Swisher signs with Cleveland--4 years, $56m

[Red Barchetta]

Originally Posted by PaleHoser

I wouldn't want him for free.

It will be interesting to see how his "hey look at me" antics will play out when the club is losing 90+ a year.

The guy so belongs in a Cubs uniform. He was born to be a matinee idol.

[LoveYourSuit]

Originally Posted by blandman

He still sucks.

Yeah. A guy who posted OPS:

.869
.870
.823
.837

in 4 seasons for the pressure packed environment which is the New York Yankees. Yeah, he sucks.

[Lip Man 1]

Love:

Unfortunately he didn't put up those numbers with the Sox did he? Not saying he was a bad player (he isn't) and in fact he was misused by Ozzie because of circumstances (like Mackowiak) but what pissed off Sox fans and why they will never forgive him is because of the way he acted the last month after the club got Griffey.

As a professional, being paid like a professional, it's reasonable to assume said player will ACT like a professional....not like a spoiled five year old.

Lip

[StillMissOzzie]

Originally Posted by LoveYourSuit

Yeah. A guy who posted OPS:

.869
.870
.823
.837

in 4 seasons for the pressure packed environment which is the New York Yankees. Yeah, he sucks.

I have always felt that Swisher was the beneficiary of a lot of protection in that Yankee lineup. I also think that Cleveland will have regrets within two years of this contract.

SMO

[SephClone89]

Originally Posted by Lip Man 1

Love:

Unfortunately he didn't put up those numbers with the Sox did he?

Lip

This is not pertinent to the conversation, though.

[TDog]

Originally Posted by Golden Sox

I keep being told that small market teams like Cleveland and Pittsburgh don't have the money to compete with the big market teams. Pittsburgh and Cleveland just spent millions of dollars on Liriano and Swisher. Either these teams really are making money or they spend their money foolishly. I wouldn't want either Liriano or Swisher on my team, especially for the type of money they just signed for.

It's also possible that teams really are making money and are spening their money foolishly.

Swisher benefited from hitting in the Yankees lineup, although he leaves the Yankees at a point where their lineup is more questionable than it's been in a while. It wasn't just the other hitters in the lineup, but it involved a sharp attitude adjustment that comes with playing for the Yankees, which, for a player like Swisher, involves fading into the background.

Swisher made out like a bandit in his Indians contract. I was thinking that whoever signed Swisher this offseason was going to get quite a bit less than expected. Maybe his father's ties to the organization, for whom he managed in the minors many years ago, will make a difference.

Against the White Sox, I would rather see Nick Swisher playing right for the Indians than Sin-Shoo Choo.

[blandman]

Originally Posted by LoveYourSuit

Yeah. A guy who posted OPS:

.869
.870
.823
.837

in 4 seasons for the pressure packed environment which is the New York Yankees. Yeah, he sucks.

Haha...no, I just plain don't like him. I can't imagine many who are sox fans do. The guy whined and quit on a playoff team.

[moochpuppy]

Everytime I think we traded away Gio Gonzalez (for a 2nd time) for this asswipe it makes my blood boil!

[CoopaLoop]

Originally Posted by moochpuppy

Everytime I think we traded away Gio Gonzalez (for a 2nd time) for this asswipe it makes my blood boil!

Much more of a negative on Kenny imo.

[palehozenychicty]

Originally Posted by Golden Sox

I keep being told that small market teams like Cleveland and Pittsburgh don't have the money to compete with the big market teams. Pittsburgh and Cleveland just spent millions of dollars on Liriano and Swisher. Either these teams really are making money or they spend their money foolishly. I wouldn't want either Liriano or Swisher on my team, especially for the type of money they just signed for.

It's a little bit of both. KC was a victim of this when they traded Will Myers for Shields. They wouldn't have had to do that if Guthrie and Chen were allowed to walk away.

That being said, Swisher, for all of his antics, is a decent player.

[Mohoney]

Originally Posted by LoveYourSuit

Yeah. A guy who posted OPS:

.869
.870
.823
.837

in 4 seasons for the pressure packed environment which is the New York Yankees. Yeah, he sucks.

He's not a bad regular season player, but he sure does suck out loud come playoff time.

.169/.283/.305

[tstrike2000]

Originally Posted by Lip Man 1

Love:

Unfortunately he didn't put up those numbers with the Sox did he? Not saying he was a bad player (he isn't) and in fact he was misused by Ozzie because of circumstances (like Mackowiak) but what pissed off Sox fans and why they will never forgive him is because of the way he acted the last month after the club got Griffey.

As a professional, being paid like a professional, it's reasonable to assume said player will ACT like a professional....not like a spoiled five year old.

Lip

That's pretty much it Lip. He hit very poorly and was benched. You can't fault Ozzie for that, especially when we were in such a tight race for the division in '08. He didn't handle it like a professional.

[TheVulture]

Originally Posted by Lip Man 1

in fact he was misused by Ozzie because of circumstances

Lip

Ozzie didn't use him much differently than Oakland had used him the previous couple seasons; he played about a quarter of his games at CF and about half the time at the top of the order just like with the Sox. In fact, he actually started more games in center the year before with the A's. Swisher just crapped his pants with the Sox for one reason or another.

[Lip Man 1]

Swisher never was and never will be a center fielder. Swisher never was and never will be a lead off man. Ozzie misused him but the fault for that lies with Kenny for putting him in that situation in the first place.

When Anderson became a bust, Kenny kept trying everything BUT getting a real life, actual center fielder in the mold of say Curtis Granderson (just as an example...)

Lip

[TDog]

Originally Posted by TheVulture

Ozzie didn't use him much differently than Oakland had used him the previous couple seasons; he played about a quarter of his games at CF and about half the time at the top of the order just like with the Sox. In fact, he actually started more games in center the year before with the A's. Swisher just crapped his pants with the Sox for one reason or another.

Nick Swisher became the regular center fielder, more or less, for the 2007 A's after Mark Kotsay went down. If Swisher had not established himself as a center fielder, I don't know that the White Sox would have traded for him. The trade was made after the Sox failed to sign Torii Hunter and Aaron Rowand to play center. Kenny Williams said in the trade-announcement news conference that Swisher was obtained as a center fielder who could play other positions. About two weeks later, the Sox signed Alexei Ramirez, who ended up starting in center on opening day. But Ramirez ended up on the infield. Swisher was the leadoff man becuase he had a strong on-base percentage with the A's, which didn't mean anything because he wasn't leading off for the A's.

The White Sox never should have traded for Swisher. Perhaps if Kotsay had remained healthy, the Sox never would have traded for Swisher. And maybe the A's wouldn't have let Kotsay go.