Yankees Individual Player Grades- The Hitters

Now that the regular season is over, it’s time to hand out the regular season grades to each player, this time I’ll be grading the position players and next time will be the pitchers. These grades are based solely on the regular season and mostly on what each player’s expectations were and whether they lived up to them or not, standard F-A grade system.

Jorge Posada- 2007 was Posada’s finest season yet, and at age 36 that is no small feat for a catcher. Posada hit .338 with 20 HR’s and 90 RBI’s, with his batting average climbing an astounding .60 points in one season. Posada’s defense did take a bit of a hit however, as Posada was the second least efficient catcher in throwing out base runners this season, only ahead of Jason Kendall. The defensive fallout may seem like a blip on the radar but it’s the only thing keeping Posada from receiving a perfect score this season.
Grade- A-

Doug Mientkiewicz- Doug Mientkiewicz got off to a miserable start for the Yankees at the plate, as he hit just .154 in April. After missing a large part of the season with a fractured wrist and being forgotten behind Andy Phillips, Mientkiewicz hit .429 since returning from the DL while providing stellar defense at 1B throughout it all. He’s even likely played himself into substantial playing time throughout the postseason, and for a guy who many expected to be lucky to break the Mendoza line this season, that’s not half bad.
Grade- B-

Jason Giambi- Nobody expected Jason Giambi to regain his 2001 AL MVP form, but he was certainly expected to contribute and whether he did or not is arguable. To be fair, Giambi did battle foot problems throughout most of the season but that hardly seems to make up for his .236 BA. His .356 OBP is still not bad but Giambi has become some what of the odd man out and will remain so in the playoffs with Hideki Matsui being relegated to DH duties at first. Not what one would want from someone making over $17 million a year.
Grade- D+

Robinson Cano- Robinson Cano was a steady player before the all star break (.274, 6, 40) but was spectacular after the break (.343, 13, 57). Cano has become arguably the best second baseman in the AL and second in baseball behind only Chase Utley. Despite nearly a .40 point drop in batting average from last season, Cano improved in most aspects of his game this season, hitting 4 more home runs (15 to 19), scoring 31 more runs (62 to 93), and driving in 19 more runs (78 to 97). To be fair, Cano did have nearly 150 more at bats then last season, but the progress he’s made has to be encouraging.
Grade- B+

Derek Jeter- After a season in which he hit .343, drove in 97 runs, scored 118, stole 34 bases, and finished second in the MVP voting, Derek Jeter has regressed quite a bit in all of those categories in 2007. Still, it’s hard to argue with a .322 BA. Jeter’s fielding percentage fell slightly as well from .975 to .970 and he made three more errors, but another gold glove may still be likely due to the lack of validity that award carries. October is still time for Jeter to sine though, as Jeter is a career .314 hitter in the post season and he holds the record for most post season hits with 128 for now.
Grade- B-

Alex Rodriguez- Nobody was quite sure what to expect from Alex Rodriguez following another dismal post season showing in 2006, and his early error in Game 1 of the season seemed like a bad omen for the season. However, Rodriguez put everything behind him and had an epic season, hitting .314 with 54 HR’s, 156 RBI’s, 143 runs, and 24 SB’s. A-Rod even cut his errors nearly in half this season from 24 in 2006 to 13 so a Gold Glove would be warranted, even if it is a meaningless award. A-Rod is sure to claim his second MVP award as a Yankee, but it will all mean nothing if he continues to drive in 0 runs in the playoffs. Still, as this is nearly a regular season grade, Alex Rodriguez will earn the only perfect grade of any of the Yankees hitters.
Grade- A+

Hideki Matsui- Matsui’s April, consisting of a .207 batting average and a hamstring injury, was cause for a lot of concern after his injury plagued 2006 season as well. Once Matsui returned form the DL his batting average came along, but the power was still lacking as Matsui only had 8 home runs at the start of July. Matsui’s hot July put that fear to rest with 13 home runs and Matsui finished with a workman’s like .285-25-103-100 line. His defense has declined in left field even further, however, as Johnny Damon has taken many of the starts in left with Matsui being relegated to DH duties, as will be the case in the post season. Still, Matsui’s steady production cannot be overlooked and he should make good on the final 2 years of his contract.
Grade- B+

Johnny Damon- Johnny Damon opened the 2007 as the Yankees starting center fielder but finished the season as somewhat of a role player. Damon was nicked up through most of the beginning of the season so his play slowed down considerably, as he hit just .229 in April. Damon started to be benched frequently by manager Joe Torre, meanwhile Melky Cabrera asserted himself as a regular and stole Damon’s old position as the starting center fielder. However, Damon flourished in his new role, as he hit .297 in August and .313 in September with diminished playing time. Damon has started most of his game at DH or LF nowadays and once again finds himself penciled into the starting lineup more times then not. It’s beneficial to the team that Damon has succeeded in his new role, but his overall line of .270-1263-93-27 still leaves a lot to be desired.
Grade- C+

Melky Cabrera- Melky Cabrera was the antithesis to Johnny Damon, he started year off as a role player but eventually became the starting center fielder and is likely to remain so for the Yankees for years to come. Melky, like many of the Yankees hitters, was off to a slow start when he hit just .200 in April. Melky took off in June and never looked back, well except for a sup-par September in which he struggled and only hit .180. Melky still lacks the power the Yankees would like to see from an outfielder and lacks the speed to make up for it, but this is less of a problem with him as a center fielder rather then a corner out fielder. Melky’s overall line sits at .273-8-73-66-13, which is comparable to his stats last season, but something that is somewhat alarming was his plummeting K/BB rate which fell from 59/56 last season to 68/43 this season. If the trend continues then Melky may not remain a viable regular for much longer, but for now he still had a solid season.
Grade- B-

Bobby Abreu- Bobby Abreu, again like most of the Yankees hitters, got off to a rather slow start, hitting just .253 in April and bottoming out with a .208 May. There were talks that he was washed up and rumors of the Yankees trying to trade him. The old adage says “Sometimes the best trades are the ones you don’t make”, and that’s certainly the case with Abreu. Abreu rebounded to go .305-.390-11-60-64 after the All Star break and was a huge reason for the Yankees comeback to make the playoffs. Abreu’s final line broke down at .283-16-101-123-25, a spectacular all around season. He drove in 100 runs for the 5th straight season (6 out of 7), but failed to draw 100 walks for the first time since 1998. Abreu still enjoyed a fine season and made it an easy decision for Brian Cashman to pick up his option for next season.
Grade- B+

Same Old Mo?

After his blown save on September 28th against the Orioles, there was a surprising amount of criticism thrown in the direction of Yankees closer Mariano Rivera. Rivera gave up 3 earned runs on 3 hits to blow his fourth save of the season in 34 chances. Most of the concern about Rivera stems from his age as at the age of 37 most players’ best days are behind them. In some ways, there may be some reason to be concerned as this is the first season since his rookie year in 1995 that Rivera will finish the season with an ERA over 3.00, but that really should be the end of the concerns. A 3.15 ERA is still nothing to sneeze at, nor are 4 blown saves. In addition, Rivera’s WHIP, a far better indicator of a pitcher’s performance then ERA, is still lower then his 1997 WHIP of 1.19 and comparable to his 2000 WHIP of 1.10 and no one was questioning Rivera based on his performance then. In comparison, the Cleveland Indians closer, Joe Borowski, has blown twice as many saves as Rivera and has an ERA nearly two runs higher then that of Rivera’s (5.07). October is Rivera’s time to shine as well, and while there may be a few notable blow ups in October for Rivera (Game 7 of 2001 WS and the 2004 ALCS), but Rivera is the best there has ever been in the post season when it comes to closer, featuring an all time line of 8-1 with a miniscule 0.80 ERA. No player can last forever, and Rivera will break down sooner or later, but the Yankees and their fans have no reason to worry about Rivera for this season and it begs the question of who would you rather have as your closer in a big spot? Joe “sure I led the leagues in saves but I suck anyways” Borowski? The Yankees would be wise to give Rivera at least a 2 year deal this off season while they groom their new closer and Rivera will likely deliver during those two more seasons.

Prospect Profile: Jose Tabata

After being one of the Yankees brightest stars in the minor leagues, Jose Tabata has become somewhat of a forgotten man in the Yankees farm system. This is due mostly to Tabata’s wrist injuries and the subsequent wrist surgery that cut his 2007 season short and caused him to miss time during his season in single A Tampa. The #6 ranked outfield prospect by scout.com in 2006, Jose Tabata is a 5-11, 160 lb outfielder from Venezuela. Tabata is still only 19 years old so there is certainly plenty of time for him to put his wrist problems behind him. Tabata was signed as an international free agent by the Yankees in 2005.
After hitting .314 as a sixteen year old in the Yankees GCL rookie league, the buzz around Tabata began to grow exponentially. Tabata’s legend only grew after hittng .298 with the low single A Charleston River Dogs and by the time spring training of 2007 rolled around Tabata even hit .429 with the Yankees during spring training. However, his following 2007 season with the high single A Tampa Yankees was derailed by his wrist injuries and eventually cut short by the surgery. Still, Tabata proved he could handle the next level while not even being 100% healthy, hitting .307 with 5 home runs while in the line up. Overall, Tabata has hit .305 in his minor league career. Some scouts have compared Tabata’s offense to that of a young Manny Ramirez, but the fact that he only hit 13 minor league home runs in his three seasons makes you wonder if he really will ever develop that type of power. Tabata is regarded as a far superior defender then Ramirez, but he’ll likely land in one of the corner outfield spots in the majors, especially considering Melky Cabrera’s emergence as the Yankees centerfielder of the future. It’s tricky to try to predict Jose Tabata’s time of arrival since it also depends on the Yankees plans with their other outfielders. Tabata has the talent to potentially be with the Yankees at some point next season, but New York’s crowded outfield likely will not make room for him until Bobby Abreu, Johnny Damon, or Hideki Matsui are gone. Damon and Matsui have two years each left on their contracts and Abreu has a one year option for next season that is almost certain to be picked up, so if his success continues Tabata could have a starting spot in right field ready for him in 2009.