WHY IT'S A BITTERSWEET CELEBRATION IN YANKEELAND

I have been trying to wrap my head around the Jesus Montero trade for hours now and I went through a mini “Anger phase.” I skipped a few of the steps, but the stages were pretty similar. The morning after I can finally ask myself objectively, does this trade make the Yankees better? I can objectively answer… sure it does, we now have a full rotation. Am I sold on the idea yet? Not really, but it is progress since Friday. So, I am going to play a little devil’s advocate here. We heard Casey’s thoughts about the trade in WHY MONTERO FOR PINEDA WILL PROVE GENIUS, but there is always another side to consider, right?
There are so many things to like about Michael Pineda. Sure he has a power fastball that even makes me forget that he is just 22 years old. He was an All-Star in 2011 and struck out 173 batters in 171 innings also….so, maybe you think I am crazy and ask, “what’s not to like?” I also look at his pitching stats and see an interesting platoon situation. Can Rothschild fix that? Sure. But numbers are there to analyze, right? I wonder how these numbers could change with that short porch in right. I may be going out on a limb here, but can Pineda put up similar numbers in the AL East? Comparing the AL West and the AL East is like comparing apples and oranges, it just isn’t the same. Does Pineda have the arsenal to be successful here? I think so but only time will tell.

Another thing that got me thinking was a quote I found from Cashman himself. He described the trade as a “huge risk,” and that he “gave up a ton (for Pineda)," Read HERE. Cashman then went on to draw a likeness to Mike Piazza, who had an amazing career as a catcher regardless of his team affiliation….I give him props. So now I ask, if you think he has potential to be a Piazza, why would you trade him? I know Cashman is a smart GM, but I would hate to think that he was just blowing smoke here. So while other people may say that this trade benefits both sides, or that the Yankees made a great deal, I did not get the same vote of confidence from Cashman himself. Again, I could be wrong…but that is why I play devil’s advocate.I think my stages of anger also come from the thought process that somewhere in my mind I had already determined Montero’s fate, and his story was written. I thought that someday my kids were going to talk about Montero the way I talk about the Yankees I have idolized. I could see my kids giving him nicknames like “Montero the Great.” Hey, we have done this ourselves, so why couldn’t it happen? I now cringe thinking about the possibility of watching Montero take us deep, or turn into a superstar on another team that we play against knowing that WE developed him. I know I can’t be completely alone in this thought process.

I know there are so many different viewpoints to this trade; and I am sure for the days to come we will have more to share here. In the end, I realize that as a team we got the pitching we have needed for a long time. I know you have to give up something to get something, I just wonder if Pineda will pay off for us. One thing is for sure…the Yankees are now stacked with pitchers and now the Yankees have more questions to answer with that. Do I have all of the answers? No, and I doubt the Yankees do at this point but at least we have a different challenge ahead of us. Don’t forget…we are the Yankees, and we never back down from a challenge.

--Jeana Bellezza --BYB Writer and Editor

By the way... you think this is clever? Check out Bronx Goblin... HERE and HERE. Hilarious.

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