Following the Yanks' early exit from the postseason for the fourth season in a row, perhaps the biggest trade rumor gaining steam in Yankeeland is the pursuit of Johan Santana this offseason in order to plant a bonafide ace atop the rotation to matchup with the likes of Josh Beckett, Justin Verlander, C.C. Sabathia, John Lackey, and Roy Halladay.
Jim Johnson from The Bronx Block believes a pursuit for Santana by the front office this offseason is inevitable and Chien-Ming Wang should be included in such a deal.
Now, I understand everyone's disappointment in Wang's horrific performance in the ALDS and inconsistencies down the stretch, but I don't think trading him away for a one-year rental is the answer. The "Wang is not an ace" argument is a valid one, but his numbers over the last two seasons (38-13, 3.67 ERA, almost 6.2 IP per start) against AL lineups is no accident.
The guy throws strikes, eats innings, and saves the bullpen a lot of wear and tear over the course of a season, which is exactly what you want from a starting pitcher. He may not be an ace, but he's still a very good pitcher who just had a really bad postseason.
Taking the other side of this debate, why would the Minnesota Twins make this move? Wang's struggles on turf are well-documented, so I don't see why they would find him appealing in their home ballpark since half of his starts would be on that dreaded turf. Doesn't make sense to me and I think their front office is smarter than that.
If Wang is not included in such a deal, you can bet the ranch that it would take Chamberlain and/or Hughes and a host of other talent to pry Santana away. If the Rangers wanted Kennedy in return for a two-month rental in Eric Gagne back in late July, one could imagine what the Twins would want in return for the best pitcher in the game.
Are you guys willing to deal Hughes and/or Chamberlain and other talent for just one guaranteed season of Johan Santana?
Didn't think so. Cashman has also been very adamant about not trading away any member of the "trinity," so the odds of this happening are slim to none.
Perhaps I'm in the minority on this topic, but with the plethora of young arms in the Yankee system, I'd rather see the Yanks continue develop the young guns and produce their own bonafide ace(s) instead of paying someone like Santana huge money to be that guy. It's highly unlikely that Santana would sign an extension with the Yanks because he knows he will likely sign the richest contract for any pitcher in MLB history once he hits the open market.
If the Yanks do make a bid for Santana, they should wait until this time next year when a ton of financial commitments will be off the books (Giambi, Pavano, Moose, Farnsworth, Pettitte?, Abreu?, etc) and they have a much better grasp on what the young arms (Hughes, Chamberlain, Kennedy, Horne, Cox, Sanchez, etc.) are capable of doing for this club long term.
Mortgaging the future or trading away an innings-eater like Wang for a one-year rental would be counterproductive and not something Cashman is likely to do. He seems to have learned from past mistakes and I'd be downright shocked if Santana is a Yankee in 2008 and very surprised if he is the Opening Day starter in 2009.