Yankees should target Daniel Murphy instead of Manny Machado

With reports fluttering that the Yankees are “lukewarm” on signing Manny Machado, perhaps they should consider turning to Daniel Murphy instead.

The thought of the New York Yankees adding Manny Machado to a lineup that already features the likes Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, and Gary Sanchez is enticing, but at what point does a team become too predictable? As it is, the Yankees interest may be overstated, leading them in a different direction. One unexpected move the Yankees can make to bolster their lineup is adding Daniel Murphy.

Here’s why:

The New York Yankees won 100 games in 2018 using a simple formula:

Get on-base
Hit dingers

Throughout the course of a long, arduous MLB season, the formula is almost fail proof. In fact, the formula worked so well that the Yankees ranked 2nd in all of baseball in on-base plus slugging (OPS) with .781. They also managed to etch themselves as the single-season home run record holders with 267 dingers.

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Ironically, in the end, what potentially might have cost the Yankees any shot at beating the Red Sox in the ALDS was… you guessed it, their over-reliance on the aforementioned simple formula.

It’s clear that the one thing the Yankees are not lacking is power hitting. There’s enough home runs in the Yankees lineup to go around.

That’s exactly the reason why Daniel Murphy would be the perfect fit for the “Bronx Bombers,” because he adds another element to the team.

Besides starting pitching, what the Yankees are lacking is a surefire contact hitter. A doubles hitter that isn’t afraid to put the ball in play and keep defenses on their toes. These are all attributes that Murph possesses.

What’s more, adding Daniel Murphy would also add more flexibility to the Yankees defensively, especially given that Didi Gregorious recently underwent Tommy John surgery and could be out “anywhere from June to August,” according to Yanks Go Yard’s very own Mike Caledrillo.

Murph could slide in to second base while Didi recovers. After all, that’s were he’s spent over 70% of his career games, and Gleyber Torres, who played short stop in over 69% of games in the minors, could cover short.

What happens when Didi returns, you might ask?

Well, Murph can play first base and third base as well. You can utilize him as a super utility of sorts to give guys like Miguel Andujar and Luke Voit/Greg Bird a spell.

Throughout his career, Daniel Murphy has played well over 1700 innings at first base. In that span, he has +18 defensive runs saved (DRS). Last season, Voit posted a -5 DRS and Bird a -3 DRS.

At third base, Murphy has played just over 720 innings and has -5 DRS. That’s not good, but compared to Andujar, who has a -25 DRS, Murph looks like Matt Chapman of the Oakland A’s.

The left handed hitting Murphy would also even the Yankee lineup between lefty’s and righty’s, and, most importantly, he hits well in high leverage situations.

Last season, the Yankees hit .239 with a .348 OBP with runners in scoring position (RISP) and two outs. For his career, Murphy hits .311 with a .402 OBP with RISP and two outs.

Also, instead of inking a deal worth upwards of $30 million for seven plus years with a polarizing Manny Machado, you can sign Daniel Murphy for a short term deal worth significantly less money. This will provide the Yankees more financial flexibility to go out and sign and/or trade for a couple of starting pitchers.

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Finally, Murph has played under the bright lights of Broadway before, and his blue collar style of play, which Mets fans adored him for, will sure play nicely in the Bronx.

A Daniel Murphy to the Yankees deal would be a match made in heaven.

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