Gritty, Gutty…And On The Block?
Via the Chicago Sun-Times with a h/t to BBTF –
According to a scout familiar with the situation, the Sox were one of two teams in the American League Central letting the New York Yankees know during the winter meetings this week that they covet outfielder Brett Gardner. The Kansas City Royals also were wondering what it would take to acquire the promising 26-year-old leadoff hitter.
Williams is friendly with Yankees GM Brian Cashman, and they’ve done deals before. He acquired Jose Contreras from the Yankees in 2004, and the Yankees acquired outfielder Nick Swisher last winter.
Williams and Cashman know each other’s farm system up and down, and Williams is all too familiar with the idea that the Yankees’ outfield, especially center field, got crowded with the acquisition of Curtis Granderson in a three-way trade with the Detroit Tigers and Arizona Diamondbacks this week.
What wasn’t known was who had the better package to acquire Gardner.
If the Yankees trade Brett Gardner, I might just cry…
Ok, I won’t cry…but, I’ll be pissed. Why? Hey, I just like the guy…that’s all. Is that a bad reason?
I like the guy as much as any Yankee fan but he is better suited as trade bait than a permanent spot on the team.
Game changing speed is always nice to have in the tool belt. Probably the fastest Yankee since Rivers. If they guy could bunt better, he’d hit .300. I’d keep him unless he’s needed as part of a deal for a stud starter.
I like those pests like Eckstein, Pedroia and Gardner . You know the little guys who bust it out of the gate and wreck havoc upon the basepaths? BG is the Yanks’ version of that worthwhile commodity. He gives the Yanks speed on the basepaths and I like his contribution BUT with the Granderson trade AND with the probablity of either Damon or Matsui coming back , his days seem numbered. I’d honestly like to see him stay BUT the inmates who run the asylum might prefer to keep Melky instead. Go figure…….
I’d rather keep Melky. – Younger, better arm, better defense and I think a better hitter when all is said and done. Gardner was given CF last season and lost it.
@ K-V-C:
Especially in the clutch.
butchie22 wrote:
Pedroia is a lot better than that. He’s an MVP-level player, because he can HIT, and is a Gold Glove level fielder.
As for why they might trade Gardner over Melky, it may not be that Butchie. It may simply be the market for Melky just isn’t there.
Evan3457 wrote:
Evan, you can do a search for my opinion on Pedroia, it’s a very high one. despite his short stature he acts like every bat might be his last. You’re preaching to the converted,mate.Gardner’s not as good as Eck or Wolf Boy Pedroia has been BUT I like those feisty little runts just the same! BTW, Evan I never saw where I (Butch) gave the reason why they would move Gardner. I only gave the reason why I hold him in such high regard……
K-V-C wrote:
Melky lost the CF job at one bloody point too! Melky is a fourth outfielder on a team like the Yankees as is Gardner. Yankee fans hold him in high regard BUT do other teams? Evan’s assertion that there might be a better market for Brian “The Unstoppable Runt” Gardner could be the case. Then again BG’s OBP/slugging ETC so on is not exactly world beating. I just like the fact that the kid adds a dimension of speed to the team and Gym Teacher Joe seems to like ‘im quite a bit,too.
How many times did Gardner PR in a big spot in 2009 and either a) get thrown out or b) not steal & watch as the hitter bounced into a DP?
And sorry, for all his speed, he’s a mediocre OF, and his arm makes Bernie Williams’ look like Ichiro.
And you’ve got TWO teams looking to bid for him?? This is a no-brainer. Play them against one another for the best deal.
Steve, talking about wanting to cry…did you read Peter Gammon’s farewell column at ESPN.com and all of the ESPN baseball writers farewells to him? Man, I’m going to miss that guy (okay, the crying was an exaggeration, but still). I’m only 22 years old and can’t even relate to all the stories about him starting out as a writer, but I find it amazing how I feel like I had a relationship with him just because he was constantly popping up on my TV and on my laptop screen hour after hour breaking baseball news. I might sound like a complete whacko right now, but I guess maybe it’s a product of spending way too many hours following baseball coverage.
i would probably cry and if they didnt get something they need and something that makes sense i would strongly consider not being a yankee fan anymore. yea i said it. tired of this organization making stupid nonsense trades
/signings
BOHAN wrote:
Lotsa luck rootin’ for them A’s. Or Royals. Or Pirates. Or whatever.
jrk wrote:
Don’t worry, he’ll be on MLB Network. Personally, I find him to be extremely overrated and horribly biased to the red sox. but different strokes for different folks.
id have no problem being an A’s fan. im friends with mazzaro he lives around the block from me and i grew up playin ball with him and they have some real good young pitching and even younger hitters so theyll be pretty good ina couple years. and i like small market low budget teams theyre fun to talk bout in the offseason.
BOHAN wrote:
Depends on the team. If I were say, a Royals fan, I’d be annoyed at the moves Dayton Moore has been making. If there’s a guy who needs to be cut loose, it’s him.
77yankees wrote:
Look Gardner gives the team a different type of look. From an old school perspective(I became a Yankee fan in 73), not every player can be an OBP/slugging queen. You need some versatility no? Or do you wnat everyone to be Bill James’ wet dream? I won’t cry if he goes, BUT I like what he brings to the table with his so-called grittiness and guttiness.
jrk wrote:
Contrary to most Yankee fans protestations, he’s a bloody good reporter. yes, he has a Red Sox bias and is moving to BOTH MLB AND the New England Stalinist Sports Network BUT he’s not the equivalent of when Queen homerette ,Suzyn Waldman , was working for YES. Does JRK stand for jerk without the “e”,mate?
BOHAN wrote:
I get your beef on the Granderson trade, if that’s what you’re intimating. The Yanks are taking advantage of the system there’s no doubt about it. They are kinda like the fat customer that goes to the buffet table because the sign says all you can eat! MLB is at fault,too. They enable the big teams to act in a piggish and gluttonous fashion. Hopefully,but not probably that will stop with the next collective bargaining agreement.
Raf wrote:
Yeah, his payroll is being pumped up to 200 mill, now he can trade for Mauer, get Halladay etc so on. I know, my sacrcasm knows no bounds. People are criticizing the Kendall deal, who else is out there? Olivo, Barajas? Do they even want to go to KC? Look KC signed a bunch of minor leauers BUT they don’t have the money the big boys have. And judging from what Pudge AKA Irod and Randy “Mr NL” Wolf got there will be no free agent bargains this year unlike last.
butchie22 wrote:
There is no upside to the Kendall deal. It’s a stupid deal, even dumber coming from a “small market” team like Kansas City. Who do they have? They already have John Buck and Brayan Pena.
If they can’t hang with the “big boys” then it behooves them to spend what little money they have wisely. And it’s not like you can give Moore the benefit of the doubt, he’s made other stupid acquisitions such as Bloomquist, Crisp, Farnsworth, and the recently released Mike Jacobs.
butchie22 wrote:
It won’t. Yanks have been taking advantage of the system since they bought Babe Ruth from the Red Sox.
Gardner will turn 27 next year. He’s at his peak…and what can we say? He’s a 4th outfielder/pinch runner that couldn’t beat out the likes of Melky Cabrera (carreer .716 OPS) for a full-time position. Now I’m no savant, but I’m betting you can find a busload of nimble pinch runners in the minors, all of whom are 5 to 7 years younger than Gardner.
Tresh Fan wrote:
Tresh Fan – Nailed it. At this point find out who has the best piece and do this deal before the Sox and Royals sober up.
Raf wrote:
There was no free agency back then! Players were bloody slaves in those days. Totally different times actually. Now the Yanks can go out and buy the best players from the free market(CC and Teix) and sometimes the worst(Igawa and Pavano). It was about drafting and trades before free agency and the Yankees excelled in that regard The situation
It won’t change Raf? Really do you have a crystal ball on that bloody note? I don’t BUT something might be done to constrain the bigger budget teams (especially the Yankees then the Mets, Red sox etc so on).. By the same token, the small market teams should really be under the gun to make sure they spend rather pocket money as well. As much as people find the gluttony and spendthrift of the Yankees disgusting, the fact that the Pirates are allowed to do what they do is IMO equally disgusting.
Tresh Fan wrote:
Tresh spare me. don’t act like Melky is some world beater, remember that he lost out the centerfield job at one point as well. Melky is a fourth outfielder on a top tier team like the Yankees nothing more nothing less. I don’t think BG is a necessary cog on the team either BUT I did like the fact that they could plug in a guy like that from time to time.
GDH wrote:
I love how Yankee fans (not the only ones BTW) downgrade a player then want the best piece available ! Gardner’s not that great let’s expect to get more than a bag of balls for him……. Amazing and I thought I’ve seen everything under the sun……. Almost as crazy as how awesome Ajax was , until the goat he became after the front office threw out their spin. Shamelessly unbelievable….
butchie22 wrote:
Hey Butchie, I’m not downgrading GGBG, not at all. However if two teams want to “covet” him, then by all means let’s take the best deal. If they’re looking for an inexpensive leadoff solution, and they think GGBG is it, then more power to them. Likewise, if he becomes part of a three way deal where we get a piece we need more than a 4th or 5th OF/Pinch runner, then I’d consider that a no-brainer. Grandy and Damon (or another OF) make one of Melky / Gardner into extras anyway. Hell, even Hairston could fill in very adequately in that role and is more versatile.
There comes a point where you have to separate gutty and gritty from a player’s actual abilities. Joe McEwing was gutty and gritty, but he was what he was – a bench player. As was mentioned before, Pedroia is g&g, but he has talent & skills to complement them.
Also, butchie, I prefer Melky in LF/CF. I’ll take a .280, 15 HR contact guy who plays good D and gets clutch hits. And if you’ve seen my comments on Granderson in some of the other threads, I wouldn’t want him to try to be a 40 HR guy at the expense of being a .230 hitter with 160 K’s. Sometimes you have to win without HR regardless of what stadium you play in.
butchie22 wrote:
Mantle, Ford, Berra, Dimaggio, Dickey, etc were not drafted.
Yankees bought the best players then too.
butchie22 wrote:
The Pirates have competent baseball people in the front office, they’re not doing anything disgusting. They’re using their money to beef up the amateur side of operations.
Raf wrote:
Mantle, Ford, Berra, Dimaggio, Dickey, etc were not drafted.
Yankees bought the best players then too.
Don’t forget Ruth, and several other members of what was in the 1910′s the “Red Sox Dynasty”, who became the core of the first Yankees dynasty.
Aww, who’m I kidding? I know you know all that.
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