Red Sox vs Yankees in 2009

[soxmuscle]

These were posts taken from another board by somebody else, but I think the argument is a valid one and extremely interesting.

The Yankees still don't stack up against the Red Sox in bullpen, line up, or rotation. The biggest problem with the Yankees is depth.

In terms of positions, the Yankees are clearly better at 3B, C (providing Posada still can play), SP1.

The Red Sox are clearly better at LF, 2B, RF, SP2, SP5, DH, Bullpen, and Bench.

I give 1B, SS, CF, SP3 (Matsuzaka and Wang), SP4 (limited innings from Joba and Smoltz). as close or toss ups.

The real problem happens if the Yankees endure one major injury. The Red Sox have far more depth.

Derek Jeter is horrendous defensively. He would need to hit a lot better than last year to justify him staying at SS. I assuming his defense will get worse this year being he is turning 35 in June.

I don't really consider Aceves depth. I don't see him substaining his numbers from last year. He was a 25 year old blowing away High A and AA hitters. He seems more like Ian Kennedy redux than anything else.

That leaves Hughes who will have to pitch because there is simply no way Joba is going last a full season as a starter. So that means you are relying on Burnett (good jesus), Sabathia, Wang, and Pettitte each to give full seasons else you are in AAAA starter hell. Thats assuming Pettitte will bounce back.

The Yankees Rotation is highly overrated and suspect.

As for the Gardner/Swisher/Molina (or who the hell knows if Posada can't catch)/Berroa bench, That simply is not that impressive outside of Swisher. I suppose Molina is a good backup but we have no idea if he will actually be a backup.

I still see the Yankees as the third team in East. They made minimal improvements in offense (Giambi and Abreu are just a little worse then Teixeira and Nady). Their defense has become better. Their rotation will be better but I still think it is the third best in the East (too many people are taking Burnett and the over on 25 GS). The bullpen is also probably the third best in the East.

I think it is going to be a fight to for any team in the eat to get 92 wins. If the Yankees are expecting 95+ they are in for a rude awakening.

 

[soxmuscle]

Yankee fans and media are suggesting 90-95 wins as a minimum when in actuality they're really going to be hard pressed to make the playoffs.

 

[I Are Baboon]

Maybe CC Sabathia will eat them into the playoffs.

 

[min0 lee]

This really doesn't mean anything, I mean it does make for interesting talk but having the best team on paper doesn't mean you'll be the best team at the end of the year.

I thought the Tigers were going to go further than the Rays.......

 

[soxmuscle]

I'm not trying to make some revolutionary point about why the Yankees suck; this is all information that can be found very easily.

I just thought it made for an interesting discussion given the popularity of both clubs on this board.

Finally, someone who agrees with me that Jed Lowrie is just as good if not better than Derek Jeter.

 

[min0 lee]

I'm not trying to make some revolutionary point about why the Yankees suck; this is all information that can be found very easily.

I just thought it made for an interesting discussion given the popularity of both clubs on this board.

Finally, someone who agrees with me that Jed Lowrie is just as good if not better than Derek Jeter.

LOL, so all of the sudden Jed is a hall of famer after one year? 49 games at Shortstop....come on, stop being a homer.
Lot's of players have good year, Nomar in fact had better years than Jeter..... but when it's all said and done I wouldn't trade Jeter for anyone.

Your hate for Jeter runs deep.

 

[min0 lee]

Derek Jeter: Slowing Down? The Worst Infielder in Baseball?

Derek Jeter: Slowing Down? The Worst Infielder in Baseball? | Bleacher Report

Much has been written recently about Derek Jeter slowing down. It has also been said that he is the worst infielder in baseball.

Let's take a look at the statistics and try to determine if either one of those statements is true.

In 2008 Jeter played in 148 games, had 347 assists and only 12 errors. His fielding percentage was .979, slightly higher than his career fielding percentage of .975. Has he slowed down?

Jeter's best year for fielding percentage was 1998 when he had a .986 percentage. That year he had 393 assists and only committed nine errors. In 2004 his percentage was .981 with 392 assists and 13 errors.

Statistically he is down very little from his best years. And to say that he has lost a step is to use very subjective criteria. A similar subjective standard would be to say that he has suffered in the last two years because he has been injured with both leg and hand injuries which would affect his fielding.

So is Jeter one of the worst infielders in baseball? If one looks at the current shortstops who have played at least 500 games, how many are better than Jeter?
If you look at fielding percentage alone you come up with the following:

Craig Counsell .986 FP
Omar Vizquel .984 FP
Jimmy Rollins .984 FP
David Eckstein .978 FP
Orlando Cabrera .978 FP
Michael Young .977 FP
Khalil Greene .976 FP

But there are also as many shortstops who are below Jeter in fielding percentage. They include Miguel Tejada, Angel Berroa, Yuniesky Betancourt, Bobby Crosby, Edgar Renteria, Juan Castro and Julio Lugo.
(Where the hell is Jedus?)
If fielding percentages are considered, some highly praised young shortstops are no better than Jeter. Jose Reyes has exactly the same FP as Derek and Hanley Ramirez is slightly lower. And both have a higher percentage of errors per games played than Jeter.

What about comparisons to some all time greats:
Luis Aparicio, the great White Sox shortstop of the 50s and 60s finished his career with a .977 fielding percentage barely above Jeter.

Phil Rizzuto, beloved to all Yankee fans, finished lower at .972.
Cal Ripken, Jr., the archetype of modern shortstops finished at .979.

Peewee Reese, who led the great Dodger teams of the 50s was lower at .962.
Tony Kubek of the great Yankee teams of the 60s finished at .967.

Finally how did A-Rod compare when he was playing shortstop? In the 1272 games A-Rod played at short, he had 3604 assists and 131 errors and compiled a fielding percentage of .977. A little better than Derek.

A-Rod also averaged slightly higher per games played in assists and a little lower in errors per game.

In any of this analysis, one can look at bare statistics. One can run the numbers from daylight to dark. But what cannot be determined by these numbers alone is how many balls a particular player caught that another could never touch.

How many times did one shortstop knock a ball down and prevent a run at the plate, even though there was no out or assist involved? How many times did a player keep his team in a game with a play that no-one could have imagined?

These are all the reasons that this is such a great game; The reasons we can argue with our granddad over whether Honus Wagner was a better shortstop than Cal Ripken.

The intangibles are such a big part of the game that mere statistics will never tell the whole story.

But having said that, the statistics would indicate that Jeter has not slowed down much, if at all. And they would certainly indicate that he is not the worst infielder in baseball.

Watching his play this past season I didn't see him as awful at short, is he the greatest ever to play.....no.

 

[soxmuscle]

I'm not saying Jed Lowrie is a future hall of famer - by any stretch of the imagination.

Lowrie hit:
.258 .339 .400 .739
Jeter hit:
.300 .363 .408 .771

Factor in defense, factor in the fact that Jeter will be 35 before the start of the season, factor in the fact that Lowrie should only improve next season and it's completely reasonable to believe that Jed Lowrie will out perform Derek Jeter.

How is that a homerish statement?

 

[soxmuscle]

You're going to argue Jeter's defensive ability by fielding percentage?

That's homerish.

Fielding percentage isn't a good measure of ones ability to defend his position.

 

[min0 lee]

I'm not saying Jed Lowrie is a future hall of famer - by any stretch of the imagination.

Lowrie hit:
.258 .339 .400 .739
Jeter hit:
.300 .363 .408 .771

Factor in defense, factor in the fact that Jeter will be 35 before the start of the season, factor in the fact that Lowrie should only improve next season and it's completely reasonable to believe that Jed Lowrie will out perform Derek Jeter.

How is that a homerish statement?

Your comparing Jeter to Jeb, come on now.

You're going to argue Jeter's defensive ability by fielding percentage?

That's homerish.

Fielding percentage isn't a good measure of ones ability to defend his position.

In all reality I do know Jeter is not the best at SS but he isn't the worst.
I can't recall him losing a game on a defensive play...can you?
His range may have decreased but he is 35, I think it's the Boston in you just hating Jeter in general.
Now your boy A-Rod has blown a couple of games at third, I'm sure you remember it was against Boston no less. Hey I'm a Homer...I should rooted for A-Rod.

 

[soxmuscle]

What do you mean come on now?

You're smarter than this, Min0.

Jeter had an OPS .032 higher than Jed Lowrie last season; Lowrie is a youngster who will be entering his age 25 year season --a players prime years are his 25-30 years-- whereas Jeter is ten years older than him and on the tailend of his career.

Just because Yankee fans and the media suck his dick, doesn't mean you should be irrational and simply dismiss my stance as wrong.

I would gladly take Jed Lowrie at $300,000 dollars than Derek Jeter at $20,000,000 dollars and I would bet the majority of general managers in the game would agree with me.

All factors being considered, Lowrie has an excellent chance to outperform Derek Jeter in 2009, both offensively and defensively and for a fraction of the cost.

 

[soxmuscle]

It'll be interesting to see in 2010 if the Yankees do what they did to Bernie Williams and run him out of town knowing that the end of his career is near.

For the Red Sox sake, you can only hope the Yankees continue to throw him out at short stop for the next five-plus years at max dollars.

 

[min0 lee]

What do you mean come on now?

You're smarter than this, Min0.

I beg to differ.

Jeter had an OPS .032 higher than Jed Lowrie last season; Lowrie is a youngster who will be entering his age 25 year season --a players prime years are his 25-30 years-- whereas Jeter is ten years older than him and on the tailend of his career.

This is a fact he is getting older and was not healthy last season but he isn't done yet, your placing your future on a natural second baseman who only recently improved on his defense over a proven product?

Just because Yankee fans and the media suck his dick, doesn't mean you should be irrational and simply dismiss my stance as wrong.

I think we appreciate him for what he has accomplished, I mean that's the way it should be....right.
Oh yeah, your one of the guys who can't wait to see Varitch banished...

I would gladly take Jed Lowrie at $300,000 dollars than Derek Jeter at $20,000,000 dollars and I would bet the majority of general managers in the game would agree with me.

Umm....Let's play the game of general manager OK?
Would the average fan pay to see Jeeb? Or would they pay to see Jeter.
You are really getting your money's worth.

All factors being considered, Lowrie has an excellent chance to outperform Derek Jeter in 2009, both offensively and defensively and for a fraction of the cost.

We will see, he may or may not be the next Honus Wagner for all we know.
Hopefully Jeter rebounds from his injury and proves you wrong.

 

[min0 lee]

Let me add that now he finally has a first baseman who can field. It's been a while.

 

[min0 lee]

It'll be interesting to see in 2010 if the Yankees do what they did to Bernie Williams and run him out of town knowing that the end of his career is near.

They learned this from Boston, don't get me started on the list of players.
I'm a big fan of Williams and Cashman made a mistake but we do keep players longer than we should.

For the Red Sox sake, you can only hope the Yankees continue to throw him out at short stop for the next five-plus years at max dollars

I didn't know Jeter had Lou Gehrig's disease?
You make it sound like he batted .210?
Stop exaggerating.

 

[min0 lee]

Let me ask you this, would you get rid of Ortiz now?
He wasn't the Ortiz of the past and he's already 34 but in America that translates to 42 plus he's fat and not in the best of shape.

 

[soxmuscle]

What do you mean come on now?



I beg to differ.


This is a fact he is getting older and was not healthy last season but he isn't done yet, your placing your future on a natural second baseman who only recently improved on his defense over a proven product?


I think we appreciate him for what he has accomplished, I mean that's the way it should be....right.
Oh yeah, your one of the guys who can't wait to see Varitch banished...



Umm....Let's play the game of general manager OK?
Would the average fan pay to see Jeeb? Or would they pay to see Jeter.
You are really getting your money's worth.

We will see, he may or may not be the next Honus Wagner for all we know.
Hopefully Jeter rebounds from his injury and proves you wrong.

A proven product? Derek Jeter --through his average offensive numbers and below average defensive numbers last year-- proved that he's no longer an elite short stop. Jed Lowrie will never be elite, but once again, he has just as good of a chance to outperform Jeter in 2009 than the opposite happening.

While he was all sorts of suck last year and the second half of the year before that on the field, the fact that he's an automatic out isn't why I've grown to dislike him. My disdain for Varitek stems mostly from contract negotiations and the fact that he is lying through his teeth about "not knowing" the whole arbitration rules. Ideally, Varitek would have come back without the drama for a two year deal having agreed to platoon with a young catcher of the future, preferably Saltalamacchia from Texas (for Michael Bowden) but that hasn't happened. Instead, he's lied, been dishonest and his true colors have really begun to show. And yes, I greatly appreciate what he's done for the team over the years but that doesn't mean I would support throwing him $52.4 million dollars over four years like the Yankees did with Posada.

Fuck the average fan. The average fan, the diehard fans, and the shithead fairweather fans will all show up at the ballpark if the team is winning. The team has a better chance of winning with Lowrie making the minimum and putting up similar/better numbers than Jeter, if the money saved is distributed to other positions of need. In the Red Sox case, they weren't willing to bid against themselves for Teixeira' services, but they were able to go out and acquire Brad Penny, John Smoltz and some other talented players; money that might not have been available had Theo Epstein valued past accomplishments over future expectations like the Yankees do time and time again.

Jeter may come out and excel in some statistical categories based off of the line-up surrounding him, but I really don't see him increasing his production (both offensively and defensively) given the obvious decline from the last two years. That simply doesn't happen at age 35.

 

[soxmuscle]

Let me add that now he finally has a first baseman who can field. It's been a while.

First basemen don't effect range or in the case of Derek Jeter, the lack thereof.

 

[soxmuscle]

They learned this from Boston, don't get me started on the list of players.
I'm a big fan of Williams and Cashman made a mistake but we do keep players longer than we should.



I didn't know Jeter had Lou Gehrig's disease?
You make it sound like he batted .210?
Stop exaggerating.

The Red Sox for years signed washed up players, but not since Epstein and the new ownership group took over.

Had the Red Sox given in to the demands of Pedro Martinez, Johnny Damon, Derek Lowe, etc. they wouldn't have won the Series in 2007, they wouldn't have been a game away from the World Series last season and they wouldn't be in the same position to win next season either.

Money aside, Epstein is a far better executive than Brian Cashman IMO.

Jeter wasn't terrible last year, but he's definitely declined. He was as consistent as can be throughout the majority of his career but over the last three seasons, in which he's played in over 150 games in all three, he's declined from an all-star caliber .900 OPS to a very Jed Lowrie-esque .771 OPS.

Defensively speaking, I think he's pretty bad and there are statistics that lead me to believe this, not just me being an insane Red Sox fan who hates the Yankees

 

[I Are Baboon]

Jed Lowrie is on the Red Sox.

Derek Jeter is on the Yankees.

Lowrie wins.

 

[soxmuscle]

Let me ask you this, would you get rid of Ortiz now?
He wasn't the Ortiz of the past and he's already 34 but in America that translates to 42 plus he's fat and not in the best of shape.

I never said the Yankees should get rid of Jeter.

Just that the odds say he'll be playing short stop for the New York Yankees until he's 40 years old and that's got to be depressing given his obvious decline over the last three years.

He should move to third base, like Cal Ripken did but that's obviously blocked A-Roid. Second base may be more appropriate given his terrible range, but Cano and his unmovable contract has him blocked there too. First base? Nope, Teixeira's blocking him there.

As far as Ortiz goes, of course you don't get rid of him. Especially considering his contract would require the Red Sox to either pick up the majority if they're looking for a half decent haul for him or they'd have to give up prospects of their own just so another team would take him.

With that said, there's more reason to believe that Ortiz will bounce back from his wrist injury last season than Jeter somehow bouncing back up into the category of elite.

Ortiz is signed through 2010 at $12.5 million with a club option at the same amount for 2011. If Ortiz can't rebound and proves that he isn't the same player he was in the past, the Red Sox shouldn't make a colossal blunder and give him a new contract based on his past successes and clutch performances.

In a perfect world, he'll perform for the next two years, start to decline in 2011 after the Sox pick up his option and he'll take a short money contract to end his career with the team that revived his career.

 

[min0 lee]

First basemen don't effect range or in the case of Derek Jeter, the lack thereof.

Duh, but it does help if they can catch the ball.

 

[min0 lee]

The Red Sox for years signed washed up players, but not since Epstein and the new ownership group took over.

Had the Red Sox given in to the demands of Pedro Martinez, Johnny Damon, Derek Lowe, etc. they wouldn't have won the Series in 2007, they wouldn't have been a game away from the World Series last season and they wouldn't be in the same position to win next season either.

This is very true, Theo has made a huge impact in Boston.

Money aside, Epstein is a far better executive than Brian Cashman IMO.

I will agree of late Theo has had the upper hand, in fact I didn't realize how much Cashman has done for the Yankees until now.
He has made a mistake of late with the pitchers he's obtained. It's all in Torre's book.

Jeter wasn't terrible last year, but he's definitely declined. He was as consistent as can be throughout the majority of his career but over the last three seasons, in which he's played in over 150 games in all three, he's declined from an all-star caliber .900 OPS to a very Jed Lowrie-esque .771 OPS.

Defensively speaking, I think he's pretty bad and there are statistics that lead me to believe this, not just me being an insane Red Sox fan who hates the Yankees

His numbers are down but he's not dead dammit.

 

[min0 lee]

I never said the Yankees should get rid of Jeter.

Just that the odds say he'll be playing short stop for the New York Yankees until he's 40 years old and that's got to be depressing given his obvious decline over the last three years.

I see him retiring at 37 or 38 and I really doubt he'll move to another position, at best maybe a DH.
SS is a demanding position.

 

[min0 lee]

Theo Epstein vs. Brian Cashman: Which GM Is Better?

This is interesting to say the least.
Theo Epstein vs. Brian Cashman: Which GM Is Better? | Bleacher Report#

Not much is going on between the Yankees or the Red Sox right now. No big transactions, no coaching additions, no shots in the media, and the same old rumors.
With a big winter for one, and a more quiet winter for the other, I've been wondering. Is Theo Epstein better than Brian Cashman? Is Brian Cashman better than Theo Epstein?
Let's take a look.

Epstein
Theo Epstein, New York native, has been general manager of the Red Sox since 2002, when he became the youngest general manager in league history.
His resume includes:

• Five playoff appearances (2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008)
• One AL East Championship (2007)
• Two AL Pennants (2004, 2007)
• Two World Series Championships (2004, 2007)

Theo is widely loved among Red Sox Nation, and he has built arguably one of the better Red Sox teams in decades. In fact, before the 2005 season Theo "retired." It didn't last long, he came back before the season started. In his tenure as Red Sox GM, here are some of the major moves he has made:

• Jumped in the 2002 offseason signing: Ortiz, Mueller, Millar, and Timlin; instrumental parts of the 2004 title run
• Traded Casey Fossum, Brandon Lyon, Jorge de la Rosa to Arizona for Curt Schilling in the 2003-04 offseason, landing an essential component to the 2004 team
• Traded Nomar Garciaparra and Matt Murton to Chicago to receive Doug Mientkiewicz from Minnesota and Orlando Cabrera from Montreal
• Traded Henri Stanley to the Dodgers for Dave Roberts; "the steal," 'nuff said.
• Traded Hanley Ramirez, Anibal Sanchez, Jesus Delgado, and Harvey Garcia to Florida for Josh Beckett, Mike Lowell, and Guillermo Mota; we all know how that worked out.
• Drafted Dustin Pedroia, Jon Lester, Michael Bowden, Jed Lowrie, Clay Buchholz, Jacoby Ellsbury, Justin Masterson, and a plethora of minor-league talent from compensation picks from letting the '04/'05 teams go to free agency

 

[min0 lee]

Cashman
Kentucky-born Cashman has run the front office of the Bronx Bombers since 1998, a considerable amount of time longer than Epstein has run the Red Sox.
Cashman's resume:

• Ten playoff appearances (1998-2007)
• Nine AL East Championships (1998-2006)
• Five American League Pennants (1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003)
• Three World Series Championships (1998, 1999, 2000)

I don't know if Cashman is idolized among Yankee fans as Epstein is among Red Sox fans—and at one point Cashman almost walked away as well, except he never stepped down from his post like Epstein did. Here are some of Cashman's big moves with the Yankees:

• Signed Scott Brosius and David Cone to contracts in 1998
• Signed Orlando Hernandez and Alfonso Soriano as amateurs
• Signed Bernie Williams
• Traded Joaquin Arias and Alfonso Soriano for Alex Rodriguez; damn.
• Traded Homer Bush, Graeme Lloyd, and David Wells for Roger Clemens
• Signed Chien-Ming Wang as an amateur free agent
• Signed Mike Mussina
• Signed Robinson Cano as amateur free agent
• Signed Hideki Matsui
• Traded for Bobby Abreu
• Signed Andy Pettite
• Signed Mark Teixeira
• Signed CC Sabathia
• Has drafted many prospects, including Phil Hughes, Ian Kennedy, Austin Jackson, and stud reliever Phil Coke.

What hasn't Cashman done while with the Yankees? He's no stranger to winning championships, signing big-profile free agents, or to making blockbuster trades.

Is either one better?
No. If Theo Epstein and Brian Cashman were horses in a race, there wouldn't be an easily determined winner with a photo finish.
These guys are essentially the same general manager. They have worked wonders for their team. They've done it through a mix of scouting, free agency, and trades. They've traded the right players away at the right time, or let the right guys file for free agency at the right time.
Basically, these two guys are some of the best general managers in the MLB, aside from small-market guys who turn nothing into something, like Billy Beane.
And you expected Red Sox propaganda, didn't you?

 

[min0 lee]

Theo's good, but so is Cashman

Blogging The Bombers - NY Daily News

December 4, 2008

Brian Cashman has had a tough start to his winter, for no other reason than he hasn???t been able to convince CC Sabathia to sign despite offering him more money than any pitcher has ever been offered.
Then again, if you were to grade general managers based on their activity this winter, only Jim Hendry of the Cubs would have a passing grade based on the Ryan Dempster signing. Beyond that, not one prominent player has signed, so the jury is out on everybody.

I???ve heard several people in recent weeks and months declare that Cashman is being outdone by Theo Epstein in a major way. I realize that the Red Sox have won two titles since 2004 while Cashman???s team hasn???t won a title since 2000, but I???m missing the part where Theo is redefining what it means to be a GM.

Have some of Boston???s moves worked out well? Absolutely. But it takes no more skill to bid $51.1 million on Daisuke Matsuzaka (then pay him another $50 million or so) than it does to offer Sabathia $140 million.
Coco Crisp and Julio Lugo were two of Theo???s acquisitions that were believed to be tremendous moves when they were made, yet both proved to be huge disappointments. But when you win, those things are forgotten - as well they should be.

Theo made a great trade for Josh Beckett and Mike Lowell, but he did give up Hanley Ramirez in that trade, and some argue that Ramirez is already a top-5 player in the majors and could top that list at some point.

The Yankees haven???t had a player like Ramirez to deal away. If they did, they may have made a move for Beckett at that time, though they still wouldn???t have been able to take Lowell and his $18 million in a deal because they already had A-Rod at third base. They could have gotten Santana for a package led by Phil Hughes, but Cashman opted not to for many reasons, most notably that he feels Hughes will be a front-line starter soon enough.

Cashman has made several moves in recent years that backfired, namely Carl Pavano, Kei Igawa and to some extent, Randy Johnson. But to say he???s destroyed this team is a gross misrepresentation.
Where would the Yankees be without Chien-Ming Wang, Robinson Cano or Joba Chamberlain? Say what you will about Johnny Damon, but he???s given the Yankees the leadoff hitter they expected to get when they signed him three years ago. Everybody screamed that the Yankees were crazy to bring Mike Mussina back in 2008 and he won 20 games. Doesn???t Cashman get some credit for not dumping Mussina after his subpar 2007?

Yes, Cashman inherited Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera and Jorge Posada, but there isn???t another player on the roster that was there when he took over as GM in 1998, and yet the Yankees made the postseason every year of his reign until last season.
His trades - particularly the midseason deals for guys like Bobby Abreu and Xavier Nady - have worked out well. The jury is still out on the prospects he got back for Johnson and Gary Sheffield, but simply ridding his team of those two guys when he did was more than enough to qualify those as moderate successes.

Have the Yankees drafted well? Not particularly. Chamberlain is a star in the making, while Hughes is still just 22 and could become a big-time pitcher, too. Austin Jackson is seen as the center fielder of the future and there are some other players at the lower levels (some were drafted, others signed as international free agents) that could make an impact down the road.

Cashman is the lead man on all baseball operations, but he???s not the guy that has scouted the players, so the blame can???t fall entirely on his shoulders. Just the same, Theo isn???t out scouting players for the Red Sox, so the credit for guys like Dustin Pedroia, Justin Masterson, Kevin Youkilis, Jonathan Papelbon and Jon Lester goes to the Red Sox scouts more than to the GM.

Clearly the Red Sox have had more success in the past five years than the Yankees, but to say that it???s purely the result of the general managers and their moves is naïve. The 2008 Yankees were largely the same team as the 2007 team that made the playoffs, but players simply didn???t perform as well. It happens. Anyone remember the 2006 Red Sox? Had Boston given up on Theo after the Sox missed the playoffs that year, would that have been the right move?

I know many fans disagree, but Cashman is a solid GM who has a vision to reshape this team as its stars get older. Last year was a rebuilding year of sorts, and they still won 89 games. If it becomes an annual occurrence, he???ll pay for it with his job. But after hearing fans scream and shout for years that the Yankees need to get younger, more athletic and get the payroll below $200 million, it amazes me that people aren???t willing to go through what it takes to get there. Luckily, Cashman is, and the Yankees should be better for it in the long run.


Update: Several astute Red Sox fans have e-mailed me in the past few hours to remind me that Theo wasn???t the GM when the Beckett deal was made, as that was during his short hiatus.

It has been well-documented that Theo was still involved behind the scenes, though technically he may not have been the GM at the time of the trade. Still, I find it hard to believe that he didn???t at least give his input to the deal. I think the Beckett deal turned out remarkably well for the Red Sox, even if they had to give up Ramirez. I???m guessing there???s not a Sox fan out there that would trade the 2007 World Series for Ramirez, no matter how good he turns out to be.

If Theo had nothing to do with the deal, that simply takes a plus away from his résumé. I still believe that even if he wasn???t the one to ultimately pull the trigger, he deserves some of the credit for it.

 

[tucker01]

This thread has the gay.

 

[min0 lee]

This thread has the gay.

Really? I searched but I still can't find comments about the Jays.

 

[I Are Baboon]

This thread has the gay.

Calm down there, Fourth Place.