Yankees news and notes on a Friday night

The New York Yankees claimed Russ Canzler off of waivers from the Cleveland Indians on Friday. He is 26 years old and appeared in 26 games for the Indians as a September callup last year. He batted 269 with three home runs and 11 RBI. He is a right handed hitter and has flexibility as he could play first base, DH, left field. He made 24 starts last year with 11 in the outfield, seven at first base and six at DH and he hit safely in 15 of those games. The Yankees designated Chris Dickerson for assignment so they would have room on the 40 man roster for Canzler. He looks like a good bet to make the roster as he can get there in many ways. 
Brian Cashman said today that Austin Romine could break camp as the starting catcher but most likely he is ticketed for AAA Scranton to get more playing time. If that is the case then Francisco Cervelli and Chris Stewart will be the catchers. Cervelli has already reported down to Tampa to start working out, he is determined to win the starting job. Cervelli would be a nice comeback story as he was cut on the last day of spring training last year and didn’t make it back until September as he was lost in a numbers game. He brings a lot of energy to the team and is a fan favorite.

The Yankees are apparently interested in Lance Berkman as a DH. He is best friends with Andy Pettitte and he was on the Yankees for half a season a couple of years ago. The Texas Rangers supposedly have a standing offer out to him and Houston is interested in signing him to finish his career out with the team he has played for the most during his career. I think it would be a nice move for the Yankees if they can do it.

Happy New Year and some MLB notes

Happy New Year to everyone, I hope it will be good and prosperous. The winter really didn’t start that long ago but spring training will be starting up next month, it doesn’t seem possible. Spring training is starting a little earlier then usual due to the World Baseball Classic which will begin play in March. There is 40 days until pitchers and catchers report. It has been a pretty quiet winter for the local teams to me being the New York baseball teams. I expect it to start picking up shortly though and it will be back to the grind before we know it. 
The Kansas City Royals are suddenly signing guys like crazy. They aren’t doing anything major but they have signed Miguel Tejada and Endy Chavez to minor league deals. They signed Xavier Nady to a minor league deal earlier in the off season. The Royals will have some new pitchers also with the additions of James Shields, Wade Davis and Ervin Santana. They are looking to contend in 2013.

MLB announced on Thursday that the season will begin on March 31^st in Houston with the Astros taking on the Texas Rangers in a new AL rivalry. The Astros will be playing in the American League for the first time in 2013. They have been in the NL Central since them came into the league and are now moving to the AL West.

Nick Swisher was introduced to Cleveland in a press conference on Thursday afternoon. He seemed to be pumped up and new manager Terry Francona said he will be in the middle of the lineup. Swisher has a big contract four years and 56 million to live up to. The Indians are counting on him being a leader and veteran presence for this team. He appears to be up to the challenge and we will see if it was worth it for the Indians and also the Yankees to let him go and go with Ichiro Suzuki as their right fielder.

Jason Frasor signed a one year 1.5 million deal with the Texas Rangers. He is 35 years old and spent almost his entire nine year career with the Toronto Blue Jays.

The New York Jets end their miserable season with a loss in Buffalo

The New York Jets lost to the Buffalo Bills by the score of 28-9 on Sunday. The game took place at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Buffalo, New York. The Jets looked as miserable as they have all season, Mark Sanchez got another chance to start and wasn’t very good once again. Tim Tebow didn’t play at all and he will be gone very shortly I suspect. 
Sanchez was 17-35 for 205 yards, no touchdowns an an interception. Shonn Greene led the rushing attack with 74 yards on 19 attempts. Bilal Powell had 56 yards on 12 carries, Lex Hilliard had two yards on a carry and Joe McKnight had two yards on a carry.

Jeremy Kerley had three receptions for 88 yards, Braylon Edwards had four receptions for 42 yards and Jeff Cumberland had three receptions for 36 yards. Jordan White had one reception for 13 yards, Powell had two for 12 yards and Hilliard had one for seven yards. Konrad Reuland had one reception for four yards and Greene had two for three yards.

McKnight had four kickoff returns for an average of 18.8 yards with 33 being his long. Nick Bellore had one for eight yards. Robert Malone had four punts for an average of 43 yards with 61 being the long. Bart Scott led the defense with five tackles and an assist.

Ryan Fitzpatrick was 12-26 for 225 yards and a touchdown. C.J. Spiller led the Bills rushing attack with 59 yards on 24 carries. Tashard Choice had five rushes for 30 yards and a touchdown and Brad Smith had two for 20 yards and a touchdown.

Stevie Johnson led the receivers with six catches for 111 yards, Spiller had two for 72 yards and a touchdown and Smith had two for 26 yards. Ruvell Martin had one reception for 11 yards and T.J. Graham had one for five yards.

Rian Lindell was 0-2 on field goals and made four extra points. Smith had three kickoff returns for an average of 26.7 yards and Justin Rogers had one for 27 yards. Shawn Powell had five punts for an average of 39.2 yards with 51 being the long.

Bryan Scott had an interception and Nick Barnett led the defense with six tackles and five assists. Spencer Johnson had a sack.

The Jets finished their season at 6-10 and the Bills had the same record. The Jets are going to make some changes and now we await the fates of the coaches and the General manager. It looks like the head coach will stay with everyone else going. It should be an interesting offseason as they try to trade Sanchez and they get rid of Tebow. I expect Tebow to land in Jacksonville where he will be the starter and restart his career and probably end up doing well.

The New York Giants finish strong but miss the playoffs

The New York Giants defeated the Philadelphia Eagles by the score of 42-7 on Sunday afternoon. The game took place at Metlife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Giants came onto the field knowing that they needed to win and three other teams had to lose for them to earn a trip to the postseason and try to defend their title. They knew they couldn’t control what happened elsewhere but they made sure to take care of their own business. They had a dominating performance that left you wondering where they had been for the last couple of weeks. 
Eli Manning was 13-21 for 208 yards and five touchdowns. David Carr was 1-1 for 15 yards, Ahmad Bradshaw rushed for 107 yards on 16 carries and David Wilson rushed for 75 yards on 15 carries. Bradshaw also had a touchdown, Jerrel Jernigan had one carry for six yards.

Rueben Randle had four receptions for 58 yards and two touchdowns, Victor Cruz had four for 52 yards and a touchdown and Domenick Hixon had two catches for 41 yards. Bradshaw had a reception for 41 yards, Wilson had one for 15 yards and Martellus Bennett had one for 15 yards. Henry Hynoski had one catch for a yard and a touchdown.

Lawrence Tynes didn’t attempt a field goal but was 6-6 on extra points. Wilson had one kickoff return for 29 yards and Steve Weatherford had two punts with an average of 49 yards. Stevie Brown had an interception and Chase Blackburn led the defense with six tackles and an assist. Brown had six tackles plus the interception. Justin Tuck had a sack.

Michael Vick was 19-35 for 197 yards and a touchdown with an interception. Trent Edwards was 2-2 for 14 yards. LeSean McCoy had 10 rushes for 45 yards, Vick had five for 25 yards and Bryce Brown had eight rushes for 18 yards. Dion Lewis had three rushes for 15 yards and Damaris Johnson had one rush for seven yards.

McCoy had five receptions for 61 yards, Brent Celek had three receptions for 43 yards and Jason Avant had four receptions for 39 yards. Jeremy Maclin had four receptions for 22 yards and a touchdown, Riley Cooper had three for 32 yards and Johnson had one for eight yards. Brown had one for six yards.

Alex Henery was 0-1 on field goals and he did make an extra point. Brandon Boykin had three kickoff returns for an average of 28 yards and Brown had one for 16 yards. Mat McBriar had four punts for an average of 40.3 yards.

Colt Anderson led the defense with nine tackles and one assist. Phillip Hunt had a sack.

The Giants finished their season 9-7 which was the same record as last year when they won the Super Bowl. They have no one to blame but themselves though as they had a two game division lead with five games to go and blew it. They also in the last couple of weeks when they lost had destiny in their own hands. The Eagles finished out a terrible season going 4-12 and ending an era as Andy Reid will be fired as head coach.