Comments on: Yankees 6, Reds 3

By: Yankster

Yankster — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 14:01:59 +0000

That AAA starting rotation is pretty wicked, no? They should clean up against opponents and be pretty fun to watch. Even Igawa has been great at Scranton. I might have to put together a road trip to watch these guys pitch. On a spectator $$ per pitch quality, this has to be getting toward the high value side of things, right? I guess the question is whether they lose pitching quality in the bigs (due to stress or pitch selection or whatever) or whether the bigs’ bats are immune to the minor league effective pitches of Igawa and Kennedy.

By: Raf

Raf — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 14:00:23 +0000

I do have a hard time feeling bad for Igawa. Do you think that he is “sad” playing in AAA?

Regardless, I don’t think he’s thrilled with the way his ML career has developed. Especially, considering his time with the Hanshin Tigers

By: PJ

PJ — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 12:45:20 +0000

[12] From what Cashman said on Francesa’s show yesterday, even though there may be interest elsewhere, they intend on keeping Melky for now, especially after his best ST so far…

By: williamnyy23

williamnyy23 — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 12:42:41 +0000

[4] I am not either. While I think Swisher is the better all around player, he is also more versatile and able to get ABs as a result. If you make him the primary RF’er, Nady is reduced to a pinch hitter. Also, with Arod gone, the Yankees are going to need some righty pop, so seeing if Nady can build on last year can’t hurt.

[8] [11] I don’t think the level of interest in Gardner or Melky would be high enough to warrant trading either, especially if you are absolutely unwilling to promote AJ. Three teams may be interested, but probably if the Yankees give him away. I know I’m probably Melky’s biggest fan, but I simply wouldn’t dump him. He is still only 24.

By: Rich

Rich — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 12:32:07 +0000

[11] Supposedly, three teams are in the mix on Melky.

By: monkeypants

monkeypants — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 12:27:00 +0000

[9] So says Girardi…but we’ll see what tricks Cashman has up his sleeve. Melky must certainly be on the block.

By: Rich

Rich — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 12:07:11 +0000

[8] Given that Girardi has said that he believes that the game will be shifting to an emphasis on speed as a consequence of drug testing, I would be very surprised if Gardner is traded before AJack is ready or an established CFer is acquired.

By: monkeypants

monkeypants — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 11:59:34 +0000

[3] Yeah, they could trade Tomko, or one of his pitching counterparts. I was actually thinking that that they still might move Melky or Gardner, capitalizing on their hot spring performances.

[2] I do have a hard time feeling bad for Igawa. Do you think that he is “sad” playing in AAA?

By: monkeypants

monkeypants — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 11:57:00 +0000

[4] I’m pissed, but not that much. This was sort of predictable, especially given Swisher’s somewhat slow spring. This will work itself out, I think. Also, my anger is tempered by the fact that both are on the team. That is, at least they have a credible starter and a reasonable option off the bench regardless of which way they go. In days of yore Miguel Cairo would have been the back-up OF (and IF) because they carried three catchers and 13 pitchers.

By: Rich

Rich — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 11:45:15 +0000

[4] Yes. Cash said the Yankees would be emphasizing patience at the plate and improved defense. Swisher is demonstrably better than Nady in both of those areas. The move makes very little sense.

By: Raf

Raf — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 11:15:08 +0000

[4] No, given the nature of the season. If Swisher is raking in a reserve role, and Nady is playing like, well, Nady, I may be a bit annoyed

By: OldYanksFan

OldYanksFan — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 10:41:30 +0000

Anyone else pissed that Nady is starting over Swisher?

By: williamnyy23

williamnyy23 — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 10:17:06 +0000

[1] Based on the spring that he had, I wouldn’t be suprised if the Yankees were able to trade Tomko for something small. It is indeed very comforting that Girardi and Cashman were not seduced by the spring performance of a veteran putting pedal to the metal in March. Similarly, I hope they make the same kind of decision in the Berroa vs. Pena battle.

By: Mr. OK Jazz TOKYO

Mr. OK Jazz TOKYO — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 07:04:09 +0000

I anxiously await the Taylor Grote era..

poor Igawa, think he gets traded anywhere? What a salary for AAA!

By: monkeypants

monkeypants — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 04:34:43 +0000

As I posted in the last thread, I am pleasantly surprised that Tomko did not make the team as some sort of obligatory “long man.”

This said, I will backtrack on my previous assessment of the Yankees picking him up: I had originally complained long and loud about him. But he had a good spring, and given the team’s overall pitching depth, I would not mind if they kept Tomko around in AAA and released, say, Giese.

I still think that a trade is in the works, however.