Of third base and Tanaka
THE YANKEES probably got weaker at third base Saturday when Alex Rodriguez was hit with a 162-game drug ban and they added something to their winter to-do list — find someone to play the position every day.
But the club now might have a better-than-ever shot of getting under the $189 million luxury tax threshold with A-Rod’s contract likely coming off the books.
If the Yanks can’t sign Japanese ace Masahiro Tanaka, they’re “clearly going to be under ($189 million),” said a baseball official with knowledge of their payroll. “This will very much help with the 189.”
And if the Yanks do get Tanaka and ARod is out? “They’re close,” the person said
hatever happens with Tanaka, the Yanks have to figure out what to do at third base. All winter, GM Brian Cashman said Rodriguez, from a pure baseball standpoint, would be the club’s best option. Cashman also said he did not consider Eduardo Nunez or Brendan Ryan as potential stopgaps.
The Yanks have infielder Kelly Johnson, a lefthanded hitter, as an in-house choice, though Johnson’s only big-league experience at third is 16 games there last season for the Rays. There are other options outside the organization.
The Yankees are also talking to the agents for seven-time All-Star Michael Young, a baseball official said, though it’s “too early to tell” what might happen. Jayson Nix, a useful utility man for the Yanks recently, signed with the Rays.
The Yankees could try to convince shortstop Stephen Drew to make the move Rodriguez did when he joined the Yankees. But Drew was not keen on a move last winter when the Yanks courted him as a utility player and he agreed to be Boston’s shortstop instead.
At the winter meetings, the Yanks also expressed interest in Seattle infielders Dustin Ackely and Nick Franklin, a source said. But the sides might not match up for a potential trade.
The Yanks have also weighed a reunion with Mark Reynolds, the 30-year-old who played 36 games for them last season. But a source labeled it “unlikely” because the Yankees currently are offering him just a minor-league deal.
Back in December, Cashman, who did not respond to requests for comment on the thirdbase situation on Saturday, basically spiked the idea of Nunez taking over third base, saying he believes a corner infielder should provide power. Neither Nunez nor Ryan fits the bill. Nunez projects as a utility player, Cashman said.
Johnson might, be an option, considering he hit 16 homers in 366 at-bats last year and seems a good fit for the Stadium’s slugger-friendly right field porch.
Meanwhile, the Yankees could improve the team by shoring up their bullpen — relievers Grant Balfour and Fernando Rodney remain on the market — and they are hotly pursuing Tanaka, who some in baseball believe is primarily interested in big-market teams.
Tanaka has returned to his native country, according to Japanese media reports, after meeting with big-league teams in Los Angeles this week. The Yankees were said to have had a meeting scheduled with Tanaka and his agent, Casey Close, but no details were available.
The pitcher did not stop to talk to reporters at Tokyo’s Narita Airport after arriving home and it’s unclear where the Tanaka sweepstakes goes after this, considering the secrecy around the process of courting him. The Chicago White Sox were the only team to confirm a meeting with Tanaka, and Sox GM Rick Hahn called it “exploratory in nature.”