If you follow baseball, you probably started hearing rumblings about Curtis Granderson being traded to the Yankees early in the day. A few hours later, it was supposedly dead. Then after a couple MORE hours, the on-again, off-again Curtis Granderson trade was done.
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Yankees general manager Brian Cashman made a deal that locked up an all-star player for the peak of his career. Granderson’s contract is very manageable and the Yankees didn’t have to give up too much to get him. The Bombers parted ways with lefty reliever Phil Coke along with prospects Ian Kennedy and Austin Jackson. Here’s how Rotoworld described the deal:
The Yanks did really well here, snagging the 28-year-old Granderson for Ian Kennedy, Austin Jackson and Phil Coke. It’s a small price to pay for a player of Granderson’s talent and personality. As part of the three-way deal, Detroit will receive right-handers Max Scherzer and Daniel Schlereth from Arizona and Coke and Jackson from the Yanks. The D’Backs, meanwhile, receive a questionable return in Edwin Jackson from the Tigers and Kennedy from the Yanks. Granderson can be used in either left or center field in New York, giving general manager Brian Cashman some flexibility in regards to Johnny Damon and Hideki Matsui, who are now likely on the outs. It’s safe to say the Tigers now have the payroll flexibility they wanted while securing a tremendous haul of young players.
This is yet another instance where Brian Cashman squeezes maximum value out of a transaction. Not only does he have Granderson’s ability and manageable salary, but he also gives himself more leverage with Damon and Matsui. And no respect to Phil Coke, but Granderson’s personality will probably have a much bigger positive impact on the Yankees clubhouse. So he even fills the “character void” if Damon and Matsui both play elsewhere.
You can also gauge the quality of the trade by looking at what the Boston press is saying about it. Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe, who covered the Yankees as recently as last year, complimented the deal and said that the “move by the Yankees will only increase calls that he [Theo Epstein] does something.” The Boston Herald wrote that Granderson was “too good to pass up.” The Herald also quoted Theo Epstein who said that the Yankees will win “between 95 and 100 games.” Hey, that guy is pretty smart! That estimation may be a tad conservative though.
Tags: arizona diamondbacks, austin jackson, baseball, brian cashman, curtis granderson, detroit tigers, hot stove, ian kennedy, MLB, new york yankees, phil coke, trade, winter meetings
