The New York Yankees struggled in the playoffs and are now irrelevant in the offseason, but acquiring A.J. Pierzynski as their catcher could amend for a very poor winter thus far for the Yanks.
It has been embarassing to say the least for the Bronx Bombers. Ken Rosenthal actually said they became the Coupon Clippers as they have tried trimming their payroll dramatically.
However, they lost previous free agent Eric Chavez and a possible third baseman in Jeff Keppinger. They even lost their bidding war for Russell Martin to the Pittsburgh Pirates.
When was the last time the Yankees lost anything to the Pirates? You'd have to go all the way back to the 1960 World Series.
The Yankees need a catcher unless they plan on having fans painfully watch Francisco Cirvelli behind the plate.
Nothing against Cirvelli, but he'd be a starter if he played for the Pirates or Houston Astros. He's a great player, but the Yankees are known for having the best of the best at every position.
PIerzynski is a veteran and an upgrade to Martin and Cirvelli. He had his career high in homers, smashing 27 and matching his career high 77 RBI with a .278 batting average.
Pierzynski can hit, he can catch making him a great candidate to lead a pitching staff.
He won a World Series championship with the White Sox as they were champions in 2005.
The Yankees have a lot of power hitters, but they strikeout a lot. Pierzynski is a contact hitter and could possibly even hit second since he has never struckout more than 78 times in a season.
He's durable and dependent playing around 130 games per season.
I don't know what else there is to say about PIerzynski. The Yankees need to sign him before another team comes up and snatches up another possible free agent.
The idea of trimming the payroll is cute, but on the other hand, Hal and Hank Steinbrenner have to realize that they need quality players on the field to fill those expensive stands of Yankee Stadium.
As the Yankees have shown interest in Kevin Youkilis, the two guys know each other as they spent the past couple of months playing for the White Sox.
Is a reunion in sore for these guys?
We'll keep you posted.