Trent Grisham has accepted the one-year, $22 million qualifying offer.
WTF? Who saw that coming? Grisham was following a breakout season. He should be chasing a five-year deal, with a luxury box and turndown service. Instead, he signs for one piddily season? One? Who figured? And what now?
Suddenly, Grisham's one-year deal feels like an overpay. (Certainly, Grisham saw it that way.) Now, instead of bidding bigly for Kyle Tucker and/or Cody Bellinger, the Yankees are left with an outfield logjam that includes The Martian and Spencer Jones - unless Brian Cashman trades them. Either way, the Yanks are left wondering if Grisham's 34 HR season was a fluke or a breakout.
I have an idea: Let's get drunk. Nobody likes a Negative Nelly. Let's get bigly blasted and assume that Owner Hal still plans to shell out for at least one major free agent. If Tucker and Bellinger are out, that means... well... fill my glass.
Some possibilities...
Alex Bregman. He'd nail down 3B, piss off Boston, free Ryan McMahon (great glove and 189 strikeouts) for a trade, and - in strategic moments, for old time's sake - bang a garbage can lid. He's 32. Three-year deal, and we're done clutching pearls over 3B.
Eugenio Suarez. Another 3B. Hit 49 HRs last year. Bats RH. He's 34, maybe a tad too old. But 49 HRs.
Michael King. Prodigal son. Last year, his innings dropped to 73, and his ERA rose to 3.44. He'll be 31. He knows and understands NY. A number two starter.
Bo Bichette. Coming off career season. Take that, Toronto. Can he play SS, freeing Yanks to trade miserable Anthony Volpe? Or 3B, moving McMahon (great glove and .219 BA.)
Tatsuya Imai. Pitcher from Japan. Age 27. It's long overdue for the Yankees. Remindful of Masahiro Tanaka. Cashman should be all-in on this guy, but let's face it: If the Dodgers, Mets or Phillies want him - (and they surely do) - Hal will finish runner-up in the bidding.
Scrap heapers and salary dumps. Bingo. How many Ryan Yarboroughs does it take to screw in a fan base?
Aside from Imai, nobody checks all the boxes. Neither did Grisham (who, it should be noted - according to the bylaws of the Geneva Convention - cannot be traded until June.)
Damn. The Yankees could hit 2026 as a near carbon copy of 2025. Or Cashman could launch a complete teardown. Right now, I wonder if he even knows?
Just saw yesterday's post. Congrats 13 B! You should have had a reception at a Manhattan bar and invited us all!
ReplyDeletethanks, Carl - and everyone else. I could do that around Opening Day maybe!
DeletePerhaps you could possibly consider maybe inviting Boone to the reception that might happen sometime around opening day….
DeleteJust tell him it’s in Sudan.
DeleteSo Bit, who caught the bouquet?
Delete“I want a Tucker. No, a Bellinger. I want an Imai, a King-
ReplyDelete“You’ll get nothing and like it!”
If you expect nothing, you are always happy to get anything.
DeleteNot really, but I was feeling Zen for a minute there.
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DeleteI just couldn’t resist the caddyshack bit 🤷🏻♂️
DeleteCould be! This would give the Yankees low average hitters at third, shortstop, centerfield catcher. Continued nice job by slubs Cashman and Fishman.
ReplyDeleteBased on what I'm reading... the upcoming labor situation is weighing heavily on offers. The reasoning makes sense.
ReplyDeleteMost Free Agents are close to, or over, 30 and the multi-year contracts build in years at the end where their production will fall off.
Think DJ. Great for a couple of years, then meh, then then not good at all. Then pay for him to not be on the team.
So a lengthy contract offer assumes three to five great/good years before the drop off.
If the player doesn't play for a year due to labor issues then the contract picks up where it left off when it's resolved.
Only now... instead of getting a player's 30,31,32,33, 34 year seasons (presumed good) they get their 30, 32, 33, 34,35 year seasons and a contract that would have eaten their post 36 year season has one extra year in the big decline.
Hope that made sense.
As to the "big" signing... El Duque already provided solid analysis of the players and their situation. So I'll just add...
ReplyDeleteAlex Bregman:
Don't believe he will take three. Probably at least five @30M So as great as he would be, because he is a player who knows how to WIN - as opposed to getting guys who don't know how to do that - I'd pass because of the explanation I offered above.
Five years. So 32, 33, 34 then 35, 36.
labor issue 32, 34 then 35, 36, 37 DJ Territory.
Eugenio Suarez.
A hard no.
He's 34 can't field the position and too many K's for the power. Also to beat a dead horse 34 uh oh 36, 37, 38, 39 So a bad DH
Michael King.
"Prodigal son. Last year, his innings dropped to 73, and his ERA rose to 3.44. He'll be 31. He knows and understands NY. A number two starter.'
Has cascading injuries but if the price is right... I'd do it. Always liked him.
Bo Bichette - Solves lead off but might be even worse in the field than Volpe. Should be moved to second base. I think Toronto was already doing this. If we are not planning on extending Jazz then this is a pretty good move. Depending on price and length. He'll be 28 when the season starts.
Tatsuya Imai. "Pitcher from Japan. Age 27. It's long overdue for the Yankees. Remindful of Masahiro Tanaka. Cashman should be all-in on this guy,"
Ding! Ding! Ding! We have a winner! Do it!
excellent reasoning here, Mr K.
DeleteAdditionally, the Yankees must pass on the third base free agent from Japan, Murakami. He can't field, and despite his reputation as a good hitter, take a gander at this:
ReplyDelete"The current Japanese free agent who has difficulty hitting fastballs 93 mph and over is slugger Munetaka Murakami. He is considered one of the most anticipated free agents, but has a significant red flag in his game due to his swing-and-miss tendencies against high-velocity fastballs. For example, he hit just .093 against fastballs of 93 mph or higher in Japan during the 2025 season. "
LOL@ 93MPH, which is a mediocre fastball considering the MLB average is 94. This guy is a disaster waiting to happen as the hitting equivalent of Kei Igawa!
I agree. I’d go after Imai & Bregman. I’d try like hell to trade Jones.
DeleteImai? Bregman? Yes and yes, please! Bichette? Love his bat and his big game mentality? But his glove? Not so much.
ReplyDeleteBellinger? Great glove, mature and consistent bat. but I fear the price tag and notice he blows hot and cold depending on the year.
Tucker? How many right fielders do we need? Grisham? Another fine example of Cashman outsmarting himself. Again.
Volpe has the tools, but his mind is a mess. Another victim of Yankee player development, over-exposure and mollycoddling by our dolt of a manager. He has the potential for better. But the hands of the Yankees, he's probably the next Joba Chamberlain.
Speaking of poor player development, I look at Spencer and I see a .150 batting average and 250 MLB K's. He's not ready for the Show. Sorry. The Martian, found his bat. But he runs around the outfield like a lost 6 year old, looking for his favorite hat. Another propect being ruined by poor player development.
I'm for Imai, with love and squalor.
ReplyDeleteMic drop.
Also for the return of the King.
ReplyDeleteMan, I'm just killing it tonight. That, or the Cornell bus has left me punchy.
(More) seriously: Love me some Bellinger, but the REAL time to sign him was 2023. Might be worthwhile if they put him on first, but with the looming work stoppage...
ReplyDeleteI have my reservations about Tucker, but in any case, he's now out of the picture. The Yanks won't sign Bellinger or Tucker.
They're almost FORCED to go all out for making Spencer and the Martian work. So...I say do it. And give Rumfield a chance! Sign Imai (highly doubtful, but a real offer would be great) and King, risk though he is.
They also need to trade Jazz, before he's totally exposed. I wouldn't mind risking a bunch on Bichette. And if they have enough hitting, they can maybe afford McMahon on third.
But they won't.