New York Yankees Tuesday notes

Brian Cashman shot down Johnny Damon today. He said it isn’t going to be something we pursue. He said he text Scott Boras and told him. He said we love Damon but he played with us a while ago and he can’t play the field every day and that is what we need. He also reiterated although he won’t rule out a deal entirely most likely the options will come from what they already have. 
Cashman said Nunez isn’t an option because he doesn’t feel his bat profiles as an outfielder. I personally think it is too much to keep moving him around. He is a good offensive player but bad defensively and I think he just needs to stick at short and hope he gets better defensively.

Hughes did more pool work today but there was no update on him. There could be an update tomorrow on him. Kevin Youkilis is a little sore and most likely won’t play again tomorrow. He says he is fine though and could play if it was during the season. The Yankees are usually extra cautious and there is no reason not to be at this point.

Joba Chamberlain created a little bit of a stir today when he talked about still being a starter. He said he could do it and would like to try it again. The Yankees joked about it but I am sure they aren’t too happy. He can become a free agent after next year. I personally think he would be better off taking over for MO and being the closer but we will see what happens. I don’t think the Yankees will ever put him back as a starter. Jose Ramirez made a good first impression pitching today. The Yankees liked what they saw and said he has a live arm.

Grapefruit League Game 19-Tigers at Yankees

The New York Yankees will take on the Detroit Tigers this afternoon at George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa. A.J. Burnett will get the start and be followed by Phil Hughes, Mariano Rivera is also scheduled to pitch. Here are the game notes and lineups for todays game. Johnny Damon will be making his first trip back to Tampa to see his old teammates. This is the 4th of 6 meetings this spring between the two teams. The Yankees are 2-1 against the Tigers so far. Zach Segovia Amaury Sanit and Josh Schmidt are also available to pitch for the Yankees. Schmidt is up from the minor league complex. Yankees Lineup: Jeter(SS) Johnson(1B) Posada(C) Rodriguez(3B) Cano(2B) Swisher(RF) Granderson(CF) Winn(LF) Cervelli(DH) Cervelli will start at DH then move to catcher later in the game. The other players scheduled to come off of the bench are Juan Miranda(1B), Ramiro Pena(2B), Reegie Corona(SS), Brandon Laird(3B), Jon Weber(LF), Greg Golson(CF), David Winfree(RF) and Austin Romine at DH. Justin Verlander is making the start for the Tigers and also pitching for them is Joel Zumaya, Jose Valverde, Phil Dumatrait, Phil Coke and Josh Rainwater. Detroits Lineup: Inge(3B) Damon(LF) Ordonez(RF) Cabrera(1B) Guillen(DH) Kelly(CF) Laird(C) Sizemore(2B) Everett(SS)

Joba not good, Phil Hughes appears to be in the lead

The New York Yankees defeated the Detroit Tigers today in Lakeland. Joba Chamberlain and Phil Hughes both pitched renewing the 5th starter battle. Joba was not very good giving up 5 hits and 6 runs in 2 1/3. He breezed through the first 2 innings and then ran into trouble in the 3rd. He gave up 4 consecutive hits and a grand slam. He also had 3 walks and a strikeout. Phil Hughes came out of the bullpen and pitched pretty well. He gave up 1 run and 3 hits in 2 2/3 innings with 0 walks and 2 strikeouts. I think the Yankees want Hughes to be the 5th starter and Joba to be in the pen and so far Hughes hasn't done anything to not win the 5th starter job. The interesting thing to me is that Sergio Mitre and Alfredo Aceves are pitching the best, I do think they could also both end up in the pen with Gaudin getting traded but we will see what happens. Jason Hirsh is a darkhorse but he threw another perfect inning today with 2 strikeouts. He has made several appearances without giving up a run and has a bunch of strikouts this spring. Andrew Brackman pitched a inning giving up 2 hits and a run with a strikeout. Grant Duff got the win pitching a scorless inning and giving up a hit. Ryan Pope got the save pitching one inning and giving up a hit but he had 2 strikeouts. Mark Teixeira had a homerun today, his first of the spring. He finished the day with 2 hits, a rbi and walk. Curtis Granderson has started to get his bat going the last couple of days. He was 2-3 with a walk and rbi in his first appearance against his old team. Johnny Damon did not play for the Tigers as he sat out with turf toe. Greg Golson was 1-2 with 2 rbi, Colin Curtis was 1-2 with a rbi. Jaime Hoffman was 1-2 and Brett Gardner was 1-2 with a walk. David Winfree was 2-2 with a rbi and Mike Rivera was 1-3 with a rbi. Jorge Vazquez was 1-2 with 2 rbi and Reegie Corona was 2-2. The Yankees will take on the Atlanta Braves tomorrow night under the lights in Tampa. A.J. Burnett will get the start against Jair Jurrjens.

CC has rough Day

The New York Yankees lost to the Pittsburgh Pirates by the score of 12-7 this afternoon in Tampa. CC Sabathia got the start for the Yankees and he was not sharp at all. He pitched 2 1/3 innings giving up 7 hits, 5 runs and 1 walk with 2 strikeouts. Royce Ring pitched a perfect inning with a strikeout and Romulo Sanchez pitched 1 1/3 shutout innings giving up a walk and he had 2 strikeouts. Boone Logan had been pitching exceptionally well until today. He gave up 2 hits and 2 runs in 1 1/3 innings. He also had a walk and a strikeout. Hector Noesi who is a minor league prospect got hit hard giving up 3 hits and 4 runs, 3 of them were earned in 1 inning. Nick Johnson led the offensive attack with a pair of homeruns, maybe he is settling into that DH role. I think if he can stay healthy he is going to have a good year. He is a on base machine and I think he will try to pull the ball more and will hit more homeruns. I can see him hitting 25 homeruns this year. Jon Weber was 2-3 with 2 rbi. He is a guy I had never even heard of until the Yankees picked him up and he is having a unbelievable spring hitting over 700. He has basically no chance of making the Yankees but maybe someone else will want him and make a trade or he will provide good depth in the minor leagues. Jorge Posada went 2-2 with a rbi and a walk. Curtis Granderson was 1-3 and Nick Swisher was 1-2 with a rbi. Swisher leads the team in rbi. He also had a walk. The Yankees are now 3-5 in the exhibition season. They will take on the Detroit Tigers in Lakeland. It will be a interesting day with Johnny Damon facing his old team the Yankees and Curtis Granderson facing his old team the Tigers. I am sure there will be interviews with Damon and Granderson, so I expect to have a lot tomorrow morning and afternoon.

Yankees sign Chan Ho Park and Damon formally introduced in Detroit

The New York Yankees have signed right handed pitcher Chan Ho Park. He played for the Phillies last season and Brian Cashman said he had been talking to his agent all winter long. He is being signed as a bullpen guy and will receive 1.2 million for one year. It is a move that came out of nowhere and is a little curious because of all the guys the Yankees have like Alfredo Aceves, Chad Gaudin, Sergio Mitre and the younger guys. Cashman said you can never have enough pitching even though he wouldn't specifically say that Park has signed. I guess he is right in that you can never have enough pitching and he pitched well out of the pen for the Phillies but it still is a curious move. I am guessing that Sergio Mitre will be the one to go now but I guess we will see what happens. They have to clear a 40 man spot before Park can be officially signed. Johnny Damon is about to be introduced as a Detroit Tiger at 2:00PM. He signed with Detroit for one year and 8 million. The Yankees had offered him 2 yrs and 14 million, he said all along he wanted to stay but he badly overplayed his hand and this is what happened, they were the last team standing that even offered him anything. I guess he decided there is nothing else left to wait for I just have to take this deal and hope it works out. I think Damons power numbers will go down in spacious Comerica Park and his defense which isn't great to begin with will also be hurting in that park but I like him and wish him well. I just think he made a dumb move and it will end up costing him.

5 days until Pitchers and Catchers

This is the worst time of the year, there isn't much going on and pitchers and catchers are about to report. It feels like 5 days is 5 months and it can't come soon enough. Pitchers and catchers is just a symbolic thing and then they work out for about a week or so before the other players show up. There still won't be any actual games until the first week of March but still it is something, baseball is back. Here is some baseball news to hold you over until next week. It looks like the Johnny Damon saga could be ending soon. It appears it is down to the Tigers and White Sox. I would guess he ends up with Detroit by Monday or Tuesday. Brian Cashman was speaking at a university yesterday and had some interesting things to say. He said he told Scott Boras and Johnny Damon he wouldn't fight for a contract to Hal Steinbrenner unless he knew they would sign it. He then said that he was expecting Johnny to get a Bobby Abreu type contract and if he didn't he should of been a Yankee and that isn't the Yankees fault. A really interesting thing Cashman said is prior to one of the World Series games he was talking to the Tigers GM. This is where the root of the Granderson trade came from, Dave Dombrowski was like dude you have a game at 8 and Cash said yeah but my work is done I have to start thinking about next season. Mark Feinsand of the NY Daily News is already down in Tampa and has been blogging about the workouts at the minor leage complex. He wrote in his blog today that Brett Gardner has shown up and has long hair, at least for him. Joba Chamberlain, Francisco Cervelli, Boone Logan, Dave Robertson, Alfredo Aceves and some minor leaguers are all there.

Baseball News

I am back, i took the day off yesterday due to me and my family having some kind of stomach virus. I didn't get to talk about the Yankees inviting 20 non roster players to spring training. I am not going to go through the whole list but basically you know most of them. The Yankees have announced some of the signings in the past few weeks. Reid Gorecki, Royce Ring, Marcus Thames etc got the invites and minor league deals with incentives if they make the roster. The 2 top catchers Austin Romine and Jesus Montero got invites along with Kei Igawa. If you forget who Igawa is he is the Japanese pitcher the signed a fews yrs ago that has become a bust. I am thinking the Yankees will give him the chance to be the 2nd lefty out of the pen but I doubt that will happen. The Yankees currently have Damaso Marte but they have other guys who will try and win that job. Wilkens Arias and Jeremy Bleich are 2 left handers to keep an eye on. Arias is 29 so not much of a prospect but held lefties to a sub 200 batting avg last year in the minors. Bleich spent his first year in pro ball last season and is a starting pitcher that could move quickly. It is always good to see some of the prospects and guys fighting for jobs in spring training. It appears that Chien-Ming Wang will be heading to Washington. He is expected to sign a minor league deal for 2 million with the chance to make the team when healthy. Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe reported this morning that he already chose the Nationals. The Atlanta Braves offered Johnny Damon a one year deal today for 4 million with deferred money that could double it. He apparently turned it down still seeking a 2 yr deal. The Tigers and Rays are still said to have interest but may also want to keep it at a one year deal.

CC Sabathia and Lebron James

CC Sabathia was at the New York Knicks game last night. He is a big fan of basketball as evidenced by him taking different teammates to Orlando Magic games last spring training. He also took them to a Cleveland Cavs game when the Yankees were in Cleveland over the summer. He now is residing in NJ in the offseason and has been to a couple of Nets games and was here at the Knicks game. He wants his buddy Lebron James to come to NY and is trying to recruit him to the Knicks. I am sure the Knicks fans like this. He said he would come to more games if Lebron were playing in MSG. He also said some interesting things about what appears to be his ex teammate Johnny Damon. He stated that it isn't over yet and Damon could wind up back with the Yankees. He also said that he misses Johnny, that he is a great guy. He stated that once you win a championship you are hungry for more. He stated that he doesn't just want one, he wants five. He seems to have been indoctrined into the Yankee way quickly. The Yankees are never satisfied with one, once they are on top they like to stay there for as long as they can. I think this Lebron James story is fascinating and if CC really has the pull that he thinks he does then he will be even more of a hero in NY. I guess we will see what happens on July 1st when free agency begins in the NBA.

The Calm before the Storm

The title says it all, as we all wait for the snow up here in the Tristate area we can start thinking of spring training. The Yankees truck day will be on Monday. That is the day where all the equipment and stuff needed for spring training is loaded up and heads down to Tampa. Pitchers and catchers will be reporting to spring training in 13 days. Derek Jeter is already down there working out and Joba Chamberlain will be heading there on Monday. I am sure there may be some others. It has been a long cold winter and I am sure we will be getting hammered with snow this month but at least we can think spring with pitchers and catchers about to report to spring training. It is time to get excited and feel the warmth of spring. It has been quiet for a couple of weeks now but we will be geared up now to bring all the news and notes from spring training. I will be posting pictures of spring training as well so come back and check it out once spring training begins. The Minnesota Twins signed Orlando Cabrera. The Toronto Blue Jays signed reliever Kevin Gregg. Melvin Mora signed with the Colorado Rockies for 1 yr and 1.275 million. There aren't many free agents left out there but one notable is Johnny Damon. It will be interesting to see how this plays out. His agent Scott Boras is still claiming there are 3 or 4 teams out there. I haven't seen one that has offered him anything. Detroit has been the chatter lately but they were clearing money off of their books so who knows.

Baseball Odds and Ends

The New York Mets made a couple of minor league signings today. They signed pitcher Josh Fogg and also utility man Frank Cattelanotto. He is a native of Long Island so he will be coming home. Josh Fogg pitched well as a longman for the Colorado Rockies last year. Cattelanotto hit 278 with one homerun and 9 rbi's with the Brewers last year. He had a 346 obp in 144 at bats. Adam Dunn through his agent is saying that Orlando Hudson prefers to sign with the Washington Nationals and Jon Heyman is tweeting he thinks he will end up there. The Yankees will be going on a 6 day tour of the Far East. We know the Yankees have had a relationship with Japan even though Matsui is gone now. The Yankees have a agreement with China and will be furthering their relations on this trip as well as showing off the World Series Trophy. Jim Edmonds signed a minor league deal with the Brewers with a invite to spring training. It looks like the Oakland A's are in serious discussions with Gabe Gross. If they do sign him Damon will have one less team. I still don't see where he will end up maybe it will be Toronto or Tampa.

Where will the Damon story end?

The New York Yankees and Johnny Damon seemingly came to a bitter end with a painful divorce the other day. The Yankees signed Randy Winn and confirmed that Damon would not be coming back. The thing is usually when you have a bitter parting of ways there is anger, resentment, talking bad about each other etc. GM Brian Cashman was on the Yankees Hot Stove Show last night on the Yes Network and said that he wanted Damon back but it just didn't work out, he said he just hopes wherever he winds up it isn't for what he could of stayed a Yankee for. Johnny Damon was on WFAN this afternoon with Mike Francessa and said his heart is in NY and even floated the idea of returning to the Yankees in midseason via a trade. He said if not by a trade then maybe resigning with them at a later date. I just don't understand this whole thing. If both sides really wanted each other then they should of made it work. I am not one of those that thinks this is devestating for the Yankees. I like Johnny Damon a lot, I always have but they have gotten younger and they are much better defensively. Damon was not a good outfielder, had a terrible arm and runners took the extra base on him constantly. The good of Damon was he is a clutch player, he is fast and his swing was ideal for the New Yankee Stadium. He will not be the same player on another team, you watch and see his power numbers go down. I think the Yankees with Granderson in left and Gardner in center and Winn as the 4th outfielder are much better defensively. The Yankees are more versatile also as Winn can play all 3 outfield positions. He doesn't have any power compared to Damon but last year was his worst year and in other areas like speed and batting avg he is pretty comparable. He is a much better defender then Damon especially in the corner outfield positions. The comments on sports talk radio today and also on the internet are amazing. There are people so upset over this that they are threatening to not renew their season tickets. I think this is going a little overboard, I undertand that fans are upset but the Yankees are probably a better team right now then last season even without Johnnny Damon. This is a team that will be fine offensively and be better pitching wise and defensively. I know it is hard to say a World Championship team can get any better but in my mind they are and will be tough to beat next year. The Yankees know what they are doing and are going to be fine, they actually had a budget for once and stuck to it and you can't fault them for that. It will be interesting to see where Johnny Damon ends up, in the end best of luck to him and hopefully he won't regret his decision.

Yankees appear to say bye bye Johnny

The New York Yankees signed outfielder Randy Winn today to a 1 yr deal to be worth 2 million. The Yankees in doing this ended the marriage with Johnny Damon. His bat, professionalism and clubhouse presence will all be missed. He is a good player that is getting older and in the end it just didn't work out. The Yankees will be getting someone in Winn who had his worst year last year but he is a 286 career hitter and plays good defense. He can also play all 3 outfield positions. I personally think that Gardner will be the CF and Granderson the LF with Winn being the 4th outfielder who will spell them all out in the outfield and be a good guy off the bench. He is still a fast runner who can steal a base when he needs too. The Yankees outfield defense will be significantly better this year even though they will lose some offensive firepower. The Yankees figure they will be better in pitching and defense and that does go a long way. The Yankees and Johnny Damon were both wrong in this negotiation. Tyler Kepner tweeted earlier that Scott Boras said that Cashman never even made him an offer and Cashman responded by saying that he was told dont give a penny less then 13 million a year and if you do then don't even bother making an offer. Cashman believed Boras and therefore did what he said and moved on and Boras apparently didn't like that Cash called his bluff. I think Boras really did Johnny wrong and I wonder where he may end up. It looks like the Rays are jumping in the mix and the A's may still be interested. There just doesn't seem to be too much interest for Damon for what he wants.

Busy day in Baseball

It has been a rather uneventful couple of weeks around the baseball world. We are drawing ever closer to spring training and the start of the baseball season and today the baseball world was very busy. Here are some of the transactions and rumors that took place today. Ben Sheets signed a 1 yr contract with the Oakland Athletics for 10 million plus incentives. Jim Thome signed a one year 1.5 million dollar deal with the Minnesota Twins. It also includes up to 750,000 in incentives. Xavier Nady is close to a deal with the Chicago Cubs. His deal is for 3.3 million with 2.05 million more in incentives for games played. The deal is pending a physical which isn't a foregone conclusion for him since he is coming off the second Tommy John surgery of his career. This affects the Yankees as they are looking for a right handed bat to play the outfield. Johan Santana of the New York Mets threw off a mound today for the first time since leaving a game last August and undergoing elbow surgery. He threw 35 pitches in 6 minutes and came through it fine. He said he feels good and will just be building up for opening day. Chad Jennings of the Journal News and the Lohud Yankees blog had some Yankee news tonight. Joe Girardi was in Times Square receiving the Bobby Murcer award from B.A.T which is the Baseball assistance team. He spoke about Johnny Damon and said he never believes something is completely shut until it is completely shut. He did say though with that said he doesn't see it happening. He can see Gardner in center and Granderson in left, he said he does see them as interchangeable. Joe Girardi also said that he feels good about Francisco Cervelli being the backup catcher. He said that he played at a very high level for them last year and learned a lot. He thinks he can handle the job. Joe Girardi said that Bernie Williams hasn't asked him about coming to spring training as a instructor but if he does he will consider it. I don't think there is any doubt that if he asks he will be there and he said on the radio the other day he would like to be in spring training. Joe Girardi brought the World Series trophy today to his daughter school. I can only imagine that being the show and tell, how cool is that. Brian Cashman via Brian Hoch said that Johnny Damon does not fit into his budget and he is not going to discuss Damon any further. It sure sounded like the door is slammed shut on Johnny but I still don't believe it until he signs somewhere else which I don't see happening. I think eventually they will work this out. I think it is both sides being bitter at the negotiating and using the media for leverage. The Yankees did add some outfield depth today when they traded minor league infielder Mitch Hilligos to the Texas Rangers for minor league outfielder Greg Golson. He has had 7 at bats in the major leagues without a hit. He is 24 years old and is considered a very toolsy player.

The Saga of Johnny Damon

The saga of Johnny Damon continues, today there was information coming from Jon Heyman of SI. He tweeted that the Yankees have offered Damon a deal believed to be no more then 5 million in base and maybe incentives. The Yankees told Damon they want an answer by the end of the weekend and if it is no they will be signing another LF shortly. The other options the Yankees have are Reed Johnson, Jermaine Dye, Jim Edmonds, Xavier Nady, Randy Winn. Johnny Damon has said all along he wants to remain a Yankees so then he should show it and take the deal. The thing that gets me in all of this is that both sides like each other so why are they playing this game. They should have just got together and hammered it out. The main reason is the agent Scott Boras who overestimated the market for Damon and his other main client Matt Holliday. Johnny Damon has no other suitors at this point unless there is a mystery team. He wrote in a text message today that he would have a team this week, so that adds to the speculation even more. I am going to say at this point he comes back to the Yankees, Bobby Abreu did the same thing with the Angels last year and turned it into a 2 yr 19 million dollar deal this season. Nick Johnson is a high OBP guy and a good player but Johnny Damon fits this team as it's #2 hitter and there first four with him in the lineup is the best in baseball. Jeter, Damon,Tex,A-rod is unstoppable and then you can have other guys hit further down in the lineup like Granderson and Nick Johnson, making the lineup that more dangerous. It will be interesting to see what happens but it appears this will finally play out this weekend.

Baseball News

The New York Mets made a trade today to get another outfielder with the absence of Carlos Beltran for at least the beginning of the season. They traded right handed pitcher Brian Stokes to the Anahiem Angels for Gary Matthews Jr. He isn't the same player he was at one time, but should provide pretty good defense. The reason this deal is ok for the Mets is because the Angels were so happy to get rid of him that they are paying 21 million of the 23 million owed to him over the next 2 years. This story is fascinating to me if not a little strange. A 23 yr old prospect from the Oakland A's is leaving baseball for the priesthood, this is something you don't see everyday. The really strange thing about it is that he had a great year last year and appeared to be closing in on getting to the big leagues. The Philadelphia Phillies have signed pitcher Jose Contreras. He was ok at one time, never really made it with the Yankees. I guess this is a good move for depth reasons but I just can't see him succeeding in that park. The thing to me is how are the Mets not making any moves for a pitcher when that is what they really need. Here is a nice article with Curtis Granderson, the new Yankees centerfielder. One of the quotes that came out of this article was this " When you wear it, man it is something, it pops." That was Granderson on wearing the Yankees cap. Jim Edmonds who was an elite centerfielder at one time but hasn't played since 2008 is trying to get a job, several teams have called him and apparently the Yankees are one of them. I just don't see the Yankees going for this guy, they can stick with what they have or hope to get Damon back or maybe just sign Reed Johnson or someone like that for leftfield or to caddy with Gardner out there.

Slow Day in Baseball

I didn't get up any posts yesterday, as it was a really uneventful day. The one bit of news that emerged was Jerry Hairston Jr. on a XM radio show saying that he never got an offer from the Yankees. The reason is the story though, he said it is because the Yankees were waiting for Johnny Damon to come to them and his price to drop. Yankees GM a little while later shot down that rumor but I would think it is probably true. If Johnny Damon comes to the Yankees and says he will take a one year deal for 5 million are the Yankees really going to say no?? I mean if they go a few million over budget is it going to kill them, I don't think so this is the Yankees. The Angels also signed Joel Piniero to a 2 yr deal worth 16 million. This is another guy the New York Mets missed out on. I really wonder who the Mets may get now, Jon Garland, Ben Sheets?? I think this was a good move by the Angels, they had to do something to counter what Seattle has been doing plus he is a pretty steady veteran pitcher.

What is the deal with Johnny Damon

I have maintained pretty much all winter that there really is no market for Johnny Damon. The last few days have brought rumors of Detroit and Atlanta being interested and that was about it. Today it came out that Detroit and Atlanta basically said there is no way they would sign Johnny Damon. I know that people can say lots of things and not mean them but it really looks like right now Johnny Damon has no market. I am sure that could change and some mystery team can come out and sign him but it doesn't look like that would happen at this point. The Yankees may be his best option but he may have screwed himself by not working it out with them in the first place for the 2 years. I think both sides just need to get together and work something out. I think Damon needs the Yankees more then they need him but he was a pretty good #2 hitter and they wouldn't be worse off for resigning him.

Yankees projected roster

Wildcard weekend starts in a little less then an hour and spring training tickets went on sale for most teams today. I thought with this in mind that it would be a good time to take a look at the Yankees roster since it is pretty much complete. I am going to start by going through the positions and then I will do the rotation, bullpen and lineup as I think it will be. C-Jorge Posada 1B-Mark Teixeira 2B-Robinson Cano SS-Derek Jeter 3B-Alex Rodriguez LF-Brett Gardner CF-Curtis Granderson RF-Nick Swisher Bench Francisco Cervelli Ramiro Pena Jaime Hoffman Rotation CC Sabathia A.J. Burnett Andy Pettitte Javier Vazquez Phil Hughes Bullpen Mo-Closer Joba-Setup man Dave Robertson-setup man Damaso Marte-lefty setup man Boone Logan-specialty lefty Alfredo Aceves-middle relief Chad Guadin-long relief Lineup Derek Jeter Nick Johnson Mark Teixeira Alex Rodriguez Jorge Posada Robinson Cano Nick Swisher Curtis Granderson Brett Gardner There may be some difference with Joba as the 5th starter and Phil Hughes as a setup man and maybe in the bullpen there may be some other guys who make it like Sergio Mitre or Albaladejo etc but this is how I think it will shake out. It is also possible the Yankees do sign a right handed hitter to play leftfield against lefties and come off the bench like a Reed Johnson. What do you guys think about this team, lineup, rotation etc??? I think this is a very strong team still even without Johnny Damon and Hideki Matsui. I think they will be better defensively and pitching wise.

Baseball back in business

The baseball world got back to business after basically shutting down for the holidays. Adrian Beltre has signed with the Red Sox for one year and a 2nd option year. The deal is for 9 million and the option is 5 million, this is pending a physical. I would think by doing this that they must know the can trade Mike Lowell but the thing is he did just have surgery, unless Texas said we will do the deal but he has to go get the surgery and show that he is capable of playing and then we will make the deal before the season starts. There is also a rumor going around about the Mets and Red Sox talking about a Luis Castillo/Mike Lowell swap but that makes no sense since the Mets have a good third baseman in David Wright and the Red Sox had a good second baseman in Dustin Pedroia. Former Yankee and fan favorite Shelly Duncan has signed a deal with the Cleveland Indians. Matt Holliday and the Cardinals are getting close, I would expect this deal to be finalized sometime this week. This would also affect Johnny Damon, there was a rumor today about him possibly going to Atlanta but the Braves would have to trade Melky Cabrera first who they did just aquire. There is also talk of him maybe going to the San Francisco Giants. I just think he has made himself look bad and I don't even know if those teams are legitimate options, if not does he come back to the Yankees and take a 1 yr lesser deal??

How the Bay signing affects the Yankees

The New York Mets signing of Jason Bay has reignited the Hot Stove and it does affect the Yankees as well. The New York Mets needed to get the ball rolling and did a good job here, Yankees fans will be happy that although no one expected him to go back to Boston now it is official. The reason this really affects the Yankees is this it takes another name off of the leftfield list and Johnny Damon has less and less suitors. I am starting to believe more and more he may end up coming back to the Yankees on a 2 yr deal for around the 14 million the Yankees originally offered him. The San Francisco Giants were have said to have interest but with them signing Mark DeRosa for 2 yrs and 12 million they are out of the running, the Mets are of course out now and the St Louis Cardinals if they resign Matt Holliday which seems more likely also with the Red Sox and Yankees not involved and I wouldn't expect them to get involved. I just don't see where else Johnny Damon could wind up, maybe Tampa Bay but he is not going to get more then a 2 yr deal and he isn't going to get anymore then he will get with the Yankees. I also know the Yankees were very interested in Mark DeRosa and the rest of the leftfield market is pretty unappealing to them so where does that leave them?? The Yankees being the Yankees could always jump in on the Matt Holliday sweepstakes but I just don't see that happening with them being steadfast in staying under their budget from last season. I am also sure they won't wind up with Brett Gardner and Jamie Hoffman as the left field platoon so this leads me to believe that they could work something out with Johnny Damon.