lead-off and get on-base. Now Detroit has acquired a potential ace-of-staff, a better lead-off type, potentially gold-gloving CF, in addition to a potential lights out closer in Schelereth, and late inning stud Phil Coke. For what? A third-starter pitcher set to be expensive this year and the years to follow, and a CF that, while he is super-talented and will be sorely missed, doesn’t fit the job that they need him to accomplish.
For the record, I think that the Yankees got the best end of the deal now, and kennedy, coke, and jackson is a worthwhile cost. But the Tigers were far from ripped off. And deep down, Yanks fans know that Detroit got a heck of a haul for two players that weren’t going to make a difference IN DETROIT the next 1-2 years, which is how long detroit has them. Expect Detroit to be a full-out contender in 2012 and maybe even 2011.
Uh why the hell are you talking about that trade?
Garret Anderson. Why not?
considering Damon hit 24HR last year…in that lineup, Ryan Church would hit at least 35 HR’s ( 20 at home ) and provide good D in LF..
Why not makle a trade for David DeJseus ? He will only cost 4.5 for this year and 2011. Carl Crawford is making 10 million this year and it will take 13-15 to land him for 2011.
Of those options the only one I would like to see over Gardner/Hoffman is Ankiel, or obviously Damon if they can get him for less than 7 mil. per for no more than 2.
If the Yanks cant re-sign Damon, I’d like to see Ankiel in pinstripes. What do you guys think?
Type your reply…
Damon will be back once his price comes down some more.
Like JerseyJohn32190 said, you are looking at 1 year. You are also looking at a year where the entire Detroit lineup was hitting pretty poorly, and their hitting coach came under scrutiny for an entire lineup that had previously hit very well, and has been steadily declining. Not only that, Granderson hit better away from Comerico, which to a lefty is a lot bigger than Yankee Stadium. Granderson stands to hit 5+ more homers at home, and with extra work with Kevin Long, who is a good hitting instructor (as the #1 offense in 09′ will illustrate) will more than likely see his average go up all around.
A. Jackson will be a good CF’er, but most project him to be pretty similar to Granderson, with less power. His power has yet to develop, and if it ever does, is still a few years off, and his strikeout rate is pretty alarming (for someone with not much power). The Yankees’ main goal is to win the WS, not just to contend, so if they have a chance to pick up a player by trading someone who will eventually be a pretty similar player, why not?
And Granderson was an All Star in 09′ even with his low batting average, and although he wasn’t on the ballot in 07′ (because of Gary Sheffield) he recieved more write-in votes than any player in MLB history, which stands to reason he would’ve been selected in 07, if he were on the ballot.
Now, to help your argument that Jackson isn’t overrated, Granderson struck out at a pretty high rate in the Minors too, and he seems to be doing pretty good in the Majors. The only difference is, Jackson still hasn’t found his power, while Granderson had already developed it in the Minors.
Anyway, I would much rather have Curtis Granderson playing CF in 10′ for the Yankees than Cabrera, Gardner, or Jackson. That gives us the best chance to win, and that is the Yankees goal.
You are mistaken in your assesment that this was a poor trade. Granderson is a great CF’er, and a very good hitter. On top of that, he is just a stand up person off the field. Phil Coke was being figured out fast, due to a lot of use outta the bullpen, and was giving up the long ball in inopportune situations. Ian Kennedy was coming back from surgery, and although I wish he could’ve gotten another chance, he didn’t fare to well in his MLB debut. And Jackson, as stated before, he will eventually be a great MLB player, but the Yankees want to repeat, and with losing Matsui and possibly Damon’s offensive production, they needed to replace at least some of it. And in the process they picked up Granderson, which allowed them to trade Cabrera or Gardner, and with trading Cabrera they picked up Vasquez (for a #4 pitcher which is just insane). Anyway, that is just my 2 cents, albeit a very long 2 cents.
this was a reply to Kevin’s initial post about Granderson. not sure why it posted here but whatever.
Reed Johnson and Jerry Hairston Jr. made less money last year combined than is left in the Yankees budget this year. Signing both of them not only gives you a mostly regular left fielder, but flexibility at all outfield positions and also the infield. Sorry Johnny, but we had some good times and we’ll see you around
As a Cardinals fan, I will miss him. I don’t know if the Yankees will take him, but he should go to the AL. Even though he had a terrible year offensively, he is still probably the best defender in the game. Also, by going to the AL, even though it is tougher to hit there, I think he will bat alot better. AL pitchers have never pitched to him that much so hopefully he could bounce back. Anyway, best of luck Rick.
Well Braun was a pretty bad idea. How about a trade for Sizemore? It seems more realistic. He can play left and bat second; basically, he can take Damon’s spot on the roster.
He only makes $5.6M, which is in the Yankees’ budget and he can be replaced by Trevor Crowe on the Indians.
The Ganderson-Sizemore dilemma is that they are both AMAZING fielders with tremendous ability, but their batting average needs work.
The way I see it:
Jeter
Sizemore
Teixeira
Rodriguez
Granderson
Posada
Cano
Swisher
Johnson
Sizemore has a great OBP, which would function perfectly as the number two hitter. Johnson would be great at the end of the line-up with his great OBP, giving Jeter a chance to bat. Granderson can “protect” A-Rod with his lefty power (a bit naive to say, but I think he has potential as a big power guy).
Sizemore would be great as the Yankee LF but he would cost a ton in trade. I suspect that the Indians would ask for Hughes or Chamberlain as the key piece in return. DeJesus would be a solid upgrade on Gardner/Hoffman and wouldn’t be as expensive as Sizemore. A package of Gardner and Gaudin or Mitre could probably get the deal done.
They can also re-sign Jerry Hairston, Jr. as a super utility man.
Sizemore would cost a lot, in regards to the kind of return he would command. We’re talking about maybe giving up something along the lines of Austin Romine, Juan Miranda, Ivan Nova, and Zach McAllister.