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November 28, 2006


So, What Did I Miss?
by SG

I'm back from my vacation, and of course I missed a bunch of stuff, some good, some bad. Thanks to Fabian for filling in during my absence and doing a great job with the major league stuff and his prospect reports as well.

I've been out of the loop, but here are my quick thoughts on some of the things that went down.

Yankees deal Sheffield to Tigers

On the surface, I like this move a lot. Gary Sheffield was a malcontent coming off a wrist injury and without a position on next year's team. Humberto Sanchez has tons of talent, with injuries the major concern. I'm less enthusiastic about the other two arms in the trade, as relief prospects rarely pan out. However, the Yankees got a prospect who will probably be one of their top five now, and didn't have to pay a penny towards Sheffield's $13 million deal. Seems like a good move to me.

Yanks deal Wright to O's for reliever

Another good deal. The Yankees would have owed Jaret Wright $4 million, so they basically traded Wright for a serviceable right-handed reliever in Chris Britton. Britton throws in the low 90s with a slider and changeup. The big issue with him seems to be his weight, but he gives the Yankees a little more depth in the bullpen at a time when people like Danys Baez are being paid $6 milion a year to very likely give a similar performance to someone like Britton at 1/10 the cost.

Red Sox bid $51.1 million for Matsuzaka

What. The. F...?

I wanted Matsuzaka badly, but I see no way he's going to be worth $20-25 million a season, which could end up being the final tally once the posting fee is added to his contract.

Morneau named AL MVP

Wow. This is bad. Derek Jeter wasn't necessarily a slam dunk MVP candidate by any means, but Morneau is a worse selection than about 10 other people, including two on HIS OWN TEAM! This is inexplicable to me. I guess Jeter can console himself with Jessica Biel as a consolation prize.

Yankees re-sign Mussina

I like this signing too. Moose can probably be penciled in for 375 league average or better innings for the next two seasons. With the current market for pitching, this deal seems like a good one.

The Yankees still need to fill the role of backup catcher. I was hoping they could snag Greg Zaun, although he is apparently returning to Toronto. The rest of the free agent catching group is pretty lackluster, although someone like Mike Lieberthal may be a good fit. He's been a starter for most of his career, although he's getting a bit older and banged up and may appreciate a shot at a ring as a backup if the money's right. They also still need to fill the starting 1B position, preferably with a solid right-handed bat. Shea Hillenbrand and Wes Helms don't really intrigue me, and while Craig Wilson has a pretty solid track record, his 100 disappointing Yankee AB likely mean he won't be back. I suppose a trade is a possibility, although I'd hate to see the Yankees tearing up the farm just as they're starting to build it back up to respectability.

There's likely more moves to be made in the area of the starting pitching too. If I were the Yankees, I'd talk to Roger Clemens now and see if he'd be interested in one last go. None of the other options really interests me that much.