Yankees notes: See ya, Shelley!

by Ed Valentine on Nov 21, 2009 9:41 AM EST in News Comment 16 comments

Let's take a look Around the Yankee Universe this morning. Not a lot of news on the last Saturday before Thanksgiving, but always some interesting stories around our New York Yankees.

GOOD LUCK, SHELLEY: The Yankees have dropped Shelley Duncan from the 40-man roster, again, and it appears Duncan's Yankee career is over. Personally, I wish Duncan well. He can be a productive big-league hitter if he can find a team willing to give him 300-400 at-bats.
BREAKING DOWN AROLDIS CHAPMAN: The 21-year-old Cuban left-hander is one of the more intriguing players to follow this off-season. He is also one of the riskiest big-money investments, according to Baseball Intellect.

Chapman is going to be a risk for whatever team signs him. His upside is tremendous, but he’s raw in every sense of the word. Does he have the mental capacity to turn himself into a pitcher and not be just a thrower? Does a team’s development staff have a good track record in developing a talent like Chapman? Does Chapman have what it takes to put it all together and develop into a legitimate number one starter? We’ll eventually get our answers, but some team will have to shell out millions of dollars before getting them.

Baseball Intellect's breakdown discusses Chapman's mechanics, his maturity and projects his future. They seem to lean toward the opinion that his production won't end up justifying the huge investment a team will have to make to sign him.
MATSUI IN DEMAND: Hideki Matsui's services as a hitter might not be in huge demand around baseball right now. Matsui is, however, in huge demand as an advertising spokesman in Japan. The World Series MVP continues to be a huge hero in his native country.
WANG WOULD LIKE TO STAY: Chien-Ming Wang told reporters in his native Taiwan that he would love to stay with the Yankees. If that doesn't work out? Wang said pitching for Joe Torre and the Dodgers wouldn't be so bad, either.
SPEAKING OF FREE AGENTS: WFAN's Sweeny Murti says sentimentality and what players like Matsui, Wang and Johnny Damon have done for the Yankees in the past will play no part in GM Brian Cashman's decisions about 2010.

Emotion is for the fans, not the people who run the teams. And while Brian Cashman has as special a place as you do for the players who just brought home #27, he’s not going to let his heart keep him from moving the 2010 Yankees forward. So if it’s not in the team’s best interests to keep Johnny Damon and Hideki Matsui in a Yankee uniform, it won’t happen simply as a reward for 2009.

Cashman is no sentimental fool. If you need proof, ask Bernie Williams. Cashman could offer the dynasty icon no more than a spring training invitation before the 2007 season. All the chants of "Ber-nie Will-iams" you could ask for from the bleachers weren’t going to be enough to change his mind. Cashman had decided that it was time to get younger and it was time to cut ties with Bernie.

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Bernie was treated like crap

by Ron L on Nov 21, 2009 11:19 AM EST reply actions 0 recs

Agreeed

In 2006 Bernie had a .936 OPS batting righty. He should have been brought back to be a platoon DH but instead, Cashman signed Josh Phelps…yes Josh Phelps to fill that role.

I’ll never understand what the reason was behind treating Bernie so unfairly, but my theory is that Cashman didn’t want Bernie on the team because he didn’t trust Torre to not play him every day.

Speaking of Bernie what’s the hold-up with retiring his number?

by Let's Talk About Tex Baby on Nov 21, 2009 11:44 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Bernie’s last 4 years were awful. Over his last 4 seasons, his average wOBA was .329. That means he was a worse hitter than Gardner last year for 4 years, and without Gardner’s speed and defense. We all love Bernie, but it was time.

by Wraithpk on Nov 21, 2009 11:58 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Thats too bad

I really liked Shelly. I never felt that the Yankees really gave him a big opportunity to play. I think they were a little unfair to him. I mean, he raked in AAA and they never gave him a chance. The one shot he got in 2007 he didn’t disappoint. I wish him luck. Maybe he can go and play for the Mets. I mean, Hey, if they can start Daniel Murphy all season, then why not start Shelly Duncan? Shelly is better than half the players that were in the Mets lineup this season. Good luck Shelly.

And Cashman was an absolute idiot for not bringing back Bernie. Like the guy above me posted, Bernie was treated like crap. And instead he brought in Doug and Phelps, both who turn out to be absolute busts.

He doesn’t have to look at past success. He looks at what is good for his team. He doesn’t think that Damon and Matsui are good for this team? Well, you let them go, and how are you going to replace 50+HR and over 160 rbi?

I hope Cashman knows what he’s doing. I don’t trust him all that much. He’s made some great decisions that lead to World Championships. He’s also made some awful decisions that lead to awful chemistry and first round eliminations at best. Bringing back Damon and Matsui probably won’t hurt the team, but not bringing them back, well, he may regret that.

by nyyrocks29 on Nov 21, 2009 11:32 AM EST reply actions 0 recs

No one said

he doesn’t think Damon and Matsui are good for the team. The point was the judgment will be made on what guys can do going forward, not what they have done in the past. That, really, is the right way to do it.
And I do believe he ends up bringing back Damon.

by Ed Valentine on Nov 21, 2009 11:36 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I do too

I DO think that he will bring back Damon. Matsui I’m not sure on (although I hope so). I understand that you have to look at what guys can do going forward. But you can’t do that without looking at the past. What Damon and Matsui did in the past are facts. Proof of what they are capable of doing. What Cashman thinks they can do in the future is a complete judgement. Judgements have to be based on some sort of facts, so thats why I’m surprised if what Damon and Matsui did in the past for the Yankees will have nothing to do with his decisions. Does Cashman see a breakdown in Damon and Matsui (at least offensively)? Well, I don’t. But if Cashman sees it then go ahead. Let them go. I just hope that whatever he does, he ends up being right.

by nyyrocks29 on Nov 21, 2009 11:50 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Matsui

The only problem there is that he has to DH, and the Yankees are aging. A-Rod needs to DH some. Damon does. Posada does. Even Jeter probably does. So, it is just very difficult to have a guy on the roster who can ONLY do that. Everybody knows Matsui can still hit.

by Ed Valentine on Nov 21, 2009 12:33 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

so what?

what are we talking about? maybe 2-3 games a week where Matsui is the PH instead of the DH?

I still think you can get Mats in there at 90-100 games as the DH.

The time of the season that only matters…the playoffs, should we bring back the same starters…in no way does a backup catcher or LF start over these guys.

Matsui is an asset as a PH and a DH.

Who cares if the other guys have to DH? the 6-7 games a week, you’re not gonna have one of them DHing.

And what’s so wrong with completely sitting Posada? Or A-Rod? Or Jeter? Or Damon? Aside from A-Rod and Jeter…Matsui’s a better player than them

So sit give the geezer a day off if he needs to NOT play the field. Its all about winning and Matsui is a better DH than damn near all these guys.

"It ain't over till its over"---

by FreeBradshaw on Nov 21, 2009 12:59 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

But

is that worth it when you have a guy who, if you don’t start him, you can only get one AB, maybe? That’s the question. We’ll see how the Yanks answer it.

by Ed Valentine on Nov 21, 2009 6:54 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

So is it definite then

that Matsui can’t play the OF at ALL? I mean, he keeps saying that he can rehab and play the outfield again. It would be nice if he would be capable of playing the outfield. That way at least he could come in when he doesn’t start, pinch hit him, and then maybe he can get another AB or two if he can play half a game in the OF. It would make the NL games a lot easier too. Plus, he’d be able to start a few games.

Even if he could play the OF, I know that the Yankees wouldn’t be expecting a lot from him out there. But I would hope that they would at least be open to the idea that it is possible that Matsui can play the OF again. It would make everything a whole lot easier.

by nyyrocks29 on Nov 21, 2009 7:33 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

i agree

it all depends on $$$$$$$$.

But I say YEA!

Even in those games that there’s a different DH in there, Since it will more than likely be a lesser hitter in place, like say…Cervelli, or Jerry Hairtson in LF or something like that, yea, Mats PH in the 9th is worth it…it could be the difference in the game!

And I agree with nyrocks…Maybe in the offseason Mats finds a way to move so that he can at least steal a few games in the OF.

"It ain't over till its over"---

by FreeBradshaw on Nov 22, 2009 8:02 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Knees

take a long time to heal from surgery. I had ACL replacement and it took a year and a half before it was structurally back to normal. But it feels great now. Another offseason could do it for him.

I don’t think Matsui expects to make the money he just made. I would think they could offer him $10-12M for a year.

As far as only PH once or twice a week, how big were Posada’s PH at bats in every Burnett game? If Matsui’s only at bat is an RBI sinlge in the 9th, i’ll take it.

by Jaybat on Nov 23, 2009 1:25 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

He had a chance...

He got 163 PA, which is more than most of us get, and his OPS was .701, which was mostly inflated by his good start in 2007. In his at-bats in 2008 and 2009, his OPS was .513. He’s 30, he’s not going to get better, there is really no point in giving him a 40-man spot because he’ll never be a major league player.

by Wraithpk on Nov 21, 2009 12:09 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Matsui and Damon

The decision about Matsui and Damon is not just Cashman’s. The going forward has nothing to do with their hitting abilities, it is about how they can play the field or not play the field. Damon was signed 4 years ago to be the starting center fielder for the Yankees, a position he can no longer play without being too much of a liability. Matsui has not played in the field because of his surgically repaired knees. Matsui has said he is going to get himself back into shape in order to play the outfield. Who knows if this is even a possibility, he had to have his knees drained multiple times during the regular season in order to even DH most of the games. The assumption is that he won’t be able to play the outfield. Damon was getting replaced in the late innings for defense because of his weak arm and sometimes awkward play in left field. The Yankees as an organization do not like to be trapped with one of their big hitters not being able to play the field, they like to be able to rotate that position to give their players a day off from playing the field every once in a while. With Matsui at DH you really can’t do that without sitting him down, if Damon becomes the DH then at least some of the time, once or twice a week, he can play left field to allow someone else to be the DH. This would also allow him to be used in the National League parks. The problem with signing Damon may turn out to be the length of time he wants, he wants to get to 3000 hits and that means another 4 years as an everyday starter. He needs less than 600 hits but unlike Jeter who is a 200 hit per year player, Damon is more of a 170 hit per year player. That means after 3 years he would still be 50-75 hits short. I doubt the Yankees want to commit that many years to somebody whose skills have been on the decline over the last 4 years, mostly on the defensive side but still on the decline. I could see Matsui getting signed to a 1 year deal and Damon to a 2 year deal from the Yankee perspective, both at decreased salaries than what they signed 4 years ago (neither are the same player that received 4 year, 52 million dollar contracts after 2005) but will either be willing to accept those numbers, both in dollars and duration.

by Unconvinced on Nov 21, 2009 4:29 PM EST reply actions 0 recs