Here are 3 quick bits in regards to Robbie:
1. I was over at MLBTR and read that Brian Cashman once discussed a possible Robinson Cano for Orland Hudson (yes, the O-Dog) trade. Cashman actually discussed the trade with his coaches just last year. Larry Bowa (Cano’s tough love buddy) and Don Mattingly were reportedly very much against the trade and wanted to keep Cano, although there was no mention as to what Joe Torre thought about it (he too was asked about the possible deal). To be honest, the story didn’t originate from MLBTR as it’s from Peter Gammons’ blog at ESPN (probably tucked in at the end somewhere), however, it’s subscription only and I’m not subscribed, so I didn’t get too much info beyond that (yo, I’m poor). I don’t really see what the benefit would have been in trading Cano for Hudson. Hudson is a great defender but Cano is solid (despite some hardships along the way), plus Cano has significantly more upside in terms of power (although Hudson was becoming a very patient hitter in comparison and has more speed). Also, Cano is under contract for a longer time, whereas Hudson would become a free agent after this season.
2. I also just saw the following quote from Jon Heyman over at The Big Lead. Heyman did an interview with those guys about 2 weeks ago (they’ve done a slew of them) and they asked him who the most overrated player in the game was (I didn’t see this until earlier in the day). Here’s what he had to say.
Right now, who is the most overrated player in baseball? At this moment, I have to say Robinson Cano, who is a great but still doesn’t get it; he should be following the lead of Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez, but instead he hangs out with some very wrong people and doesn’t always hustle.
Well, that stings. Heyman certainly seems to be digging into a concept that many Yankee fans are starting to agree with. While Robinson Cano is very talented and has a lot of potential, he himself has hindered his own development and prevented himself from reaching that next level. That’s not necessarily what I agree with since there are a multitude of factors at play (maybe he’s not thriving under Girardi, maybe he’s trying too hard, maybe he’s just having a fluke bad year, etc.), but it’s feasible given all the things we hear about his mental lapses, and what not.
Heyman’s comment about hanging out with “some very wrong people” is especially interesting. Yesterday, I wondered if Cano should hang out with Jeter some more instead of kicking it with Abreu, Molina and A-Rod (who he seems to work out with sometimes). With Melky gone (Melky was demoted the day after Heyman made this remark) and A-Rod being a sort of peripheral figure in Cano’s circle of friends, maybe Heyman is referring to Abreu (and was referring to Melky before he was demoted)? There was a lot of talk about Bobby Abreu not being able to handle the pressure when he was on the Phillies and once he was traded to NY, there were those who felt that he would be more of a secondary player, so the pressure wouldn’t be as bad for him. Maybe Cano is feeling similar pressure with his new contract and with his poor year, and he’s gone to Bobby for advice but hasn’t gotten anything of use to him? A stretch, I know…
Heyman could also be referring to Cano’s friends, off the field. Who knows.
3. Finally, I defended Girardi the other day when Kim Jones questioned Cano’s style of play, calling him “nonchalant” which is just another word for careless (essentially). However, now I must criticize Joe Girardi because Cano had another error yesterday (his 13th on the year) and Joe copped out when asked about Cano’s play. “I’m going to focus on the positives,” he said, regarding the incident. The other day, Girardi noted the error and said the play should have been made, but he didn’t really get into it. I figured he spoke with Cano privately and that was that. Nonetheless, failing to even acknowledge Cano’s rash of recent errors is a problem itself. Larry Bowa put Cano in his place when he made mistakes, and although he did it privately, it still seemed to help him develop as a player. Joe Girardi, on the other hand, can’t even bring himself to acknowledge that Cano made an error (even after that big one against Toronto) nor will he say that he should be playing tighter defense. Now that’s just ridiculous.
There you have it, a bit report on a guy who is slowly becoming one of the more frustrating Yankees to watch in recent memory (at least, for some people). With that in mind, I still wouldn’t take O-Dog over Cano (come on, that trade didn’t make sense).
