Today, let's try hope.
(Note: This does not ignore the crapola 2023 and the two-year daisy chain of disappointments. If the Yankee brain trust wants happy fans, posting contentedly, all it needs to do is win.)
That said, 10 reasons for hope in 2024.
1. Gerrit Cole. He is baseball's best pitcher - not Yoshi Yamamoto, who will spend his career being brutally appraised due to his ridiculous contract. Cole is too classy to feel snubbed. But the world will be watching, and God help Yama the first time his elbow barks. (Fun fact: It will.)
2. Anthony Volpe will hit. Say that again: Anthony Volpe will hit. We haven't seen his ceiling - nothing close -but this we know: It's not .209. Throughout his minor league career, Volpe hit well at every level. He will improve.
3. Juan Soto's LH presence will ignite other Yankee bats. The team hasn't had a decent lefty lineup for several years. At last, a batting order that befits the Yankees. What took them so long?
4. On that note, Alex Verdugo! He strikes me as a powder keg, a passionate guy who holds onto grudges like Super Glue. Boston pissed all over him, trading him to the arch rival. I'm still amazed that they did it. He's in his contract year, he'll turn 28 in May, and he's angry as hell. Good signs.
5. Gleyber Torres had a quietly, surprisingly strong 2023. Might have been the AL's best 2B. Could be, he's finally reached a comfort level? No reason to think he can't repeat.
6. Believe it or not, I haven't given up on Oswaldo Cabrera. I know, I know - shoot me. Guy didn't hit a lick last year. (I won't print his BA.) Still, he's got that look, that confidence, that smile. Call me a dolt. I think he'll figure out MLB pitching and have a nice career. And it'll start in 2024.
7. It's now-or-never for Giancarlo Stanton. He either hits or gets Elsburied. Nothing in-between. Whatever happens, it will beat continually waiting and being disappointed. Giancarlo might have one final big season in him. If so, it will be 2024.
8. It feels as if we've been waiting decades for The Martian. (That's the effects of interstellar space travel on time.) When he returns, likely in July, Jasson Dominguez will be - holy shit - 21! He could rehab all summer in Scranton and still be one of our youngest/best prospects. There is no rush on this guy.
9. Here's a tidbit: In those recent trades, when the Yankees seemed to empty out their pitching war chest, they somehow managed to keep their best arm: Chase Hampton. He's a RH moose, age 22, and with luck, he could arrive next summer.
10. Sure, the '24 Yankees could be a total disaster. An injury here, a disappointment there - and ka-boom, they could finish last in the AL East. If that happens, we'll have a great time hate-watching. Hold onto your poison darts, everybody.
So, there you have it: Ten reasons to be cheerful. And I didn't even mention No. 99.
ED - you’d have to list another 88 reasons before you get there…,
ReplyDeleteReasons to Be Cheerful, Part 3, was the last single by the original, great lineup of the Blockheads. It was all downhill from there.
ReplyDeleteI hope we fare better with this list.
"1,2,3..."
ReplyDeleteDuque, were you ever in public relations?
ReplyDeleteToo many is, ands, and buts for me…but certainly enough for WC contention.
ReplyDeleteI will say, if the team did break the bank and sign YY, he would be picked apart by the NY fans and media over every misstep. He’ll be happier and more successful on the left coast.
The salvation for the ‘24 team (if there is to be any) will come from the impact of younger players . An improved Volpe, more competent Peraza & Pereira, Austin Wells, Domiguez, and less than big names such as Will Warren, Ty Hardman, and (especially) Ben Rice. Look not to the Stantons, LeMahieus, and Rizzos of the world, their time is past.
Duque -
ReplyDeleteI agree with you and I'd like to add two more reasons to bring it to an even dozen.
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11) The Dodgers Are Now The Most Hated Team In Baseball
While on one level I'd prefer if it was the Yankees because that would mean we were at least good and not an afterthought, there is something to be said, juju wise, for getting that particular monkey off our backs.
12) Carlos Mendoza is gone!
I know that we don't really think about, or mention, or would even be able to recognize former bench coach Carlos Mendoza, but since he has been with the team, their batting averages have gotten lower and lower and closer to... dare I say it? The MENDOZA line.
It's like having a QB coach named Johnny Incomplete. Glad he's now with the Mets.
Duque, this is just what a great leader does, rallying the troops when all seems hopeless!
ReplyDeleteOf course, that doesn't mean it's not hopeless.
Hey, with MLB having attained Total Parody, uh, Parity, "they could go all the way..." Or, easily finish last.
This is the basic thing that Hal and The Brain never seem to understand about building a winner. You have to count on things going wrong, and build in redundancy. Last year, Texas won the World Series with Aroldis Chapman pitching crucial, postseason innings. Hey, with the expanded playoff format, it can happen.
But it probably won't.
ReplyDeleteI thoroughly enjoyed this piece today and found myself curiously buying into much of it.
I'll see you guys later. I need to reply to an urgent missive from a Nigerian Prince.
Man, oh, man Duque, you've started on the New Year's Eve bottles a little early this year!
ReplyDeleteTomorrow's post: the vaunted Yankees pitching staff and how it will lead them to the World Series.
Followed by the hangover; seven months of pure misery.
LBJ, I also have to go and prepare this bridge that I am selling on the East River...
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteThank you for the non-negativity.
Keeping with the general (heretofore, unbeknownst to this crowd) optimistic attitude,
ReplyDeleteI am almost certain the 2024 Yankees will be better than the 1990 Yankees.
Now, back to your regularly scheduled programming.