jacksonianmarch

Lets put this all to rest right now... CC 2009-2011: 705IP 636H 249ER 202BB 624K 1.18WHIP 3.17ERA 3.1K/BB 8.0K/9IP Lester 2009-2011 603IP 519H 226ER 222BB 632K 1.23WHIP 3.37ERA 2.8K/BB 9.4K/9IP CC threw over 100 more innings in 3 seasons, which is HUGE. He has a lower WHIP, ERA, and K/BB. The only thing Lester has on him is K rate. He's less durable, less accurate and allows more baserunners. Lester is CLOSE, but he's not CC. The ERA isnt a great indicator, but the WHIP, Innings and BB rate are huge.

CC's 2007 and 2008 were better.

Sabathia WAR over last 3 seasons- 18.7 Lester WAR over last 3 seasons- 15.8 Sabathia has been good for almost a win per season more than Lester.

It's not impossible, and you will beat the Yankees and the Rays at least once in 2012. That's a given. The question is, can your team, as constructed, beat the Yankees and the Rays over the course of 162 games. In a short series, the sox are gonna be tough with the 3 starters (if healthy) and the lineup (even without Scutaro). But over the long haul, there are massive questions remaining to be answered. They did not do what they usually do up to this point, and sure up every massive weakness. They've effectively said that their in house candidates are gonna get it done. They couldnt do it last yr, and it remains to be seen if another yr stronger and wiser will help them this yr

Beckett had a better yr than CC in production, but not in innings and he's a toss up on a yr to yr basis. Price is better than Lester. And Pineda had better production and has better stuff than Hellickson and Buchholz. Doesnt mean the sox rotation is bad, just that their question marks or matchups arent what they seem.

Actually, there is a fair amount of difference. Scutaro is the better player in all phases of the game

Why the f*** would you make that move? He was good for a 1.8WAR last yr, but his UZR/150 has been under 0 for the past 3 seasons. He doesnt walk a ton, he doesnt hit for a high average and he costs $5.5 mil. And the funny thing is, looking at his career norms, the guy is effectively the player he was in SD and TB from 2010 to now. His crazy 2009 season was driven by a BABIP of .364. And another funny thing is that the guy he would be replacing costs effectively the same amount and had a WAR over 1 win higher last yr, AND Scutaro has had better UZR/150 numbers the last 3 seasons. Why the f*** would you downgrade a position in every conceivable way for the same cost?

First base So this is one position that is strange for the Yankees. Guys like Greg Bird and Dante Bichette could easily be in this equation one day, but with their futures likely at another position, they aren't in this one. So, I will be profiling players who are either full time 1b's now or look to be in the future 1. Tyler Austin, 20 yrs old:- GCL/SI- .354/.418/.579- Austin is a prototypical masher. He's got a great frame at 6'2" 200lbs already as a 20 yr old and he can just mash. He doesnt have the most patience, but he isnt a flailing hacker either, registering 15 walks in 47 games. He did register 26 EBH in those 47 games, including 6 homers. His speed is average, even though he stole 18 bases and never got caught in his debut season. Reports, though, talk about the fact that he is not a good third baseman and from the sounds of it, he's gonna end up at first. He's not going to hit 40 homers in the bigs, but he could easily be profiled as having a ceiling a la a Billy Butler type who can hit 20 homers and hit over .300 all season long. He should be in Charleston next yr after abusing both short season levels in his debut season 2. Kyle Roller, 23 yrs old: A/A+- .284/.371/.482- Roller is an absolute butcher with the glove. He is certainly no Teixeira over there, but he can certainly mash. He's unathletic and overweight at 6'1" 235lbs, but he sure can hit. In his first full professional season, he jumped a level to the FSL where he held his own. He has power (16HRs and .198 IsoPower in debut season), patience (.087 IsoPatience), and average skills (.305 in Charleston alone). His red flags are his age for the level and his K's. For an advanced hitter, it is alarming that he struck out on average, once per game. I am unsure if they are going to keep him in Tampa this yr, but he does look the part of a kid who can hang at the 1B slot. And the fact that he's on the Yankees makes him a definite guy to watch in the future when it comes to the DH spot. His bat should carry, but that glove is bad 3. Austin Jones, 19yrs old: No significant action- Austin Jones is a sweet swinging lefty hitter with power potential and the possibility of hitting for solid average. He signed too late to make a big impact, but he has all the tools to be a big time hitter in the system. Seeing as he didnt get much time in his debut season, he will likely start 2012 out at the GCL. I havent heard much on him since he signed, so no major updates in terms of his progress in instructs, etc 4. Reymund Nunez, 21yrs old: SI- .272/.326/.385- A huge framed 1b with light tower power, Nunez was a big disappointment in SI this season. Most notable was the lack of power and the very high K's (80 in 69 games). He has the power and the bat speed to be an elite level offensive player, but his inability to hit breaking pitches and to lay off borderline pitches leaves a lot to be desired. He's probably going to stay in SI this yr and see if he can get his mojo back. Hopefully he can, because right now, he is looking like a guy with all the tools in the world who isnt capable of putting them all together That's about it for now on this position. Like I said before, guys like Laird, Bichette, and Bird could be here making this position a plus, but for now, Austin looks like he's gonna end up here and the other two are full time 1bs.

The sox were turned down by him and now that he's getting a 1 yr $5 mil offer from two teams with full rotations, he's turning back to Ben. Ben has to know this is a ploy to extract more cash out of StL and TEX. There is next to no chance that Oswalt actually comes to New England. It'd be career suicide

Looks like Bradley Suttle is done. Drafted in the 3rd round in 2007, Gammons called him the best pure hitter in the draft. The problem wasnt his ability, it was his body. He's a type I diabetic and needed labrum surgery cutting short his first professional season. The wound got infected and they needed to operate a second time, costing him his second season. He rebounded in 2010 and won the FSL MVP, but the shoulder started barking again last yr. Sounds like he needs surgery again, but he won't go through with it. Looks like his career is over. Great talent, but no health equals big time bust....

The problem with Doubront is that he is out of options. They have another lefty in the pen as well, so he wont be their big matchup lefty. If the rotation swoons and that pen is pressed into work, they are going to need Felix to be on point from the get go. If he comes out to a 6ERA in his first 10 or so IP of work, he might be cut loose before he actually gets a full shake at the bigs

Edes reporting that the sox are out of the bidding on Jackson

When your worst case happens 2 yrs in a row, then I think people get a little suspicious.

This had to be about the money. Scutaro was a minus defensively, but not enough to overlook his offense. The guy was a pest who could actually fly as a leadoff hitter if you didnt have an MVP candidate in that spot.

And Jackson is exactly what you need. A guy who can eat nearly 200 innings without killing you. He's mediocre, but durable. And right now, that's okay

And in the end, Selig is going to have a monetary compensation in mind. I told you here first, on this last day of January 2012

Bud will come up with a monetary number that will probably be less than 3 million dollars. He cannot force player movement and he has said that he wants to limit the worth of executives on other clubs. This will not be a major win for the sox

I was responding to jung and his CC, bubble gum and tape rotation comment

What I find interesting is that they are projected to be over the lux tax already, they already dealt off their "SS of the future" in Lowrie, have another SS of the future who is at least a year away and are currently left with a misfit in Aviles and a no-hit in Punto, yet they deal Scutaro? With Marco, you knew what you were getting. A guy who will get on base 35% of the time, be an absolute pest in the batters box, field the routine balls and avoid big mistakes. And the one bonus was, he destroyed Rivera. Always did. So you deal him away and your biggest replacement is Nick Punto? Punto hasnt proven he can play SS on a regular basis ever. The most SS he played was in 2008 when he started 60 games there. Granted, his D has always been great, but how can you rely on effectively a utility guy to be your starting SS after not being a starter for 3 seasons and after turning 34 yrs old?

I see what you did there, lol. Hughes is definitely a disappointment. Not sure you can throw Joba in that equation. The injuries are holding him back, but he's been a quality setup man since converting back at the beginning of the 2010 season. He was having an all-star level campaign last yr before injuring his arm. Let both of those be warnings to you, though. f***ing around with a good thing is not a good idea. Yo-yo-ing players between relief and rotation can leave you with dead arms and shattered dreams

The Yankees knew three things about their rotation going into 2011. They had an ace and a #2 that ate innings. And they knew they had a lights out pen. They didnt so much as get lucky with Colon as doing their due diligence. Pena had him on his winter league team, and when they saw he could still run it up there in the mid 90s, they took a shot. Fredy was less of an unknown having provided quality innings in Chicago. The biggest surprise was Nova, obviously.

...from the 2007 championship team. Yankees sign Manny Delcarmen to a MiLB deal. I remember when everyone and their mothers where spooging over this guy being the next Papelbon. Now, he and Okajima are fighting for a pen slot on a team without a pen opening