Poll Results: Fans trust Gardner

Safe! Despite all the talk of adding a left fielder, the majority of Yankees fans voted they trust Brett Gardner starting in the outfield in my latest poll. My vote lies with the majority.

The good folks over at the LoHud Yankees Blog brought up some interesting points defending Gardner for those still not convinced. Chad Jennings pointed it out that since a certain level of production is expected at each position, expectations could be hurting Gardner and heightening Curtis Granderson. In other words, think of Granderson’s power in left and Gardner’s speed in center. Now doesn’t that make sense?

Sam Borden looked at recent championship teams and noted the minor production out of their left fielders. He says the big moves have already been made this offseason, and any other moves left to make won’t be very significant.

I’ve already stated my final thoughts on Gardner. To quickly summarize, he’s still an above average No. 9 hitter that plays good defense and gives the lineup a nice balance. Adding Johnny Damon is unnecessary, but an outfielder to platoon with Gardner could make sense.

Next poll: Can A-Rod avoid the New York media distractions again in 2010?