The New York Yankees have been hit hard by the injury bug in 2013. Many high profile players such as Derek Jeter, Mark Teixeira, Alex Rodriguez, and Curtis Granderson, only to name a few, have gotten injured and found themselves shelved on the disabled list. The 2013 Yankees have a payroll upwards of $220 million, of which more than $90 million have spent time or are currently on the disabled list. This goes without saying, that the Yankees have some glaring needs and holes to address. As many injured players work their way back towards making the team, most prominently, the recent return of Eduardo Nunez and the rehab assignments of Jeter and Rodriguez, let's take a look at some positions where the Yankees can use help and some potential solutions general manager Brian Cashman can consider.
First Base
Needless to say, with the announcement of Teixeira to undergo season-ending surgery, the Yankees lost their projected everyday first baseman for all of 2013. The Yankees picked up Lyle Overbay late in Spring Training to help fill the gap at first base after he was released by the Boston Red Sox. Overbay has always been known for his steady hand in the field and is no stranger to offensive production as he was a doubles machine from 2004 to 2010, when he hit at least 30 doubles each year. During the first two months of the season, Overbay helped ease the loss of Teixeira as he posted similar numbers to Teixeira, who is regarded as a slow-starter, posting a triple slash of .247/.289/.461 to go along with eight homeruns and 29 RBIs in 51 games. He has cooled off since the calendar turned to June, posting a .239/.292/.341 line with only one homerun and six RBI in 17 games. On the season, Overbay is batting .251/.294/.437 with nine homeruns and 35 RBIs in 70 games as the first baseman.
The market for available impact first baseman is pretty thin; with the only high profile name being dangled in trade rumors is Justin Morneau of the Minnesota Twins. Morneau is posting a triple slash of .275/.333/.407 with six homeruns and 50 RBI in 80 games. Looking at sheer numbers, the two may not be far apart; however, Morneau is a threat to go deep and many believe that the vast dimensions at the Metrodome has robbed Morneau of his power, but at Yankees Stadium he can take full advantage of the short porch in right field.
It was not long ago that Morneau was a constant threat to provide over 20 homeruns and 100 RBIs a year. However, the price of Morneau may make the Yankees hesitant to jump the gun. Morneau is in the last season of his contract, getting paid $14 million and the Twins are by no means, in any rush to move their second best hitter on an otherwise sinking team for a discount. The Twins would be looking to receive the maximum return for such an impact bat, and for a half season rental, the price may prove too steep for the Yankees to pay. If the Yankees were not committed to Teixeira, the Yankees could have considered an extension after trading for him because he is only 32 years old, but since that is not the case, Morneau would walk in the offseason. As the season continues to unfold, the price for Morneau may come down at which the Yankees may pull the trigger to put Morneau in pinstripes.
For the moment, Overbay is the best option they have, and the Yankees' decision to hold on to him when Mark Teixeira came off the disabled list may be one of the best decisions Cashman has made should the Yankees reach the post season without external help.
Third Base
Oh, the headaches associated with the third base position for the Yankees in 2013.
The Yankees' star third baseman Alex Rodriguez underwent left hip surgery earlier this year in January and was given a recovery time frame of four to six months. To plug the gap until Rodriguez returned from the disabled list during the middle of the season, the Yankees signed former Red Sox, Kevin Youkilis, to a one year $12 million contract to man the hot corner. Youkilis had a down year last year as a member of the Boston Red Sox and Chicago White Sox, but the Yankees thought that he was a better option than what they had in house.
Youkilis started off well, posting a .279/.353/.443 line with two homeruns and seven RBI through 16 games on April 20th, before sitting out several games and playing in one more before landing on the disabled list with a back injury. Youkilis returned to the Yankees on the same date as Teixeira, but struggled to find any sort of rhythm at the plate as he only got 6 hits and struck out 13 times in 11 games.
Youkilis reinjured his back, finding his way back onto the disabled list. David Adams was called up to man the hot corner after Youkilis went down and sparked the offense, hitting .300/.317/.525 with 2 homeruns and 5 RBIs from May 15th to May 26th. However, as the league began to figure him out, Adams failed to adapt and has since cooled off, now hitting a paltry .190/.264/.290 with two homeruns and seven RBIs in 29 games as the third baseman. Overall, the output from the players at the hot corner has not been impressive as 5 different players have combined to hit .228/.290/.309 with four homeruns and 25 RBI.
Youkilis has undergone back surgery to repair a herniated disk and was expected to miss another 10 to 12 weeks as of June 18th. His placement on the disabled list for the second time this season left many questioning his ability to stay healthy and if he will produce for the Yankees this year. Alex Rodriguez has recovered well from his back injury and has not yet any reports of a setback. However, Rodriguez comes with a huge asterisk as he his name was involved in yet another steroid scandal, the Biogenesis Scandal. MLB sought to punish players associated with the scandal and he faces a possible 100 game suspension upon his return, but recent reports indicate that players will not have to serve the suspension.
On top of the Biogenesis Scandal, Rodriguez recently got into a little hot water when he tweeted that he was cleared to play baseball without confirming with team officials. When Rodriguez will actually return to the Yankees, remains to be seen. According to a report by Wallace Matthews a couple of weeks ago, Rodriguez's phone call with Cashman and team president Randy Levine consisted of a follow up conversation on Rodriguez tweet declaring that he was cleared to play games according to Dr. Bryan Kelly, who performed his surgery. During the call, Rodriguez mentioned that "I'm not sure when I can come back... It could be in July. It could be in August. It could be I won't be able to play at all this year." Currently, Rodriguez's return date is scheduled for after the All-Star break. However, he is struggling at the plate and still trying to get his first hit.
The most common rumor the Yankees have been associated with to solve the need at third base, is the trade for Chase Headley of the San Diego Padres. Headley began the season on the DL due to a thumb injury, but returned to lineup on April 17 and has struggled to hit though he has found other ways to get on base as he is hitting .229/.322/.363 with seven homeruns and 29 RBI.For his career, Headley is hitting .268/.348/.412 with 74 homeruns and 348 RBI since he made his Major League debut in 2007.
Headley is paid a little of $8.5 million this season and is still under organization control, ineligible for free agency until 2015. He has been associated with many rumors over the past year, but is yet to be moved. The Padres do not feel inclined to move Headley, so it would take a hefty package for a team to snatch him away. For the Yankees to pull the trigger on this move, it would be a commitment that the Yankees would be going forward imagining Headley as their new everyday third baseman and Rodriguez being designated to the DH role.
In a blog post by Andrew Marchand, the Yankees have reached out troubled third baseman, Ian Stewart, about a possible Minor League contract. Earlier this month, Stewart took his ideas to twitter and stated his frustration with the Chicago Cubs organization, violating his contract's loyalty clause. Stewart was once a highly touted prospect as the Colorado Rockies drafted him 10th overall in the 2003 draft, but has failed to live up to his reputation. During his six year career, he is a .232/.319/.417 hitter with 59 homeruns and 204 RBI. Stewart has a little power to right field, so the short right field porch would work to his advantage should he be signed and promoted to the Major League club.
The Yankees might always want to consider Philadelphia Phillies third baseman, Michael Young. He has single handedly outproduced the Yankees' third base entourage hitting .284/.339/.408 with six home runs and 24 RBI. However, as the Phillies are making a run in the N.L. East, chances are, if they are still in the race, Young might remain with the team. The Texas Rangers are paying $10 million of his $16 million owed in 2013, meaning the Yankees would not have to worry about loading up their payroll.
Catcher
The Yankees watched Russell Martin leave for a two-year $17 million contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates, leaving the Yankees with Chris Stewart and Francisco Cervelli on the roster as the only two catchers with ample Major League service experience. The catching tandem seemed to handle duties aptly and seemed to keep pace with Martin in April, as they combined to hit .279/.354/.510 with four homeruns and 10 RBIs compared to Martin's .274/.344/.560 with six homeruns and 14 RBI.
Cervelli, who with his hot bat made himself the primary catcher, broke his hand on a foul ball by Rajai Davis of the Toronto Blue Jays on April 27th and has been out since. Touted prospect Austin Romine was called up to replace Cervelli, but he has done little to impress as he has hit a mere .136/.149/.182 with no homeruns and two RBI since he was called up on April 27th.
Yankees catchers have cooled off greatly with the loss of Cervelli, combining to hit .228/.302/.324 with six homeruns and 23 RBIs in 88 games, while Martin has went on to hit .249/.354/.415 with eight homeruns and 32 RBIs in 69 games on the season. Many fans still question the decision to let Martin walk due to his clutch hitting, power and familiarity with the pitching staff. Cervelli had recently done dry swinging and was scheduled to start hitting off a tee sometime soon, but he faced a setback earlier this month, making it even longer until he is able to make an impact with the Yankees again.
As for potential replacements, the catcher market is very thin as productive catchers tend to be a face of the franchise, such as San Francisco's Buster Posey, St. Louis' Yadier Molina and Minnesota's Joe Mauer. The Yankees have Gary Sanchez in the minors, but he is still several years away from making his Major League debut. At this point, the Yankees can only hope that the tandem of Stewart and Romine provide just enough and when Cervelli comes back from his setback, he doesn't miss a beat with his bat and is able to contribute to the offense.
Outfield
The outfield lost major power during the offseason when the Yankees saw Nick Swisher (24 homeruns), Raul Ibanez (19 homeruns), and Andruw Jones (14 homeruns) to free agency. Swisher moved on the Cleveland Indians and has hit nine homeruns. Ibanez returned to where it all began for him, the Seattle Mariners, and has helped carry the team with 21 homeruns. Jones signed overseas in Japan with the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles, where he has hit 15 homeruns. Jones is on pace to hit more homeruns and Ibanez has already surpassed last year's total homerun through half a season with their new teams, whereas Swisher is likely to finish the season with fewer homeruns than last year.
The one remaining reliable power source in the outfield for 2013 was center fielder Curtis Granderson, who knocked out a career-high 43 homeruns in 2012. Early season expectations were that Granderson, Teixeira and Cano would man the fort and help maintain the power, while Rodriguez recovered from surgery. By the end of Spring Training, the Yankees lost Teixeira to a wrist injury and Granderson had his forearm fractured by a pitch from Toronto Blue Jay pitcher, J.A. Happ, in his first at-bat of Spring Training. Diagnoses on Granderson revealed that he would miss 10 weeks and aimed for a return date some time mid-May. Granderson's recovery and rehab went smoothly, resulting in a return to the lineup on May 14th against the Seattle Mariners. He straggled to find his stroke at first and just as he seemed to rediscover his stroke when he swatted his first homerun on May 22nd against the Baltimore Orioles, in the following game on May 24th against Tampa Bay Ray's pitcher, Cesar Ramos, Granderson had his left pinky finger fractured on a changeup. The injury was similar to that which Rodriguez had in 2012 when he faced the Mariners pitcher, Felix Hernandez, and Granderson found himself back on the disabled list for the second time this season.
The Yankees traded for Vernon Wells towards the end of Spring Training as they saw signs of life in what many believed, was a washed up player in his decline. Vernon Wells shined for the Yankees in April, as he hit .300/.366/.544 to go along with 6 homeruns and 13 RBIs, helping carry he team and cope with the loss of many of its key players. Unfortunately for the Yankees, Wells has been unable to maintain such a torrid pace and has seemingly hit a wall and reverted to his bad habits, as he is now hitting .233/.270/.371 with 10 homeruns and 35 RBIs for the season.
Brett Gardner is only one of two Yankees who have not missed a single game of action this season, the other being Robinson Cano. Gardner has seemingly had difficulty swiping bases this season as he has only 11 stolen bases and was caught six times for a success rate of 64.7%. Compare that number to Jacoby Ellsbury, the Major League leader in steals, who has stolen base 36 times and was only caught three times for a success rate of 92.3%. Over the span of two years from 2010 to 2011, Gardner swiped 96 bases and was caught 22 times for a success rate of 81.3%. Make no mistake, he has had plenty of opportunities as he is getting on base 34.7% of the time, but he has seemed reluctant to swipe bases this year. What Gardner has lost on the basepaths, he seemingly has found in power. Gardner, not nominally known for his power, has hit 7 homeruns already in 2013, which ties his career high he set back in 2011 in 159 games. Will we see Gardner continue to hit homeruns at an increased pace remains yet to be seen, but he has been one of the few bright spots of the season.
When the Yankees traded for Ichiro last year, many were skeptic of the move and didn't understand why the Yankees were acquiring another star past his prime. Ichiro proved doubters wrong and went on to hit .322/.340/.544 with five homeruns, 27 RBIs and 14 stolen bases in just 67 games. Though the Yankees were hesitant to hand out multi-year contracts during the offseason, the Yankees believed that Ichiro's performance warranted a two-year contract to keep the 39-year old outfield in pinstripes.
His performance in the first two months were underwhelming, as he only hit .257/.293/.345 with two homeruns, nine RBIs and five stolen bases; resulting in becoming delegated to start only against right handers. After the calendar flipped to June, Ichiro has hit .301/.338/.431 with three homeruns, 13 RBI and seven stolen bases, and seemingly recaptured the magic that made him one of the elite hitters in the league.
Three names that have been dangled in the trade rumors that figure to be prominent, impact bats are Carlos Quentin, Alex Rios and Giancarlo Stanton. Quentin of the San Diego Padres is a career .254/.351/.490 hitter with 147 homeruns and 458 RBIs in eight seasons. This year he is hitting .277/.372/.488 with 10 homeruns and 29 RBI. Quentin is paid $8.5 million this year and has two years remaining on his contract, $9.5 million and $8 million respectively per season, with a player's option of $10 million and a $3 million buyout for 2016. The Padres are not pressed to deal him anytime soon and it would require a significant return to acquire him.
Rios currently plays for the Chicago White Sox and is hitting .268/.323/.434 with 11 homeruns and 38 RBIs. Rios is currently in the second-year of his three-year contract and is owed $12.5 million annually, with a $13.5 million option and $1 million buyout for 2015. If the White Sox decide to become sellers this season, they would prefer to trade Rios this year rather than next year, because of a clause that increases his option in 2015 to $14 million, which may deter some potential suitors.
Stanton would be the hottest commodity for any suitor willing to unload their whole farm system to the Miami Marlins. After Miami unloaded most of its quality players in the offseason, expressed his frustration through twitter, "Alright, I'm pissed off!!! Plain & Simple." There's no question that Stanton would like to play for a contender, but the question is, is there a contender willing to pay the steep price to acquire him?
Stanton is a rare, young talent that is only 23-years old, but has already hit to the tune of .246/.338/.439 101 homeruns and 254 RBIs. He is eligible for arbitration for the first time in his career this offseason and is under team control for another four seasons as he is not eligible for free agency until 2017.
What can the Yankees do?
The Yankees are trying to curtail their spending from the days of the Boss, to a mean cost-efficient yet title-contending team. The Yankees want to get their payroll for the upcoming season under $189 million in order to avoid the hefty penalty associated with the luxury tax system should the payroll exceed $189 million. Should the Yankees meet their goal of operating below a $189 million budget, they can save up to $50 million in luxury taxes and then choose to spend big again if necessary for the 2015 season.
The Yankees had prized prospects in their system and believed that they would be able to reach this goal, but so far, things have not gone the way the Yankees envisioned as its Major League roster has been decimated by injuries and prospects haven't lived up to their full potential making it difficult for the Yankees to operate towards their goal. If the Yankees choose to achieve their goal of reducing their payroll for the 2014 season, the aforementioned trade solutions would not work as they already have $79.4 million committed to just six players, not including the $8 million player option for Derek Jeter and the money it would take to retain Robinson Cano. The only trade scenario that would not have an impact on the 2014 season would be the trade for Morneau, but the question remains, would the Yankees be willing to part with key pieces of their future for a half season rental?
The Yankees have accumulated a respectable 48-40 record, despite missing many key players and picking up stop-gap players, but all the injuries and temporary solutions seem to be catching up to the Yankees as they have dropped from first to fourth in the division. The team has given up as many runs as it has scored, 428 and are now turning the corner after struggling at the end of June, winning six of seven games at the start of July. More good news is on the way for the Yankees as Jeter continues to rehab. On Sunday, he went 1-2 with two walks and a triple he legged out, putting his healthy ankle on display.
For the season, the team's offense ranks 19th in runs, 24th in batting average, 23rd in on base percentage and 25th in slugging percentage overall, while their pitching is 11th in earned run average, 13th in quality starts, 10th in walks plus hits per nine innings pitched (WHIP) and 18th in batting average against. There is no doubt that this team needs offensive help fast.
