I see why people could see why Jeter should've moved for A-Rod, even though I disagree. However, there is the issue of whether or not Jeter could play 3rd base, or at least in transition. I think that as a whole, Arod at third and Jeter at short is better defensively than the other way around. Arod is a better athlete, so his position change would be smoother than Jeter's. Jeter throws across his body, which can be a liability at third where he would be facing the other side of the diamond, and not at an angle at short where he doesn't need to change his fielding-to-throwing direction much. I think this is a huge credit to Arod who has gone to third base and played above average (minus one season) and better than expected. I can't see Jeter doing the same.
I had thought that Jeter should have gone to 2nd for A-rod not 3rd. I agree with you in that I think that it was easier for A-rod to make the change instead of Jeter. Just imagine the backlash if Jeter did move and his numbers suffered because of it.
When did Mattingly say he would move for keith hernandez? and how does moving a guy who does moving a great GG 1B to the OF for another great GG 1B help a team? That weakens your OF to have a similar caliber player at 1B- that makes no sense. Jeter is the far better player, Rod is the far better fantasy player- there's a major difference. Met fans and non-Yankee fans love ARod b/c he is killing the Yanks.
The only time I remember Mattingly doing anything in terms of changing his position was when he played third. (I think it was for Jack Clark to play first, but I don't remember for sure. Maybe it was Cecil Fielder?) I don't remember Mattingly ever suggesting Hernandez become part of the team, much less offer to switch positions for him. I agree with your assessment of ARod vs Jeter too. Other team's fans are enamored with ARod because 1) he's POTENTIALLY the best player in the game, and 2) he hurts the Yankees. The fact is, Jeter stayed at short for a good reason. He earned his stripes. ARod was the rookie trying to break through when he joined the Yanks. Jeter was the incumbent vet. When ARod showed up with the hope of piggybacking on the team's success, it Derek's team. If Jeter was a poor, or even subpar SS, then it would have been a bad move leaving him at short. But he isn't. He is a very good SS. Granted, when ARod played short, he was a superior SS, but that doesn't make Jeter a bad shortstop. Now, for argument's sake, let's say ARod came to NY, and took over the SS position, and Jeter moved anywhere else. I don't care what position you choose, be it 3rd, 2nd, or even the outfield. The big question is, would Jeter's offensive output have changed? Something tells me that the answer is no. Would the same be said of ARod? The fact is, ARod has had problems at the plate for reasons other than his play in the field. So that leads to the argument that it would have had more of an impact on the team in terms of chemistry by moving the proven post-season performer who clearly did not want to move, with little benefit as a payoff. ARod would still be choking in October, and Derek would just be pissed off. So how is that better for the team? The clear answer to the problem, IMO, is getting rid of ARod. He's a money pit who is not providing equal value in relation to his salary. Now on to more interesting news. I don't know what the story is, but I just saw the back page of the paper saying Pavano is AGAIN out. Thanks a lot Cashman. When we had the opportunity to string Colorado out for him, you just had to "prove" that you made the right move bringing him in. Well, you were wrong. Now what? We're stuck with this piece of crap, and nothing to do about it. I've been very vocal in my support for Cashman, but I did say that Pavano's performance could swing my opinion, and thus far, he has. This is akin to the SD Chargers situation where the GM wanted to keep Rivers and dump Brees, in order to save face. The difference is, Rivers showed potential and no reason to believe he would be a failure, especially with the talent around him. Pavano has shown nothing since being here. This is big mistake, and it's going to sting for a while.
Mattingly did play 3rd but out of despertaion b/c of injuries I believe and he didn't play many games there.
Uh, Alio, Jeter is a poor, or even sub-par defensive SS. That said, A-Rod is more physically gifted and is talented enough to play 3rd Base better than Jeter could play any other position. And he has done very well, up until his nervous breakdown last year.
That Cashman is such an asshole for ordering a player to hit a line drive back at Pavano's foot! He should have traded him before he was drilled! Maybe next time we should investigate the situation before we jump to conclusions?
So you're saying you know more about baseball then Mattingly? It makes your team better because Mex was a better defensive player then Mattingly, even Don admits it. So your team is strengthened by upgrading at firstbase if Mex is there instead of Don. Likewise having Arod at short is an upgrade because you now have the best defensive player on the team playing the most important defensive position. It's not really that difficult of a concept to grasp is it? Fanatsy had nothing to do with this. We're talking about who is the better defensive short stop and that answer is obviously A-rod.
The addition of A-Rod at 3B has allowed Jeter to re-position himself defensively, which in turn reduces his lack of range. Pre-ARod, Jeter was a poor/subpar defensive player. Now, he's a decent defensive player. Let's also remember, the Gold Glove is rarely awarded to the real best defensive player.
With the exception of fist pumps and fake dives into the stands, I can't think of one aspect of Jeter's game that is on Arods level.
I guess it had nothing to do with the rest of your team... unless of course you're implying that all those Yankee teams enjoyed a little fistpumping. :lol:
I was kidding actually. I thought that would be the only way to really respond to a shadetree post no?
So who's right? Rawlings, which sponsors the Gold Glove Award, wants to know. In celebrating the 50th anniversary of the award, Rawlings is conducting a nationwide, online poll, asking fans to choose the greatest defenders of all time, position by position. There are some obvious choices on our ballot, including Brooks Robinson at third, Robbie Alomar at second, Ozzie Smith at short. But first base? Good luck. "Come on, you know I'm not going to touch that one," Joe Torre said with a laugh. "I've always hated Keith because he took my job [with the Cardinals in 1975]. But there's no way to choose between them." Jason Giambi picked Mattingly for sentimental reasons – "Donnie was my favorite player" – while Alex Rodriguez was on the verge of choosing Hernandez because, as a die-hard Met fan growing up, "I watched every single Met on WOR for four straight years. I saw so much more of Mex than I did Donnie." A-Rod didn't officially choose Mattingly, however, because as he said with a rueful smile, "Yankee fans already hate me." Mattingly wasn't surprised to hear the vote was split even in his own clubhouse. This is, after all, a debate for the ages – one that Mattingly helped fuel in 1986 when he said he'd move to left field if Hernandez were ever traded to the Yankees. But that's not to say Mattingly was conceding to his Mets counterpart. Quite the contrary. Donnie Baseball said, "I could pick it with anyone." Yet, Mattingly had nothing but praise for Hernandez, standing by his assertion that if it would've meant becoming teammates with the Met first baseman, he would've vacated the position. "I meant what I said, I would've moved to left for Keith," Mattingly said Saturday. "I would've done it because we would've been a better team with the two of us on the same field. I wouldn't have minded if he played first instead of me. "Funny thing is, I didn't get to see him play that much, maybe once in a while on TV. But whenever I saw Keith field bunts up the first base line and make that throw to third, I'd say, 'Wow, that's incredible.' I remember thinking how great he was on plays like that." http://www.northjersey.com/page.php...lRUV5eTcwODM5ODAmeXJpcnk3ZjcxN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXk2
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