ON CENTER STAGE: Brett Gardner, throwing in the outfield yesterday, will play center field in spring training, replacing Curtis Granderson (inset), who shifts to left. (N.Y. Post Charles Wenzelberg(2))
TAMPA — The Yankees front office loves Brett Gardner. No, really, loves.
You might see him as just a member of the chorus, a sidekick, a supplemental piece. But the Yankees brass use the term “impact player” quite a bit when talking about a guy with zero All-Star Games and career stats that look a lot like those of Alex Ochoa.
The Yankees, though, see a guy who can play center field at Gold Glove levels while bringing high-end on-base skills and elite speed to the leadoff spot. What makes it interesting, is for a guy the Yanks value, they sure have done a lot to limit that value by playing Gardner in left and batting him ninth.
Until now, perhaps.
Manager Joe Girardi began what he is portraying as an experiment yesterday by telling Gardner he is going to play some center field and Curtis Granderson that he is going to play some left, and that a decision will be made later in spring training to determine the best way to go for the season.
But understand this: Unless Granderson tanks in left field completely this decision already has been made. Why else risk insulting a veteran such as Granderson by even undertaking the “experiment?” This might not be as blatant as when the Yankees essentially told Jorge Posada to leave his catcher’s mitt at home in 2011. But it is just one step down.
PHOTOS: YANKEES SPRING TRAINING
With both their eyeball scouting and their defensive metrics, the Yankees see Granderson having regressed to adequate at best while they project Gardner as well above average. In a year in which they anticipate scoring fewer runs, the Yankees are trying to find every possible way to also permit fewer as a counterweight. If that means having Gardner produce more outs in center than Granderson would, then they are willing to deal with the implications of downgrading Granderson.
For now, they are not prepared to go all the way in trusting Gardner. Because it is not difficult to make the case that Gardner is faster and will have a higher on-base percentage than Ichiro Suzuki in 2013. But when I asked Girardi if he was prepared to then have Gardner leadoff rather than Ichiro, the Yankees skipper was not prepared to go there.
Now, Gardner has been given some leadoff opportunities previously and even he admits he did too little with them. And it is possible Gardner will end up first or second in the order should Derek Jeter have setbacks in his recovery from ankle surgery.
But even if Gardner remains hitting ninth, it is now clear just how important he has become to the Yankees’ current and future plans. The Yankees had about 100 homers vanish from the roster, and so they are going to have to incorporate more of a speed game in which Gardner will be front and center. They also know Granderson is a free agent after this year and with their $189 million 2014 plans, he almost certainly will not be back. Thus, the Yankees are getting a one-year jump on moving Gardner to center.
Is this a gamble? You bet. Gardner admits his only goal is to stay healthy after missing almost all of last year with a right elbow strain that needed surgery. There is a fragility to his game, mainly due to the all-out nature with which he plays. But as Gardner said, “If I didn’t play that way, I was never going to make it here. So I am never going to change. I can’t worry about cutting my career short because I have no career if I don’t play [in that fashion].”
The Yankees believe if he stays healthy, Gardner is actually better than Michael Bourn (who Cleveland gave a four-year, $48 million contract) and Denard Span (for whom the Nationals traded one of their better prospects, Alex Meyer). I asked two NL personnel men about that and both said Gardner is in that class, but might be a bit behind with Span a better hitter and Bourn a better defender.
For what it is worth, based on the Wins Above Replacement (WAR) metric, Gardner was one of the most valuable major leaguers in 2010-11, in part because the statistic attempts to weight defense and offense. The Yankees do not use WAR specifically, but do agree with its findings when it comes to Gardner’s overall value.
“Brett Gardner is a hell of a player,” general manager Brian Cashman said. “He’s a table-setter on offense who is a major disturbance on the bases. He is one of the best defensive outfielders in the majors, period. He’s an impactful player on both sides of the ball.”
He is not a member of the chorus any longer. Yesterday, the Yankees showed what they think of Gardner by moving him to center stage.