So Vazquez and Montero? This is realistic because it seems like the Mariners are getting fucking fleeced in that deal, and their front office is fucking stupid.
Is Cliff Lee a Free Agent this upcoming offseason? if so and he doesn't re-sign with the Yanks....Montero/Vasquez sounds like a steep price to pay...for a rental.
I imagine any deal with Lee is contingent on a lucrative extension being worked out, the Yankees aren't the stupid ones here.
Vasquez would be going to philly in a separate deal for werth. montero would be the main guy along with two other prospects going to seattle. normally I'm against the Yankees making these types of moves as we can just sign people in November (obnoxious i know, but it's fact.) But this pretty much wraps a world series this year in a nice little bow, and Montero's too big of a body to be considered a future catcher. So he'll have to be moved to first base. Which is where Tex resides. The Yankees are the only team that can trade for Lee and not worry about getting him extended because who the hell is going to outbid them?
I would imagine Lee would command top dollar.......by my estimates, the Yankees starting rotation's salary would equal the rest of the AL East's entire payroll.
Christmas came early this year. (If it happens). If both of those discussed moves happen, wow. If just Lee comes to NY, I don't see how the Yankees lose. I would bump Burnett out of the playoff rotation even. 1. CC 2. Lee 3. Pettitte.
Yes, Cashman could undo his latest two mistakes in one move. Of course nobody will remember these any more than any of his others.
Alio I said correct me if I'm wrong and you did. I thought it was you saying enough was enough with the payroll. But probably someone else. My bad.
Burnett would still pitch in the playoffs. Hughes will be in the pen due to innings limit and theres no way the Yankees wanna try to win with a 3 man rotation again next fall......especially since Burnett saved the world series last year in game 2
Not to mention that the Yanks are pretty stacked at the catcher position, with Romine and Sanchez both tearing it up in the minors. (And Romine is already a very good defensive catcher.) I don't like the trade as much if it's just a rental, but even in that case, they'll get two picks for him if he walks. I doubt that happens, though. And it might still be worth it just for the exclusive negotiating rights between now and November. I think Cashman also realizes how important it is to win this year, with Jeter, A-Rod, Posada, Pettitte, and Mo all getting older. The window of opportunity is pretty limited here. It's not inconceivable that this is their last year of championship-caliber production from any/all of them. If they can practically guarantee one more title with this group (or maybe two more), that's worth more than the five or six potential titles Montero could mash the Yanks to over the next decade.
1) I'm not entirely convinced that the Mariners aren't just using the Yankees to make Tampa or Minnesota panic and overpay. 2) If they can actually get Cliff Lee for Jesus Montero, they have to do it. Normally I'm not crazy about top prospect for impending FA deals, but Cliff Lee is the best pitcher in baseball. Just imagine a rotation of Sabathia - Lee - Pettitte - Hughes - Burnett. That's almost unbeatable. Montero is going to be a fantastic hitter, but he's going to have to be a first baseman or a DH in the bigs. The Yanks have Tex, and will ideally keep the DH spot relatively fluid to keep A-Rod/Posada/Jeter/whoever fresh. This deal would be unbelievable.
Maybe that's because he's actually put together a team that has the best record in baseball? And Vazquez has been fine for the Yanks. He had a shitty April. Guess what? So did Teixeira. Maybe that was a mistake, too? By the way, Melky, the guy they traded for Vazquez? He's putting up a lovely OPS of .649. Brett Gardner, his replacement? .807.
I'm not sure Tampa or the Twins CAN overpay. Who can they offer that's better than Montero? He's a top five prospect.
With Montero in the deal I'd be shocked if Lee was just a rental. I'm not psyched about losing the best power hitting prospect in the AL, but that rotation would be a juggernaut. And, like Cappy mentioned, we do have other very good catching prospects.
There are plenty of guys that Tampa could give up, like Hellickson or Jennings. I just don't believe that they'd be willing to do so. As I said above, trading Montero hurts because I honestly think that he's gonna be a 40 home run hitter one day. But that day is a few years off, and Jesus doesn't have a position. He's not gonna be a good big league catcher, and Tex is gonna be at first for a long time. Cliff Lee is the best pitcher in baseball. If you can trade a young DH for the best pitcher in baseball, you do it ten times out of ten. The fact that the Yanks have tremendous prospect depth at catcher is just gravy.
It's not done yet... http://sports.espn.go.com/new-york/mlb/news/story?id=5366254 Olney is reporting the deal was "just about done" this AM... Seattle is using the Yankees offer to bring up the offers from other teams like the Rays...
