Robinson Cano has been a rather hot topic among Yankee fans this season. His 2008 performance is obviously not up to expectations, both in the field and at the plate. Let me preface this by saying that I am a huge Robbie Cano fan. I own only one authentic jersey, and I chose Robbie's number. So maybe I am a little biased, but that's the beauty of a blog, eh?Without further ado: DO NOT TRADE ROBINSON CANO! I cannot stress this enough. We all know Cano's 2008 was disappointing, but let's take a step back and look at the facts. Robbie is a mere 25 years old already in his fourth season. In his first three seasons (05, 06, and 07), Cano hit .297/.320/.458, .342/.365/.525, and .306/.353/.488, respectively. For a guy in his early twenties playing through the rigors of New York, I'd say those numbers say one thing: Talent.
Cano has shown the potential to hit 25 homers a year and his defense (for the most part) is silky smooth. He has committed a few well-publicized errors, but by no means is he a "bad fielder". Do you know what Cano's biggest problem was this year? April. Robbie hit an abysmal .151 in April. Since May 1st, Cano is hitting .290, which isn't such a bad number. He started slumping again in September, made a few bonehead defensive plays, and got benched. I fully endorse Girardi's decision to bench Cano, and I hope he does it more often if it is necessary to whoever the player in question is. That said, since being benched, over the last week Cano has gone 7 for 20, and 6 of his last 9. Even when he's making outs, he is hitting the ball hard and flashing his power again. I fully believe this season is a fluke.
All that aside, it is simply not smart baseball to sell low on your star players. We sold low on Jose Tabata, who still got us a good return, but all this talk about Hughes and Cano being traded is nonsense. Cano can easily return to all-star caliber playing next season, and we'll feel like idiots for even discussing it. Trading Cano would also leave a big hole at second base that would not be easily filled. Orlando Hudson is the only good FA option for second base, and we have no options in our own system. Hudson is hitting to a .305 tune this year, which is plenty good. The problem is Hudson can have trouble staying healthy at times, while Cano plays in almost every game, every year, and Cano certainly has the potential to exceed a .305/.367/.450 line. Oh, and Hudson is 5 years older than Robbie, and he is a type A free agent, meaning we would have to sacrifice a draft pick to sign him. That doesn't exactly fit the mold of getting younger and more athletic.
The bottom line is, I regard trading Cano as a silly idea. The kid as immense talent, and has already shown in his first three seasons that his talent translates well to the majors. Maybe he just needs a little more tough love, or maybe this was just a fluke season. Either way, its far too early to give up on a guy like Cano.
2 comments:
Hey Justin,
Nice first blog! Welcome back. I agree with you completely about Cano. He's young and a solid position player. The Yankees have much bigger issues to address since they are missing the playoffs in many years. What to do with Joba, resign Messina, Pettite, etc. Sorry you missed the last Yankee stadium game on TV. It was a great game (especially since they won) and the history and recognition of all the Yankees greats was well done. Sounded like Bernie (your favorite) got one of the biggest ovations of the night. I wish they had done a Bernie Williams night a long time ago. Class act! I saved it on the DVR for you. Interesting that there was no mention of The Rocket during the telecast. Keep up the good work and get back to your studies!! See ya.
I agree bro. I'm a big Robbie fan, but we both know he needs to hustle more and keep his head in the game. He plays for the Yankees, and he needs to understand that wearing the pinstripes is no BS. As long as he can do those things, he should have a great career, hopefully for us. But yeah, jettisoning him after one sub par year is downright foolish.
Post a Comment