Yankees Throw In The Towel On Nunez

Too many botched plays caused Nunez's demise in NY.

Eduardo Nunez had the tools and he had the talent. He just couldn't make it happen in the Major Leagues as a Yankee. And in a short time, he will no longer be a Yankee.

The Yankees designated Nunez for assignment Monday afternoon, in order to make room on the 40-man roster for Yangervis Solarte. With Derek Jeter sidelined for nearly the entire 2013 season, Nunez had the opportunity to establish himself, but his OPS was under .700 and he continued to stumble in the field. He committed 12 errors at shortstop and made another pair at third base. In 2011, the numbers were similar - 14 errors at shortstop and 6 at third base.

In Spring Training this year, he faced stiff competition from Solarte and Dean Anna for a utility spot on the team. More than anything, your utility infielders must be solid defenders, and Nunez couldn't provide that. The Yankees waited until this past weekend to announce that Solarte had made the team over Nunez. Solarte took advantage of his situation with hot bat in the exhibition games, but today's move was more about Nunez than anything else.

Fans and the media like to talk about how Nunez was one of the reasons the Yankees couldn't swing a deal with Seattle for Cliff Lee in 2010. The Mariners wanted Ivan Nova and/or Nunez, and the Yankees reportedly said no. However, it's ridiculous to assume the Yankees would have won the World Series again had they acquired Lee. There's also no saying Seattle might not have pulled out of the deal and made a trade with Texas anyway.

The Yankees have 10 days to trade Nunez or he'll be released outright. He'll definitely get a shot with some organization, who might convert him into an outfielder. Something the Yankees should have done a long time ago.