That's Isiah Kiner-Falefa, first hyphenated U.S. player in Yank history - (Chien-Ming Wang broke the Strunk & White line in 2005) - our starting SS from April to August, before he turned into Alvaro Espinosa.
I won't belabor IKF's 2022 season, aside to note that his ups and downs came in equal shot-glasses. I'll never forget his first Yank HR, beating the Redsocks. Nor can we un-remember the botched grounders, plays an MLB shortstop simply must make. That summer, we watched him degrade, until the brain trust was suddenly scouring the landscape for someone, anyone, to replace him.
For the record, IKF - he'll turn 28 this season - hit .261, with 4 HRs and 22 stolen bases (out of 26 attempts.) He outhit Josh Donaldson, our pair of catchers and the Lucy-at-the-fudge-conveyor-belt consortium in left field, which tortured us all year. He never dogged it, never moped, never quit - a stand-up Yankee.
But we need to talk about Isiah. Specifically, where does he fit in 2023? Here are the options.
Third base. Much is made of IKF's Gold Glove at 3B, which he won in 2020. Unfortunately, that was the abbreviated season of Covid, which was like Superman after eating red kryptonite. Luke Voit won the HR crown. DJ LeMahieu led the AL in hitting. And Clint "Jackson" Frazier was named as a Gold Glove "finalist" in left field.
Yeesh. Anybody who ever watched Red Thunder patrol an outfield corner suddenly realized that the Gold Glove award had become baseball's Golden Globe.
I don't want to demean IKF's big moment - wait, no, that's exactly what I wanna do. In fact, I'd pitch that trophy into the right field bleachers like a Knoblauchian toss to first. IKF can be a serviceable, light-hitting 3B, but he's not ready for the Pro Bowl. To play 3B, he must beat out LeMahieu, Josh Donaldson and Josh Donaldson's contract, which places Josh Donaldson first in the chow line.
Could IKF play 3B? Sure. But first they must find somebody to take Donaldson.
Shortstop. You can't put the same school budget up for a second vote, after its been already rejected. Last year, IKF was a stopgap. He can't do it again.
The spring training battle for SS is Oswald Peraza's to lose. If he gets hurt or develops the yips, the fallback option is Oswaldo Cabrera or maybe Anthony Volpe - who is more likely ticketed to a summer in the birthplace of Joe Biden. The Yanks hibernated for two winters, passing on free agent shortstops. They didn't do it for Kiner-Falefa.
Utility. Again, this comes down to other spring training competitions. The Yankee left field is not Vegas: What happens there does not stay there. It will affect the entire team. If the Yankees sign somebody or trade for somebody, they'll move the switch-hitting Cabrera into the utility role, along with LeMahieu, who is always - like the potential Oscar best picture - Everything, Everywhere, All at Once.
Trade. Well, he'll be a free agent next winter. If they wait, they'll get nothing. But what are their chances of receiving decent value?
The thing is - damn! - I like IKF. He is a good player, a stand up teammate, and in the late innings of a close game, a tough out. He wasn't to blame for the second half collapse, or the second round knockout. I just wish he had a role. As for now, he's just a hyphenation mark between here and gone.
Posts
12 comments:
Since when was .261 with no power a “good player”? Those are late inning defensive replacement numbers, without the actually good defense. He’d be a decent bench player at best but they already have Djl and Cabrera who can both arguably do it better.
IKF is the 26th man on a contender. 5th infielder, 3d catcher, a guy who maybe you can send up there late if you simply need to put the ball on play. He maybe starts at 3rd on second division teams. He starts at short on 100+ loss teams, and of course contenders whose management likes to tell itself it sees value where others don't.
Speaking of Yankees' management, anybody see Boonie's giddiness over the prospect of his apparently beloved Eagles pummeling the Giants this weekend? What an odd group of people running the Yankees.
This would all be a lot simpler if LeMahieu could play LF.
You know, Mildred, I bet he could with a little practice.
Publius, I disagree a bit. Yeah, IKF isn't an All Star, but the key to your comment is "if you simply need to put the ball in play." When DON'T you need to put the ball in play, especially on a team that's not great at putting the ball in play? IKF was a guy I wasn't sorry to see when we had guys on base. He isn't a strikeout machine, he doesn't swing for the fences (which he would very rarely hit, anyway), and yes, he puts the ball in play. That's why I still like him. And his botched defensive plays bothered me, but not as much as Donaldson's, which always seem to come when just being competent would've got us out of a jam, and being incompetent opened the floodgates for an opponent.
I don't care much whether IKF stays or goes, but I'll be fine with it if he stays. Though I'm hoping an Oswald takes his job at short.
Isiah may start. After all, Hal is paying him.
Duque, you are en fuego of late. The Gold Glove has become the Golden Globe of baseball? Oh, baby, I love it!
And JM, I felt much the same about Falafel—until August, when even the timely hits mostly vanished. A starting shortstop in today's game who has no power, hits .261, can't field the position all that well, and breaks down in the second half? Sorry, that's too many problems.
Aroldis Chapman to the Royals on a one-year, $3.75 million contract.
At the rate he sweats, KC will finally have a lake front.
Hoss, I can't really argue against that. Like I said, if he stays or goes, I don't have strong feelings either way.
I wonder what we could get for him? Maybe we could ask the Twins to take him and Josh back and only give us Gio in return...oh wait, too late. He's already with the Angels.
Maybe the Angels will take IKF and Josh if we pay Josh's salary and give us Gio back. Or something.
Here’s the thing…the team’s roster is so poorly constructed that we can’t really afford an IKF-type. It seems inevitable that such an aging, injury prone roster (nobody wants to talk about how Bader has never played a full season and now has a chronic condition) will result in IKF having full-time duties again. And don’t be surprised if he is trotted out as the Opening Day SS. This team will routinely bash it’s way into the watered down playoffs, only to disappear like a fart in a windstorm in the postseason.
And Publius, nobody is gonna “pummel” these Giants! Not saying we can beat the eagles in a playoff game, but tomorrow’s game should be very competitive. The fact that ba-ba-booney is an eagles fan makes me hate him even more, if possible….
.
Post a Comment