Yankees acquire Hinske

You gotta cut that goatee, Eric.

The Yankees have just acquired Eric Hinske from the Pirates. The Yankees sent Eric Fryer and Casey Erickson to the Bucs in exchange for Hinske and cash. Erickson and Fryer will not be missed, although Fryer did come over in the deal that sent Chase Wright to the Brewers. Still, both Fryer and Erickson were not considered real prospects. For the Pirates this move was really just a salary dump. Hinske’s 2009 contract is worth a total of 1.5 million, he supposedly has already earned 700,000$ and the remaining 800,000$ will be split between the Yankees and the Pirates.

Hinske will add depth to the Yankees. He can play left and right field, and he can play third and first base. Now with Hinske on the bench, the Yankees can give ARod, Teixeira, Swisher, and Damon a day off when needed. This doesn’t mean much, but Hinske was on both the 2007 World Series Champions, the Red Sox, and the 2008 AL Champions, the Rays. I really like this move because Hinske will provide some needed pop off the bench, and he allow some other guys to get regular days off.

Hinske will be in uniform tonight as the Yankees take on the Mariners, I wonder if he will get a start? Ramiro Pena will be optioned down to Scranton. The Yankees want Ramiro to get regular playing time to continue to develop. The other thing that is interesting is that according to Joel Sherman, Ramiro Pena will play some outfield down in the minors because the Yankees want to turn him into a super utility guy. Hmm…well we will just have to see, but I really do like the move to acquire Hinske.