Cashman, Animorphs, Holliday parties

Written by Sean P. | 14 December 2009

Might this be Cashman’s gambit? Needless to say, the Hyena analogy might not do much to improve the image of how the Yankees do business (more on this later, I think) but might Cashman be operating right now in a similar way? As I’ll opine, I think he just might.

The news that John Lackey is taking a physical with the Red Sox has widely been reported as the precursor to a Burnett-esque contract they may have worked out. This is obviously fascinating information because few had seriously speculated that Lackey was a target for the Red Sox. If true it would likely take the prudent dealing Red Sox out of the race for other major free agents such as Jason Bay, the Ho(a)lli(a)days and others. I still personally wouldn’t be surprised to see them add Beltre, at a reasonable cost to solve their 3^rd base conundrums.

So how does this all shake out? Well if Bay has one less suitor than it makes it likely he’ll wind up in Queens. The Mets loosing out on Lackey is certainly problematic for them but obtaining Bay is a step (kinda) in the right direction.

And that leaves 2 big questions: Whats to become of the Ho(a)lli(a)days?

For Halladay, Toronto has lost a suitor and would have to focus on some combination of the Phillies/Angels/Yankees/Mets to deal their ace. It should boil down to who can offer the best package but loosing the Red Sox hurts because it costs them a suitor as well as takes pressure off the Yankees to make a deal.

And what of Matt Holliday?

Should the Mets sign Bay and the Red Sox bow out of any other major free agents, his market dwindles considerably (Angels? Mariners?)

What about the Yankees? Could Cashman be waiting, in a hyena like fashion, to see what falls by the wayside?

I would think he is. If Matt Holliday looses some of the big ticket teams Boras and he were aiming for, the Yankees could be in a position to swoop in and get something done. With the loss in leverage, if Holliday can be had for 15m a year would that be something that interests the Yankees?

I dare say it would. It sure interests me.