How often does a player like the Yankees’ Robinson Cano, a man who hit .320 (204-for-637), hit 25 home runs and drove in 85 runs in 2009, draw this much criticism?

Is it because he sometimes fails in the clutch? Is he not as selective at the plate – walking just 30 times in 674 plate appearances?  Is it because so much is expected of him?

Say this about Cano. The man has always been quite confident in his abilities.  Back in his Double-A seasons in Trenton, several fans and scouts felt he looked and played like the game came to him much too easily.

Is it his .217 (23-for-106) postseason average, punctuated by his .136 (3-for-22) effort vs. the Phillies in the 2009 World Series thr brings derision?

Then there are the scouts who constantly debate Cano’s performance:

“Do you like him?’’ said the first.

“Yeah, I like him,’’ answered the secomd.

“But do you love him?’’ the first quips back.

“No,’’ answered the second. “I like him, but I don’t love him.’’

A third observer joins the conversation.  “Well, then,’’ he adds. “What would it take for you to love him?’’

“OK,’’ said the detracting scout, “when I see him swing at, and hit, strikes, I love him. On the other hand, I ask, why can’t he do that all the time?’’

So there is real criticism of Cano not being selective, falling victim to slop, becoming careless in the way he controls the plate. When this happens in the clutch, when he swings at a pitch three feet from the strike zone with runners on second and third with one out, both fans and scouts scream.

As an “old school’’guy, I’m not as much into the new numbers of baseball as much as basing opinions on what I actually see, but, whether the judgment is made with OPS+ or the naked eye, watching Cano, who will play the 2010 season at 27, can be frustrating.

Yet, he is a .306 (875-for-2,855) career hitter, has averaged just under 16 homers a season and nearly 80 RBIs a campaign and is a legitimate force in a powerful Yankees lineup.

Defensively, he has his moments, but what really is there to complain about?  Maybe  we all yearn for that one season in which he proves impossible to keep off the bases.  This is a man who has hit 40 or more doubles three of the last five seasons.

Will there be a year –perhaps 2010 – in which he harnesses all of his offensive talent, takes a key walk every once in awhile, really makes a good opposing pitcher work, then spoil his best out pitch by slamming it in into the gap?

Cano, in all seriousness, could win a triple crown if all went right.

My friend the scout is correct on two fronts. We “like’’Cano, like him a lot.’’ But do we love him? Naaah!

The scout also has the right advice for him. Swing at, and hit strikes.

Would that ever be scary in Yankee Stadium.

Tags: New York Yankees, Robinson Cano