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The second worst contract in baseball history

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Albert Pujols signed the second worst contract in baseball history last week, and he did it all without meeting with a team he thought was based in Los Angeles.

OK. OK. Perhaps I’m being a bit hyperbolic, but bear with me. Right now, Alex Rodriguez’s 10-year, $275-million contract, signed when he was heading into his age 32 season, is generally considered to be one of the worst in baseball history. Four years into the deal, A-Rod has struggled to stay healthy, averaging just 124 games per season, while hitting .284/.375/.521. It’s an impressive slash line, but that is a far cry from the .306/.389/.578 line he put up beforehand.

To make matters worse, as we know, A-Rod’s world was rocked by scandal a few months after signing the deal when revelation of past steroid use became public. All of a sudden, the historic milestone clauses that could push A-Rod’s contract value over the $300 million mark became onerous. A-Rod gets paid no matter what, but a tainted home run race won’t draw as much money to the Yanks’ coffers as it otherwise would have.

A-Rod, who turned 36 this past July, is under contract for six more years and will earn another $143 million from the Yanks. It’s highly doubtful he’ll be worth it even if he can stay healthy enough to regain some semblance of his All Star production levels. Now, the Yanks could do worse than have A-Rod under contract for a while, but they were bidding against themselves in the winter of 2007 when A-Rod opted out. He walked away richer, and even before the ink dried on that contract, we knew a contract covering A-Rod’s age 32-41 seasons would not look pretty.

Enter the Angels. Or the Marlins. Or even the Cardinals. Albert Pujols is a great baseball player. He’s a first-ballot Hall of Famer with a career 1.037 OPS, 445 home runs, three MVP awards and two World Series rings. He’s also going to be 32 when the 2012 season opens and just signed a contract for $254 million covering his age 32-41 seasons. With an injury-plagued past, he’s coming off a year in which he hit only .299/.366/.541. For him, that’s a down year, and at his age, it’s not unreasonable to expect a slow and steady decline.

Of course, just like A-Rod in decline is still a very good player, so too is Albert Pujols. He makes the offensively-challenged Angels instantly better in the short term. In the long term, I’m glad the Yanks haven’t just forked over $254 million in guaranteed dollars to a first baseman. At least A-Rod played a premium position.

So all of these dollars got me thinking: If A-Rod’s deal is generally considered one of the worst in baseball, can’t we call Pujols’ contract the second worst? He’s a bit better offensively than A-Rod was at the same point in his career, but he plays an easier position. He’s signed for the same time period and is likely getting paid by the Angels for what he’s already done in his career — for another team, to boot — than what he will do going forward.

But who cares? I’m looking forward to seeing the Angels sink $25 million in 37-year-old Albert Pujols in a few years. There’s a larger concern though. Baseball’s system is now set up to reward the past. With new CBA, draft pick compensation is going to be tightly controlled, and the international free agency system will be limited as well. Free agency, then, will reign supreme, and teams will have to overpay for top talent. The Yanks are seeing that now as pitchers who aren’t rotation aces are getting paid as such, and teams are demanding the stars and the moon in trades for younger arms.

So the Yanks will spend cautiously and, some might say, wisely as free agent dollars explode. That’s the system the owners and players association have crafted to protect, on the one hand, current MLBPA members and, on the other, smaller market teams. At least the Yanks aren’t alone in signing a great player to an absurd contract though. For the next ten years, they have company.

Cliff Lee, Mark Buehrle and the hunt for pitching

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Every now and then, I think back to July 9 and 10 of 2010. That weekend, the Yankees were on the West Coast, visiting the Mariners, and as Saturday dawned, it appeared as though the Yanks would leave Seattle with Cliff Lee in tow. In exchange, they would have to give up Jesus Montero and a middle infield prospect named Eduardo Nunez, but the spoils would be tremendous.

We know how that story ended for the Yankees. The Mariners wouldn’t accept David Adams who was dealing with an ankle injury and played in just 12 games this season, and the Yanks weren’t, for some reason, too keen on giving up Nunez. In fact, according to some stories, Nunez was more of a deal-breaker than Montero. Lee escaped their grip that July, and he went on to beat the Yanks as a member of the eventual AL Champion Rangers.

A few months later — nearly a year ago — the Yanks were attempting to lure Lee to the Bronx again. They didn’t quite put on the full court press, but all indications were that the Yanks offered Lee six years at $22 million with a seventh year player option for $16 million. For reasons of dollars and comfort, Lee went to the Phillies instead. Maybe the Rangers led to Lee’s decision; maybe he just wanted to go back to Philadelphia. Either way, neither team escaped their respective Division Series match-ups this year, and the Yanks are still struggling to find another starting pitcher.

For the Yankees, losing out on Cliff Lee seemed to indicate a sea change within the organization. Lee was, by all accounts, the best pitcher available either by trade or free agency, since CC Sabathia, and unless Cole Hamels hits the open market next season, it’s tough to find a comparative starter. The Yankees were willing to give up the farm, extend their budget to land Lee or both. But for the first time since Greg Maddux spurned a rebuilding Yankee team in the early 1990s to head to Atlanta, the Bombers were left empty-handed.

This year, the pitcher is kinda sorta out there. In 2011, after Lee left them empty-handed and Andy Pettitte retired, the Yanks somehow made it through the year with CC, A.J. Burnett, Phil Hughes, Freddy Garcia, Bartolo Colon and Ivan Nova. As things stand now, they’re gearing up to do to the same for 2012. I always thought they had another move in them last year, but they never found the right trade partner for a pitching upgrade. This winter, things are shaping up similarly.

The pitching is almost out there. Roy Oswalt, who hasn’t popped up in any rumors, is available. C.J. Wilson, another Texas ace, is looking for job security. Mark Buehrle recently landed with the Yankees South Miami Marlins. Maybe a few young pitchers such as Gio Gonzalez or John Danks could be had on the trade market. But none of these guys are that exciting. They’re supporting cast members, not aces, who carry a price tag that often exceeds their value.

Buehrle, in particular, strikes me as a guy the Yanks would consider. He signed a four-year deal worth $58 million with the Marlins, and the Yanks had only “early conversations” with Buehrle’s representatives. Yet, they passed even though he’s an innings eater with some AL success. Sure, his strike out numbers are down, but he’s thrived by keeping the bill in the park and on the ground. He might fall off a cliff, but he’s just as likely to continue to excel despite saber skepticism over his peripherals.

But the Yankees passed. They want a Cliff Lee type, a difference-maker, not an overpaid cog. They think they can approximate Buehrle’s 2012 production for $10 million less by using Freddy Garcia, and they have their eye on some elusive starter who might become available as they try to usher Manny Banuelos through their organization. Once, the Yanks overpaid for A.J. Burnett because they needed a pitcher. Now, they’re willing to wait and wait and wait for the next must-have Cliff Lee type. It might be a prudent move, but for a fan base used to getting what they want (and need), it makes for a slow wait. I almost miss those Yankees who dove right in. Almost.

No baseball for old men

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For the past few years, the Yankees haven’t exactly embraced the designated hitter position. In 2009, Hideki Matsui made 108 starts as the team’s primary designated hitter. In 2010, no one had more than 41 starts as DH, and this past year, Jorge Posada’s 91 starts led the team as 10 other players also took their turns as the designated hitter.

This isn’t a new approach for the Yanks. As their core has gotten older, the club has embraced the idea of a rotating DH. Give one guy the bulk of the playing time, but keep the spot open to spell A-Rod, Jeter and even Teixeira and Granderson. It keeps everyone fresher, but on the flip side, it means more playing time for the likes of Eduardo Nunez. The Yanks are weakening their lineup without someone to fill the DH slot.

This winter, the Yanks are at a crossroads. They aren’t going to bring back Jorge Posada, and the market for DH types is thin. They could have explored bringing aboard an Albert Pujols or Prince Fielder type, but the Front Office feels that they have a fearsome enough offense without overspending for another first baseman. Plus, Jesus Montero lurks.

Once upon a time, I would have loved to see the Yankees pursue David Ortiz. Despite his generally whiny demeanor and the fact that he’s made a career out of beating the Yankees, Ortiz is a lefty power hitter custom built for Yankee Stadium. After a down year in 2009, he’s hit .290/.384/.542 with 61 home runs over the past two seasons. Even as he ages, he’s still an offensive force.

Yet, Ortiz has drawn nary a lick of interest. His signing would cost a team a draft pick, but I figured that an offensively-starved club — the Orioles, the Blue Jays, the Mariners — would eye Ortiz as a potential short-term solution. Instead, Big Papi is likely to accept arbitration from the Red Sox. Unless the two sides work out a longer solution, he’ll earn a small raise over his 2011 salary and stick with the Sox for another season. That is, frankly, one of the bigger surprises of the off-season.

For the Yanks’ one-time catcher, then, this Ortiz development isn’t a good sign. Jorge Posada is a few years older than Ortiz and isn’t quite the hitter any longer. He can still hit with some pop from the left side, and he doesn’t cost a draft pick. But teams don’t seem to be in the market for DH-only types right now. Rather, the DH slot is today reserved for those MLBers playing out the back ends of their long-term deals. It’s not really about finding a spot for a premiere offensive player who can’t field.

So as Ortiz stays with Boston and Posada rides off into the sunset, likely to scrounge up a Spring Training invite if he doesn’t just call it a career, the Yankees will head into 2012 with a youngster and a bunch of older guys as their designated hitters. Montero will get the chance to shine while A-Rod and his balky legs will need some rest. Jeter might DH a bit too as he nears his 38th birthday. This is what the DH has become, and it’s still far better than watching some pitchers attempt to bat.

Eying a 42nd Street stadium once upon a time

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Had the Yanks moved to the West Side, the skyline could have risen dramatically behind the center field wall. (Via StadiumPages.com)

In the eyes of the world, the Yankees and the Bronx go hand in hand. Since 1923, the Bombers have stood by the Bronx, sometimes tenuously, as the borough has been shaped and reshaped — by Robert Moses, by white flight, by riots and fire, by a recent renaissance. Although George Steinbrenner tried to move the Yanks to Manhattan or New Jersey, he never could escape the Bronx, and the Bronx has never escaped the Yanks either.

But what if the Yankees had never set foot in the Bronx in the first place? Up until 1923, after all, they were denizens of Manhattan, first at Hilltop Park at Broadway and 165th St and later the Polo Grounds. It wasn’t until the early 1920s that the Yankees’ owners knew they were heading to the Bronx, and shortly after Colonels Tillinghast L’Hommedieu Huston and Jacob Ruppert bought the team, the two eyed a Manhattan location.

In a 1915 letter recently placed up for auction and espied by The Post, Huston talks about his plans for a new stadium for the Yanks. The letter, which is basically a plea to AL President Ban Johnson to keep the Yanks afloat financially, discusses potential new stadium sites. “We have canvassed the feasibility of the 42nd Street site for a ballpark,” the colonel wrote. “Col. Ruppert and myself will be with the Club when it reaches Chicago, and we will be glad to discuss the subject with you then.”

I’ve tried to do some research into the history of Huston’s idea, but information is hard to find. Even as early as 1915, the Yankees were already eying the Bronx, according to contemporaneous reports. Even the upstart Federal League had hoped to move a franchise into the Bronx. Nary a mention of a Manhattan site could be had.

As a New York City history buff, I wanted to know where the Yanks would have played along 42nd St. By 1915, The Times had already moved to Longacre Square and had erected its namesake building while the New York Public Library had taken over the Croton Reservoir. Grand Central Terminal, of course, was already in place as well. So the Yanks could have set up shot on the East Side where the United Nations is today or along the West Side near the current entrance to the Lincoln Tunnel. Either way, the geography and orientation of one end of Manhattan would have been upended for all of history.

Imagining the Bronx without the Yanks and a Manhattan with them for eight decades is a tall order. The isle of Manhattan would have had significantly different transit patterns as a stadium along 42nd Street would have required train service to the edge of the city while development in the South Bronx would likely have taken a different path as well. Would the Dodgers have relocated to the Bronx instead of Los Angeles during their hunt for a new stadium? What would William Waldorf Astor had done with his lumber yard at 161st St. anyway?

Of course, the idea of a Manhattan stadium is one that kept finding ways to creep back into New York history. In the 1950s, the Dodgers flirted with the idea of a West Side stadium, and of course, the Yankees kept talking about moving to the 34th St. area. In the early 2000s, Mayor Bloomberg tried to promote a West Side stadium for the Jets as part of the city’s bid to win the 2012 Olympics.

But none of it came to pass. The Yanks found their home in the Bronx and never left. The Dodgers jetted west for Tinseltown while the 2012 Olympics bid died a glorious death. Even the Mets, once vaguely rumored to be eying the West Side as well, stayed put in Queens. A big stadium never came to 42nd Street, and Pete Siegel, owner of the auction house selling Huston’s letter, put it best: “It’s incredible to think what could have happened, how one paragraph in one letter could have changed the entire landscape of the city.”

Report: Yanks eying austerity budget for 2014

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The Yankees, baseball’s biggest spenders for the better part of two decades, may finally be eying something of a budget, according to a report by Joel Sherman. In a piece on Sunday, the New York Post scribe says that Major League Baseball’s Collective Bargaining Agreement and the other 29 teams’ attempts at keeping the Yanks’ spending under control may finally pay off in 2014 as the New York front office wants to bring its payroll below the luxury tax threshold. If the Yanks are truly intent on reducing costs, the club will not overpay for long-term deals in the near future and may focus on ushering in a new round of young players instead.

Sherman, who noted that this drive toward fiscal control has them lukewarm on top free agent pitchers Mark Buehrle and C.J. Wilson, explained the rational behind the Yanks’ thinking:

As an organization, they are saying they are driven to have a payroll of $189 million or less in 2014 when that becomes the luxury tax threshold. Because the incentives that come via the new CBA are just too great for them to ignore.

For if they are at $189 million or less for the three seasons from 2014-16, they not only avoid paying one cent in luxury tax, which would rise to 50 percent for them as repeat offenders, but they also would get roughly $40 million in savings via the to-be-implemented market disqualification revenue sharing program. However, only teams under the luxury-tax threshold get reimbursed in this program, which is designed to prevent big markets such as Toronto and Washington from receiving revenue sharing dollars, which in turn will lower how much teams such as the Yanks pay (as long as they are under the threshold).

And even if they just went under $189 million for 2014 before going over again in 2015, the Yankees would receive serious benefits. They would get about $10 million in the revenue sharing disqualification program. Also, by simply going under the threshold once, the Yankees would go back to having a 17.5 percent tax rather than the 50 percent that begins in 2014 for them if they never go under. Keep in mind that since the luxury tax went to 40 percent for them in 2005, the Yankees have averaged paying $25.75 million in tax annually.

So what’s going on here? How could the Yankees, who enjoy the edge of money with their new stadium, TV deal and various other revenue sources, suddenly become fiscally conservative? There are, in effect, three answers. First, the Yankee sources who are talking to Joel Sherman are being truthful. The Yankees know what they stand to gain by getting their payroll under $189 million in 2014, and they think they have the young pieces to do so. Plus, as Sherman writes, the Yankees say, “The big-name guys are a waste of time. We are not spending that kind of money.”

Next, they could be bluffing. Maybe they’re playing coy now to make a bigger move later in the year. If any free agent player wants to come to New York but the Yanks don’t want to meet that player’s asking price, it’s in the club’s best interest to put forward a plausible explanation for future that is fiscally conservative. Maybe they want to go big on Yu Darvish or Yoenis Cespedes but do not want to overplay their hand now.

Third, they’re laying the groundwork now in order to play it coy next winter. Right now, they have $72 million tied up in three players in 2014 — A-Rod, Mark Teixeira and CC Sabathia. They know that they’ll have to deal with Robinson Cano’s, Curtis Granderson’s and Nick Swisher’s free agencies within the next two offseasons, and they will likely want to retain two of those three if not all three. Plus, the free agent pitchers could include Matt Cain, Cole Hamels and Anibal Sanchez while Mariano Rivera’s current deal — and perhaps his career — is set to end after 2012 as well. That’s a whole lotta holes the Yanks are going to have to fill with an eye toward the 2014 luxury tax benefits.

Ultimately, then, baseball’s long-term effort to rein in the Yanks’ spending may be coming to a head, at least temporarily. Baseball has incentivized the Yanks to drop their payroll under the luxury threshold for at least a season. In 2007, the Yanks spent $189 million and won 94 games. They’ve spent over $200 million every year since then and will likely do so again in 2012. Change may be on the horizon though, and if it comes, it could benefit the Yanks’ bottom line tremendously as they gear up for another half decade of exorbitant spending.

Trading with the NL

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For an introduction to this post, check out last night’s item on the Yanks’ recent trades with AL teams. Tonight, I’m tackling the NL. Some thoughts at the end.

Arizona Diamondbacks: The Yanks and Diamondbacks have made a few key franchise-defining trades over the years. Two of them involved Randy Johnson, and a third sent Ian Kennedy to the desert where he has blossomed. The most recent deal between these two clubs saw Juan Miranda head to Phoenix in 2010 in exchange for minor leaguer Scottie Allen.

Atlanta Braves: The Boone Logan trade on December 22, 2009 was the last deal between these two teams. I will say nothing more of that transaction. Before that, the two teams hadn’t exchanged players since a 1995 deal sent Luis Polonia to the Braves for a nobody.

Chicago Cubs: Matt Garza seems to be available, and Brian Cashman’s buddy Theo Epstein is now in charge of the Cubs. Over the past ten years, the Yanks have acquired Matt Lawton (2005) and Glenallen Hill (2000) from the Cubbies.

Cincinnati Reds: On July 31, 2009, the Yanks acquired Jerry Hairston for Chase Weems. They haven’t won a World Series since Hairston left. Coincidence? I think not.

Colorado Rockies: The Yankees and Rockies haven’t done much on the trade market together. Their biggest deal involved sending Mike DeJean to Colorado for Joe Girardi back in 1995. In April 2010, the Yanks acquired Robby Hammock for a PTBNL who was never actually named later.

Florida Marlins: The Yanks and Marlins have made three trades, and one of them was absolutely awful. In 1999, the Yanks sent Mike Lowell to Miami for for Todd Noel, Mark Johnson and Ed Yarnall. Their last deal came in 2005 when the Yanks Ron Villone for Ben Julianel.

Houston Astros: On July 31, 2010, the Yanks sent Mark Melancon and Jimmy Paredes to the Houston Astros for Lance Berkman. Should of kept.

Los Angeles Dodgers: In 2007, the Yanks took Scott Proctor away from Joe Torre and turned him into Wilson Betemit who eventually became Nick Swisher. Despite their intertwined histories, the Yanks and Dodgers have consummated only 29 trades.

Milwaukee Brewers: On June 29, 2011, the Yanks purchased Sergio Mitre from the Brewers, and there was much rejoicing in the land.

New York Mets: The Yanks have traded just 12 times with their crosstown rivals. Most recently, the clubs swapped southpaws in 2004 when the Yanks shipped out Felix Heredia for Mike Stanton.

Philadelphia Phillies: The Bobby Abreu fleecing marks the most recent trade between these two perennial contenders. In 2006, the Yanks acquired Abreu and Cory Lidle for C.J. Henry, Jesus Sanchez, Carlos Monasterios and Matt Smith.

Pittsburgh Pirates: After a flurry of trade activity in 2008-2009, the Yanks haven’t made a move with the Pirates since they landed Eric Hinske for Casey Erickson and Eric Fryer in June of 2009.

San Diego Padres: Money in exchange for Chad Gaudin in 2009 was the last dealing between these two teams. The Hideki Irabu deal stands out as the biggest between these two teams.

San Francisco Giants: The Yankees and their former executive Brian Sabean have not traded together in ages. The last deal between these two teams came in 2001 when the Yanks sent Jay Witasick, after his disastrous appearance in Game 6 of the 2001 World Series, to the Bay Area for John Vander Wal.

St. Louis Cardinals: Not much dealin’ going on here. In June of 2003, the Yanks sent Sterling Hitchcock to St. Louis for Ben Julianel and Justin Pope. I guess they liked that Julianel guy.

Washington Nationals: In February, the Yanks sent Adam Olbrychowski to D.C. for Justin Maxwell. But remember when the Yanks got Javy Vazquez for Randy Choate, Nick Johnson and Juan Rivera? It seemed like quite the deal at the time.

* * *

So that’s the Yanks’ recent trade history. As I’ve gone through the transactions from the other 29 clubs, I’ve noticed that franchise-changing trades happen every few years, and they’re never as expected. In back-to-back seasons, the Yanks landed Curtis Granderson and Nick Swisher and tried the same with a well-intentioned Javy Vazquez trade. Otherwise, though, most trades are minor moves that have only tangential impacts on the big league club, and they don’t happen all that often.

Now, we wait. Perhaps the Yanks will make a big splash on the trade market. It seems likely than via free agency this year. But we don’t know what the moves will be or when. Trades that actually happen come together without the media fanfare of rumored deals. It could be Nick Swisher, it could be Mike Lowell or it could just be Chad Gaudin.

Trading with the AL

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As the Hot Stove League slowly inches toward the Winter Meetings, trades have been a popular topic of conversation. No one is that impressed with C.J. Wilson or his $100 million asking price, and Yu Darvish’s posting remains on hold as he sorts out his divorce. So the Yanks could turn to the trade market for inspiration and improvements.

We’ve heard some names of potentially available players. Maybe the Yanks will eye Matt Garza. Maybe Oakland will dangle Gio Gonzalez. Maybe the White Sox will part with John Danks. Of course, we can draw up trade proposals (that probably come out of left field), but the truth remains that some GMs and clubs get along better with each other than others.

So as an exercise in both pointless baseball minutiae and Yankee history, let’s review their past trade history. We’ll start with the last transactions the Yanks have made with each of the Junior Circuit clubs and wrap up with the NL tomorrow night. As free agency has become their milieu, the Yanks certainly have not been very active on the trade market over the past few decades.

Baltimore Orioles: Despite 55 trades in their long histories, the Yankees and Orioles haven’t done much wheelin’ and dealin’ since John Habyan came to New York in exchange for Stan Jefferson in 1989. Their most recent trade involved a swap of Jaret Wright and cash for Chris Britton in November of 2006. In 2009, the Yanks purchased Freddy Guzman from the O’s, and that’s all she wrote.

Boston Red Sox: Frequent division rivals make for infrequent trade partners. On August 13, 1997, the Yanks sent Tony Armas and a PTBNL (eventually Jim Mecir) to the Red Sox for Mike Stanley. The Red Sox used Armas to acquire Pedro Martinez a few months later, and the two teams haven’t made a deal since then.

Chicago White Sox: Yankee fans love to target the White Sox as potential trade partners because they always seem so willing to bend over backwards for the Yanks. On November 13, 2008, the Yanks sent Wilson Betemit, Jeff Marquez and Jhonny Nunez to the South Siders for Nick Swisher and Kanekoa Texeira.

Cleveland Indians: The Yanks and Indians consummated two trades in two days at the 2010 deadline. On July 30, the Yanks landed Austin Kearns for Zach McAllister, and the next day, Brian Cashman brought Kerry Wood to the Bronx in exchange for Andy Shive and Matt Cusick. The two teams’ last trade involving only Major League players came in 2000 when Zach Day, Ricky Ledee and Jake Westbrook turned into David Justice.

Detroit Tigers: Over the past decade, the Yanks and Tigers have been very active trade partners. A 2002 blockbuster saw Jeff Weaver land in the Bronx while the Yanks dumped Gary Sheffield on Detroit in late 2006. In 2008, Pudge Rodriguez came to New York just in time to ruin Joba Chamberlain while Kyle Farnsworth left. The most recent deal between these two teams though involved Curtis Granderson. In December of 2009, the Yanks landed Granderson while Phil Coke and Austin Jackson went to Detroit. To round out the deal, Ian Kennedy and Edwin Jackson headed to Arizona, and the Diamondbacks sent Max Scherzer and Daniel Schlereth to Detroit.

Kansas City Royals: The Royals and Yankees last made a trade together in 2000 when the Yanks shipped out Wilson Delgado for a fringe Minor Leaguer named Nick Ortiz. Only seven times in Royals franchise history have these two teams traded. That’s a far cry from the days of raiding the Kansas City A’s.

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim: The Yanks and Angels love trading back-up catchers. In 2007, the Yanks sent Jeff Kennard to the Angels for Joey Catch, and in 2005, they landed Wil Nieves for Bret Prinz.

Minnesota Twins: Since acquiring Chuck Knoblauch in early 1998, the Yanks and Twins have done business just twice. Their last trade came in 2003 when the Yanks shipped Jesse Orosco to the Twins for Juan Padilla.

Oakland A’s: The Yankees and A’s have match up for a trade 63 times, mostly because the Yanks used to treat the A’s as their own Major League farm system. That pipeline has dried up in recent years. Outside of the three-team Weaver deal in 2002, the Yanks haven’t dealt with Billy Beane since 2003 when Chris Hammond went west for Eduardo Sierra and J.T. Stotts. Honorable mention goes out to the 1997 trade of Kenny Rogers for Scott Brosius, and for opposite reasons, the 1989 swap of Greg Cadaret, Eric Plunk and Luis Polonia for Rickey Henderson.

Seattle Mariners: The Yanks and Mariners have swapped players just twice since 1995. The earlier trade that sent Tino Martinez, Jim Mecir and Jeff Nelson to New York for Russ Davis and Sterling Hitchcock was the bigger one. The 2003 exchange concerned Armando Benitez and Jeff Nelson. Best to let those sleeping dogs lie.

Tampa Bay Rays: In 2006, the Yankees bought Nick Green from the Rays, and that’s the only time the two teams have swapped players.

Texas Rangers: The last big trade between the Yanks and Rangers involved some guy named Alex Rodriguez. In 2010, the Yanks sent Mitch Hilligoss to Texas for Greg Golson, and a few weeks later, the Rangers bought Edwar Ramirez from the Yanks.

Toronto Blue Jays: While the Yanks may be kicking the tires on Kyle Drabek, the Bombers and Blue Jays have exchanged players just 17 times. The biggest deals between the two clubs involved David Cone in 1995 and Roger Clemens and David Wells in 1997. The last trade came in 2002 when the Yanks kicked off the Raul Mondesi Era by sending Scott Wiggins to Canada.