November 13, 200817 yr Yanks acquire Swisher from White Sox By Anthony DiComo / MLB.com The Yankees also received Minor League pitcher Kanekoa Texeira from the White Sox, in exchange for Betemit and Minor League pitchers Jeff Marquez and Jhonny Nunez. Swisher, 27, hit .219 with 24 homers last season for the White Sox, playing first base and all three outfield positions. He is a .244 career hitter with 104 home runs. Swisher should play mostly first base for the Yankees, according to general manager Brian Cashman, simply because that remains the team's greatest need. But that could also change based on what the Yankees do throughout the rest of the offseason. "We acquired him, obviously, because he fills a need right now, and we feel that if the season starts today, that's where he'd be," Cashman said. "But the season doesn't start today." Swisher could also spell Johnny Damon in left field or Xavier Nady in right. Though he played more games in center field than either of the corner positions with the White Sox last season, Swisher appears to be nothing more than an insurance policy in center for the Yankees. Cashman said that his scouts consider Swisher a "plus defender" at the corner outfield positions and first place, but just average in center. "One of the reasons we were attracted to Nick," Cashman said, "is that he's got the flexibility, the versatility to play left, center, right, first. We, obviously, have a vacancy at first base, but the winter is early." To acquire Swisher, the Yankees had to deal away Marquez, one of the top remaining pitching prospects in their farm system. Marquez was 8-8 with a 4.47 ERA in 19 starts split between Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and Double-A Trenton. Betemit, 27, was a utility infielder for the Yankees. He hit .265 with six home runs in 87 games this season. Nunez appeared in eight games for Trenton last season following a midseason trade, and struck out 26 batters in 19 1/3 innings. The Yankees also received Texeira, who was 6-3 with 21 saves and a 1.33 ERA in 51 relief appearances split between Class A Winston-Salem and Double-A Birmingham last season. Those numbers included 20 saves and a 0.93 ERA with Winston-Salem, and a scoreless-innings streak that hit 22 straight appearances before the 22-year-old's promotion. Anthony DiComo is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs. not sure if this was posted
November 13, 200817 yr Hopefully Kanekoa Texeira is the only Texiera the Yankees get this offseason (yes, I know Mark spells his differently)
November 14, 200817 yr so i'm guessing swisher will primarily play 1st with hideki, damon, and melky in the outfield and abreu if they resign him.
November 14, 200817 yr I really really liked Nick when he was with Oakland. I kinda liked him when he was with Chicago. But now...I just cant root for him anymore. He has been traded to the dark side of the force.
November 14, 200817 yr Author Man, I remember when Betemit was supposed to be good. :lol thats what i was thinking.... Nothing but a traveling player now
November 14, 200817 yr Excellent move by the Yanks... Where the hell were the Marlins on this one..... He plays 1st and OF
November 14, 200817 yr Nick Swisher isn't good... Last year he was pretty bad but i think hes an above average player.
November 14, 200817 yr Nick Swisher isn't good... 2006 : .254/.372/.493 2007: .262/.381/.455 I'd enjoy those numbers from a 1B... also... he's pretty good... not a superstar but definitely a good player... he had a bad year... there's a difference
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