Happy Thanksgiving

It's Thanksgiving day at the mother in-laws and this is my first post from my new blackberry.I now feel that everyone should have one. The Yankees are home having turkey which is what you should be doing. So Check back on monday and I promise something other than my rambling.

No Moves Yet

It’s the calm before the storm, or so it would seem. The Yankees have been quietly going about their business before the gunfire starts. I would think most things will remain that way until Monday but historically some big deals are often made over the holidays. It appears that the Angels may be preparing an offer for Sabathia. Being on the west coast the thought is that them will get a discount. I think that the Yankees will just dig a little deeper and come up with a you can’t match this one, not even close, kind of offer in response. I haven’t heard much else about the Yankees looking at Cameron. I believe if they sign CC they will be more aggressive about Mike. However you know me I'm a Brett Gardner Fan.

Rule 5 Draft for Dummies

I'll be the first to admit that things like arbitration the rule 5 draft and collective bargaining confuses me, sometimes to no end. That being said if I get any part of this wrong please call me on it.  The rule 5 draft is named for its rule number in the collective bargaining agreement. Its purpose is to prevent teams from stockpiling young talent in the minors that could be playing in the majors  for other organizations. The rule 5 draft works in a similar fashion to the amateur draft in that the team with the worst record selects first. Players that aren't being protected by being on the teams 40 man roster can be selected by another team but they must be immediately added to the teams 25 man roster and cannot be optioned to the minors for the entire season. In order to prevent abuse of the system the player must be on the active roster for 90 days. This prevents teams from drafting players and them putting them on the DL for the whole season. This may be spread over more than one season. A rule 5 player can be waived at any time. If not signed by another MLB team must be offered back to his original team at half price. The Draftee may also be traded but the Rule 5 guidelines transfer with the player.

  Confused? It's a bit overwhelming. Now in order to protect newly drafted players (from the amateur draft) there are certain eligibility guidelines. Players drafted at age 18 are protected for Four years .Players 19 or older are only protected for Three years. Players can also be protected by being on their teams 40 man roster at the time of the rule 5 draft. Draftees cost $50,000 and if not kept on the 25 man roster they must be offered back at half price. After keeping the player for the entire year a team may then put them in their minor league system, waive them, or keep them on the roster.

 The best example is the twins drafting Johan Santana from the Marlins in the 2000 Rule 5 draft. After keeping him and his 6.49 era on their roster for the entire year they optioned him to the minors for further grooming and well the rest is History. Returning to the majors in 2002 he has been brilliant.

This year the Yankees have added 4 pitchers to their 40 man roster. Protecting Anthony Claggett, Steven Jackson, Michael Dunn and Chris Garcia who would have been eligible. In doing so they have left a couple of important players exposed to other teams namely Alan Horne and Kevin Whelan. Last year Horne had a shoulder injury which hopefully will prevent other teams from taking the risk, however he has great stuff so it is a big risk. Whelan walks way to many batters and struggles with control to much for another team to risk putting him on the 25 man roster for an entire year. The only other one that I would be worried about is Ramiro Pena a young talented shortstop, but to date his bat has no pop. With the lack of infielders out there it wouldn't surprise me to see him get selected.

Noteworthy news

Ok Just a few things going on. Nothing as hot as if we signed CC but lets wrap up the news of the week.

1. As I,m sure you have all heard by now Mike Mussina has opted to retire rather than pitch into his 40's.  Personally I think he still had a couple of more years in him. But you gotta do what you gotta do. 270 wins and an ERA of 3.63 is a heck of a career. Does he belong in the Hall of Fame. Maybe, but certainly not a shoe in.

2.The Mariners have made Baseball history naming Don Wakamatsu as the first Japanese-American head coach in baseball history. Even though he doesn’t speak Japanese having grown up in LA he wants to learn some so he can better communicate with Ichiro and Jojima. Good luck to Don except when he plays the Yankees of course.

3. The Red Sox have traded Coco Crisp to the Royals for 27 year old Ramon Rimirez. This was a cashman like deal if I ever saw one. Here take my leftover parts and this handful of magic beans for a 27 year old pitcher with an ERA under 3 and more than a strikeout per inning. This guy could be the setup guy that puts Masterson back in the Rotation. It also might make them think twice about being all in on Burnett, which realistically was just going to drive the price the Yankees sign him for anyhow.

4. An Interesting Article over at the Star Ledger suggests that the delay on the Sabathia offer may be that he's waiting to see if the Dodgers will bid. Hopefully they won't, but again it will only drive up the Yankees offer for him. It's believed that if they do submit an Offer that it will be for $30 million less than what the Yankees have already offered.

5. Are The Jays Shopping Halladay? If they are , don't look at them giving him to the Yankees. Teams don't usually like to trade stars to another team in their own division. However a pitcher like that with only a 2 year commitment might be an incentive to talk to the Dodgers (believed to be the Jays likely suitor) and see what it would take to spin him to the Yankees. But that is just a pipe dream.

6. There is a Rumor out there that the Sox may trade Lugo to the Tigers For Willis or Robertson . Its pretty much a junk for junk trade, however Willis could still turn into a productive pitcher. Lugo only have one tool (speed) doesn't seem like a great fit if the tigers really want a  real starting shortstop. he is more of an off the bench pinch runner type guy as I see it. If the Sox could get Robertson for Lugo they should have pulled the trigger already.

hopefully Ill be back later this afternoon with some important news.

Slow day in the Bloging

 Ok there is almost nothing new to report. Mlb. Com is reporting that Towers and Cashman have had no recent conversations about Peavy. It appears that the Yankees are not in the running for him but that doesn't mean that if something suddenly makes since that that won't change. One thing that is interesting is that the article (linked above) states that the Cubs is currently their focus but would likely need another team to make a deal work. Not that the cubs would be interested but I wonder what kind of three way deal it would take to get Back Soriano?

Is Pettitte the Odd man out?

To tell you the truth I haven't made up my mind about Andy yet  so lets compare them for a minute by stats and age. 

Burnett  Age : 31  2008  18-10 4.07 ERA  lifetime 87-76 3.81 ERA 

Lowe       Age:35   2008   14-11 3.24   ERA Lifetime  126-107  3.75 ERA

Pettite   Age 36     2008  14-14  4.54  ERA  Lifetime  215-127  3.89  ERA

They all look like pretty much the same guy to me except at different ages. 

Burnett has had his share of Injury problems but seems healthy now he also seems to strike out allot more batters than Lowe. The last 4 years Lowe has had an ERA under 4 but he has also been in the National league. Pettitte gave up over 100 earned runs last year and was horrible after the all star break. I guess Burnett looks like the better deal to me given his age, ERA strikeouts. Ok I have decided on Burnett, Sabathia and someone else other than Pettitte or Lowe to Fill out the rotation next year. Humm Let me see perhaps.....PEAVY!!!!

Farwell to Darrell

In what is obviously an attempt to recoup some of the money lost to Japan on the Kei Igawa deal Darrell Rasner's Contract has been sold to Japan for One (pinkie to my cheek) Million Dollars! In all seriousness though it was at his request and even though he didn't pitch extremely well for the Yankees he had a stretch where he pitched well enough . I think his stuff will translate well in Japan. Good luck Mr. Rasner just remember to get your mitt up a little faster when the ball is hit at you.

Hey Cash how bout this?

Ok how about we sign CC, Lowe and Manny. Trade Matsui For pitching and Go with Damon and Manny sharing time for DH/LF. The Rotation would look like this..
1.cc
2.Wang
3.Lowe
4.Chamberlain
5.Pettite

CC gets 6 for 150mil
Lowe gets 4 at 75mil
Manny gets 4 at 80 with incentives and a team option of 18 million with a 8 million dollar buyout

Could Peavy be a Reality?

Apparently the word is out that the Yankees are going to make offers to Multiple pitchers. This could mean CC,Burnett and Lowe (with or without making an offer to Pettite or Mussina) It also is become apparent that the Yankees are at least a Dark Horse in the Peavy dealings. Seems  my previous posting on hypothetical trade situations might not be so hypothetical anymore. However much I would love to see a rotation that involves Peavy I can't Imagine the Padres wanting less than the Moon for him. My guess is that the conversation starts with them wanting at least Jackson and Hughes and probably gets worse from there. However I have heard rumblings (sorry I cant remember where I read it) that Igawa might be good for San Diego. But If they had any interest in him it would be a forth or fifth player involved in the trade not a primary piece. My dream rotation looks like this

1. CC

2. Peavy

3. Lowe 

4. Wang 

5.Chamberlain

6. Pettite or Mussina

What are the odds?  Its going to get interesting Kids buckle up!!

The Brinks truck has arrived

Ok it’s finally here there is a big truck load of money parked in CC's driveway worth 6 years and 140 million dollars. According to Pete Abraham the previous record for six year contract for a pitcher was 137.5 million dollars. You can be certain that it will take a few days for his agent to figure out that the Yankees won’t be outbid and I'm going to make a bold prediction and say that this time next week the Yankees are having a press conference introducing CC Sabathia to the New York Media and his new pinstripes.   

OK time for this weeks Hypothetical Trade Senerio

It seems for the time being that the Padres aren't even close to a deal with the Cubs or the Braves in tradeing Jake Peavy. Obviously they are going to ask for the moon for one of the (in my opinion) top three pitchers in Baseball.  Tom Krasovic of the San Diego Union Tribune thinks that the Padres my widen their scope and reach out to the Yankees and Angels to gain leverage. What do you think it would take for the Bombers to get Peavy? I think the Discussion starts with 

1. Phil Hughes

2. Robinson Cano

3. Austin Jackson

If cash can make a deal and give up less than that he should have already pulled the trigger in my mind.  Talk amongst yourselves

midnight is comming

Its 10:00pm est and Yankees hot stove is on right now. Two hours until the Yankees are on the Phone with CC  offering him the biggest payday of his life.  Girardi just stated the obvious by saying that the Yankees aren't stopping at just one big name pitcher and that its important for the Yankees to have six possibly seven  solid starters in the rotation. He also said that if people offer trades for Cano you have to listen because Canos valuable and that they would have to give allot back. but for now hes penciled in as the Yankees second baseman.  To me this almost sounds like he should keep one bag packed, LOL.  Ok Ill be back a little after midnight to report on any goings on.

update: midnight came and went and there was no truck full of cash outside CC's house. OK I better run I think he sees me climbing on the fence. 

Yanks Trade for Swisher

The Yankees in their first big move of the season have traded Wison Bedimit (Thank God) ,Jeff Marquez and Jhonny Nunez to the White Sox for Nick Swisher and minor league Pitcher Kanekoa Texeria. Swisher,  is a switch hitter who  plays  first base and all three outfield positions. According to Cashman, Swisher should see the majority of his playing time at first base, but provides an opportunity for some insurance in both corner outfield positions. Swisher is a plus defender at 1B,RF and LF however just average in Center. He is a career .244 hitter that given a full season at 1b should hit .250-.260   25-30 HR and 80-100 RBI. Hummm sounds just like Giambi, except that swisher can field his position, run the base pads, and is in the prime of his career at 27.

   Yes you are correct this spell zero chance of Giambi returning to Pinstripes. With Swisher,at this point, a lock at First Base  does anyone get the feeling that the Yankees won't be making a run at Tex. (That's me raising my hand). 

    On the other side of this coin the Yankees get Kanekoa Texeria  Who is 22 years old and 6'2 190 right handed and had 22 saves with a  1.33 ERA between A and Double A ball last season. He was ranked The number two Prospect in the White Sox farm system and I would think would at least have a shot at starting at AAA this year with the Yankees. I will let you know as soon as I find out what kind of stuff he has but the Fantasy Baseball section of Usa Today says his stuff is unexceptional but he could surface as a middle reliever.

    So where is the upside for the Sox? Besides Salary relief I really don't think they got the best end of the deal. Wilson is a bum who shows occasional power. In his defence he can play all the infield positions, just not extremely well. Nunez was part of an earlier trade agreement so He really wasn't around long enough to be missed. Marquez could be the only bright spot for the Sox a 1st round draft pick in 2004 showed some promise.

  Keep it up Cash Next Stop CC and Manny. Don't worry what they all say Brian I got your back.

Posada is not a Outfielder

Ok after reading this article on Dugout Central today and leaving my drawn out comment.  I had to come here and share the insanity with all of you. This Author, creative as he is, believes that Posada because of his Injury to his throwing shoulder could have a career as the Yankees Right Fielder. Yes I’m serious ,I think he really believes it. He starts by breaking it down by position. In CF he thinks that Melky will be gone. (Secretly I think he’s right) and he is correct saying that Jackson is not ready yet and will probably start in AAA. However I disagree with his assessment of Brett Gardner. The author says that his skills are only Defense and speed. It’s no secret that I'm a big fan of Brett and of all players who can create runs by being aggressive on the base pads. I feel that he started to show signs of life with the bat in September and that he has the skills to be a good hitter. If anyone can bring this out, Hitting coach Kevin Long can. In my comment I made mention to Dustin Pedroia and that in his first appearance with Boston he couldn't hit the broad side of the barn with a semi-automatic weapon. That being said I hope they give him a chance to be the starting CF but I think he will be the Fourth outfielder.I feel that Matsui , if not traded, will be primarily a DH do to his recovering knee and The Yankees will seek help via free agency or trade.  The Yankees starting outfield will be Damon ,Nady and Player to be named (not Posada. )This Post will  kickoff my official Manny for Pinstripes campaign.

Pavano is exhausted

  During an Interview with the Post Pavano said, "I look back on those four years with the Yankees and it was exhausting." Ok I'm Trying not to fly off the handle into one of my what a waste of $40 million dollar rantings, but I can’t resist, sorry Carl. Are you F******* kidding me Exhausting!!! Over Four years you only had 26 starts, I'm no Math whiz but that's 1.5 million dollars per start and out of those 26 starts how many innings did you really pitch? That's like Rocket money without half the results! Maybe it's exhausting to drive around in a sports car with Alyssa Milano. Maybe your Exhausted from all those rehab bullpens you threw making your poor little weak body frail and brittle. Then you had the Gall to say "If I was healthy, no doubt about it, the team would have benefited." Oh gosh Carl I feel like we missed out on what could have been the next Pedro Martinez. Maybe we should sign you to a long term deal now that you are healthy? The only reason you even had a contract last year is that you forced the issue instead of calling it quits, like a man with any dignity would have done and rehabbed on your own dime. NO no no lets suck the Yankees dry so that we can make a couple of September starts so that we can show something and suck someone else dry for a few more years. Maybe you really didn't injure your back side maybe someone kicked it, or at least they should.

Marte deal is a done deal

I still am not all that Jazzed about signing relievers to long term deals but  Pete Abraham spoke with Cash about the deal and compared to other recent contracts and with the praise of the teams lefty hitters and Rivera. I guess they could do allot worse than someone  who has a career ERA under four and who has struck out 508 batters in 472 innings. Lets all hope he can go back to putting up the kind of numbers he did prior to 2008 now that hes making the big bucks.

Big bats in the Bronx

In 2007 the Yankees took a shot at scoring 1000 runs but fell short only scoring 968. My question is how does a team follow that up with only 789 runs last year? Part of the problem was injury. Posada missing the majority of the season was a big factor. Molina, as great as he is defensively, cannot hit his own weight. Another factor was a poor season for Robby Cano. After looking like a batting champ to be in 2007 he was expected to do big things in 2008. On the bright side It appears as if his hitting woahs may be in the past and Kevin Long will be getting a fat raise. In 2007 A-Rod was incredible and there was no way he could have been expected to repeat that kind of year in 2008. So I guess looking at the numbers he had a representative year, but how many times did he choke with RISP or how many of his homers were solo shots when it didn’t matter. Most of all how many double plays did he hit into. In all fairness to A-rod he's probably the greatest hitter in the game and will continue to show that for many years to come. Another horrific blow was the loss of Matsui, however I feel the deal for Nady made up for him being gone down the stretch.

  Overall the Yankee Pitching was ok. Injuries to Wang and Chamberlain hurt badly but they were able to get respectable replacement level pitching from within but unfortunately that doesn’t win championships. If the Yankees solidify their starting rotation is that enough? I say no way. They need to add Two players that can hit. A first baseman for sure and probably a designated hitter or corner outfielder. I know you are all thinking that the outfield is way to crowded as it is. I think Matsui makes good trade bait provided that he is healthy. Brett Gardner should be your fourth outfielder. But who should start in CF? Not Melky, please not Melky. Defensively he is above average but he doesn’t have the kind of bat that we need a CF to have. I think a trade packaging Melky, Matsui and perhaps some of our deep farm system of  MLB ready pitching should be able to get us a suitable CF for a season until Austin Jackson is ready.  But Who? Many people think Mike Cameron to be the answer.  I think Gardner could put up a .250 batting average in CF just as easily. Ok Gardner would not hit 25 HR but I still think we could do better. What do you think? Maybe Damon in CF and a run at Manny for left? After all Damon did bat over .300 with 17 HR from the leadoff spot last season. If you had Manny, Damon and Nady as your starting OF next season you would be looking at 90+ HR from your outfielders. Ok lets assume for a minute the Yankees were interested in Manny ( which I think is only possible if Tex signs elsewhere) how much do you pay him? What would it take to get him. I think he will settle for 4 years 88Million. (Boras will never get Six years) That’s a lot of money for someone who may be a clubhouse cancer. But he’s not the first player to get run out of Boston and be a great teammate. ex. Nomar Garciapara. 

Ok back to earth, I think the Yankees will go with Garder in CF unless someone makes them a trade offer that makes since. and I think Melky will get a shot in spring training but ultimately will be traded. The Yankees will throw tons of cash at Mark Teixeira and You will see him and Sabathia in pinstripes in 2009.

Marte Update

According to MLBTR the Yankees have signed Damaso Marte to a three year 12 million dollar deal after declining his 6 million dollar option. My take, bad move! Why would you pay him till he's 39?  A one  year deal at 4 million with an option perhaps. I personaly didn't think he was all that.

David Brown, David Letterman is there a differance

In Letterman like form. here is David Brown's , from Yahoo sports, top ten list on things CC might have asked Jeter During a Cell phone convo.   click here 

Pitching Pitching and more Pitching

     I think that most people are of the opinion  that the Yankees need two starting pitchers either from free agency or via trade in order to be competitive in 2009. Agreed? That being said who and how much will they spend.  I think that when Friday hits,(that's when people can talk money with free agents from other teams) Hank and Hal are going to park a Brinks truck outside CC's house until he comes out and says OK lets go for a ride.  I'm guessing they offer him Santana type money maybe even a little more and they go six years. They have money to spend and they will spend it. I feel  that they stay away from Burnett, his numbers just don't speak to me and I hope that they decide to throw a little love at Ben Sheets. He was 13-9 last year and has a career ERA of 3.72 He's 30 years old a 4 year deal seems reasonable. In my dream world I see the rotation like this.

1.CC

2. Wang

3. Sheets

4. Pettite

5. Joba

6. Phil Hughes (as needed if they don't trade him, but thats another story)

Next up big bats in the Bronx??

The first post

The quest begins

The quest begins for the yankees 27th world championship. After a disapointing 2008 season the yankees will attempt to rebound this off season by digging deep into their newly full pocketbook and create a team that will compete with the young speedy Rays and the consistantly powerful Red Sox. 

     There will be rumors to explore interviews to conduct and contacts to be made. We will attempt to tap into those unnamed sources in the organization and hopefully provide some witty blogging along the way. Hopefully we can have some healthy discussions on who the yankees should aquire ,who should be traded and whos to be kicked to the curb. So fasten your seatbelts everyone and lets get ready for an exciting off season.