Friday Morning Food For Thought

(Courtesy of Thomas A. Ferrara/Newsday)

Yankee Pitching Staff in the 3 Years Before Larry Rothschild:

2008: 4.28/3.96/4.08, 18.5% K rate, 7.9% BB rate
2009: 4.28/4.32/4.17, 20.2% K rate, 9.2% BB rate
2010: 4.06/4.34/4.15, 18.9% K rate, 8.9% BB rate

Yankee Pitching Staff in the 3 Years Since Larry Rothschild came on board:

2011: 3.73/3.87/3.84, 19.7% K rate, 8.2% BB rate
2012: 3.86/3.98/3.75, 21.7% K rate, 7.1% BB rate
2013: 3.94/3.89/3.76, 20.1% K rate, 7.1% BB rate

I'd say bringing Larry back is the right move.  Cash just needs to get him some pitchers to work with next year.

2013 Storylines Review: All About Robinson Cano

(Courtesy of Corey Sipkin/NY Daily News)

When you're a flashy, talented, good-looking middle infielder in his early 30s playing in New York, chances are you're going to be the man.  That's the makeup of Robinson Cano, and under a different set of circumstances he would probably be the king of New York.  Unfortunately for him, he's come up in the Yankee organization during the Core Four Era and he's always been somewhat overshadowed by those players and the other bigger names and bigger contracts that have been brought in.

All that started to change a few years ago when those bigger names started to hit their mid-30s decline and Cano started to be recognized for his true talent.  Over the past few seasons he's risen up to be recognized as the best second baseman in baseball and one of the best all-around players in the game, and that upward trend hit its peak this season as he entered the final year of his current contract.  Cano could be the key to the Yankees' future as they move away from the Core Four years, and as the top potential free agent on the market this coming offseason he finally forced his way into the spotlight.

More Winter Ball Pitching Decisions

We know that Vidal Nuno is going to pitch this offseason.  We know that Dellin Betances is not.  Via Chad Jennings, we now know the plans for a few more of the younger Yankee pitching prospects.  Unsurprisingly, the plans involve a lot of inactivity.

- Manny Banuelos will not be pitching this winter after throwing all season to work his arm back into shape after TJS.  The team wants him to rest this winter and be ready for spring camp.

- Michael Pineda will also not be pitching this winter.  I expect him to throw in some capacity to stay sharp and keep his arm strength up, but he won't be pitching in game action until next spring.

- Jose Ramirez, who turned some heads this year in ST, was pitching in an instructional league after an oblique strain ended his season in the Minors.  He's not expect to pitch in winter ball either.

- Ty Hensley was also pitching in an instructional league as he works his way back from 2 hip surgeries.  He won't do anything formal in the winter but he'll continue to throw and progress back from surgery to hopefully be ready for spring.

It's not a confidence booster to read about so many injured pitchers, but at least they're all healthy and working their way back.  Being ready for next season is the most important thing now.

2013 Storylines Review: The Walking Wounded

(Exhibit A.  Courtesy of The NY Daily News)

Injuries.  Nothing can kill a team's chances for success faster than injuries.  Every year you know going in what players are going to perform well, what ones aren't, and you can reasonably anticipate a handful of players having better seasons than usual and a handful having worse.  What no manager ever knows is how injuries are going to affect his team, when they're going to strike, and how long they're going to last.  The Yankees, to a certain extent, bucked that trend in 2013 by heading into the season with a well-known collection of injuries: Jeter's ankle, A-Rod's hip, CC's elbow, Mo's knee.  And that was just the tip of the iceberg.

In my "Walking Wounded" preview post in March, I pointed out that "the Yankees' main backup options for their injured regulars are injury risks in their own right" and said, "If the Yankees are going to be a player in the postseason race in 2013, they're going to have to find a way to overcome these injury hurdles."  They never did and more than anything that could be the reason they finally fell out of the postseason race in late September.

Yankees Re-Sign Joe Girardi To A 4-Year Deal (Updated)

Guess he wasn't as "torn" between New York and Chicago as it seemed.

As formally announced by the team just minutes ago, the Yankees and manager Joe Girardi have agreed to a new 4-year contract that will keep him at the helm through 2017.  No specifics of the deal or money has been announced, but there is a conference call scheduled for 4 PM and I expect those details will come out then.

Smart move by the Yankees.  Joe was and is the best man for the job.  More on this story as it becomes available.

** UPDATE 2:17 PM- Jon Heyman reporting that the deal is worth $16 million plus bonuses.  Pretty fair raise from Joe's last deal and not as steep as I expected. **

** UPDATE 3:33 PM- Via the conference call, Joe said he initiated the discussion about a 4th year, saying he liked the stability it brought. **

Thinking About C-Grand's New Contract

(Courtesy of Getty Images)

(Originally published at IIATMS/TYA)

If you're the type to put weight in early October hot stove rumors, it appears there's already another potential suitor for Curtis Granderson this offseason.  A Chicago Sun-Times report this past weekend painted the White Sox as an interested party, citing the always anonymous source who said they were expected to make "a hard push" for Granderson.  Like the Yankees, the White Sox were a hot offensive mess this season.  They could use Granderson's power, local ties, and personality to help inject some life into their franchise and put a few more butts in the stadium seats.

The Yankees were expected to make C-Grand a qualifying offer once the offseason started, although their true motivations for doing so are a bit of an unknown.  After seeing what Ichiro and Vernon Wells were still capable of in full-time outfield roles (nothing), the Yanks could certainly use Granderson in one of the corners and in the middle of the lineup next year.  With the criticism of their inability to develop any impact talent through the farm system getting louder and the front office acknowledging that changes need to be made, another 1st round draft pick would be nice to add to the MiL rebuilding effort.  Oh yeah, there's also that pesky little "goal not a mandate" payroll crunch in play.

Betances Not Allowed To Play Winter Ball?

(Scene inside Mark Newman's office.  Phones rings)

"Hello, this is Mark."

"Mr. Newman, this is Dellin Betances."

"Dellin, how are you, son?  What can I do for you?"

"Well, I was hoping I could get your permission to pitch in the Dominican Winter League this offseason.  I know I made some strides on improving my command once you moved me to the bullpen and I'd like to continue working on refining my mechanics so I can win a spot on the Major League roster next spring.  I know it's my last chance."

"Refine your mechanics, eh?  That would be beneficial to both you and our team.  We're going to need arms in the bullpen and you'd be an ideal option as a cheap, homegrown player.  But I'm sorry, I just can't allow that.  Thanks for calling though.  Enjoy your offseason."

I'm sure it didn't go down quite that way, but I really don't understand the Yankees' decision to not let Betances pitch in winter ball.  He obviously still needs the work to be an effective Major League reliever, and it's not like he threw an overwhelming number of innings this year (89.0 total between Triple-A and the Majors).  I hope the team has something else in mind for him if they don't want him pitching in game situations.  Letting somebody with sloppy mechanics like his sit all winter is hardly a smart plan when he's one of the players being considered for a bullpen spot next year.

2013 Storylines Review: Shoring Up The 2014 Rotation

(Get out of there, Joba.  You're ruining the shot.  Courtesy of the AP)

Yesterday we officially kicked off the 2013 AB4AR "Season Review" series with a look back on how the team's plan to contend on a budget worked out.  If you missed the post yesterday and don't have the energy to click the link and catch up, here's a spoiler alert- it didn't.  The same could be said for the team's efforts to address the 2014 rotation.  To have any chance of contending this season, the Yankees were going to need a strong showing from their starting rotation, and they correctly focused most of their offseason efforts on building up that rotation.  But in addressing the needs of the 2013 rotation, they were also creating a bunch of questions about the 2014 version.  The hope was that a lot of those questions would be answered this year, but the end results have left the Yankees with even more issues to address.

This Postseason Is Everything The Yankees Aren't

I've watched a fair amount of the MLB postseason so far, but last night was the first night I really sat down and WATCHED the games for extended periods of time.  With every series in action and the week's fantasy football matchup win already locked up, the timing was perfect.  As I sat watching 3 close, competitive, great games I was struck by a jarring reality; the Yankees really don't deserve to be in the postseason.  OK, maybe it's not that jarring when you remember how bad most of their team numbers were this season, but jarring in a sense that goes beyond the numbers.

It's more than just the numbers, it's the way the teams in the playoffs have built their rosters to contend.  There are bits and pieces everywhere of what the Yankees used to be, what they've gotten away from, and what they've never been.  The collection of teams in the playoffs and the various paths they've taken to get there are a perfect example of just how far off the mark the Yankees are with their business and baseball models.

Early C-Grand Interest Should Sway Yankee QO Decision

Last week I said I thought the Yankees should make Curtis Granderson a qualifying offer without even knowing how the market for him was going to shape up.  Based on the latest reports coming out of Chicago, it sounds like that market is coming together already.

A report in the Chicago Sun-Times on Sunday said the White Sox are expected to make "a hard push" for Granderson this offseason.  They need a lot of help on offense too, especially in the outfield, and Granderson has strong ties to the Chicago area where he grew up.  His skillset and local connections would be a great addition to a club that needs to bring some fans back to the park after a disastrous 2013 season.

As far as the Yankees are concerned, this rumor should be a strong indicator that there will be suitors for C-Grand out there and reason enough to make him a qualifying offer.  Even if they don't offer him a big deal, the White Sox would probably go more than 1 year and $14 million to get Granderson and would probably be willing to give up the draft pick to do it.  Odds are the Yankees won't be willing to go more than that, so they can at least recoup the pick for losing C-Grand by making the QO.

Previewing The Yankees' Arizona Fall League Representatives

(Originally published at IIATMS/TYA)

The 2013 Arizona Fall League season kicks off tomorrow night, another chance for established prospects to improve their stock and non or fringe prospects to possibly work their way onto the Major League radar.  The Yankees will once again be well represented, sending 7 players to join the Scottsdale Scorpions, but unlike last year the 7 representatives aren't all household names.  This year's group includes everybody from top 3 organizational prospects to a few players whose names you might have never heard.  If you aren't up to date on who's making the trip this fall, here's your refresher.

2013 Storylines Review: Contending On A Budget

("Add any more money to 2014 and I'll f*cking kill you."  Courtesy of Getty Images)

Way back in March, I opened up the "2013 AB4AR Season Preview" series with a post on the most important storyline the team was going to face this year, how the hell they were going to manage to contend on a budget.  In a vacuum, the Yankees cutting payroll down to $189 million and still staying competitive is the easiest thing in the world.  They're still the biggest, baddest dudes on the block with the deepest pockets and they're still spending more than every team in MLB not named the Dodgers.  If any team can put together a winner with a hair under $200 mil, it's the Bronx Bombers.

Baseball isn't played in a vacuum though, especially not the business-savvy version of Major League Baseball that's spread across both leagues in the last handful of years.  The Yankees' plan to start their payroll cutting plan in 2013 while still maintaining their traditional level of competitiveness was flawed from the beginning and they executed that plan to flawless flawed perfection over the course of the season.  Whether Hal Steinbrenner truly meant what he said when he said he was still committed to fielding a championship-caliber team is irrelevant.  What is relevant is the fact that attempting to do that in the way the Yankees did in 2013 was completely and utterly wrong.

Where In The World Is Michael Pineda?

(Courtesy of Martin Griff/The Times of Trenton)

It's been 3 months since Michael Pineda was activated off the disabled list to continue rehabbing his shoulder from 2012 surgery.  It's been 2 months since he was removed from his final Triple-A start of the season with stiffness in that shoulder and shut down for the rest of the season.  Despite the team taking a very cautious approach with his rehab workload, and despite Cash saying at his year-end presser that Pineda was and is healthy, the fact remains that he was shut down for the season after throwing only 40.2 official MiL innings and has still yet to throw 1 regular season pitch as a Yankee after 2 years.

There's been little to no information on what Pineda has been doing since being shut down.  He spent the remainder of the regular season throwing side sessions at the team complex in Tampa, but there's been no talk of the next step or a plan for 2014.  Cash continues to take the cautious stance with Pineda, saying only that Pineda would "compete for a job" next spring and referencing the MiL options he still has remaining.  Knowing, at least based on Cash's word, that Pineda was healthy at the end of this season and knowing what the team's intentions were when they traded for him, that's just not good enough for me.

Monday Morning Food For Thought

(Courtesy of Getty Images)

Robinson Cano vs. LHP 2010: .369 wOBA, 13 HR, 13.0% K rate
Cano vs. LHP 2011: .375 wOBA, 8 HR, 13.9% K rate
Cano vs. LHP 2012: .290 wOBA, 6 HR, 17.5% K rate
Cano vs. LHP 2013: .343 wOBA, 7 HR, 16.5% K rate

2012 was brutal, 2013 was a nice bounce back but still not up to his usual standards.  What do those last 2 years say about Robbie's production against southpaws moving forward?

Latest On Joe's Contract Talks

It's been a few days since the Yankees and Joe Girardi sat down for their first meeting regarding Joe's new contract.  It was reported that the team made Joe their first offer at that meeting, and while Joe didn't accept it, he and his agent did respond with some of the things they were looking for in a new deal.  A follow-up offer was expected shortly after from the team, and according to Joel Sherman's latest reports, the offer was supposed to come on Friday.

It hasn't been confirmed or denied from either side whether that happened, but I think it's safe to assume that at the very least some new figures were exchanged in the last day or so.  The Yankees have made it clear that bringing Joe back is a priority, evidenced both by their quick start in getting talks going with Joe and their refusal to allow other teams (Cubs, Nationals) to interview Joe while he's still under contract.  Sherman's guess was a deal somewhere in the 3-year/$13-16 million range and it wouldn't come as a surprise if a new contract in that range was announced early next week.

Could The Yanks Be Getting Back Into The International Free Agent Game?

The last time the Yankees took a plunge in the international free agent market, they ended up spending almost $50 million on Kei Igawa, the Droopy Dog-faced Japanese lefty who proved to be worth not even a single cent of that money.  Ever since that disaster, one in which the Yanks admitted they didn't even know what pitches Igawa threw, New York has spent the last few offseasons on the sidelines when it's come to the top international free agents, choosing to spend their money on more well-known MLB commodities.  In doing so they've missed out on guys like Yu Darvish and Yoenis Cespedes, high-ceiling talents who came with question marks and price tags that proved to be enough to scare the Yankee front office away.

With the team hanging perilously on the edge of a major decline, the roster looking old and beat up, and ownership putting a cap on the salary, this offseason might not be a bad time for the Yankees to tag themselves back into the international market and inject their franchise with some much-needed youth and excitement.  With the way they've tracked the 2 biggest names in this year's market, that could be exactly what they're planning to do.

The A-Rod SueFest 2013 Continues

Fresh of the heals of absolutely boomsaucing Bud Selig in his lawsuit against MLB on Thursday, Alex Rodriguez and his legal team kept the momentum going with another lawsuit today.

Via Ken Davidoff, A-Rod has filed a medical malpractice lawsuit against Yankee team doctor Christopher Ahmad and the NYPC Medical Center for misdiagnosing his hip injury back in 2012.  This is right in line with the claims A-Rod made months back about people conspiring to keep him off the field and most likely related to his allegation that the team hid his MRI results from him initially.  I hope this circus never ends.  If Alex is going to go down as Bud's PED sacrificial lamb, he might as well try to make everybody else look as shitty as he does.

Friday Afternoon Linkapalooza: 10/4/13

I don't know about y'all, but I'm ready to settle in for a long Saturday of college football after missing it for the horse track last week.  Now onto the links!

- On Monday, Alex Belth of Bronx Banter put Mo's career greatness on display in graphical form.  Really cool stuff to look at, especially the breakdown of saves by catcher.

- William Juliano of The Captain's Blog looked at the slew of disturbing performance trends in 2013 that could lead to even darker days in Yankeeland if changes aren't made.

- Greg Corcoran of Bronx Baseball Daily attempted to predict the 2014 MiL rosters.

- On Tuesday, Derek Albin of Pinstripe Pundits commented on the the disagreement between the Yankees' expected and actual records in 2013, and the impact that may or may not have on the ownership's offseason direction.

- Matt Bove of IIATMS/TYA listed the top 5 issues the Yankees need to address this offseason.  Personally I don't think I could have narrowed a list down to just 5, so good on Matt for doing it.

- On Wednesday, Daniel Burch of The Greedy Pinstripes presented the complete list of arbitration-eligible Yankees and offered up his salary predictions for each.

- On Thursday, Vizzin of NoMaas issued his lengthy, and not very optimistic, forecast for 2014.

- Mike Axisa of RAB reset the landscape for Michael Pineda and pointed out how he's just as big a question mark now after 2 missed seasons than he was the minute the Yankees traded for him.  That's depressing.

- Jason Cohen of Pinstriped Bible interviewed pitching prospect Shane Greene, who may have had the best under-the-radar season in the Minors.  Greene should be showing up on some prospect lists this year.

- On Friday, Chad Jennings of LoHud broke down the A-Rod lawsuit into easier-to-understand legal chunks.  Very helpful if you're not in the legal field or just stupid like me.

- Ricky Keeler of Yanks Go Yard pointed out how the rest of the AL East is bypassing the Yankees in terms of talent and overall organizational direction.

- SG of RLYW examined the second base production from the rest of MLB to see what other suitors could be out there for Robinson Cano if the Dodgers are truly out of the running.

This Friday's jam is "Walk Idiot Walk" by The Hives.  Are The Hives still around anymore?  These guys were the shizz back in the day.



Enjoy your weekends, everybody.

AB4AR's 2013 Yankees End-Of-Season Awards

I'd like to come up with another intro recapping the ups and downs of the season, but honestly, we all know how it went and we don't need to be reminded of it again.  Let's just cut to the chase.  After the jump, AB4AR is proud to present its winners of the 2013 seasonal awards.

On CC's 2013 Home Run Problem

(Courtesy of Getty Images)

(Originally published at IIATMS/TYA)

It was a rough season for CC Sabathia.  It started rough with a delayed throwing program and low velocity, it stayed rough with constant fastball velocity/command issues, and it finished rough with a Grade II hamstring strain that shelved him before he could make his final start.  The most damaging byproduct of those fastball problems was the major increase in HR allowed in 2013.  Sabathia set a new career worst with 28 dingers against, good bad for 7th most in all of MLB.  That total and final ranking comes after the big guy went homerless in September, so without that late SSS luck he could have found himself top 5 or even top 3 like he was for most of the year.

BREAKING NEWS: A-Rod Sues MLB (Updated)

Well this is quite the unexpected turn of events.  According to a story published this morning by the New York Times, Alex Rodriguez and his legal team sued Major League Baseball last night, claiming they are leading a "witch hunt" to force him out of the game that MLB engaged in "tortious interference" as part of their attempt to build their suspension case against A-Rod.

The biggest accusation is one involving an MLB investigator paying $150,000 to Anthony Bosch for records on A-Rod that his legal team claims were stolen.  The specifics of the money exchange read like something out of "Ocean's Eleven" and if this turns out to be true that would be a huge blow to MLB.  I can't imagine that 211-game suspension would be upheld by the arbitrator if it turns out they were using tactics this shady to gather intel.

A-Rod said a few months back that he was going to be in a fight for his life with this appeals case and he's certainly handling it that way.  Love him or hate him, you have to give his legal team credit for doing everything they can to discredit MLB and paint A-Rod in a more sympathetic light.  The appeals hearing won't wrap up today, and there's no scheduled time table for when it will pick up again, but with this latest twist it should only get more interesting from here.

** UPDATE 10:00 AM- Here's the PDF of the full lawsuit.  Definitely take a minute to read that introduction. **

Biggest Cano Competition Out Of The Running Already?

Via Bob Nightengale, here's Magic Johnson last night on where the Dodgers stand in the possible Robinson Cano free agent sweepstakes:

"I can't talk about the other guy, but you already know that guy in New York is going to be paid. Not by us. But he's going to get paid.''

Now there is a non-zero possibility that Magic is just saying that to say it, but it would make sense for LA to take themselves out of the running for Cano.  They've spent a shit ton of money the last few years and it's a known fact that their major focus is locking Clayton Kershaw up long term.  If they are truly planning to stay away from Cano, that's a huge boost to the Yankees in terms of being able to re-sign him and re-sign him for terms that are friendlier to them.

Your move, Hova.

A Look At The Current 2014 Roster

(Originally published at IIATMS/TYA)

To further drive home the point that the Yankees have a ton of work to do this offseason, and to start to quell any high expectations you may still have for a bounce back season in 2014, here's what the 2014 Opening Day Roster could look like if it was comprised of only returning organizational players:

Lineup:

 C- Austin Romine
1B- Mark Teixeira
2B- David Adams
SS- Derek Jeter
3B- Eduardo Nunez
LF- Alfonso Soriano
CF- Brett Gardner
RF- Ichiro Suzuki
DH- Vernon Wells

Thursday Late Morning Food For Thought

Hiroki Kuroda 2012: 3.32/3.86/3.67, 18.7% K rate, 5.7% BB rate, 3.7 fWAR
Hiroki Kuroda 2013: 3.31/3.56/3.60, 18.2% K rate, 5.2% BB rate, 3.8 fWAR

Kuroda 2nd Half 2012: 3.14/3.63/3.34, 19.1% K, 4.3% BB
Kuroda 2nd Half 2013: 4.25/3.51/3.46, 18.9% K, 5.4% BB

Kuroda September 2012: 4.71/4.03/3.57, 20.3% K, 7.0% BB
Kuroda September 2013: 5.70/3.85/3.82, 20.0% K, 8.9% BB

What's more important to you?  The strong overall numbers or the late season decline?  And do you have faith he can do it again at 39?

Yanks Reportedly Make Offer To Joe

One thing's for sure, the Yankee front office doesn't appear to be wasting any time getting to work on their offseason to-do list.  They sat down with Joe and his agent yesterday, as previously announced by Cash, and reportedly made him an offer for a new contract in the course of the meeting.  According to Jon Heyman, Joe and his team didn't accept, but responded with a set of terms for his return and the 2 sides agreed to meet again today.

This all comes as positive news if you're in the camp that wants Joe back.  The team is being aggressive in their pursuit to re-sign Joe while they still have exclusive rights to negotiate with him.  Joe's current contract isn't up until the end of this month and with the Cubs reportedly preparing to make him a "significant" offer of their own, the Yankees can and should be using the time they have wisely.  The fact that another meeting was scheduled for today strongly suggests that yesterday's discussions went well and both sides are happy with where the talks are progressing.

It's still early for predictions, but if things keep up at this pace it's unlikely Joe ever gets out on the open market for the Cubs to make their pitch.