5 Reasons Why The Yankess Should Not Trade For Santana
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by Aprisco
I have to say, I'm a big Yankee fan and to me, getting Johan Santana would be a big mistake. Here's why:
1) We keep hearing that Santana is only 28 (he will be 29 before next season). While that's nice, he's already logged four 200+ innings seasons, plus playoffs (5 playoff starts). That's a lot of wear on the arm. He is coming off his worst season last year and the fact is, there is a history of power pitchers who log a lot of innings in their 20s, who cannot get it done into their 30s--see Fernando Valenzuela, Dwight Gooden, and Pedro Martinez, to name a few. Santana needs his mid-90s fastball to complement his changeup. He doesn't really have an effective 3rd pitch.
2) I don't care how good you are, you do not give a pitcher a 6 year contract....ever. Why? See 1 above. Pitchers are always one more pitch away from mediocrity. Think about what an albatross this contract would be if Santana gets hurt, or starts losing velocity on his fastball. Yikes!
3) Phil Hughes might be better than Joba Chamberlain. The Yankees are making Chamberlain untouchable, but they are contemplating putting Hughes in the trade. Now, the Yankees scouts probably know more than me, but Phil Hughes looks like a quality starting pitcher. He made 13 starts for the Yankees, won 5 and pitched well in his only playoff appearance. He also was injured most of the season and seemed to get better as he got himself in shape. At the end of the year, he was the Yankees best pitcher. He can get by as a two pitch pitchers since he has great live movement on his fastball, something you cannot teach. While everyone loves Joba, his fastball is flat and straight. He will need a third pitch as a starter and while I keep hearing he has four pitches, he never threw more than two as a reliever. He's never started a major league game. Plus you kill the bullpen if you move Chamberlain into the rotation. Chamberlain setting up Mariano Rivera was the key reason the Yankees made the playoffs last year. So while the Yanks would have Santana and Wang, the back end of their rotation would be really questionable. Hughes would win 15 games next year and would cost a lot less than Santana.
4) If you trade Melky Cabrera, the Yankees outfield defense becomes really bad. Johnny Damon in center and Hideki Matsui in left is a disaster. Neither can throw, Matsui has no range. Neither could make it 150 games healthy. And while the Yankees have talented youngsters Brent Gardner and Jose Tabata, neither is major league ready. Tabata played in A-ball, and Gardner had 180 at bats total in Triple A in which he hit .260. It would be quite a gamble to start one of them in centerfield next year. There's always a potential trade for a centerfielder (Gary Matthews) or even a free agent (Aaron Rowand, Andruw Jones), but that's not the same as having the home grown Melky.
5) Most importantly, a trade such as this signals a return of Old George in the form of Hank Steinbrenner. Get the established stars for your own young talent. I have news for you Hank: IT NEVER WORKED. NEVER. The Yankees won four world championships because George allowed his baseball people to do their thing and develop home grown talent. They did not bring in stars, but tough, competitive and good players. Resigning A-Rod (no world championships) and gunning for Santana signals a return to the old ways and return to mediocrity.
Don't do it!
