Last July 31, when the Yankees traded Kelly Johnson to the Boston Redsocks for Stephen Drew, it was a deal I would have made.
We ditched a two-year contract with the disappointing Johnson, and we expected to get in return an established, solid-hitting infielder.
But the deal might be turning into a Cashman Clunker.
It's old news that - despite last night's heroics - Drew has been nothing short of a nightmare for the Yankees. Joe Girardi is backing him, because that's what a loyal manager does. But check out the numbers for Kelly Johnson with Atlanta: Six HRs and a batting average of .259.
Like I said, I cannot fault Cashman for pulling that deal. What's a little scary, though, is a growing sense that NY is not a place where middling players thrive. The Yankee "mystique" once meant that players came here to excel. Yes, they might start slowly, facing the big market pressures. But once here, they would outdo past performances in other cities.
In the late 1990s, with the great teams under Torre, it was common to see a Scott Brosius, a Jason Grimsley or even a Daryl Strawberry/Doc Gooden/David Wells come to the Yankees and be reborn. Now, the chemistry just seems off. Kelly Johnson never got started in New York, yet he's doing fine in Atlanta.
Damn... we could use a 2B who nearly hits .260. Right now, he could bat second.
I said it last year--they should have given Johnson a chance to be the regular 2dbaseman instead of playing him irregularly at positions unfamiliar to him.
ReplyDeleteNow it is the Yankees who should never again enter into a trade with the Red Sox. When the Yankees were the Yankees, it was the Red Sox who said that.
ReplyDeletenow, they just view us as we used to view Kansas City....as their farm club.
Maybe Johnson hits National League pitching better.
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