hes still a free agent as far as i know. not sure if hell be ready for ST with that tommy johns recovery. last i heard he will miss some time this upcoming season.
Yankees not interested in Bay (Source) According to a Yankees source, the club has no interest in signing Bay to a long-term deal, not wanting to commit more than $60 million to another outfielder. The Yankees, like the Red Sox, don’t believe that Bay will be a productive outfielder for the next four years, and they have no plans to commit big dollars to a player that will likely be a designated hitter before the contract is finished. They appear to be interested in Capps though... (Source) Since Capps' surprising release Saturday that suddenly cast him into free agency, no fewer than a dozen suitors have made contact with his agent, Paul Kinzer, including the New York Yankees, Texas Rangers, Colorado Rockies, Florida Marlins, Washington Nationals, St. Louis Cardinals, Baltimore Orioles, Chicago Cubs and Arizona Diamondbacks. Kinzer called the interest "enormous," and was emboldened enough to have told suitors Capps would prefer a multiyear deal and that having a chance to close will play "a major role" in his decision. Kinzer and the Pirates had discussed only a one-year term. Yanks watch Aroldis Chapman throw (Source) On Tuesday morning at the Baseball USA complex, the left-hander tossed two separate five-minute side sessions, throwing mostly in the 92-93 mph range and topping out at 96 mph. Chapman, 21, also threw his slider and change-up. Team representatives who attended included Houston Astros general manager Ed Wade, Los Angeles Angels scouting director Eddie Bane, Florida Marlins vice president of player development Jim Fleming, Pittsburgh Pirates international scouting director Rene Gayo, and Baltimore Orioles international scouting director John Stockstill, according to the source. The Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees, who are expected to be heavy bidders for Chapman, each had one area scout in attendance. Yankees "very interested" in Sheets (Source 1, Source 2) 1: Yankees "very interested" in Sheets, but believe he is in no rush to sign. 2: Sheets, whose agent met with the Rangers on Tuesday, is apparently looking for money similar to what he made his last season in the majors -- 2008, which was $12 million.
Hey, Eeyore, given your track record, can you explain why anyone should even begin to think about the possibility of taking your opinions remotely seriously?
Yes, I was in favor of Sheets last year too. No one is giving Sheets $12M. He didn't pitch last year. I say work something out with him. If it doesn't work out, whatever. The potential upside is worth a moderate risk, I think. I'd wouldn't mind bringing in Bay, just to tweak the Sox, but he's not really necessary. I'm comfortable with Melky in LF, with Damon getting some time out there to help spell the OF. I'm confident Damon will be back. As for Matsui, who cares? He's a DH. Enough with the single-dimensional players. I thank him for everything he did in pinstripes, and I wish him well in his future (except where it affects the Yankees) and that's it. He left because there was a miniscule chance he was being re-signed. It was time for he and the Yankees to move on. I'd rather not go with Nick Johnson. Getting Holliday would be pretty damned nice though.
I remember a significant amount of Sheets chatter last off-season. I get the feeling they really want him, especially when it will cost far less than Lackey or halladay would've.
Given the contracts each would require and the positional needs of the team, I think I'd prefer Johnson. You could probably get Johnson for 2-3 a year commitment at the most. The last thing the Yanks need is another 8-year contract to a guy on the wrong side of 30. And Melky can play an adequate LF, with sub-par offense. If the Yanks go after Holliday, they're still gonna need a DH.
I don't understand why people are bitching about the "sup-par offense" in LF with Melky... we have far and away above average offense in CF now, and Melky will be hitting 9th in the lineup
My track record has been perfect..why not look at your own? You were chipping about Kennedy, Hughes and Chamberlain this time last year. Wait...I wouldn't be surprised if you aren't still. Your track record speaks for itself.
:rofl2::rofl: :rofl2::rofl: :rofl2: Yes, it does. It's one of moderate predictions and lacks ridiculous claims like the ones about how Sabathia sucks and how Girardi and Cashman are buffoons. One World Series title later, you're still railing against the team. *yawn* And, what, you've given up on Hughes? Because he was so awful last year? Joba looked bad (or inconsistent at best) last year... ever since his injury, really. I'm not ready to write him off completely, though. Only an idiot writes off a 24 year old pitcher.
I hear you Cappy regarding Johnson vs. Holliday. Honestly, I don't think we need Holliday. Getting him is another of those "Just because they're the Yankees" things that I get a good laugh at every year when everyone else is crying about it. Honestly, I like the outfield configuration of Melky, Granderson, Swisher (even with my complaints about Swish and the Granderson trade.) That's a very nice defensive unit, and each can hit better than their position in the lineup. Hard to complain about that at all. I'm all for that outfield and bringing back Damon to be the regular DH and part-time OF help. Then there's Gardner and possibly Pena (and Hoffman now too.) I don't see the outfield as anything we really need to consider this year. I'd just throw some cash at Sheets (though not $12M, which is completely unjustified.) Maybe look around for a diamond in the rough for the pen. Otherwise, it's pretty hard to improve the team that just won the title.
I'm not railing about the team that won the series. I am railing about what is left of it now. The Yankees are much worse than the team they fielded in the beginning of November and the Sox are much better. The Sox are still not done and as usual Cashman has his finger up his ass. As is always the case, the Steinbrenners will have to step in and make the deals that need to be made. Why they even have a buffoon like Cashman as a GM is beyond everybody that pays attention.
The current Yankees are "much worse" than the 2009 team? Assuming that they resign Damon (and I assume they will) they are essentially the same roster with Granderson instead of Matsui. And the offseason is far from over. Presumably "as usual" doesn't include last offseason, when Cashman went out and signed the 3 best players on the market. And won the World Series. Yes, because the Steinbrenners stepping in and making deals got the Yankees so far in the early part of this decade. ...what is wrong with you?
Damon wants $13 million a year, his salary on his recently expired contract, and has indicated to the Yankees, through a conduit, that he doesn't even want them making an offer if they're going to propose less. http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4748830 So I won't blame them for saying fuck off to him. Problem is they still have no left fielder (they don't want Cabrerra, that's obvious) and they don't have a DH and there is nobody left in FA that they would want who isn't a bum.
I'm still under the assumption that Damon is absolutely coming back to the Yankees. And despite what Don thinks, there are still plenty of LF and DH alternatives on the market.
great news, in my opinion at least... Yankees talk to Johnson about vacant DH role (Source) The Yankees and Nick Johnson are talking about the sweet-swinging lefty and on-base machine replacing Hideki Matsui as the World Champions’ DH on a one-year deal. If a deal is completed, it would be an indication the Yankees will part with Johnny Damon, whom they view at least as a part-time DH and dont want him for more than two years and $20 million. The Post reported Tuesday that isources say Damon isnt looking to take a pay cut from the $13 million he made last year. Agent Scott Boras is hunting for a three- or four-year deal. “We have had dialogue, things are moving forward," Johnson's agent Rex Gary said of the talks with his client, a former Yankees first baseman. “Something could happen to speed things up but it’s hard to predict." Seattle is interested in the 31-year-old to play first base but the allure of returning to the Yankees may be the difference for Johnson. With Matsui an Angel and Johnny Damon looking outside The Bronx for work, the Yankees’ DH spot is open. GM Brian Cashman talked recently of promoting Juan Miranda, a left-handed hitter, from Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (Triple-A) but Johnson has far more experience. Johnson wouldn’t need to sit against lefties; he is a career .292 hitter against them, .266 versus right-handers. Johnson, a career .273 hitter with a career on-base percentage of .402 and an above-average fielder, would have to forget about playing first base with switch-hitter Mark Teixeira entrenched there. Johnson played with the Nationals and Marlins last season and batted .291 with eight homers and 62 RBIs in 133 games; he had an on-base percentage of .426. "He can still hit," an NL talent evaluator said of Johnson, who made $5.5 million last season, the final leg of a three-year $16.5 million deal. "He is an on-base percentage guy who will hit some homers in Yankee Stadium." Another scout compared Johnson to Damon. "He will hit like Damon, .280 to .300 with some power and will drive in runs," the scout said. Considering Johnson’s injury history, any deal likely would have incentives for plate appearances. As a Yankee, he missed the entire 2000 season with a right-hand injury. He was limited to 38 games in 2008 with the Nationals due to a right-wrist problem. A fractured right femur late in the 2006 season cost Johnson all of 2007. A lumbar strain and a fractured right cheekbone limited him to 73 games in 2004 as an Expo. As a Yankee in 2003 he missed 61 games due to a stress fracture in his right hand. Johnson, a third-round pick of the Yankees in the 1996 draft, was dealt to the Expos with Juan Rivera and Randy Choate in December 2003 for Javier Vazquez. how good would he look in this lineup? Derek Jeter, SS (R) Nick Johnson, DH (L) Mark Teixeira, 1B (S) Alex Rodriguez, 3B (R) Curtis Granderson, CF (R) Jorge Posada, C (S) Robinson Cano, 2B (L) Nick Swisher, RF (S) Melky Cabrera, LF (S)
I would probably hit Granderson in the two hole rather than Johnson. Just for the speed. Or at least Swisher if you want to go for the OBP (to at least get better speed.) Jeter SS Granderson CF Teixeira 1B ARod 3B Posada C Johnson DH Cano 2B Swisher RF Cabrera LF And if Damon is seriously going to stomp his feet and say "Don't call unless you're ready to give me 4 years, 52 million" then I hope Cashman sends him a Post-it note with the words "Please kindly fuck yourself" scrawled on it. I like Damon, and I'd love to bring him back as a DH and part time LF, but come on Johnny. You definitely don't have 4 years left on those legs. Miranda's not a bad option either. I'd like to see what he could do at this level over the course of a season.
