Bryan Hoch’s version of the Yankees’ top five storylines of 2010 didn’t include the fact that they lost. Winning is everything with the Yankees, and whether they won it all or not is always their top storyline.
Putting that aside, it’s tough to disagree with his top five.
5. Robinson Cano breaks out, chases his MVP dreams
4. A-Rod becomes baseball’s youngest to 600 homers
3. The Yankees miss out on Cliff Lee … twice
2. Iconic shortstop Derek Jeter and the Yankees ‘get messy’
1. The Yankees mourn the passing of ‘The Boss,’ George M. Steinbrenner
Hoch goes into more depth on each storyline here.
When I heard the Yankees had joined the “sweepstakes” for free agent Bartolo Colon, my reaction was: “a sweepstakes implies there will be a prize. Bartolo Colon is no prize.”
The reactions to this news on Twitter were too good not to post.
Dear Mr. Larry Rothschild,
I think you know by now that fixing A.J. Burnett will be your primary goal in your first year as the Yankees pitching coach. In the winter of 2008, the Yankees were confident enough to sign Burnett to a five-year, $82.5 million contract. But his past postseason they wouldn’t even let him pitch in the first round.
The Yankees have shown interest in free agent reliever Kevin Gregg and starter Kevin Millwood, according to Jon Heyman. Both pitchers were listed in Heyman’s “best values to be found in the free-agent bargain bin.”
The Yankees pitching staff needs some help, especially if Andy Pettitte chooses to retire, and either Kevin might do the trick. Let’s take a closer look at Gregg and Millwood.
The Yankees signed ex-Dodgers catcher Russell Martin to replace Jorge Posada. Without Martin, the Yankees would have relied on uber prospect Jesus Montero for the starting catching duties. Now that Martin is officially signed, Montero will likely start 2011 in Triple-A. The majority of voters agreed.
But Montero isn’t the only highly touted prospect in the Yankees’ system. Yankees catching prospect Austin Romine played all of last year in Double-A and is said to have better defense than Montero and a solid bat. Here’s what Yankees Vice President of Baseball Operations Mark Newman had to say about the catching situation.
If you haven’t heard, the Yankees have been linked to both over-the-hill outfielders. Manny Ramirez and Johnny Damon just don’t fit with the Yankees.
A.J. Burnett knows his rebound is important. He's remodeled a barn at his Maryland home into an indoor pitching facility and is expecting new pitching coach Larry Rothschild to drop by for about a week next month.I think this news is better understood visually.
Like baseball’s yearly awards, Hall of Fame voting standards are vague. Jon Heyman revealed the world his Hall of Fame standards in an article yesterday, and I’m a big fan of what he had to say. This is the key:
In filling out my ballot, I go more by impact than career numbers.
Heyman details how the Internet community will base its vote purely by stats, making Bert Blyleven a shoo-in. But in Heyman’s 14 years of voting, not once has he voted yes. After reading his article, Blyleven doesn’t sound like a Hall of Famer to me.
I voted for those exact three choices.
Just when I started bashing all athletes for never taking less money than they are offered — cough, Jeter — Kerry Wood signed with the Cubs for far less money than he could have earned with the Yankees or White Sox.
“When they get to Triple-A, they don’t need a full year doing that,” Newman said. “They need a month or two of adjustment. They still need innings. You don’t want to limit innings by putting them prematurely in the bullpen.”Click through to see who Newman might be referring to.
Zack Greinke is now a Brewer after reporters confirmed last night’s rumor. With the Red Sox catching every free agent they cast their line at, fans were looking for the Yankees to make a splash of their own. But Greinke was not the answer, as Jon Heyman tweeted last week.
KC trying to involve #yankees in greinke but nyy hesitant to risk him in NYC.
So who is the answer? You might be disappointed.
Another day, another reliever signed by the Red Sox.
Two days after locking up White Sox closer Bobby Jenks for two years, the Red Sox signed ex-Rays reliever Dan Wheeler.
It’s not Yankees, but it’s too good not to post. I present, on behalf of the New York Post, the “LeCHICKEN” back cover.
Photo courtesy of Caleb Gindl
The Yankees signed LOOGY (Lefty One-Out GuY) Pedro Feliciano for two years, $8 million with an option for a third year. Feliciano pitched the first eight years of his career with the Mets, and he led the majors in appearances the last three years.
While I was on the road headed back home from college, the Yankees were linked to a lot of free agent pitchers and some of their targets signed with other teams. Here’s a quick rundown:
Bill Madden of the Daily News said Carlos Zambrano is a “likely target” for the Yankees to pursue in the trade market this offseason, and ESPN’s Andrew Marchand cites one scout saying “it would make sense” for the Yankees to go after Rafael Soriano.
With the latest free agent signings by the Yankees and Red Sox in the past week, I wanted to compare their lineups. This is my first glance at Boston’s lineup and take 3 with New York’s.
| Red Sox | Yankees | |
| Dustin Pedroia 2B | 1. | Brett Gardner LF |
| Carl Crawford LF | 2. | Curtis Granderson CF |
| Kevin Youkilis 3B | 3. | Robinson Cano 2B |
| Adrian Gonzalez 1B | 4. | Alex Rodriguez 3B |
| David Ortiz DH | 5. | Mark Teixeira 1B |
| J.D. Drew RF | 6. | Jorge Posada DH |
| Jed Lowrie SS | 7. | Derek Jeter SS |
| Jarrod Saltalamacchia C | 8. | Nick Swisher RF |
| Jacoby Ellsbury CF | 9. | Russell Martin C |
Click through the jump for my reasoning on these projections and to find out which one I believe is better.
From USA Today’s Stephen Borelli:
Does Brian Cashman believe his current rotation is championship worthy?
“I think so,” the GM said. “I think A.J. Burnett's going to turn it around for us. I don't think you're going to see him have another year like that.”
Cashman goes on to not supply any supporting evidence of that idea, despite hiring new pitching coach Larry Rothschild almost a month ago.
The 2009 World Series MVP for the Yankees signed a one-year, $4.25 million contract with the Oakland A’s today, according to Buster Olney.
Hideki Matsui, 36, posted a solid offensive year for the Angels this past season, hitting .274 with 21 homers and 84 RBIs. He played 119 games at DH and 18 in left field.
I think Godzilla likes the west coast; it’s closer to home.
The Yankees have “responded” to the Phillies acquiring Cliff Lee, as they’ve agreed to a deal with (soon-to-be) 28-year-old free agent catcher Russell Martin. The contract is unknown at this time, but if I had to guess I’d say something like one year, $5.5 million (purely a guess).
According to multiple sources, Cliff Lee is returning to the Phillies. Lee rejected a seven-year, $150 million deal from the Yankees to sign with the Phillies for five years, $100 million (approximately).
This gives the Phillies one of the best rotations I’ve ever seen on paper.
Via Fox’s Ken Rosenthal:
The Phillies are still bidding for free-agent left-hander Cliff Lee, according to a source with direct knowledge of the negotiations.
However, Rosenthal goes on to say the Phillies’ assistant GM said earlier this month “that ship has sailed” in regards to the hunt for Lee. And here is what their GM had to say on the matter:
“If I were in or out, I wouldn’t be commenting at all, on or off the record,” Phillies GM Ruben Amaro said, citing his personal policy on free agents.
Hmm.
UPDATE: Full interview with Quinnipiac head coach Dan Gooley on Mariano Jr.
I’ve been blogging for almost two years now. Some of you may not know it, but I’m also a college student.
It’s that time of year, folks. Finals week.
We don’t know exactly how much it’s worth, but we know the deal is done.
UPDATE: Now we do.
Derek Jeter has agreed to return to the Yankees for three years with a fourth-year vesting option.
Jeter’s new contract is worth between $45-51 million, or $15-17 million per season.
The Yankees are in contact with outfielder Carl Crawford and attempted to trade for catcher Russell Martin yesterday.
Martin represents a rare breed of catchers who can actually run. Yes, I mean steal bases — he’s averaged more than 12 per season in the big leagues. He is 27 years old, turning 28 in February, and ranks as a solid catcher. He threw out 39 percent of would-be base stealers last year, while the major league average is 27 percent. I could see a Martin-Jesus Montero combination at catcher in 2011.
As for Crawford, I think he is a great, great player but just not a fit for the Yankees. Here’s why.
My poll results this week strongly favored Mariano Rivera as the most important free agent to the Yankees’ success next year. After hearing the report last night that he’ll re-sign with the Yankees, I thought it was time to re-launch the poll sans Rivera.
So who is it gonna be now? Who is most important free agent to the Yankees’ success next year among these three stars: Derek Jeter, Andy Pettitte or Cliff Lee?
Mariano Rivera is expected to sign a two-year, $30 million deal with the Yankees by Friday night, according to the Daily News.
No surprise he’s back with the Yankees, but it’s just one less thing to worry about now that both parties have reached an agreement.
Mitre posted a 3.33 ERA last year in 54 innings, striking out 29 batters and walking 16. I don’t mind having him in the back of the bullpen.
Photo credit
Alfredo Aceves underwent surgery yesterday to “repair a fractured left clavicale sustained in a bicycle-riding accident in Mexico,” according to the Daily News. Aceves may miss the start of spring training.
Brett Gardner will undergo surgery on Tuesday for “right wrist tendinitis.” He’ll be recovered before spring training.
These surgeries are worth noting, as we often see players reinjure parts of their bodies during the season.
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