Hamels Is the Best of Scherzer and Shields

             Max Scherzer and James Shields are the best pitchers on the free agent market, but are they worth the payday? The former CY Young winner Scherzer is a definite ace, and boy does he know it looking for a 7-8 year contract north of $200M. He is probably worth what he is asking however the Yankees don't need an ace, so why pay for one? Shields would make more sense being more of a #2 starter with the ability to take over and be an ace. He is looking for a more reasonable 4-5 years between $100M-$120M. Now he is really worth it during the regular season proving to be a real workhorse. However his only problem is that he is a terrible postseason pitcher with a career 5.46 ERA in 11 games. With how much Shields costs the main point of signing him should be to get to the postseason. He would do a great job getting them their however he would do a terrible job pitching for them when they get there. With both of these pitchers having their ups and downs which one is the best? Which one would be best for the Yankees to sign and have in the rotation in 2015? The answer is neither of them, the answer is Cole Hamels.

Cole Hamels has been on the market for some time. All of the trades involving him have seen to just fall right through. This is probably because the Phillies GM is Rubin Amaro Jr who is known for overvaluing his players and asking too much for them, if the Yankees where to trade for Hamels it would cost top prospects such as Gary Sanchez, Ian Clarkin, and Eric Jagielo. If the Yankees where to eat up the majority of the contract however the cost would be lower considering he has 4 years 90M left on his contract.

Hammels the best option for the Yankees?

Even with the cost of Hamels being high he would still be worth it considering the Yankees need for another strong starter. Hamels is a definite mix between Scherzer and Shields. He has the same ability as Scherzer being an ace, and is great in the postseason with a career 3.09 ERA in 13 games, plus he was the 2008 NLCS and World Series MVP. He also brings the same workhorse quality that Shields brings with not having pitched less than 200 innings since 2010, and hasn't pitched less than 180 innings since 2007. He brings around the same cost that Shields has left on his contract with only 4 years $90M left on his contract. Hamels would be a way better option than Scherzer or Shields and he would fit perfectly into the Yankee rotation. 

Cole Hamels Is Willing. Are the Yankees?

              The Yankees are getting younger with every trade that GM Brian Cashman makes, but is a trade for Cole Hamels worth the prospects? The Yankees biggest need right now is a starting pitcher, and neither Max Scherzer nor James Shields seems to be a perfect fit for the Yankees. Scherzer wants "ace money" and they don't need an ace so why pay for one, and Shields has the right price but his terrible postseason record makes him a questionable target. Hamels is the best of both these pitchers, being that his postseason ERA is 3.09, he was a NLCS and World Series MVP in 2008, and the remainder on his contract is around the same amount James Shields is looking for. The problem with the Hamels trade doesn't seem to Cashman, but Phillies GM Rubin Amaro Jr. He is known for overvaluing his players, which typically ends in the deal falling through, remembering the Marlin Byrd deal that fell through last year because Amaro Jr wanted to get top prospect Aaron Judge in return. So expect to see top prospects given up if the deal does go through such as Gary Sanchez, Eric Jagielo, and Ian Clarkin. 

Scherzer Is the next Sabathia

Scherzer the future CC Sabathia?

           With all of the buzz surrounding Max Scherzer, GM Brian Cashman is still going against signing him. The Yankee fan base seems to be for it as they believe that he will solidify a flimsy rotation, and he probably will. However looking at this in the long run, it will be another failed contract. Just look back to 2009 when the Yankees signed former CY Young winner CC Sabathia to a 8yr/$182M contract. Now fast-forward to the 2014-2015 offseason and there is former Cy Young winner Max Scherzer who is looking for a 7-8 year contract north of $200M. If the Yankees sign Scherzer they might win a World Series like they did with Sabathia but with 3-4 years left on the contract he could will most likely start to break down and become the new CC Sabathia. Even though Scherzer has about 1000 innings less than Sabathia when signed with New York, he is the type of pitcher that relies on a mid-90's fastball to carry him. Now even with a 1000 innings less than Sabathia, when he reaches his mid-30's he won't be able to keep his fastball in the mid-90's. He will have the same having to adjust to a low velocity problems Sabathia is having eventually, and considering how much he relies on his power pitches he won't be able to make the adjustment. Just look at his former teammate Justin Verlander. He has the exact same pitching style as Scherzer and he has been terrible his last two season. Signing Scherzer would be a terrible deal in the long run.

Why Trading for Tulo Is a Mistake

         Many Yankee fans want to see Troy Tulowitzki starting at shortstop Opening Day for 2015. But doing that would be a big mistake and waste of prospects. With how often Tulowitzki is injured it makes no sense to add yet another injury prone player to the infield. It would be perfectly fine to have Didi Gregorious at shortstop considering he is young, has a lot of potential, and is a defensive wiz. But having risking having Tulowitzki at shortstop is just a heart attack waiting to happen, he has averaged only 88 games in the last three seasons. Now is it worth it to have only a little over half a season worth of production, for giving up the best prospects we have like Luis Serevino and Aaron Judge? I don't think it is, even if he is going to give the best numbers in the league for that half season it would be better to be average for a whole season than great for half. 

Will Eovaldi Perform?

Can Eovaldi perform to his potential?

             Being the main player in the trade that sent Martin Prado and David Phelps to the Marlins in exchange for Nathan Eovaldi, Garrett Jones, and Domingo German, can Eovaldi turn things around and realize his potential to be a number 2 starter and possibly even an ace. He has been compared to Angels ace Garrett Richards who turned things around last year going 13-4 with a 2.61 ERA. If Eovaldi can make that same change then the rotation will be a big turn around and could be the best in the division. Eovaldi's fastball averages mid to high 90's, his change-up and cutter are mainly the problem and hitters bat over .450 against them. His slider is his best pitch and hitters bat .214 against it. The main reason Garrett Richards was able to have his success was he eliminated the use of his change-up which was the pitch that Eovaldi said he will continue to use. If Eovaldi wants to perform to his potential he will need to make changes to his approach.

Sabathia Just Needs to Be Average

Can CC Sabathia make a comeback?

            With CC Sabathia coming off two bad years, and a shoulder injury the Yankees need him to be healthy all if not the majority of the 2015 season. But he doesn't need to be the dominant ace that he was in 2012, but an average workhorse that can put up a 3.65 ERA and 180-200 innings. If he can do this, then he would be perfect for the 2 or 3 spot in the rotation. If he can make a comeback and dominant like he used to then great, it would be perfect to have a top 1&2 combos like the Mariners or the Dodgers. However the odds of that happening are very slim, even though Sabathia says "I can still dominate." One of the things that could possibly happen is the last two years have been him adjusting to his lowered velocity and working on a two-seam, sinker, and more breaking balls. If so then he should look better than he did before. One option for Sabathia is if he is unable to comeback and pitch a whole game is moving him to be a long-relief pitcher out of the bullpen.

Yankees Should Sign Emilio Bonifacio

       

Bonifacio right for the Yankees?

   With Marin Prado gone the Yankees have lost their main utility man. Emilio Bonifacio would be a perfect fit for the Yankees considering he can play almost anywhere. Bonifacio can do almost anything consisting of pinch hitting, pinch running, defensive substitution, and start in place of players to give them the occasional day of rest. With Bonifacio being able to play all of the Yankees questionable positions like SS, 2B, RF, 3B, and CF. Now not all of those positions need to be filled but a couple of them are played by injured prone players such as Jacoby Ellsbury, Chase Headley, and Carlos Beltran. Considering how durable Bonifacio has been able he would provide good insurance in case someone was to get injured.

Overview of Yankees Rotation with Improvements

                 At the beginning of the offseason the Yankee rotation was the weakest part of the team. But has it changed with the moves that GM Brian Cashman has made? Or is it still the spotty question mark it was going into the offseason?

1. Masahiro Tanaka:

2014: 13-5/2.77 ERA/136.1 IP/144 SO

Masahiro Tanaka was the talk of the baseball world in first half of the 2014 season before he was diagnosed with a partially torn UCL, and was out till the end of the season with the exception of 2 starts. Tanaka is definitely the Yankees ace, no doubt about it but the real question is if he can recover to what he was before he was injured, and if his UCL will fully snap after just pitching a couple games. If he is able to this it will be a big turning point for the rotation; however the Yankees should work on shortening his workload from the going 7-8 innings he pitched last year.

2015 Prediction: 17-11/2.65 ERA/ 219 IP/ 233 SO

2. Michael Pineda:

2014: 5-5/1.89 ERA/76.1 IP/59 SO 

Michael Pineda has never seemed to be able to stay healthy since he was traded for top Yankee prospect Jesus Montero in 2012. Last year was his first season pitching for the Yankees; it was short, and filled with pine tar talk, but was still hopeful. He managed to post an impressive 1.89 ERA in that small amount of time; however the Yankees shouldn't place their hopes on him to be healthy for all of the 2015 season.

2015 Prediction: 15-12/3.56 ERA/176 IP/146 SO

3. CC Sabathia:

2014: 3-4/5.28 ERA/46.0 IP/48 SO

I'm not worried about CC Sabathia in the slightest. Now his glory days are over, and I doubt that he will ever return to full for, but I think that he will come back and put up solid average numbers, perfect numbers for the middle to lower end of a rotation.

2015 Prediction: 11-12/3.89 ERA/189 IP/158 SO

4. Nathan Eovaldi:

2014: 6-14/4.37 ERA/199.2 IP/142 SO

Eovaldi is a guy with a bunch of talent and nothing to show for it. He was acquired in the trade that sent Martin Prado and David Phelps to the Marlins. He manages to show his talent in small spurts throughout the season however he is not consistent. If the Yankees manage to turn him around and get him to his full potential then he could possibly be their number 2 or 3 starter.

2015 Prediction: 14-12/ 3.54 ERA/196 IP/173 SO

5. Chris Capuano/ Ivan Nova:

2014: 3-4/4.35 ERA/97.1 IP/84 SO

2014: 2-2/8.27 ERA/20.2/12 SO

Chris Capuano will likely compete for the rotation in Spring Training with Manny Banuelos. Whoever wins the rotation spot might have to give it up after Ivan Nova is done rehabbing from Tommy John Surgery. But that is dependent on the rest of the rotations ability to perform; it might make sense if the rotation is doing well to temporarily move Nova to the bullpen.

2015 Prediction: None considering that there are multiple people able to win the rotation spot.

Options

Manny Banuelos: If Banuelos managed to get back to the potential he had before his Tommy John Surgery, then there is no doubt at all that Banuelos should win the 5th rotation spot. His ceiling was predicted to be in the 2nd or 3rd rotation spot.

Brandon Beachy: Very low risk high reward type of free agent. If he were to pan out it would greatly benefit the Yankee rotation and strengthen it. With how injury prone Beachy has been the Yankees could most likely sign him to a 1 year deal

James Shields: Shields would be the most expensive of all these options but he would be worth it. Shields would easily be in the number 2 spot in the rotation and allow some flexibility and insurance to the rotation if Masahiro Tanaka were to get injured or not fully recover from his partially torn UCL. Shield's high ground ball rate would be an advantage in Yankee Stadium which is what the Yankees need.

Cashman Needs to Commit

            With the Chase Headley signing Yankee GM Brian Cashman showed that he is taking a certain route to get to the World Series. Now this isn't anything new, being that Cashman pushed out prospects Rob Refsnyder and Jose Pirela for a 31 year old 3rd baseman that is past his prime. But what Cashman needs to show is that he is fully committed to this path, and not just going to do it halfway. This is what he is currently doing, Cashman managed to spend $500 million in free agency last year, and now when the rotation is at it's worst he is going on a small budget? Now I know that I really sound like a Yankees fan because I am complaining about a budget, but when you commit over $500 million to get to the World Series then not even make a splash in the most worrisome spot in the team but sign a 3rd baseman to a four year $52 million deal which was not even fully needed it shows some cause for worry. Now I am not saying that pitchers need to come from free agency, but they need at least one from somewhere, whether its via free agency or trade they need someone. They just boxed out two prospects, maybe flip one of them for a pitcher. All I know is that going into the 2015 season with all the problems the current rotation has will be a mistake. I hope I am wrong and everything works out but at thins point it is a major cause for worry.

Yankees Should Pursue Mike Leake

           With the Yankees rotation in disarray due to injuries and the loss of pitchers Shane Green and Brandon McCarthy, the Yankees need to look towards adding a solid piece to a flimsy rotation. But where could the Yankees get this piece? Should it be via trade or free agency? I think that there are good options in both places but the best option might be on the trade market.

           Mike Leake, who pitched 214.1 Innings with a 3.70 ERA, is a solid young pitcher that would bring durability and a high ground ball rate to the rotation. Those two things would fare very well with the Yankees considering all the question marks that the rotation currently Leake would be great to fill the 3 or 4 spot in the rotation. His ground ball rate reaches around 52% which with the Yankees short porch in left field it is great to have pitchers that can keep the ball on the ground. Leake also pitches at Great American Ballpark which is even more of a hitters ballpark than Yankee Stadium which should cause less worry in the transition about a huge jump in ERA.

           Even though the Reds have traded away 2 of their 5 pitchers already, if they were to get a good deal for Leake it probably wouldn't matter considering they will most likely loose Leake next year anyways to free agency. The Yankees have some good prospects to give without giving away their top prospects like Luis Servino, Aaron Judge, and Rob Refsnyder. Gary Sanchez and Ian Clarkin might be more suitable considering that Leake would only be a one year buy.

The Yankees Whole Offseason Could Change If Robertson Resigns

         With the Yankees whole hesitation towards signing big name free agents like Max Scherzer and James Shields, it could all change quickly if Robertson were to resign with the Yankees. If Robertson were to resign with the Yankees, the Yankees would loose their first round draft pick for the 2015 draft. This could open the door for the top pitchers who have draft picks attached, because the Yankees would have less to loose, and as we all know it doesn't take much for the Yankees to go free agent crazy.

Mistakes the Yankees Should Avoid during Winter Meetings

Brian Cashman

          Brian Cashman has done plenty of things right this Offseason, such as acquiring Didi Gregorious from the Diamondbacks, and signing Andrew Miller to bolster their bullpen. But with tomorrow being Day 3 of the Winter Meetings, what should they be avoiding?

1. Signing Max Scherzer

Max Scherzer

            Now with the Yankees about to get a first round draft pick in the 2015 draft, should the Yankees really give that up for another 30 year old free agent? To me if there is any pitcher on the market that is worth it, its Scherzer. However with that being said the Yankees need to explore the options before jumping into a long term deal. Even though Scherzer has had better numbers than the other big name options like Jon Lester and James Shields, people seem to be forgetting that if the Yankees were to sign one of these elite starters they would most likely not be the Yankees ace. If Masahiro Tanaka is able to return as dominant as the first half of the 2014 season, then there is no doubt that the pitcher signed would be fill the #2 spot in the rotation. Even though the rotation would be stronger with Scherzer filling that role someone like Jon Lester might be the better overall option considering he is not attached with a draft pick and it would add another lefty to the rotation besides CC Sabathia.

Chase Headley 

2. Signing Chase Headley

           Right now one of the worst possible things the Yankees could do right now is sign Chase Headley. Now I know that currently the infield is a problem for the Yankees, but is having Martin Prado who with the Diamondbacks was pretty much their regular third baseman really that much of a problem? The way I see it is signing Chase Headley would move Prado to second, which would restrict prospects like Rob Refsnyder and Jose Pirela from reaching the majors. Now if I recall correctly, many Yankees fans last year were screaming for Refsnyder to come up and play 2B, and now that feeling has changed because now there is a 31 year old  3rd baseman that has below average offensive numbers? Now I get that we had Headley for the second half of the season but that was also when there wasn't anyone able to play RF besides Ichiro and Carlos Beltran so Prado was playing in RF a good amount of time. Also Derek Jeter was at SS and he needed to DH a decent amount of the time. Now with the OF full and with their being a good current infield the Yankees don't need to make anymore additions to the infield unless they manage to get some electric 3B/2B player like Ian Kinsler or Manny Machado, but I very much doubt something like that would happen so with the current options I say stick with the infield we currently have.