Clint Frazier would have had a chance, and when it comes to his life as a Yankee, what more could he ask for?
The outfield Aarons, Hicks and Judge, would be out months if the 2020 season started on time, and Giancarlo Stanton would have probably started the year on the injured list as well. The Yankees were looking for a regular outfield to start the season with Frazier, Brett Gardner and Mike Tauchman. Miguel Andujar was thrown in when he proved able to move away from the third base.
Frazier could have forced the Americans to start him more, even if healthy players returned. He could have restored his value to become more desirable in a business, to free himself from New York’s bat flood and to really start his career.
The Yankees Camp is now opening on Wednesday. Hicks and Stanton are expected to be full, and Judge tends to be ready for the 60-game sprint. All three are fragile – so is Frazier. At this moment, Frazier’s path is blocked not only for the start time, but also for the backup game. The Americans will have an outfield / DH overflow with Gardner, Hicks, Richter, Stanton, Tauchman, Andujar, Mike Ford and Luke Voit.
Frazier doesn’t play first or third (like Andujar), and even with 30-man rosters in the first few weeks, the Righty couldn’t even form the team. Three months ago – mainly because he scored so well in the exhibition season – you could have represented the case that the start was not more important for any Yankee (perhaps not a New York player). Now he wants to be in a taxi team that doesn’t deserve bats or service time in the top division.
With only 60 games (if MLB is lucky) the start of the season is a kind of season. For whom is it most important in New York?
1. Yoenis Cespedes: If the season went wrong for Frazier, ideally it is broken for Cespedes. He would not have started a healthy standard season. Now he is in full swing and the NL will have the DH. Maybe he won’t find motivation after making more than $ 130 million. But he now actually has a chance to prove his worth for 2021 if he can still be a batsman. It will be fascinating to see what he has after so long.
2. James Paxton: See Cespedes. He wouldn’t have started the season healthy if a free agency emerged. Given the industry’s financial success this season, teams expect the upcoming market to become tougher even for a great player like Mookie Betts. Can the fragile Paxton stay healthy for 12 starts (plus off-season when the Americans get there) to improve its value? Masahiro Tanaka and probably JA Happ will also be freelance agents outside of the Yankees rotation.
3. Brodie Van Wagenen: There is a strong feeling that a new owner is coming for the Mets. Will he want to keep his inherited GM? Luis Rojas hasn’t made a game yet and would be up to date in this scenario too.
4. Gerrit Cole: It has a much smaller window to make a strong first impression. The magical number of Americans winning AL East is dwindling with 12 elite launches from Cole.
5. Edwin Diaz: In a season with 60 games, each game corresponds to approximately 2.7 games on a normal schedule. So imagine you blow one of them when you start that fan base so far back. Empty stages eliminate the booing and not the pressure.
6. DJ LeMahieu: The industry didn’t fully understand its Colorado value after the 2018 season, and it made a two-year, $ 24 million pact. After that season, he saw much more than that in a pandemic-free world. Now?
7. Jacob deGrom: Due to a late start in his career in terms of age, deGrom’s Hall of Fame opportunity is not about accumulation. He essentially needs six more seasons than his first six. A third consecutive Cy Young would be huge. Here’s my favorite scenario: He does it by going 12-0 this year and scoring more wins in a 60-game season than in either of his two Cy Young campaigns.
8. Gary Sanchez: In 60 games last year, he was tied for the lead in the AL home run. But he’s been on the injured list four times in the past two seasons, all because of lower body problems. The Americans no longer have the comfort of Austin Romine as a replacement. Can Kyle Higashioka handle the workload if Sanchez misses the time? For example, 15 games are now missing, which corresponds to 25 percent of the season. Will he ever prove to be a robust, stable and excellent artist?
9. Marcus Stroman: Another guy who has to find his way in the emerging free agent market, like teammates Rick Porcello and Michael Wacha. Stroman and Paxton could watch the same suitors. Her last three years: Stroman has an ERA of 3.65 and 10 wins over the replacement, Paxton is 3.54 and 9.3. Who better deals with the shortened season?
10. Deivi Garcia: Also use Mike King, Jonathan Loaisiga and Clarke Schmidt for the Yankees. The Americans are unlikely to bring everything from Happ, Paxton, and Tanaka back next year (if I were a betting man, I would choose Tanaka as the most likely return). They’ll be looking for low-cost rotation alternatives to join Cole, and the Americans are hoping for a combination of Domingo German, Jordan Montgomery, and Luis Severino. Who in the group of the interesting American young guns receives innings and makes the best of it to prove that they belong for 2021?
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