The Yankees are taking a gamble by adding A.J. Burnett to the four-man roster for the ALCS. If they let Francisco Cervelli catch for Burnett in place of Jorge Posada, they’ll handicap themselves even more.
Over the course of the regular season, manager Joe Girardi preferred to have Cervelli catch Burnett and either give Posada a rest or put him at designated hitter. Last year, Girardi similarly rested Posada and let Jose Molina catch for Burnett.
While it’s understandable to give Posada time off during the regular season, this year’s playoff situation makes sitting Posada hard to justify.
Burnett has struggled, to say the least, so if Girardi’s goal is to have Cervelli catch in order to maintain Burnett’s productivity, that doesn’t really make any sense. It’s hard to believe Burnett would pitch any worse with Posada, because Burnett doesn’t have any rhythm to break.
Burnett wants to start fresh in the playoffs, so maybe pitching to Posada provides a spark. After all, the Yankees won in Burnett’s first three starts of the season, all of which Posada caught. Then due to injury and Girardi’s decision-making, Burnett primarily pitched to Cervelli and went 8-15 the rest of the season. While these stats aren’t intended to imply that Burnett pitches better with Posada, they do imply that Posada is able to do the job well enough for Burnett to still have success.
Since there’s no real advantage for Burnett, why take away Posada’s offensive production? Posada’s .356 on-base percentage nearly ties Cervelli’s .359 OBP, but the major difference comes in power. Posada smacked 18 homers in an injury-shortened season while slugging .449, whereas Cervelli didn’t hit a single home run and slugged a paltry .335. Whether the Yankees play the Rays or Rangers, New York will face a good pitching staff, so the Yankees need all the help they can get on offense.
Even if the Yankees make Posada the DH if Cervelli gets the start, Lance Berkman and Austin Kearns are both better hitters than Cervelli, so that would still put the Yankees at a disadvantage.
At the moment, Girardi is legitimately considering starting Cervelli at catcher when Burnett pitches, and this move should only take place if the Yankees are up in the series 3-0. Otherwise, the game is too important to not have the best players out on the field.
Should Jorge Posada catch for A.J. Burnett, or should Francisco Cervelli get the nod? Share your thoughts below.
