It's obviously long in the past, but I was wondering, do Yankees fans blame them for trading Jose Contreras to the White Sox for Esteban Loaiza in 2004?
It essentially was a salary dump. General manager Brian Cashman admitted before tonight's game he simply felt Contreras wasn't going to be able to succeed in New York. So if he felt that way midway through the second year of a four-year, $32-million contract, no wonder Esteban Loaiza's expiring contract was attractive. Even if it belonged to Esteban Loaiza.
So which camp are you in? Do you believe Contreras would have turned it around in the Bronx? Or is what we've seen from him since going to happen only when he left New York, regardless of where he went next?
And by the way, tough way for him to suffer his first loss in nearly 11 months. Though somewhat fitting that his streak ended here, at a place that caused him so much fright during his short tenure. Remember those frustrating Contreras starts when he would be doing good and then after something bad happened he just fell apart and couldn't throw a strike??? Feels like a long time ago.
Comments (6)
there was no way that contreras was going to suceed in NY, and there's various reasons for this, some of which include the pressure of playing in the bronx, the inability to easily communicate with the manager, and an incompetent pitching coach.
i wish the yankees would have traded him to seattle though, when freddy garcia and then mariner mike myers were on the table.
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/06/04/sports/baseball/04pins.html?ex=1153108800&en=262a72f8593d1815&ei=5070
If the Yankees had the management set-up they have now and Cashman was directing the band when Contreras was pitching in Pinstripes, Contreras would not have been getting advice from all Yankees' "Baseball People" and he would have eventually thrived here. However, each time he lost a game to the Red Sox, he would have been questioned and he would have to mentally move-on. Now, the question is: Would he be strong enough mentally to do so? The answer: Look at what he did for the ChiSox. A resounding Yes!
I think the trade was the only option "Cash" had. The guy "melted down" when he faced the Red Sox, so he had to go. I believe age may have been an issue also. A foreign birth certificates is looked at skeptically in the baseball world.
My take on the Contreras deal is that there were way too many people in charge at the time with the New York faction and the Tampa faction.
Each would react differently with each Contreras outing. It was not only the case with him but with the whole team. There was absolutely no player development plan, just spontaneous actions and reactions. Baseball minds were ignored and toadies waffled with the winds.
If there were a line of command and a plan for player development, perhaps things would be different today. Perhaps some of the talents would have been developed and not serve merely as trade fodder such as Brandon Clausson, Ted Lilly, Dioner Navarro, and on and on.
It is easy to say it was Torre or Stottlemyer or Contreras, though ultimately, he was responsible for poor pitching. Yet after each outing he was sent in a different direction with a new idea of the moment to fix it.
It was a mistake to trade him away, especially for a 3-month rental, albeit we did not want Esteban Loaiza past those few months. This was a pitching staff poisoned by the likes of Kevin Brown. No one won more than 14 games that season. Count the people with ERAs over 6: Felix Heredia, Brad Halsey, Esteban Loaiza, Gabe White, Donovan Osborne, C.J. Nitkowski, Alex Graman. Mediocrity was a lofty goal for some.
Suffice it to say management was a mess and cost the club the Contreras deal.
I hated the trade at the time. Contreras's family had just defected from Cuba, and El Duque had only been his Yankee teammate for a few months. He should have been afforded more time to adjust, especially when all the Yankees got in return was TTAS™.
Obviously, it would have helped to have a real pitching coach, and not Mel, but to say that Contreras would never have succeeded in New York requires a clairvoyance that no human possesses.
Contreras's trade was done because of his performance. His inability to pitch at even a mediocre level was disturbing. Obviously, the Bronx and his family weighted heavily on his performance. This is why, the yankees must home grow most of their talent. FA signings especially pitchers need two years to adjust to the atmosphere and the media.Shipping Contreras out was right but he was let go cheaply. Playing in NY and Boston is at a different level then the other 28 cities. Look at A-rod one of the best players in baseball and he's struggling this year. If Cashman is truly given control. I beleive the Yankees will be a strong team with less payroll and younger more energetic players. Now Torre has to buy into it for a total committment to the development process.