The Atlanta Braves have released 26 year old switch-hitting outfielder Melky Cabrera and 40 year old right-handed reliever Takashi Saito. Saito, despite his age, had a great year in '10, going 2-3 with a 2.83 ERA and 69 K's in 56 relief appearances and 54 IP with the Braves. Melky had a not-so-great season, hitting .255 with 27 doubles, 4 homers, 42 RBI, 7 stolen bases, and .317 OBP in 147 games. He also had an off-year defensively, posting a just average .988 Fld% in 84 games in LF, a way below average .971 Fld% in 55 games in CF. He did post a perfect 1.000 Fld% in 25 games in RF and have a total of 8 outfield assists. . Should the Yankees resign him?
Let's go back to Melky's years with the Yankees from 2005 to 2009. Melky had his first 'cup of coffee' in the big leagues in '05, hitting .211 in 6 games. He didn't make any errors in centerfield. In '06, Melky won the Yankee LF job. He hit .280 with 26 doubles, 7 homers, 50 RBI, 12 stolen bases, 75 runs, and a .360 OBP in 130 games. He posted a great .994 Fld% in LF and a .992 Fld% in the outfield overall. He led the AL with 12 outfield assists from left field. In '07, Melky became the Yankees' starting centerfielder. He had a nice season, hitting .273 with 24 doubles, 8 homers, 73 RBI, 13 stolen bases, 66 runs, and a .327 OBP in 150 games. He posted just a league-average .989 Fld% in CF, but he led the AL with 14 outfield assists from centerfield. Melky's career had gotten off to a promising start. Also, he turned just 23 in August of '07. It appeared that he was going to be a Yankee outfielder for a long time. He was a fan favorite and one of the best defensive outfielders in the game. He was so good that the Yankees didn't include him in a potential deal for Johan Santana.
But in '08, everything changed for Melky. He had his worst season, hitting just .249 with just 12 doubles, 8 homers, 37 RBI (half his '07 total), 9 stolen bases, just 42 runs, and worst of all a .301 OBP in 129 games. He even had an off-year defensively, posting a below average .985 Fld% in CF with just 7 outfield assists. It was so bad that after the season, the Yankees nearly traded Melky to the Brewers for Mike Cameron. But, they decided to hold on to him in the end.
In '09, Melky rewarded the Yankees for their dedication to him. He hit .274 with 28 doubles, 13 homers, 68 RBI, 10 SB, 66 runs, and a .336 OBP in 154 games. But, strangely he posted a perfect 1.000 Fld% in CF (obviously tops in the league) but just 2 outfield assists from CF. With Melky having a high value and Brett Gardner ready to become a regular, the Yankees included Melky in the Javier Vazquez deal (Melky, LHP Mike Dunn, and RHP Arodys Vizcaino for Vazquez and Boone Logan.)
After Melky's bad '10, do the Yankees want him back? Even if he does come back, he will certainly never be a full-time starter again, pending an injury. But, he could be a very useful utility outfielder. Let me put it this way: Golson can't hit, Thames can't field, and Kearns is just bad. The Yankees could use a better all-around backup outfielder. The Yankees already have a great outfield of Gardner, Granderson, and Swisher, so they don't need a guy like Carl Crawford or Jayson Werth. They just need one more piece to complete their outfield- a good all-around backup with some pop off the bench. There are other options available, but Melky could be that guy. I think they should re-sign him.
Showing posts with label Melky Cabrera. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Melky Cabrera. Show all posts
Friday, October 22, 2010
Friday, July 9, 2010
A review of every significant Yankee trade since '08
Nearly every year, the Yankees make a deal or two to acquire some veterans in exchange for some prospects and/or young major league players. Let's look at these trades (since '08), how the former Yankees and Yankee prospects have been doing, and how the players acquired in the trades by the Yankees have been doing in order to see whether the trades have ended being a good trades for the Yanks. I'll go through these in reverse chronological order.
In December of '09, the Yankees acquired RHP Javier Vazquez and left-handed reliever Boone Logan in exchange for major league OF Melky Cabrera, left-handed pitching prospect Mike Dunn, and right-handed pitching prospect Arodys Vizcaino. Melky has hit .257 for the Braves with 12 doubles, 2 homers, 23 RBI, 3 SB, and a .314 OBP in 82 games. Dunn has gone 2-0 at Triple-A Gwinnett, with a 1.11 ERA and 54 K's in 31 relief appearances and 40.2 IP. Vizcaino went 9-3 with a 2.34 ERA and 66 K's in 12 starts and 69.1 IP for Low-A Rome before being promoted to High-A Myrtle Beach, where he has gone 0-0 with a 4.61 ERA and 11 K's in 3 starts and 13.2 IP. It's too early to tell, but this has been a pretty even trade so far. The Yankees traded a decent major league player and two good prospects for Vazquez, who is starting to pitch like a great pitcher, and a pretty good reliever in Boone Logan.
Also in December of '09, the Yankees, Tigers, and Diamondbacks made a 3-way trade that sent Curtis Granderson to the Yanks, Edwin Jackson and Yankees RHP prospect Ian Kennedy to the D-backs, and Arizona right-handed relief prospect Mark Schlereth and right-handed major league starter Max Scherzer going to Detroit along with Yankee CF prospect Austin Jackson and major league lefty reliever Phil Coke. Let's look at how Kennedy, Coke, and Jackson have done for their respective teams. Kennedy has gone 3-7 with a 4.16 ERA and 95 K's in 17 starts and 106 IP. He has been a pretty starter for the D-backs. Coke has been a great reliever for Detroit, going 5-0 with a 2.60 ERA and 28 K's in 40 relief appearances and 34.2 IP. Jackson has hit .306 as the regular centerfielder for the Tigers, with 20 doubles, 1 homer, 20 RBI, 4 triples, 13 SB, and a .355 OBP in 75 games. I guess we have to compare Jackson to Granderson. Granderson has hit .225 with 8 doubles, 7 homers, 23 RBI, 4 triples, 7 SB, and a .300 OBP in 60 games. He missed nearly a month with a groin injury. Jackson has posted a better BA, OBP, and he stole more bases than Granderson so far in '10, but despite the missed time, Granderson has posted better power numbers and tied Jackson in triples. It's a debate who's better, but trading Jackson along with Kennedy and Coke for Granderson does not seem like a good trade for the Yankees. Of course, Granderson could turn it on at any time and make all of us forget about these prospects. But, he hasn't yet, so we have to consider this trade a bad trade for the Yankees right now.
At the trade deadline in '09, the Yankees traded minor league catcher Chris Weems to the Reds in exchange for utility player Jerry Hairston Jr. Weems is hitting just .222 at Low-A Dayton, with 2 doubles, 0 homers, 3 RBI, and a .263 OBP in 14 games. Hairston hit .237 with 5 doubles, 2 homers, 12 RBI, and a .352 OBP in 45 gamesfor the Yankees in '09 while playing every outfield position, and every infield position besides 1st base. He's hitting .245 for the Padres in '10, with 8 doubles, 5 homers, 30 RBI, 5 SB, and a .286 OBP in 76 games. This trade was a steal for the Yankees. They traded a struggling prospect for a good major league utility player.
One month before the trade deadline, the Yankees traded minor league LHP Casey Erickson and catching and outfield prospect Eric Fryer in exchange for Eric Hinske, who plays both corner outfield and corner infield positions. Erickson has gone 3-2 for High-A Bradenton, with a 4.02 ERA and 43 K's in 16 relief appearances, 6 starts, and 53.2 IP. Fryer is hitting .274 at High-A Bradenton, with 13 doubles, 7 homers, 34 RBI, 4 triples, 5 SB, and a .373 OBP in 57 games. Hinske hit .226 with the Yankees in '09, with 3 doubles, 7 homers, 14 RBI, and a .316 OBP in 39 games. He really didn't play very much at all. He had just 84 at-bats with the Yankees. With the Braves in '10, he has hit .278 with 16 doubles, 6 homers, 34 RBI, and a .342 OBP in 71 games. This trade was a bad trade for the Yankees. They traded a pretty good prospect in Fryer and a decent prospect in Erickson in exchange for a player who barely played for them.
Five days before the trade deadline in '08, the Yankees traded right-handed pitching prospects Jeff Karstens and Daniel McCutchen, major league right-hander Ross Ohlendorf, and LF prospect Jose Tabata to the Pirates in exchange for left-handed reliever Damaso Marte and OF Xavier Nady. Karsten has gone 2-3 with a 4.71 ERA and 36 K's in 10 start, 6 relief appearances, and 72.2 IP. He went 1-2 with a 7.31 ERA and 12 K's in 4 relief appearances, 1 start, and 16 IP. McCutchen has gone 1-4 for Pittsburgh in '10, with a 8.58 ERA and 16 K's in 6 starts, 1 relief appearance, and 28.1 IP. Ohlendorf has gone 1-6 with a 4.39 ERA and 45 K's in 12 starts and 67.2 IP. He went 11-10 with a 3.92 ERA and 109 K's in 29 starts and 176.2 IP in '09. Tabata is hitting .235 for the Pirates with 6 doubles, 1 homer, 6 RBI, 7 SB, and a .304 OBP in 25 games. Nady hit .270 with 15 doubles, 12 homers, 42 RBI, and a .319 OBP in 66 games with the Yankees between the '08 and '09 seasons. He missed nearly all of '09 with an elbow injury. Marte has gone 6-2 with a 6.02 ERA in 76 relief appearances with the Yanks from '07 to '10. But, Marte was untouchable in the '09 postseason, giving up no runs on 2 hits in 8 relief appearances and 4 IP. The Yankees traded 4 prospects who Pittsburgh has called up already for a player who was injured most of his time with the team and a reliever who has posted below-average numbers. This trade has been a complete disaster for the Yankees, but at least it gave Marte the opportunity to perform the way he did in the '09 playoffs.
The Yankees have not made good trades the last few years. Among these trades, I would say that only 1 trade (the Hairston trade) was a good trade for the Yankees, 2 trades were bad (Hinske and Nady/Marte) with the Granderson trade seeming to be bad, but it's too early to tell, and the Vazquez trade being a pretty even trade. I hope the Yankees can make better trades at the 2010 trade deadline and during the 2010 offseason.
In December of '09, the Yankees acquired RHP Javier Vazquez and left-handed reliever Boone Logan in exchange for major league OF Melky Cabrera, left-handed pitching prospect Mike Dunn, and right-handed pitching prospect Arodys Vizcaino. Melky has hit .257 for the Braves with 12 doubles, 2 homers, 23 RBI, 3 SB, and a .314 OBP in 82 games. Dunn has gone 2-0 at Triple-A Gwinnett, with a 1.11 ERA and 54 K's in 31 relief appearances and 40.2 IP. Vizcaino went 9-3 with a 2.34 ERA and 66 K's in 12 starts and 69.1 IP for Low-A Rome before being promoted to High-A Myrtle Beach, where he has gone 0-0 with a 4.61 ERA and 11 K's in 3 starts and 13.2 IP. It's too early to tell, but this has been a pretty even trade so far. The Yankees traded a decent major league player and two good prospects for Vazquez, who is starting to pitch like a great pitcher, and a pretty good reliever in Boone Logan.
Also in December of '09, the Yankees, Tigers, and Diamondbacks made a 3-way trade that sent Curtis Granderson to the Yanks, Edwin Jackson and Yankees RHP prospect Ian Kennedy to the D-backs, and Arizona right-handed relief prospect Mark Schlereth and right-handed major league starter Max Scherzer going to Detroit along with Yankee CF prospect Austin Jackson and major league lefty reliever Phil Coke. Let's look at how Kennedy, Coke, and Jackson have done for their respective teams. Kennedy has gone 3-7 with a 4.16 ERA and 95 K's in 17 starts and 106 IP. He has been a pretty starter for the D-backs. Coke has been a great reliever for Detroit, going 5-0 with a 2.60 ERA and 28 K's in 40 relief appearances and 34.2 IP. Jackson has hit .306 as the regular centerfielder for the Tigers, with 20 doubles, 1 homer, 20 RBI, 4 triples, 13 SB, and a .355 OBP in 75 games. I guess we have to compare Jackson to Granderson. Granderson has hit .225 with 8 doubles, 7 homers, 23 RBI, 4 triples, 7 SB, and a .300 OBP in 60 games. He missed nearly a month with a groin injury. Jackson has posted a better BA, OBP, and he stole more bases than Granderson so far in '10, but despite the missed time, Granderson has posted better power numbers and tied Jackson in triples. It's a debate who's better, but trading Jackson along with Kennedy and Coke for Granderson does not seem like a good trade for the Yankees. Of course, Granderson could turn it on at any time and make all of us forget about these prospects. But, he hasn't yet, so we have to consider this trade a bad trade for the Yankees right now.
At the trade deadline in '09, the Yankees traded minor league catcher Chris Weems to the Reds in exchange for utility player Jerry Hairston Jr. Weems is hitting just .222 at Low-A Dayton, with 2 doubles, 0 homers, 3 RBI, and a .263 OBP in 14 games. Hairston hit .237 with 5 doubles, 2 homers, 12 RBI, and a .352 OBP in 45 gamesfor the Yankees in '09 while playing every outfield position, and every infield position besides 1st base. He's hitting .245 for the Padres in '10, with 8 doubles, 5 homers, 30 RBI, 5 SB, and a .286 OBP in 76 games. This trade was a steal for the Yankees. They traded a struggling prospect for a good major league utility player.
One month before the trade deadline, the Yankees traded minor league LHP Casey Erickson and catching and outfield prospect Eric Fryer in exchange for Eric Hinske, who plays both corner outfield and corner infield positions. Erickson has gone 3-2 for High-A Bradenton, with a 4.02 ERA and 43 K's in 16 relief appearances, 6 starts, and 53.2 IP. Fryer is hitting .274 at High-A Bradenton, with 13 doubles, 7 homers, 34 RBI, 4 triples, 5 SB, and a .373 OBP in 57 games. Hinske hit .226 with the Yankees in '09, with 3 doubles, 7 homers, 14 RBI, and a .316 OBP in 39 games. He really didn't play very much at all. He had just 84 at-bats with the Yankees. With the Braves in '10, he has hit .278 with 16 doubles, 6 homers, 34 RBI, and a .342 OBP in 71 games. This trade was a bad trade for the Yankees. They traded a pretty good prospect in Fryer and a decent prospect in Erickson in exchange for a player who barely played for them.
Five days before the trade deadline in '08, the Yankees traded right-handed pitching prospects Jeff Karstens and Daniel McCutchen, major league right-hander Ross Ohlendorf, and LF prospect Jose Tabata to the Pirates in exchange for left-handed reliever Damaso Marte and OF Xavier Nady. Karsten has gone 2-3 with a 4.71 ERA and 36 K's in 10 start, 6 relief appearances, and 72.2 IP. He went 1-2 with a 7.31 ERA and 12 K's in 4 relief appearances, 1 start, and 16 IP. McCutchen has gone 1-4 for Pittsburgh in '10, with a 8.58 ERA and 16 K's in 6 starts, 1 relief appearance, and 28.1 IP. Ohlendorf has gone 1-6 with a 4.39 ERA and 45 K's in 12 starts and 67.2 IP. He went 11-10 with a 3.92 ERA and 109 K's in 29 starts and 176.2 IP in '09. Tabata is hitting .235 for the Pirates with 6 doubles, 1 homer, 6 RBI, 7 SB, and a .304 OBP in 25 games. Nady hit .270 with 15 doubles, 12 homers, 42 RBI, and a .319 OBP in 66 games with the Yankees between the '08 and '09 seasons. He missed nearly all of '09 with an elbow injury. Marte has gone 6-2 with a 6.02 ERA in 76 relief appearances with the Yanks from '07 to '10. But, Marte was untouchable in the '09 postseason, giving up no runs on 2 hits in 8 relief appearances and 4 IP. The Yankees traded 4 prospects who Pittsburgh has called up already for a player who was injured most of his time with the team and a reliever who has posted below-average numbers. This trade has been a complete disaster for the Yankees, but at least it gave Marte the opportunity to perform the way he did in the '09 playoffs.
The Yankees have not made good trades the last few years. Among these trades, I would say that only 1 trade (the Hairston trade) was a good trade for the Yankees, 2 trades were bad (Hinske and Nady/Marte) with the Granderson trade seeming to be bad, but it's too early to tell, and the Vazquez trade being a pretty even trade. I hope the Yankees can make better trades at the 2010 trade deadline and during the 2010 offseason.
Monday, May 17, 2010
Can Brett Gardner be as good as Jacoby Ellsbury?
Jacoby Ellsbury has been known as a great player. He is considered a very good player and a great base stealer. Can Brett Gardner be that good?
Jacoby Ellsbury was called up to the majors in 2007 and he made an immediate impact with the Red Sox. He hit .353 with 7 doubles, 1 triple, 3 homers, 18 RBI, 9 SB's, 0 CS, and a .394 OBP in 33 games. He posted a perfect 1.000 Fld% in LF and CF. The next year in '08, Ellsbury had a good year, hitting .280 with 22 doubles, 7 triples, 9 homers, 47 RBI, 50 SB, 11 CS, 98 runs, and a .336 OBP. He posted a perfect 1.000 Fld% at all 3 outfield positions, primarily CF. He finished 3rd in the AL Rookie of the Year voting, only to Evan Longoria and Alexei Ramirez. In '09, Ellsbury improved even more, hitting .301 with 27 doubles, 10 triples, 8 homers, 60 RBI, 70 SB, 12 CS, 94 runs, and a .355 OBP. He posted a .994 Fld% in CF. He was a budding star. In '10, he hit .333 with 4 doubles, 0 triples, 0 homers, 1 RBI, 2 SB, 0 CS, and a .333 OBP in 6 games before getting hurt with a rib injury. He posted an 1.000 Fld% in 5 games in LF and 1 game in CF.
Brett Gardner was called up to the majors in '08 and made a decent impact, hitting .228 with 5 doubles, 2 triples, 0 homers, 16 RBI, 13 SB, 1 CS, and a .283 OBP in 42 games. He posted an 1.000 Fld% in CF and LF. In '09, Gardner hit .270 with 6 doubles, 6 triples, 3 homers, 23 RBI, 26 SB, 5 CS, and a .345 OBP in 108 games. Gardner won the Yankee CF job out of spring training over Melky Cabrera, but, he eventually lost his starting job. He also missed time with a broken thumb. But, so far in '10, Gardner has really had a breakout year. He is hitting .317 with 2 doubles, 1 triples, 2 homers, 12 RBI, 17 SB, 1 CS, 28 runs, and a .391 OBP in 35 games. He has posted a .975 Fld% in LF (1 error), and an 1.000 Fld% in CF. That error in LF will probably be his last or next-to-last error of the year and he will put up an Fld% around .995. If you project his hitting stats so far in '10 over the whole season, he would play in 153 games, hitting .317 with 9 doubles, 4 triples, 9 homers, 52 RBI, 74 SB, 4 CS, 122 runs, and a .391 OBP. That would be incredible and better than any season that Ellsbury has put up. The one strange thing about those numbers would be the only 9 doubles, but with 74 SB's, who needs doubles? I don't expect Gardner to be that good, but he definitely can put up a near-.300 BA with 55 stolen bases. The Yankees would still be very happy with that.
So, can Gardner put up Ellsbury-type numbers? Well, he has definitely has the ability to. If he plays anywhere near as good as he has so far in '10, he will match or at least come close to Ellsbury's career averages per full season (.291 BA, 60 SB). Can Gardner keep playing at the level he's playing at right now? That remains to be seen.
Jacoby Ellsbury was called up to the majors in 2007 and he made an immediate impact with the Red Sox. He hit .353 with 7 doubles, 1 triple, 3 homers, 18 RBI, 9 SB's, 0 CS, and a .394 OBP in 33 games. He posted a perfect 1.000 Fld% in LF and CF. The next year in '08, Ellsbury had a good year, hitting .280 with 22 doubles, 7 triples, 9 homers, 47 RBI, 50 SB, 11 CS, 98 runs, and a .336 OBP. He posted a perfect 1.000 Fld% at all 3 outfield positions, primarily CF. He finished 3rd in the AL Rookie of the Year voting, only to Evan Longoria and Alexei Ramirez. In '09, Ellsbury improved even more, hitting .301 with 27 doubles, 10 triples, 8 homers, 60 RBI, 70 SB, 12 CS, 94 runs, and a .355 OBP. He posted a .994 Fld% in CF. He was a budding star. In '10, he hit .333 with 4 doubles, 0 triples, 0 homers, 1 RBI, 2 SB, 0 CS, and a .333 OBP in 6 games before getting hurt with a rib injury. He posted an 1.000 Fld% in 5 games in LF and 1 game in CF.
Brett Gardner was called up to the majors in '08 and made a decent impact, hitting .228 with 5 doubles, 2 triples, 0 homers, 16 RBI, 13 SB, 1 CS, and a .283 OBP in 42 games. He posted an 1.000 Fld% in CF and LF. In '09, Gardner hit .270 with 6 doubles, 6 triples, 3 homers, 23 RBI, 26 SB, 5 CS, and a .345 OBP in 108 games. Gardner won the Yankee CF job out of spring training over Melky Cabrera, but, he eventually lost his starting job. He also missed time with a broken thumb. But, so far in '10, Gardner has really had a breakout year. He is hitting .317 with 2 doubles, 1 triples, 2 homers, 12 RBI, 17 SB, 1 CS, 28 runs, and a .391 OBP in 35 games. He has posted a .975 Fld% in LF (1 error), and an 1.000 Fld% in CF. That error in LF will probably be his last or next-to-last error of the year and he will put up an Fld% around .995. If you project his hitting stats so far in '10 over the whole season, he would play in 153 games, hitting .317 with 9 doubles, 4 triples, 9 homers, 52 RBI, 74 SB, 4 CS, 122 runs, and a .391 OBP. That would be incredible and better than any season that Ellsbury has put up. The one strange thing about those numbers would be the only 9 doubles, but with 74 SB's, who needs doubles? I don't expect Gardner to be that good, but he definitely can put up a near-.300 BA with 55 stolen bases. The Yankees would still be very happy with that.
So, can Gardner put up Ellsbury-type numbers? Well, he has definitely has the ability to. If he plays anywhere near as good as he has so far in '10, he will match or at least come close to Ellsbury's career averages per full season (.291 BA, 60 SB). Can Gardner keep playing at the level he's playing at right now? That remains to be seen.
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