Nick Johnson replaces Johnny Damon?

The Yankees have signed Nick Johnson to a one year 5.5 million dollar deal. Nick Johnson batted .292 with 8 homeruns and an on base percentage of .426 last season. Johnson is expected to be the everyday DH and bat second in the lineup. The only question is will the Yankees go after Johnny Damon now that they have the solid number two hitter?

If you look at the stats, Nick Johnson is the better number two hitter. The goal of the number two hitter is situational hitting. Nick Johnson batted .292 and compared to Johnny Damon's .282, that could make a lot of difference when you are in a big game.

Damon has more homeruns then Johnson (24-8) and more then double the RBIS. However, consider the teams that Johnson played for last season. He played for the Marlins and the Nationals. Both teams do not provide a solid leadoff hitter. (Derek Jeter has a higher on base percentage then either of their leadoff hitters)

Plus the power should improve for Johnson because both parks in Florida and Washington are huge down the lines, while Yankee Stadium is 314 ft (down the right field line) and 318 ft (down the left field line). Johnson should hit 10-15 homeruns at the least. The gaps in Yankee Stadium should also give Johnson a lot of doubles and raise his batting average.

My prediction for Nick Johnson next season is a .310 Batting Average, 15 homeruns and 65 RBIS. He will be just as productive as Johnny Damon would've been if we resigned him. If you look on the bright side, we have a younger, and cheaper version of Johnny Damon in Nick Johnson!