Yankees Talk: Comments From The Yanks Go Yard Mailbag

There’s always talk about the Yankees. And much of it occurs in the Comments Section of Yanks Go Yard as readers respond to published articles. At times, the discussion becomes passionate among several different readers. Believing that our readership is the backbone of what we do, here are a few of the comments offered in recent days.This will be a regular feature appearing every Wednesday.

The Yankees, The Hall Of Fame, And Steroids

A story that argued for the inclusion of all steroid users, both known and suspected, in the Baseball Hall Of Fame, brought these contrasting views from readers:

"slider32“Let’s not be hypocrites here, the best players should go into the Hall of Fame. 90% of the players in the hall cheated in some way. Most of the Hall of Famers took amphetamines or something else to improve their performance. Just look at the overall batting averages going down from .270 to .250. Some think that close to 50% of the players were taking steroids at one time. End the madness and let the best players in. We all have exhausted this subject and have our own opinion on this subject, it’s time to end this. There are already players in the Hall who have taken PEDs, Now it starting to sound like Star envy if you know, everyone likes to see great people knocked down.”"

galihaaben agreed, but offered differing reasons why the Hall should be opened up:

"“I’ve never been to Cooperstown, but they should build a room just for the steroid era and honor the guys that participated in that era. I only believe in that solely because those guys practically brought baseball back from the dead because everyone was going to games to watch (Insert Name Here) hit a homer. Now there aren’t too many people attending games; even some playoff-contending teams have many seats empty. Of course, it doesn’t justify that those guys had an unfair advantage.”"

Should The Yankees Pursue Bryce Harper In 2018?

The Yanks Go Yard story argued strenuously against the Yankees signing Harper as a free agent in 2018, triggering several strong responses:

UltimateYankeeFan

"“Personally I don’t think any player in any sport is worth $400MM over the life of a contract no matter the length. But having said that any blogger or fan that thinks Bryce Harper’s left handed bat wouldn’t play much, much, much better power wise in Yankees Stadium and the smaller AL East stadiums than the Nationals home park, NL Stadiums and specifically the NL East is extremely naive.Keep in mind MLB is a business and aside from winning which of course is important the business of baseball is as much about showmanship and entertainment and Bryce Harper will provide that to whichever team he signs with come his free agency.”"

While NYBamBam takes a different stance:

"“Harper has had one great season, a couple of good seasons (averaging 18 homers and a 272/.351/.465/.816 slashline. last year was pretty mediocre for a corner outfielder. Take away his phenomenal 2015 season and he’s a league average RF at the plate and a deficit in the field (-1,0 dWar), with league average range (1.89 ) at the tender age of 24. Some things don’t get better with age, like running across the outfield. While my opinion of Harper might improve if 2017 looks more like 2015. We have so many prospects in the outfield (plus Brett Gardner, Jacoby Ellsbury, Aaron Hicks), I think it might be a mistake to sign Harper at any price. His average output is well within the expectations and hopes for Judge and Frazier.And he’s an A..hole in the dugout so, who needs that kind of leadership at 400 mil?"

Of These Yankees, Who Will Arrive In The Bronx First – Torres Or Frazier?

A story asking and answering the question which of these Yankees will arrive in the Bronx first – Gleyber Torres or Clint Frazier, brought these replies:

Tim argued for Frazier:

"“I think Frazier will force his way up around the trade deadline. We can trade Gardy and let Frazier play left. This would be especially good if Gardy is playing well at the deadline so we can get maximum value for him. Torres certainly won’t be fair behind but I’d prefer to let him have more time to develop, not only as a player but as a man. As mentioned, he is only 20 years old and a full season at AA/AAA could be very beneficial for him.”"

While Derrick_Pasley had a different take:

"“The reason I disagree with you is because of Ellsbury. Regardless of how he performs he will be in the starting lineup nearly every day. Judge will probably be given a full season to get his game going, and Gardner is the best outfielder they have. So, no room for Frazier this year. As for Torres, he can still be moved to second base and if his bat is as good as everyone says, he’ll be ready this time next year. I like the idea of moving Starlin Castro to third to make room for Torres.”"

Is The Yankees Johnny Damon A Hall Of Fame Player?

A story posing the question of whether or Johnny Damon will make it to the Hall Of Fame in 2018 triggered some controversy:

Bill9352 put it this way:

"“You are right about him being a very good major leaguer. But his name and Hall of Fame in the same sentence doesn’t work.”"

While Double_Up went to the stats:

"“Compiler. Not close to HOF. Just like Andruw Jones, but different. Jones was a mediocre hitter his whole career, very poor for 7 years, even if he did steroids, and gets his rep from 8 solid years in CF when defensive CF were lacking (quick, name other really good CF in the NL back then (Edmonds, and uh………). Pretty low standards. .254/.337/.486 slash for Jones, .284/.352/.433 for Damon. Neither hit all that well but Damon was better, neither got on base well, neither had much power. If they votes then what about Marquis Grissom, Javier Vazquez, Jim Edmonds, Kenny Lofton…..”"

The Next Installment Of The Mailbag Will be Published Wednesday, February 1.

Thanks to all readers for taking the time to offer interesting takes on the stories we write at Yanks Go Yard. Keep those comments coming as they are the lifeblood of what we do here.