As tempting as it might be to portray the results of yesterday’s Steinbrenner/Cashman/Torre meeting as acts of desperation, clearly something had to be done. Bernie Williams’ defensive decline in center field has never been more apparent, and any injection of youth (never mind a bona fide prospect like Robinson Cano) makes the current Yankees seem less likely to be euthenized.
Of course, moving Tony Womack to left and Hideki Matsui to center means that a mere 2/3rds of the Yankee outfield will be playing out of position.
How else was Brian Cashman going to sell his move for an outfielder to WFAN, the Daily News, etc? He couldn’t get a CF in July and not admit that he made a mistake in passing on Beltran in January…and furthermore, it’s a lot easier finding an OF who can play left, than it is finding a centerfielder. Furthermore (again), Matsui was a CF in Japan (no, not Kaz – though he often looks it).
If Cano works out at 2B fine, and the Yankee fans who’ve been pleading for the team to develop some of their own farmhands are appeased, and they’ve got a young second baseman again. If Cano fails by June, then they’ve got Womack if they still want him.
I’m not at all a Yankee fan – but I think this is a sensible move for a struggling team. This is the first sensible move since they stopped courting Eric Milton and went after Jaret Wright instead (wait…that’s probably a wash). Either way, I think it makes sense.
It’s a stretch to call not signing Beltran a mistake. Rather, I think it’s evidence that Steinbrenner has a budget. An astronomical budget, but a budget nonetheless.
Re: Budget
Perhaps I’m mistaken…but have any other teams offered to pay for their own stadium?
In addition, let’s talk about that budget again when he’s paying 3/4 of Giambi’s salary for him to play somewhere else and he’s added another slugger in the outfield, and more pitching.
I don’t know that not signing Beltran was necessarily a ‘mistake’ but what else can we call it when he adds a CF this summer (or Matsui to CF and a slugger to LF)? They had their chance at the best CF on the market and passed, and they’re going to add another one soon.
Hindsight being 20/20 and all, are we free to say that this budget you speak of, has numerous examples of the sort of mistakes George’s competitors routinely make? In other words, overpaying for mediocrity while refusing to splash out on excellence. Easy enough to say now that 400 year old Randy Johnson is ailing and Jared Wright seems lost without Leo Mazzone. Who knew the Yankees would regret letting Jon Lieber walk away?
If money was no object, who would you rather have patrolling CF, 28 year old Carlos Beltran or Bernie Williams? Clearly, money was the object, but New York unwillingness to spend heavily on an emerging young star is in stark contrast to their efforts to acquire Scott Boras’ other multi-tool prodigy, A-Rod. Granted, Rodriguez’ accomplishments to date dwarf those of Beltran (and everyone else as long as you’re not counting winning championships), but you might also characterize the Yankees’ need for a top flight CF as far more glaring than whatever preceived weaknesses they had on the left side of the infield.
Since collecting two of the Mariners’ 3 sure-thing Hall Of Famers hasn’t guaranteed anything for Steinbrenner, perhaps completing the set by taking Ken Griffey Jr. off Cincy’s hands is the next move. A longshot, I know, considering Junior’s health and prior expressions of distaste for the pinstripes (ie. being hustled out of the clubhouse as a child, wanting to play closer to home, ie. Florida’s neighboring state of Ohio), but if Steinbrenner is too impatient to wait ’till autumn to make his run at Johnny Damon, I’m sure we’ll see some overpriced vet brought in before the deadline.
What? One month into the first juice-free year of baseball — ie, the dead bat era — and Johnson’s looking like he’s 41? And Roger Clemens hasn’t bullied a little league umpire all season!
re : dead bat era. Otherwise known as, “the Fed Ex truck carrying Brian Roberts’ piss test has gone missing”
didn’t Matsui play center field his whole career before moving to the Bronx?
you are correct, sir. However, he has a little more territory to cover in MLB’s more spacious parks. But he should be OK. It’s Tony Womack as your starting LF I’d be worried about.
I’ve heard some chit chat about a Mike Cameron swap, but given the state of the Yankee farm system, coupled with the unlikelihood of Victor Diaz matching Cameron’s production over the course a full season, I don’t see it happening.