Ok, Championship #27 in the books. Yanks FO target is to take the Payroll down from $201M to $186M. Off the books comes Damon, Matsui, Pettitte, Molina, and others. Who knows who is signed to replace, or if any come back at discount. But to start the new campaign the first official move is this.... So let the Winter Meetings and Hot Stove begin.......in search of 28!!!
New York post reporting today a 3 team deal has the Yankees acquiring Curtis Granderson, Tigers acquire Austin Jackson & Phil Coke, Diamondbacks acquiring Ian Kennedy with minor leaguers scaterred around too.
Yeah that trade isn't happening way too many names being moved to a lot of different places, and a lot of the moving places make zero sense, plus Ian Kennedy and Phil Coke are being mentioned? Sure, sounds too made up with the Yankees giving up nothing, while Arizona has to give up Max Scherzer (who's probably the best player/most upside) in the deal for Edwin Jackson and Kennedy.
Will be interesting to see what all shakes out during the Winter Meetings....posted the details of this rumor in the MLB HOT STOVE THREAD....
Jon Heyman of SI.com reports that the Yankees, Tigers and Diamondbacks have reached an agreement on a three-way trade. Heyman writes that assuming medicals check out, the trade is a go. Curtis Granderson will head to New York while Edwin Jackson and Ian Kennedy go to Arizona and Max Scherzer, Daniel Schlereth, Austin Jackson and Phil Coke would land in Detroit. Stay tuned for confirmation. ---------------------------------------------- I like it....solid CF.......I even see his .avg being better in this lineup and solid leadoff with pop. Good young replacement for Damon. Giving up the Arms, and guy like Jackson is gamble, but cant argue with the return and the need it fills. But I will take the known over the un-known 99 out of 100 in MLB reality (not fantasy..hahahaaha). I say props to Cashman!!!!
Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com reports that the Yankees have acquired OF Curtis Granderson as part of a three-team blockbuster deal with the Tigers and Diamondbacks. The Yanks did really well here, snagging the 28-year-old Granderson for Ian Kennedy, Austin Jackson and Phil Coke. It's a small price to pay for a player of Granderson's talent and personality. As part of the three-way deal, Detroit will receive right-handers Max Scherzer and Daniel Schlereth from Arizona and Coke and Jackson from the Yanks. The D'Backs, meanwhile, receive a questionable return in Edwin Jackson from the Tigers and Kennedy from the Yanks. Granderson can be used in either left or center field in New York, giving general manager Brian Cashman some flexibility in regards to Johnny Damon and Hideki Matsui, who are now likely on the outs. It's safe to say the Tigers now have the payroll flexibility they wanted while securing a tremendous haul of young players -------------------------------------------- Heck that's even better.....really like what Cashman is doing....and if the Payroll drops to $186M.....major kudos!!!!
Shocked that this deal was actually true, seemed like it was made up considering the Yankees were giving up Ian Kennedy who I wasn't aware was still alive and Phil Coke who's a dime a dozen. Kudos to them for the move. Arizona did the worst out of it, I mean Edwin Jackson pitched well in the 1st half and then came crashing down and they give up a better pitcher in Scherzer. They must be concerned about his long term health. The Tigers did very well even if they were selling low on Granderson. Opinions on Austin Jackson varied a lot but him and Scherzer are obviously the keys to the deal for them. Anyway Granderson is an obvious upgrade over Melky/Gardner in CF hitting wise (Gardner is probably the better defender) but is a tad bit overrated. He is basically an automatic out vs. LHP but he should continue to hit 30 plus HRs in the new Yankee Stadium. But he's never shown the ability to consistently get on base the way a lead off hitter should and his defense in CFer isn't the greatest.
I think this sets up for Melky being moved.... Sure, Granderson has his D-moments (Highlights & Lowlights) but I am convinced at 28 his future is bright especially as he learns to work counts (something he will be schooled on this with the Yanks approach) and he will improve on his approch vs. Lefty's.....his OBP an SLG will go up....I can easily see it with this park and lineup. His OPS will rise...and he will run. @ 28 he has years to be a key component. Tex last year, now this....happy with D improvement (and that means Damon's arm out of left too ) And as far as covering the Stadiums Centerfield......I think he will shine more than enough times to be happy this trade happened for what we gave up! And I am a fan of A. Jackson, but he is still unknown...same as Kennedy, and Coke is dime a dozen as you say.
What a friggen disaster. What the hell is Arizona thinking? They somehow manage to become less talented and yet, pay more money for that privilege. Granderson can't hit lefties at all, but who cares, he destroys RHP at a .900+ OPS clip. Also, he's going to hit 40 bombs in that little league park in the Bronx next year. Add him to what was already the best offense in all of baseball and the rest of the AL East has a major freakin' problem.
I am liking this more and more as Cashman was able to retain Mike Dunn (L) from being part of the mix. Genius move. Granderson's contract is also manageable, as he's due $5.5 million next year, $8.25 million in 2011, $10 million in 2012 and then $13 million or a $2 million buyout in 2013.
I bet they will keep Melky as a 4th OFer. About Granderson though, he has never shown the ability to get on base in the minor or major league levels, just because he's sent to the Yankees doesn't mean he'll magically improve his OBP, I'm sure it will be better than it was in 2009 but I don't think the jump will be higher than .370ish range, most likely around his career OBP. Granderson, though, is simply terrible vs. LHP and has been his whole career. At age 28 it's very unlikely he'll improve that to actually make him serviceble vs. LHP and actually platooning him with a RHH that kills lefties (like a Reed Johnson who's a FA) might not be a terrible idea for the Yankees. But again if I'm Cashman I'd make the deal too, even if Austin Jackson becomes a superstar in a few years(which a lot of scouts say won't happen) because the Yankees are in a win now mood and Granderson helps them now obviously. And I'm sure the Yankee clubhouse will be a lot happier with Granderson in there (who seems like a good guy) and shipping out Kennedy (who was known as a big know it all jerk).
The only thing I can think of is that Arizona is worried about Scherzer's ability to stay healthy but even so, even if they are worried about him I'm sure they could have gotten something better than Kennedy and Edwin Jackson.
Good move by the Yankees, we sold high on Jackson, and im not too upset seeing Kennedy go, out of Hughes-Kennedy and Joba i liked him the least. Also a cut in pay roll would be nice!
Wow it looked like Detroit was really high on Cervelli to be in the trade but the Yankees said no way. They must really like him even with their top notch catching prospects.
He has value defensively for either OF spot (over Swisher and Nady)...Gardner too is option (and each year it seems an injury occurs where a reliable 5th OF has unexpected value) if you are simply talking late inning replacement, pinch running, etc. Melky wearing pinstripes in 2010, will depend on a "LF" signing if any occurs...but if Granderson doesnt improve vs. Lefty's then I could see Melky being the platoon.
Several names were held back from Cashman, and as much as he dislikes moving top prospects, I am sure green-lighting Kennedy and Jackson was hard in its own right. Now, with Molina on the FA market for now, Cervelli is our backup, and how much he plays into full time depends on Posada....remember Molina was AJ's personal catcher over Posada so not sure who will replace that -Posada needs a day off (2 per week with normal off day really is how Girardi wants it). I like Cervelli, but to early to say I love him and if he can be full time guy...he has flare and grit and I like that.
Yankees re-signed LHP Andy Pettitte to a one-year, $11.75 million contract. The price is certainly above market value, but the Yankees feel confident he can replicate or even top his stat line from this past season. The 37-year-old Pettitte went 14-8 in 2009 with a 4.16 ERA and 1.38 WHIP in 32 starts. He'll serve as New York's No. 3 starter in 2010. Sure seems like a reward contract...but would have preferred a contract in the 7.5M range and incentives to get over 10M. That said, I love AP. glad he is back for 13th year in pinstripes if that makes him happy I am happy. Just loved the $5.5M plus $5M incentive contract approach last year....!!!
Yankees are shopping the No. 1 pick in Thursday's Rule 5 draft. They just obtained that pick this week in Brian Bruney trade. Aneury Rodriguez is viewed as "prize of Rule 5" but I can see why they would rather trade the pick. http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?pos=P&sid=milb&t=p_pbp&pid=444553
I may hate the Yankees but I'm not going to hate on them just for the sake of it. When a guy has a career line of .255/.325/.355 vs. LHP I think it's safe to say he's not very good against them.
Yanks lose 2 gain 1 in Rule 5 Draft NY Yankees had 2 Minor League arms selected away in the Rule 5 draft: LHP Zachary Kroenke by AZ RHP Kanekoa Texeira by Seattle To complete the Brian Bruney traded, the Washington Nationals used the #1 claim to select OF Jamie Hoffman from LA Dodgers and ship him to NY. Like with all Rule 5 picks, they must remain on the new teams active roster or be offered back to original team for $25,000. http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20091210&content_id=7792212&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb Full list of teams: http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/minorleagues/rule_5.jsp
Arod and Kate Hudson broke up!!!!!!!!! Apparently Arod finally got around to seeing some of Hudson's movies. You have to wonder how this will effect Arod this season or the Yankee team in general. Does she still get a WS ring? Yes I'm being completely not serious here.
Joel Sherman of the New York Post has confirmed that the Yankees have acquired Javier Vazquez and LHP Boone Logan from the Braves for outfielder Melky Cabrera, LHP Mike Dunn and RHP Arodys Vizcaino. The deal is basically complete, and only pending physicals from all five players involved. Vizcaino, 19, manged a 2.13 ERA in 10 starts (42 1/3 innings) at the Single-A level this year and boasts major upside. Dunn is also a quality young hurler and Cabrera fills a hole for Atlanta, but the Yankees just landed a top-line starter and now have the opportunity to significantly improve their club with a hard-hitting free agent outfielder like Matt Holliday or Jason Bay, or an even better fit Mark DeRosa. JV better step it up and turn into a trustworthy AL arm....cause last time around it didnt end pretty at all. Vazquez spent 2004 with the Yankees, going 14-10 and making his only All-Star team. His first stint in New York ended miserably, when he relieved Kevin Brown trailing 2-0 in Game 7 of the AL championship series against Boston and allowed a first-pitch grand slam to Damon. His ERA is a half-run higher than in the NL over his career, which started with Montreal and includes stints with the Yankees, White Sox, D-Backs and Braves. His higher ERA in the AL seems to be a function of doing business against the DH, because his ratios (hits per nine and strikeouts per nine) are identical in each league. Vazquez will give up a lot of homers in Yankee Stadium. All of that said, JV is huge high-character clubhouse guy, same as Granderson, so at least we arent messing with that mojo on these moves. We might even be improving it...which goes a long long way with the likes of Mariano and Jeter as the constant ROCKS! Melky, thanks for the memories, but in my eyes it was expected the day Granderson was signed. Giving up a 4th OF for a quality top arm that will be a 3rd or 4th in this rotation is always a smart move. Cashman is on his game this offseason.
http://www.baseballamerica.com/toda...rganization-top-10-prospects/2010/269277.html Top 10 Prospects: 1.Jesus Montero, c 2.Austin Romine, c 3.Arodys Vizcaino, rhp (traded to ATL) 4.Slade Heathcott, of 5.Zach McAllister, rhp 6.Manny Banuelos, lhp 7.Gary Sanchez, c 8.J.R. Murphy, c 9.Jeremy Bleich, lhp 10.Andrew Brackman, rhp
http://nomaas.org/?p=846 NoMaas was founded in May 2005 to protest the tremendous dysfunction that existed in the Yankees' organization. When Brian Cashman's contract expired at the end of the 2005 season, we strongly campaigned for him to return because he was one of the only sane voices in the Bronx/Tampa soap opera. Check out some of the statements he made during the 2005 season: Amazing to read those again, isn't it? Look at the emphasis he placed on youth. And look at the results since he re-signed and was handed "full authority." Average age of Yankee pitchers 2005: 34.2 2006: 32.5 2007: 31.4 2008: 30.6 2009: 29.3 (which happens to be the average age of pitchers on the '96 team) Average age of Yankee hitters 2005: 32.2 2006: 30.8 2007: 30.6 2008: 31.3 2009: 30.5 This is a great trend. Cashman earned much respect!
This may make less folks be overconcerned over trading away Vizcaino to ATL http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp...news_nyy&fext=.jsp&c_id=nyy&partnerId=rss_nyy Teen Ramirez wins MiLBY as top starter 19-year-old Yankees prospect dominant in debut season By going 6-0 with a 1.41 ERA in the Gulf Coast League, Jose was an easy choice for the MiLBY as Short-Season Starting Pitcher of the Year. At 19, Ramirez finished eighth in the league in ERA and eighth in strikeouts with 53. What set him apart was the .159 batting average-against and the fact he walked just 16 over his 61 innings. He led all pitchers who qualified in BAA and his 7.23 base-runners/9 IP ratio was also the lowest on the Rookie-level circut. Yanks have done a bang up job with their scouting, draft, and ML system for depth and talent.
small trade news...MiLB guys... The Yankees have acquired outfielder Greg Golson from the Rangers for infielder Mitchell Hilligoss in a swap of 24-year-old minor leaguers. Texas also got between $15,000 and $20,000 cash in Tuesday's trade. Golson played one game in the majors last year. He was designated for assignment last week when Texas signed infielder Khalil Greene. Hilligoss hit .233 in 51 games for Class A Tampa last season and missed action because of a broke right hand. He is a two-time MVP in minor league All-Star games and had a 38-game hitting streak in 2007.
http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20100127&content_id=7974450&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb Girardi open to Granderson in left field Yanks skipper plans to assess situation in Spring Training Yup, I still think a right handed OF bat would be solid additiion that remains for hot-stove needs...but willing to see about Gardner over Damon in OF, and see how the lineup shakes out from 1-9. this is the best part of the article....
Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports that the Yankees have signed outfielder Randy Winn to a one-year contract at around $2 million. 35yr old switch hitter with reducing skillset....OF depth and injury insurance I suspect. If he has to start full-time, it could be ugly. This should effectively close the book on the possibility of Johnny Damon returning to the Bronx, though time will tell if it was the right decision. Winn, 35, batted just .262/.318/.353 with two home runs and 51 RBI with the Giants last season and completely collapsed against left-handed pitching, batting just .154 in 120 at-bats. Atleast over his career his traditional hits Lefty's well....hopefully last year is the aberation, but who knows. Hey, at least he's a tremendous defensive upgrade. Also, can the Stadium, and the Yankees lineup which affords protection, add some value over SF's pitchers park and that lineup??? Maybe, but enough? Defense is better with the offseason adds/moves - rotation is deeper if Vazq is your #3/#4, Pettite is #4/#3 and bullpen is solid no doubt, but right now from the bats, remove Matsui and Damon and their production, and try to replace that Offensive production with Granderson, Gardner/Winn, and Nick Johnson ~ jury is out on that one!
Id still be open to bringing Damon back,he's still hanging on the vine right now,so his value just plummeted,and I really am unimpressed with our OF depth.
2 out of our 3 back up in the outfield right now,one has 0 career major league hits and the other hit .178 last year
Joe Girardi had his annual beginning-of-spring-training news conference yesterday. Marc Carig of the Star Ledger was there. The highlights: Nick Johnson and Curtis Granderson are the top candidates for the second slot in the order. I'd probably just plug Johnson and his uber-OBP into that slot, but I assume that Girardi is at least a minor devotee to the "you can't clog the basepaths" school of thought. My guess is that Granderson is there against right-handers and Johnson there against lefties. Girardi said he's not going to go crazy pitting Hughes against Joba from the beginning of camp. Rather, he's going to let them ease into things. Ultimately he wants to make his choice for the fifth starter's slot decided by March 25th, but if it isn't it isn't. I get the feeling that absent one of them simply throwing bullets in an unprecedented fashion, each of them are going to see some time starting this season. Whatever the case, I'm having a hard time getting excited about this competition. I want Joba to get a clear shot because I think he has more upside, but they're both good pitchers and these things have a way of sorting themselves out. Granderson and Gardner will both get looks in center and left and Girardi may shift Granderson back and forth during the season. Based on how many "Granderson is open to playing left field" stories we've seen in the last week, however, one gets the sense that the decision has already been made. Girardi says it may turn on who can play left better. Which the cynical side of me sees as a way of saying that Granderson "won" the LF job instead of saying he was moved off of CF. Not that Granderson seems like the kind of guy whose ego needed tended or anything. Girardi is not concerned about the team growing complacent after winning the World Championship. I realize no one ever knows what goes on in someone's head, but can anyone point to a team that truly did grow complacent after winning a championship? These guys are all pros and work hard. Winning a championship is really, really difficult. Things happen. "Complacency" always strikes me as a post-hoc rationalization for why a team fails to repeat. OK, maybe the 1979 Pirates if you count doing mountains of cocaine "complacency" but we're in a very different era now. Everyone's in camp more than a week before they have to be. Most guys work their tails off. Girardi is happy that Alex Rodriguez can just focus on baseball and be a leader now. What a difference a year makes. Remember when people were saying that the Yankees would be better off with Colby Rasmus at third as opposed to "A-Fraud?" Then again, lets not forget the "what have you done for me lately - "NY/Pro Sports" mentality!"
I agree with this that signing Chan Ho Park for just $1.2 million is a very good deal for the Yankees. He has a 3.29 ERA and 101/44 K/BB ratio in 120 innings as a reliever over the past two seasons and at the very least can be a good second-tier setup man behind either Phil Hughes or Joba Chamberlain. Park was available at such a discount because earlier this offseason he turned down a one-year deal worth $3.25 million to re-sign with the Phillies, who then used that money on Danys Baez instead. Once returning to Philadelphia was no longer an option Park was apparently left to choose between lesser offers from the Cubs and Nationals, until his asking price dropped enough that the Yankees swooped in. Here's Park to explain his decision: Park has earned approximately $85 million in salary during his 16-season career, so the Nationals probably never had a chance.
