Though I am not really sure who said it, it's something
that we have all heard before: "One Mans Trash Is Another
Man's Treasure", and that is exactly the case for the New
York Yankees and the Pittsburgh Pirates when it comes to
the trade of A.J. Burnett this past weekend.
N.Y. Yankee fans couldn't be happier as a whole to get
A.J. Burnett out of town, and many volunteered to drive
him to wherever he was going as a bonus to it all.
A.J. Had clearly worn out his welcome after having been
so underwhelming with a 34-35 record with a 4.79 ERA in
his three seasons with the Yankees. It's certainly not
what the fans or the Yankees were expecting after they
signed him to a 5 year deal for $82.5Mil in 2009.
The Yankees did win a World Series in that time, but the
numbers were enough to send most of them into therapy,
and that was unacceptable in that part of N.Y. Baseball.
Then comes the the part where A.J. is welcomed with open
arms and seen as "Treasure", and not "Trash" by the
Pittsburgh Pirates and most of their fans. Of course the
Pirates haven't won a World Series since 1979, are trying
to avoid a 20th consecutive losing season, and the Yankees
are willing to pay sixty percent of Burnett's remaining
$33Mil salary in order for the Pirates to take him off
their hands. There is no question that A.J. Burnett will
be an instant improvement to a Pirates team that had it's
moments last season, but wasn't able to retain any of it's
early season scucess. It's also likely that he will be
the instant ace for Clint Hurdle, but it does show how
clear that perception is everything.
This makes both fan bases happier if not necessarily elated,
and is truly likely to improve both teams. What else can
one ask for? It's not likely to hurt Burnett's career much
either, as has been noted many times, a change of scenery
is good, and maybe he can pull a Lin.
Tweet Don't Believe In Plays, Believe In Players - Al Davis
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