When this off season started in early November, I thought there was no reason the Rangers wouldn't again make a run at the World Series. However, since then, a few alarming things have taken place.
1) Cliff Lee leaving for the Phillies: Granted, he left the American League, We probably would have won the division without him and we were fairly certain when we traded for him that it would be just a 3 month loan. Once the playoffs started and the team started advancing to heights it had never been before, I, along with many others tricked ourselves into thinking he would resign with the Rangers and cement their status as a contender for years to come. Well, Cliff wanted to go to Philly and with him went our Ace and our "dominance" in the American League.
2) The signing of Adrian Beltre: For the last 10 years, the face of this ball club has been Michael Young, he is the emotional leader, the leader on the field and the leader in the clubhouse. He has moved from 2nd to short to 3rd, all at the request of the team. He is a perennial 200 hits, .300 BA guy and an above average fielder. The signing of Beltre put Mike's status with the team in question and was relatively unwarranted. Beltre is a power hitting stud at 3rd, but his best years take place in the final year of his contract. He is a great fielder but last season he had 19 errors at 3rd base. Do you know who else had 19 errors at 3rd last season? Michael Young.
3) Moving Michael Young to DH: With the signing of Beltre, the Rangers asked Young to move positions for a third time, this time to DH, a hitting-only spot on the roster. He reluctantly agreed with the team adding in that he would be the "super utility man". He would fill in for any injured infielder through the course of the year and he would split time at 1st with Mitch Moreland (something that is unfair to both Moreland and Young).
4) The Mike Napoli trade: Only a few weeks after Beltre was signed, the Rangers went on to trade Frankie Francisco to Toronto for Catcher/1B/DH Mike Napoli. As you would imagine, this did not sit well with Young, as it shouldn't have. He went from the starting 3rd baseman for the American League Champions, to the DH, to the part-time DH/utility infielder. You can say, why not just put Napoli at catcher and let Young keep his DH spot. Simple, the Rangers signed Yorvit Torrealba to take over for Benji Molina behind the plate AND the Rangers resigned Matt Treanor to be the back-up to Torrealba.
5) Michael Young asking to be traded: As one would expect, moves 2-4 did not rub Mike the right way. He was inevitably going to not play half the season, he would not play in National League parks during Inter-league play and depending on how Napoli fit in with the club, his playing time may be cut into even more. The Rangers have said they are willing to grant Young's request for a trade if the move with improve the franchise and not before that.
This whole offseason the Rangers have handled personnel issues and transactions very well, until the last few weeks. They refused to overpay for Lee and he left, they refused to overpay for Greinkie and he went elsewhere. They made moves that were smart for the team going forward and that were in the best interest of the club, until now. I think the Beltre deal was more of a blockage deal to stop the Angels from signing him, sadly we were the highest bidder and signed him.
The Napoli trade also makes no sense to me, trade for a catcher (which we already have two) or a first baseman (which we already have) or a DH (which we already have). Unless the Rangers have had plans to move Young all along, neither of these moves makes sense.
The front office has been so good at handling club issues internally, but this last week's war of words between the club and Young has shaken the boat ever so slightly, something that is cause for a bit of concern.
I don't think Young ends up being traded but he deserves better than being the back-up DH on this team. He has given too much and asked for too little to be treated this way. If the team can work out a deal that will improve the club, I am all for it, but until that point, don't settle just to make Young happy. He has been the face of the franchise for 10 years and deserves to be treated better.
Here's to hoping the Rangers know what they are doing.
Too me it is a matter of trust. For the last several years (prior to the Rangers playoff run) every sports reporter has been questioning the logic (and intelligence) of Jon Daniels. In truth the criticism waned when the baseball world recognized the farm team build up and then anointed JD king of GM's when they started making critical moves in spite of financial difficulties. I agree with you that the results sure seems unusual on what has transpired with Young. On paper it really makes no sense, especially looking at his salary dynamics. The question I ask is who is at fault here? Is Young over valuing his future contribution? Do the Rangers see an alarming skills decline? Is Young the kind of person that has to be told repeatedly he is important? Let's not forget, this is not the first time he has asked to be traded.
ReplyDeleteIt should be noted that, although Beltre did commit 19 errors last year, his range at 3rd base is far greater than that of Michael Young. In addition, while I do not favor trading Young, it is far better to let him go while there is still value, then to deal with him once it's over. It is one of the great strategies that Bill Belichick has been using in New England. Don't wait till it's too late to make a move.
ReplyDeleteWe often criticized Jerry Jones in the 90's for holding on to players too long, after they had lost a step. This is no longer the 1960s and 1970s, where loyalty is paramount. If you want to be a winning team year after year, you need to divorce yourself from the loyalty angle and do what is best for the team.
After all, in today's environment, a coach is only as good as his last victory. What decent organization keeps a coach who can't win? And what coach is more interested in player loyalty than keeping his own job? That's just the way it is today.
You also have to remember that while MY is still a very good hitter, his numbers have lowered over the last few seasons. He certainly could hit over .300 again, but when he was needed most last season, he was often mired in slumps. His playoff performances were also nothing to be proud of. Again, I am a huge Michael Young fan, and I hope he remains a Ranger. But he clearly is not getting any younger. The team made a mistake in the way it handled the situation. But not in the fact that there is a situation.