This will probably be my last post in this series.
Posada came into the year after a career year and getting a huge new contract. He wasn't terrible but he certainly wasn't what he was last year. His play was affected by his injury. Runners could steal at will. Finally they decided to shut him down when they got Pudge Rodriguez. The trade for Pudge helped make the catcher position not a total disaster but he was still a dissapointment.
Matsui's injury also took a huge bat out the lineup. The offense has struggled this year and Matsui is a big reason why. They`ve had to juggle with mediocore to just plain bad hitters at DH without him. Now he`s making his way back from injury and could play tomorrow. However, it may be to late.
Showing posts with label The blame game. Show all posts
Showing posts with label The blame game. Show all posts
Monday, August 18, 2008
The Blame Game- Cano
Like his friend Melky, Cano has been a huge dissapointment. Coming into the year I thought he would be one of the best second baseman in the game. Although his fielding has been underrated this year in my opinion his hitting has been awful.
Although it looked like he was turning his season around in the second half he`s fallen off since then. This created some rumors that he might be traded for Matt Kemp.
Unlike Melky I think Cano will be okay. He`s shown more potential over his career. He`s also very reliant on his BA which means if he gets unlucky with his BABIP like he did this year he will suffer. He could still get hot and end the season with solid numbers. I also still want him and Jeter to switch positions. All in all I`m not to worried about Cano but he really hurt the team this year.
Although it looked like he was turning his season around in the second half he`s fallen off since then. This created some rumors that he might be traded for Matt Kemp.
Unlike Melky I think Cano will be okay. He`s shown more potential over his career. He`s also very reliant on his BA which means if he gets unlucky with his BABIP like he did this year he will suffer. He could still get hot and end the season with solid numbers. I also still want him and Jeter to switch positions. All in all I`m not to worried about Cano but he really hurt the team this year.
Saturday, August 16, 2008
The Blame Game- Melky
Melky has been a controversial figure for Yankees fans. On one side we had people who said he was young and that it was impressive for him to even be in the majors at his age. His fielding was great and his hitting could only improve from here. On the other side we had fans who though he was a 4th outfielder. His hitting was below average. His defense was overrated. I was one of the former.
I`ve been a huge supporter of Melky comparing him to guys like Carlos Beltran. However, he has been an absolutely pathetic hitter this year. Literally, he was one of the worst hitters in baseball this year. His defense also seemed to drop off with him making mental mistakes. It finally earned him a long overdue demotion to AAA for Brett Gardner who had a big day today. This year was an important one for Melky and he really blew it. I`m very close to calling him a bust.
In April things looked great for Melky. He had power developing and he was hitting. Things have gone only downhill from there. I think we may see him traded in the offseason. The only question is who will hold over centerfield until Austin jackson is (hopefully) ready. It doesn't look like it will be Melky.
I`ve been a huge supporter of Melky comparing him to guys like Carlos Beltran. However, he has been an absolutely pathetic hitter this year. Literally, he was one of the worst hitters in baseball this year. His defense also seemed to drop off with him making mental mistakes. It finally earned him a long overdue demotion to AAA for Brett Gardner who had a big day today. This year was an important one for Melky and he really blew it. I`m very close to calling him a bust.
In April things looked great for Melky. He had power developing and he was hitting. Things have gone only downhill from there. I think we may see him traded in the offseason. The only question is who will hold over centerfield until Austin jackson is (hopefully) ready. It doesn't look like it will be Melky.
Friday, August 15, 2008
The Blame Game- Wang
Our next target in this series is Chien Ming Wang.
He was hurt in interleague play (I think against the Pirates) while running around the bases. Hank came out with some comments about how the NL needed to make the pitchers stop hitting afterwards. He was upset and I can't really blame him. During every off-season it seems like theirs a debate over whether Chien Ming Wang is an ace or not. He came out of the gate pitching great as usual and was even striking out hitters with his slider. He slowed down as the season went on but his injury was a crippling blow. Whether he should be or not he`s the Yankees best pitcher and losing him was awful.
We had hopes he`s be back by the middle of September but he won't be until October when the Yankees won't be playing anymore. They`re throwing out bad pitchers and seeing if they can catch lightning in a bottle. That doesn't usually work out that well. Wang was irreplaceable for the Yankees. They`ll be glad to have him back next year.
He was hurt in interleague play (I think against the Pirates) while running around the bases. Hank came out with some comments about how the NL needed to make the pitchers stop hitting afterwards. He was upset and I can't really blame him. During every off-season it seems like theirs a debate over whether Chien Ming Wang is an ace or not. He came out of the gate pitching great as usual and was even striking out hitters with his slider. He slowed down as the season went on but his injury was a crippling blow. Whether he should be or not he`s the Yankees best pitcher and losing him was awful.
We had hopes he`s be back by the middle of September but he won't be until October when the Yankees won't be playing anymore. They`re throwing out bad pitchers and seeing if they can catch lightning in a bottle. That doesn't usually work out that well. Wang was irreplaceable for the Yankees. They`ll be glad to have him back next year.
Thursday, August 14, 2008
The Blame Game- The Big Three
We all knew going into the year that Cashman was taking a big risk by having 3/5 of our rotation as rookies. We heard going into the year that Kennedy was the most ready of the "Big Three." Next was Hughes and then Joba. Then in reverse order was the potential. It didn't work out like that. Hughes and Kennedy consistently were embarassingly awful. Both were injured as well fairly early on. Kennedy also seemed to have an attitude problem that we never heard about that surfaced again when he returned a week or so ago. We are still waiting for Hughes' return and I thought he had the potential to be the Yankees savior if they didn't fall back as far as they did.
On the other hand, Joba was everything they could have hoped for. He became one of the most dominating pitchers in baseball. His transition from the bullpen could not have been smoother which was partially because of the bullpen's dominance. Him and Mussina were a very good 1-2 punch in the rotation. However, as we all know he went down with rotator cuff tendinitis. Ultimately, that injury is one of the reasons they collapsed. Rasner and Kennedy each had one start that would have gone to Joba and very well may have been won. Also, his last start which he lost may have been affected by his injury.Had he gotten those 3 extra wins they`d be 3.5 games back instead of a devestating 6.5. Obviously, he may not have won them all though.
Kennedy seems to be in AAA for the rest of the year and his stock has plummeted in the eyes of Yankees fans. However, despite Hughes' struggles other GM's still seem to think highly of him. The last month and a half should be interesting just to see how Hughes does. He will get one more rehab start than be brought up again. Joba's injury does not seem to be long term and he was really great while up. I think its safe to pencil him in for a rotation spot next year (barring some unforseen September event). Kennedy seems to be on the path to be traded in the off-season while if Hughes pitches well he may earn himself a rotation spot next year.
Many fans may look back at the Johan Santana trade proposals now and wonder why we didn't made the move. Melky, Kennedy, and Hughes all failed to deliver this year. However, we need to give Hughes more time. Cashman really had no choice but to go with them for the season.
On the other hand, Joba was everything they could have hoped for. He became one of the most dominating pitchers in baseball. His transition from the bullpen could not have been smoother which was partially because of the bullpen's dominance. Him and Mussina were a very good 1-2 punch in the rotation. However, as we all know he went down with rotator cuff tendinitis. Ultimately, that injury is one of the reasons they collapsed. Rasner and Kennedy each had one start that would have gone to Joba and very well may have been won. Also, his last start which he lost may have been affected by his injury.Had he gotten those 3 extra wins they`d be 3.5 games back instead of a devestating 6.5. Obviously, he may not have won them all though.
Kennedy seems to be in AAA for the rest of the year and his stock has plummeted in the eyes of Yankees fans. However, despite Hughes' struggles other GM's still seem to think highly of him. The last month and a half should be interesting just to see how Hughes does. He will get one more rehab start than be brought up again. Joba's injury does not seem to be long term and he was really great while up. I think its safe to pencil him in for a rotation spot next year (barring some unforseen September event). Kennedy seems to be on the path to be traded in the off-season while if Hughes pitches well he may earn himself a rotation spot next year.
Many fans may look back at the Johan Santana trade proposals now and wonder why we didn't made the move. Melky, Kennedy, and Hughes all failed to deliver this year. However, we need to give Hughes more time. Cashman really had no choice but to go with them for the season.
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