The Yanks are making some BIG mistakes

[Bleedin' blue]

I know that pitching has actually improved, and that pitching is super duper important, however clutch post season production is just as important. To lose the two most clutch hitters in the lineup is a huge hit and I really don't understand it at all. Yes, they are both breaking down, but they were pretty cheap, and they both had major contributions in the last few post seasons.

Damon fouled off 100's of pitches for us allowing the other players to get a better look at the opposing pitcher, and wearing that pitcher down.
I could live with the Matsui decision because he might have fallen apart completely at this point, but again, if not for him we would have been in a very very bad position last year.

If those two are out for periods during the regular season, its easy to replace them, but in the post season its the special players that step up.

Edit: I do like the Wynn signing, but he is unproven in a big spot, and he is no J. Damon.

[ccvle]

clutchness is very hard to prove or debate about so im not going to get into that, but as far as stats go, im sure granderson and johnson will offer atleast similar production if not better.

[Wade2k6]

I think it was a mistake not to sign Damon. Just give the guy 2-4 more million a year and stop being stingy with this budget, you're already spending 195-200 million anyway. If you would have told Cashman and/or Steinbrenner before the off-season started that they could get Damon on a 1 year deal for 5-6 million they would have been thrilled. I just don't understand why they wouldn't pursue Damon stronger or at least wait it out until Damon is desperate and realizes no other team is going to offer him more (and still had Wynn, Johnson, etc available to sign in a few weeks).

Or at least if they were going to split ways with Damon I'd rather have Reed Johnson because he kills LHP and could give Granderson a break against the LHP occasionally. (career .313 BA and .378 OBP -- from 2007-2009 .329 BA and .395 OBP).

[CrazyKnicks]

I think it was a mistake not to sign Damon. Just give the guy 2-4 more million a year and stop being stingy with this budget, you're already spending 195-200 million anyway. If you would have told Cashman and/or Steinbrenner before the off-season started that they could get Damon on a 1 year deal for 5-6 million they would have been thrilled. I just don't understand why they wouldn't pursue Damon stronger or at least wait it out until Damon is desperate and realizes no other team is going to offer him more (and still had Wynn, Johnson, etc available to sign in a few weeks).

Or at least if they were going to split ways with Damon I'd rather have Reed Johnson because he kills LHP and could give Granderson a break against the LHP occasionally. (career .313 BA and .378 OBP -- from 2007-2009 .329 BA and .395 OBP).

Damon and his dumb agent Scott Boras wanted way more than a one year 5-6 mill. Supposedly, last time Cashman spoke to Boras, he was told that it's either 2 year 13 mill PER and no penny less. If that's true, can you blame the Yanks for not giving him a 2 yr 26 mill? With Crawford being a FA after this season?

[TKF]

yea. damon was being ridiculous with his money demands.. 5-6 mil with a team option would have been fair.. I hate losing damon.. I think this is a lose/ lose situation for both the yankees and damon..

[Wade2k6]

Well if that's the case then I agree with the Yankees decision. They were making it out to seem like Damon wanted a 5-6 million dollar offer and the Yankees were being stubborn and sticking to 2 million a year.

[HCYanks]

Damon's defense has been falling off so precipitously that the trade-off from him to Gardner will be moderate... quite possibly even a lateral move. Even if they got him down to something like a 2/$14 million deal, the marginal value on that extra 12 million instead of starting Gardner and bringing in Winn would've been pretty small. And that's assuming Damon's bat doesn't finally fall off a cliff, which could happen at any time. It may seem like penny pinching considering the team we're talking about, but hopefully this will lead to enough maneuverability to make a better move down the road. And let's not pretend the repeat hopes were hinging on bringing Damon back.

[HCYanks]

By the way if i'm Damon i'm pissed at Boras over this. He jacked up the asking price on Damon early on to try to goad the Yanks into either overpaying Damon or getting in on Holliday. Now he's whining about the Yankees never being on the up and up since Cashman just shrugged it off and made other moves. It might keep backfiring like this if he continues to use his mid-level clients like chess pieces.

[Pharmcat]

yanks and boras dont get along

and after last year, lets give cash the benefit of the doubt

[rappa]

These points are irrelevant to anything related to winning a baseball game..

Ok your saying Damon fouls off SOOO many pitches, yet his p/pa is 4.1, which is good but nothing spectacular. In a down year, Granderson's was 3.96 and 4.07 for his career. Nick Johnson who is replacing Matsui, has a staggering 4.3 p/pa while matsui is in the upper 3's. So by saying these acquisitions are big mistakes on the fact that damon fouls off a ton a pitches, and is supposedly "clutch" is ridiculous. Who's to say put in the same position with risp that granderson or johnson won't come through?

There just isn't evidence to prove that. For all the people clamoring that Damon would come back for 5 million a year, do your homework and look up the facts. Scott Boras says the yankees never even made an offer. Cashman responds to that saying they were told negotiations start at 2/26. If there were any players that were GREATLY helped by the short porch in RF, it was both Damon and Matsui. Just take a quick glance at the home/road splits and then come talk to me that these are BIG mistakes.

Unless you can possibly prove to me that "clutchness" is a good evaluation of a player, then by all means your argument is deemed erroneous.

[jeff1624]

^^It has nothing to do with the Granderson deal since he doesn't even play the same position as Damon.

Damon was stellar for us last year. He had become a fan favorite after his double steal and desperately wanted to come back. IF we could afford Randy f***ing Winn(who had an ops of .671 in over 500 plate appearances) then why the hell can't you dish out 7-9 mil for damon. it's not like he was asking for a long term deal.

It was stupid to let Matsui go but it was even stupider to let Damon walk and sign Winn. Just a stupid move all around.

And before anyone comes with the Boras is to blame BS, Damon is being lowballed right now and might end up with a 6 mil a year deal at best. Yankees could have jumped on that instead of the "moving on BS" they always do.

[rappa]

^^can someone please inform me where they know for a fact damon is willing to accept 7-9 million? Even if he is, he became expendable when we traded for granderson, no matter if he plays cf or lf. The defensive upgrade of gardner in lf or even in cf with granderson shifting to lf is a huge thing people are forgetting.......The mariners won 20 more games thia year then last and somehow managed to do that while scoring less runs then they did the year before.....Defense matters people, johnny is old and away from yankee stadium is an average mlb player.

Winn is here to be a 4th of, not a replacement to johnny damon

[rappa]

From Buster Olney's blog today:

Last week, Damon reached out to the Yankees, wanting to talk, and so the Yankees again re-engaged the left fielder, offering the money they had left they had under the budget that was set before the winter meetings. Even then, however, they were told that Damon had other options, including multi-year offers. They were told he wanted more than the $6 million package in salary and incentives that the Yankees were willing to pay.

This is just a snippet from the article but it goes hand in hand with what I have been saying to anyone who says the Yankees messed up with Damon. Johnny wants to be paid and feels he deserves atleast a multi-year 10+mil contract. He has never backed off these demands and because of it, doesn't have a team to play for next year. Maybe he'll get lucky and someone will needs a 36yr old DH who's home/road splits were atrocious. The odds are its not likely, Johnny overplayed his hand and the Yankees called his bluff and have now improved their team overall, all while getting younger and cheaper.

[Jstarks3]

i heard on the FAN yesterday that damon said when he signs with the tigers (or whoever), hes gonna demand a trade to the yankees and the yankees will send the tigers a prospect. heard it last night. could be true, could be false, idk. steve summers was saying he heard that.

[Bleedin' blue]

What would be the point of that?

[Bleedin' blue]

Just to respond to everyone who posted, I do think Cash is right to try and get younger, but as many championships as the Yanks have, its foolish to break up the chemistry after one year. Im not as upset about Matsui because his knee was falling off, but with Damon having more time at DH he could be even healthier in the post season. As for the money: Its BS. I know the free agent class next year is huge, but come on these guys spend when they want to. The Yanks are a profitable organization, and they know that winning = more money. Damon = winning.

[hatnlvr]

Hey you never know, Damon is still available and Spring Training is underway so maybe the Yanks still sign him to a 1 year deal on the cheap.

[kellmellus50]

Damon signed with Tigers for 8mil for 1 season and is waiting for a physical for a formal announcement.should be any day now for completion.

[PR07]

I wanted Damon back, but the Yanks obviously had some concerns about how he could hold up in LF and felt like Nick Johnson one one year is better than Damon for two. Plus, Heyman reported today that the Yanks apparently love Carl Crawford, so this saves some money for him.

[GnarlesOakley]

I'm not thrilled to have lost both Damon and Matusi's clutch bats, though on paper the team is much more balanced. I know clutchness can't be mattered but those were the two players I trusted the most when our backs were against the wall and this team is going to have to rely less on heroics and more on consistency. I don't like it but we should still be an offensive powerhouse.