Yankees Sign Ibanez- B/R App Essay

    The following post is my application piece sent into Bleacher Report for a possible part-time writing position with the site. Check them out at  http://bleacherreport.com/. It is more concise in analysis than I would like, but it was fun to put together and share a sabermetric viewpoint on a current transaction.

    The New York Yankees have signed Raul Ibanez to a deal for one year, worth about $1 million and a possible $4 million if all incentives are reached. This is a move by the Yankees that had been anticipated for a while, with three main players being mentioned: Ibanez, Johnny Damon, and Eric Chavez. New York has a potent offense, helped in part by the short right field wall that Ibanez will be able to utilize as a mostly pull lefty. Platooning with Andruw Jones (a righty who hits left-handed pitchers very well) gives the Yankees a fearsome platoon advantage in the DH spot, left vacant by the retirement of Jorge Posada. The following paragraphs will examine the breakdown of Ibanez platoon skills and a modest review of the veracity of the transaction.

     It is safe to say that Ibanez decreased in skill from 2010 to 2011. His average declined (0.275 to 0.245) and while he had 26 less at-bats than in 2010, he drew 35 less walks in 2011. This decline in OBP (0.349 to 0.289) is a large concern for fans who know that getting on base is crucial for scoring runs. That sounds obvious, but is the deal a bust because Ibanez got on base less in 2011 than he had in any other season since 1997? The short answer is no, as the Yankees said they wanted Ibanez due to his ability to hit righties. Even in a down 2010 season, he still had an OBP of 0.307 versus right-handed pitchers versus a miserable 0.232 OBP against left-handed pitchers. Additionally, he had a respectable 0.440 slugging percentage against righties, showing that he can provide power at the plate. As mentioned earlier, this power will be helped by the short porch in right field. It is this platoon split that the Yankees want to utilize. While his 2011 season was poor, Ibanez will only face righties, and thus maximize his potential.

      Playing from the bench as a DH will also keep him off the field. The Yankees have a solid outfield defense and Ibanez is a mistake prone fielder. Ultimate Zone Rating(UZR) is a technical, complex fielding metric commonly used by analysts. As per FanGraphs, Ibanez has amassed a -39.0 UZR, well below the level of a competent outfielder. (For comparison, Brett Gardner has a 72.3 UZR). Not to belabor the point, but the Yankees have made the right choice in moving Ibanez immediately to the bench for hitting-only purposes.

     Overall, the Yankees have sacrificed a modicum amount of money for a player who will be marginally used to only provide at bats, getting on base, and power. One can argue that Damon or Chavez would bring other positives to the team, but Ibanez brings in an ability to hit right-handed pitching, that matches well with current DH Jones' ability to hit left-handed pitching. Together, they should give the Yankees power in the DH spot on an already scary team.