Pavano-ginitis on the chopping block

[riverside sluggers]

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/200...y.scoop/1.html

Looks like spring training will just be him doing an audition for other teams. He is still owed 2 years/$20 million. Makes sense considering Phillip Hughes is making his way to the big show this season. We could probably see a rotation of fill-ins at the #5 spot until they believe Hughes is ready to come up

[jacksonianmarch]

Originally Posted by riverside sluggers

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/200...y.scoop/1.html

Looks like spring training will just be him doing an audition for other teams. He is still owed 2 years/$20 million. Makes sense considering Phillip Hughes is making his way to the big show this season. We could probably see a rotation of fill-ins at the #5 spot until they believe Hughes is ready to come up

I like Heyman sometimes, but I dont think he's right in this respect. Cashman is a very smart man. Pavano's contract is no longer the bear it used to be. And a certain Roger Clemens may be making the rounds come June or July. At the same time Hughes is said to be MLB ready right now, but could really use about 2 months of minor league time to really perfect his changeup (which is close to plus right now, and would give him 5 plus pitches- 4FB, 2FB, Curve, Slider, Change). All of that leaves a window of 2 months. Now as the team's 5th starter, he may be relegated to pen duty in April and may get something like 6 starts in May. That is the time we shop him.

Right now, trying to deal Pavano is all about cash relief. In June, dealing Pavano may net us a few prospects and cash relief. Think about it. Pavano is 30-31yrs old and signed for 08 at 10 mil per (nothing outlandish). If he even pitches average, like mid 4's era, he would be highly sought after in the NL, especially from a team like the Cardinals who have playoff aspirations but lack pitching depth.

Then you deal him, and slide either Hughes or Clemens into the rotation. But in ST? Remember Crunchy talking about contingency plans? You dont deal pitching without a contingency plan. The AAA kids need about 10 AAA starts before they get their rolls going. Clemens wont be coming until June 1 at the earliest and most likely by July 1 if he comes to NY at all. We need someone to span that window and a Pavano audition sounds like the best idea.

[Optimist]

He looks like he's in pretty good shape.



Maybe...just maybe...

[jacksonianmarch]

time for a showcase.

[schillingouttheks]

His chest looks like Belichick's or Parcells in that picture...

[adam123]

pavano is a scrub should be with jaret wrong soon

[Mr Crunchy]

why is cashman a smart man??

any gm who had his resources which were double of his closest competitors and failed like the yanks have this century wouldve been fired
if he was in the army he wouldve been shot for dereliction of duty

he has made some good moves for the future this winter
but the sox got the upper hand this offseason as far as competetion goes this year.

of course if drew and matsusaka fail then theo will be making cheese blintzes at einsteins bagels on coolidge corner

[jacksonianmarch]

Crunchy, the sox certainly got the better short term impact out of this offseason, but the gap to bridge was significant. I still think they are a good bullpen and a solid bottom of the order away from being the better team.

[He Hate Me]

Originally Posted by Mr Crunchy

why is cashman a smart man??

any gm who had his resources which were double of his closest competitors and failed like the yanks have this century wouldve been fired
if he was in the army he wouldve been shot for dereliction of duty

he has made some good moves for the future this winter
but the sox got the upper hand this offseason as far as competetion goes this year.

of course if drew and matsusaka fail then theo will be making cheese blintzes at einsteins bagels on coolidge corner

Hey Crunch, it's been well documented that Cash was a GM in name only until 2005. He might have had double the resources, but he was forced to use them in extremely unwise ways because of others.

[Gom]

Guys, the playoffs are a crapshoot. 6 different champs in 6 years. The only thing the Yankees should do is make the playoffs every year, which they have. It's a crapshoot after that. Ask the Braves. Or the Sox. Just get in, and hope to win.

As for Pavano, he'll be alright. Unlike Arod, he owns up to shit. Any contribution will be welcome.

Keep in mind that if this guy actually pitches to his potential, the Yankees could have a rotation as good as any. Big if, though.

[riverside sluggers]

Yea Pavano owns up to shit... wait didnt he hold out from the team about the car accident he was in?

[jacksonianmarch]

Originally Posted by riverside sluggers

Yea Pavano owns up to shit... wait didnt he hold out from the team about the car accident he was in?

agreed. He was a terrible signing and is a scumbag. But he can pitch when he is healthy and has a market if he shows he can pitch. If we can have a reasonably signed 31 yr old showing he can pitch in the AL East, we could get another few top prospects and open up room for Clemens or Hughes to slide into the slot.

[Mr Crunchy]

pavano missed 10 weeks last year when he fell on his ass
despite my distaste for arod,his ballwashers and his image consultants at least he put up some solid #s between april and october 1st
pavano essentially stole 20M

as far as cashman goes
hes powerful as long as george stays catatonic
when george wakes up and finds out that williams sheffield johnson and wright have been dumped he may just go out and try to get denny neagle or mike hampton in the bronx,perhaps give bernie the 4 year deal he deserves or try to get mark mcguire out of retirement.....

cash has done well
lets see how practical the youth movement is when the season starts

[rician blast]

Originally Posted by Gom

As for Pavano, he'll be alright. Unlike Arod, he owns up to shit. Any contribution will be welcome.

Huh? ARod owns up to sh*t?

ARod actually owns up to TOO much...his constant striving for personal perfection, fan adoration and team acceptance drives him to accept responsibility for EVERYTHING that goes wrong in the Bronx.

Said Gammons: "A-Rod is a great player who accepts the responsibility of greatness and plays hard every day."

After the 2004 Playoff Debacle, ARod said he accepts for the Yankees failure to advance. "I accept full responsibility for this loss. If I played like they pay me to, we would have won," said Rodriquez.

Consider some other ARod quotes:
"I need to make more contact. I struck out more than one-hundred times. I can cut down on my errors and I'd like to steal thirty or forty bags. I made a lot of dumb baserunning mistakes this year."

"I love the challenge of the game. I love the work. My goal right now is to have a season next year that will make people forget about this one. I'll use things like this for motivation."

"This whole year has been a learning experience. There are still a lot of areas in which I think I can improve."

So exactly how is it that he fails to accept responsibility? I'd say that because of his ego, he actually shifts TOO MUCH blame and responsibility unto himself. In fact it is that self-centeredness that I most dislike about him. I'm not 100% sure whether he sincerely thinks he means that much to the outcome of every game or if it's just an act...but whatever the case, I think he's shown a proclivity to heap responsibility upon himself, right or wrong.

Sh*t, he probably think he's responsible for:

- Global Warming ("the way I hit bombs, combined with my good looks, is heating up the atmosphere")
- Giambi's juicing ("after all, he wishes he could hit 'em like me".)
- No. Korea's nuclear ambitions ("it's not weapons or energy they're after, they really want to develop a nuclear man, because they think I was incubated in a nuclear reactor which would explain my power")
- A dramatic increase in male homosexuality ("even guys wanna do me cuz I'm so fkn hot")

[jacksonianmarch]

Originally Posted by Mr Crunchy

cash has done well
lets see how practical the youth movement is when the season starts

This is what scares me. Cashman has done a very good job with acquiring young pitching talent and there is some position prospect talent brewing as well. The rotation has Mussina, Pettitte, and Pavano in it, all 3 will be gone by the end of 2008. Wang and to a lesser extent, Igawa is all that will be left. Santana may or may not be a FA option by 2009. The yankees have to be prepared to let these kids handle the reigns. Aside from Hughes, and to a lesser extent Sanchez, the rest of the AAA guys will likely act like rookies and have some serious ups and downs. I have said before that I'd give up 2007 or 2008 for the development of a solid internal rotation that would return to dynasty form. The talent is there, we just have to bridge the gap with patience, something George is not accustomed to doing. This is why the ascension of Hughes this yr is critical. If he comes up as the 5, and holds down a rotation spot for 2008, then another spot could potentially open up for Sanchez at that time (or he may be in the pen). If one spot opens per season, we could turn over the rotation to the young guns without giving up short term success.

But we all know George. If he decides to blow everything up mid season because we are 2 back of the sox, it could set the franchise back 4-5 yrs. This farm system is not getting undo hype. The pitching prowess is real. The potential is there. It is up to Cashman to hold as long as he can before he gets porked in a deal for Enrique Wilson (Damaso Mate for Wilson, what were you smoking!).