Let's take the case of Aaron Hicks.
He has now positioned himself where both teammates, and fans, have reason to focus on his performance. His reputation is now at stake. Be great or enter the garbage can.
He has basically cried out to the media that he is being ( unfairly ) under-utilized. " I should be playing," he is saying. Okay, so what can come from this?
Boone can play him. He did. And Hicks did squat, as he has pretty much done for the last couple of seasons. At the same time, he has an enormous contract. So his cry is met with disparaging and now angry ears. He gambled on success and it has evaded him.
Managing a situation like this, in retrospect, is so easy Yet he is made it suicidal. It is as if he wanted to be the target of boos and disdain.
All he had to do ( this is where the lying comes in ) was say to the media;
" I am a Yankee and I love being a Yankee. We have a number of great players on this team, and I just want to do my part. I realize that I am nearing the end of my career, but I will help any way I can. It is a blessing to be a Yankee and, if they want me to pinch run, I'll happily pinch run. I feel I have some good years remaining, and I would love to give them to the Yankees. if I have to be traded, because I understand the business end of this game, I'll leave with nothing but love for this clubhouse. And I will hope that the player they get in return for turns out to be a superstar."
Hicks need not believe a word of this. He can pee himself giddy while speaking this disingenuousness. But he will be cheered and loved. And he wont have to do anything more than he is able to do when called upon to play the game.
Instead, we are seeing Aaron Hicks detritus on the floor.
And he is a good man. Who did the best he could.
He should have lied.
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One interpretation of AH's bellyaching: He wants to make it a priority for the NYYs to shed him.
If they DFA him, no one will pick him up (not with upwards of $30M due him). He'll be able to sit around and invest his money in crypto. Better than being Oswaldo's caddy!
If they succeed in trading him (with the NYYs picking up a bunch of his contract -- a big bunch) -- he gets to play and perhaps look (and feel?) a bit better on the way out.
Yes, Yankee fans are becoming disgusted with him. How does that affect the $30M he's got coming? How does that change the fact that he wants to play baseball ....somewhere?
It all makes sense from a certain POV.
Yes indeedy-do, Joe. That little tantrum was calculated.
Even though Jackie D wants us all to believe that he’s all for in for 2023 it became clear today that his body parts believe otherwise.
I’m looking forward to seeing what other parts of his anatomy rebels against its master.
I’ll resist speculating and watch in eager anticipation of what fails next.
Joe, If the Yankees DFA Hicks and another team picks him up, the Yankees still are on the hook for most of his salary, minus the league minimum (pro-rated, $720,000) for the rest of his contract. So for these bargain prices, someone might take a flyer on him.
But if no one picks him up, they are still stuck with the bill. Since he's already useless, turning into a clubhouse problem, AND he'll get paid either way, Yankees should bite the bullet and give his spot to someone useful. His spot on the roster is worth more than his salary.
https://youtu.be/KeVca9MwDX8
Dr T - so he'll get paid no matter what. There is no cost (to him) for his bellyaching, and the same price for the NYYs.
Having this information in hand, I'm not sure why the team would play him. Or keep him.
Kinda like IFK went about his business after getting benched during the playoffs and saw the handwriting on the wall this spring.
Embraced the team aspect. What a concept!
That's why, although many here don't care for him, I do.
It was never his fault that they brought him here as a starting SS and he was not an All-Star. He's been what he's always been-slightly above mediocre , which is superior to most of the planet at this game.
I'm glad we have him to play 3b while Donaldson is out.
Maybe Peraza comes up?
P.S., really what's 30 million spread over three years when you are worth over 7 billion ?
Just raise the price of the next shipments of Volpe jerseys and you almost make it up right there.
Maybe jack the price of the 99Burger by 50cents.
See, easy peasy.
Hicks fitted himself for the cement shoes on March 22, 2022. That's when he made the infamous 30/30 comment. He also said in that same interview:
“I know if I go out and play 140 games, my numbers are going to show, and we won’t be talking about this.”
He played 130 games, .216 average, 10 SB, 8 HRs. He also said this:
“I was hitting sixth (in Monday’s game) and I feel like that’s a spot where I can just run like hell and try to give whoever is behind me opportunities to drive me in. Before, when I was hitting third, it was kind of hard to steal in those situations. There usually were three big bats behind me who could hit the ball out at any time, so that wasn’t the best place to steal bags.”
He brought this on himself, doesn't know when to lie, doesn't know when to keep his mouth shut. He needs to go.
This franchise never makes $10 Mil/year mistakes on players (sarcasm). Gallo was the exception since most of his salary was being paid by some other team. They are not admitting it one bit...
Yep, agree with all of you. The best thing is simply to drop him and move on. But as with Gallo, Yankee management moves at the pace of a nuclear powered snail. I think there is a pretty decent chance that he stays on the team for the entire year!
What else could The Barren say. He sucks! Check the back of his Baseball Card. He always has.
Amazing he has no one in his life who can tell him these things.
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