From Jon Heyman:
The world champion Yankees have top free-agent pitcher John Lackey on their free-agent shopping list, sources said. The Yankees aren’t expected to be as aggressive this winter on the free market as last offseason and they haven’t firmed up all their plans as yet, but one league source said of Lackey, “He’s definitely on their radar.”
Word is that the Yankees probably will be willing to repeat A.J. Burnett’s $82.5 million, five-year contract for Lackey. Although, one person close to Lackey — whose offer to stay with the Angels this spring was for less than $40 million over three years on top of this year’s $10 million salary — indicated the longtime Angels right-hander sees himself in a higher echelon than Burnett. Lackey was 11-8 with a 3.83 ERA for the Angels last year and has been their ace for some of his eight seasons there.
Even if postseason hero Andy Pettitte returns to the Yankees — and he told a few teammates he believes he’ll come back for one more year, though there’s no definitive word on this — the Yankees envision themselves looking at the starting-pitching market since they are uncertain whether Joba Chamberlain and Phil Hughes will start or work out of the bullpen next year. The Yankees used a three-man rotation in the playoffs out of necessity.
I am a huge John Lackey fan, so I would not be upset to see the Yankees bring him in. However, assuming Andy Pettitte comes back, wouldn’t that money be better spent on Matt Holliday? Personally, I think the Yankees should sign their own guys to short term deals and sit out this free agency class, but if they do decide to hand out “Burnett” money, it would be better spent on getting younger in LF/DH rather than adding another starter to a team that should be fine pitching-wise in 2010.
Agree? Disagree?
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I agree that they will probably sit out this free agency class and re-sign their own players or lesser names to short term deals. If they were to make a big splash, I’d prefer Lackey to Holliday or Bay. I just don’t like Holliday or Bay enough to go long with either.
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the “league source” is probably trying to drive up Lackey’s price tag
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Just on the merits, I have been arguing here and on other blogs that Lackey would be a terrific addition to the Yankees. I am a strong believer in the value of a deep, reliable quality rotation. From that perspective, going into next year with CC, Lackey, AJ, and Pettitte, with Joba and Hughes each spending some time in the rotation (figuring on injuries and innings limits), would put the Yankees in the best possible position. Lackey’s stats, as I pointed out in an answer to Steve in an earlier post, suggest he continues to pitch very effectively in the American League. (Beware NL pitchers!!!)
Would that preclude signing Holiday? Possibly so, but I am not persuaded he is an elite talent or a difference-maker the way a high-level starter is. If the Yankees sign Lackey, they should be able to bring back one of Matsui or Damon. I would trade off some offense for a steadier starting rotation.
Could the Yankees find a bargain basement solution instead of Lackey? Perhaps. Teams do hit it right sometimes. But most of those pick-ups face pretty quickly (Penny, Smoltz). With Lackey, you pay more, but you know what you are getting. And what you get isn’t Smoltz, Penny, Sergio Mitre, et al.
We could expand the conversation about top starters to include Halladay or King Felix. But Cashman’s MO indicates he won’t surrender his best young talent in a deal, and I doubt the M’s will trade Felix at this point.
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Moshe Mandel Reply:
November 9th, 2009 at 6:44 pm
The Yankees want Joba and Hughes in the rotation next year. I just don’t see a spot for Lackey. A Bargain basement guy (Duchsherer) or injury risk guy (Harden, Sheets) might be a better fit.
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The Scout Reply:
November 9th, 2009 at 7:00 pm
Hughes will face a serious innings limit next year; Chamberlain remains a question mark, both in terms of durability and proper role; Pettitte is aging — the Yankees will need at least six starters under the most optimistic scenario. So there is certainly room for Lackey.
If you would like to go shopping in the bargain basement, be my guest. There is a reason why it is called “bargain” — the prices are low. There is also a reason why it is called “basement.” More often than not, you get what you pay for, as the Red Sox saw this year.
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The other Chris H Reply:
November 10th, 2009 at 12:29 am
I wouldn’t mind signing a starting pitcher besides Andy so that Hughes can start the year in Scranton and we can control his innings as the Rays did with Price so that when he is called up he won’t have to pitch shortened games on a tight leash.
With that said a guy like Sheets isn’t a bad idea, he has injury concerns but he would fit into the clubhouse well (from what you hear he is a good guy) and if he is fully healthy (and can prove it) he could provide a very nice arm in the back of the rotation for insurance on both Andy’s health and Joba and Hughes unknown qualities. Harden is another interesting player (if his shoulder is any good now) but other than that I’m not sure to many starters are worth signing… Guys like Bedard, Washburn, Smoltz, Jose Contreras, Vicente Padilla and Randy Wolf don’t fit with club for various reasons and that unfortunately rounds out the crop.
If it’s not a Sheets type and they don’t wan to sign Lackey to a big deal then the only other idea would be to look for a younger starting pitcher who would be available by trade and could fit in as the 3rd or 4th starter immediately.
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JeffG Reply:
November 10th, 2009 at 7:13 am
I totally agree here. If the idea is to give yourself the best chance to repeat for a championship, Lackey gives us the best chance. Hughes and Joba should be starters but it doesn’t have to be both this year. Lackey is the smart move. The question is whether or not we can bump our payroll up to 220 mil – because that is what it will take.
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The other Chris H Reply:
November 10th, 2009 at 4:00 pm
Lackey is a dumb move long term… This is a team who just won a championship you want to sign another older than 30 starting pitcher to ace money so he can be your 2nd or 3rd starter?
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I would only sign Lackey if Pettitte doesn’t return (very unlikely). You can’t help but to like Lackey, though. He’s fun to watch.
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And Heyman is sort of infamous for spreading shit for agents in exchange for scoops.
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Bring back Andy and take a wait and see with CMW, I also am not to worried about next years rotation. We did well this year, both Joba and Phil have some work to do and have done for 2010, so it’s not like it was in 2008…in Jobas case, I think of Jim Katt saying about the fast ball, “use it or lose it” (more or less)…he lost it.
Bring up Wilkin DLR, Michael Dunn and Z-Mac for the BP and see how they do in spring training, maybe one or more will be good enough to replace one of our set-up guys. We have two fast hard throwers and one C&C pitcher that is fast enough to make an impact. How many SOs does Mo get in his games, people say you need to be able to strike people out to be the 8th inning guy. I say ground balls and lazy pop ups are also good. We also have Robertson, Melancon and IPK in the mix, this is not too shabby…one two or three could make a statement in 2010.
Keep the money and spend it wisely for our own players and maybe a cheep LF replacement…as stated above.
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I’d rather get a good corner OF than another pitcher right now. We have a solid-up-the-middle group, and adding another good stick makes us a lot harder to deal with.
The supposed strength of our MiLB is pitchers-why can’t we develop even one good SP from the system?
I don’t think Hughes is going to be on a severe innings limit next year. He’s not so much a ‘young arm’ anymore.
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The Scout Reply:
November 9th, 2009 at 8:40 pm
Of course Hughes will be on an innings limit. The limit is based on the workload for the previous year, which was depressed in his case in 2009 by the move to the bullpen. The team is committed to the doctrine that the workloard should not go up by more than a certain number of innings (~40) over the previous year.
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Thanks,but no thanks.TheYankees have been saying for years now that Hughes and Chamberlain werethe centerpieces of their youth movement. We’ve got the top 3 slots accounted for, and and at least another 7-9 playrs who can compete for the bottom of the rotation this season (Hughes, Joba, Ace, maybe Wang, Mitre, Gaudin, Kennedy, maybe McCallister and Nova). Let us have some faith in our players to be at least as good as the medicre to weak starters that usually round out a rotation.
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Tom Swift Reply:
November 9th, 2009 at 9:46 pm
I agree. Andy on a 1-year gives us plenty of flexibility.
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Ivan Nova, Ian Kennedy & Zach Macallister will all get shots before we sign a pricey free agent.
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Not that it matters but I believe this Heyman story is a complete fabrication.
As far as FA’s, I’m with Moshe and I would prefer to keep all draft picks. There just aren’t any kick ass FA’s like CC or Tex worth screwing up the draft and payroll. No protected picks this year.
Lackey is a good P but I’d rather have Pettitte and Lackey ain’t worth Burnett money. What the Halos offered him was about right.
I am expecting the team to improve from within and by trade. The 40 man needs reworked and the list of rule 5 eligibles/MiLB FA’s is long. A couple trades can fix that that up real quick.
Whether it’s Molina, Chris Stewart or someone else, a veteran C needs to be acquired. It can’t be just Posada and Cervelli. I’d vote for Jose. He knows the team and the league better than anyone and he’s a damn good backstop.
There are good reasons to sign Damon and good reasons to sign Godzilla, but I think you let’m both go. Get younger, cheaper and more athletic. I’m OK with offering Damon arbitration and hoping for draft picks. If he comes back for one year, so be it, it buys time for AJax and Curtis.
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IMO The Yankees should basically sit out this year, maybe just resign Damon and pettitte to short deal and go into 2010 with basically the same team. That would likely make them weaker in 2010 since they are bound to see some decrease in performance from Posada, Jeter, and a few other guys, and I really dont expect to see Cano doing much better than he did in 2009.
I’m sure the Sox will reload, and that will cause a lot of rabid yankee fans to seek Cashmans blood for just sitting back after winning a world series. But honestly for me, as long as they field a competitive team next year, and they of course will, the Yankees are playing with house money. I’d like to see them win again, but if not I’m not going to act irrationally. The win this year erased all the 2004 demons and I am completely at peace as a yankee fan. Although I say this as long as boston doesn’t win.
So as much as I do like Lackey, there is a lot of risk involved. Let’s see if Joba or Hughes can rise to the challenge, and if not, perhaps we can target some of the big young FA down the road (King Felix, Justin Upton, etc) instead of tying up our money now on 30 year olds like Lackey and Holliday.
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The other Chris H Reply:
November 10th, 2009 at 4:01 pm
I would like them to sit out most of the FA bidding but the same team? Damon in LF? How can you stomach it?
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StandingO'Neill Reply:
November 11th, 2009 at 10:20 am
I dont have the WAR figures in front of me, but I’m thinking his weak defense is somewhat hidden by his offensive ability. If I’m wrong please let me know.
Bottom line is I’d just hate to lose his bat. I’d bring him back over Matsui because he can at least play the field. Also what else is out there that doesn’t require a long term contract? If Cashman can work a trade for a younger outfielder with a decent bat and keep Matsui to DH then I’m fine with letting Damon go. We shall see tho.
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The other Chris H Reply:
November 11th, 2009 at 4:39 pm
His bat at this point doesn’t outweigh his bad defense, I’m sure statistically he is worth more runs than he gives up but that would only be because of the New Yankee stadium and the power boost it gives him. You shouldn’t have to hide his D. Look at it this way if Damon actually had an arm or knew how to go after a ball and either throws to home with power or actually catches the ball (which a decent fielder does) then Ryan Howard never scores from 2nd in game 4 and Damon doesn’t have to steal 2 bags against Lidge.
Matsui has the much better bat and is the better DH choice (which both are) you can’t hardly say well at least Damon plays the field because he can’t play the field well… I mean David Ortiz can play first but why would you let him? I know Damon isn’t that bad at LF as Poppy is at first but still.
The only player available for cheap on a short term contract is Mike Cameron who even though he turns 37 next year he would still provide much better defense in LF than Damon ever could and his 20 HRs and .250 batting average in the end will be more valuable than Damon (they both hit 24 HRs this year) because of the defensive gap between the two.
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I agree, id be fine with the yankees having a relaxed winter…its always fun to sign a big FA but its not always necessary…hal really expanded his wallet last offseason i think he isn’t planning on anything big anytime soon…we have a lot of arms in the pen and if u look at the rest of baseball teams have 1-3 strong pitchers and their 4-5 guys are just .500 pitchers….joba, hughes wang ipk, nova mccallaster gaudin mitre, i think we can get .500 out of those guys….it hurt us in ‘08 when we had sidney ponson and darell rasner plus pettite hurt and we didn’t have CC or AJ. I think the team especially after the FA signings has a solid foundation, cash just needs to switch a few pieces and we should field a competitive team next year.
Go yanks!
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The other Chris H Reply:
November 11th, 2009 at 4:44 pm
I’m not confident going into next year with this team though…
Sure in theory Sabathia, Burnett, Pettitte, Joba and Hughes/others could work but do you want to rely on it? Can you really go with a 3 man rotation in the playoffs again? That plan barley held together and only did because we never saw a game 7.
What if Pettitte gets hurt? He is another year older and has had injury problems in the past, if he goes down what is the rotation? Sabathia, Burnett, Joba, Hughes and Mitre? No thank you! Not to mention Hughes innings limit towards the end of the year you could end up with Sabathia, Burnett, Joba, Mitre and Gaudin… Do you want that?
What if AJ gets hurt or isn’t as good as he was this year (which was a 4 ERA as is) and Andy is hurt then you have 1 starting pitcher you can trust in CC and 1 pitcher can’t win this division… We need to sign or trade for at least 1 veteran starter to give more depth to the rotation.
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Lackey would be an excellent signing, just because we gave AJ too much money doesn’t mean we don’t need a true #2 starter. Pettitte is a 4 and the 5th goes to whomever earns it. The loser helping out in the pen.
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The other Chris H Reply:
November 10th, 2009 at 3:59 pm
So we spent to much money on AJ (a plus 30 starter who should be a glorified number 3 starter) so the solution is to spend to much money on a plus 30 losing his stuff glorified 2nd or 3rd starter? No thanks!
Lackey costs way to much money for what he offers, you would be much better just signing low this year because you will get more value out of signing a bunch of players to fill the holes we have than overpaying for one starter.
Also that number 4 starter won number 27 for us if you didn’t watch and did so on short rest…
The loser shouldn’t be in the pen he should start his season in Scranton… Either Joba loses and he needs the minor leagues because he won’t have an innings limit there is no excuse if he doesn’t preform, and there is no reason making him a 93-96 MPH bullpen piece. If Hughes loses out (which I would expect) then you send him to the minors to help check his innings like Tampa did with Price last year.
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Disagree with John Heyman… we should add a reliable 3rd starter for beyond just 2010. Pettitte will be a great part of the 2010 season. But after that, having Lackey will prove to be very valuable.
Side note, Joba needs to be given another shot at starting in 2010… not Hughes. With Lackey in the mix, Hughes can spend another year in the pen. Unlike Hughes, Joba has shown the confidence to throw all 4 of his pitches at the major league level. On the other hand, despite scouting reports, we have yet to witness Hughes throw anything but a fastball/curve combo. Gone are the changeup, slider and cutter that Hughes supposedly had in the minors. And Hughes isn’t filthy enough to survive as a starter, as a 2-pitch pitcher.
1. CC
2. AJ
3. Andy
4. Lackey
5. Joba
6. Wang as spot starter
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