The Sheffield Saga

For the past two days the New York Media has been infatuated with the idea of the Yankees possibly dealing Gary Sheffield.  For the most part, Yankee fans have been outraged and why shouldn’t they be?  Sheffield has proven himself as a “Yankee,” and after a season which landed him second in the MVP voting, he has come back again with a first-half only out done by Alex Rodriguez’s gargantuan start.  So why would the Yankees, who season has already been the definition of tumultuous rock the boat even more?  Is there something we are missing.  All I know is that throughout the year Sheffield has not seemed happy.  You only have to look to this past Sunday to see the culmination of Sheff’s frustration. It will be interesting to see how this situation unfolds and how the anger Sheffield displayed after hearing the trade rumors will affect his production. As the Yankees sit at 39-38 (as of 6/30) they are desperate to do something to provide consistency to counter thier erratic start. On the day after a gut-wrenching loss to the Orioles in which the omni-potent Brian Roberts hit a first pitch walk off in the bottom of the tenth, trade rumors were swirling. Trade rumors at this time of year, especially regarding the Yankees are no big deal. Also, the Yankees brain trust was summoned to Tampa to talk about what needs to be done to get this team in the playoffs so rumors were going to come flying out of Tampa faster than first base after a Pinella tantrum. Except this time the rumors involved a name that no Yankee fan, nor baseball fan for that matter saw coming; Gary Sheffield.

Could the Yankees really deal Sheffield? Why would they want to trade the runner up in last year’s MVP voting? Or the man that has endeared himself to fans as a true “Yankee?” Your first thought is that any talk of trading Sheffield should be considered asanine. Not only is he still producing (.300, 13, 55, .898 OPS), but this is a guy that last year played with essentially one arm and whom Yankee fans have come to adore on the next level below the champion Yankees that still remain. As always, there are two sides to every story and there are some interesting reasons for the advent of these trade rumors.

Since the beginning of this season there has been something missing about Sheffield. He has seemed frustrated to the point of bitterness. He never played with the demeanor of a Miguel Tejada, but there is still something different in his approachfrom last year. You don’t have to look any further than last Sunday against the Mets when he was ejected late in the game after a close call at first base. Yes, he was safe and the umpire missed the call, but Sheffield’s reaction made you believe there was more to his dissatisfaction than the blown call. Is there something going on in the locker room? Is he still bothered by the steroid talk or the continuing Balco investigation? Sheffield has always carried baggiage, could he be rearing his ugly head once again?

Obviously, that is all speculation from a Yankee fan who has seen and attended a good portion of games this season. There are several other possible scenarios. The Mets could have seen the Yankees were desperate for a center fielder and hoped they could catch them at thier low point and sneak this deal through (they would have sent over Mike Cameron and Miguel Cairo), or the Yankees could have leaked this information in an attempt to improve thier lackluster performace, sending the message that the organization is ready to make moves, no matter how drastic they may seem. The truth of the matter is the Yankees are in no position to dismiss any trade talk. A deal for Sheffield would have to bring in a lot, but the duo of A.J. Burnett (3.14 ERA, 93 K’s) and Juan Encarnaction (10 HR’s and a defensive presence in center field) from the Marlins is pretty good. Do I think they are enough to pull the trigger on Sheff? No, I don’t, but they are close, real close and some team might come up with something that would be too tough to turn down. Gary Sheffield has had a great year and a half as a New York Yankee, but desperate times call for desperate measures and Sheffield because of his contract may be the only tradable figure who could enduce top flight talent. As only a true New Yorker could say, you gotta do whatya gotta do.