INDIANAPOLIS — Brian Cashman sounds like a general manager who doesn’t believe the Yankees’ designated hitter hole needs to be filled by Hideki Matsui or anybody else outside the organization.
“Juan Miranda can be a DH,” said Cashman, who cut off a question about not having a DH. “We have Jorge Posada, we have Mark Teixeira and A-Rod and a number of guys who can swing over on their days of rest. We have people we can play in that position internally right now.”
And if Johnny Damon returns he will get at-bats as the DH.
MANAGER: TRADE HALLADAY OUT OF AL
But Cashman is high on Miranda, a 26-year-old left-handed hitting first baseman from Cuba. He hit .290 with 19 homers and 92 RBIs for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (Triple-A). In eight big league games he batted .333 (3-for-9) with a homer and three RBIs.
“I don’t want to over-sell anybody, but I think Juan Miranda will do a nice job against right-handed pitching if that’s what we have to do,” Cashman said. “Is that the right way to go? I think the market will dictate that.”
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Larry Bowa said he thinks the Yankees pulled a heist yesterday.
In return for trading reliever Brian Bruney to the Nationals, the Yankees told Washington who to take in yesterday’s Rule 5 draft. That was Jamie Hoffman, a well-built 25-year-old outfielder with a big upside.
“He will be an every-day big league player,” the Dodgers third base coach said. “You look at him for the first time and [the swing] is ugly. But he will figure it out. He is a tough guy. He reminds me of Hunter Pence. It looks ugly, but he gets it done. He finds ways to get it done. He is a big worker.”
If the Yankees don’t have a spot for Hoffman, they must offer him back to the Nationals. If they refuse, Hoffman would have to travel through waivers and likely would be claimed.
“The Dodgers last year released him from their roster and everybody put claims on him, but they had a pre-deal to sign him back so they gave him a $25,000 signing bonus so he denied all the claims,” Cashman said.
Hoffmann batted .182 (4-for-22) with a homer and seven RBIs in 14 games for the Dodgers this past season. He played in 97 combined games at Triple-A Albuquerque and Double-A Chattanooga, batting .291 (104-for-358) with 10 home runs, 64 RBIs, 15 stolen bases and a .390 on-base percentage.
Hoffman has a career .283 (622-for-2,199) minor-league batting average with 36 home runs, 279 RBIs and a .355 on-base percentage.
The Yankees had two pitchers selected by other teams in the Rule 5 Draft — left-hander Zack Kroenke (by Arizona with the sixth pick) and right-hander Kanekoa Texeira (by Seattle with the 14th pick).
Cashman said he talked to reliever Rafael Soriano‘s agent but didn’t make him an offer.
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Cashman said he talked to Casey Close about free agent pitcher Ben Sheets. The right-hander and a former ace for the Brewers is expected to be ready for spring training after undergoing flexor tendon surgery that cost him all of last season.