Many Decisions on Horizon for Yankees
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by Audino237
The tears have dried in the Bronx, so now the front office must finally decide what to do with all of the free agents they have, and options on the free agent market. The biggest decisions are Joe Torre and Alex Rodriguez, but there are many other choices the team must decide upon. I won't say what I think they should do in each issue; I'll leave that up to readers. I will, however, list out choices and options that they do have. There are 2 schools of thought and then some floaters somewhere in between. Some people want a fresh start, conceding that their run of dominance is over. There should be a new manager, let the older players leave, and build for coming years with the farm system. Then there are people who think that this team is not that far away from a title, and the Yanks should remain intact for another stab at i,t and just need to make minor tweaks. Of course there are people not committed to either way who want some combination of firing/re-signing Torre, letting A-Rod walk or negotiate with him (assuming he opts out), keeping or letting go of Posada and Rivera, and exercising Bobby Abreu's option. Anyway, here are the issues (however realistic they may be).
To fire Torre or retain him:
Joe Torre has averaged nearly 100 wins in his 12 years in the Bronx. One could say that he had his 2 best years as a manager the last 2 years, steering the team through injuries and growing pains to playoff appearances. As Yankee manager, he has never failed to reach the playoffs. On the other hand, they have not advanced to the ALCS in 3 years, and Torre might not be able to get this team over the hump.
-Keep Torre
-In-house options Joe Girardi and Don Mattingly
-Tony La Russa (who would come in a package with pitching coach Dave Duncan)
If A-Rod opts out, do they try to re-sign him?
If he chooses free agency instead of not opting out or hammering out a deal before he hits the market, the Yankees have a tough decision. He symbolizes the playoff failures. However, he has been the best player in baseball the last 3 years, and is poised to break almost every major offensive record in coming years. He should know that going into the hall of fame as a Yankee holds something special. Other teams like the Cubs, Dodgers, and Angels, among many others, would be sure to throw huge money at him, but nothing the Yanks couldn't match. The options are clear cut.
-Let A-Rod walk and say good riddance.
-Pay the best player in the world and take him back (if he wants to, that is)
If he won't come back, what to do at 3rd?
There is obviously no way to replace the biggest star in the game. There would be many options out there. Wilson Betemit showed a decent glove in his stint with New York. He is a switch hitter with very good power who has never had a regular role. He could assume 3rd base duties. If the Red Sox for some reason do not re-sign Mike Lowell, he could return to the organization that brought him up. They could go for a relatively cheap option on the free agent market, someone who is a solid hitter.
-Mike Lowell
-Let Wilson Betemit move to 3rd, sign a utility man
-Low-cost, low-risk option like Mark Loretta or Mike Lamb
Starting Catcher
The first option and the best option is of course not letting Jorge Posada leave for another team, especially now that Detroit has held onto Pudge Rodriguez. Posada's decision on whether or not to return may hinge on Joe Torre. If Torre leaves, I unfortunately believe that Jorge is as good as gone. They could sign Jose Molina, last year's backup, to be the starter. There are some decent options on the market who are relatively young. These include light-hitting Yorvit Torrealba and defense-optional Michael Barrett.
-Re-sign Posada
-Option off the free agent market (Barrett, Torrealba, heck, maybe even Ramon Castro)
Backup Catcher:
Of course, if Posada returns they will not want a relatively expensive option like Barrett or Torrealba backing him up. They would try to re-sign Molina, who has said he'd take a backup role in New York over a starting job in many other places. If Molina is the starting catcher or a relatively young catcher is signed, they will need other backup options.
-If Posada returns they could re-sign Molina or someone cheaper, like Brad Ausmus or Paul Lo Duca.
-In either situation, they could bring up 21 year old Fransisco Cervelli. They need to groom a replacement regardless.
First Base/DH:
The Yankees have many candidates for these spots. Torre did a very good job balancing the playing time and putting guys in spots where they could be successful. This challenge also involves the left field role. Jason Giambi is still a powerful option as a left handed DH, and even played some first base. He also played well as a pinch hitter. Shelley Duncan, the son of Cardinals (and maybe future Yankees) pitching coach Dave Duncan, is 27 years old and came up midway through the year and offered good power. He can play DH, first base, and corner outfield. Johnny Damon still has decent range, but can no longer be a full-time centerfielder. He played well in left this year. He is valuable and effective as DH or pinch hitter because he has many nagging injuries that need rest. Doug Mientkiewicz is a free agent but played well early in the year. He offered more offense then expected and played tremendous defense. He made a number of excellent plays in the ALDS. Unfortunately, he may be allowed to leave because of the glut of players at these positions,but he would be severely missed. Hideki Matsui and Johnny Damon should split time as the everyday left fielder, but he is getting older and needs days on the bench or in the DH role. In the options below, I will also give a surprising scenario that could happen.
-First Base: No everyday 1B, split between Giambi, Duncan, Damon, Andy Phillips, Doug Mientkiewicz
-Have Giambi be the everyday 1B
-Have Mienkiewicz be the everyday 1B
-DH: Split time between all of the players, just as Torre did the past few months. Lineups change due to matchups.
-Interesting scenario: Abreu has a team option. If the Yanks let him walk, they may target Adam Dunn (who has a $13M team option). He could play a corner outfield spot, 1B, or DH.
-Even more interesting (I'm not shy, I hope and pray this doesn't happen). Sammy Sosa, Barry Bonds, Mike Piazza, Luis Gonzalez, and Mike Sweeney will be free agents.
Outfield:
Hideki Matsui and Johnny Damon will be back. Melky Cabrera will most likely remain the everyday centerfielder. The Yankees can let Abreu go by paying a $2M buyout or exercise their $13M club option.
-Have Melky remain in center, Abreu in right, and a Matsui/Damon platoon in left (with a little dose of Shelley Duncan.
-Let Abreu leave, have Damon become the full time left fielder and Matsui the right fielder. They would have Bronson Sardinha and a free agent like Brad Wilkerson or Reggie Sanders as the 4th outfielder.
- Let Abreu leave. Have a Matsui/Damon platoon in left. Move Cabrera to right field. Make a big-time signing like Aaron Rowand, Torii Hunter, or Andruw Jones to play center.
Starting pitching:
The starting pitching did the Yankees in during the ALDS. Yes, the pitching was attrocious, but the bullpen was overworked and the starter's outings were short, just what plagued them in the regular season. The fantastic showings by CC Sabathia, Fausto Carmona, and Paul Byrd further highlighted New York's inability to pitch. We will discount Johan Santana, though the Yankees may be major players. We will also assume that Roger Clemens is done for good (I would hope the Yankees would ignore a Rocket comeback anyway).
There figures to be 2-3 rotation spots locked up (depending on Andy Pettite's decision to either retire or exercise his $16M 2008 option). Phil Hughes and Chien-Mien Wang will also be starters. There are a number of candidates to round out the rotation. Mike Mussina will be in the last year of his contract making $14.3M, but he did little to prove he has anything left. Ian Kennedy pitched extremely well filling in for Mussina until he got hurt. Tyler Clippard was effective for the most part as a starter. Joba Chamberlain was a revelation as a set-up man, and the organization has reitirated that he fits into their plans as a starter. His role on the team of course hinges on what they do with Mariano Rivera. Jeff Karstens was not terrible, and Humberto Sanchez is a flamethrower who is recovering from surgery.
- They may try to go young and thrust Kennedy and Clippard into the 4-5 roles, and either buy out Mussina or have him as a 6th starter/long man.
-Have Mussina, the savvy veteran, be in the rotation along with the Big Three and either Kennedy or Joba (see below).
-If they can secure Rivera and enough bullpen help, Joba will fulfill the role for which he was drafted, as a starter. He could be the 4th starter, followed by Mussina or Kennedy. A rotation of Pettite, Wang, Hughes, Chamberlain and Kennedy would certainly be one of the youngest, talented rotations in the majors and would energize the Stadium. It would also help in terms of developing a very competitive team for the new Stadium in 2009.
-There are few effective free agents on the market, and the top 2 guys (Kyle Lohse and Carlos Silva) are effective number 3's at best and will be very expensive for being mediocre. Assuming that they don't want another go-round with Jeff Weaver, they may target (low risk, high reward pitchers such as Freddy Garcia and Bartolo Colon. Former Yank Eric Milton is a free agent, as are Tom Glavine and Kenny Rogers, but we should fully expect them not to go after any 40-something pitcher.
Relief Pitching:
This is a fun one to speculate. The biggest decision of all is whether or not to re-sign Mariano Rivera, who's decision may also depend on Joe Torre's future with the team. I will split the options up into 2 divisions: whether or not Mo returns.
-If Rivera is brought back
-Nothing would be better then this. He deserves to return to the Yankees, and it would pain me or any other fan to see him in another uniform. It's not like he is ineffective, either. His stats remain eerily similar year after year.
-If he returned, they could keep Joba Chamberlain as a set-up man with electric stuff or move him to the rotation. If they move him to the rotation, it could mean one of two things: He is being put there out of necessity with the intention of moving him back to the pen when Rivera starts to slip, or that they are committing to Andrew Brackman, their 6-10 flamethrowing draft pick out of NC State who is recovering from Tommy John surgery, to be their next closer.
- They could keep Chamberlain in the pen and piece together a bullpen from what they have, including FA's Ron Villione and Luis Vizcaino, along with Kyle Farnsworth and Edwar Ramirez.
-They could sign a big name, like Fransisco Cordero or Octavio Dotel to be a sort of super-set up man while having Chamberlain in the rotation.
-Let the older free agents go and roll the dice with Sanchez, Ross Ohlendorf, and Ramirez in big roles.
-This is where it gets sketchy. Here are choices if Rivera leaves.
-Let Chamberlain assume the role of closer, which I'm sure is what the fans would love.
-Sign the sure thing Cordero, or take a gamble with Dotel (who failed in his first New York stint) or, gulp, Eric Gagne.
-Let Farnsworth close while having Joba in the rotation.
-A closer-by-committee of Ramirez, Farnsworth, Sanchez, Bruney, Vizcaino. Ouch.
-An older, less expensive close to keep the seat warm for Chamberlain or Brackman, such as Todd Jones, Bob Wickman,Joe Borowski, or LaTroy Hawkins.
In addition to the back end of the rotation, the Yankees obviously need help in the middle. They could have Mussina as the long man, or someone like Karstens if he is released. They could sign a number of proven middle men (however, they are wildly inconsistent year to year) like Scott Linebrink, Jeremy Affeldt, or Russ Springer. They could also reach into their plethora of young pitchers, like Stephen Jackson, Sanchez, Ohlendorf, Matt DeSalvo, Chris Britton, Alan Horne and Jeff Marquez to form a young, homegrown staff that can develop chemistry together (though they would be SURE to take their lumps)
