Wednesday, December 09, 2009

Granderson to Yankees

Curtis Granderson went to the Yankees as the main part of a three team, seven player trade. As a Red Sox fan - I like this trade. I like it a lot.

Granderson's defense is over-rated and his offense has been in steady decline the past three years (his OPS has declined from .913 to .858 to .780 this season). He plain can't hit lefties (.210 career batting average against lefties) and if the Yankees plan to use him as a lead-off hitter then this year's line-up will be a step down from last year's line-up that had Johnny Damon setting the table. On top of all that - Granderson has a career .728 OPS against Boston.

The Yankees greatly weakened their bullpen with this trade by sending Phil Coke who was a rock last season. They also gave up two of their biggest trading chips in Ian Kennedy and Austin Jackson - meaning that they probably cannot make another big trade this offseason without completely depleting their farm system.

The Yankees trading Austin Jackson is akin to the Red Sox trading Lars Anderson. It was a nice move by Detroit landing Jackson. I wouldn't be at all surprised if Jackson at least matched Granderson's .780 OPS from last season if the 22-year old Jackson is given the chance to start this season.

Adding Jackson also puts in question the Yankees determination to sign either Jason Bay or Matt Holliday.

As a Red Sox fan - I like this trade a lot.

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