Gardner Still Hurts While Role Players Still Shine

When the news came down yesterday that Brett Gardner suffered yet another setback in his quest to come back from that elbow injury, I could have been very upset about it. But I wasn't. Why should I or any Yankee fan be that upset? After all, the team is 21 games over .500, in first place by a whopping 9 games. True, they'd be better at manufacturing runs and the defense in left field would be tighter if Gardner were healthy. But they've replaced manufacturing runs with home runs and the role players have done an adequate job in left field (Although, home runs and adequate defense isn't always enough in the postseason.)

Those role players, of course, are Raul Ibanez, Andruw Jones, and DeWayne Wise. Between the three of them they have put together numbers that make Yankee fans say "Brett, who?" Ibanez (who was the hero last night with his 8th inning grand slam, leading the Yankees to a 6-3 victory over the Blue Jays) has better numbers than Alex Rodriguez, and he's played in fewer games. 

So the question now is this: If Brett Gardner doesn't return, can the Yankees get through the remainder of the season with the role players, or, do they need to make a deal by the trade deadline? Well, if you are thinking solely about the regular season, the answer is no. But you need someone who knows how to help manufacture runs in the postseason. The Yankees are all about the postseason. So, even though I hate to upset the apple cart, I think it needs upsetting. I don't know if they will or who they could possibly go after but, they need to make a deal.

In the meantime, roll on, role players!