If Jorge Posada wants to retire in pinstripes, he had better start hitting. After reportedly throwing a fit and pulling himself out of the Yankees lineup because Joe Girardi dropped him to 9th in the order against the Red Sox, Posada apologized to the team and New York vowed to move forward. Move forward they may, but it could be without their longtime catcher.
Hardball Talk passed along an ESPN New York report on Thursday which claims the Yankees “will reconsider Jorge Posada’s future with the team if his numbers don’t improve by the All-Star break.” Posada is currently serving as a part-time DH for the Yankees and hitting a measly .179 — nearly 100 points lower than his career average. He’s 0-for-24 against left-handed pitching this season and while Joe Girardi stopped short of saying Posada will always be sitting against lefties, he hasn’t faced one in three games.
Jorge is on the books for $13 million this season, meaning New York would still owe him around $6 million at the All-Star break. The easiest solution to the problem — which the media will continue to feast on with each passing day — would be for the 39-year-old’s bat to come alive, since he has little to no value as a fielder. Girardi would love to be able to keep the veteran on his roster, but the Yankees have too many concerns with their team to be doing favors simply to remain faithful to a Yankee great. Releasing Posada would be an ugly way to end a terrific Yankee career, but as we’ve heard time and time and again throughout professional sports, business is business.
