The Monday Morning Quarterback: NYY

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12 July, 2016

Rumors: Yankees In Discussions To Trade Miller

Photo: SB Nation MLB Daily Dish

July 12, 2016
Peter Solari Follow @4PeteSakeNY

A few weeks ago, reports were circulating that the Yankees were unlikely to trade relief pitcher Andrew Miller, but what's happening today was always inevitable.

With the trade deadline coming up and their season going nowhere fast, the website 12Up is reporting that the Yankees have entered into discussions with the San Francisco Giants for the talented 31-year-old's services, though nothing appears imminent. The two teams have also been in discussions about Yankees reliever Aroldis Chapman.

The Giants have five of baseball's top-100 prospects in their system, including three pitchers, a shortstop, and a first baseman, but the two sides can't agree on what a fair deal. The Yankees' asking price for Miller, Chapman, or Dellin Betances is expected to be high, and rightfully so.

Of the Giants' top five prospects, two of them can be scratched from the Yankees' list. The team already has a shortstop on the rise in Didi Gregorious, and they plan to move forward with their own prospect at first base, Greg Bird, when Mark Teixera's contract ends. That leaves the three hurlers, who the two organizations apparently have differing opinions on.

Perhaps Yankees general manager Brian Cashman is just being stingy, but it's almost refreshing to see out of this organization.

The Yankees are in a pretty good spot here. They aren't desperate to deal anybody, and would likely be perfectly content finishing the year with all three of their big arms in the bullpen. While Chapman will be a free agent at season's end, the Yankees have the resources to bring him back via free agency, if they want to. They've really got nothing to lose by standing pat. However, there is the possibility of something to be gained by making a trade, if the Yankees can acquire prospects to build a future around. Cashman should listen to every offer that comes his way, but he should remain prudent as well. If the Yankees get the right offer from somebody, then they should pull the trigger. If they don't, then they should just move on.

Contrary to the Yankees, the Giants are kind of up-against-a-wall here. They have the best record in baseball at the All Star Break, but their bullpen is questionable, and the trade market is thin. San Francisco could be one Yankees reliever away from their fourth World Series title since 2010, and they'll likely have to make some tough decisions. That doesn't mean the Yankees have to make it any easier on the Giants, nor should they be in a hurry to make any deals.

A lot of people around baseball are under the impression that other contenders, such as the Chicago Cubs and Washington Nationals, have better prospects in their farm systems than the Giants do. Cashman may want to check in with those two organizations, before coming to any conclusions.

The trade deadline is a time of year when teams who believe they have a legitimate chance to win the World Series, will do all they can to better position themselves to do so. Often times, it comes at a high price, but if you're the last team standing in November, is it worth it?

For many years, the Yankees were one of those teams looking to improve themselves for a postseason run, at the deadline, but things have changed and so has New York's approach.

The current Yankees regime is hellbent on reducing the team's payroll and building a championship contender from within. Doing that requires smart, well-calculated moves (sometimes well-calculated non-moves) in the front office. Cashman should put the other 29 teams on alert today, that everybody in his clubhouse is available for the right price, and stick to it.

If another team bites, and Cashman has the opportunity to improve his ball club, then great, but there's no need for him to rush into anything. The Yankees will be no worse off by standing pat.

Yanks End First Half On A High Note, And That's Their Problem

The Monday Morning Quarterback 3:17 AM

Photo: New York Post

July 11, 2016
Peter Solari Follow @4PeteSakeNY

The 2016 New York Yankees aren't a bad team. They're just not a very good one either, and games like the one they played on Sunday, should be taken with a grain of salt.

The Yankees knocked off the the American League Central leading Cleveland Indians 11-7 on Sunday, to take 3/4 in the series, and end the first half of their season on a high note. The team heads into the All Star Break at .500 with a record of 44-44, and currently trail the division leading Baltimore Orioles by 7.5 games. Two other division rivals, the Boston Red Sox and Toronto Blue Jays, are currently leading the wild card race, 5.5 games ahead of New York.

These numbers would lead one to believe that the Yankees are right in the thick of contention for the postseason, and therein lies their biggest problem. Up to this point, they're not a playoff team. They're only teasing you.

Anyone who has paid close attention to the Bronx Bombers this season, knows how inconsistent they've been. There are times when the team has looked really good, but they are far-too-often mixed with other times, where they've looked really bad, and after 88 games, it's safe to say they're going nowhere fast.

The Yankees simply lack the starting pitching and consistent hitting that are coming amongst championship contenders, but that doesn't mean the season has to be a lost cause. With the trade deadline approaching at the end of July, the Yankees have some very desirable trade chips that could demand a high value of return. For that reason, New York should look to be "sellers" at the deadline.

Right fielder Carlos Beltran represents the type of player that contenders covet. He's a veteran, future Hall-of-Famer with plenty of postseason experience, and still has some pop in his bat. He currently leads the Yankees in most offensive categories including batting average (.299, 18 points higher than his career average), hits (89), home runs (19), and RBIs (56). Sure, losing Beltran would be a huge blow to the Yankees' anemic offense, but at age 39, he isn't part of their long term, and teams who find themselves one bat short of serious championship contention, may be willing to pay a pretty penny, for his services.

The Yankees also have three dynamite relievers at the back end of their bullpen, and should seriously consider trading at least one, before the deadline passes.

This one is difficult to write. The Yankees' "big three" of Dellin Betances, Andrew Miller, and Aroldis Chapman have been the most exciting part of the ball club this season. They all have the ability to be Major League closers, and all three of them are young enough to factor into the team's future. However, at some point, all three of them will expect to be paid like big time closers, and it may not be wise to throw that kind of money at three different relievers. Furthermore, theres only room enough for one actual closer, even though it's likely that all three of them, at some point, would actually like to fill that role. So there's really no guarantee that these guys won't eventually leave the team in free agency, anyway.

Closers, and relievers in general, are of the utmost importance in postseason baseball, and there are a number of teams (the Chicago Cubs come to mind) who could really benefit their World Series hopes, by bolstering their bullpen. The Yankees have three of the best relievers in baseball, and several teams will come asking about them. It would be stupid for the Yankees to not consider moving at least one of them, if they can get back some highly rated prospects, who could ultimately be a big part of their future.

The Yankees have made it clear over the past couple of season that the days of George Steinbrenner are long gone. That may be tough to swallow, but the Bronx Bombers have no interest in overpaying players (in terms of money and length of contract) with the hopes of winning a few championships, before said players break down with multiple years (and tons of money) left on their contracts.

Keeping this in mind, it is essential for the Yankees to seriously consider making some blockbuster moves at the deadline. Trading Beltran and one of their big three relievers could garner potentially bring three prospects, who could one day make up the core of the franchise, in return.

Certainly, there are no guarantees. Prospects are just that: prospects. But this is how the Yankees want to build teams from here on out, through their farm system, and this is the way to go about that.

Look at it this way: The Yankees could hold onto Beltran as well as all of their relievers, and they'll still be a long shot to make the playoffs, and could potentially lose Beltran and Chapman at season's end anyway, not getting anything in return. Or they could make a couple trades, get a couple prospects, and begin constructing the future infrastructure of the franchise.

If you're like me, and grew up watching the Yankees win World Series' every year, this isn't easy for you, but the best way for this team to get back to that level, is to be "sellers" at this year's deadline.

It's time for this organization to stop pretending, and start thinking about their future.

Yankees Are On Fire

The Monday Morning Quarterback 2:43 PM

The backend of the Yankees' bullpen, featuring Dellin Betances, Aroldis Chapman, and Andrew Miller, has been lights out for New York recently, helping the team to five straight victories. Photo: New York Post.

May 24, 2016
Peter Solari Follow @4PeteSakeNY

Don't look now, but the New York Yankees, who had a very shaky first month+ of the season, are suddenly one of the hottest teams in baseball, and their pitching is a big reason why the team has won five straight, and 12 of their past 17 games.

The Yankees started their recent seven game road trip on a sour note, dropping the first two games to the Arizona Diamondbacks. However, they haven't lost since, salvaging one game in Arizona, before heading to Oakland, where they swept a four game series from the Athletics. In the process, the Yankees were able to pull themselves into third place in the A.L. East, just 5.5 games behind the division leading Baltimore Orioles.

The Yanks will have a real opportunity to move even further up the division ladder, over the next two weeks. The team will play 12 games against division opponents, in the next 13 days, starting Tuesday night, when they open a three game series against the Toronto Blue Jays.

When Aroldis Chapman returned from suspension earlier on May 9th, his presence provided a huge boost for the Yankees.Andrew Miller and Dellin Betances were doing just fine, holding down the backend of the pen, but Chapman has really put them over the top. Having, what essentially amounts to, three of the best closers in baseball on one team, allows manager Joe Girardi to shorten most games to six innings, reducing the strain on his starting pitchers, who were a big question mark coming into the season.

The big three in the Yanks' pen was expected to be the team's strongest area, and they haven't disappointed. In fact, they've probably been even better than most expected. As the New York Post's George A. King III points out, this might be the most electric bullpen in the history of baseball, and these three guys have the potential to shatter any existing strikeout records among relief pitchers. That being said, the Yankees are certainly getting contributions in other areas, as well.

Coming into the season, the Yankees' strength was in their relief pitching, while questions swirled about their starting rotation. Perhaps the answers to all of those questions are finally coming to light, because the starters have been very good as of late, and that has helped to catapult the team forward.

In their past five games, all victories, the Yankees' rotation, as a whole, are 5-0, all quality starts, that opened their door for their dynamic bullpen to do what they do. While the relievers are grabbing all the headlines, however, the starters have been equally as impressive, and have contributed immensely to the team's success. In fact, the Yankees' pitching staff is second in the league with 377 strikeouts, and their 99 walks, is the best in baseball.

However, the Yankees' staff also has an ERA of 4.19, which is higher than the American League average of 4.03. When asked why the stats aren't more reflective of the team's success, pitching coach Larry Rothschild was baffled, saying, "None of it makes any sense to me...some numbers are just hard to comprehend," adding, "we just need to consistently pitch better."

"Pitching better" is exactly what the Yankees have been doing, and it has paid off. This is all good news for team, because in case you haven't noticed, these aren't your parents' Bronx Bombers.

One area of concern coming into the season, was the Yankees' veteran lineup. While there are still a few guys with some pop in their bats, the lineup as a whole, isn't very intimidating. It's not like the old days, when the Yankees would just power their way to victories over less explosive lineups. In the long run, this too, should actually serve to help the Yankees down the line.

In the old days, the Yankees would overpower their opponents for 162 games, before their bats would disappear in the postseason, when they were faced with better pitching. The 2016 Yankees are more reflective of what baseball is becoming in the post-steroid era.

Take a look at the Kansas City Royals, who won the World Series last year. That wasn't a team with an overbearing lineup. They were a team that had outstanding pitching, could play very solid defense, and knew how to manufacture a run when they needed it. It's a formula that Joe Torre's Yankees used to great success in the late 90's, and sticking with it, is this current Yankees team's best option to return to October prominence.

Should the 2016 Yankees somehow find a way to make the playoffs, they should be well prepared for whatever opponent is standing in their way. And while less power may not be as sexy as the "Bronx Bombers," winning a championship is always satisfying, regardless of how a team goes about doing it.

Plumbing Problems In The Yankees Dugout

The Monday Morning Quarterback 7:50 PM

Crews at the Oakland Coliseum work to clean the Yankees' dugout on Saturday, after plumbing problems caused a pipe to burst. Photo: Yahoo! Sports

May 21, 2016
Peter Solari Follow @4PeteSakeNY

Thank God for the Golden State Warriors, or Oakland would easily be the worst sports city in North America. The football team is looking to leave town for the second time in their history, and they don't seem to care where they end up. Meanwhile, the town's baseball team perennially operates at a discount budget, and don't be surprised if they bolt, should the opportunity arise. And, in what has become a sign of the times, all of Oakland's problems stem from their outdated stadium.

On Saturday, cleanup crews at the Oakland Coliseum were scurrying to get the Yankees' dugout cleaned up, after a leak sprung, stemming from a problem in the team's clubhouse bathroom, on Friday night. The Coliseum has become famous over the years, thanks to incidents like this one.

Nick Stellini, who covers baseball for SB Nation, tweeted out the following on Saturday:

Oakland's stadium issues are nothing new, and they've hampered the city's professional teams, for as long as I can remember. Talk of new facilities for both the Athletics and Raiders go back decades, but politics have prevented anything serious from ever happening. Nowadays, you don't even hear talk of a new ballpark in the Bay Area. You hear more about the Raiders leaving town for Los Angeles, San Antonio, Las Vegas, or wherever.

The Raiders want out bad, and a move appears imminent. If and when that happens, the A's could basically hold a gun to the city's head for a new stadium. The A's are the only team in Major League Baseball, outside of the Chicago Cubs and Boston Red Sox, who don't play in a new, or majorly renovated ballpark. By "new," I mean within the past 25 years. The Cubs and Red Sox play in two historic ballparks, Wrigley Field and Fenway Park respectively, and even they've seen some renovations lately. The Coliseum expanded it's seating when the Raiders moved back from Los Angeles before the 1995 season. Other than that, the Coliseum is basically the same place it was when it opened in 1996.

The Athletics are one of baseball's great franchises, and their entire history, as far as I'm concerned, is in Oakland. It would be sad to see them leave the Bay Area, but who could blame them? It's bad enough that their payroll is minuscule compared to their competition, but having to play in the biggest, smelliest pit in sports, is just adding insult to injury.

A move to another city would likely solve all of the Athletics' problems, and the good news for Oakland, is that they've still got Steph Curry and the best team in the NBA. It's a win/win.