yankees228

I agree that the Knicks have options, but I think Melo is, far and away, the best option. I also don't think it's that easy to play an uptempo style of offense in the playoffs. I don't have the numbers in front of me, but I believe that the better teams put more of a focus on defense in the playoffs, which slows the game down and creates a more half-court oriented game. I also think the better teams in the East will be able to put a focus on slowing down the Knicks, and not allowing them to get out in transition as frequently as they do in the regular season. I also disagree that Melo doesn't provide anything other than scoring. He's averaging 8.2 rebounds this year, and has averaged 6.3 over his career. I'm also more impressed with Melo's defense than most. He's competent on the wings, and can provide help inside due to his strength, something the Knicks desperately need. Furthermore, Melo fits in very well with this Knicks' offense. Unlike players such as Lebron, Wade, or Kobe, Anthony doesn't dominate the ball. He gets it, and makes his decision very quickly, whether that's to shoot, drive, or pass. This would mix well with Amar'e, and would not disrupt the fluidity that's so important in the Knicks' offense.

Yeah, that would be OK too. If the player is kept on the 15 day DL, but the injury appears to be serious, it can be determined by either you and Dipre, or by a league wide vote, whether or not the owner of the team should be able to drop him.

This is a tricky situation. I see both sides to it. The problem is, if we plan on judging teams based on the 2011 performance of their players, how do we approximate the value of a player who got injured and missed most of the season? I'm not sure if this is feasible (due to the fact that it is complicated), but I think we should be able to replace any player that lands on the DL. That way there is no argument over whether or not an injury is serious enough to justify an add/drop, and there is risk involved because the DL'd player may come back healthy and productive. I also think we should go with Keeper's idea. There's no perfect solution to this, and I'm OK with whatever you guys decide to do. I'm just trying to present another alternative.

OK, will you guys post a deadline for setting our depth charts? One final question. Lets say one of our players suffers a season ending injury early in the season. Will we be able to replace that player on our roster with someone who isn't on any of the teams?

I'm not saying they'll be better than last year, but I expect Granderson to have a better season than he did in 2010 (in addition to playing more games), and Martin should provide better defense than Cervelli.

I apologize if this has already been addressed, but what's the plan going forward for this thing? I understand we'll be doing monthly power rankings, and then the final voting will take place after the season. But when are the windows for adding/dropping and trading, and when are we submitting our initial power rankings?

I'd like them to get someone like Wandy Rodriguez or Gavin Floyd as well, but I'm also concerned about what it would cost them. The Yankees shouldn't get desperate and part with Montero in exchange for a pitcher of that caliber. I know you're not suggesting that, but with the Yankees needing rotation help (and with the other teams knowing they need rotation help), I could see it happening. If they can get a 5+ WAR pitcher for the next 5 years (or so), then they should consider trading Montero, but not for less.

Two reasons. In the playoffs, against the better teams in the East, they're going to have to score in half court sets. This team, as presently constructed, would likely struggle to do so. Melo would greatly improve this aspect of the team. Furthermore, he adds rebounding, which the Knicks desperately need, and he should provide help on the defensive end.

Yeah my fault, I should have made that clearer in my initial post. The 2004 team over-performed by a tremendous amount, and it would be foolish to expect similar success this year. It's just that, on paper, the teams seem to be similar. I do think this team can win in the low 90s, especially if they replace Mitre in the rotation.

I'm not saying I expect equal success. My point is that the two teams seem to be constructed similarly.

I've seen people compare the 2011 Yankees to the 2004 Yankees, and I think that's a definite possibility. That team didn't get a lot of starting pitching, scored a ton of runs, and dominated the late innings.

Yup, and send him to the Knicks.

And how do you know that signing Soriano prohibits them from obtaining one of these pitchers?

All of this is reasonable. Just a couple comments. While the bullpen wasn't their weakness prior to this move, making one area of the team stronger can only help. With Rivera-Soriano-Robertson-Feliciano, they have the advantage of being able to ask less of their starting pitchers. It will be nice to be satisfied with a five inning start from the back end of the rotation, and the only way one can feel this way is with a dominant bullpen behind the starter. That's what the Yankees now have. The only way this can be construed as a bad move, in my opinion, is if there were better ways to spend the money. When it comes to the current free agent market, there obviously aren't better ways, and it's possible that Cashman believed this move wouldn't hinder them from making some kind of splash during the season. People will also bring up the draft pick, which is fair, but not a huge concern of mine. It was one of the final picks of the entire first round, and it's possible they can get equal value in the second and third rounds. Furthermore, with the opt-out clause, it's possible that they'll recoup that pick at some point within the next couple years. Lastly, this could mean a transition for Joba back into the starting rotation. We can't expect him to be a lights out starter, but it's likely that he'll be an improvement over what they currently have. This would improve the rotation, and would be a direct effect of the Soriano signing.

I think there's pretty clearly a tactical reason for doing this. The whole process is one big game, and Cashman is just playing along.

Definitely, I think that should be the plan as well.

Might be time for people to stop referring to Jon Heyman as just Scott Boras' mouthpiece, and instead acknowledge that he has really good sources and knows his stuff.

Ramon Castro, C (1 M)