Looking Like a Bargain

One month into this baseball season, the American League has been dominated by a pair of rookies.  Some might argue that they aren't technically "rookies" because they're actually seasoned veterans from other leagues, but I don't share this view.  If they're eligible for the Rookie of the Year Award, they're rookies in my book.  And Masahiro Tanaka and Jose Abreu are two of the most impressive rookies I've seen in quite a long time.

Tanaka was the first Japanese player to come over under the new posting system that allowed him to pick his own team.  Most assumed, when the old system was still in place, that the Yankees would simply outbid everybody to land Tanaka.  Well, they are paying him handsomely, but Tanaka chose to be a Yankee.  And what they're paying him has, so far, proved to be a bargain.

The Yankees went after Tanaka hard because they knew they badly needed to upgrade their rotation.  But I bet there was still some level of uncertainty.  Sure, he went 24-0 in Japan last year and was dominant in the 2013 World Baseball Classic, but how would he handle the transition to the Major Leagues?  Pretty well it turns out.  He's absolutely worth every penny.

Of course, there are the critics who point to the fact that Daisuke Matsuzaka was just as amazing when he first came over in 2007.  Or they could point to Hideo Nomo's Rookie of the Year season in 1995.  Whether or not Tanaka continues to be this impressive or ends up like one of those guys remains to be seen.  But it also doesn't matter.  We're not talking about five years from now.  We're talking about the first month of 2014.  And the Masahiro Tanaka of April 2014 is pretty damn good.  That success in Japan wasn't a fluke.  He's the real deal.

While there aren't many people who are surprised about Tanaka's success, Jose Abreu's is a little more unexpected.  Although, I think that can be attributed to the fact that very people know about Jose Abreu.  The only information teams had to go by with him was his performances with the Cuban National Team.  Well, the White Sox took a risk, and they were rewarded for it.

After signing him to that big contract, the White Sox were going to have to find a way to get Abreu into a lineup that already included Adam Dunn and Paul Konerko.  Well, as it turns out, they can't take him out of the lineup.  Not unless they want to go without the American League leader in home runs and RBIs, their first legitimate middle-of-the-order power threat since newly-elected Hall of Famer Frank Thomas.

Abreu is the latest in the line of Cuban players who've made the jump to the Majors without missing a beat.  In the past three seasons alone, there's been Yoenis Cespedes, Yasiel Puig and Jose Fernandez, to name just a few.  Their success is an indication that Cuban free agents are just as worth the risk as Japanese free agents.

I'm glad we've still got five months for these two to settle out the Rookie of the Year race.  Because right now it's too close to call.  Especially since Tanaka is one of the leading contenders for the Cy Young right now.  In fact, I'd say he's probably THE leading candidate for the AL Cy Young after a month.

If I had a vote and I had to cast it today, it would probably go to Abreu.  Most people expected Tanaka to put up these type of numbers, but I don't think anyone thought Jose Abreu would be this good.  He's the most important hitter in that White Sox lineup.  They've both been fabulous, but in this case, I've got to go with the everyday player.  Especially since he's the difference-maker for a White Sox team that finished last in 2013, but is just two games out of first at the end of April in 2014.