Evaluating The New Acquisitions At The Break

(Courtesy of the AP)

(Originally published at IIATMS/TYA)

A popular thing to do in the blog world at the All-Star break is hand out midterm grades to your team's players and their first half performances.  Most of the grades you'd see from me if I were to do that would be C's, and that's not just because the Yankees have a .500 record and have looked blah in every way through 94 games.  For the most part, things have gone the way the way they had been going and the way they were expected to go for the returning Yankee core.  Father time has caught up to guys like Derek Jeter and Hiroki Kuroda, Ivan Nova and Michael Pineda have provided more questions than answers about their futures, and CC Sabathia's performance decline has continued in perfect harmony with his physical decline.  These guys are who we thought they were and who we were afraid they'd become.

It was the new guys on the block who were supposed to be the fixers.  They were the ones who were going to propel the holdover group back into the playoffs and bridge the gap into the next generation of Yankee baseball.  Brian McCann, Jacoby Ellsbury, Carlos Beltran, and Masahiro Tanaka, the $458 billion saviors.  Or so we thought.  Expectations have hardly been met by this group, although their respective performances have hardly been poor across the board, and some of the blame for the team's present position falls on some of these shoulders.  Here's a quick recap of how that half bil investment is paying off so far.

Inside Ellsbury's Hitting Streak

Jacoby Ellsbury went 1-4 last night, the 1 hit being the eventual game-winning one, and in the process extended his current hitting streak to 14 games.  To my knowledge, that's the longest hitting streak of the season for the Yankees and it's been a very reassuring stretch for Ellsbury after a lackluster month of May.  He's racked up 21 hits in 56 at-bats over the last 14 games (.375 BA), boosting his slash line back up to .286/.351/.406 from the season-low level of .258/.330/.379 before the start of the streak.  After looking like he had something wrong with his swing for all of last month, Ellsbury now looks like he's back to where he was at the start of the year and back to being the player the Yanks hoped they were getting.

Jacoby's Rotten Month Of May

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It's been the best of times and the worst of times for Jacoby Ellsbury in his first 2 months as a New York Yankee.  In April, he hit .312/.369/.452 in 103 plate appearances divided between the leadoff and #3 lineup spots, played a solid center field, and made a very good first impression on Yankee fans.  He was among the team and American League leaders in hits (29), runs scored (14), and stolen bases (8).

May has been far less kind to Ellsbury.  His production has dropped off dramatically, he's been a negative fWAR player, and the whispers about the Yankees overpaying have started popping up as they usually do when a player signs the kind of contract Jacoby did to come to new York.  After last night's 0-fer, Ellsbury's May slash line is down to .206/.315/.302.  He's scored 1 run in his last 5 games, has 1 hit in his last 7, 1 stolen base in his last 14, and 1 RBI in his last 15.  His season tripleslash is down to .269/.347/.391, good for a .325 wOBA and 102 wRC+.  What the hell happened to cause him to fall off this badly?

Report: Ellsbury Scratched From Today's Lineup

Ellsbury was in today's lineup, but he has been removed with tightness in his right calf. Yankees say it's precautionary.
— Jack Curry (@JackCurryYES) March 16, 2014

Well this isn't good news.  There was a report that Jacoby Ellsbury didn't take BP yesterday morning, but that turned out to be nothing because he hit inside instead so I don't think the 2 stories are related.  But being taken out of the lineup for health reasons is never a good thing.  Jack Curry said Ellsbury told Rob Thomson about it this morning and the decision was made.  According to Wally Matthews, Ellsbury is being called day-to-day right now and will not make the trip for the road game tomorrow.

Ellsbury Introductory Presser Wrap-Up

(Courtesy of the AP)

The Yankee formally introduced their second big free agent acquisition yesterday, holding a press conference for new center fielder to be Jacoby Ellsbury.  As always, there were a few moments of note.  If you were stuck at work like I was and unable to watch, here are the highlights:

- Ellsbury will wear #22, the same as some pretty significant Yankees before him wore.  He said he decided on 22 because all his other previous numbers he wore in Boston and in college - 2, 46, 23 - were either taken, off limits, or retired. Yeah, that'll happen when you come to this team.

- As with Brian McCann, Ellsbury said he spoke to a few current players before making the decision to sign.  Specifically, he said Derek Jeter and Mark Teixeira reached out to him to sell him on playing in New York.

- He played through a compression fracture in his foot in the postseason, but Ellsbury said he's fully healthy and able to have a normal offseason workout program.  When asked about his past injuries, Ellsbury said, "“I play the game hard.  I play the game, I feel like, the right way. That’s what I take pride in, going out there each and every day and giving everything I have. It was just two unfortunate things."

- Cash on the idea of Ellsbury's power playing up in YS3: “I’m not looking for that.  I certainly don’t want him to change his approach because of the ballpark."

- Joe's big comment to Ellsbury: "You're no longer a thorn in our side, you're a flower in our clubhouse."  Aaaaaaawwwwwwwwwwwww!

There's 2 officially in the fold for next year.  Time to get that Beltran physical over with and get him introduced too.

Jacoby Ellsbury Signing Thoughts & Afterthoughts

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I was shocked when the Yankees came out and signed Brian McCann.  Shocked.  I thought that was the one spot they'd be willing to take a hit and stick with their internal crew as they worked through their roster revamp plan this offseason.  Well they didn't and they surprisingly got him at basically market value.

I was absolutely blown away (BLOOOWHOA-WHOA-WHOA-OOOOOWN!!!!!!!) when the story of the Jacoby Ellsbury signing first broke last night.  I knew the Yanks had been in contact with him but I really thought he was their 3rd option behind Beltran and Choo.  With a speedy, low-power outfielder already on their roster, I didn't expect them to seriously go after another one and I definitely didn't expect them to give out the kind of deal they did to get Ellsbury.

My initial reaction to the deal was one of dislike.  I didn't like the years, I didn't like the money, I didn't like the lack of power, and I didn't like the spotty injury history tacked onto the length of the deal.  Now that I've had some time to think, consider, talk to people, read some other takes, and think some more, I think this is a move I can actually get on board with.

The Ellsbury-Cano-Boras Connection

(Courtesy of Getty Images)

(Originally published at IIATMS/TYA)

A little over 7 months ago, Robinson Cano decided that Scott Boras wasn't the right fit for him heading into free agency.  He ditched Boras and signed on with the then newly created Roc Nation Sports firm headed up by Jay-Z.  Last night, Boras got a 7-year/$153 million contract for one of his other clients, Jacoby Ellsbury, and he got it from the Yankees.  It's the 3rd highest contract ever given to a free agent outfielder and it comes with an option for an 8th year that could bring the total value to $169 million.

To be honest, I still don't know how I feel about the Ellsbury signing.  At first glance I'm not a fan of the years or the dollars but I'm smart enough to recognize how great he's been when he's been healthy.  I need a few more hours awake today to really put all my thoughts together on how this fits from a baseball perspective.  The one thing that does keep rattling around in my head right now is what the Ellsbury signing means for Cano.  It certainly doesn't him off the table for the Yanks.  They still have plenty of money to spend right now, as shown by Mike E. last night, and I still firmly believe Cano will re-sign with them.  If you'll allow me to put on my Jim Garrison hat for a few minutes, here's my quick little theory on how this move to sign Ellsbury could actually be a part of the Yankees' strategy with Cano.

Yanks Agree to 7-Year Deal With Jacoby Ellsbury (UPDATED)

This has all come out in the last 20 minutesor so, but apparently the Yankees and free agent outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury have agreed to a 7-year deal.

Jon Heyman first reported that the 2 sides were close, and it has since been confirmed by Mark Feinsand that it's a done deal pending a physical.  No specifics on the dollar amount but Feinsand says it will be bigger than Carl Crawford's 7/$142 million deal with Boston a few years back.

I honestly don't know what to say here.  I didn't see this coming and I don't think anybody did.  More on the story as it comes out.

** UPDATE 7:44 PM- Multiple Yankee beat guys confirming Heyman's report that the deal is close but still not done.  Feinsand now saying it's 7 years/$153 million.  This is shocking to say the least. **

** UPDATE 7:54 PM- Via Joel Sherman, the Yankees have stated that they have no intention of trading Brett Gardner.  If that's true, they'll have a hell of a defensive outfield. **

** UPDATE 8:04 PM- Via Bryan Hoch, there is an option for an 8th year that could bring the total value of the deal to $169 mil.  I imagine that's for AAV/payroll purposes but I still don't like it. **

** UPDATE 11/4 7:41 AM- Via Heyman, the deal includes a full no-trade clause.  That's 2 of those now for the 2 big signings. **