The Yankees acquisition of Javier Vazquez today raises some interesting questions.
Did the Yankees want John Lackey?
Lackey was the best free agent pitcher on the market and one of the Yankees biggest needs this off season was starting pitching.
The Red Sox already had two aces BEFORE they signed John Lackey so one cant help but wonder if the Lackey signing was a preemptive strike on the Yankees...or maybe some sort of retaliation for the Mark Teixeira "stealing" last offseason.
The baseball off season can be a very complicated game and sometimes you have to make a move with the goal of not only beating your opponent on the field next season but destroying your closest competitors off season strategy (see the Teixeira signing last off season and what it did to the Red Sox 2009 season and what the Lackey signing might do to the Yankees).
The icing on this cake is the fact that the Yankees had to TRADE Melky Cabrera in order to get a starting pitcher. They couldnt just go out and sign one. They had to give something up.
Kudos to Theo Epstein. You played your hand well.
GO TO MASSHOLE SPORTS HOMEPAGE
