Well, Well…

From the MLB (Mark Dent):

The Yankees got Xavier Nady and Damaso Marte from the Pirates for four Minor Leaguers on Friday. Nady is a right-handed-hitting outfielder, a commodity for which the Rays had been searching.

“It doesn’t surprise me,” Rays manager Joe Maddon said. “That’s the way they do things. They’re going to buy people at the appropriate time.”

I feel like there’s some resentment there, no?

How About Arroyo?

If you’re like me, you’re probably getting frustrated with the Seattle Mariners. First, when the Yankees inquired about Jarrod Washburn, the Mariners boldly stated that if the Yankees wanted Washburn, they’d have to take on Jose Vidro too. The Yankees balked at that idea (rightfully so) and have tried to go another route. They’re basically offering to just take on Washburn’s salary so that the Mariners don’t have to. The team sees Washburn as a cheap pickup, talent-wise, because they can afford to be on the hook, financially and, if that’s the case, they shouldn’t have to give up anything of value to get him.

However, now the Mariners are asking for a top prospect in return for Washburn’s services and they still want the Yanks to take on the rest of Washburn’s salary. To be honest, while it would be nice to have Washburn, he is not essential to the Yankees or their plans. Also, the last time I checked, there were no other real suitors for him, so the Yankees aren’t over a barrel here, especially with Ian Kennedy pitching well and with Phil Hughes (and even Carl Pavano) on the mend. If the Mariners are demanding a top prospect they’re not going to get that from New York, and that’s the way it should be.

Maybe the Yankees should explore an alternative option? Bronson Arroyo could be a good fit. His numbers, overall, look terrible, but in his past 5 starts he’s got a 3.19 ERA. Since the AS break, he’s held hitters to a .189 BA and has a 0.73 WHIP (with a 3.00 ERA). There’s also reason to believe that he’ll pitch well from hereon in when you look at last year’s figures. In 2007, Arroyo struggled through the first half of the season, but put it together in the second half and posted up solid numbers. In 99 IP he struck out 81 and compiled a 3.55 ERA with a 1.31 WHIP.

Arroyo is signed through 2010 ($25 million deal) and would provide added flexibility and depth down the road, as well. The Reds would probably be willing to move him as a salary dump, similar to Washburn, since they’re really going nowhere. If the Yankees can grab Arroyo without giving up any big prospects, and if the Mariners continue to ask for top prospects, then I wouldn’t mind seeing the Yankees acquire our old foe. Also, Arroyo would have some added incentive to beat the Red Sox. They did clown him a few years ago when he offered them a discounted 3-year deal under $12 million, which they agreed to, then promptly traded him to Cincinnati for the wonderful Willy Mo Pena.

Washburn Update

The Yankees are reportedly closing in on a deal with Seattle. Nothing is definite yet, but the trade could happen in a day or so and will probably be a salary dump for the Mariners with some inconsequential player (probably not Kei Igawa) being moved from NY to Seattle.

UPDATE (8:07) – Here’s an update I just noticed from MLBTR:

[Update: 6:15pm] Ken Rosenthal just reported during the Fox telecast that the deal is now being held up by the Mariners demand for a top prospect in addition to the Yankees taking the remainder of Washburn’s contract.

If the Mariners get greedy, I say walk away. I haven’t heard of anyone willing to take on Washburn’s contract, other than the Yankees. Do they actually think they’ll get a “top prospect” in this deal?

Game 103: Yanks VS. BoSox

Here are the lineups, courtesy of PA:

YANKEES (57-45)
Damon DH
Jeter SS
Abreu RF
Rodriguez 3B
Giambi 1B
Cano 2B
Nady LF
Cabrera CF
Molina C
Pettitte LHP

RED SOX (60-44)
Pedroia 2B
Youkilis 1B
Ortiz DH
Ramirez LF
Lowell 3B
Drew RF
Lowrie SS
Crisp CF
Cash C
Wakefield RHP

Couple of numbers to remember. Xavier Nady has a 13-game hitting streak going and is hitting .455 since the AS break (what a time to trade for a player, huh?). Cano has a 7-game hitting streak and is a .290 hitter against Wakefield with a .645 slugging percentage (2 HR, 3 2B, 1 3B, in 31 AB’s). Pettitte is on the mound and Drew, Youkilis, Manny and Ortiz (4 big bats) all have good numbers against him.

Wheels Turning

As you can see, Xavier Nady is in the lineup today against Boston and he’ll be out in LF. Pretty exciting, huh? He actually comes into the fray with a 13-game hitting streak intact since he didn’t get any AB’s last night. Of course, with any trade, there are bound to be roster moves and PA brings us those as well.

UPDATE, 2:54 p.m.: Brett Gardner was optioned to Scranton. LaTroy Hawkins was DFA’d. Also, Kei Igawa had cleared waivers and was taken off the 40-man. So they’re at 39 now. Plenty of room for Jarrod Washburn.

After seeing Gardner these past few weeks, he definitely needs some regular AB’s and I’m glad the Yankees sent him down. More later. I’ll actually get a game thread going in a second.

Package Different

The Yankees have traded Jeff Karstens, Daniel McCutchen, Jose Tabata and Ross Ohlendorf for Nady and Marte. This is slightly different from the rumored package we were all reporting yesterday. Basically, the Pirates had a list of players to choose from for their final 2 chips (Tabata and Ohlendorf spearheaded the package). Phil Coke and George Kontos were believed to be that final 2 and were on the list of players they could have, however, the Pirates ultimately chose Jeff Karstens and McCutchen. Either way, I’m still fine with this deal. The Yankees have plenty of pitching prospects to make up for the loss.

Big Bag Of Bits: Marte, Nady, BoSox, Joba

Well, with a big trade and a big win, what do you expect?

Here we go (even if it’s 4:30 AM).

• With Yankee fans still swooning over the Nady-Marte trade (I’m still blushing), people forgot that Nady is an outfielder and have automatically labeled him as this years’ DH. Well, basically it seems as though Nady will play LF because Johnny Damon is still rehabbing a troublesome shoulder. With that in mind, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Nady stick out there in LF. Nobody wants to see Johnny Damon’s lollipop throws from left and Nady is a fine replacement (for now).
• The Nady-Marte trade was a 6-player deal. The Yankees lost Ross Ohlendorf, Phil Coke, Jose Tabata (the blue chipper), and George Kontos. To me, it’s a great deal. Tabata was the most valuable player (from the NY side), but you can’t overlook his attitude and development issues. Either way, he wouldn’t have been playing for NY until 2011, so this is a fine deal (and Austin Jackson has moved ahead of him on the depth chart). Ask yourself this, are you really going to miss Ross Ohlendorf or Phil Coke? Exactly, move on. If you don’t believe it’s a good deal, read Joel Sherman’s take.
• Yesterday’s win against the Red Sox has a lot of meaning for Yankee fans and for the ball club itself. As Hank Steinbrenner once noted, the team needed its own Josh Beckett. Well, as ironic as it is, the Yankees installed their own Beckettesque pitcher in the rotation with Joba Chamberlain and last night, Joba outdueled the same pitcher Hank hoped that he would be. You couldn’t ask for a better performance from the young stud (yes, I called Joba a stud, sue my manhood why don’t you), although I’d like to see him throw his fastball a bit more.
• Last but certainly not least, it looks like the Red Sox are wondering why Joba can’t keep the ball down when facing Kevin Youkilis. To be honest, I think the Sox just need to shut the hell up, even if that’s unprofessional of me (I don’t have that much professionalism anyway, I mean I am only a blogger). How many times have we seen Derek Jeter get checked inside? Granted, he’s not headhunted every times he steps out there, but people brush him back. What’s wrong with pitching inside? It’s what Pedro Martinez did for years. I thought Sox fans would like that stuff (guess not). Either way, expect some retaliation tomorrow (I’m picking CANO), even if Wakefield is pitching (knuckleballs to the DOME?). Hell, Terry Francona seems pissed, so why not.

To close, I offer these words from ex-Yankee, Ross Ohlendorf:

“I definitely liked being in New York, and I was hoping to be there for the last game at the Stadium,” Ohlendorf said in a telephone interview from Scranton. “But I’m sure it will be a good opportunity. I feel like I’ve definitely gotten better since I’ve been down here.”

I’ll actually miss Ohlendorf. He was solid (forget the numbers) and did what was necessary for us to have a chance. He pitched whenever Girardi asked him to and did it with no set role. He’s a guy who can really define himself in the NL as a back-end starting pitcher (maybe even better than that?) and I hope he has a great career. I’ll see you later, I need to go and grab a Kleenex.