Swisher’s Time In New York Running Short?
Via Ben Shpigel -
It has been a disappointing season for [Nick] Swisher, the team’s lone everyday player yet to embark on a hot streak.
Through his first 152 at-bats entering Friday, Swisher was hitting .204 with two homers — none since May 7 — and a .321 on-base percentage. His .289 slugging percentage ranked 175th among the 183 players who were on pace to qualify for the batting title according to Stats, L.L.C., lower than those of Chris Getz, Elvis Andrus, Juan Pierre and Ronny Cedeno. Manager Joe Girardi has repeatedly expressed his faith in Swisher, but on Friday he acknowledged the possibility of a right-field platoon with a left-handed hitter (Chris Dickerson is the most appealing option).
“There’s some different things you could do, but my hope is, let’s get him going,” Girardi said before the Yankees’ game against the Mariners, adding, “We miss his bat in there. There’s no doubt about it.”
Last season Swisher hit .288 with 29 homers and 89 runs batted in. And if his hitting does not improve, the Yankees could seek an upgrade before the July 31 trade deadline, a move that would almost certainly end Swisher’s time with the organization. The Yankees hold a $10.25 million option on him for 2012 with a $1 million buyout.
In conversations with Girardi, Swisher has remained upbeat, his perpetually caffeinated self. When asked Friday about his struggles, Swisher’s response was “you guys shouldn’t be so worried about me.”
A Yankeeland without Nick Swisher?
Hey, it’s a start.
Why?
I mean, I know his post-season performance was terrible both years, but didn’t he help them make the post-season both years? If he was hitting well now, wouldn’t they have won another game or two or three already this year?
Steve Lombardi wrote:
A start to what? Why would it make the Yankees better to get rid of a solid player? You hate his personality but that’s not a good enough reason to dump a player that has value to the team.
Where is his value this year? He sucks.
Yeah, I know…bad luck, bad luck.
Bad luck is a week. It’s not two months.
Yeah, I know…he was a productive player in 2009 and 2010.
Derek Jeter was a productive player in the past too. But, now, with him, all that matters is 2011.
And, the same applies to Swisher – and he sucks.
Personality or not, IF HE’S GOING TO PLAY LIKE THIS, then he has to go.
Steve Lombardi wrote:
You may want to take a closer look at the numbers to both players.
Jeter’s numbers
BABIP: .281 (.354 career)
LD%: 11 (20)
GB%: 69 (57)
FB%: 20 (23)
BB%: 6 (9)
K%: 14 (17)
Less line drives, more groundballs, fewer walks and fewer k’s.
Swisher’s numbers
LD%: 24 (19 career)
GB%: 35 (36)
FB%: 41 (45)
BB%: 14 (13)
K%: 26 (25)
For the most part, Swisher’s hitting at his career levels, save for more line drives, and a little less fly balls.
The only thing the two have in common is that they play for the Yankees.
I like Swisher. I really hope he picks it up ASAFP. I also believe that Swisher’s #1 cheerleader is Cashman, as that trade was considered one of the shrewdest he’s made with the Yankees. Swish might get a longer leash than we expect, but at the end of the day, Swisher is no Derek Jeter. He’s a fan favorite (except for Steve) but he really doesn’t have anywhere near the off-the-field clout of Jeter. He’s relatively young and inexpensive (unlike Posada, Jeter, A-Rod), so he’ll hold far more trade value than those guys. If they get a chance to upgrade that lineup or even the rotation by trading Swish, they have to do it.
Steve Lombardi wrote:
Swisher is a veteran player who’s hit reasonably well in 5 out of 6 major league seasons. He’s only 30. Of major league right fielders, he’s 7th out of 30 in WAR in MLB for the 2009-2010. You don’t dump a guy for a bad 1/3 of a season unless:
1. You have someone better who’s in your system or from another team for a reasonable price.
2. You panic because right now, your team is playing mediocre ball while your rival “zooms past” your team.
3. You don’t know how to properly evaluate contributions at the big-league level and you personally hate the guy.
Right now, the two in-house alternatives are Dickerson, who’s 29 himself, and spent the better part of the last two years injured and in the minors, and who can’t hit lefties, and Justin Maxwell, who, although he’s got a lot of homers, has stolen 10 bases, and is slugging .560 at AAA right now, is also 27 already, hitting .256, and is striking out in roughly 40% of his AB…at AAA. I don’t see any real improvement there.
Now, if you want to make a trade for someone better, I’m all for it, provided: 1) The player really is better, and not just off to a hot start that makes him LOOK better than Swisher at this moment, and 2) the price isn’t excessive because the other team in the deal knows you’re panicked.
You wanna trade for Beltran? Fine by me, but the Mets haven’t officially given up on their race, and while price him at an arm and a leg. You might be able to get Cuddyer from the Twins, of Ludwick from the Padres, but are they really better?
==============================================
Cashman himself said in the last couple of days that no one’s making phone calls for trades this early. So replacing Swisher will have to wait awhile longer, which is probably a good thing, because
1) It allows him some more time to hit back to his level, obviating the need to make a trade at all, and
2) Puts more teams out of contention, creating a better buyer’s market.
The Yanks don’t have to hang with the Red Sox, if they can. They have to hang with the Rays, the Tigers, and whoever emerges as the runner-up in the West. That’s their main competition. It would be nice if they stayed in the race for the AL East, and if the rest of the team starts hitting back to their records (that’s you I’m looking at, Cano, Tex, A-Rod, and, to a much lesser extent, Jeter and Posada), they’ll be OK whether Swisher gets it back together or not.
On a lighter note, did anyone see that Joanna Garcia-Swisher sat in the bleachers and did Roll Call with Bald Vinny and the crew the other day?
Color me a pessimist but I can’t picture the alleged future Mrs. Jeter or Cameron Diaz replicating that, no?
Neither the future Mrs. Jeter nor Cameron Diaz is that desperate for attention.
Joanna = perfect mate for Swish.
Like Mrs Posada, Mrs Swisher has had her set of accomplishments before she met her ballplaying husband. Nothing wrong with having a little fun and enjoying life.
Lot of wet blankets around here, I tell ya
I hope all the NYY WAGs are ‘having a little fun and enjoying life’, in their own individual styles.
Our occasionally observing and commenting on their little ways surely does not interfere with that?
Raf wrote:
Seriously.
Lately, Swisher has been looking alot better at the plate. We can only hope that, with his “bad luck” so far, the law of averages plays out and he will be on a tear for the rest of the year.
@ YankCrank:
amen to that.
LMJ229 wrote:
Three very good AB yesterday. I can only hope it’s time for one of his month-long hot streaks. The team sure could use it to lengthen the lineup, and they have a tough schedule coming up here.
cr1 wrote:
Of course not.
As the cool kids say “haters gonna hate.” So feel free to get worked up over “their little ways,” it’s a free country after all
@ Raf:
Nope, not the Raf who used to be a friend of Kat’s.
Sorry, my mistake.
@ cr1:
I am a friend of Kat, but we may not have the same person in mind
Steve Lombardi wrote:
Incorrect. Bad luck can persist all year, as we’ve seen in countless other examples, including Nick Swisher’s bad luck season of 2008. The Yankees parlayed that season into buying low on a guy that produced quite well over the past two seasons.
Steve Lombardi wrote:
You’re misapplying the concept of “past.” It’s not just how productive a player was in the past but how productive they can be in the future. Swisher has a greater chance of being productive this year than Jeter does and, more importantly, has a greater chance of being productive next year.