The Yankees’ non-Youkilis options for third base were … interesting

I like the Kevin Youkilis signing by the Yankees. I’m not sure he has a return to form in him — it’s not the years, it’s the mileage, as the man once said — but if he does bounce back he’s gonna be nice to have around even if A-Rod does recover.

And let’s face it: the Yankees didn’t have unlimited options at third base. Indeed, as Sweeny Murti noted over the weekend, the pickings were pretty darn slim:

It is interesting to note that once word leaked out early this month about A-Rod’s status, the Yankees received plenty of inquiries from players and agents who felt they could help fill the hole. One was from Cody Ransom, the man who started the 2009 season as the Opening Day 3rd baseman when A-Rod has his first hip surgery.

I’m assuming some have chosen to have amnesia over this, but there were Yankees writers [cough] Ian O’Connor [cough] who made the straight-faced argument in early 2009 that the Yankees were better off with Ransom than A-Rod. It was all tied up in A-Rod’s PED revelation from that spring. But rather than simply note that it was a bummer of a story, some dudes decided to throw reason aside and actually say that A-Rod shouldn’t have gotten his job back when he came off the DL following his hip surgery.  Of course A-Rod went on to hit .286/.402/.532 with 30 homers, 100 RBI and led the Yankees to a World Series championship. Ransom was DFA’d that August.

Another one Murti mentions: Troy Glaus, who called the Yankees saying he was ready for a comeback. The same Troy Glaus who took all of 2011 off and then a year ago said he considered himself retired. In his last season, with the Braves, Glaus was limited to first base because he couldn’t make the throw from third.

So, yes, Kevin Youkilis is a pretty good option.