Monday, December 30, 2019

Waiting for the Happ shoes to drop

Psst. Hey you. Shhhh. Hear anything? Me neither. The coast is clear. No news today - nothing, nada, zip - on the Yankees. Just dumb features and cruddy speculation. It's quiet across the Yankiverse...

Hmm, maybe too quiet?  

Here's where I got us: This winter, the Yankees have lost Didi, CC, Romine, Dellin and the Parrot... and gained Gerrit Cole. Were it a trade, this would be a loser. Then again, if Cole repeats what he did in 2019, it will be worth it. We finally have an ace.

The Yankees have re-signed Aroldis Chapman and Gardy - a legacy move - and are shopping J.A. Happ, who looks like a one-and-done. Any day now, I expect to hear to Happ is gone.

The next "event" could be a murky deal with Milwaukee, who apparently wants to shed its 25-year-old, long-haired, formerly racist closer, Josh Hader, before he hits arbitration. We've been hearing about this for weeks. Before the winter meetings, it seemed imminent. Now, dunno.

For whatever it's worth, I question how much we should give for Hader, whose implosion in the 2019 Wild Card game - he gave three in the eighth against Washington - killed the Brewers' year. They brought him in with a 3-1 lead, hoping for a two-inning save. He never reached the ninth. You could say the Nats were a "team of destiny," and Hader was simply the first mailbox in their way. But if he could have thrown a scoreless two innings, it might be the Brewers still celebrating. 

Last year, Hader threw 75 innings - that's six more than the Yankees' heaviest  bullpen war horse, Chad Green (69). In 2018, Hader threw even more - 81 innings. By comparison, Aroldis Chapman threw 57 last year, and still looked bleached and bleary at the end.

In the three years since Hader became famous - or infamous; some old racist remarks were uncovered during the All-Star break; he apologized and said he's changed -  his ERA has risen each season. In 2017, he was unhittable: an ERA of 2.08. Last year, it was 2.62. That would have placed him fourth - 4th - in the Yankees bullpen  - behind Chapman (2.21), Adam Ottavino (1.90) and Zack Britton (1.91.) 

(I doubt it matters that Hader pitched in the NL. By the time he enters games, managers would be sending up pinch hitters.) 

In simple terms, I believe there are reasons - beyond impending arbitration - why the Brewers want to trade Hader. Of the top 10 statistical doppelgangers for Hader - at age 25 - six proved long-term disappointments: John Rocker (eerily similar), Kevin Siegrist, John Hiller, Rex Brothers, Don Carman and Alex Claudio. There are scores of closers who are killers at 22 and by 26, the mayors of Palookaville. 

Of course, any trade depends on what we give up, right? J.A. Happ would certainly be a start. From there, though, we better be careful. 

So... quiet today. That's okay. I can do quiet. 

14 comments:

  1. I WOULD LOVE TO HAVE HADER.

    RIGHT NOW, HIS STUFF PLAYS IN ANY LEAGUE.

    ONE THING THAT WOULD BE DIFFERENT IF HE CAME TO US IS, HE MOST LIKELY WON'T BE PITCHING 2 INNINGS AT A TIME.

    I KNOW MILWAUKEE LOVED USING HIM FOR MULTIPLE INNINGS, OFTEN.

    I STILL LOVE FRAZIER'S BAT, BUT IF WE AREN'T GOING TO USE HIM, WE MIGHT AS WELL SEND HIM SOMEWHERE ELSE (AS LONG AS IT'S AN N.L. TEAM), SO HE DOESN'T DESTROY US.

    HOPEFULLY MIGGY ISN'T INCLUDED. WE CAN LIVE WITHOUT HAPP, BUT IT ISN'T THE END OF THE WORLD IF WE KEEP HIM.

    I'M WITH YOU THOUGH.

    WE SIGNED COLE AND WALKED AWAY FROM THE NECESSARY IMPROVEMENTS AND TWEAKS TO MAKE THE TEAM STRONGER.

    WE MAY BE WORSE! (EVEN AFTER COLE)!

    IS IT POSSIBLE EVEN AFTER SIGNING SOMEONE FOR $324 MILLION, HAL'S CHEAPNESS IS STILL GOING TO KILL US?

    SHEDDING PAYROLL (AND TALENT) WITHOUT GETTING ANYTHING BACK IS COUNTER PRODUCTIVE.

    HOW CAN WE NOT INVEST IN ROMINE FOR A RELATIVELY LOW COST, WITH A GUY LIKE SANCHEZ AROUND?

    SEEMS LIKE HAL JUST SPENT $324 MILLION AND HE NOW WANTS TO SAVE $325 MILLION.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. If he’s not a multiple inning threat then he serves no purpose on the Yankees. As a one inning left handed reliever he’d be he third option behind Chapman and Britton. What are you giving up for that?

      Delete
  2. Cicada Hal and Cashman are doing just what I thought they'd do: after signing Cole, they'll make a series of smaller moves that weaken the team, to the point where Cole will not be as effective without the best support behind him. All positive weight gained from signing Cole will be negated by the departures of other players we need. We end up right where we started, just in a different configuration.

    Meanwhile, let us bow our heads for Pat Shurmur. He never had a chance.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Great...let's get Hader so we have him and Flop Sweat who can both lose a game in the 9th inning...

    ReplyDelete
  4. Yes, sequential exploding "closers." That'll be swell.

    ReplyDelete
  5. DON'T FORGET....

    CHAPPY IS DUE FOR A BREAKDOWN.

    I GUARANTEE IT.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Chappy is a breakdown on legs.

    I finally figured out my mantra for the winter when writing on Twitter:

    **Yankees strengthen team by signing Cole, then weaken team by every other move in the offseason. No gain. Won't make the Series, again.**

    That pretty much says it. Hope I'm wrong, but it is Hal and Cash, after all.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Amen, Duque. Maybe Frazier alone would be worth it for Hader. NOT Miggy, and certainly NOT some brace of top prospects with or without Happ.

    I've said it before and I'll say it again: earmarks of a breakdown are all over Hader. AND he's a racist? Boy, 2 wife beaters and a racist. Should be a fun bullpen.

    ALL-CAPS, I agree with you about Romine. And you're probably right about Chappy. It's just that don't we need to add the Kaln version of Chappy as well.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Look, there's nothing wrong with adding a Josh Hater to the Yankee bullpen to get between one and 6 outs and lengthening the group. Especially if he (and the likely addition of King) mean that we've seen the last of Cessa, Tarpley, Cortes (gone), Gearrin, Barret, et al. The only question is for what players. Would Happ, Loaisiga and 3-4 million would be acceptable?

    The Yankees cheaped out again with Romine. He made 1.9 million last year and probably would have gladly taken a 3.5 million contract to remain on the Yankees rather than spend the year with the Tigers. He could have recouped that in playoff and WS money. So could the Yankee organization only in their case much, much more by giving him an extra 1.6 million. Penny wise and pound foolish as they say.

    ReplyDelete
  9. What I was trying to write was "the Klan version of Chappy."

    Carl, I would be willing to do that deal. But the Brewers apparently wouldn't. Like the Pirates with Cole—supposedly—they're hoping for a brace of our very best prospects and beyond (as with Miggy). I say no.

    And yes, letting Romine go was a foolish mistake.

    ReplyDelete
  10. If Yanks want Hader, Torres is the price

    ReplyDelete
  11. Hader is certainly the type of flame thrower who will flame out when he's relatively young. He's the lefty with the herky jerky motion, isn't he? Arms and legs flying every which way. I would not give up either Andujar or Frazier for him. Give them Happ and Cessa plus Stanton, 99% of his contract to be paid by us. Luis Cessa is going to be a pretty good pitcher. It took him awhile to learn how to get major league hitters out, but he is moving in the right direction.

    The Hammer of God

    ReplyDelete
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