While it is far too early to pretend that we can glean anything from anybody's numbers, it's never to early to speculate or second-guess. Not only is hindsight 20/20, it's quite interesting, as well. With that in mind, here are a few former Yankees that have drawn my interest for one reason or another:
Melky Cabrera, Braves
.153/.254/.186, .208 wOBA, 0 HR, 0 SB, .184 BABIP, 20 OPS+
Johnny Damon, Tigers
.323/.443/.431, .400 wOBA, 0 HR, 8 RBI, 1 SB, .396 BABIP, 138 OPS+
Jerry Hairston, Padres
.220/.235/.240, .224 wOBA, 0 HR, 2 SB, .262 BABIP, 34 OPS+
Eric Hinske, Braves
.368/.429/.579, .435 wOBA, 0 HR, 0 SB, .538 BABIP, 165 OPS+
Austin Jackson, Tigers
.316/.372/.468, .372 wOBA, 1 HR, 3 SB, .500 BABIP, 126 OPS+
Hideki Matsui, Angels
.293/.361/.533, .388 wOBA, 4 HR, 11 RBI, .316 BABIP, 141 OPS+
Xavier Nady, Cubs
.215/.333/.321, .308 wOBA, 1 HR, 0 SB, .250 BABIP, 69 OPS+
Brian Bruney, Nationals
5.40 ERA, 6.39 FIP, 6.63 xFIP, 6.48 K/9, 9.72 BB/9, .186 BABIP, 9.1% HR/FB
Tyler Clippard, Nationals
0.61 ERA, 1.66 FIP, 3.25 xFIP, 11.66 K/9, 3.07 BB/9, .212 BABIP, 0.0% HR/FB
Phil Coke, Tigers
1.93 ERA, 3.67 FIP, 5.43 xFIP, 5.79 K/9, 5.79 BB/9, .330 BABIP, 0.0% HR/FB
Ian Kennedy, Diamondbacks
4.43 ERA, 5.72 FIP, 3.99 xFIP, 8.46 K/9, 2.82 BB/9, .222 BABIP, 20.7% HR/FB
Ross Ohlendorf, Pirates
3.60 ERA, 7.03 FIP, 7.16 xFIP, 1.80 K/9, 5.40 BB/9, .186 BABIP, 10.0% HR/FB
I'm not sure what we can really make of this, if anything. I concede that my motivation for this post is my long-standing love of Tyler Clippard, and my regret that he wasn't able to pitch for the Yankees beyond his 23rd birthday. Granted, his fine numbers have come most in middle relief, but perhaps a solid middle-reliever would have allowed Chamberlain and Hughes to remain in the minors a bit longer... but I digress.
