Best-case scenario for Yankees OF

I have had a few 140-character conversations (in other words, twitter) with fellow Yankee fan and SI.com's "Hot Clicks" writer Jimmy Traina over the last couple weeks regarding the Yankee OF situation. I decided to look into the numbers and some intangibles to see what the best solution would be.

Traina is a big fan of Brett Gardner and feels Gardner should be in the OF everyday because of the speed and defense - spark - he brings to the lineup. My feeling was that Melky Cabrera has been a huge part of late-inning rallies this year and his early-season benching in favor of Gardner has brought about an urgency in his game that has turned him into a valuable member of the outfield. Recently, Jimmy brought up benching Hideki Matsui, DH'ing Johnny Damon and having an outfield of Cabrera, Gardner and Nick Swisher. Unfortunately, in typical baseball fashion, aging sluggers don't get benched like they do in other sports and the NY media would jump on Joe Girardi for further reducing the role of a favorite like Matsui. I figured I would look at all the numbers of the players involved to see if I can come up with a way to spread the at-bats around enough to keep everyone happy and increase the production of the group as a whole.

Over the last week, Matsui has been on a tear and his current OPS (on-base plus slugging pct) is a very respectable .878. I have to admit, I was shocked when I read this since when I last looked, he was hitting .248 and on pace for his lowest full-season RBI total. I guess that's what one week of 10-for-22 (four BBs) with three HRs and 11 RBI can do for you. His ISO - isolated power (basically measures extra-base hits per AB) - is now on a career-high track of .246. Although he has hit 9 of his 13 HRs in the wiffle-ball field that is the New Yankee Stadium, his overall splits are almost identical, including a higher overall SLG pct. on the road. To put ISO in a context compared to his teammates and the league, he sits behind only Mark Teixeira and A-Rod in that department on the Yankees and he ranks 16th in the AL overall in that category. If you are a fan of more conventional statistics, his SLG pct. and OPS are both in the top 25 in the AL. One thing to make note of is that Matsui has not played in the field at all this season and probably has seen the last of his days roaming the outfield in a Yankee uniform, severely limiting his options to DH or bench.

Damon has been consistently productive this season for the Yankees up until recently, and despite a recent 3-for-23 skid, still is 2nd on the team in both HR and RBI and is on pace for career highs in both those categories. Also, his SLG, OPS and ISO are all currently at career-high levels. Unlike Matsui, however, Damon's production can be greatly attributed to the new home ballpark. He has had 152 at-bats so far both at home and away and the difference in production is STAGGERING. At home, Damon's line reads .289/.393/.592 while on the road, it is .270/.333/.447. The difference in OPS is .205! To put this in perspective, at home his numbers are similar (almost identical) to Justin Morneau's and would rank him 3rd in the AL. Using just his road splits, his numbers are closest in line to... Melky Cabrera (more on him in a bit). Damon's defensive woes are well-known as his arm has now degraded to sub-Bernie levels, his range has decreased along with his overall speed this year and he has had increased difficulty making the plays he should based on his career-low .970 fielding pct. and 4 errors.

Cabrera started off the season on the bench when Gardner was given the starting CF job out of camp. When he was given the opportunity to play, he took advantage and through June 1, was one of the MVPs of the struggling Yankees, hitting .323 while slugging .481 and coming up with a few big late-inning hits. Cabrera was unofficially given back the starting CF job on June 1 and it appears that he has reverted back to a streaky singles hitter with a poor eye and limited power. Since June 1, Melky has hit just .218 while getting on base less than 30% of the time, unacceptable for a contending team with a supposedly deep lineup. He also has hit only three home runs in this timeframe (101 ABs) and his slugging pct. is .366, which would be low for a reserve middle-infielder. In fact, it is the same slugging pct. as Brendan Harris, to give a comparison as we have with the other players. It seems as if playing everyday either takes a greater toll than average on Cabrera's body - preventing him from being consistent at the plate - or he takes his "foot off the gas" and cannot hit without the pressure of fighting for playing time. Either way, Cabrera has failed to live up to the offensive potential he has given glimpses of since coming into the league in 2005. As pitchers adjust to him, he has been unable to make adjustments of his own. From 2006-2008, his BA, OBP and SLG have decreased each year - not what you hope to see from a young player who should be entering his prime. One area which he has been consistent in has been defensively. He has only one error this year despite being forced to play all three outfield positions at different times, has shown the ability to make the occasional outstanding play and has displayed above-average range and a good arm.

On May 12, after an 0-for-4 day leading off against Roy Halladay in a 5-1 loss that dropped the Yankees two games under .500 - and at the time 6 1/2 games behind the division-leading Blue Jays, it appeared Gardner was a career backup ideally suited as a defensive replacement and pinch-runner. He had failed to provide the spark the Yankees were hoping he would after a stellar spring training earned him the starting CF job in an upset. He was hitting .214 with a OBP of .273 and a SLG that sat at .257. His OPS of .530 ranked him 113th out of 118 players with as many plate appearances during this time. Due to his inability to get on base (3 BB/12 K), he had stolen only 6 bases to this point in the season.

To be blunt - he stunk.

The following day, Gardner was scheduled to sit but was forced into action due to an injury to Matsui. He responded with his first career HR and first 3B of the season in a 8-2 Yankee victory. Since that point, he has pulled a David Ortiz-like renaissance. In fact, his resurgence has been more pronounced than Papi's, since Ortiz is still hitting .223. Along with the return of Rodriguez, his turnaround has coincided with the Yankees' improvement since that season-low point. From May 12 through yesterday's game, in 108 AB, Gardner has hit .333 with an OBP over .400. He has even been hitting with some unexpected power since this point, chugging out four triples and blasting three HRs. Of course the most important part of his offensive game is his speed, and he has not disappointed, stealing 11 bases while being caught twice. Defensively, Gardner has been impressive throughout the season, accruing three assists while committing only one error. He has shown extensive range and when playing CF can shade over a bit to RF to compensate for Swisher's limited range.

I will not delve too deeply into Swisher's stats, but I cannot stress the importance of his presence in the lineup. He has taken Jason Giambi's (underrated) role both in the clubhouse and on the field without being quite the defensive liabilty Giambi was. He currently is 3rd in the league in pitches per plate appearance (4.23), he is 2nd in walks per plate appearance ( .161), leads the Yankees in Sacrifice Flies (4) - which is a skill they have had a staggering amount of difficulty with this season - and is in the top 25 in the league in isolated power.

OK - maybe I will delve into his statistics a bit. What I'm telling you is he makes the pitcher work hard. To borrow a bit from Dos Equis... "he is the most interesting .240 hitter alive." Much like Giambi, his eye never goes through slumps. In the month of May, Swisher hit .150 yet still managed an OBP of .311. That is the equivalent of a PG who is in a horrible shooting slump but manages to increase his assists. He doesn't allow his personal struggles to prevent him from helping the team. His bat should be in the lineup almost every single day.

So, now that we have gone through all these numbers and we know a bit more about our options, what is the best plan? The secret lies in platooning and age factors. Both Matsui and Damon are 35 and have been frail or banged-up for much of the last year or two. Matsui's knee (or is it his arm - at this point I can't keep track) is so bad he can't even play the field. Damon has battled numerous ailments this year and though he is one of the toughest players around (1 DL stint in 15 seasons) and wants to play through the pain, he is not able to perform at as high a level when hurt as he did when younger. This would suggest that Matsui - and especially Damon - would be best served with days off througout the season so they can be in peak condition for the pennant run in September and October. When would the Yankees be best served to give them these days off?

For Damon, his .311 OBP and 1 stolen base against lefties both home and away while hitting toward the top of the lineup is not doing the Yankees any favors. Add in his defensive woes and he is hurting them more than helping. Cabrera would be the perfect candidate to take his place when facing lefties. Cabrera's OBP against southpaws is .350 and he has hit for considerably more power against lefties - a .500 SLG pct. compared to Damon's .414. Add in the fact that Cabrera often does this from the 7 or 8 hole in the lineup and it makes the Yankee lineup that much deeper. Gardner is also much stronger against righties, so if the Yankees are facing a few in a row and you don't want Damon to sit for a stretch of games, you can sit Gardner against one or two and move Melky to CF. When would Matsui sit? He appears to have trouble with RHP at home (.242/.320/.418) and although you wouldn't sit him everyday, that would be a great occasion to give him a breather while giving Cabrera a chance to play his strengths. You would also improve your defense considerably by moving Damon to DH and allowing Cabrera, Gardner and Swisher to man the OF.

By using L/R and Home/Away splits as well as knowing your players' strengths, you can put the best team on the field on a regular basis without hurting the egos of millionaires or stifling the growth of your possible future.

Oh, and Jimmy, since it looks like Cabrera will be the closest thing to odd man out in my scenario, I guess your man-crush on Gardner is well-deserved... and shared.