A Few Early Off Season Notes for the New York Yankees

The New York Yankees were eliminated from the postseason prematurely. They were swept out of the ALCS by the Detroit Tigers. It was pretty embarrassing, they didn’t hit at all and they got blown out in the fourth and final game. It was a good season overall as the Yankees battled a lot of injuries and finished first in the American League. They fell short of their ultimate goal though which is always to win the World Series. I personally think it was a decent year, I don’t think it was a total disaster but of course it wasn’t a success either. I think getting swept the way they did made it worse but they did get to the ALCS. 
Curtis Granderson is being sent to an eye specialist. I don’t think there is anything wrong with this because he just looked so bad. I also think they will pick up his option and let him play out the year. The Yankees could trade him but I don’t think they will, his value may be low right now also.

Alex Rodriguez is going to continue to be a hot topic this winter. Brian Cashman the general manager indicated that he would listen to offers on him but also made it clear that more then likely he won’t go anywhere. He knows because of the contract it would be extremely difficult and there probably aren’t many deals that would really make sense. I don’t think he is going anywhere and I think he will be playing DH more and more. I also think he was bothered by his hand injury more then anyone thinks. It was actually something I really didn’t even think of. He is never going to be an MVP candidate again but I don’t think he is as bad as people are making him out to be. His main problem the last couple of years has been staying healthy. He is getting older but he can still be productive, I just think the Yankees need to be careful with him. I am sure you will hear plenty of rumors about Arod this winter and we will see what happens.

CC Sabathia is the ace of the pitching staff and was on the DL twice this season. The Yankees believe he is healthy but they are sending him to Dr. James Andrews this week anyway. There are sources saying he has bone chips and they will just need to be cleaned out. It is always scary though when you hear the name Dr. Andrews, he is the one who tells most pitchers when they need Tommy John surgery. The Yankees and their fans will keep their fingers crossed.

The Yankees have plenty of free agents and will have a very busy winter. The Yankees have to figure out if they are going to keep Nick Swisher. I would say that is a no, Granderson has a team option which I would assume they pick up and let him play out the season but he could be traded also. Ichiro Suzuki was a huge pickup for the Yankees and will they resign him. The Yankees know Derek Jeter will be their shortstop next year but he just had ankle surgery and how will he bounce back?? Will he be ready for opening day, he should be ready for spring training and the season but you never know how quickly he will come back from the injury. The Yankees have to think about signing Hiroki Kuroda and is he worth a multi year deal?? There are plenty of questions, will Rafael Soriano opt out which is assumed and how will Mariano Rivera bounce back from his injury. This should be one of the busiest winters the Yankees have had in a long time. It may make for a fun and exciting off season because there is so much to talk about.