Look at the title of this piece…seems like the “old” Yankees, philosophy, right? Sign a player past his prime who was a legend in his prime, and hope to catch lightning in a bottle?
Maybe, but here’s the problem: the Yankees are walking through an open field with a metal pole right now, and the thunderstorm is right over head.
So, we ask: why not roll the dice and see if the Yankees can get a couple of good weeks out of Albert Pujols against a schedule that has Baltimore, Texas, and nine home games over the next two-plus weeks?
Yes, it’s true, Pujols is nowhere close to the player he was in his heyday, and was hitting .198 when he was DFA’ed by the Angels. However, he also has five homers in 92 plate appearances this season, and has hit 662 more over his career, and there are reportedly a few teams interested in him already per FanSided’s Robert Murray.
Here’s the Yankees’ situation right now: Aaron Hicks has a torn tendon sheath in his wrist, which could keep him out anywhere from one game to the rest of the season; Gleyber Torres could return soon, but is on the COVID IL, and Rougned Odor is in a similar situation on the actual IL; Giancarlo Stanton was scratched Friday due to left quad tightness; and Gio Urshela was held out Friday due to a left knee issue he has been battling for a week now, and while he does feel better, he also felt better in Tampa before he looked like he was laboring to run at the end of Thursday’s loss.
That’s five big parts of the Yankees’ optimal 11 non-catchers, and of the rest, Luke Voit just returned from a knee injury of his own, Tyler Wade is Tyler Wade, and both Clint Frazier and Brett Gardner entered Friday with averages below .200 – and Miguel Andujar, called up to provide support at multiple positions, was 0-for-13, with Mike Ford hitting below .100.
Pujols has slowed, and he doesn’t necessarily fit the Yankees’ profile right now; he is a first baseman only and has long been a pull-heavy hitter – and in fact only has one hit to the right side of the field this season – so he’s redundant in a way with Voit and Ford, and his hard-hit (53rd percentile), barrels (54th), and average exit velocity (69th) metrics aren’t particularly overwhelming.
So, then, why would the Yankees want to roll the dice? Three big reasons, all starting with the letter M:
-Money: Pujols has officially cleared waivers and been released, so any team that signs him only has to pay him the pro-rated portion of the MLB minimum salary of $570,500. Do the quick math based on a 186-day season, and that’s about $3K a day. Pujols would cost the same as any emergency call-up or minor-league addition, so why not see if there’s a spark?
-Movement: If Stanton is going to be down even for a couple days, utilizing Voit as the DH makes sense more often than not to rest his knee. Pujols does want to play first base every day, with that apparently being part of the blow up that led to him leaving Los Angeles. No one will ever confuse him with Mark Teixeira over there, but he did win two Gold Gloves back in the day and is still commensurate with other options.
-Magic: You hear it all the time, but it seems like some guys get a huge boost simply from putting on the pinstripes. Just look at the last few years: Cameron Maybin hit .285 with 11 home runs in half a season off the scrap heap in 2019, Urshela has gone from journeyman to cleanup hitter, Mike Tauchman looked like a valuable piece in ’19, and on down the line. Sure, Pujols could become Kendrys Morales or Travis Hafner 2.0, but there’s no long-term commitment here.
The Yankees only needed a seemingly-temporary boost when they acquired Edwin Encarnacion in 2018, but he went on to hit .249 with 13 homers in 44 games and the Yankees figured out the fit. They also were maligned for taking a flyer on Odor as an ill roster fit, but Rougie has hit four homers and come up with some clutch hits in his 27 games so far.
With the way the roster looks right now, the Yankees need DJ LeMahieu at second or third, Miguel Andujar at third or in left field, and someone more functional than Mike Ford as the backup first baseman/DH – and if Pujols can do that for even a week, the Yankees have an open 40-man roster spot and a few thousand dollars to spare.
Plus, who wouldn’t love to see the original Machine and the new Machine side by side?
Follow Lou DiPietro on Twitter: @LouDiPietroWFAN
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