I know that its early...

...and it goes against everything that I stand for to pass judgements after two games, but Brett Gardner simply looks overmatched. After all of the fanfare (read: bullsh*t) perpetuated by the Yankees Propoganda Network, it seems that the certified Spring Training All-Star has not progressed as much as the team would have us believe.

Unfortunately for all of you Brett Gardner fans out there, it looks like this is his game. While his minor league OBP checks in at over .400, it is weighted by the fact that he has walked once every 7.5 plate appearances. As the nine hitter in one of the most potent lineups in all of baseball, you can rest assured that the pitchers will be going right after Gardner at every chance. This means that until he proves that he can, in fact, hit major league pitching, the walks will be few and far between.

We all know that if the Yankees offense ends up relying on Gardner to be an offensive force that there is something seriously wrong. But in the 30-50 games that Jorge Posada is out of the lineup can the team afford two automatic outs? Up until this point, there has been no evidence that Brett Gardner can hit at this level. Given the small sample size, there is a chance that he makes me eat my words (and please believe that I am hoping that he does), but the "Gritty, Gutty" centerfielder looks a lot more like the overachieving prick that lapped teammates in high school practice than he does Brett Butler.

It is incredibly short-sighted to make these statements after just two games, and I could easily look very stupid in a month or so. But even knowing this, I still believe that the player who will be manning centerfield in June is not on the Yankees' roster. He is on the Brewers'.