Brett Gardner

It's hard to be a baseball manager. It's even harder to manage in New York City. It's even harder than that to manage the New York Yankees.

With pockets deep enough to absorb almost any contract and make any change at any time, the Yankees possess power no team can match.

Prior to the season Brett Gardner was a popular selection for people looking for a pure speed option. There was talk of him hitting in the leadoff spot, making fantasy owners lust for the potential to score a significant number of runs.

Over two weeks into the season, Gardner has been nothing short of a major disappointment.

When looking into Brett Gardner's problems, one stat really jumps out at you. Gardner, after batting .287 against righties last year, is only batting a .105 against them this year.

A new year of fantasy baseball rolls around. Will your strategy from last year work as well this year? No, probably not, because the field of players changes so dramatically each year; you want to develop a new approach that fits this years' players. Here are five things that you should remember when drafting, and even after your draft, when you're proposing trades and adding free agents:

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Heading into the season, while many felt the Yankees' best arrangement would be with Brett Gardner sitting atop the lineup, the constant chatter was that Derek Jeter would remain the Yankees leadoff hitter. 

For or better or worse, the Yankees legend was getting the limelight, despite a .348 OBP in the leadoff spot in ’10, while Gardner would be hitting ninth.

However, all of that changed yesterday.  Jack Curry of the YES Network posted on Twitter:

One of the few remaining decisions for the New York Yankees in this spring training is a final choice of leadoff hitter.

The choice for manager Joe Girardi comes down to Derek Jeter or Brett Gardner.

Jeter is a 16-year veteran who had a down year in 2010.  Jeter has made adjustments to his setup at the plate which have been successful this spring.  He is a career .300 hitter, and there is no real reason to believe he won't be much better this year.

Rotoworld suggested that Brett Gardner, who has been leading off recently in spring training games for the New York Yankees, could start the season off in that slot.

Gardner, who scored 97 runs in 569 plate appearances, could challenge for the league lead in runs scored if he is hitting out of that slot.

One of the latest rumors coming out of New York Yankees spring training is who will be the leadoff hitter in the batting order. Will it be veteran shortstop and captain Derek Jeter or up-and-coming outfielder Brett Gardner? 

At the beginning of spring training, Yankees manager Joe Girardi maintained that the No. 1 spot is Jeter’s.

Carl Crawford was on your wishlist, but you couldn’t get you mitts on him? Don’t worry. He’s not the only player capable of stealing a ton of bases this year. Here are some players you can add to get a nice boost in that category. Average Draft Positions are from Mock Draft Central.
 

The news for the Yankees this offseason has been generally negative. Missing out on Cliff Lee, the Derek Jeter contract debacle and Andy Pettitte retiring. Add a peppering of has-been players, and the Yankee Universe isn't looking as rock-solid as it has in the past.  

There are a few questions, both big and small, for the Yankees heading into spring training. 

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