I am back-and-forth on Holliday. I do want him. He is a perfect fit. I see him as a young Matsui type (.850+ OPS, 20+ HRs) with better fielding talents. I also think he will thrive in our loaded Yankee lineup…. maybe in the #2 slot.

However, each time I look at the commitments the Yanks have for 2012-2015, I get scared shitless. After playing in the WS in ’64, nobody saw ’65 (6th place) or ’66 (10th place, LAST) coming. Maybe with Free Agency, that kind of apocalypse is now avoidable, but we have a fortune tied up in (getting) older players for the next 7 years.

Halladay not only get us a little closer to ‘the apocalypse’, but as a pitcher (as opposed to a position player), his last year or 2 would be harder to bank on. Now, when we talk about giving up Joba, AJax + prospect for him…. it’s just insanity.

Holliday however, is a little more sane.
1) A 6 year deal puts Matt at 35 in his last year. That ain’t young, but MANY 35(+) players have very good years (witness the 2009 Yankees).
2) My guess is he would love to be a Yankee, and considering the economy, with hard negotiations, we might get a decent deal (5/$88 or 6/$100).
3) With Holliday replacing JD, if we can’t get Matsui or a decent DH cheap, we could go with internal options, and still have a very good offense.

As far as Posada goes:
In ’08 (injury year), Po was in 51 games.
In ’09, Po was in 111 games, although we know a number of them were 1/2 games. While age/fatigue have not caught up to Po’s bat, his defense, especially in the PS, is obviously taking a big hit. My guess is Po starts no more then 100 games. Certainly both Jeter and ARod get 10 games at DH. So if we have a Matsui type DH, we will be paying 1/2rd of a salary to sit either Po/Jeter/ARod or ‘Matsui’.

So, what kind of team do we have with Holliday in LF, $8m for a SP, and Miranda/extra OFer/Montero as a 1/2 DH?

[1] Interesting but how do you know this?

My sources tell me there are no Israeli Middle relievers good enough to pitch in the AL East as of now and the Thingie pitch is best handled by waiting it out, it is rarely thrown for strikes.

Next?

Hoss Dr.

Cano isn’t untouchable, but you then do need a second base guy. I want a good glove/serviceable bat in that spot. I don’t want to trade Joba, I think he can be a good front line starter once the shackles are taken off him. Cervelli has at least shown that he deserves an extended major league look, and while there may be better prospects in the minors, I prefer a guy who at least has shown some competence at the major league level. Not untouchable, but you’ve got to overwhelm me.

A rotation of
CC,
A.J.
Roy
Andy? 1year, 2?
Joba or Phil?

That could rival the early 1970s Orioles.

I’m with william on this … Cano isn’t untouchable at all, but he’s way too far from a ‘prospect’ to put in as just trade bait. He’s an established major league bat and this team CAN carry a player or two who doesn’t walk. I also agree with Will (what’s wrong with me this morning?) that there is no way NY does Roy without an extension. Four years 20 million is probably right. He has to be above AJ in $. And I also agree (sigh) with whoever said that if NY took on Vernon’s contract, the Jays would accept Cervelli (joking to make a point) in a trade all by himself. If they take HALF of Vernon (his deal not himself!) they bring down the Roy-cost a lot. Jays are dying to get out of that contract.

My question is this: how much better is Roy than Lackey? He IS better, but if Lackey comes for AJ money and years and no players, is it Lackey + Joba vs Roy? I’d do the first deal.

I am slowly coming around to Matt Holliday though I’m not a huge fan … in part he’d be okay I think because I think this team is so deep in batting that players get relieved of pressure to perform in a big contract. If Holliday, then no Damon for 2 and yes Matsui for 1 year?

And yes (again!) to JoPo for 100-110 games behind the plate this year absent injury. The trade off, as someone said, between a good hitting C and a good hitting DH (say, Matsui) and a weak C bat and a good DH (Posada) is considerable. He sits for AJ from April, and 25 other games and he pinch hits, as he did in the Serious.

Any other problems anyone needs solved?

The Hoss Dr Is In