He traded, Johnson,Rivera, Vasquez(who he signed long term) plus other players for Johnson
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Johnson was a spare part who has a hard time staying healthy. Rivera was a platoon OF, CHoate was a LHP who couldn’t throw strikes. Navarro wasn’t going to start anytime soon, and Halsey was a back of the rotation starter, even if that

Vasquez simply couldn’t hack it in NY.
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I suppose he forgot who he was pitching for the 1st half of 2004.

Weaver was so rattled by his Yankee experience and it took Dave Duncan to finally straighten him up!
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To the tune of a 5.18 ERA? You can’t be serious.

Whitson sucked? He hovered around the high 3s and low 4s for his ERA….that is hardly sucking.
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Whitson was lousy with the Giants, Pirates and Padres before signing with the Yanks. He performed below league average with them. Why should we be surprised that he did the same with the Yanks?

How did Kenny Rogers do in the playoffs when the heat was on? He had a 14.14 ERA!
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So, are playoff games different in Detroit? No pressure? Are they different on the road?

It didn’t stop Contreras from pitching well in Chicago in 2005!
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Didn’t stop Contreras from pitching well for the Yanks in 2003 either.

The fact that you think that pitching for the Yanks is more difficult than, say, pitching for the Cuban National team, or defecting from Cuba, is laughable.Quote from Raf

It didn’t stop Contreras from pitching well in Chicago in 2005! It’s more difficult to play for the ChiSox than the Cuban National team BUT it’s even more difficult to play for the Yankees. Let’s face it he couldn’t handle the pressure and was thankfully traded. Case closed.

One more guy, Kenny Rogers. Didn’t it sicken you when he was acting like he won the WS for the 96 Yankees, he’s another one that couldn’t hack it here. Quote from Raf

This is why I despise stats by themselves. Arod is the greatest compiler BUT scouting him and watching him , he is a veritable dissapointment. How did Kenny Rogers do in the playoffs when the heat was on? He had a 14.14 ERA! When the spotlight came on, he wilted. He pitched a good game against NY despite the odds for a myriad number of reasons LEAST of which was “the blind squirrel catches an acorn” theory you postulate. The only good thing that came out of this Rogers mess was Brosius.

Whitson sucked? He hovered around the high 3s and low 4s for his ERA….that is hardly sucking. He couldn’t take the fans heckling and booing , he was weak. Once again, not a Philly/Boston/NYC player. Felix Heredia only had a weirder type of meltdown in Flushing, that’s how weird the Whitson run was!

No offense, but are you joking with Weaver? Weaver was so rattled by his Yankee experience and it took Dave Duncan to finally straighten him up! He did OK in his first year with LA, but did well enough to get a ring back in 2006. He pitched pretty well against Detroit and the Mets. It’s funny that Mussina, Giambi, and Arod all don’t have a ring yet Weaver does…ah the irony of it all. AS an aggregate, he hasn’t lived up to his potential BUT I believe that the confrontational hordes and pressure got to him….Nuff Said.

YOu also missed the point on Johnson. Cash Man originall wanted Schill couldn’t get him, went for Vasquez (traded Rivera and Johnson), who had a good first half and then worsened to the point where he was avoided during the playoffs. Most Red Sox fans will never forget Vasquez’s performance during Game 7 ACLS 2004. That was a dark day for Yankee fans. Vasquez simply couldn’t hack it in NY. Johnson was on the other side of being a really great pitcher AND he didn’t do that well in the playoffs in NY. He wasn’t the Big Unit of old but Johnson’s trade shows Cash Man’s stupidity. He traded, Johnson,Rivera, Vasquez(who he signed long term) plus other players for Johnson THEN the Yankees threw money and years at an ancient pitcher. Cash Man got something back for the Unit,which showed he wasn’t a complete idiot BUT He spent a lot of time ,money and prospects to cover up his Vasquez mistake. All for a pitcher that couldn’t hack it in NY!

And, they were a $200 million team who was just 8 games over .500 at the end of the day.
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Yep, due to the factors mentioned. This isn’t the 1993 Mets we’re talking about.

It was disgusting to see someone who couldn’t handle the bright lights here stick it to the Yanks in the playoffs elsewhere, unh?
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He had a good game. It happens. Law of averages, and everything.