Yankees Sign Dan Griese & A Trade Proposal

First, Cashman swapped Tyler Clippard, a pitcher buried on the depth chart for a strike-throwing Jon Albaladejo. Now the Cash Man signed Dan Giese, a minor league journeyman.



Giese throws strikes (8.25K per 9) and doesn't put runners on base (1.64BB per 9) and has very impressive minor league numbers. The best Cashman can do is to stockpile guys that throw strikes and hope someone sticks.


On another note, the Giants have inquired about the availability of outfielder/DH Hideki Matsui. After losing Bonds, the Giants lack a dangerous hitter and a big draw. Hideki Matsui could potentially fill both those holes. Matsui alone would net the Yankees a pither like flamethrower Jonathan Sanchez or soft-tosser Noah Lowry. But I think the Yankees could add onto just Hideki Matsui and possibly aim higher. The Giants have resisted trading either Matt Cain or Tim Lincecum, but I think they could be enticed with another bat. I'd take Ian Kennedy and Shelley Duncan and add them to Matsui and see if I could pry Lincecum from the Giants. Imagine the future the Yankees rotation could have with Hughes, Chamberlain and Lincecum.

The Giants have a one-for-one deal on the table including Alex Rios from Toronto regarding Lincecum. If I'm Brian Sabean, I don't go anywhere near that deal. With the Yankees deal, they get somewhat weaker in the pitching department — though Kennedy would probably fare rather well at AT&T Park — and add two bats to an anemic lineup. With the Toronto deal, they don't replace their pitching hole and add one bat to that anemic offense. The problem is that Matsui is 34 years old and is coming off knee surgery. Duncan is 28 and has little major league experience. So while their bats will certainly upgrade the Giants lineup, it’s tough to judge to what extent.

Yankees Sign RP LaTroy Hawkins

At first, I wasn't thrilled with this deal, but after thinking about it, I've changed my mind. Hawkins is basically the same pitcher as Luis Vizcaino. Except for the fact that the Viz was looking for a three or four year contract and Hawkins was willing to take one. He can end up being a valuable inning-eating veteran in a bullpen that looks to be filled with young arms. If he turns out to be reliable, then fantastic, and if not, his contract should make him relatively easy to trade to some National League team for a prospect come July. Someone will have to go to make room for him on the 40-man roster, and most likely that person will be Carl Pavano.

MLB Power Rankings 08/17/07

1. Boston Red Sox
Can't beat Baltimore, but then again, no contenders can. The acquisition of Gagne hurt at first, but he'll be fine. You better score on them in the first six innings because Okajima, Gagne and Papelbon don't give up runs very often. Surprisingly, offense will be the only question down the stretch run.

2. Anaheim Angels
They still really need a bat to protect Vladimir Guerrero, but won't give up any of their prospects. Pitching and the eventual collapse of Seattle will give them a playoff spot, but even without that bat, they're still a serious World Series contender.

3. New York Yankees
Beat up on sub-.500 teams and then swept Cleveland. A tough stretch with 7 against Detroit and a trip to the Angels will determine if they're playoff caliber team. Got rid of Jeff Karstens and the waste of roster space that was Mike Myers. Starting pitching needs to get better and Rivera needs his bite back on his cutter. Joba Chamberlain flat-out nasty.

4. Seattle Mariners
Way overacheiving and they'll fall off eventually. Or will they. Their expected record is 60-58 and they're 66-52. Few teams in history have played more than a couple games over their expected record so logic says they'll fall off. Logic also says Jeff Weaver shouldn't lead the league in shutouts, but he does.

5. Arizona Diamondbacks
Their expected record is 58-63 and they're 68-53. Thirteen times they've lost by double digits and yet somehow they're leading the NL West by 3 games. When they're bad, they're bad. When they're good, they're good. There's not much middle ground with this team.

6. Detroit Tigers
They're falling off even more this year than they did last year. But so is the rest of the AL Central. The starting pitching has been absolutely horrendous and the hitting has slumped. Fernando Rodney is back and Zumaya's almost back. That'll help.

7. Cleveland Indians
The oddense has been absolutely horrendous the past month or so and they just got swept, at home, by the Yankees to fall out of the Wild Card lead. Kenny Lofton hasn't been what they expected and Travis Hafner is having a bad year. Fausto Carmona's still a nice story.

8. Atlanta Braves
Not many teams can match the Smoltz/Hudson duo or the lineup of the Braves. Mark Teixiera has been the protection that Andruw hasn't been all year. Edgar Renteria's coming back sooner than expected and Dotel will solidify the bullpen when he returns. They're getting hot and healthy at the right time

9. San Diego Padres
The Padres are one of the few teams that match the Braves in the pitching department. Young and Peavy are 1-2 in the NL ERA race but the offense is pathetic most nights. They should be able to catch Arizona soon enough to earn a playoff spot again. And they may be able to win a series with Young and Peavy.

10. New York Mets
Just treading water waiting for October. Problem is, they may not be around come October. Moises Alou is coming around, but the Mets are 30-33 since June 1. They've let Philly and Atlanta hang around and it could end up costing them.

11. Philadelphia Philles
Tadahito Iguchi has filled in nicely for Chase Utley and the Phillies are trying to figure out a way to work Iguchi, Utley and Rollins all in the lineup when Utley returns. Kyle Lohse is considered an upgrade for their rotation though. Ouch.

12. Colorado Rockies
They hit really well and actually pitch okay this year. They'll fall short of the postseason though because of injuries to their starting rotation. They've lost Aaron Cook, Rodrigo Lopez and Jason Hirsh to injury and have replaced them with people like Elmer Dessens and Ubaldo Jiminez. Who? Exactly.

13. Chicago Cubs
Right now, they're just keeping pace with Milwaukee. With Milwaukee getting swept by St. Louis, that's not a good thing. They've been concerned only with the Brew Crew all year, but now the Cards are a game and a half back of them. Soriano'll be back eventually.

14. St. Louis Cardinals
Coming off a sweep of Milwaukee puts them ahead of the Brewers. Adam Wainwright starting to look like trading JD Drew was a good move and Izzy's back and closing. They have the highest starters ERA in the NL and have been outscored all year, but the NL Central is the place to win cheap.

15. Milwaukee Brewers
Ben Sheets is still a couple of weeks away from returning and this team is in a complete free fall. They starters are 1-9 in the past two weeks and the bullpen isn't much better. Ryan Braun may win the ROTY, but that's about all Milwaukee will win this year. Finishing over .500 may not be assured anymore either.

16. Toronto Blue Jays
They're still ticked at the Yankees, but they're playing better. Burnett's back (for now) and Halladay's going strong. Marcum has been money and the defense has been solid. Vernon Wells needs to remember he's a $100 million man.

17. Baltimore Orioles
They're a few good hitters and a closer away from being a pretty good team. They just went 4-2 against New York and Boston and are 27-23 under Dave Trembley. Eric Bedard is my Cy Young choice right now and Aubrey Huff is actually hitting some.

18. Minnesota Twins
Torii Hunter will probably leae after this season. Joe Nathan will probably be traded and Johan Santana will probably walk after 2008. The Twins are 7 back in the Wild Card, but they're done.

19. Los Angeles Dodgers
They can't score. The pitching hasn't been horrible, but they're the only team that doesn't have a guy with at least 16 home runs. They thought that their pitching was good enough to mask their lack of offense, but they were wrong. They're not San Diego.

20. Chicago White Sox
At least Bobby Jenks set a record this year.

21. Oakland A's
Dan Haren's been rocked of late and they don't score much either. Steve Phillips cursed them when he picked Bobby Crosby (.226-8-31) to be the MVP at the beginning of the season, though. Good pick, Steve.

22. Kansas City Royals
They're improving. Slowly. Billy Butler, Joey Gathright and Alex Gordon are all hitting and Gil Meche hasn't been as bad as Steve Phillips said he would.

23. Florida Marlins
They need to either shape up or ship out Scott Olsen. Dontrelle needs to hire a nanny to take care of that kid and they too, need a new stadium. And maybe a few fans.

24. Washington Nationals
Not much new here. Mike Bascik served up Barry Bonds' 756th home run, they lost a few more games. But the season is a success becase they're not the worst team in the National League!

25. Cincinnati Reds
Ken Griffey Jr's headed towards 600 home runs and Aaron Harang is dealing. Other than that, not much to smile about in Cincinnati.

26. Houston Astros
Craig Biggio got his 3000th hit and then became the only player to be thrown out trying to stretch their 3000th hit. Typical Houston. Craig Biggio finally is retiring (3 seasons coming) and there will be no magical second half run this year without Pettitte and Clemens.

27. Texas Rangers
Gagne, Mahay and Texiera all gone. At least they now have Jarrod Saltalamacchia, owner of the longest last name in baseball history. But he's only hitting .163-.212-.229 since the trade with zero home runs and three ribbies. But he's got the longest last name in baseball history!

28. Pittsburgh Pirates
Adam LaRoche has contributed more than Mike Gonzalez! Tom Gorzelanny and Ian Snell have been good (132 and 113 ERA+) the rest of the pitching...not so much.

29. San Francisco Giants
Barry Bonds, new home run king. Only reason to watch Giants now...Tim Lincecum.

30. Tampa Bay Devil Rays
Hard to win when the bullpen's best ERA is 4.74. Headed for 100 losses for the fourth time in franchise history. But Carl Crawford's good. And Scott Kazmir is way better than Victor Zambrano.

Life After Jorge Posada

Jorge Posada has been a staple in three Yankee championships and has been the most productive and consistent catcher over the past decade. But he's 35 years old and won't be around forever. Looking through the Yankees farm system, the most attractive option to replace Posada is Jesus Montero, who is 16 years old. He was signed out of Venezuela and has 80 power on a 20-80 scale, which means he has the potential to hit 40+ home runs at the major league level. There's no doubt that this kid can and will hit, but the Yankees question whether he'll even be a catcher when he breaks into the Major Leagues. He's 6'3 and 220 pounds, big for a catcher (and he's not done growing at 16). More than likely he'll end up playing first base.

So after Montero, the Yankees are frighteningly thin at the catcher position. So here's my solution. Make a deal with Atlanta. The Braves have both Brian McCann and Jarrod Saltalamacchia behind the plate and in the majors. McCann is 23, Saltalamacchia, 22. McCann just signed a big deal to be the starting catcher for at least the next four or five years, effectively blocking Saltalamacchia. Instead of playing revolving positions with Saltalamacchia and Scott Thorman, talk up the Yankees. The Braves just traded disappointing outfielders Ryan Langerhans and have a hole in left field. The Yankees just happen to have an extra left fielder in Melky Cabrera. So my proposition to Brian Cashman: package Melky Cabrera with a minor league arm or two (Claggert and Veras) and bring in Saltalamacchia. The Yankees have enough outfielders that can fill in for the regulars, but next to no catchers. The Braves have a surplus of young catching and a void in left field. Seems to be a match.

Phil Hughes, Phenom

The Yankees have played nineteen game and lost eleven of them. The starting pitching has been downright awful outside of Andy Pettitte, sporting a rather unattractive 5.65 ERA, and that's including Andy Pettitte's numbers. That 5.65 ERA is good for 11th best in the American League, behind only Texas, Seattle and Tampa Bay. It's also the 26th best ERA in baseball behind the three aforementioned teams and Florida. The Yankees starters have combined to throw 94.1 innings in 19 games. In layman's terms, that less than 5 innings per start. So Yankee starters aren't even qualifying for wins!

Andy Pettitte, Carl Pavano (DL), Mike Mussina (DL), Jeff Karstens (DL), Kei Igawa, Darrell Rasner, Chase Wright (optioned to AA), and recently Chien-Ming Wang have made starts for the Yankees this year. Four have been disable and everyone else has been ineffective, outside Pettitte. So the Yankees felt it was time to call up uber-prospect Philip Hughes to start tonight against a top 5 Blue Jays offense. He's had very impressive Minor League numbers in two full seasons, but struggled mightily with command and location in spring training. He was 23-8 with a 2.24 ERA in 48 minor league starts. He struck out more than 10 batters per nine and posted a sick 0.86 WHIP in 253 career minor league innings.

Here's my take: it's too early. Hughes averaged 5 innings per start in the minor leagues and I can't imagine him being allowed to toss a complete game in his major league debut. We've already established that the Yankee starters go about 5 innings a game, and that'll probably be how long Hughes goes (given he doesn't throw 80 pitches in three innings). The Yankees planned on limiting his innings this year, trying to build up his arm strength for future 162-game major league seasons. His numbers in the minors don't matter. He can work on developing his curveball and focusing on finessing his location and command of his secondary pitches. In the Majors, especially for a struggling Yankees team, his performance does matter. He'll be asked to give the team a chance to win. Even with his impressive K/9 (10.2) and K/BB (4.9) numbers, Hughes' command is still raw and unreliable. I thought he needed one more full season at Scranton before calling him up again, but the Yankees' current pitching situation made the Yankees believe otherwise.

The Yankees have one of the deepest farm systems, regarding pitching in baseball. There are other starters within the organization that are more polished and MLB game ready than Hughes. Tyler Clippard, Steven Jackson and Ross Ohlendorf probably would do as well as Hughes will tonight, without compromising Hughes' future.

Mr. Torre

Let's talk about Joe Torre.

1996-2000: Four American League pennants, four World Championships, including a rare three-peat.


1998 -125 wins


2001-2003: Two American League pennants, zero world championships and an embarrasing ALDS loss to Anaheim.


2001 - Steroids helped Luis Gonzalez to 57 home runs (26 more than his second best season) but a bloop single over a drawn-in infield sealed the Diamondbacks Cindarella season.


2004-2006: Zero American League pennants, zero world championships, zero playoff series wins.


2004 - A normal and sanitary person would change the sock, but Red Sox starting pitcher/drama queen didn't and helped the Sox overcome a 3-0 deficit and advance to the world series, where they'd sweep the Cardinals.


Joe Torre is a Hall of Fame manager, of that, there's no doubt. If there's one rip against Torre, it's his inability to micromanage. He's one of the best managing over the course of an entire season, keeping everyone happy and productive. But when it comes to in-game decisions, there are better. Quite a few better.

Part of the micromanaging includes the use of the bullpen. Joe Torre overuses his bullpen, often falling in love with a reliever after a good stretch of outings, using them way too frequently and quickly burning them out. Perfect examples, Ron Villone and Tanyon Sturtze. He seems to be headed that way with Luis Vizcaino. The Yankees bullpen is on a pace to set a record for bullpen innings. Now, in fairness to Joe Torre, he has had some pathetic outings to cover in the past few weeks.

But tonight's 6-4 loss is completely on Torre's shoulders. The Yankees score twice in the top of the seventh inning to take a 3-2 lead over the Devil Rays and Chien-Ming Wang comes out in the bottom seventh. He strikes out the first batter, then serves up a single and a double to put runners on second and third with one out. At this point, Wang has thrown 81 pitches and hasn't labored all night. Torre decides to call the bullpen again. Vizcaino comes in a intentionally walks Baldelli. Here's my problem. If you're going to intentionally walk a guy to load the bases with a one-run lead, does it make more sense to:

A) bring in a flyball reliever that's more likely to induce a sacrifice fly
or
B) leave in the double-play guru to induce an inning ending double play?

B, duh. But after Vizcaino retires Harris, Torre brings in Mike "The Biggest Waste of A Roster Space" Myers to throw Carl Crawford a 68 mile-per-hour hanging slider (which has become all too common from him) that Crawford deposited into the right field seats and gave Tampa Bay a 6-3 lead.

Typical Torre. He's been great for the team and city, but after this year, it's time for the managerial debut of Donnie Baseball and a return to the bench coach for Joe Girardi. Those two minds next to each other on the bench would make the Royals a contender. Well, maybe anyone except Kansas City. The Yankees are no longer the team they were during the late-90s dynasty, and Torre is no longer the best fit for this team.

The Yankees now sit at 8-11 and in last place with five straight games looming against Toronto (2) and Boston (3). However, after that there is a hopeful stretch. Twelve straight games against the AL West (6 each against Texas and Seattle). In 2006, the Yankees won 7-of-10 against AL West teams in early May to jump back into the thick of the AL East, and in 2005 they won ten in a row against AL West teams to get back into things. Hopefully, things turn out very similar this May.

Alex Rodriguez and the Yankee Offense

We're about two-thirds of the way through the first month of the season, and Alex Rodriguez is off to a historic start. Below are his numbers through eighteen games (with the next best player, or league leader in parentheses)

AVG: .400 (.400 - Joe Mauer, Matt Holliday)
HR: 14 (7 - Ian Kinsler, Jimmy Rollins)
RBI: 34 (22 - Jeff Francouer)
OBP: .453 (.553 - Jim Thome)
SLG: 1.053 (.804 - Barry Bonds)
OPS: 1.507 (1.270 - Barry Bonds)
R: 26 (21 - Jose Reyes)

He's already tied the Major League record for home runs in April (Albert Pujols, 14) in April and is one RBI behind the April record for RBIs (35). Many analysts will try and tell you that A-Rod's off to such a good start because he's "seeing the ball better" than he had in the past. That's a bunch of crap.

He's seeing the same ball as he has every year in his career. The difference this year is, he's collapsed his strike zone and isn't watching strikes go by. As you may remember about A-Rod last year, when a pitcher made a mistake, Rodriguez would get overanxious to produce and pop those mistakes up, instead of driving them over the wall. This year, as evidenced fourteen times, he's driving them. And to all fields. Alex Rodriguez has traditionally been an excellent opposite field power hitter. Few, but not many of his home runs last year were to right-center and right field. This year, in addition to his black-seat blasts, he's shown the ability to hit the ball where it's pitched.

Another part of A-Rod's game that has vastly improved is his late-game performance. In 2006, Alex Rodriguez had 8 ninth-inning RBIs. This year, he has driven in 9 runs in the ninth inning through these 18 games.

But let's not focus solely on A-Rod. Another player that has been extremely impressive is Jason Giambi. Claiming that he's turn full-time DH to help the team, even though he didn't think he could produce in such a role, he's hit four home runs (14th in baseball) and driven in 17 runs (5th in baseball) all while hitting .310. Giambi hasn't hit over .300 since 2002, his first season with the Yankees. But if he can continue using left field occasionally, there's no reason he can't continue having multi-hit games. His patience is a part of the reason he's hitting well. Last year, he saw 4.37 pitches per plate appearance (#P/PA) and is seeing 4.33 #P/PA this year. 2006 was his career high, and so far in 2007 is second only to 2006. He hasn't walked at the same rate this year (.388 OBP) as in previous years, but the lineup around him helps. He'll get his 100 walks, 35 homers and 100 RBIs and hopefully continue with the high average.

Bobby Abreu has enjoyed shedding the "power-hitter" tag. He's hitting .306 with a .404 OBP this year. Of his 22 hits, only three have gone for extra bases (2 doubles, 1 home run). But he's the perfect hitter after Damon and Jeter and before Rodriguez. Abreu walks, a lot. He's walked thirteen times in eighteen games. He, like Giambi is seeing over for pitches a game. By doing that, it enables Alex Rodriguez, standing on deck, to get a sense of what kind of stuff the pitcher has that night.

Derek Jeter for a change, is off to a fine start. Typically a slow starter through eighteen games, Jeter is hitting .316 with a home run and six RBIs. One thing noticeably different in his number this year is in the strikeout column. After averaging 114 strikeouts from 2005-2006, Jeter is on pace to strikeout just 71 times in 2007. He's putting the ball in play and continuing to put up impressive averages. And wouldn't you have guessed, his one home run was off Dasiuke Matsuzaka, leading off the inning following Boston's four consecutive home runs. Classic Jeter.

Talking about the pitching now would make me too depressed, I'll address it later.

April Sweeps, Bring May Streaks

Boston 7, Yankees 6
Boston 7, Yankees 5
Boston 7, Yankees 6

From that, one could easily assume that the Yankees and Red Sox were evenly matched, with Boston having a slight edge. But the series, while played well by Boston, is misleading.

Curt Schilling (7IP, 5R)
Josh Beckett (6.2IP, 5R)
Daisuke Matsuzaka (7IP, 6R)

Boston's top three starters got lit up to the tune of a 6.97 ERA. The Yankees starters, however, were not any better at 8.56. But let's look at those.

Andy Pettitte (6.1IP, 2R) - best start of the six starters, by far.
Jeff Karstens (4.1IP, 7R)
Chase Wright (3IP, 4R)

Jeff Karstens was making his first start of the season, having been activated earlier in the day from the disabled list. It was his seventh career start. Chase Wright has even less experience, as he was making his second career start, and only his second start above AA ball.

It's never fun to lose games, especially to Boston, but after the weekend, I feel surprisingly good. Why? Because Boston barely won every game when we threw our farm team up on the mound. Yes, the Yankees have the deepest minor league pitching, but it's a few years away from seriously contibuting. I bet Jason Varitek could go down to AA ball and tee off there. Well, maybe not Varitek, but certainly Ramirez, Drew and Lowell could.

The Yankees lost because they had no pitching - that certainly won't last. Three starters were on the disabled list and the bullpen (which had been the best in the American League in both ERA, WHIP and BAA) was overused due to the fact that the starters were on the DL. As the starting pitching returns, starting with Chien-Ming Wang on Tuesday, the bullpen will return to throwing normal innings. I'm convinced that had the Yankees had healthy starters and a rested bullpen, the sweep would have been the other way around, and it wouldn't have even been close. If the starters had been healthy all season, we'd have seen more games like Pettitte's, and a rested bullpen to protect the leads instead of giving them up.

The Yankees offense also wasn't at full health and yet they still managed 6 runs a game against Boston's top 3 starters (the supposed best top 3 in the game). Hideki Matsui did not play due to a hamstring injury (he's due back next week). Johnny Damon missed a game and Jorge Posada missed two games. Posada's absence also hurt the younger pitchers more. The starting outfield for the second game was Kevin Thompson, Melky Cabrera and Bobby Abreu.

I'm not trying to take anything away fron the Red Sox, because they won a game against the Yankees in Boston (which hadn't happened in 8 previous attempts) but they beat minor league, and beleaguered pitching.

I'll take this time to remind everyone that on this date last year, Boston sat four games ahead of the Yankees and managed to finish third in the division, 11 games back. Boston also won 4 of the first 5 games between the two teams in 2006, and by much larger margins than they did this weekend.

So, Boston Red Sox fan, celebrate now as you do every April. We'll see what comes in August and September, when both teams are at full strength. Something parallel to last August if I'm not mistaken. Boston has an uncanny knack for impressing themselves.


DAISUKE MATSUZAKA

Want to talk about overhyped? The Red Sox shell out over $51 million just to talk to the guy, then need just about every minute of the negotiating period to screw the poor man. Then spring training comes and Dice-K starts against Boston College and does well. Who woulda thunk? [Note sarcasm] Then the regular season starts, he's good, and he's labeled a god. Let's look at the offenses he faced.

Kansas City - 10th in runs, 10th in average (1ER)
Seattle - 14th in runs, 8th in average (3ER)
Toronto - 8th in runs, 4th in average (2ER)
New York - 1st in runs, 1st in average (6ER)

Even I understand that Mizzou isn't a National Championship contender because they beat Murray State in September. Pitching well against teams with offenses in the lower half of the league isn't all that impressive. Why? Because you won't see those teams in October. You'll see the team you got shelled by.



Matsuzaka served up 6 runs to the Yankees, and it probably should have been more. Wil Nieves [a backup catcher] hit two absolute rockets right at people. One with a runner on third, on with the bases loaded. If both of those find holes, that's three more runs with innings still going.

Another suggestion, Mr. Matsuzaka - you keep showing up umpires, you'll be in for a long summer. Umps have no time for you putting your hands on your hips and looking up to the sky and taking two steps towards the dugout after a pitch six inches off the plate. Maybe in Japan, but not here. Although even with his antics, the strike zone surprisingly, ranged from Alex Rodriguez's shoelaces to Bobby Abreu's chin, at least, when the Yankees batted. For Boston it seemed to be from the bottom of Julio Lugo's belt, to the top of Julio Lugo's belt.

Every series has it's breaks. Everything broke Boston's way this time, as is the norm in April. Nobody ever won a World Series in April.

~Andy Pettitte - Jeff Karstens - Chase Wright - Darrell Rasner - Kei Igawa

~Chein-Ming Wang - Roger Clemens - Andy Pettitte - Mike Mussina - Carl Pavano/Kei Igawa

Is one rotation better than the other? One run a game better? If the answer is yes, then Boston's in trouble. If the answer's no, then you probably have some mental handicap and should schedule a game against the Red Sox. They'd beat you and be impressed with themselves.

Future Yankee Signings

Two exams left before spring break will prevent me from posting the game results right now, but here's a nice two year plan for the Yankees.

2008 Free Agent Signing



2009 Free Agent Signing

Astros 4, Yankees 3

Robinson Cano hit a three-run home run in the first inning and Miguel Cairo had two hits. Chien-Ming Wang allowed one run on four hits with no walks and three strikeouts over five innings. Vizcaino and Bean tossed scoreless innings while Villone served up two home runs and southpaw Sean Kozlowski took the loss when he struggled in the ninth.

NY Yankees
3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 3 6 0
Houston
0 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 1 - 4 10 3

Yankees 4, Twins 1

Jeff Karstens walked none and struck out four in four shutout innings. Chase Wright, Proctor, Britton and Farnsworth had scoreless outings for the Yankees. Ron Villone allowed one run in the eighth. Jeter, Cano and Matsui each went 2-for-3. Todd Pratt drove in a run.

Minnesota
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 3 0
NY Yankees
0 1 2 0 0 0 0 1 X 4 9 4

Reds 6, Yankees 3

Mussina continues to look bad. He served up another home run (fourth in three starts) and three runs over three innings. Brian Bruney and Rivera made scoreless appearances and TJ Beam tossed a scoreless inning. Luis Vizcaino allowed an unearned run and Matt DeSalvo let up a pair. Johnny Damon had two hits and Robinson Cano went 3-for-3 with a double. Kevin Thompson hit a ninth-inning home run.

Cincinnati
2 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 2 - 6 9 0
NY Yankees
0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 - 3 15 2

Red Sox 7, Yankees 5

In a game that featured Boston's Opening Day lineup and three Yankee regulars, the Yankees didn't lose the game until removing their few regulars and pitching their prospects. Ross Ohlendorf took the loss allowing three runs in two innings. Darrell Rasner allowed two runs behind a three-inning, two-run outing by Carl Pavano. Josh Phelps had two hits and two RBIs. Matsui and Basak each had two hits. I've been impressed by Chris Basak, and am beginning to think he deserves the backup infielder job ahead of Miguel Cairo.

NY Yankees
3 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 - 5 12 1
Boston
0 2 0 0 0 2 3 0 X - 7 11 0

Indians 4, Yankees 3

Alex Rodriguez had an RBI double and Jose Tabata hit his first home run of the spring in the ninth inning, but other than that, the Yankees didn't muster much offense. Bronson Sardinha had two hits and Brett Gardner drove in one. Chein-Ming Wang allowed one run in four innings. He allowed three hits and struck out four. Philip Hughes struggled, allowing three runs in an inning and a third. Rivera, Beam, Proctor, Britton and Villone all had scoreless outings.

Cleveland
1 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 4 9 0
NY Yankees
0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 3 9 0

Yankees 5, Pirates 3

The Yankees bookended their offense today, scoring three times in the first and twice in the ninth. Cano had an RBI hit in the first, and Eric Duncan homered in the ninth to break a tie and give the Yankees their eighth spring win against only one loss. Igawa followed his shaky first outing with a better one. Not great, but an improvement. He made a mistake to Ronnie Paulino that led to a two run homer in the third, but other than that Igawa was better. He didn't walk any and struck out four, giving him seven in four innings this spring. Steven Jackson struggled again in two innings, but Vizcaino, Clippard, Henn and Myers were all solid.

NY Yankees	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2		5	5	0
Pittsburgh	0	0	2	1	0	0	0	0	0		3	11	1

The Yankees return to Legends Field on Sunday to play the Indians. Chien-Ming Wang maes the start for the Yankees.

Yankees 5, Devil Rays 1

Pavano was supposed to start, but was scratched about an hour before the game. The reason, according to Cashman and Torre was not injury-related and was also not related to the lawsuit being filed against him by that man from Florida. Jeff Karstens filled in admirably, striking out four in three scoreless innings. Chase Wright also struck out four in two and two-thirds innings. He seems to be settling down after a rough first outing. TJ Beam got an out and Farnsworth struck out two in a scoreless inning. Lefty Kozlowski made his first appearance after shaking an injury and allowed a run and struck out the side. Jose Veras also struck out two in another scoreless inning. Melky Cabrera had two hits, including a double and Jeter drove in a pair. Posada hit his second spring homer, but lowered his average to .556 in five games.

Tampa Bay	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0		1	4	0
NY Yankees	0	4	0	0	0	1	0	0	X		5	8	0

Kei Igawa looks to put his rough first outing behind him tomorrow afternoon as he and the Yankees travel to face Pittsburgh.

2007 Yankees vs. Red Sox

I'm working on a rivalry preview, going in depth and examining the rivalry as it's shaping up for 2007. Assignments are slowing down to a leisurely pace so I'll have plenty of down time this weekend to do stuff like comparing Boston to New York. So stay tuned.

Other Yankee Blogs

Some baseball columnists also have their own blogs to satisfy the blogger community, which is larger than one would imagine. One of the blogs I frequent is written by Jim Baumbach, a sports reporter from Newsday. I really like his writing and just about every one of his reports and every player or prospect he profiles is accurate and well-written.

A few days ago he introduced a new contributer to his blog, Kat O'Brien. Originally from Iowa, she graduated from Notre Dame and covered the Texas Rangers starting in 2003. She's awful. While Jim updated the blog during the game, almost play-by-play, this new woman posts well after the games, and her analysis isn't any good. One thing she's really good at is stating the obvious. "Jose Tabata is young and limited English skills" Duh. We know that. It's common domain by now. Jim was excellent at getting inside information from inside the clubhouse and catching the Yankee players to get his own quotes. Not this lady. Nothing. She gives you basically what I take off the MLB site. Who the Yankees play next and who's starting. Jim usually had the lineup and injury updates. None of that now.

Something that you wouldn't think mattered much would be the small typing issues. Like capitalizing the beginning of your sentences and names of players. It's kind of hit and miss with Kat.

I really like Baumbach's blog, but he hasn't posted much the past few days. I think that this new woman is getting her own blog, which will mean Jim should take back over the blogging duties. Maybe I'm spoiled. I got used to Jim's A level blogging, only to be relegated to listening to the B-team.

Yankees 5, Braves 3

Mussina went three innings and gave up two home runs. That makes three home runs in five innings this spring against Mussina. Hopefully he'll work that out. Scott Proctor, Matt DeSalvo and Colter Bean continued their good work this spring with scoreless outings. Chris Britton walked one and allowed a run-scoring triple in his inning and Villone worked a one-hit scoreless ninth. Giambi hit his second homer of the spring, but the rest of the game belonged to the prospects. Sardhina, Reese, Chris Basak and Jose Tabata combined for nine of the Yankees thirteen hits and drove in a pair of runs. Josh Phelps drove in the winning runs with a tenth inning hit.

NY Yankees	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	2		5	13	1
Atlanta	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0		3	9	3

The Yankees host Tampa Bay tomorrow night at Legends Field. Carl Pavano should make the start for the Yankees.

Yankees 1, Reds 1

The Yankees went to extra innings for the first time in 2007, and ended the game in a 1-1 tie after ten innings. Bronson Sardinha tied the game in the bottom of the ninth inning with a one-out RBI single. Alex Rodriguez had a pair of hits and Josh Phelps added yet another extra base hit, this time a double. Andy Pettitte was hit on the left hand with a shattered bat, but was fine and pitched three scoreless innings. Mariano had his second perfect inning, unveiling a nasty splitter. Darrell Rasner tossed three scoreless innings and Mike Myers, Jose Veras and Sean Henn (with whom I've been impressed) all had successful scoreless innings. Luis Viscaino allowed a two-out home run in the 8th inning.

Cincinnati	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0		1	6	0
NY Yankees	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0		1	11	2

The Yankees travel to Disneyworld to play the Braves. Mike Mussina goes for the second time this spring.

On a side note, tonight was the first successful viewing (on my computer) of my MLB.TV. Surprisingly good quality and excellent sound quality. I should be able to try it again this weekend sometime.

Also, Josh Phelps has been having a very good spring. Andy Phillips has been away with his mother, and Joe Torre obviously favors Phillips over Phelps, but if hitting lefties is their main job, Phelps is definitely the better choice.

Indians 6, Yankees 5

Wang threw three innings, allowing two runs on five hits. Grady Sizemore took him yard to lead off the game and wasn't as sharp as he was in his first start. Philip Hughes took the opposite route. After struggling with his command in his first start, he breezed through two scoreless innings allowing one hit and a walk. Ross Ohlendorf allowed three unearned runs in two innings, and Kyle Farnsworth allowed a run in his inning. Kevin Reese and Josh Phelps continued their impressive springs with home runs and Matsui had a pair of hits.

NY Yankees	0	0	0	0	2	2	0	0	1		5	8	1
Cleveland	1	0	1	0	0	0	3	1	X		6	12	1

The Yankees host the unbeaten Reds tomorrow in their first night game, with Andy Pettitte scheduled to throw about three innings, or fifty pitches.

Yankees 6, Tigers 5

Walk off home runs are always exciting when your team hits them. That was the case for the Yankees today, as Bronson Sardinha hit a home run following Josh Phelps two-out single and was pinch run for by Brett Gardner. Hideki Matsui hit his first home run of the spring, a two run shot in the second off Justin Verlander. Robinson Cano and Alex Rodriguez also had RBIs in the game. Kei Igawa struggled in his Grapefruit debut, allowing two runs on two hits and three walks in just an inning of work. He did strike out the side in the first inning, but seemed to be battling nerves as he struggled with his usually impeccable command. Kennard and Rivera had scoreless outings, as did Britton, Clippard, Proctor and Villone. Steven Jackson, acquired in the Johnson deal, struggled in his outing. He allowed five hits, three runs and walked two.

Detroit	1	1	0	1	2	0	0	0	0		5	8	0
NY Yankees	0	3	1	0	0	0	0	0	2		6	10	0

The Yankees play the Indians on Tuesday, with Chien-Ming Wang expected to start.

Yankees 10, Phillies 5

Pavano's debut was a success. He pitched two innings, facing major leaguers and exited on his own accord. He allowed one run on two hits and walked two. His command wasn't great, but his breaking stuff was sharp and induced weak contact. For a guy who's been out so long, it was a good sign. Karstens followed Pavano with two scoreless innings and hyped young gun, Chase Wright struggled in two innings of work allowing a run on two hits and a pair of walks. Luis Viscaino allowed a run in an inning and Colter Bean had his second consecutive scoreless outing. Mike Myers, as his usual spring contribution, allowed three hits and two runs in two-thirds of an inning. He's on the roster to face one batter (a lefty) per outing, so him struggling shouldn't worry anyone, although I do view him as a waste of roster space. Kevin Whelan finished the ninth for Myers, picking up his second save.

The Yankees used fourteen singles and a double to push across ten runs. Melky Cabrera had a 3-for-3 day, Kevin Reese hit an RBI double and Raul Chavez had a two-run single.

NY Yankees	0	0	0	0	4	2	2	2	0		10	15	1
Philadelphia	0	1	0	0	1	0	1	0	2		5	12	1

The Yankees face the Tigers tomorrow on ESPN, with Kei Igawa scheduled to start.

-On a side note, I've still yet to get my MLB.TV up and running. I'm in the midst of downloading different versions of Windows Media Player but no luck yet. I shot an email to the support people and hopefully they'll get back to me soon and it'll work.

Yankees 4, Pirates 3

Mike Mussina allowed a second inning home run to Brad Eldred but was otherwise solid. Jeff Kennard and Matt DeSalvo each allowed a run in their outing, while Kyle Farnsworth (1), Sean Henn (2) and Jose Veras (1) all worked scoreless outings. Jorge Posada hit a solo home run in the fourth inning and Ramiro Pena, Marco Vechionacci and Kevin Reese all added RBIs in the eighth inning.

Pittsburgh	0	1	0	1	0	0	0	1	0		3	9	0
NY Yankees	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	3	X		4	6	0

The Yankees will go to Clearwater to play the Phillies at 1.05 ET tomorrow. Carl Pavano will make his spring debut for the Yankees.

Yankees 3, Devil Rays 1

Another impressive pitching performance for the Yankees. Andy Pettitte was perfect for his two innings as was Darrell Rasner. Scott Proctor and Chris Britton each tossed a scoreless inning and then Ron Villone pitched. Two hits, an errant pickoff throw and a run later he was done. Prospects Colter Bean and Kevin Whelan finished off the game with hitless innings. The Yankees only offense came from a three-run home run from minor leaguer third baseman Chris Basak in the eighth inning. Alberto Gonzalez, acquired from Arizona in the Unit deal, had a pair of hits and Brett Gardner had his first stolen base of the spring.

It scares me a lot when Joe Torre says that Ron Villone will make the major league club. Villone's arm was shot by the end of this year and he doesn't look any better this spring. I know it's one inning, but I'd take Chris Britton over Ron Villone in a heartbeat.

NY Yankees	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	0		3	6	1
Tampa Bay	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0		1	5	0

The Yankees host the Pirates on Saturday at Legends Field in which Mike Mussina will make his first start of the spring.

MLB.tv

My friend and a decided to test out the MLB.tv feature offered on MLB.com together. Since you can be simultaneously logged into the same password on two computers, it ended up costing us $80 total, or $40 each. We can choose to watch any game for any team, spring training and playoffs included. So I decided to see how much it costs per game if you watched every game, not that I'll be doing that.

There are 30 teams in the league and each play 162 regular season game. Each plays about 30 spring training games.

30 x 162 = 4,860
30 x 30 = 900
60 minimum postseason games
4,860 + 900 + 60 = 5,820

So we'll have 5,820 MLB games available to us from March til October and it only cost us $40 each. That's gonna run us about $0.007 per game. Not too shabby. Two of my classes today were canceled, so I'm done for the day and will be able to check out the quality of MLB.tv today at 12.05 CST when the Yankees visit St. Petersberg to play the Devil Rays.

Yankees 6, Twins 1

The Yankees kicked off their spring schedule with an impressive showing. The pitching was strong and the hitting was good. Damon hit the second pitch for a home run and Giambi added his own towering home run the next inning. Jeter, Matsui and Rodriguez were all 1-for-2 and Posada and Cano added RBIs. Wang threw two perfect innings (5 ground balls) and Ohlendorf, Viscaino, Myers and Veras each tossed a scoreless inning (Ohlendorf threw two). Philip Hughes struggled with his control, walking two in and letting up a hit in an inning and a third of one-run ball. He's still young and it's early. He wasn't awful, but he wasn't "the next Roger Clemens" yet.

Minnesota	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0		1	5	3
NY Yankees	3	2	0	0	0	0	0	1	X		6	11	0

The Yankees head to St. Petersberg to face Tampa Bay on Friday afternoon. Andy Pettitte makes his return for the Yankees.

Position Analysis - Relief Pitching

The Yankees bullpen was unpredictable last year. With Mariano Rivera's injury towards the injury, Scott Proctor seemingly pitching in every game and Kyle Farnswort's balky back Torre always had an interesting time bridging the game from his starter to his closer. The Yankees brought in a pair of right-handers in their trades that will most likely break camp with the big club and return most of the key relievers from last year. Joe Torre is notorious for falling in love with a reliever and overusing him (Tanyon Sturtze, Ron Villone). The Yankees are tossing around the idea of carrying twelve pitchers in 2007, mainly due to Torre's use of his bullpen.

Mariano Rivera enters the last year of his contract wanting a new one before the season starts. Brian Cashman wants to wait until November to give him one. If I were the GM, I'd hand Rivera a 3-year, $39 million contract right now. Or a 2-year, $25 million extension. I think I'd cry if Mariano Rivera finished his career in any uniform other than the Yankee Pinstripes. The best closer in baseball history has been throwing his cutter for about a decade, and no one's been able to hit it yet. He's gone from a strikeout pitcher to one who induces weak grounders which helps keep his pitch counts down. He's got a very fluid delivery from which he can generate a deceptive amount of power.

Kyle Farnsworth will be the eighth inning guy when he's healthy, which is hopefully all season. His fastball is 97-98 and touches 100 with life. His slider can be an unhittable pitch (like the one he froze David Ortiz with last May) or, if he fails to locate the pitch, it's a batting practice pitch. When he overthrows, he gets in trouble. Prefers setting up over getting the 27th out.

Scott Proctor pitched 102.1 innings last year (5th among relievers) but posted a 1.65 ERA in September and October. He's a rare breed of reliever that uses four pitches with regularity. In addition to his 93-98 fastball, he uses a late-breaking slider, a curveball and a decent changeup. When he fails to finish his pitches, they stay up in the zone and become easy for hitters to handle. Held hitters 1-for-13 with the bases loaded.

Mike Myers (waste of roster space, in my opinion) is the lefty specialist. He pitched in 62 games in 2007, but only pitched 30.2 innings. He's basically only a one-out pitcher and throws a "fastball" that tops out at 78 and a soft slider. His submarine delivery does make him hard on lefties (David Ortiz: 2-for-9, BB)

Brian Bruney was picked up from the Diamondbacks last summer and posted a 0.87 ERA in 19 games with the Yankees. It's silly to expect that from him for a whole season, but if he can shake this spring back injury, he should be able to contribute to the bullpen as a middle-relief guy with an ERA around 3.50.

Chris Britton was the first reliever acquired by trade. From Baltimore in the Jaret Wright deal. He used his "big, country fastball" to post a three and a half ERA in 60 games with Baltimore. He compliments his fastball with a changeup and a slider, using the changeup as his strikeout pitch.

Luis Viscaino was the main player in the Randy Johnson trade. Viscaino is the epitome of a Joe Torre relief pitcher. He's pitched in at least 65 games in the last five seasons, topping 70 in four of them. He's posted ERAs of 3.75, 3.73 and 3.58 the past three years, coming in both leagues (with Milwaukee, the White Sox and Arizona) so league changes don't appear to bother him.

Well, that's seven relievers. Pair them with the five starters and that gives the Yankees twelve pitchers. Those are the favorites to make the team, and probably will barring any lingering injuries to any of them (Bruney). Minor leaguers TJ Beam, Sean Henn (L), Humberto Sanchez, Jeff Karstens, Jose Veras and Darrell Rasner are also in the mix, but are probably behind the first seven on the depth chart. If the bullpen stays healthy, they could theoretically be one of the strongest bullpens in the American League. But injuries could force the Yankees to dip into their farm system, and the young guys could struggle making the transition.

Position Analysis - Starting Pitching

The Yankees return only two of five starters from last season. Gone are Jaret Wright, Randy Johnson and Shawn Chacon from the 2006 Opening Day rotation. Aaron Small and the late Cory Lidle won't be making any starts for New York this year. The Yankees will count on Andy Pettitte, Kei Igawa and Carl Pavano to fill out the rotation behind Mike Mussina and Chien-Ming Wang. Potentially brilliant, but potentially disastrous as well.


Chien-Ming Wang finished second in the Cy Young voting last season after spending time on the DL in his rookie season. He led the league with 19 wins and posted an impressive 3.63 ERA. He led the league in home run rate (1/18.17 innings). He made 33 starts (and one relief appearance) and led the team with 218 innings pitched, effectively saving the bullpen from being completely overused. He also saved himself by ranking second in fewest pitches per inning (14). Wang throws his trademark sinking two-seam fastball 80% of the time and mixes a changeup and an effective slider the other 20% of the time. Wang's sinker, coupled with the New York offense should be enough to see Wang win 18-20 games again in 2007.


Mike Mussina is the other incumbent in the Yankee rotation, and is coming off an above average year that saw him go 15-7 and lead the Yankees starters in ERA. He stayed relatively healthy and came in just under 200IP. He was in the top 5 in both quality starts and fewest walks per nine. Mussina doesn't throw as hard as he once did, and now relies more on his ever expanding repertoire and guile. Uses precise location of his fastball to get ahead of hitters, then has the choice of multiple pitches to finish off hitters. Uses a slider, changeup and a dancing knuckle-curve and is always adding to or backing off all his pitches.


Andy Pettitte returns to New York after a three year exodus to Houston. He's gone over 200IP each of the last two seasons, which hopefully indicates that his tender left elbow is strong enough to give him another good season or two. He's always had a great delivery and good command of all his pitches. He cuts his fastball less than he did in his first stint with the Yankees, but is still effective. His curveball is of the straight 12-to-6 variety and his changeup fades away from right-handers. One of the best mound presences in the game this side of Roger Clemens. Pitching in New York again, Pettitte still has the ability to be a 15-game winner.


Kei Igawa cost the Yankees $26 million and then some. He'll always be compared to Daisuke Matsuzaka, but not here. Throws a fastball, curveball, a slider and a changeup, but none of them are dominant pitches. He relies more on his command than his stuff, but will benefit from the bigger parks in the Major Leagues. He slides into the four or five spot this year, but will probably end up in the bullpen next, if not this year.


Carl(a) Pavano didn't throw a major league pitch last year and hasn't since June 2005. The word in Tampa is that Pavano is in better shape and is focused on having a good season. He has the stuff to pitch effectively, but hasn't shown he has the mentality to do so. He owns four pitches above average pitches. Has good command of both his fastball and sharp slider, and uses a splitter as his out pitch. Getting anything out of him would be considered a success for the Yankees.

If Pavano continues his run of injuries, or Igawa fails to pan out, then the Yankees have plenty of resources to fall back on, and for once, they reside in the Yankees farm system and not on another teams roster. Jeff Karstens and Darrell Rasner both pitched effectively late in the year for the Yankees and will be the first arms called on should the need arise. And then there's always the super-hyped phenom Philip Hughes. I personally can't wait to see Hughes pitch, but I'd prefer not to need him until 2008. Anyone drawing comparisons to Roger Clemens is an exciting pitcher.

The Yankees rotation has the potential to be great, but the question marks could also go the other way and the rotation could struggle mightily. I prefer the former happens.

Position Analysis - Outfield

With Gary Sheffield sporting a new beard in Detroit, the New York outfield looks to be one of the most dependable and most productive units in baseball. Hideki Matsui, Johnny Damon and Bobby Abreu will patrol the outfield from left to right in 2007. Melky Cabrera will serve as the main reserve outfielder, and will probably see about one start a week as Torre will look to keep his regulars fresh with an occasional DH appearance.

Hideki Matsui broke his right wrist on May 1 last season and didn't return until September 12, but he did hit .396 with 3 homers and 10 RBIs after doing so. Always a professional hitter with good bat speed, Matsui continues to improve with each new season. He's a line drive with deceptive power and is one of the Yankees' big clutch hitters. He's an average fielder with a weaker arm but a quick release. He takes good routes to balls but struggles with balls hit directly over him.

Johnny Damon made the easiest transition to New York than any player in recent memory. He hit .285 with a career high 24 homers and swiped 25 bases, all while playing through a broken bone in his foot. He's an annoying hitter, fouling off good pitches until he gets something he can handle. He's got a very slashing swing which gets the backspin that produces carry. He's an exceptional baserunner and should run more with a healthy foot. He's an average fielder who takes good routes and covers more ground than most centerfielders, but has one of the weaker arms in the league. With a full season of Matsui, Abreu and Cano (and hopefully a return to form by Alex Rodriguez) Damon will focus more on getting on base. That should hopefully knock his power numbers down a touch, but a rise in his runs, on base percentage and average.

I lied. Bobby Abreu made one of the best transitions to New York in recent memory. The Yankees acquired the right-fielder on July 30 and all Abreu did was hit .330-7-42 in 58 games as a Yankee. He also stole 10 bases and drew 33 walks along with playing a very solid right field. Abreu was so impressive that he forced out feared slugger Gary Sheffield. He has a very smooth and efficient swing and hits the ball well to any field. Abreu can be overly selective which leads to a high total of strikeouts and walks. His power numbers have declined rapidly, but still has some pop, and won't be the focal point of the offense in New York. He's an above average right fielder with an above average range and arm. He appears tentative approaching the wall.

Melky Cabrera struggled in 19 at bats in 2005, then threw a coming out part of sorts in 2006. Given an extended look due to the injuries to Sheffield and Matsui, Cabrera led the American League in outfield assists and contributed with the bat. His power is still developing (being only 22) but he is a good gap-to-gap line drive hitter. He's a switch hitter that can drive the ball from both sides and has a good grasp of the strike zone. He led all rookies in OBP (.360), runs (75) and stolen bases (12) last year, but probably won't approach those numbers in 2007 as the Yankees fourth outfielder. He can play all three outfield positions, but is best in left. Plus arm, helps compensate for poor carom judgment.

Miguel Cairo is an emergency corner outfield option.

Position Analysis - Corner Infield

The best player in baseball lives 10 feet east of the third base bag. But no one wants to admit it. Even in a down year, Alex Rodriguez hit 36 home runs and drove in 121 runs. But a second consecutive abysmal postseason showing has Yankee fans and critics alike hounding him to be perfect.

Rodriguez will be the subject of many talk shows this year because of the clause in his contract which allows him to opt out of the last three years of his contract if he chooses. Rodriguez says he wants to stay in New York and the Yankees say they want him. There's no third baseman I'd rather have than Rodriguez and hope that he'll play out the contract and maybe re-sign after it's done. But for this year, he'll be in Pinstripes. It's my opinion that he'll bounce back strong and have another MVP-caliber season, perhaps even his best season ever. He has a long swing and quick hands. He expands the zone with runners on base and especially when they're in scoring position. He is an exceptional baserunner with great instincts and has 40 stolen base potential. He struggled on defense last year, but has good hands and charges ball well. His footwork needs serious attention, but he won't be a 20-error player again.

Doug Mientikiewicz was the Yankees second biggest free agent addition behind Andy Pettitte. Mientkiewicz doesn't offer much on offense, but he will improve the infield defense tremendously. He is one of the best in the business in the field and will provide a small margin of error for the Yankee infielders. He's a very smooth fielder with soft hands and excellent footwork. He has a fluid swing and thrives on pitches middle-up. More of a line drive hitter, he gets into slumps when he tries to pull the ball for power.

Either Josh Phelps or Andy Phillips will make the team as the right side of the first base platoon. (Although I believe the Yankees should let Mientkiewicz play first full time and bring Bernie back as a reserve outfielder/DH for one more season. Mientkiewicz's splits (.286/.274) aren't extreme enough to warrant the need to platoon him. But, the Yankees believe otherwise and I haven't won 26 world championships. Phillips impressed briefly last season before falling off after losing at bats. He killed lefties in the minor leagues, but hit just .195 against them last year (.186 career), furthering my point about trashing the platoon idea.

Phelps had a nice rookie campaign in 2003, but drastically fell off after that. He's been working his way back through the minor league systems of Toronto, Cleveland and Tampa Bay before being taken by the Yankees in the Rule V draft. If he doesn't stay on the roster all year, he has to offered back to Baltimore for $25,000. He's a career .300 RISP hitter with power potential. But it's been a few years since he had a good run in the majors. His defense is a little questionable, which again, confuses me on the whole platoon idea.

Moving Giambi to DH opened up options for the Yankees and I think they've chosen the wrong one. Unless Josh Phelps has an outstanding spring, Mientkiewicz should become the everyday starter at first. He's a better hitter and a much better defender than any of the others.

Position Analysis - Middle Infield

Derek Jeter and Robinson Cano pair up to form one of the most impressive middle infields in all of baseball. Second and third respectively in the AL batting race last year, both men will look to pick up where they left off last year.

There isn't many better than Derek Jeter when it comes to clutch batting situations. He has enough power to hit 20-25 home runs a season, but uses all fields to hit for a high average as a prototypical two hitter. He excels at sacrificing and the hit and run. Jeter is coming off his third gold glove award and continues to play excellent defense. His range comes from mainly good positioning and he avoids bad hops. He charges balls well and has a strong arm.

Robinson Cano has developed into the best second baseman in the league in only two seasons. He has a natural inside out swing and very quick hands. He uses the entire field and will eventually see some of his numerous doubles turn into home runs. He smokes fastballs and is an exceptional mistake hitter. Cano will get plenty of RBI opportunities behind the many OBP machines ahead of him in the lineup. Doesn't steal many bases, but is a developing and quick baserunner who makes an occasional costly mistake. His defense improved immensely last season, perhaps due to his work with infield coach Larry Bowa. Robinson moves well to both sides, has soft hands and a strong arm.

Miguel Cairo will be the first, and really the only option off the bench. He is a natural second baseman who can play all four infield positions and handle the occasional outfield assignment. Cairo offers little with the bat, but his flexibility in the field makes him valuable to the Yankees. If Andy Phillips makes the team out of spring training, he could also see the occasional inning at second or third.

A definite strength for the Yankees, they'll be expecting (and getting) a lot of production from the middle of their infield, barring injury. Jeter should have another MVP-caliber season batting between Damon and Abreu and Cano should continue to improve on his already impressive numbers.

Position Analysis - First Base/DH

The Jason Giambi experiment is over. The Giambino will be the Yankees full-time designated hitter headed into the 2007 campaign. If Lou Gehrig was the Iron Horse, then Giambi qualifies as the Iron Glove. As inadequate as he is in the field, Giambi can still swing the bat. Wrist injuries have slowed his bat speed some but he's still a power hitter with power from center to right. He's a patient hitter who's become more and more of a streak hitter.

The Yankees signed defensive specialist Doug Mientkiewicz to take over the majority of the first base duties. He's one of the best in the business at first and will ultimately help the rest of the infield defense picking errant throws from across the diamond. He has a very fluid swing and is more of a line drive hitter so he won't put up much in terms of power numbers, although Yankee Stadium will help him in that aspect a little. He also provides a friend for Alex Rodriguez, reuniting with his high school teammate. He's a better option at the plate against lefties than Andy Phillips, although Phillips will probably still be the right side of a platoon.

Andy Phillips has outgrown the 'promising prospect' label. He's 30 years old and has yet to establish himself as a solid everyday player. He's in between Giambi and Mientkiewicz defensively although he tends to rust when playing very sporadically. He specialized in hitting left-handed pitching in the minors, but has yet to translate that skill to the major leagues. He's a good fastball hitter, but struggles against off-speed pitches. In my opinion, trading Phillips would make the most sense for the Yankees. A deal with Atlanta could make the most sense, packaging Phillips with Ron Villone for Jarrod Saltalamacchia and a pitching prospect.

Josh Phelps was picked up in the Rule V draft. He showed promise as a young player in Toronto and is looking to battle for playing time with Phillips. Another players with some pop and the ability to handle fastballs. If he makes the team, he could serve as the team's emergency catcher.

The Yankees seem to be favoring defense over offense at first base this year, finally having enough of Jason Giambi's slow footwork and shoddy defense. Joe Torre seems to be set on opening the season with the winner of the Josh Phelps/Andy Phillips battler and Doug Mientkiewicz in a lefty/righty platoon. Giambi will be counted on for 30 home runs and, 100 RBIs and his usual .400+ on base percentage while whoever starts at first will be considered successful if they play solid defense and occasionally contribute with the bat.

Position Analysis - Catcher

The Yankees have had Jorge Posada holding down the duties behind the plate for about a decade now. He will be the starter and receive the bulk of playing time as the Yankees lack a decent back-up catcher. Todd Pratt and Wil Nieves will compete for the backup job during spring training. Raul Chavez suffered a broken hand in winter ball and won't really be a factor anymore. That's for the better as he was the weakest option of the three.

Posada caught over 137 games last year for the seventh consecutive season. His average, home run and RBI totals were his highest since his MVP-caliber season in 2003. He also posted career highs in riples (2) and stolen bases (3). In addition to another strong offensive season, Posada had the best defensive campaign of his career with the help of Tony Pena. He was among the league leaders in caught stealing, throwing out 38-of-102 runners (37%) and had bettered a .990 fielding percentage for the fourth straight year. He enters the final year of his contract (a $12 million option triggered by games caught in the past five years) and with no major league ready replacement in the system, the Yankees will probably look to resign him to a two-year deal at the conclusion of the season, although for a lower price tag. He's a very patient hitter who seems to have a knack for working quality at-bats in key situations. He's a better hitter left-handed with pull power, which works in his favor with Yankee Stadium's short right field porch. For a veteran catcher, he still isn't too adept at working with pitchers.

Neither Wil Nieves or Todd Pratt are particularly attractive options. Nieves has played in 37 major league games, accumulating 82 at-bats for a .159 average with no home runs and three RBIs. He is younger and the fact that he has options left makes him more likely to start the season in SWB. Todd Pratt is a well-traveled veteren backup catcher. He works well with pitchers and offers more of a bat than Nieves. Pratt is a career .251 hitter and most recently played for Atlanta. The Yankees won't use their backup catcher much, or use them for pinch-hitting so this position battle won't be all that important.

New Yankee Blog

This is the new location of the old Yankee Blog from

www.nyy_news.livejournal.com

I'll kick this one off with a recap of the offseason.

KEY TRANSACTIONS

-Traded OF Gary Sheffield to Detroit for RP Humberto Sanchez, RP Kevin Whelan and RP Anthony Claggert.
All three arms are minor league relief pitchers from Detroit. Humberto Sanchez is a blue-chip arm. He throws a very heavy fastball along with an above-average curveball and a plus changeup. He's slated to begin the year in AAA SW/B working with Nardi Contreras to improve his secondary pitchers. He's had some injury problems and weight issues, but the Yankees AAA pitching depth will let him take it slow. Kevin Whelan is a converted catcher who throws 95 and uses a splitter as his strikeout pitch. He struggles somewhat with his control but still strikes out almost 3 batters per walk. He'll most likely begin in AA Trenton as the closer, being carefully groomed as a future replacement of Rivera or a setup man.

-Traded Jaret Wright to Baltimore for RP Chris Britton
Jaret Wright spent two mostly disappointing seasons in New York. The Yankees sent him and half his salary to Maryland for a pretty tough young arm. Chris Britton throws 92-94 with a deceptive motion. He's a big boy at 6'3 and around 280. Lefties hit .301 off Britton last year in his Major League time but didn't hit him for much power. He gets his massive amount of K's with his curveball. If I were the Yankees, I'd take Britton in the bullpen over someone like Brian Bruney.

-Traded SP Randy Johnson to Arizona for RP Luis Viscaino, RP Ross Ohlendorf, RP Steven Jackson and SS Alberto Gonzalez
Nothing too special about this deal. Randy Johnson won 34 games in two year with the Yankees, but mainly because of the juggernaut of an offense the Yankees featured. New York and Johnson didn't really mesh and the trade works well for each side. Luis Viscaino is a solid, durable and dependable relief arm dubbed "Daily" for his frequent use. Ross Ohlendorf is a Princeton graduate with a power arm. He has control issues, and doesn't strike out a huge amount of batters. Gonzalez and Jackson are lower-level prospects not expected to be too much in the majors.

-Signed SP Andy Pettitte
Andy Pettitte coming back was my favorite move of the offseason. He was one of my favorite dynasty Yankees along with the Warrior and Jeter. He's thrown over 200 innings each of the past two seasons so his left elbow is evidently holding up pretty well. He'll take the number two spot in the rotation behind Chien-Ming Wang and in front of Mike Mussina.

-Signed 1B Doug Mientkiewicz
A good-field, no-hit first baseman expected to fill the left side of a first base platoon. No matter how much Jason Giambi wants to play first, the fact remains that he's a liability there. Mientkiewicz is one of the premier defensive first basemen in the league and will help the infield defense tremendously. He doesn't hit much, but he won't be expected to. Another bonus to the signing is Doug is close personal friends with Alex Rodriguez which will hopefully make Rodriguez more comfortable in the clubhouse and city.

-Signed SP Kei Igawa
The Yankees consolation prize after losing out on Daisuke Matsuzaka. Kei Igawa projects to be a back-end rotation guy, so he shouldn't have as much pressure to deal with, although he will always be compared to Matsuzaka. Igawa has the advantage of being left-handed, as southpaws have traditionally fared well in Yankee Stadium. Igawa also has Hideki Matsui as an established Japanese teammate to relate to and help him adjust. The Yankees are looking for Igawa to stay healthy all year and keep their high-powered offense in games. He's slated to be the number 4 starter, although I would guess he'd end up in the bullpen by as early as next year. He's tough on lefties and Mike Myers' deal is up after this year. Igawa could move to the bullpen and serve as a lefty specialist/long reliever/spot starter if (and more likely when) the Yankees go after a big name starter (Johan Santana) or the young arms (Hughes, Clippard, Sanchez) hit the big leagues

So that was the Yankees offseason in a nutshell. As Spring Training gets underway, I'll take a look at the team and players and will end the spring with my predictions for the year. Hopefully we'll see a twenty-seven go up in Yankee Stadium.