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Santana To The Mets
I just posted on something else, but pulled it when this news came up. it seems that the Twins were not just posturing when they said they were taking the final offers for Johan. The NY Post is reporting that the Mets have agreed to trade four prospects for Johan Santana, and have a 72 hour window to negotiate a contract extension. The Mets give up Carlos Gomez, Deolis Guerra, Kevin Mulvey and Phil Humber. Buster Olney was reporting as recently as this morning that the Yankees seemed to no longer be involved. I will briefly discuss my first impression on what this means for all the teams involved in the saga.
Mets: The clear winners in this deal, in my opinion. They held their ground and did not relinquish Fernando Martinez, their number one prospect who seems to have legitimate star potential. Gomez is a nice prospect, but many scouts have doubts about him developing any power. His ceiling may be that of Juan Pierre. Humber is a falling star, with his prospect status diminishing by the day. Guerra and Mulvey, particularly Guerra, are the wildcards in this deal, pitchers of high repute who will take a few years to develop, if ever. Mulvey is closer to the majors with more limited potential, while Guerra is the highest ceiling prospect in the deal. Most importantly, the Mets had one glaring need and filled it. They have now reestablished themselves as the legitimate superpower in the weak National League. A very bold move by a bold GM.
Twins: Bill Smith got fleeced, in my opinion. I think he seriously overplayed his hand, and was left with a package lesser than the offers he had previously received. It is unfortunate that Carl Pohlad cannot open his purse strings. However, Smith knew that coming in and failed to get the best possible deal. I would have taken a deal with Hughes, Melky, Marquez, and Hilligoss, or a deal with Lester, Crisp, Lowrie, and Masterson, over the package he got. The rookie GM got taken in front of the entire baseball world, and I cannot imagine Twins fans will be happy. Of course, Mulvey and Guerra can make me wrong, but Smith may no longer be around to see that, and I find it to be unlikely regardless.
Yankees and Red Sox: I think both teams got what they wanted here- Johan in the NL. The Yankees stick with Brian Cashman’s plan, which is gratifying to see, and Boston does not sell the farm for what was ultimately a luxury. All in all, I imagine that neither team is mourning the loss of Santana this afternoon.
Johan Santana: He goes to a weaker division, to a team filled with Latinos, with an owner that will pay him. What is not to like?
So, what do you think? Relieved? Disappointed? Chime in.
Update: There is one point I neglected to make earlier in regard to the Yankees part in this saga. I fully expect a Steinbrenneresque ultimatum to come down over the next few days, basically stating that “We took Brian’s advice, now he has to deliver.” Cashman’s job may very well depend on the outcome of this trade, assuming he wants to return in the first place. Imagine the following scenario. It is late June, and Hughes is headed for the D.L. with a 4.86 ERA, Kennedy has proven to have bottom of the rotation potential, and Melky is hitting .262 without any increase in power. Meanwhile, the Mets are coasting along, led by ace Johan Santana, who is 11-2 with a 2.34 ERA. All of the papers will suddenly revisit the Santana-Yankees situation, wondering why Brian was so reluctant to give up unproven talent for a known star. Do you think Hank will keep his mouth shut and quietly stick to the plan? I highly doubt it. I am glad that the Yankees did not trade their youth, and look forward to the 2008 season with the Big Three on the mound. I just hope the whole situation does not cost us Brian Cashman.
Update: Looking at BA and John Sickels’ prospect lists, the Mets gave up their 2,3,4, and 7th rated prospects. For the Yankees, this would have meant Tabata, Kennedy, Horne, and Betances. I for one have doubts that the Twins were going take a similar offer from an A.L. team. To keep him in the same league, the Twins probably wanted a talent such as Hughes or Ellsbury. When that proved unlikely, they grabbed the best remaining package. I doubt Cash could have made the trade with the offer I listed above. Do you think that it is a better package than the one Smith took? Should Cashman have been more proactive if that type of offer was a possibility?
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56 Responses to “Santana To The Mets”
January 29th, 2008 at 5:23 pm
The farm is saved. Praise the lord.
January 29th, 2008 at 5:32 pm
I think if he pitches like he did in the A.L. he’s a mortal lock for multiple Cy Young awards. I’m just glad Boston didn’t get him. And I’m glad we didn’t give up those prospects. And their still gonna need 1 or 2 to get a topflight 1st baseman.
January 29th, 2008 at 5:33 pm
Fantastic news, unless your name is Bill Smith. I very rarely criticize GM’s because its a hard job and there is a lot of stuff we may not know, but Smith did a terrible job here. Phil Hughes alone is better than all the players he traded for, and I’d even say Ellsbury is too. He took quantity over quality.
January 29th, 2008 at 5:46 pm
I had a secret hope Santana stays in Twins and arrive to the Yankees in the nexte postseason, but, you know, that was difficult
January 29th, 2008 at 6:03 pm
Hopefully Sabathia prices himself out of cleveland.
January 29th, 2008 at 6:05 pm
Hallelujah! The Mets wouldn’t have been my first choice, but they are a heck of a lot better than either the Yankees or the Red Sox.
January 29th, 2008 at 6:11 pm
Relieved. The Mets get what they sorely needed. Santana is not on the Red Sox. We stick with Cashman’s “Home Grown Talent” Plan. All is good.
Only 16 Days until Pitchers & Catchers!
January 29th, 2008 at 6:19 pm
Yay.
Let the Mets fan be excited for a few days.
Let Santana win 5 Cy Youngs and 0 World Series over the next 7 years.
Let the Yankees build a lean, mean, youth-oriented, home grown team.
Let the Red Sox not get him either.
I don’t see a down side.
January 29th, 2008 at 6:33 pm
God, this couldn’t have worked out any more perfectly.
The Yankee prospects are safe.
The Red Sox don’t get the best pitcher in the game.
Santana is out of our league.
The OTHER New York team (who I don’t mind pulling for as my backup NL team) gets a major piece that they needed.
This couldn’t have happened any better than it did, in my eyes.
January 29th, 2008 at 7:13 pm
wow its going to be scary how good Santana will be pitching in the NL
January 29th, 2008 at 7:22 pm
I was very happy, to the extent that I was surprised when my roomate (also a yank fan) was so pissed about it. I guess its b/c hes a Mets hater… Santana was never going to be a FA and Smith would not take a lesser (non Hughes) deal from us, so the Mets are as good as any NL team and infinitely better than the Sox or losing Hughes.
January 29th, 2008 at 7:25 pm
YAY Last Santana post on TBB for a long time!
/sarcasm
January 29th, 2008 at 7:39 pm
Don’t forget, we’ll still have to face him during interleague play. Those games still count…
January 29th, 2008 at 8:08 pm
Interleague play?
So, maybe…MAYBE the Yanks see him twice a year. That’s slightly better than if he ended up with any of the teams in the AL East, innit?
January 29th, 2008 at 8:57 pm
We’ll face him twice at the most in Interleague Play and we’ll NEVER have to face him in a 5-game post-season series. Works for me.
January 29th, 2008 at 9:10 pm
My opinion is that I am glad that we did not give up any of our prospects and that Johan Santana has gone to the National League. My only problem is that the Mets had gotten him at a bargain deal, where the Twins wanted us to cough up Ian Kennedy and Phil Hughes in the same deal. The Mets stole Johan Santana given up no bodies, with the exception of Carlos Gomez. I feel that in the long run we needed to change tradition and create homegrown talent, with the Big 3 leading us to championships and pennants. All Yankee and Boston fans are all relieved that this ordeal is over with, but feel like they could have gotten johan for nothing when you look at what the Mets gave up. As a Yankee fan good riddance to these rumors and Johan Santana.
RESPOND TO THIS!!
January 29th, 2008 at 9:19 pm
Mark, nothing more to respond to, except that I agree.
January 29th, 2008 at 9:53 pm
My theory is that this is Hank’s fault. He’s so blustery and won’t shut up. Smith thought that he could take advantage of him and get the Yanks to cough up Hughes and Kennedy. This situation was particularly exacerbated when Hank signed A-Rod despite Cash’s ultimatum. Cash has been trying to foster a sense of frugality, projecting the image that the Yanks won’t overpay. This allowed him to get deals done for Abreu, etc. w/out giving up the farm. Hank has completely ruined this image. Now, teams are going to be convinced that they can play Hank and rape the Yanks in every deal. When they knew that Cash had the final say, other GMs were much more willing to deal fairly. The deal they got from the Mets was a joke - comparable to Horne, Marquez, Jackson, and Betances
Smith really bungled this. It’s obvious that he never wanted Ellsbury, Lester, Lowrie, Crisp, etc. He just wanted the Yanks to up the ante, but he badly misplayed his hand when he refused the Hughes offer, claiming he liked the Ellsbury package better. Only gullible loons like Buster Olney and his colleagues could believe that. He treated the Yanks like they were idiots and got what he deserved.
January 29th, 2008 at 10:01 pm
As a Yankee fan who lives in Minneapolis I feel bad for the Twins. They got fleeced. Smith would have been a LOT better off with the Yankees early offer.
But Boston did not get him and he is in another league. Good news.
Three years from now, baring injury, Hughs and Chamberlain will be proven front line pitchers and one of the two will be a star. Maybe not Santana, but a stud and a top of the line pitcher.
This worked out as well as it could. The only better scenario is that the Twins let the Yankeees fleece them not the Mets.
January 30th, 2008 at 12:12 am
[…] Yankees Etc. feels that Smith overplayed his hand. Moshe Mandel at The Bronx Block believes that Smith got fleeced. These bloggers are upset because the Twins seemingly turned down or dallied to the point of no […]
January 30th, 2008 at 12:13 am
Congrats to the Mets! They got a steal. Thats a bad deal by the Twins even though Gomez is nasty.
I’m just glad Hughes is sticking around. I said it all along, if we can make the deal for an IPK package fine but if it takes Hughes or Joba no way. This was good for us no matter what NY team he went to. See yah in the WS Met$!
January 30th, 2008 at 12:30 am
Mo, I feel like we lost the world series.Im sure we will shmooze in depth on the subject. Im happy Hughes Is still with us. But now he better produce. If he doesnt live up to the hype I dont think we can compete with the sox or even the tigers for the matter. Especially considering the state of our bullpen. Best regards to the wife,
ZC
January 30th, 2008 at 2:16 am
It is snowing here in Israel. Being from NY, it is no big deal for me, but the city is shutting down over a few inches of slush. Pretty crazy. And Avi, what makes them worse than last year? They are at least as good, and any production from the Big 3 makes them significantly better. Meanwhile, the Tigers do not scare me, as they did not adress their pitching deficiencies.
January 30th, 2008 at 2:56 am
I think CashMan should have made an other of something like Ian Kennedy, Melky Cabrera and Jeff Marquez as a last offer but I’m cool with Santana going to the Mets. They needed him the most anyway. Not to mention that I really like the idea of us going after CC Sabathia next year. But I definitely think he should have offered something like that. An IPK package would have been okay with me. I just didnt want to give up Joba or Hughes. I’d sacrifice Kennedy for Santana. But it doesnt matter anymore.
January 30th, 2008 at 3:37 am
The Big Three is saved, barring any complications with the physical and contract negotiations.
January 30th, 2008 at 7:03 am
Bob Klapisch is reporting that the Twins called last night asking for Kennedy, Melky, and another top prospect (Jackson? Tabata?) and the Yankees declined. Read the article to see how badly Bill Smith played his cards. Unbelievable.
http://www.northjersey.com/sports/mets/14896371.html
January 30th, 2008 at 7:53 am
I keep hearing that Santana’s performance will determine Cashman’s future. I couldn’t disagree more. This was a smart move, both baseball wise and business wise. To give up that much talent for the privelege of signing Santana to a ridiculous contract would have been stupid regardless of how the players involved may perform this year. It made sense not to do this deal and should have no bearing whatsoever on Cashman’s future.
January 30th, 2008 at 8:37 am
All of that may be true, Tim (I personally agree), but Cashman is employed by Steinbrenners. Reason doesn’t always carry the deal. It has for now, but he could easily be fired (or simply not resigned) if the big three struggle while Santana is great for the Mets.
January 30th, 2008 at 8:43 am
The Steinbrenners reasoned that 4 or 5 players for 1 expensive pitcher is not the right thing to do. So, we have the new Yanks, who will be young, good, flexible, and not an aging team or organization like they were just a few short years ago with Brown and Big Unit. The Yanks will have depth, and excellent young talent all around. This new Cashman approach is the right way to do it, and when its time to pay them (see Cano) Yanks will do it, unlike Oakland when they had so much good young talent.
January 30th, 2008 at 8:52 am
Who cares about league?
A GM should be looking to add as much talent as he can. its not like they are in the same division or even competing with them for a few yrs. If thats his his rationale for doing this he should be fired.
January 30th, 2008 at 9:41 am
If heyman is accurate I wouldnt mind if cashman left after all. I can uderstand the hesitation to give up hughes ,but the best pitcher in baseball for ian kennedy? I have been one of cash’s biggest supporters but that is just plain stupid.
January 30th, 2008 at 10:07 am
Who would play CF if Melky was traded? Melky has proven he can handle CF. Let some other team give away a 7 yr $125 mill crazy contract to a free agent. Yanks could be dangerous with many good young talented pitchers to use in the future plus greater payroll flexibility. Can you imagine how dangerous the Yankee organization could be stocked with good young cheap talent, like Montreal had all those years ago, and the Marlins, with the only difference being that the Yanks have the bucks to keep it all and not unload it like Montreal and Florida had too.
January 30th, 2008 at 10:49 am
Boston Herald Michael Silverman Santana, Mets reach a deal
[quote]
http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/baseball/red_sox/view.bg?articleid=1069960
[b]
Memo to Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy: You better be good.
Between the Yankees and Red Sox [team stats], who both lost out to the Mets yesterday in the Johan Santana sweepstakes, the Yankees have far more to lose as they move on without the best left-handed pitcher in the game.[/b]
The Sox braintrust deserves a round of applause for the way it played out this non-transaction. Not only did the team gauge its own talent accurately as a position of strength, it also capitalized on a period of transition for the Yankees.
[b]
Hank and Hal Steinbrenner now are sharing power at the top, but general manager Brian Cashman was believed to be the driving force in not wanting to give up the farm in a deal for Santana, and he cannot be blamed for that. Of all the prospects discussed during the months of Santana talk, Hughes’ potential was the highest of anyone, according to most talent evaluators. The rest of the Yanks’ package was not as glamorous, and it’s no wonder the Twins wanted Kennedy as well. The Yankees clearly are being careful with their talent, more evidence that the inability to win a World Series since 2000 despite a massive payroll ($1.167 billion spent from 2000-07) is a huge deal.[/b]
It probably is giving the Red Sox baseball operations staff too much credit to say it knew the Yankees would refuse to part with their most prized gems. By making a decent enough offer themselves, however, the Sox ensured that the Yankees’ effort to rebuild their farm system would be sent back to the dark ages if they pulled the trigger.
[b]The Yankees are not dumb. Despite their ability to spend at will, they know the dynasty they built in the 1990s was the result of homegrown talent like Derek Jeter, Andy Pettitte, Mariano Rivera and Jorge Posada. Those players remain, but the well-paid supporting cast of free agents and high-profile trade imports has been unable to help.
The Sox are two rings and about two years ahead of the Yankees in their plan to keep fresh draft talent streaming through the minor league pipeline, with one or two players emerging as major league contributors each season. Jonathan Papelbon [stats], Kevin Youkilis [stats] and Dustin Pedroia [stats] have made a huge difference, while Buchholz and Ellsbury are well on their way. Justin Masterson, Jed Lowrie and Michael Bowden are just three of the players on the horizon, and the team now is in a position where it doesn’t have to give up everything for a Johan Santana.
So for now, the Mets, at the cost of four promising youngsters and one massive pending contract, have wrested control of this offseason’s top prize, won the battle of the tabloids’ back pages and perhaps found the missing link to a pennant.
The Red Sox kept all their blue-chip prospects and remain the team to beat in the AL.
And the Yankees?
They have Hughes and Kennedy. Best of luck guys, and remember, no pressure.[/b]
[/quote]
January 30th, 2008 at 11:03 am
Well, the Yanks have Hughes & Kennedy, but also Joba, Melky, Horne, and on the horizon, big flamethrower Humberto Sanchez. (probably some others I leave out). So the Yanks can keep pace with Boston in the blue chip department. Additionally, Yanks will spend bigtime on international prospects unlike Boston.
January 30th, 2008 at 11:39 am
From MLBTR:
Bob Klapisch of the Bergen Record chronicles Bill Smith’s last-ditch attempts to get the Yankees and Red Sox involved. He apparently asked the Yankees for Ian Kennedy, Melky Cabrera, and a top prospect and was denied. The Red Sox wouldn’t part with Jon Lester or Jacoby Ellsbury. To me this makes the Yankees and Red Sox look really fickle. They were willing to offer up these huge packages a few months ago but now both have done a 180? I know the free agent market has shrunk but it’s still crazy that their stances changed so dramatically.
———————————————-
I’m a little mad CashMan didn’t get him for Kennedy. I mean, I like IPK dont get me wrong but thats a good deal for Santana. It doesn’t matter now but if after all of that we could have gotten him for Kennedy we should have.
January 30th, 2008 at 11:49 am
As the boys at RAB have pointed out, it is difficult to know what actually happened. The Daily News claims that they called asking for Kennedy and Wang. If that is true, then the rejection was the easy response.
January 30th, 2008 at 12:37 pm
For some reason, the prospect of the Yanks-Red Sox rivalry becoming about who can draft and develop the best players rather than who can sign the most free agents excites me.
January 30th, 2008 at 4:39 pm
wow this is bad. hopefully the deal falls though
January 30th, 2008 at 5:12 pm
I dunno - not sure how much I trust Klapisch on this one. That seems like a pretty paltry deal. There is also the possibility that the Yanks and Sox both got fed up w/ Smith’s BS. It’s tough to make a deal when you don’t trust the other guy. I’d bet anything that if Smith did float that and the Yanks bit, then he’d just take that back to the Sox, yelling, “lookee, lookee! We’re going to do this deal with Cashman unless you up your offer!!” I wouldn’t be surprised at all if Cash and Theo just shook hands b4 or after that speech they recently gave in NJ and said, “enough w/ this Smith guy, let’s agree to not make any more offers.”
January 30th, 2008 at 5:15 pm
BTW, what’s with the perpetually moronic sportswriters claiming that Hank yanked Hughes off the table only last week??? Hughes was on the table for, like, 18 hours b4 he got pulled back. I don’t think these guys even pay attention.
January 30th, 2008 at 5:30 pm
Yossarian
You are correct about what Bill Smith would have done if the Yankees would have accepted the offer. I am still shocked that the Mets got Santana for those players. That is equivalent to roster fillers. People seem to forget about the luxury tax rule. The Yanks would have to pay about $30 million a year. I believe what Brian has done was a smart move not only by keeping the prospects who I believe will become great, but also by changing the philosophy of the Yankees, who under George would have gotten Santana for Hughes and IPK and being on the wrong side of the deal.
Congrats to Cashman and I believe he will be looked at as the person that led the Yankees back those championship days.
January 30th, 2008 at 7:51 pm
Mo, long time no speak. The only reasoning I can come up with to defuse my Cashman frustration is this: If Cash tells Bill Smith the Yanks are interested in a Santana for Kennedy swap at the 11th hour, Bill will then call Theo with this news forcing the Sox to put either the Ellsbury or Lester packages back on the table. Billy “The Kid” then calls back Brian saying if Lester or ellsbury are on the table, Johan is going to Boston unless you pony up Phil hughes. And the b idding war continues playing the Sox and Yanks again st each other with the Sox ultimately coming out on top because of our refusal to give up Hughes. Thus Santana ends up in Boston which is far worse then not entering the bidding war at all and Johan winding up with the Mets. Lets pray that the Yankee hierarchy had this foresight. As far as Heyman versus Madden , Bill has been way off lately on many of his big scoops as opposed to Heyman who has been on a huge roll. Be that as it may, Wang never made sense for Minnesota because of his arbitration and pending long tern contract negotiations. The twins want young cheap talent that wont put any strain on uncle Scrooge Pohlads wallet. Heyman has it right in my opinion. Regards to Poppy,
Susie
January 30th, 2008 at 11:36 pm
If you are the yankees and you stand by your moto to win the world series evrey year then, you have to do evreything in power to get the best pithcher in baseball. Excpet for giving up joba, let me know what you think peace
January 30th, 2008 at 11:53 pm
But that’s the entire POINT of what Cashman did. We’re moving away from the “do whatever it takes to win” mentality. Remember after our “dynasty”, we wound up trying to get an All-Star at EVERY position. Look how many rings those guys got.
Moose (though I think he was worth the deal), Giambi, Pavano, Randy Johnson, Javier Vasquez, Gary Sheffield, etc, etc.
Now we’re going with the philosophy of getting players that we need, without giving up too much, while also keeping our YOUNG talent.
We are getting younger, we’re getting cheaper, and we’re getting more balanced. The team actually looked like they were having fun lastyear. How many smiles did you see with RJ or Sheffield on the team?
January 31st, 2008 at 12:03 am
Susan:
Dude, I just SAID that!!! I knew it wasn’t just insecurity. Women really DON’T listen to a word I say. Though, in fairness, I should probably stop calling them, “dude”. I don’t think that helps my case.
January 31st, 2008 at 12:06 am
First of all do whatever it takes attitude to get the best player no matter the cost has not gotten us 0 world series rings.
Johan Santana would have sent our farm systems a few years back determining the package that they wanted. He would cost the Yankees too much in prospects and money. If the Yankees want to stand by the moto to win the world series every year, then this is the way to do it by developing a farm system to create a future that has rings in them.
Brian Cashman has redeveloped the farm system in a short amount of time and that will start paying dividends as the year begins.
It would have been nice to have Johan Santana as our ace, but it is going to be nicer to see Philip Hughes and Joba Chamberlain develop into aces who will be here for a long time.
January 31st, 2008 at 12:34 am
Susan, the thing is, Buster Olney has independently reported Madden’s version of events as well.
January 31st, 2008 at 8:44 am
Cashman should not be viewed as a villain in this whole ordeal. He does not make unilateral decisions, I’m sure he presented and presents everything to Hank etc, all the pros and the cons to acquiring Santana, and then the organization as a whole arrives at a decision as to what is best for the Yankees going forward. This is what makes today’s Joel Sherman’s column in the NYPost laughable. Cash is not the final decision maker. And it’s an unprecedented time in Yankee history - When was the last time the Yankees had so much highly regarding young pitching in their farm system?
January 31st, 2008 at 9:38 am
Mark Da Rosa, I read in several places that if a team buiolds a new stadium they are excempt from paying a luxury tax. For how long I don’t know. So they probably decided the cost to resign in general was too much. Good call all the way around.
January 31st, 2008 at 10:17 am
I’m disgusted with the way so many people are treating this. They’re making it like we’re losers. We stood firm, we kept our youth, and we didn’t overpay (because it seems like no matter what, our deal was always the “most expensive” offer that the Twins asked for).
Do people forget about Carl Pavano so quickly? Pavano had 1 great year, then got a (now small) contract, then imploded. That was only $40mil. Now imagine the risk if we had to give up some top prospects AND $130-160mil and he got hurt. That would probably go down as 1 of the worst all-time trades. It’s a RISK. It’s a much, much, much bigger risk for us than the Mets. The Mets needed pitching extremely badly, whereas we have some young guys who could try to step up. Plus the Mets needed another big name to keep their fans happy, especially after the collapse last year.
Santana is a great pitcher, but it was a very risky trade and the Mets wound up getting him for no real blue chippers.
January 31st, 2008 at 11:42 am
According to Buster Olney, the last offer that the Twns try to make to give Johan Santana to the Yankees, is since the Yanks said not to trading Phil Hughes, they wanted Ian Kennedy and Chien Ming Wang for Johan Santana. If what Buster Olney says is true, then you cannot say Brian Cashman made the wrong move. It is not worth it to get Santana for that package.
January 31st, 2008 at 12:40 pm
This goes against what is believed by almost everybody, but I believe that somehow that the Mets will blow this deal. I base this on nothing, but I just have a feeling that the Mets are going to blow these negotiations. Johan is not going to back down on his demands. I will say it again though, this is my gut feeling no facts are going to back me up, but i think the Mets are going to ruin a trade that looks as a big lopsided deal.
January 31st, 2008 at 3:03 pm
Keith Law- Top 100 prospects of 2008
NY Yankees Prospects
[quote]
http://insider.espn.go.com/mlb/insider/columns/story?columnist=law_keith&id=3221365
Joba Chamberlain
3) You may have heard of this fellow. Best known to big league fans as a dominant setup guy, Chamberlain is best cast as a four-pitch starter who projects as a true No. 1 starter. He has a four-pitch repertoire where all pitches project as average or better: a plus 94-98 mph four-seamer, a toxic 83-87 mph slider with good tilt and variable break, an 11/5 curveball with good depth, and a straight 81-84 mph changeup with good arm speed. The fastball and slider are already big league out pitches and in relief, he can probably get away without the other two pitches. Chamberlain has a great pitcher’s build with broad shoulders and the height to get good downhill plane on his pitches, and his arm is quick. He’s battled his weight in the past, leading to knee trouble, and he had bicep tendinitis in college that allowed him to fall to the Yankees in the supplemental round.
Jose Tabata
21)Tabata was in the top 10 last year, but a nagging hamate injury ended his 2007 season early, requiring surgery in August. Tabata has a quick bat and great hand-eye coordination, and he squares up balls as well as anyone on this list. He also has good pitch recognition, although that can manifest itself in working the count to get to a fastball he can drive. His raw power hasn’t shown up in games, which could be explained by the hamate injury; hand and wrist injuries sap power, and full recovery from a broken hamate bone can take up to a year. Tabata can play center but has been bumped to right field by fellow Yankee prospect Austin Jackson (No. 24), and Tabata should be plus there with an above-average arm. He’d rank higher if the hamate problem was fully behind him, but until that becomes clear, there’s still some risk here.
#24) Austin Jackson
Jackson is my favorite kind of hitting prospect — the athlete with a clue. Jackson was a top basketball prospect in high school, but the Yankees flexed their financial muscles and gave him first-round money in the eighth round, a move that looks brilliant in hindsight because of how advanced Jackson is for a multi-sport prospect. Jackson has good speed, a solid-average arm in center and good instincts on fly balls, but still has some work to do at the plate. His setup is excellent and his path to the ball is short, but he needs to continue working on keeping his weight back to get more power from the contact he makes, and he’s too eager to chase the ball up. He’s a potential middle-of-the-order bat because of his power and improving plate discipline.
#45) Ian Kennedy
Kennedy’s stuff alone would put him in the lower reaches of this list. He is here because he has superb command of average or fringe-average stuff, so superb that he is going to succeed in the majors where many guys with superior stuff will fail. He works with a fringe-average fastball that touches 90 mph on occasion but mostly falls in the 87-88 mph range, and he commands it to all four edges of the zone. His best secondary pitch is his changeup, slightly above average with some tailing action, but it works extremely well because he keeps his arm speed consistent. His curve is solidly average as well. Kennedy repeats his delivery as well as any prospect on this list, commands all of his pitches and has a great feel for pitching. With plus stuff, he would be in the top 10 overall, but with his stuff, he will have to settle for an upside as a borderline No. 3 starter or a great No. 4 starter.
100) Andrew Brackman
Brackman is out for 2008 after elbow surgery, but he was one of the best amateur prospects in the country heading into last spring. He gets great downhill plane on a 91-97 mph fastball and shows signs of a plus breaking ball, with clean mechanics for someone so tall. His major league contract works against him.[/quote]
Redsox Prospects
#4 Clay Buccholz
#19 Jacob Ellsbury
#28 Lars Anderson
#55 Jed Lowrie
Yankees related questions from his chat today
http://proxy.espn.go.com/chat/chatESPN?event_id=19060
January 31st, 2008 at 3:54 pm
Yossarian, your absolutely right. Women do not listen to a thing you say. Its probably time to change your approach.Chances are its got something to do with you not an entire species of human beings, dude. But dont worry, if I was a loser like you Im sure I would also have alot of insecurity. Anyway as Moshe mentioned(you see women listen to some people) ,Buster has joined Bill against John and Bob. I must say that evens the field somewhat. Although my previous point on Wang’s contract is still pretty strong. Stay tuned. Any way we can get in on Bedard? I know Angelos doesnt want him in the division but Im desperate for some hope on an ace. Haren,Santana.and Bedard all gone and we have nothing. Its pretty frustrating.
January 31st, 2008 at 4:13 pm
Who need Santana when you have Morgan Ensberg! Yanks just signed him to a minor league deal with an invite to major league camp. Seems like a good gamble to me, the guy was pretty good before hurting his shoulder.
January 31st, 2008 at 11:16 pm
Wow, not big on humor (or grammar or spelling). How very unintelligible of you (”species” of human being??? I do not theenk that word means what you theenk it does).
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