The great New York Yankees teams of the 1990’s and 2000’s certainly had their share of veterans who, if they had signed with any other team, probably would’ve gone unnoticed. This year’s team features a core group of much younger players that includes future superstar Gary Sanchez. As a young first baseman with the potential to follow a long list of Yankee greats at the position, like Don Mattingly, Tino Martinez, Jason Giambi and most recently, Mark Teixeira, Greg Bird has some mighty big shoes to fill. Then there’s the 6’7 Aaron Judge, who’ll be taking over for Carlos Beltran (traded to the Texas Rangers last season) in right field, while competing with switch-hitter Aaron Hicks for playing time and at-bats.
There is a nice mix of veteran players who the younger and less experienced players can lean on for guidance, leadership, or help with whatever’s troubling them. With veteran hitters like Matt Holliday (37), Brett Gardner (33), Jacoby Ellsbury (33) and Chase Headley (32), there’s a wealth of knowledge for these young hitters to learn from over the course of a long season.
Veteran Yankees will add Excitement
Holliday
One of Brian Cashman’s main acquisitions was long-time St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Matt Holliday. Cashman was able to land the former All-Star during the Winter Meetings in December, when Holliday signed a one-year, $17 million deal. The former Cardinals standout will more than likely be the Yankees full-time designated hitter, while playing the outfield when needed. Over his 13-year career, Holliday has a career .303 batting average; in 2016, his average dropped to a worrying .246. Yet, he was still able to put forth a productive season. In 110 games, Holliday belted 20 homers and had 62 RBI with an OPS of .782. That would have been 11th-best in the National League, but he didn’t have enough at-bats to qualify.
Where Holliday will bat in the lineup still isn’t quite clear, but many believe it’ll be in the middle of the order where he has the most potential to make an impact. After all, Holliday is a seven-time All-Star who can still hit upwards of 20 home runs. His swing should work well in Yankees Stadium, where the right field porch is the shortest in MLB. Holliday also has a tremendous amount of grit, which Yankees brass hopes he passes along to his teammates, as Paul O’Neill did when he joined New York from the Cincinnati Reds in the early 90’s.
Ellsbury
Another veteran in the mix is Ellsbury, who once played for the divisional rival Boston Red Sox. Then, in 2014, Cashman made one of his worst baseball decisions ever by signing Ellsbury to a seven-year, $153 million contract. The center fielder is still owed $89.5 million through 2020 (he has a $21 million option/$5 million buyout in 2021).
Last season was a struggle for most of the veterans, especially Ellsbury. Through 148 games, the center fielder hit .263/.330/.374 with only nine home runs and a putrid 56 runs batted in. He did manage to swipe 20 bases, but for him that’s nothing. Over the past three seasons, the Yankees have come to expect very little from Ellsbury. During that span, the former Red Sox hit .264/.326/.382 with just 32 (10.6 per season) homers. If Ellsbury’s play continues to decline at the rate it has, then prospects like Clint Frazier and Tyler Austin will certainly take his place on the field.
Gardner
Since Derek Jeter retired from baseball in 2014, Gardner has been the closest thing to a Yankee Captain. Perhaps its the way he goes about his daily business. In nine years, Gardy’s stats might not scream “look at me,” but they are quietly impactful season after season. The only real faults in his game are his failure to steal as many bases as he could, given his blazing speed, and his inability to reach a .300 batting average as a leadoff hitter.
Gardner makes up for his shortcomings at the plate and on the base paths by playing a stellar left field. The Yankees outfielder has a fielding percentage of .9919, which is the fourth-highest by a Yankees left fielder in club history. Gardner’s all out hustle on defense earned him a Gold Glove Award in 2016. He also finished second in the American League in fielding percentage (.989), as well as in putouts (249).
For the past three seasons, Gardner has been floated as a player who could be on the move. However, his 2016 statistics (.261/.351/.362) were essentially dead on with his career numbers of .264/.346/.388. If he can continue at the pace he’s on now, there’s no need for the Yankees to move on from him.
Headley
In his fourth season as a member of the Yankees, Headley put forth another lackluster campaign. After Headley finished fifth in the NL MVP race in 2012, Cashman thought he was signing a player who could man the hot-corner for years to come. Yet, Headley has barely come close to the 33 home runs and league leading 115 RBI season he had in 2012.
In 2016, Headley had an offensive line of .253/.331/.385, along with 14 home runs and 51 RBI. Those numbers have a lot of Yankee officials and fans wondering if the $28 million that Headley is owed through 2018 is worth it.
The one thing that Headley can hang his hat on is his play at third base. He was much better in 2016 than in previous years. Headley’s fielding percentage in ’16 (.974) was nearly 30 points higher than his percentage in ’15 (.946). In addition, his ten errors last season were 13 fewer than he made in 2015.
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