Should New York Yankees sign Matsui and Damon?

Should the New York Yankees re-sign Hideki Matsui and Johnny Damon? The Yankees have two solid outfield building blocks in Melky Cabrera and Nick Swisher.

[COMNSNSE]

Solid building blocks? Cabrera is a decent fielder better suited to left field and his offense is marginal at best.Swisher lifts his eyes to the heavens before every swing and that's where he tries to hit every pitch,will never hit for average and is a below average out fielder.The Yankees should cut ties with Matsui,Nady and Damon if he will not sign for a year with an option,potential savings of over 30mm.,uese Cabrera in left,hope Jackson is the centerfielder of the future and is ready and sign or trade for a good defensive R.F.with pop.

[Nick]

It's time to get younger. Matsui should go because he clogs up the DH spot because he can play the field. I'd sign Damon to a two year contract with the understanding that he will DH a good share of the time. I think he still has at least two good offensive years left. Swisher drives me up a wall. Despite a good OBP he still strikes out to much and plays the outfield marginally better than Manny. The Yanks may want to try for Holiday or Bay for leftfield but they'll have to overpay but they may need to spend any saving on another starter(unless they bring Pettite back again). Wang won't pitch next year so that leaves a rotation of Sabathia, Burnett, Chamberlain, and Hughes. Damon is a good fit and has proven that he can play in NY. You can rotate Damon, Melky, Swisher, and Gardner. I'd resign Hinske too. He'd be a good guy to spot start in RF or DH. Good role players are hard to find. I hope the Yanks can keep Hinske and Hairston. Austin Jackson ISN'T ready yet. If he was ready he'd already be up. Even if he was ready next year, there is no way that the 2010 Yanks will go with an outfield of Melky, Jackson, and Swisher.

[Tim]

Damon is a must. His personality and play make him a neccessity. I would sign matsui for a million, and give him incentives.

Swisher is not starter quality, and his career numbers don't indicate he ever will be, at least not for the yanks.

Nast is coming back, so is Gardner, maybe we can bring back Duncan from the minors.

[COMNSNSE]

Tim,is that Conde'Nast? Seriously,if you mean Nady,he is a F.A. and having had two similar surgeries it is highly doubtful he will ever be more than a D.H.You know what that means on the current Yankee roster which already leads the league in that category!

[Nick]

Nady's a free agent and he won't be back. As I posted previously I am in favor of bringing Damon back. Matsui must go. He can't play defense any more because of his knees. The Yanks need flexibility at DH because Posada and Damon will need more DH games next year. Bring Hinske back as a spare outfielder. The Yanks will go after Bay or Holliday. Gardner should be the 4th or 5th outfielder. Melky in center. Swisher and Hinske in right. Once Austin Jackson is ready it will change. He would start in center with Melky moving to right with Swisher. Gardner would be gone. There would be plenty of at-bats to go around with the DH because you don't have Matsui clogging up the spot. I've loved Matsui's performance since he's been a Yankee but it's time to move on.

[COMNSNSE]

Nick,corner outfielders are not Cabrera type players.While his average and power numbers would suffice for a C.F.,they do not meet the standard for corners.This will be particularly true if Jackson becomes the C.F.since he has yet to display power numbers.I think trade rather than F.A.in the off season for sad to say,a Nady type R.F.

[Nick]

The Yanks will not resign the injury prone Nady mainly because he has the same agent as A-Rod which means he will be overpriced. They will chase Bay or Holliday and probably resign Damon. My point about Melky is that he should be the starting centerfielder until Jackson is ready. Then Melky will move around the outfield spelling whoever is DHing or getting a day off. People are quick to right Melky off but he still is only 24 and still learning. He's hit in the clutch this year and still has a higher ceiling than Gardner. His power numbers may not be that of a corner outfielder but he will provide enough in the role of fourth outfielder because that is what he will be when Jackson comes up. But he will play a lot in that role. I don't know what anyone finds appealing about Nady. He's going to want a bundle. Why give him a bundle when you can add a few more million and get a Bay or a Holliday? They are both younger and more productive than Nady.

[COMNSNSE]

Nick,agree on Melky's role,but not sure what his ultimate ceiling will be.Nady will not get a bundle simply because he will have to prove his arm will hold up.National league teams will have to be especially wary, with no D.H.I believe he will sign a one year deal with an option,which might make the Yankees marginally interested.

[Nick]

I agree partly on your last statement about Nady. But his agent is Scott Boras who always tries to get teams to overpay for his clients and they usually don't sign early in the free agent process. The Yankees, in my opinion, will not want to wait that long on Nady. Since he will not be coming back this season to show that he's healthy then he will be a question mark for ALL teams for next season. If I'm the Yankees, I don't want to take a cheap flyer on Nady when it could very well end up that his best position could be DH. I believe the Yanks need flexibility at DH. An outfield corps of Damon, Melky, Swisher, Hinske, and Gardner going into next season wouldn't be the end of the world. Especially if they plan to bring up Jackson before mid-season. I still think they will make a splash with a free agent outfielder (not Nady) before spring training. They have money coming off the books that they can spend. As for Melky's ceiling, there still are people in the Yankee organization that know more about talent evaluation than you or I that still believe that Melky will be a .300 hitter. I wish the Yanks would send Kevin Long to Melky's home this winter to work on his hitting just like they did with Cano last winter.

[COMNSNSE]

Nick,first off while they have money coming off the books,this does not necessarily mean the current economy will not require them to more financially prudent.The group you mention is not a superior defensive one and at this time all appear to be fourth O.F.'s or bench players.I don't believe Damon will accept less than a 2yr.deal with an option year and is a major liability defensively.Posada with two yr.s left of a foolish four year "gift" is also a big time liability catching and the expectation is he will do most of the D.H.work for his final two years.Before giving Damon that deal I would consider Holliday or Bay,but only for three years even if you overpay for the three years.Boras is brilliant in his negotiations but even he has become more aware of "expectations exceeding reality", as witness his opening demands for Strasburg and the final number.Do you really think Melky has the same natural ability as Cano? At this point in his baseball life do you think any coach has not pointed out that he is an "arm swinger"and does not use his lower half effectively? If you could really teach or learn at the major league level,do you think he could make himself more effective and valuable by learning to bunt or choking up and putting the ball in play especially with two strikes? Enjoy the discussion,so bring it back.

[alp]

You got it half right. Damon should come back and so should Matsui.

Nick wrote:

Nady's a free agent and he won't be back. As I posted previously I am in favor of bringing Damon back. Matsui must go. He can't play defense any more because of his knees. The Yanks need flexibility at DH because Posada and Damon will need more DH games next year. Bring Hinske back as a spare outfielder. The Yanks will go after Bay or Holliday. Gardner should be the 4th or 5th outfielder. Melky in center. Swisher and Hinske in right. Once Austin Jackson is ready it will change. He would start in center with Melky moving to right with Swisher. Gardner would be gone. There would be plenty of at-bats to go around with the DH because you don't have Matsui clogging up the spot. I've loved Matsui's performance since he's been a Yankee but it's time to move on.

[Nick]

Alp, you are the one that's half right. Yes, I want Damon back. He should be back on a reasonable 2-year deal. Matsui, however, will not be back. Yes, he finally started hitting but he's getting older, can't play defense, can barely run the bases, and would clog up the DH spot. The Yanks need flexibility at DH to rest guys more than they need Matsui's stick. I think the Yanks should carry the following outfielders: Damon, Melky, Swisher, Gardner, Hinske, and one more from the free agent pool. When Jackson comes up they can send Gardner down. I like the flexibility because Melky can play anywhere out there. Swisher can play left or right and can also back up and first. Hinske can play the corner outfield and corner infield positions. I'm not sold on Nady because there is no proof that his elbow will hold up. Without knowing that, he could end up clogging the DH role like Matsui if the elbow flares up. I think the Yanks will make a play for Bay but the Sox aren't going to let that happen. They will overpay for Bay. Next I think they'll go after Holliday but he seems very happy in St. Louis and really is an NL guy. Who does that leave? They may sign a second tier free agent veteran outfielder. But take it to the bank. Matsui's gone after this season.

[alp]

Nick wrote:

Alp, you are the one that's half right. Yes, I want Damon back. He should be back on a reasonable 2-year deal. Matsui, however, will not be back. Yes, he finally started hitting but he's getting older, can't play defense, can barely run the bases, and would clog up the DH spot. The Yanks need flexibility at DH to rest guys more than they need Matsui's stick. I think the Yanks should carry the following outfielders: Damon, Melky, Swisher, Gardner, Hinske, and one more from the free agent pool. When Jackson comes up they can send Gardner down. I like the flexibility because Melky can play anywhere out there. Swisher can play left or right and can also back up and first. Hinske can play the corner outfield and corner infield positions. I'm not sold on Nady because there is no proof that his elbow will hold up. Without knowing that, he could end up clogging the DH role like Matsui if the elbow flares up. I think the Yanks will make a play for Bay but the Sox aren't going to let that happen. They will overpay for Bay. Next I think they'll go after Holliday but he seems very happy in St. Louis and really is an NL guy. Who does that leave? They may sign a second tier free agent veteran outfielder. But take it to the bank. Matsui's gone after this season.

You make some really good points. Have to admit it, but hae changed my opinion based on your logic.:)

[Nick]

Thanks Alp. One other point that really ticked me off in the last week. Girardi made the statement on his Joe Girardi Show that he was excited to have Gardner back because he will be very important to the success of the team down the stretch and into the playoffs. I would take offense to that statement if I was one of the other outfielders that played during Gardner's absence. I've commented on Girardi's love affair with Gardner before and will do so again. Gardner got hurt. Then the Yanks go on a spree that takes them from a handful of games over .500 to more than 40 games over .500. How important was Gardner during that spree? He has had virtually an extremely small sliver of affect on the Yanks success this season. Gardner's only contributions in the playoffs should be as a defensive replacement/pinch runner. I don't know what the fascination is with this guy. He's just Bubba Crosby all over agin. He may be a slightly better hitter than Crosby but not by much. In fact, Bubba was a better defensive outfielder than Gardner. Gardner's only consistent weapon is his speed. He can't hit lefties. He's a gritty player but he makes a lot of mistakes for the amount of time he spends on the field. The other night he got tagged out for the third out after over-running third base. Those mistakes can kill a team in the playoffs. I like Gardner as a fifth outfielder/pinch runner but nothing more. I know I'll probably get responses from the pro-Gardy folks but that's my opinion.

[alp]

You certainly won't get an argument with me on Gardner. He's okay and can run, but didn't miss him much. Not a fan of Girardi either.

[Glasnos]

I think they both should be signed ... within reason. Matsui is 35 with bad knees, but he is still a good hitter. He is not worth what he currently makes ... same for Damon ... he has too many injuries, and not worth the same money he has been making.

I was happy to see Matsui get MVP ... but would have been happier with Matsui and Mariano Rivera as co-mvps

[Speed]

The infield is set. A back-up catcher to Posada with more zip on his bat is needed. Jesus Montero is looking good as Jorge's eventual successor.

I am more concerned about the starting rotation. Instead of putting more money into the outfield, they should probably consider Andy for another year and looking at Washburn or Lackey.

[SDR]

I don't think either Bay or Holliday are worth the $ they're going to be asking. I think if they can sign Matsui to a 1 year deal, and Damon 1 year with an option they could be fine. Injuries are always a problem with an older team, so they would need ( especially damon) some time off. That goes for A-Rod and even Jeter. The really old guy is Posada, and he is in the most physically demanding position. he is going to have to catch, so he needs a better backup, but I like what Molina did with Burnett. I don't see the rap on Swisher's defense. He was a lot better than either Abreau or Sheffield. We can get by with this offense another year and win. If money is going to be spent, get Lackey or Washburn ( or Halladay)