Posts tagged JorgePosada at FanHouse

Who Won and Lost During Trading Season?

Take a deep breath, baseball fans. The dust has settled after another trading deadline, and what a deadline it was. Three future Hall of Famers were moved. So was a reigning Cy Young winner and two former All-Stars. And we haven't talked about Rich Harden yet. Undoubtedly, 2008 was the most entertaining trading season in recent memory for baseball fans.


Truth be told, it will take years before we know who helped themselves or hurt themselves at the 2008 trade deadline. That's just the way it is when boom-or-bust prospects are involved. But here's an educated (and roughly ordered) guess anyway at which teams won and which teams lost now that the July 31 deadline has come and gone.

Winners

Angels: With a double-digit lead in the AL West, the Angels didn't need to do anything to get to October. They went out and got slugging first baseman Mark Teixeira anyway, and it's nothing short of a coup. For all the praise heaped upon Mike Scioscia's throwback run-at-all costs strategy, it hasn't done much for Los Angeles in the postseason. The Halos have scored 17 runs in their last eight postseason games dating back to 2005, and they don't have single regular slugging over .500 this year. They needed a bat to go all the way in October, and that's just what they got in Teixeira.

Jorge Posada Says 'See Ya!' (In '09)

With Xavier Nady in the fold, the speculation had been that there would be no need for the Yankees to rush Jorge Posada back from his shoulder injury. And now, there's really no rush ... as Posada has finally elected to have that season ending surgery and make his return in '09.
"This is something that he knew he needed and that he wanted," Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said before the game. "He was delaying only because we asked him. Now that's filled and there's no reason to wait anymore."
Posada has had a long and productive career to date ... but that doesn't stop the questions for me of the four year, $52.4 million contract given to a catcher who will be 40 years old at the end of that contract, whether the team has money to burn or not. And now that Posada has this long-term injury, the questions remain relevant. The Yanks had better hope that this is a one time injury and not something that will rear its ugly head again and again.

But for this season, with Jose Molina and his 47% success rate throwing out base stealers, Posada's surgery isn't necessarily a bad thing.

Jorge Posada's Season May Be Over

The 2008 season has not been kind to Yankees catcher Jorge Posada. While Posada's labrum injury is most evident when he's trying to throw a runner out at second base (whether it's the painful grimace on Jorge's face while doing so, or the fact the throw is about three minutes late) it's also affected him at the plate.

After having one of the best years of his career in 2007--posting career highs in batting average (.338), OBP (.426), and slugging (.543)--Jorge's only hitting .268/.364/.411 with three homers and 22 runs driven in this season. Playing has become nearly impossible for Posada right now, and he's been placed back on the disabled list by the Yankees. Just don't be fooled by the fact it's the 15-day DL, because it's more likely Jorge is done for the season.
"Whatever the team wants me to do," Posada said after speaking with Manager Joe Girardi and General Manager Brian Cashman. "We're looking at some situations. I can't catch right now. I'm hurting and every throw hurts. It's been like that the whole year. We're looking at every scenario."

Posada said this surgery would be more intensive than his last surgery, which occurred after the 2001 season. He was ready for spring training the next February, but he said the surgery this time could carry a six-month recovery period. Having surgery now could be Posada's only option to start 2009 healthy.
Posada will be undergoing a magnetic resonance imaging test today to determine what route needs to be taken with his shoulder, and the results of that will determine whether or not he needs surgery.

Jorge Posada Wants to Remind Joe Girardi That He's a Catcher

When the Yankees signed Jorge Posada to a four-year deal in the offseason, the biggest drawback seemed to be the inevitable day when he couldn't be an everyday catcher. His bat has always been his main appeal, so there were other options, but the Yankees knew the day would come that Posada was playing first or DH more often than not.

They probably didn't expect it to happen this year, though. Jose Molina has started the last six games at catcher while Posada has shuffled between the other two positions. He's not at all happy about it, according to the Daily News.
"I like to catch. Okay?" Posada said. "I'm in the lineup and I'm happy that I'm in the lineup, but I like to catch. I'm a catcher. I'm not a first baseman and I'm not a DH. I like to catch, so I'm looking forward to catching (today)."
Posada's never been one to make waves and his frustration may have to do with the shoulder he hurt earlier this season. Posada makes it sound like he's been benched and the paper makes it seem like he's angry with Joe Girardi, but the former's a stretch and the latter's totally unjustifiable.

Is Jorge Posada More Important Than Alex Rodriguez to the Yankees?

The Yankees are riding out a stretch without two key bats in the middle of the order. Alex Rodriguez and Jorge Posada are linchpins to the team's plans and without either one of them a return trip to the playoffs seems unlikely. But if you had to choose one or the other to be in the lineup, it would have to be A-Rod. Whatever his problems in the hospital, he's a more productive hitter than Posada and more able to make a singular impact on a pennant race.

Since they're still playing baseball with nine a side, though, they'd be much better off with both of them. Phil Pepe, writing for the YES Network's web site, disagrees. He's under the impression that the team misses Posada more than Rodriguez.

With Posada, the Yankees have won five pennants and three World Series.

With A-Rod, they have won no pennants and no World Series.

Note to Pepe: Posada was on every one of those teams with A-Rod. By that reasoning, the guy they really miss is Luis Sojo, with whom the Yankees won four World Series and six pennants. Pepe's transitive reasoning isn't his only foray into bold, nonsensical statements.

The case can be made that the real reason behind the Yankees' unprecedented success has been the man behind the plate. Simply put, you don't win championships without a superior catcher.

Simply put, neither of those dogs is gonna hunt.

Will Derek Jeter's Glove Keep the Yanks From Signing Mark Teixeira?

Derek JeterDerek Jeter's defense has always been a controversial topic, and the mere suggestion that he's less than perfect in the field is usually results in getting called all sorts of nasty names by Yankee loyalists. That said, I'm rubber, you're glue -- let's do this.

Joel Sherman ponders in his blog for the New York Post how long it'll be before the Yankees bite the bullet and move Jeter off shortstop, and whether that decision should affect their free agent plans this winter:
But watching Alberto Gonzalez play shortstop while Jeter nursed a strained quad recently was eye-opening for just how much more range he had at shortstop and how much truer his arm was than Jeter's. No one knows if Gonzalez will ever hit and his chance of ever being the offensive player Jeter has been is about zero percent. But I am at least wondering if the best Yankee team of the near future has Gonzalez at shortstop and Jeter at first. [...]

[F]or everyone who is putting free-agent-to-be Mark Teixeira on the Yankee roster for the 2009 season, I keep asking this: Where are you parking Jeter, Jorge Posada and Alex Rodriguez as they age deep into their thirties on their current contracts and likely lose their abilities to play where they are playing now?
Of course, there are more places to stash than first base: with Johnny Damon's contract up this year and Bobby Abreu's up in 2009, the Yankees could probably find a spot in the outfield. Posada seems limited to first base and DH once he finally comes out from behind the plate, so it'd make sense to keep first open for him in a couple of years.

Jorgie Porgie Pudding and Pie!

After 14 years of service, 1,450 games, 4,877 at-bats and 338 potential base-steelers thrown out, Jorge Posada is going to the DL for the first time in his career.

Jorgie has been plagued with what he called a "dead shoulder," initially diagnosed as a simple strain but now sounding like something more serious than that. He took several days off already this year and a few partial rest days by DH'ing, but alas, the bench and DH time wasn't enough to let that shoulder heal.

Understandably, Jorgie is pretty upset about the necessary DL time:
It's very disappointing. It's the biggest disappointment in my career, probably, being on the DL and not being able to participate in games. It's really tough. I thought it was coming along, but it's not. It's something that we've got to find out what's really bothering me and take it from there.
It's nice that he feels so bad and all, and obviously it's not his fault that's he injured, but this little snafu does put the Yanks in a bit of a pinch. The only catcher left on the roster is Jose Molina, who has proved to be a perfectly adequate backup catcher in Posada's stead, but the Yanks are going to need a backup catcher if Molina is going to be the starter for the foreseeable future. They had journey man Chad Moeller while Jorgie was taking his break, but when they thought he was ready to come back they designated Chad for assignment.

On Deck: Battle For AL West Supremacy



On Deck is FanHouse's look at the day's most intriguing baseball matchups

Los Angeles Angels (16-10) vs. Oakland Athletics (16-10) - 10:05PM Est.

The fact that the Angels and Athletics are fighting for the top spot in the AL West isn't exactly a new experience. I mean, they've been doing it for just about the entire 21st century but they weren't supposed to be doing it this season. No, the AL West this season was supposed to be a two-horse race between the Angels and Mariners while the Athletics were supposed to be mired in a rebuilding process and battling with the Rangers for third place.

Yet here we are nearly finished with the first month of the regular season, and Oakland is tied with Los Angeles for the best record in the American League. To make it even more surprising, they're doing it without Eric Chavez and Rich Harden.

Just what the hell is going on here?

Notes From the Clubhouse: Joba Returns, Girardi 'Shocked' by Suspension

As tough as Boston's early stretch this season was, the Yankees have had it nearly as bad. They're in the midst of a stretch where they play two games in 20 at home, they've lost their top two catchers to injury, and while their young pitching struggles, they've had to play the last week without dominant setup man Joba Chamberlain as he tends to his ailing father in Nebraska.

That's forced manager Joe Girardi to tinker constantly with the bullpen and the lineup (see below). The good news is that Chamberlain has returned. His father was taken off the ventilator last night and he flew back today to rejoin the team. He received a warm welcome from the horde of Yankee fans assembled here at Camden Yards.

The bad news is that Girardi might be down another reliever soon. He was incensed by Major League Baseball's three-game suspension of reliever Kyle Farnsworth, who threw -- intentionally or not -- behind Manny Ramirez's head Thursday night. Girardi told me and the other reporters assembled during the Yankees' pre-grame stretch that he was "shocked" by the decision to discipline Farnsworth, adding "I just don't understand why he was suspended to begin with."

On Deck: Sawx and Yanks




On Deck is FanHouse's look at the day's most intriguing baseball matchups

Boston Red Sox (5-5) vs. New York Yankees (5-5) -7:05PM Est.


Tonight will be the first of eighteen over-hyped games between the Yankees and Red Sox this season. Aren't you super excited!? I mean, we only get to see these two teams play each other like 25 times a year, so you have to cherish every single pitch, because they're such a rarity. Though the newest chapter of this storied rivalry is going to be missing a few key characters. The Yankees won't have Derek Jeter or Jorge Posada (or Joe Torre for that matter), and the Red Sox don't have Curt Schilling or Mike Lowell at their disposal. Not to fear, though, as we now have completely idiotic new curses to talk about thanks to some dumbass thoughtful construction workers, and there's always the chance that hawk will attack the real Alexa Rodriguez tonight. I don't know about you, but I hope that hawk pecks Alex's eyes out and then craps on everybody in the stands. Clay Bucholz will be introduced to the Yankees for the first time tonight, and he looks to improve on a rather pedestrian performance in his last start. Chien-Ming Wang goes for the Yanks, and in his career against the SAWX he's 5-5 with a 4.56 ERA, but that could change tonight if he continues to pitch the way he did in his first two starts (13IP, 2 earned runs).
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