Next season Gardener will be 35 years old. He has been an inspirational leader for this team being a big time clutch player. Branch Rickey always stressed that it is best to trade a player a year early than a year too late. I love Gardener but if we do trade him it helps free more money under the cap and allows younger outfielders like Frazier, etc. greater opportunities. Moving Ellsbury, as we all know is difficult, but if Cash can do this too it would help even more. The Yankees should retain their young talent not trade it away, if at all possible.
And he's still one of the better defensive LFs in the game, in a home ballpark where LF can be a challenge
Three years ago the Yankees thought about making this trade:
Yankees Get: Jayson Heyward, Andrelton Simmons, Melvin Upton, David Carpenter, Chris Johnson
Braves Get: AARON JUDGE, GARY SANCHEZ, LUIS SEVERINO, Manny Banuelos, and Ian Clarkin
This. Gardner is a good player but if we get a piece or two for the future it would be worth it. Plus it helps elevate our over crowded outfield.
He's worth more to the Yankees this year. They're a legit World Series contender.
On another note, guy has had a nice career. 11 HR, 54 RBI, and 32 SB per 162 games in his career. GG defense and a .347 career OBP as well.
By having an excellent defensive outfield, it puts less strain on our starting pitching which then puts less strain on our bullpen. Gardner also sees a lot of pitches and forces pitchers to throw strikes and not make mistakes, which wears down on the pitcher, especially as he has to worry about Judge/Sanchez/Stanton/Bird/Didi coming down the pike.
Gardner may have lost a step, with a consistent decline in his BABIP (and therefore batting average), and his overly selective approach at the plate may be detrimental but he still helps this Yankee team out a lot.
Based on how many times you've butchered his name, I don't think you do.
How deep is your love?
And he's still one of the better defensive LFs in the game, in a home ballpark where LF can be a challenge
I agree with all of this. Good points!
Everybody else is playing for second place.
But this of course, makes it much easier to trade him then elsbury. from a economics/logic stand point, it seems very likely that one of those guys will not be on the team to close next season, good riddance jacoby.
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Call Jeter and grab their CF.We got the pieces to satisfy that penny pincher
Three years ago the Yankees thought about making this trade:
Yankees Get: Jayson Heyward, Andrelton Simmons, Melvin Upton, David Carpenter, Chris Johnson
Braves Get: AARON JUDGE, GARY SANCHEZ, LUIS SEVERINO, Manny Banuelos, and Ian Clarkin
That is incorrect Judge was not apart of that deal. The rest were and it was very close to happening apparently.
Unfortunately the two most tradeable guys to free up money are Gardy and DRob.
Quote:
I love Gardener
Based on how many times you've butchered his name, I don't think you do.
How deep is your love?
+1e
I know I tend to be annoying about this sort of thing, but "a part" and "apart" have basically opposite meanings. And you keep landing on the wrong one.
Pay him to go away and be done with it
Eat as much money as you have to
I'm a little surprised he's so ademnant about staying to fight for a bench job
It's a shame we can't just pay 80+% of his salary and send him
To California where he likes
Gardner is a much better glove and can be counted on to play a lot more games but in August and September last year Ellsbury was actually a much more productive hitter.
Any Yankee fan and the Yankees themselves would much rather have Gardner than Ellsbury for the defense and the energy he brings but it won't surprise me if when all Ellbury alternatives are exhausted that Gardenr is traded if Cashman can get Darvish at his price.
That way he keeps Frazier for LF in 2019 or can use him for other trades. Gardner is not going to be the Yankees LF in 2019.
In a part-time role, he may be a very useful 4th OFer and insurance against either Hicks crashing down to earth or Gardner slowing down. I'm not interested in giving him away unless they need to create $$$ to land Darvish or someone else that fits the long term plan.
To relieve the glut of outfielders, it would be ideal to move Ellsbury one way or another. Similar problem though, there is little interest in him.
Gary? Sanchez?
Or did the case of the extra E just become the case of the missing D?
Remember that Capone is "plugged in"- especially to the M's. Don't discount what he offers, even if all the Yanks are doing is asking on returns.
Personally, I think that IF the Yanks were to make a deal with Darvish (hopefully only 4-5 years and under $20M per)- though on a personal level, I do not think the deal is even necessary or wise- Gardner would be the easiest to move and probably the best move remaining.
If the Yanks trade Gardner, they probably get back a decent prospect or two. However, it also probably simplifies their OF issues in interesting ways.
First- I do not think that Frazier gets the first crack at the LF job. I think Ellsbury would. Remember that the Yanks will very likely open 2018 with rookies at 2B and 3B already- either on opening day or by late April. Hard to have 3 rookies breaking in at the same time on a competitive club.
Two- Ellsbury causes the least roster disruption. If you trade Gardner, Ellsbury likely is the next best option at leadoff. Effectively, you take out a leadoff hitter and replace him with another leadoff hitter- no moving other guys out of their roles.
Three- Ellsbury is almost impossible to trade- and making him the 4th OF with 3 years left on his deal would only make it worse. If he is starting, and plays well in 2018, it becomes easier to deal him either at the trade deadline or after the 2018 season. After 2018, with only 2 years left on the deal, so long as the Yanks take a bad contract back or eat some of the deal, the contract is palatable at that point.
Four- remember that Frazier missed a LOT of time in 2017 with the dreaded oblique injury. He is still in his development stage- and he would likely be helped more by getting 400-500 ABs in AAA than being in an unsure situation in NY. Let him finish his development and give him a chance to grab the job in 2019.
The performance difference between Gardy and Ells (contracts aside) is pretty thin. Gardy is a better fielder. Ellsbury is good for at least one injury a season...sometimes he plays through it, at the cost of performance. The team leadership factor favors Gardy - Ellsbury isn’t a bad guy or anything, but he’s never had the personality other players look up to.
Point being, I can see why trading Gardy if the goal is to shed salary for a Darvish deal is an option they’re considering. As a fan, I don’t like it, but I get it.