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Jorge Posada Sits Out Of Yankees Game (With Bruised Ego)
By
Ben Yakas
Published May 15, 2011
Modified May 15, 2011
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By
Ben Yakas
Published May 15, 2011
Modified May 15, 2011
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Last night, chaos reigned for the Yankees and struggling veteran Jorge Posada: after he was dropped to ninth in the batting order, he then asked to be removed from the lineup in a nationally televised game against the Boston Red Sox. Rumors and contradicting accounts were tossed out like fly balls: was Posada insulted by the demotion? Did GM Brian Cashman alienate Posada? And most importantly, are Posada's days in pinstripes coming to an ugly, premature end in the middle of the season?
Earlier yesterday, the Yankees announced that Posada would be dropped to last in the batting order because of his struggles at the plate this season. During a pregame press conference, he sounded humbled, saying "I put myself in this spot." But then just before the game, Posada went into manager Joe Girardi's office and asked to be removed from the lineup—it's unclear exactly what was said during that meeting, but Posada later told reporters that he needed a day to "clear his head." However, sources told the News that Posada was "insulted" by demotion during a national game.
To make matters worse, Cashman held a mini-press conference in the middle of the game, denying that Posada was injured. That move made Posada very angry: "I don't know why he made a statement during the game. I don't understand that. That's the way he works now, I guess. I think we should have waited for the game to be over to talk to whoever...You don't do that. You're not supposed to do that," Posada told reporters after the game. Also during the game, Posada's wife, who also broke the news of his switching to DH over the winter, tweeted that the reason he sat out was because he was injured, with "back stiffness."
As NBC predicted earlier this week, Posada was bound for some harsh scrutiny based on his poor performance this season, his first since switching from catcher to DH. The 39-year-old Posada is batting .165, including 0-for-24 righthanded; as ESPN points out, "If his name were Jose Canseco or any of the other short-time designated hitters intermittently employed by the Yankees when Posada was an All-Star catcher, he would already be out the door, based on his production."
Sources tell ESPN that the Yankees believe they have grounds to suspend Posada right away but have not decided whether to do so yet; they could also dock his pay for the day he missed, which would come to $71,978 on his $13.1 million salary this season. As of now, no one is sure whether Posada will be in the lineup tonight. Like Red Sox slugger David "Big Papi" Ortiz, Posada probably could some hugs from fans today:
Tagged
baseball
brian cashman
Jorge Posada
mlb
Yankees
Ben Yakas
Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.
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