Posted by Ben K. on Friday, January 30, 2004
The Hot Corner on the Hot Stove
On January 16, Aaron Boone played what will probably be the most expensive basketball game of his life. On that fateful Friday, the projected starting third basemen for the AL Champion New York Yankees decided to play basketball instead of running on a treadmill. What followed can best be described as a disaster: Boone apparently tore his ACL.
Boone, who gained fame in New York for his ALCS-winning home run in the 11th inning of game 7, will most likely have all but around $900,000 of his new $5.75 million contract voided. But I don't really care about the cost this injury will have to Boone. What he did was irresponsible and stupid. Playing basketball was expressly forbidden in his contract, and he did it anyway. But I'm not going to condemn Boone for his stupidity. Rather, I would like to look at what this means for the Yankees and the prospects at third base for the 2004 season.
As Dave showed you in his last post, Boone's injury will significantly hurt the Yankees offense. The Miguel Cairo-Enrique Wilson platoon certainly won't have the pop of Aaron's bat or his speed on the basepaths. Having watched Enrique Wilson try to play third base against the Red Sox in the ALCS, I can testify that the defense would suffer, too. And that's where I would like to pick up my analysis. What are the defensive prospects for the Hot Corner in Yankee Stadium and who's even in the running for the position?
Before I start my analysis, I would like to point out the defensive side of this problem is particularly important to one of the Yankees' newest pitchers: Kevin Brown. See, Brownie has a career groundball to flyball ration of 2.75. This number is simply astounding. Brown throws almost 3 groundballs for every flyball. So if Brown's up on the hill throwing ground balls that the Yankee infielders can't handle, it might make for a long season for arguably one of the game's best pitchers.
So let's start with the ousted incumbent:
Aaron Boone
Aaron Boone, with a little smirk on his face, was finally supposed to give the Yankees a solid third baseman since Scott Brosius retired. He can hit for decent power and average, he steals bases, and he's a good defensive third baseman. He had a .951 fielding percentage last season, good enough to place him squarely in the middle of the pack. His range factor last season of 2.96 was third best in the Majors. Furthermore, his EQR while on the Yankees was 25 and 73 for the entire season. (As a side note, EQR is a state from Baseball Prospectus that measures how many runs Boone created at bat while fielding his position.) All in all, Boone would have been a solid presence for the Yanks, and he'll be missed this season.
Now let's take a look at those who could possibly replace Boone:
Enrique Wilson
Enrique Wilson is on the Yankees for one reason: to bat against Pedro Martinez. Somehow, Wilson is a .500 career hitter off of the greatest pitcher currently playing baseball. But could Enrique really be a substitute for Boone? Dave showed his hitting wouldn't be anywhere near as good, but what about his fielding? Well in 155 career games at third base, Wilson has a fielding percentage of .955. While that's a little bit higher than Boone's, his range factor is 2.53 compared to Boone's career 2.86. Furthermore, his EQR was 4 in 17 games last year. Over a full season, that's roughly 38 runs. While Wilson would field the ball about as well as Boone, he wouldn't get to nearly as many grounders as Aaron would, and Wilson's offense wouldn't compensate for this at all. Clearly, this would not really be a satisfactory option for the Yankees.
Miguel Cairo
On December 19, the Yankees signed Miguel Cairo to a one-year contract. Cairo was supposed to be a reserve infielder, but now he could end up as the Yankees' starting third basement. If Cairo were indeed to play third for the Yanks, the hot corner, to say the least, would be a very ugly position. In 62 career games at third, Cairo has an astounding .871 fielding percentage. His range factor is a whopping 1.85, and his EQR last season was 2 in 12 games, or 27 for the entire season. Miguel Cairo makes Chuck Knoblauch seem like a golden god. Next!
Tyler Houston
Then there's Tyler Houston, who represents a visual upgrade over Miguel Cairo's sheer ugliness. But unless, you're Derek, looks don't count for too much. Otherwise, Randy Johnson would have been unemployed a long time ago. Anyway, the prospects for Tyler aren't too bad. Signed to a minor league deal, Houston has a real shot at winning the starting job at third. Yet, his .930 career fielding percentage and 2.46 range factor leave much to desired. He wouldn't be as bad as Miguel Cairo, but his 61 EQR shows that he wouldn't be offensively inept. In fact, he once even reached the mighty heights of 18 HR in a single season. If Houston ends up as the Yankee third baseman, and he can replicate his 2001 success, he would be an adequate replacement for Boone, but not a great one.
Moving right along. I'm not even going to touch the Gary Sheffield subject, except to dismiss it outright. Gary Sheffield, who will finally lend stability and offense to the right field corner in Yankee Stadium for the first time since Paul retired, once played third base. Yesterday, he kindly offered to play third this season. Brian Cashman wisely refused. Sheffield hasn't played third since 1993, and he wasn't that good. That would have been a disaster. Sheffield will play third base again the day Pete Rose is admitted into the Hall of Fame.
Then, there's the question of Drew Henson, the Yankees' star quarterback. Henson's been an utter disaster so far in the minors. He has shown that not only is his fielding horrendous but he can't hit either. His minor league average is a whopping .248 and he has struck out 556 times in 1857 ABs. Do I really need to say anything else? Oh right, how about his 28 errors at third base last season? Clearly, Henson should take the Houston Texans offer and join the NFL. His days in baseball are numbered, and slowly, football teams will lose interest in him too.
Finally, there's always the possibility of a trade. While the Yankees farm system is almost completely barren these days, the Yankees wouldn't have to trade much to get the guys on the rumor mill. One possible replacement is...drumroll, please...last season's Opening Day third baseman Robin Ventura.
Robin Ventura
Ventura was ousted by Boone halfway through last season because Robin was no longer Batman (hardy, har, har). Yet, as a replacement, Ventura wouldn't be half bad. He can field and can sort of hit. His career fielding percentage of .958 with an RF of 2.83 are on par with Boone, and last season on the Yankees, he had a fielding percentage over .970. But his RF was down to 2.57. At the age of 36, Ventura's lost a step, but his glove work is still solid. Offensively, Ventura is a nightmare. While his EQR last season projected to around 65, he hit only .242 with a .401 slugging and 14 HR in over 300 AB. Ventura would be an adequate defensive replacement and a pitiful offensive replacement.
Edgardo Alfonzo
Then, there's the question of Edgardo Alfonzo. He wants to come back to New York, and the Giants want to unload his contract. I'm not going to delve into Alfonzo's stats here because his career numbers would be distorted. A nagging back injury has resulted in a big drop in production from Edgardo's bat. In my opinion, trading for Alfonzo would only land the Yankees another injured third baseman.
So in the end, it looks like it will be a long season for the Yankees third baseman this upcoming season. Whoever plays third for the Yanks will either leave a hole in their lineup or a more costly hole in their infield. I believe that the stacked Yankees lineup can compensate for a weak-hitting man patrolling a the field solidly. Yet, the Yankee infield isn't by any means good enough to make out for a poor-fielding third basement. It looks like Tyler Houston would be the best choice for the Yankees if he can pull it all together. I just hope that the Yankees can make it through this disaster unscathed and don't turn to more drastic measures, such as Jeff Cirillo, as the solution to the most glaring Achilles' Heal of the past 9 season.
### So what do you think? We want to know. | | E-mail us ###
On January 16, Aaron Boone played what will probably be the most expensive basketball game of his life. On that fateful Friday, the projected starting third basemen for the AL Champion New York Yankees decided to play basketball instead of running on a treadmill. What followed can best be described as a disaster: Boone apparently tore his ACL.
Boone, who gained fame in New York for his ALCS-winning home run in the 11th inning of game 7, will most likely have all but around $900,000 of his new $5.75 million contract voided. But I don't really care about the cost this injury will have to Boone. What he did was irresponsible and stupid. Playing basketball was expressly forbidden in his contract, and he did it anyway. But I'm not going to condemn Boone for his stupidity. Rather, I would like to look at what this means for the Yankees and the prospects at third base for the 2004 season.
As Dave showed you in his last post, Boone's injury will significantly hurt the Yankees offense. The Miguel Cairo-Enrique Wilson platoon certainly won't have the pop of Aaron's bat or his speed on the basepaths. Having watched Enrique Wilson try to play third base against the Red Sox in the ALCS, I can testify that the defense would suffer, too. And that's where I would like to pick up my analysis. What are the defensive prospects for the Hot Corner in Yankee Stadium and who's even in the running for the position?
Before I start my analysis, I would like to point out the defensive side of this problem is particularly important to one of the Yankees' newest pitchers: Kevin Brown. See, Brownie has a career groundball to flyball ration of 2.75. This number is simply astounding. Brown throws almost 3 groundballs for every flyball. So if Brown's up on the hill throwing ground balls that the Yankee infielders can't handle, it might make for a long season for arguably one of the game's best pitchers.
So let's start with the ousted incumbent:
Aaron Boone
Aaron Boone, with a little smirk on his face, was finally supposed to give the Yankees a solid third baseman since Scott Brosius retired. He can hit for decent power and average, he steals bases, and he's a good defensive third baseman. He had a .951 fielding percentage last season, good enough to place him squarely in the middle of the pack. His range factor last season of 2.96 was third best in the Majors. Furthermore, his EQR while on the Yankees was 25 and 73 for the entire season. (As a side note, EQR is a state from Baseball Prospectus that measures how many runs Boone created at bat while fielding his position.) All in all, Boone would have been a solid presence for the Yanks, and he'll be missed this season.
Now let's take a look at those who could possibly replace Boone:
Enrique Wilson
Enrique Wilson is on the Yankees for one reason: to bat against Pedro Martinez. Somehow, Wilson is a .500 career hitter off of the greatest pitcher currently playing baseball. But could Enrique really be a substitute for Boone? Dave showed his hitting wouldn't be anywhere near as good, but what about his fielding? Well in 155 career games at third base, Wilson has a fielding percentage of .955. While that's a little bit higher than Boone's, his range factor is 2.53 compared to Boone's career 2.86. Furthermore, his EQR was 4 in 17 games last year. Over a full season, that's roughly 38 runs. While Wilson would field the ball about as well as Boone, he wouldn't get to nearly as many grounders as Aaron would, and Wilson's offense wouldn't compensate for this at all. Clearly, this would not really be a satisfactory option for the Yankees.
Miguel Cairo
On December 19, the Yankees signed Miguel Cairo to a one-year contract. Cairo was supposed to be a reserve infielder, but now he could end up as the Yankees' starting third basement. If Cairo were indeed to play third for the Yanks, the hot corner, to say the least, would be a very ugly position. In 62 career games at third, Cairo has an astounding .871 fielding percentage. His range factor is a whopping 1.85, and his EQR last season was 2 in 12 games, or 27 for the entire season. Miguel Cairo makes Chuck Knoblauch seem like a golden god. Next!
Tyler Houston
Then there's Tyler Houston, who represents a visual upgrade over Miguel Cairo's sheer ugliness. But unless, you're Derek, looks don't count for too much. Otherwise, Randy Johnson would have been unemployed a long time ago. Anyway, the prospects for Tyler aren't too bad. Signed to a minor league deal, Houston has a real shot at winning the starting job at third. Yet, his .930 career fielding percentage and 2.46 range factor leave much to desired. He wouldn't be as bad as Miguel Cairo, but his 61 EQR shows that he wouldn't be offensively inept. In fact, he once even reached the mighty heights of 18 HR in a single season. If Houston ends up as the Yankee third baseman, and he can replicate his 2001 success, he would be an adequate replacement for Boone, but not a great one.
Moving right along. I'm not even going to touch the Gary Sheffield subject, except to dismiss it outright. Gary Sheffield, who will finally lend stability and offense to the right field corner in Yankee Stadium for the first time since Paul retired, once played third base. Yesterday, he kindly offered to play third this season. Brian Cashman wisely refused. Sheffield hasn't played third since 1993, and he wasn't that good. That would have been a disaster. Sheffield will play third base again the day Pete Rose is admitted into the Hall of Fame.
Then, there's the question of Drew Henson, the Yankees' star quarterback. Henson's been an utter disaster so far in the minors. He has shown that not only is his fielding horrendous but he can't hit either. His minor league average is a whopping .248 and he has struck out 556 times in 1857 ABs. Do I really need to say anything else? Oh right, how about his 28 errors at third base last season? Clearly, Henson should take the Houston Texans offer and join the NFL. His days in baseball are numbered, and slowly, football teams will lose interest in him too.
Finally, there's always the possibility of a trade. While the Yankees farm system is almost completely barren these days, the Yankees wouldn't have to trade much to get the guys on the rumor mill. One possible replacement is...drumroll, please...last season's Opening Day third baseman Robin Ventura.
Robin Ventura
Ventura was ousted by Boone halfway through last season because Robin was no longer Batman (hardy, har, har). Yet, as a replacement, Ventura wouldn't be half bad. He can field and can sort of hit. His career fielding percentage of .958 with an RF of 2.83 are on par with Boone, and last season on the Yankees, he had a fielding percentage over .970. But his RF was down to 2.57. At the age of 36, Ventura's lost a step, but his glove work is still solid. Offensively, Ventura is a nightmare. While his EQR last season projected to around 65, he hit only .242 with a .401 slugging and 14 HR in over 300 AB. Ventura would be an adequate defensive replacement and a pitiful offensive replacement.
Edgardo Alfonzo
Then, there's the question of Edgardo Alfonzo. He wants to come back to New York, and the Giants want to unload his contract. I'm not going to delve into Alfonzo's stats here because his career numbers would be distorted. A nagging back injury has resulted in a big drop in production from Edgardo's bat. In my opinion, trading for Alfonzo would only land the Yankees another injured third baseman.
So in the end, it looks like it will be a long season for the Yankees third baseman this upcoming season. Whoever plays third for the Yanks will either leave a hole in their lineup or a more costly hole in their infield. I believe that the stacked Yankees lineup can compensate for a weak-hitting man patrolling a the field solidly. Yet, the Yankee infield isn't by any means good enough to make out for a poor-fielding third basement. It looks like Tyler Houston would be the best choice for the Yankees if he can pull it all together. I just hope that the Yankees can make it through this disaster unscathed and don't turn to more drastic measures, such as Jeff Cirillo, as the solution to the most glaring Achilles' Heal of the past 9 season.
### So what do you think? We want to know. | | E-mail us ###
Posted by Ben K. on Monday, January 26, 2004
Trying to save face after a disaster
Tonight, I saw something infuriating happen in the baseball world. Alex Rodriguez, the Traitor of Texas, was named team captain. I cannot believe the Rangers did this, and I refuse to believe what anyone associated with the Rangers is saying about this.
When I first saw this story, my initial reaction was one of shock. Granted, A-Rod is the best player in baseball right now and probably the best of this generation. In these respects, he would be prime captain material. But his off-field machinations have certainly not suggested a man of tact, subtlety, or great leadership abilities. With his bank account growing by $25.2 million a year, his ridiculous contract gives him control over the Rangers almost equal to that of manager Buck Showalter.
Yet, is he happy? Of course not. Would you be happy playing for a team that has finished in last place every year you've been on the team? I wouldn't be. To make matters worse, this off-season was filled with rumors that A-Rod was going to be traded to the Boston Red Sox for Manny Ramirez and a few more players. The deal, in fact (and as we all know), would have gone through had it not been for the Players' Association's rejecting a proposed contract restructuring. (A side note: I can't blame or be angry at the Players' Association for not approving this contract. Their job is to look out for Union members, and they can't start making exceptions for anyone just because they make more money than all of their other members.) In more than a few cases, Rodriguez was quoted as saying that he would be happy to leave Texas and ecstatic to join a team in Boston that is perennially playing long past the time when the Texas Rangers have all started their off-season work regimes.
Now that the trade is finally dead, the Texas Rangers management is trying to mend fences. That's exactly what the point of this latest move was. They're not trying to tap into A-Rod's ability to lead the team; they're trying to save face in front of their fans and other players. This move is their way of saying, "We're sorry we tried to trade away the only thing on this team that makes you come to the Ballpark in Arlington everyday." It's a pathetic move on the management's part, but it only gets worse when you actually look at what A-Rod, Showalter, and other higher-ups in the Rangers organization had to say.
A-Rod imparted these words of wisdom after being named captain: "I definitely think I'm going to be here for a long time. I'm probably pretty sure it will work out for the best." Well, you know what Alex, I'm probably pretty sure that your fans will give you quite a few boos this season when you step up to the plate if that's really the best you can do. Basically, Alex doesn't even know if he himself thinks it's going to work out for the best. That's really not too comforting if you're a fan of the boys in Texas.
Alex also said that he feels "a grand responsibility not only to the Texas Rangers but to our fans." A grand responsibility to play for a winning team in Boston, based on what he had to say this off-season. I have a feeling the fans won't fall for Rodriguez's lame attempts at sucking up to them. Basically, two months ago, A-Rod was campaigning for a trade to the Red Sox; now he's saying that he feels a responsibility to be the captain of the Texas Rangers. How could anyone believe a single word coming out of this man's mouth right now?
Finally, A-Rod added that he thinks the toughest days are behind him and that he's looking forward to negotiating a contract extension with Rangers owner Tom Hicks that would last until the short stop is into his "mid 40s." Of course Alex wants to renegotiate with Hicks. What other owner would even consider giving him anywhere close to 25 mil a year? Maybe if he's lucky, Hicks will give him the ballpark and that cool roller coaster behind the center field wall as part of his next contract.
All in all, this reeks of a public relations attempt to win back to the fans to the side of Alex Rodriguez. Unfortunately, it falls flat, and if A-Rod's word don't prove this point, Showalter's praise of his prima donna short stop certainly will. Showalter was apparently pleased that A-Rod will be the captain; in fact, he's supposedly been contemplating naming Rodriguez the captain for a few months. Here's what he had to say: "It is very important as we go forward that we have someone like Alex lead our young people in the proper direction and set the tone." So Buck, what tone exactly are we setting here? The one that tells the our young people to jump ship if you have a chance to play for a team that actually might make it to the World Series? The one that says hoodwink a gullible owner into paying more than market price for a player? The one that says act like you own the team and completely disrespect any managerial/coaching system already in place? I certainly think A-Rod will set a good tone for the players in that sense.
Now, I have nothing against Alex Rodriguez as a player. There's no denying that he deserved that MVP award this year. There's no denying that he deserves a plaque in Cooperstown after he retires. And it's certainly not impossible to believe that A-Rod will be remembered as the best player ever to play in the Major Leagues. But Alex won't be winning any humanitarian awards for his efforts at bringing a World Championship to Texas. I would like to hypothetically ask Buck Showalter if he really believes the words coming out of his mouth and A-Rod's mouth. Does anyone truly think this is anything more than a public relations ploy to bring out some level of redemption from what the fans would see as a faithless, horrible off season? I don't; I bet the Texas Rangers fans don't; and I believe the Texas Rangers management doesn't either.
### So what do you think? We want to know. | | E-mail us ###
Tonight, I saw something infuriating happen in the baseball world. Alex Rodriguez, the Traitor of Texas, was named team captain. I cannot believe the Rangers did this, and I refuse to believe what anyone associated with the Rangers is saying about this.
When I first saw this story, my initial reaction was one of shock. Granted, A-Rod is the best player in baseball right now and probably the best of this generation. In these respects, he would be prime captain material. But his off-field machinations have certainly not suggested a man of tact, subtlety, or great leadership abilities. With his bank account growing by $25.2 million a year, his ridiculous contract gives him control over the Rangers almost equal to that of manager Buck Showalter.
Yet, is he happy? Of course not. Would you be happy playing for a team that has finished in last place every year you've been on the team? I wouldn't be. To make matters worse, this off-season was filled with rumors that A-Rod was going to be traded to the Boston Red Sox for Manny Ramirez and a few more players. The deal, in fact (and as we all know), would have gone through had it not been for the Players' Association's rejecting a proposed contract restructuring. (A side note: I can't blame or be angry at the Players' Association for not approving this contract. Their job is to look out for Union members, and they can't start making exceptions for anyone just because they make more money than all of their other members.) In more than a few cases, Rodriguez was quoted as saying that he would be happy to leave Texas and ecstatic to join a team in Boston that is perennially playing long past the time when the Texas Rangers have all started their off-season work regimes.
Now that the trade is finally dead, the Texas Rangers management is trying to mend fences. That's exactly what the point of this latest move was. They're not trying to tap into A-Rod's ability to lead the team; they're trying to save face in front of their fans and other players. This move is their way of saying, "We're sorry we tried to trade away the only thing on this team that makes you come to the Ballpark in Arlington everyday." It's a pathetic move on the management's part, but it only gets worse when you actually look at what A-Rod, Showalter, and other higher-ups in the Rangers organization had to say.
A-Rod imparted these words of wisdom after being named captain: "I definitely think I'm going to be here for a long time. I'm probably pretty sure it will work out for the best." Well, you know what Alex, I'm probably pretty sure that your fans will give you quite a few boos this season when you step up to the plate if that's really the best you can do. Basically, Alex doesn't even know if he himself thinks it's going to work out for the best. That's really not too comforting if you're a fan of the boys in Texas.
Alex also said that he feels "a grand responsibility not only to the Texas Rangers but to our fans." A grand responsibility to play for a winning team in Boston, based on what he had to say this off-season. I have a feeling the fans won't fall for Rodriguez's lame attempts at sucking up to them. Basically, two months ago, A-Rod was campaigning for a trade to the Red Sox; now he's saying that he feels a responsibility to be the captain of the Texas Rangers. How could anyone believe a single word coming out of this man's mouth right now?
Finally, A-Rod added that he thinks the toughest days are behind him and that he's looking forward to negotiating a contract extension with Rangers owner Tom Hicks that would last until the short stop is into his "mid 40s." Of course Alex wants to renegotiate with Hicks. What other owner would even consider giving him anywhere close to 25 mil a year? Maybe if he's lucky, Hicks will give him the ballpark and that cool roller coaster behind the center field wall as part of his next contract.
All in all, this reeks of a public relations attempt to win back to the fans to the side of Alex Rodriguez. Unfortunately, it falls flat, and if A-Rod's word don't prove this point, Showalter's praise of his prima donna short stop certainly will. Showalter was apparently pleased that A-Rod will be the captain; in fact, he's supposedly been contemplating naming Rodriguez the captain for a few months. Here's what he had to say: "It is very important as we go forward that we have someone like Alex lead our young people in the proper direction and set the tone." So Buck, what tone exactly are we setting here? The one that tells the our young people to jump ship if you have a chance to play for a team that actually might make it to the World Series? The one that says hoodwink a gullible owner into paying more than market price for a player? The one that says act like you own the team and completely disrespect any managerial/coaching system already in place? I certainly think A-Rod will set a good tone for the players in that sense.
Now, I have nothing against Alex Rodriguez as a player. There's no denying that he deserved that MVP award this year. There's no denying that he deserves a plaque in Cooperstown after he retires. And it's certainly not impossible to believe that A-Rod will be remembered as the best player ever to play in the Major Leagues. But Alex won't be winning any humanitarian awards for his efforts at bringing a World Championship to Texas. I would like to hypothetically ask Buck Showalter if he really believes the words coming out of his mouth and A-Rod's mouth. Does anyone truly think this is anything more than a public relations ploy to bring out some level of redemption from what the fans would see as a faithless, horrible off season? I don't; I bet the Texas Rangers fans don't; and I believe the Texas Rangers management doesn't either.
### So what do you think? We want to know. | | E-mail us ###