The Yankees refused to enter extension talks with Derek Jeter last offseason because, they insisted, it was their policy to wait until a contract ended before negotiating a new one.
That was a good alibi. It was not the real reason, however. The Yankees did not look to re-up their star shortstop early because they saw no advantage in talking money with Jeter, not with him coming off of one his best seasons at age 35. They decided to make him do it again at 36, and so far Jeter is having arguably the worst season of his brilliant career.
His average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage and stolen bases are down dramatically, his numbers on the road and against righties reflect a below-average player, and he hardly has honored his clutch reputation. His defense is steady, but lacking some of the range he renewed last year. He hardly looks like a player deserving a four-year, $100 million extension for any reason other than he is the beloved Derek Jeter.
At this point, if his name were not Derek Jeter, who would even give him a one-year, $10 million contract when this sure looks like late-30s decline?
When Vladimir Guerrero suffered this kind of dip last year in his age-33 season, the Angels divorced him and Guerrero was forced to sign a one-year, $6.5 million deal with an option with the Rangers. Guerrero has bounced back to star level in 2010.
Now the Yankees are not going to dismiss or disrespect Jeter, and they also are not going to let him go to another team. He almost certainly will sign back as a Yankee and no one would be surprised if he rebounded next year or in the second half this year — like Guerrero — such is the volume of his skill and pride.
But if this continues, the Yankees do have to make some tough calls. Do they simply keep Jeter hitting atop the lineup if he continues to perform this way, when the best 1-2 now looks like Brett Gardner followed by Nick Swisher?
That is why when mulling the five Big Apple questions for the second half, No. 1 is does Jeter need a salary drive to make sure he keeps getting played and paid in a way that he expects. Here is the rest of the top five:
2. What does Cliff Lee, Texas Ranger, Mean for New York?
For the Yankees it means frustration because they were so close to obtaining him. But it also means the current rotation needs to continue to flourish and — let’s be frank — the Yankees would not have been willing to give up big prospects for Lee if they absolutely loved the current rotation.
Instead they worry. About CC Sabathia’s workload. Andy Pettitte’s age. A.J. Burnett’s erratic nature. Javier Vazquez’s temerity (his small sample in the postseason is atrocious). And Phil Hughes’ innings limit. Do they have enough to, say, beat a Rangers team in the playoffs that now could have Lee start twice? Yes. But, boy, would the Yankees have been hard to beat with Lee working in tandem atop the rotation with Sabathia.
Lee’s trade to Texas also takes the best starter off the market, a starter the Mets desired. The Mets now will focus fully elsewhere. Roy Oswalt and Dan Haren are interesting, but could cost too much in prospects and dollars for the Mets. The fallback position appears to be Ted Lilly, though other options could come on the market, and there is still not certainty that Mets ownership would approve adding several million dollars to the payroll down the stretch.
The Mets apparently do not want to include Jenrry Mejia or Wilmer Flores in any trade, not even for Lee. So the key will be what outside teams think about positional prospects such as Fernando Martinez, Josh Thole, Sean Ratliff, Kirk Nieuwenhuis or Lucas Duda.
3. What Happens When Carlos Beltran Returns?
The Mets will take baby steps initially. No one can guarantee Beltran’s surgically repaired knee will hold up and, if it does, how much he can play on it, especially initially. And after watching Jose Reyes struggle early to shed rust from a sustained absence, it should be assumed even a healthy Beltran will need time to recapture the speed of the game.
But if Beltran is playing well — and one member of the Mets organization said, “Carlos Beltran can hit with a broken leg”— then I would assume Jerry Manuel will manage his outfield much like he does his setup corps: Hot players play. Manuel is managing for his job. He will worry about the psyche of a Jason Bay or Jeff Francoeur next year — if he is fortunate enough to still be the manager.
Still the most likely outfield configuration would have Bay, Beltran and Angel Pagan; with Francoeur starting mainly against lefties. That also has next year in mind because the Mets very well may trade or non-tender Francoeur and go with Bay/Beltran/Pagan as the 2011 outfield.
4. Will the Red Sox and Phillies Get Healthy?
The New York teams always feared their mean nemeses not only because Boston and Philadelphia have oodles of talent, but because they have championship-tested temperaments. That fortitude is really being tested now.
In series finales against key division rivals Wednesday, the Red Sox starting lineup included Kevin Cash, Bill Hall, Darnell McDonald and Daniel Nava vs. the Rays, and the Phillies started Greg Dobbs, Wilson Valdez and Dane Sardinha against the Braves. Both teams lost; the Red Sox getting swept, the Phillies losing the three-game series at home.
Both teams rely heavily on their All-Star second basemen — Dustin Pedroia and Chase Utley — not just for their superb play, but as the conscience and engines of their teams. Pedroia is due back in August, Utley in September. Both teams have hung around despite overflow injuries, but both showed some wilting late in the first half. The key players should sprinkle back in the second half — Pedroia, Josh
Beckett, Clay Buchholz, Victor Martinez and Jacoby Ellsbury for Boston; Utley, Ryan Madson, Placido Polanco and Carlos Ruiz for the Phillies.
But the 2008 Yankees and the 2009 Mets showed what can happen when key injuries reach a tipping point. Obviously, the 2010 Yankees/Mets benefit if the injuries slowly erode the Red Sox and Phillies out of the race.
5. Is Johan Santana Still An Ace?
The Mets are 30-13 when Mike Pelfrey, Jonathon Niese or R.A. Dickey start, and 8-10 when Santana pitches. Some of that is about offensive non-support for Santana. But that is not the whole story.
Nevertheless, Santana’s last two outings going into the first-half finale have been impressive: one run on nine hits in 16 innings. In his last start, against the NL-scoring-leader Reds, Santana threw first-pitch strikes to 28 out of 34 hitters, and consistently stayed at 90-91 mph with both his four- and two-seam fastball in a 113-pitch complete game, and that made his changeup even more devilish again. The Mets believe he was rebuilding strength after an offseason elbow surgery and that he also was tipping his changeup earlier in the year.
He is a renowned second-half pitcher (61-19, 2.73), and if he is ready to add to that track record the Mets, obviously, become more formidable. You also see where the Mets need him moving forward, because he has three years left on his contract. The aces of the Marlins (Josh Johnson), Phillies (Roy Halladay) and Braves (Tim Hudson) are in the top six in NL ERA, and last week the Mets got a glimpse of Washington’s future ace, Stephen Strasburg.
So as the Mets try to win the NL East now and in the future, it sure would help if Santana was a full-time No. 1 again.
joel.sherman@nypost.com