Results tagged ‘ Michael Pineda ’
Cashman: We could trade for a DH
In a conference call with reporters discussing the Michael Pineda trade on Monday, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said that he’d be more inclined to trade from his pitching depth to acquire a designated hitter than to sign one on the open free agent market.
When the Yankees officially announce the signing of right-hander Hiroki Kuroda, they’ll have seven starters vying for five spots. CC Sabathia, Ivan Nova, Pineda, Phil Hughes, A.J. Burnett and Freddy Garcia are also in that mix.
“Maybe I use our excess pitching to find a bat,” Cashman said. “That’s a possibility. … We stretched the payroll to get [Kuroda] done, so I’m not sure what we have financially. I think we’ll look at the trade market first and foremost and see where that takes us.”
Among the DH options out there, the Yankees have reportedly heard from Johnny Damon, Hideki Matsui, Vladimir Guerrero and Raul Ibanez, but are not thought to consider any of them an urgent priority.
“I think [the free agent market] would be secondary,” Cashman said. “Not that any of those players aren’t quality, but I do think it’s probably in our interest to first and foremost see what’s available in the trade market, because we have excess starter. There should be a demand and an interest at the various levels in our starting pitching that might prove beneficial.”
If the season started today, the Yankees would likely go with Andruw Jones as their DH, though they are curious about Minor League slugger Jorge Vazquez.
Pineda ‘beyond excited’ to be a Yankee
The Yankees media relations department just sent out a quote from the newest Bombers pitcher, Michael Pineda, as the four-player deal with the Seattle Mariners was officially announced today:
“I’m feeling great and I’m beyond excited,” Pineda said. “I never thought I would become a New York Yankee so early into my career. This is the best thing in the world. Pitching alongside CC Sabathia, I’m speechless. And playing alongside players such as Alex Rodriguez and Derek Jeter is unbelievable.”
Yankees GM Brian Cashman is on a conference call with reporters right now in which he said that Jesus Montero “may very well be the best player I’ve traded, and I’ve been doing this for a long time.” More information to follow on yankees.com.
Is Pineda a lock as the Yankees’ No. 2 starter?
As the dust settles from Friday’s big deal between the Yankees and Mariners, many – this space included – have been touting Michael Pineda as a good fit to slide behind CC Sabathia in the Yankees’ rotation. But that may not be the case if the Yankees choose a more conservative route with bringing the hard-throwing righty into the 2012 season.
A person familiar with the Yankees’ thinking said this weekend that Pineda shouldn’t be considered a lock as the Yankees’ No. 2 starter, and added that cases could be made for Ivan Nova, Phil Hughes, Hiroki Kuroda and even A.J. Burnett in that spot over Pineda.
“It’s not my decision, but I would not slot him there,” the person said. “I think he’s got a chance to get there someday, but I wouldn’t be looking for that soon. … From my standpoint, there’s still development here that needs to take place. This is not a finished product. I would not put him in the situation where, hey, you’re starting Game 2. But maybe that’s ultimately what gets decided.”
One point of concern is Pineda’s changeup, which still needs to be thrown more to become a reliable pitch for him. Right now, he’s been succeeding largely behind his fastball and slider. This much is certain – with seven arms to fit five slots, the rotation promises to be a good topic of discussion for manager Joe Girardi and pitching coach Larry Rothschild in Spring Training.
Bobby V. weighs in on Yankees moves
This shouldn’t be a surprise, but new Red Sox manager and noted sandwich wrap inventor Bobby Valentine wasn’t exactly turning cartwheels this morning over the Yankees’ moves to acquire Michael Pineda and Hiroki Kuroda. That didn’t stop Valentine from weighing in, as Ian Browne passes along:
“Pineda, when I saw him the first half, he looked unhittable,” Valentine said. “Second half, he looked OK. [The Mariners] saw a lot of him and they traded him. Kuroda is a good pitcher [but] a year older than he was last year [and] pitching in the American League and not the National League.
“[Going from] pitching in not a great pitchers ballpark from a great pitchers ballpark. They’re probably an upgrade from [Bartolo] Colon and [Freddy] Garcia. Probably, I don’t know. It seems it.”
Bryan Hoch
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