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Friday, June 21, 2019

On Cameron Maybin's behalf, the Yankees need somebody to tweak a gonad

For now, the Disney-worthy saga of Hammerin' Cameron will continue. But dark clouds are approaching on the Yankee feel-good story of Hope Week 2019.

Last night, to offset the impending return of Aaron Judge, the Yankees dispatched bulk-innings magnet Nestor (Octavio) Cortes Jr. to the fracked farmlands of Scranton because - well - because they could. Cortes had options. If the Death Star had chosen to cut bait on, say, Luis Cessa - and his Andrew Brackman-esque 5.73 ERA - Cessa would surely have been scooped up like a golden Pog. Cortes had options, which means return bus tickets to Clark's Summit. When it comes to pitchers, the Yankees are hoarders. Woe unto the young reliever with options. 

But this means surviving the Chernobyl-hot month of July with a 12-man pitching staff - which, in this day and age, looks thin as a coat of Windex. To us geezers, who are only now becoming comfortable with bagged salads and fruity beer, the 12-man staff may seem a luxury. But when every fifth game is a bullpen group hug, it won't last long. As soon as JA or CC - or any starter - gets bombed, either Cortes or Chance Adams will be called upon to bolster the oxygen-depleted staff. And when Brian Cashman looks for an Expendable, his bloodshot eyes will settle on Maybin.

Don't blame Cash. Don't blame anybody. But the Yankees can toggle pitchers for only so long. At some point - soon - Maybin's tale of resurrection will splatter against a windshield or wall. In fact, with two outs in the ninth last night, it almost looked as though the juju gods were delivering a solution. Maybin misplayed a long fly to left, crashing to the ground and clutching his wrist gingerly. (By the way, if Clint Frazier botched one like that, the Yankiverse would be up in arms... just sayin'.) If he tweaked a wrist and missed two weeks, would it not be positive karma? In two weeks, somebody will probably be hurt.

For now, a fifth OF makes sense. If our main threesome is Giancarlo Stanton, Aaron Hicks and Judge - (Encarnacion as DH) - that leaves Brett Gardner as 4th Man/base stealer/defensive replacement. With Judge rusty, it's feasible to rest him in blowouts, torrential downpours and games to be played on London parking lot surfaces. But as well as Maybin fields, he's no defensive upgrade over Hicks or Judge. Over the long haul, there is simply no place for him.

Unless somebody tweaks something. Since Hicks, Judge and Stanton have used up their tweaking privileges, the job falls to Gardy, who nearly came through last week by beaning himself with a helmet. Nice try. In his early years, Gardy was known to crash into walls and miss time. These days, he's like Iron Man Sterling. (And by the way, this is not to wish an injury on anyone, especially our favorite Yankee.) But there is no Yankee future for Maybin beyond the next Yankee bullpen stress-out. And that can happen at any time.

Tonight, though, let's enjoy this. Judge returns, supercharging a lineup that - with the exception of Hicks - could easily represent the AL in next month's midsummer classic. If Big Maple Paxton delivers a solid six, lessening Zack and Otto's load, maybe Maybin can keep his string going. Damn. This Disney stuff works even better in baseball than the movies.

16 comments:

JM said...

Maybin deserves a roster spot. Period.

I hate to say this, but the guy who is both vulnerable and, at this point, expendable, is Urshela. The General can anchor third and continue to hit .500 with RISP. Didi at short, Gleyber, Voit. Not a bad infield. Urshela has been showing signs of cracking for a while now, with errors increasingly sprinkled among decreasing fielding gems. Yes, he's worthy. Yes, he can hit. So what? I'm not sure he has yo-yo options left, but I think he does. Let him drop down for a bit and vent his frustration with Clint, both of whom will come up immediately in September if not sooner. (Let's leave trade talk aside for a moment.)

The thing is, we don't need Urshela as much as we don't need Maybin. OK, let's not leave trade talk aside for a moment. Andujar has third, or maybe an OF slot somehow, locked whenever he returns. DJ has to be a Yankee from here on out. Gleyber, natch. Voit, maybe not, but looking OK so far. Didi...probably. With this organization, you never know about anyone, of course.

Roster juggling isn't about who to get rid of as in, letting them go. It's about who has minor league options left. Why lose Maybin if someone else is available? There's always the future. There's always a trade. The kids will be alright.

Joe Formerlyof Brooklyn said...


The obvious trade is Maybin, Urshela, and Voit for -- a pitcher whose arm is almost falling off.

Allows NYYs to move Frazier and Thairo back up, play EdEn at 1B (allowing DH to be split between Gary and GStanton). You fill the 3rd slot with the new awful pitcher.

Am I overthinking this? Voit's trade value is, right now, probably higher than it ever again will be.

HoraceClarke66 said...

But all of this seems insane considering the fact that Jonathan Surrenderer DOES have options left? Why CAN"T he be sent down, at least until the next, inevitable tweak? This is just foolish already.

Local Bargain Jerk said...


It's sad and depressing that we're sitting here talking about "inevitable" trades (and I agree they're inevitable) when we could have fixed our most pressing problem with not even a lot of money.

Dumb.

Dumb.

Dumb.

TheWinWarblist said...

I'm going to be repeating this quite often. Fair warning.

FUCK YOU HAL!! FUCK YOU HAL!! FUCK YOU HAL!! FUCK YOU HAL!! FUCK YOU HAL!! FUCK YOU HAL!! FUCK YOU HAL!! FUCK YOU HAL!! FUCK YOU HAL!! FUCK YOU HAL!! FUCK YOU HAL!! FUCK YOU HAL!! FUCK YOU HAL!! FUCK YOU HAL!! FUCK YOU HAL!! FUCK YOU HAL!! FUCK YOU HAL!! FUCK YOU HAL!!

TheWinWarblist said...

Anyone else notice that Big Dottie Hinson is sporting a .963 OPS? OPS+ of 148!? And a positive dWAR?!!

ranger_lp said...

So at least Maybin is still on the roster...for now...

Joe of AZ said...

WTF.....SO HALE, FUCKEN CESSA, The Surrender is still on this roster but we designate Nestor Cortes who has been actually really good after green as the opener.

Fuck this organization even if we are in first place.

We have the right to a first place team, a world series, every player we want, AND complain....

Anonymous said...

Meanwhile, Clint Frazier began his Railriders stint with a double and a LONG homerun:

https://twitter.com/i/status/1141900673409277952

Rufus T. Firefly said...

Winnie,

Excuse my not paying attention, but why is he Big Dottie?

Asking for a friend.

PS Yes, he is having a good year (as quietly as possible in Yew Nork).

TheWinWarblist said...

Big Dottie Hinson? It's ICS' alter ego when they're playing well.

Dottie Hinson https://g.co/kgs/Bo36wC

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dorothy_Kamenshek

TheWinWarblist said...

As to why? Well you all know how difficult it is for me to clearly express myself.




FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™ FUCK YOU HAL!!®™

Anonymous said...

Hey Parson Tom--disappointed that you're not on duty today.

Parson Tom said...

Out saving souls in other precincts. we'll catch up soon.

HoraceClarke66 said...

"We are the members of the All-American League.
We come from cities near and far.
We've got Canadians, Irishmen and Swedes,
We're all for one, we're one for all
We're All-Americans!"

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