Wednesday, December 17, 2008

Oh please NO! Not the Plaxicator!!!

Please tell me this is Hank banging his desk like a petulant teenager and that Cashman is looking at Hal as if to say "Let's just placate him for now, but we won't really do this":

The [Yankees] official believes that the Yankees are "going hard" after Ramirez, to the point where they are willing to give him a three-year deal worth from $22 million to $25 million per year.

Two other officials are skeptical that the Bombers would commit three years to the enigmatic Ramirez, who has already seen the Dodgers make and withdraw a two-year, $45 million offer this winter.
One year for Manny, to scratch that itch, OK. I won't love it but for one year, I'll roll the dice and see if he can be that MVP guy in LA versus the "Plaxicator"* that he was in Boston. But three years? On THIS team? With this many 35 year olds who will need to have a day or two in the DH role? Good lord, no!!!! How many exclamation points can I use? In a league that is clearly moving towards faster, younger, more athletic, the Yanks would be going slower, older, immobile.

He can't play a lick of defense. We already have Damon and Matsui who are liabilities in LF/DH. Nady in right is fine. CF will be an issue. Posada might not be ready to catch 6 games a week but might be OK to hit (in the DH spot). And last I checked, Manny's a freakin' head case! He still is a tremendous hitter who would provide some protection and thump behind ARod, but c'mon.

I can't stress how much I'd hate the Yanks going to an absurd 3 year deal. There is NO COMPETITION for his services for a TWO YEAR deal? Why offer a THREE? Why am I banging the keys while typing, like it's going to make my point any better? Take this cash and use it as a downpayment on a Teix offer!

If Cashman and Hal truly have the reins/reigns (thank you, KLaw), Manny won't be a Yankee at all. If they placate Hank, I can see a 1 year deal. If Hank tries to overrule, all bets are off.

Now I am stomping my foot like that petulant teenager. Shoot me.


* Saw my neighbor while getting into my car this cold and snowy morning. He called Manny "another Plaxico". So I created the new terms: Plaxification and Plaxicator: To sandbag/the sandbagger of a team despite your immense, god-given talents.


UPDATE
: From Buster's blog and I completely agree (Insider access required, sorry):
Here's something any executive thinking about signing Manny should consider before giving him a multiyear deal: If he gets a two-, three- or four-year deal, it probably will represent the last big-money contract he will receive -- and what exactly will compel him to play hard for the duration of the deal?

Once Manny signs his next big-money deal, the financial carrot that seemed to drive him in August and September will be gone, so an employer who gives him a multiyear deal will be wholly dependent on his competitive integrity.

Good luck with that.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

If they ar willing to pay Manny 22-25 mil a year why not scrap that plan and get Teixeria for that much. Who cares if the deal is 7 years longer, Teix is 8 years younger. If they gave Manney 3 years then he will be 39 at the end of the contract correct? If they give Teix 10 years he will be 38 at the end of the contract. It seems pretty simple to me Teixeria = right move, Manny = wrong move.

Unknown said...

Plus I want to have the opportunity to watch Teixeria play, I love that guy.

Jason @ IIATMS said...

I agree 100%. It's so profoundly absurd to offer Manny that much when you could offer Teix the same. Maybe Teix would want to play in Balt/DC/Boston more than NY, and that'd be fine, but to not take that $75M and allocate it to a Teix-offer... well, it sucks.

Anonymous said...

If he doesn't want to play here that's one thing, but if he never gets the offer that's egg on the Yankees face IMHO.

Anonymous said...

I agree with Alex K. Make him an offer he can't refuse and we will have a solid 1st baseman for many year to come aka Mattingly, Tino...

We need a power hitter to protect A-Rod and investing in a much younger player, is well worth it. It's just money..

Anonymous said...

In the 2000-2001 offseason Mussina and Ramirez were both available and I hoped the Yanks would sign Moose and pass on Manny, which they did. Granted, in that time Manny won two WS and Moose got to two WS (and won neither), but I believe that they did the right thing. Moose might not add to team chemistry but he never detracted from it (did he?). Manny is older, slower, worthless defensively, and turning down big bucks. Spend the money on Teix. --CL

dinologic (Dean D) said...

The ONLY positive I see here is that it would be interesting to see Manny play in the Bronx, his hometown, and against the Red Sox. If there was ever motivation, that would be it.

But not for 3 years, no.

If Teix is still an option, and I was assuming that he isn't, then yeah, it makes all the sense in the world to go for him instead of Manny. But if Teix is NOT an option, then I don't think they have a choice...unless they think they can win with the lineup they have now...which I don't. Which looks better to you?

Beckett
Dice-K
Lester
Lowe (?)

Ellsbury
Pedroia
Ortiz
Teixeira
Youkilis
Bay
Drew
Varitek
SS (whomever that may be)

...OR...

CC
Wang
Burnett
Joba

Damon
Jeter
ARod
Posada(?)
Matsui
Swisher
Nady
Cano
CF/DH/Other guy

Lineups are just off the top of my head. The Sox lineup seems a bit more predictable but there are too many ?s on the Yanks to make any solid calls.

Regardless, either they sign Manny or they hope to win a lot of 3-2 games. I think we have the pitching to possibly do that, but man that lineup looks pretty weak.