Girardi Screws the Pooch

According to the Daily News, Joe Girardi named Ramiro Pena the utility infielder to begin the 2009 season. This move will leave the Yankees no choice but to DFA Angel Berroa after a Spring Training campaign that included an impressive .371 batting average.

As I noted April 3rd, this move really has little to no bearing on the team's success in 2009. Whomever was chosen to be the 25th man would only be on the roster for a short time, pending the return of Alex Rodriguez. The position will not see many at bats (if any), and it will be a cold day in hell before the slick fielding Pena serves as a late inning defensive replacement for Derek Jeter.

However, I have to say that I was hoping to see then Yankees send Pena to Scranton to get at bats rather than serve as dead weight on the end of the bench.