ANALYZING STEPHEN DREW: THE FANS SPEAK

I am always a fan of solid fan banter when it comes to BYB and our audience. That's why we are here and you guys get it. I love that!

I wanted to share this great discussion between some of our readers and our writer Steve Skinner. The dialog too place after we posted his terrific piece REPLACING DEREK JETER.  The discussion surrounded Stephen Drew and his possible future with the Yankees.  Check it out:

Mister D writes:

"I am always, always, always in favor of giving kids a shot, and am not in favor of bringing back Drew, but arguing as the devil's advocate: Drew had an uncharacteristically down season. He should rebound, and can likely be had on a cheap, 1 year deal. The Yankees clearly have other holes to fill, and shortstop will be one of the hardest. 

With JJ Hardy signed, and Hanley a risky and expensive FA alternative, there don't seem to be many good, safe options for them. They can live with mediocrity at one position, and Drew can act as a placeholder while they shore up their problems in other places. At the very least he can play Tony Womack and provide insurance for Pirela. 

If Pirela works out, they can release or trade Drew with little regret."

Steve Skinner writes:

"I have to disagree with you. The last time Drew played in 150 games was 2010. Since then, he's managed to hit .250 twice. Uncharacteristically down season? I think it's more like a trend for him. A. He's not going to put in a full season and B. He's not going to hit his weight. How much longer do you think we need to wait? Pirela is 24. What more does he have to prove in the minor leagues? Honestly, the Yankees lineup is not strong enough to carry a player who is basically an automatic out at the plate. Pirela at least has a ceiling...Drew's has come and gone... "

Todd Stanfield writes:

"Steve; this is a great piece and I wholeheartedly agree that this is what Cashman should do. I would rather see him do this and fail than spend all those millions on dried up prunes and fail."

Steve Skinner writes:

" Thank you for the comments and compliment. I truly appreciate it and hope that Cashman now realizes his need to change..."

That's just good, smart conversation and most of all respectful.  I appreciate Mister D and Todd commenting and I loved  this piece by Skinner.  Good work all around.

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MICHAEL BOURN A YANKEE? NICK CAFARDO THINKS SO...

Who's Nick Cafardo? One of the best Boston sports guys out there.  I tend to lean toward Pete Abraham who used to cover the Yankees beat back in the day and now covers the Sox, but Nick is the man and he floated a very interesting idea that he is hearing from "some"...

"...It will be interesting to see where Bourn’s market goes. Some believe the Yankees are quietly interested and will pounce if the price comes down, which would give them the leadoff hitter they have wanted for some time..."

Cafardo's full piece from the Globe is HERE. Michael Bourn is a terrific athlete, he's 29, he's got mad speed. The idea that he can demand millions in the free agent market is not far fetched, but I just don't see how the Yankees could compete with that in their "hurry up and wait" state right now.  You have to figure if the Yankees couldn't afford someone like Josh Hamilton, how in the world can they afford anyone else demanding a big contract.  Then again, Brian Cashman is a genius when it comes to the shell game and we could wake up on Christmas morning and Bourn's in pinstripes. Stranger things have happened. One issue with Bourn and this is my own theory... Scott Boras is his agent.  I doubt the Yankees are touching that.

Besides, if it were to happen, I hope he doesn't turn into another Tony Womack... remember him?

Thank you Nick for this nugget. No offense to Tony Womack...

Please comment, we have DISQUS, it's easier than ever. Let me know what you think and follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue on Facebook, just type it in.

2000's MOST EXCITING PLAYER: CANO OR SORIANO?

When most of us see how great Robinson Cano is for us, we tend to forget that the Yankees had a player who was a 30/30 player every year, just missed the 40/40 mark and was always a threat for the lone member of the 50/50 club. His name is Alfonso Soriano.
(In Photo: Alfonso Soriano)
Soriano played second base for the Bombers regularly in 2001 until the end of the 2003 season. His best year was in 2002 where he had 209 hits, 39 homers, 41 steals, 102 RBI, and an even had a .300 average. That's pretty damn great! Soriano missed out on the 40/40 club that year by 1 home run, and later achieved that feat in 2006 with the Nationals as he recorded 46 Home Runs and 41 stolen bases.

Soriano had a huge future ahead of him in the Bronx and was only 26 in 2002 during his monster season. He was one of the most sought after players in baseball for his great display of speed and power. He was traded along with a player to be named later, which became Joaquin Arias, and cash for our current 3rd baseman, Alex Rodriguez.

For 2 seasons the Yankees were without an everyday second baseman, shuffling between Tony Womack, and Miguel Cairo while trying to find a permanent solution.(In Photo: Tony Womack/Getty)
The solution was in their own farm system. His name was Robinson Cano. Cano came in 3rd place in the AL MVP voting last year, and is a staple in the current Yankees lineup much like Alfonso was about 10 years ago.Now, let's compare Cano and Soriano.

• Soriano definitely wins the battle in speed as Cano has never stolen more than 5 bases in a season and Soriano's lowest single season steals is 9.

• Soriano also wins the power category, as he averaged 31 home runs per year as a Yankee, and Cano's most home runs in a season is 29.
  

• Cano does own the 2 most categories for a second baseman though and Cano is also by far a better fielder as Soriano committed countless errors. Cano also wins the batting average battle, as Soriano's highest averaged in 1 season is just .300, and Cano's has batted over .300 4 times between 2005 and now.

Finally know this. This comparison was done calculating Cano's stats from the beginning of his Yankee career in 2005. Alfonso Soriano's stats were pulled from 2000 when he was a Yankee to 2006 with the Nationals. We did this to keep it relatively equal. So, now you know, if you were to choose between Soriano or Cano, who would you choose and why?

Let me know by emailing me, will.cohen.bleedingyankeeblue@gmail.com, hitting me on Twitter, @Wccohen11 or adding me on Facebook. I will respond.



--Will Cohen, BYB Staff Writer

Please comment and let me know what you think and follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue on Facebook, just type it in.