Author Archive

MLB Free Agents 2012: New York Yankees Should Pass on C.J. Wilson This Winter

For the second year in a row, the New York Yankees’ main focus in the offseason will be starting pitching.

There’s a good chance that Bartolo Colon and Freddy Garcia won’t be back with the team.

Phil Hughes still can’t be depended on.

A.J. Burnett could be shopped around this winter in a trade.

And CC Sabathia could opt out of his contract, although many expect the Yankees to re-sign him to another long-term deal.

There has been a lot of speculation as to whether the Yankees will show interest and pursue Texas Ranger left-hander C.J. Wilson.

Wilson finished 2011 with a 16-7 record, a 2.94 ERA with 206 strikeouts in 223.1 innings.

A lot of the stories done here on Bleacher Report have Wilson’s name featured as a guy the Yankees will definitely pursue. And many of you have advocated that the Yankees should indeed go out and sign the Rangers star.

I am not one of them. Not even close.

Why shouldn’t the Yankees make a strong push for the lefty? I’ll tell you why.

Begin Slideshow


New York Yankees: Bombers Pass on Ubaldo Jimenez as Indians Acquire Ace

Going into Satuday, just 24 hours until the July 31 trade deadline, we all wondered if the Yankees would make the move to get Ubaldo Jimenez from the Colorado Rockies.

Turns out, the Yankees decided it was best to pass up on the Rockies ace and let another team take their chances on him.

According to Jayson Stark of ESPN, the Cleveland Indians will acquire Jimenez in exchange for pitchers Drew Pomeranz and Alex White, first basemen Matt McBride and outfielder Joe Gardner.

Jimenez was on the mound pitching for the Rockies Saturday night but was pulled after the first inning when the deal with Cleveland was finalized.

When the rumors of Jimenez being on the block first started, it was reported that the Rockies wanted catcher Jesus Montero and pitchers Manny Banuelos, Dellin Betances and Ivan Nova, a deal the Yankees refused to take any part of.

The Rockies reportedly dropped their demand of Banuelos out of the package, but the Yankees were still extremely hesitant to make that deal for Jimenez.

According to Joel Sherman of the New York Post, the Yankees asked Colorado if they could give Jimenez a physical if a deal was about to happen. The Rockies said no, which led to the Yankees passing.

If the Rockies weren’t being honest and open with Jimenez and his health, then the Yankees had to pass on Jimenez.

With less than 24 hours to go, it still leaves the Yankees searching for answers.

Hiroki Kuroda of the Los Angeles Dodgers will not waive his no-trade clause and will stay with the Dodgers.

Rich Harden of the Oakland A’s is on the verge of being dealt to the Red Sox.

The Yankees also called on Francisco Liriano again, in which they were told that the lefty was not available.

Erik Bedard of the Seattle Mariners absolutely stunk in his return off the DL against the Tampa Bay Rays, as he was not able to get through two innings.

The options on the trade market are almost gone.

Unless the Yankees and GM Brian Cashman waves his magic wand and pulls out a deal from who knows where, it looks like the Yankees might be missing out on the chance to add a starting pitcher.

Less than 24 hours to go.

The clock is ticking on Cashman.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com


New York Yankees: Will This Be the Last Year for Brian Cashman as the GM?

In February of 1998, a 31-year-old former intern of the organization took over as the Senior Vice President and General Manager of the New York Yankees.

Since then, Brian Cashman has been the man in charge of the Yankees, holding one of the longest current tenures of GMs in the sport today.

On Saturday, Buster Olney of ESPN hinted in his blog that this may in fact be the final year Cashman could be with the team.

Cashman is in the final year of a three-year deal he signed back in September of 2008.

Some have wondered before the season if Cashman was in fact fed up and tired of the organization, something that came up after the Yankees upper management vetoed Cashman and went ahead to sign Rafael Soriano to a three-year deal.

Cashman may have gotten that one right, considering Soriano has been out on the disabled list since the end of May and at the time, his ERA was over five.

Soriano was not the only player that Cashman was against bringing in and feuded with Yankees management over.

Before the 2004 season, Cashman could have brought in Vladimir Guerrero, who was 29 at the time and recovering from injuries in the 2003 season, which made a couple of teams skeptical about bringing him in.

Instead, the Yankees signed Gary Sheffield, 35 at the time, to a three-year deal for $39 million. Sheffield was known for having a bad attitude and was not the most well-liked person in baseball. But because at the time he still had the superstar name and quality, that made George Steinbrenner personally negotiate with Sheffield and ignore Cashman’s request to go for Guerrero.

Short-term, Sheffield was a very good player, up until he got hurt in 2006. Sheffield missed the most of the 2006 season with a severe wrist injury, which lead to the Yankees trading for Bobby Abreu that summer.

They tried Sheffield out at first base, which he was not for. He also thought he was better than Abreu and was getting to be very disgruntled in the Yankee clubhouse, which lead to the Yankees trading Sheffield to the Detroit Tigers before 2007.

Long-term, Guerrero would have been the smarter choice over Sheffield.

Cashman was also against the Yankees signing Tony Womack before the 2005 season.

These were some of the things that nearly drove Cashman out of the job after the 2005 season. The Yankees upper management were going over Cashman’s head and he nearly walked away from the organization he had been a part of since 1986.

The Washington Nationals were reportedly rumored to be interested in hiring Cashman to be their GM, but Cashman was promised full autonomy from the Yankees and from George Steinbrenner.

Cashman was even quoted to saying, “I want to run this team and not have to wake up one day to see we signed Tony Womack without my knowing.”

Shows how much Cashman really wanted Womack, huh?

In 2005, Womack hit .249 with no homers, 15 RBI and only stole 27 bases. He started out as a second basement, but then was moved to the outfield after the Yankees promoted Robinson Cano in May of 2005.

Cashman’s contract ran out again after the 2008 season, but he was still intent to build a championship team, so he re-signed for another three years.

The next year, the Yankees brought in CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, Mark Teixeira, and Nick Swisher and won the 2009 World Series.

The World Series was the fourth championship under Cashman’s watch.

And now here we are, another three years later, with the GM’s contract up and the strong possibility of him moving on.

When Olney talked to rival executives around the league, they got the feeling that Cashman was done with the Yankees and was ready to move on.

Cashman on Friday said he wasn’t going to talk negotiations during the season and didn’t want to discuss his future.

To me, that sounds like someone trying to get around answering it and saying how he feels.

Unless something drastic happens or he has a major change of heart, I think 2011 could in fact be the final year for Cashman.

Mike Axisa of River Ave. Blues gave 50-50 odds on Cashman returning.

I’m not even going that high. I say 20-80 on him staying.

After 14 seasons, 10 division titles and four World Series championships, Cashman has had a very good run.

It could be that he is burnt out, or he just wants out of New York.

If it’s time off from baseball and to get away from things, you can understand. We have all gotten stressed out from our jobs and our bosses. I’m sure working for George Steinbrenner couldn’t have been the most pleasant at times.

But, if he wants out of New York, given Cashman’s resume, I’m sure he’d have no hard time finding another job as a GM in baseball.

This probably won’t be a major issue for the Yankees until the end of October or early November once the season is over.

If Cashman decides to walk, finding their next GM will be an interesting subject come the winter time.

So I will leave it up to you the Bleacher Report community to debate and talk about. Is this it for Cashman after 2011?

Only time will tell. Stay tuned.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com


MLB Rumors: Revisiting the Carlos Zambrano to the New York Yankees Rumors Again

On Friday, we saw the Yankees and Cubs begin their three-game series from Wrigley Field.

Doug Davis out-pitched Freddy Garcia, and the Cubs won the first game 3-1.

Before the game, there were a lot of rumors floating around about the Yankees having major interest in a certain Cubs pitcher.

The pitcher is one the Yankees have been linked to several times before, most notably this past winter after they lost out on the Cliff Lee sweepstakes.

According to Bruce Levine of ESPN, that pitcher the Yankees are linked to again is Cubs ace Carlos Zambrano.

The Yankees didn’t feel the need to make that type of trade for Zambrano, as they settled on signing Garcia and Bartolo Colon, plus letting Ivan Nova develop.

Garcia has been up and down for the Yankees, but he’s given them innings and depth.

Nova has been the same as Garcia. He too has given the Yankees innings and is learning how to pitch at the big league level.

Colon was doing so well, revitalizing his career in pinstripes, until he strained his hamstring covering first base in a game against the Indians.

Colon became the second Yankees starter to go on the disabled list in 2011. Phil Hughes has been on the DL since the end of April with shoulder inflammation.

The Yankees signed and called up longtime minor leaguer Brian Gordon, who went 5.1 innings and allowed two runs in his first-ever start against the Texas Rangers on Thursday.

Gordon pitched very well in his first outing, but who knows if he can be that consistent for the Yankees on a regular basis.

The Yankees also have Hector Noesi, who has been a starter in the minor leagues for the Yankees. A lot of people thought Noesi would get the start against Texas on Thursday, but the Yankees seem set on keeping Noesi in the bullpen.

So here we are again, re-visiting the Zambrano to the Yankees trade talks six months later.

Zambrano is 5-4 with a 4.59 ERA, 67 strikeouts and 35 walks in 96 innings and a 1.34 WHIP.

The cons of Zambrano: He is owed over $28 million through the end of next season, so taking him isn’t exactly a cheap move.

He also called out Cubs closer Carlos Marmol for his pitch selection in a game against the Cardinals and then called the Cubs “embarrassing” and a “Triple-A team.”

Zambrano did apologize to Marmol for his remarks but did not back off his comments about the Cubs.

Zambrano still has that feisty temper, but it looks like neither has his competitiveness or his willing to win.

The Cubs are 29-40 and almost 10 games out of first place in the National League Central. Unless a miracle happens, the Cubs aren’t going to be a playoff team in 2011 and it might come time for the Cubs to become sellers.

The Yankees likely know this and are looking for pitching re-enforcements. With Colon and Hughes both on the DL, it could be a big reason why the Yankees sent top advisers and scouts on the Cubs recent road trip to take notes on Zambrano’s latest starts.

Zambrano’s last two starts were nothing worth remembering.

On June 10 against the Phillies, Zambrano allowed seven runs and seven hits, walking seven and striking out five in 6.1 innings of a loss.

On June 15 against the Brewers, Zambrano allowed nine hits and five runs, walking two and striking out six in six innings of another loss

His last three starts, however, were very good.

On May 26 against the Mets, Zambrano allowed six hits and two runs, walked two and struck out five in 6.2 innings in a win for the Cubs and Zambrano.

On May 31 against the Astros, Zambrano allowed seven hits and one run, walked none and struck out seven in eight innings—a no decision for Zambrano.

On June 5 against the Cardinals, Zambrano allowed five hits and one run, walked two and struck out three in seven innings—another no decision for Zambrano.

Zambrano does have a full no-trade clause with the Cubs, but a close friend of Zambrano told Levine that, “at this point, Zambrano would let the Cubs trade him to Siberia.”

That quote right there sounds like Zambrano wants out of Chicago.

If Zambrano is the competitor who wants to win, if an offer to go to the Yankees were on the table, Zambrano could in fact waive that to come to the Bronx for a chance to pitch in October.

Zambrano would have a familiar face and be reacquainted with his former pitching coach in Larry Rothschild.

Rothschild was Zambrano’s former pitching coach in Chicago before he departed to the Bronx this winter.

I did this story once before on this site back on December 15 wondering if the Yankees would make a move for the right-hander.

I got a lot of different reactions to the idea of a trade for Zambrano. In the poll that I posted in the story, which was done by 530 people, 72 percent of the people were for the idea of making a trade for Zambrano.

If the Cubs were to make a deal to trade off Zambrano, they wouldn’t be getting anything major in return.

Which means Dellin Betances, Manny Banuelos, Andrew Brackman, Gary Sanchez and Jesus Montero would certainly not be involved in any trade talks for “Big Z.”

If anything, this type of trade would just be a salary dump for the Cubs looking to shed some payroll.

Rumors have been flying rampant about Chicago saving and collecting money, trying to structure together a mega-offer to free agent to be Albert Pujols for this coming winter.

Zambrano has never pitched in the American League, spending his entire career with the Cubs since being called up in 2001.

Zambrano does have some experience pitching in the postseason.

He was part of the rotation for the Cubs in 2003 that reached the NLCS against the Florida Marlins.

Zambrano also pitched in playoff series for the Cubs in 2007 against the Diamondbacks and in 2008 against the Dodgers.

If Yankees GM Brian Cashman is in fact serious about making a deal for Zambrano, you would have to wonder how he would hold up in an atmosphere like New York.

Chicago is a big market, but nothing compares to being in New York with the media attention that being a Yankees has.

Would Zambrano’s temper be able to handle the likes of the Bronx? With Rothschild’s influence and having the ear of Zambrano, plus the veteran presences of CC Sabathia and Mariano Rivera in the clubhouse, I doubt Zambrano would be causing much of an issue, especially if the Yankees are vying for a playoff spot and even a championship.

The trade market this summer is very thin. Last summer, Cliff Lee, Dan Haren and Roy Oswalt were all on the market and dealt. The Yankees nearly pulled the trigger for Lee, but the deal with the Mariners fell apart and they passed on going for Haren and Oswalt.

Those types of pitchers aren’t being put on the market this summer, so if Zambrano is in fact put on the market, the Yankees may feel the need to make a move.

If the Yankees aren’t trying to rush the progression and call up Banuelos, Brackman or Betances, and if any complications happen with Colon and Hughes in their rehab assignments and/or returns, the Yankees need some sort of backup plan if they are going to make another playoff run.

They are currently two games behind the Red Sox in the American League East, but if the postseason were to begin today, the Yankees would be the wild-card team. They also have the second best record in the American League, so their playoff hopes look pretty good right now (despite the fact the Yankees are 1-8 against the Red Sox in 2011).

As the series with the Cubs continues over the weekend, we will all hear more about the possibility of Zambrano heading to the Bronx in a possible trade.

Will the Yankees pursue a deal for Zambrano? Only time will tell.

Stay tuned, Yankees Universe.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com


New York Yankees: Pedro Feliciano Likely Out for Season with Shoulder Injury

When the Yankees signed Pedro Feliciano over the winter, they were hoping for the strong effort he used to give the Mets in every performance.

The Yankees will have to wait at least a year for that, because it looks like Feliciano is done before he ever threw a pitch for the Yankees in 2011.

It was announced on Friday from an MRI that Feliciano has a torn capsule in his left shoulder, which will likely require arthroscopic surgery and a year of rehab, according to ESPN’s Mike Mazzeo.

Feliciano will get a second opinion from world famous surgeon Dr. James Andrews in Birmingham, Alabama on Monday.

The Yankees signed Feliciano to a two-year deal for $8 million in the winter to be one of three potential left-handers in the bullpen for the Yankees.

Feliciano is now out for the season, Damaso Marte is out until the summer, which leaves Boone Logan as the lone lefty in the Yankees bullpen.

According to YES’s Jack Curry, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman will look around for bullpen help, but as of right now, the market is very thin.

Last week, the Yankees already placed Luis Ayala on the DL with an injury and have brought up Hector Noesi from the minors.

Most of the bullpen duties will fall back onto Joba Chamberlain, David Robertson,  Rafael Soriano and Boone Logan with Marte and Ayala on the DL and Feliciano now likely out for the season.

The Yankees have even had starters Bartolo Colon and Freddy Garcia come out of the bullpen this season, and with Phil Hughes struggling with a lack of velocity, Kevin Millwood may be the next veteran coming up for the Yankees.

The loss of Feliciano is a tough one, especially since he did not get to throw a single pitch in the regular season for the Yankees. But you have to hope a year of rehab will bring Feliciano back and stronger.

You also have to wonder about the comments Cashman made earlier this month, saying the Mets abused Feliciano when he pitched for them, making 86, 88 and 92 relief appearances over the last three seasons.

Feliciano disagreed that he was overused, but felt hurt when Mets pitching coach Dan Warthen said that one of the reasons they didn’t bring him back was because of the amount of innings pitched.

The injury to Feliciano was characterized by Cashman as the one Chien-Ming Wang had for the Yankees back in 2009, which ended his season and career with the Yankees.

Wang has yet to pitch in the majors since June of 2009 and continues to rehab his injury with the Washington Nationals.

Will Feliciano’s rehab take time to recover like Wang, or will he come back strong for the Yankees in 2012?

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com


New York Yankees Reportedly Sign Kevin Millwood To Compete for Rotation Spot

In February, the Yankees offered a minor-league deal to Kevin Millwood, which got turned down because he was looking for a more guaranteed deal.

With the 2011 baseball season less than a week away, Millwood still didn’t have a contract, nor did he have any other suitors interested in his services.

So, according to SI and WFAN’s Jon Heyman, Millwood will sign with the Yankees for an incentive-laden minor league deal.

As of right now, it looks as if Ivan Nova will lock down the No. 4 rotation spot with either Bartolo Colon or Freddy Garcia winning the No. 5 spot and the other being a long reliever, which will mean the release of Sergio Mitre (about time!).

Millwood had a terrible 2010 with the Baltimore Orioles, pitching to a 4-16 record and a 5.10 ERA in 31 starts.

Before his time in Baltimore, he was a very serviceable starter for the Texas Rangers, posting a 48-46 record in four seasons in Arlington, his best being 2006 when he went 16-12 and 2009 when he went 13-10.

What Millwood can give the Yankees is durability and innings, plus valuable experience.

He did throw 190.2 innings while in Baltimore last season in the 31 starts and has never been an injury problem in his career.

Millwood just turned 36 this past December, so he is on the decline of his career and he’s not the same pitcher he once was when a member of the Atlanta Braves or the Philadelphia Phillies.

Millwood did throw a no-hitter back on April 27, 2003 against the San Francisco Giants when he was a member of the Phillies.

Millwood was also a part of the old Braves rotation that featured Tom Glavine, John Smoltz and Greg Maddux that got to the World Series in 1999 and were defeated by Millwood’s new team, the Yankees.

But that was then for Millwood. Now, he’s just looking for an opportunity to pitch.

At first, it did shock me to see the Yankees still interested in Millwood after he rejected their initial offer, and with the great competition between Nova, Colon and Garcia for their spots in the rotation.

But, aside from Nova, you don’t know how long Colon or Garcia will hold up for the Yankees in 2011. Plus, there is the old saying “you can never have enough pitching.”

It will take some time for Millwood to gain his form, so he won’t begin the season in the majors with the Yankees, but if there is an injury somewhere, or if one of the other guys don’t live up to their promise from spring training, Millwood will likely take their place and get his chance.

Yankee fans shouldn’t be scared off by the 4-16 record or the 5.10 ERA because in fact, he was pitching in Baltimore last year, and most of that was before Buck Showalter’s turnaround of the team.

In fact, just look at his 2009 numbers in Texas: 13-10 with a 3.67 ERA, pitching a lot of his games in an unfriendly pitchers park. That still shows me that Millwood can be a very good pitcher.

If the Yankees can give Millwood run support and he can keep the ball in the park, there is no reason why he can’t have a decent season for the Yankees.

After missing out on Cliff Lee in December, the Yankees haven’t been panicking. They’ve more or less been bargain hunting in the free-agent pool.

A lot of people thought Yankees GM Brian Cashman was out of his mind when they signed Bartolo Colon, and it looks as if he could win the fifth starter job because of his outstanding pitching in the spring.

The same was said about Garcia, and he too might be on the roster taking over for Mitre as the long reliever.

Now add in an experienced vet like Millwood, who if he can stay healthy, can eat up innings and go deep into games for the Yankees and take the pressure off the bullpen.

This should turn out to be a decent signing, as long as Millwood doesn’t post another 4-16 record or 5.10 ERA. Anywhere between 10-12 wins and a 3.50-4.00 ERA would do just fine. 

It remains to be seen if the Yankees will still look to add more starting pitching as the season goes along. But for now, it looks like they are ready to go into the season with the arms they have now.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com


MLB: A Full Preview of the 2011 Major League Baseball Season

Baseball season is almost upon us. March 31 is almost here.

You can smell it, Opening Day 2011 is just around the corner.

Last year, everyone had a 2009 World Series re-match picked between the Yankees and the Phillies.

But, the Texas Rangers shocked all of baseball by knocking off the defending champion Yankees in the American League Championship Series and the San Francisco Giants knocked off the heavily-favored Phillies in the National League Championship Series.

In the Fall Classic, it was all San Francisco and their pitching as the Giants defeated the Rangers to win the 2010 World Series four games to one.

Edgar Renteria won the 2010 World Series MVP for the Giants.

With the 2011 season almost a week away now, many wonder what to expect from this next season.

Can the Giants and Rangers get back to the Fall Classic, or will there be two more surprise teams who get their chance to win a championship?

Lets take a look at each team by division and see where their season may end up in 2011.

Begin Slideshow


New York Yankees Desperately Need Andy Pettitte Back in Rotation for 2011

As the month of February is upon us, baseball season gets a step closer to returning.

In a few short weeks, pitchers and catchers will be reporting for teams in Florida and Arizona.

In Tampa, the Yankees will begin their 2011 season with a few question marks, mostly residing in their starting rotation.

They wanted Cliff Lee, but lost out on him when he returned to the Phillies in perhaps the biggest surprise move of the winter.

The Yankees have been scrambling and searching all winter for a Plan B.

We all heard the ideas and suggestions tossed around on this site and many other sites.

Brandon Webb: he went to the Rangers.

Justin Duchscherer: he just signed with the Orioles.

Armando Galarraga: he was traded to the Diamondbacks.

Jeff Francis: he went to the Royals.

There is still Jeremy Bonderman, Kevin Millwood and Freddy Garcia out there who the Yankees have been linked to, options that might not sound too attractive to Yankees Universe.

There is still one name out there that would be the best option and may in fact always had been the best option after Lee.

Andy Pettitte.

As of February 1, Pettitte still has not decided on whether he wants to pitch in 2011 or completely hang up the spikes and retire for good.

We’ve heard all the rumors and speculation on Pettitte.

Mark Teixeira said when he last talked to Pettitte, he thought Pettitte was leaning towards retiring.

Joe Girardi and Brian Cashman feel as if he might be leaning towards retiring when Pettitte told them to go on without him.

But then there have been reports that Pettitte’s family has given him the go-ahead to pitch this season.

There are also reports that Pettitte has been working out in Texas to get himself into baseball shape.

Here’s my question, if he was leaning towards retirement, why would he be working out now? Seems like maybe Andy has had a change of heart.

The 38 year old left-hander has been drawn towards retirement for the last couple of seasons, but the passion of playing and winning a championship has drawn Pettitte back every time, which is why he left Houston after 2006 to return to the Bronx.

Pettitte did in fact win that championship with the Yankees in 2009, and nobody would have blamed him if he retired after that year, but he came back.

He pitched extremely well in the first half of 2010, earning himself a trip to the 2010 All Star Game. A two-month trip to the DL was the only thing that stopped Pettitte, but he still finished with an 11-3 record and a 3.28 ERA in just 21 starts.

In the playoffs, Pettitte went 1-1 and went inning for inning with Lee in Game 3 of the ALCS against the Rangers, but because Lee shutout the Yankees for eight innings, Pettitte left the game losing 2-0.

If Lee were not pitching that night, Pettitte and the Yankees win that game, so despite being away from two months with a groin injury, Pettitte still showed the world why he is a big-game money pitcher, and has been for 16 years.

This is why the Yankees still need Pettitte back for this season. If he couldn’t pitch anymore it would be one thing, but Andy still has capability to help the Yankees win.

If the season started right now, the Yankees rotation would look like CC Sabathia, Phil Hughes and A.J. Burnett as the guaranteed starters with Ivan Nova and Sergio Mitre as the possible back-end of the rotation.

While the first three of that rotation look good, the back end doesn’t, especially with Mitre, who is not a good starter at all. I’d be all for giving Nova that fifth spot and getting Andy back.

A rotation of Sabathia, Hughes, Burnett, Pettitte and Nova would be 100 times better going into the 2011 season. That rotation right there nearly got the Yankees to the World Series last season if not for Lee and the Rangers.

Aside from re-signing Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera, the biggest move the Yankees made was signing Rafael Soriano to be the set-up man to Rivera, and to eventually take over as the future closer.

Until Soriano signed, their biggest moves were signing Russell Martin, Pedro Feliciano and Andruw Jones. Getting Soriano was a big move.

Getting Pettitte back would be the best move and the last one needed for the winter.

Some wonder if the potential Roger Clemens perjury trial has anything to do with holding up Pettitte’s decision.

It could, but honestly, I think if Andy wants to pitch, he’ll find a way to put those pinstripes on one last year.

And that’s all the fans are really hoping for out of him, one last season.

For the many fans of Yankees Universe, they are patiently waiting to hear his decision.

A decision that many hope will see number 46 throwing off a mound in Yankee Stadium in 2011.

One more year, Andy. No matter what happens, the fans will still love you no matter what, mostly for what you have accomplished in your 16 year career, 13 of them in the Bronx.

Hopefully, he’ll want to be a Yankee for the fans, his family and for himself one last time.

One thing is for certain though.

The Yankees need Andy Pettitte in 2011.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com


MLB Rumors: Yankees Land Rafael Soriano in a Three-Year Deal To Bolster Bullpen

FINALLY!

The Yankees have finally made a move this winter that can be considered a big move.

After virtually being very inactive all winter, the Yankees made a bold move to bolster their bullpen by signing former Tampa Bay Rays closer Rafael Soriano to a three-year deal worth about $35 million.

The Yankees basically gave Soriano closer money to be their setup man to Mariano Rivera, but at this point of the season, the Yankees had to do it.

The reports came late Thursday night from SI and WFAN’s Jon Heyman and ESPN’s Andrew Marchand.

Signing Soriano had to be done, mostly because the Yankees are getting the sense that Andy Pettitte is leaning heavily towards retirement because he probably won’t be starting off the 2011 season in pinstripes.

The 31 year old pitched tremendously last season, saving 45 games to a 1.73 ERA and a 0.80 WHIP for the Rays last season.

Now, it looks like Soriano could be the potential heir to Rivera whenever he decides to retire.

The Yankees bullpen has gotten much stronger, putting Soriano in a bullpen that includes Pedro Feliciano, David Robertson, Boone Logan, Joba Chamberlain and eventually Damaso Marte to go along with Rivera.

You might have to wonder now with Soriano in the picture, might that enhance the possibility of the Yankees dealing away Chamberlain since he’s been very inconsistent and at times, horrible as the setup man for Rivera.

With the Yankees signing Soriano, the Yankees can still look to add a fourth outfielder, whether it be Andruw Jones or Johnny Damon, and possibly another starting pitcher to go along with CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and Phil Hughes.

According to Heyman, after signing Soriano, the Yankees still have around $20 million to spend, which is plenty of money to offer on both situations the Yankees still need.

Honestly, I was a little shocked to see the Yankees actually landed Soriano because there were teams still out there who could have used Soriano as a closer.

The White Sox were eyeing Soriano, but they didn’t want to spend the money and the Angels dropped out of the hunt.

When I did a free agency story back in early December, I had predicted the Angels to land Soriano, along with Adrian Beltre and Carl Crawford.

The Angels landed none of those players, in fact, their biggest signing this winter has been left-handed reliever Scott Downs.

I was also a little shocked because Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman had said he wasn’t willing to part with his first round draft pick for Soriano.

I guess after a while, your plans change.

But the Yankees finally have added some much needed pitching to bolster a bullpen that was a little suspect in 2011, especially in the ALCS against the Rangers that they lost 4-2.

You can be critical about the money, and you can be critical about losing the draft pick, but after how this winter has gone, the Yankees needed to make a bold move.

Getting Soriano was the right move to make.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com


MLB Rumors: Should the New York Yankees Go After Armando Galarraga?

It’s almost the middle of January, and the Yankees quest for pitching depth continues.

It may get even more complicated if, in fact, Andy Pettitte doesn’t come back to the Yankees, or at least, for the beginning of 2011.

The Yankees are rumored to be interested in former Oakland A’s pitcher Justin Duchscherer, but he has been on the DL regularly since 2008 and the Yankees aren’t sure if they are interested in him for the starting rotation or the bullpen.

So signing Duchscherer might not be the best or reliable option for the Yankees.

If the Yankees are looking for ideas, I might have one that couldn’t hurt. I mean, it’s just an idea.

This week, the Tigers just added Brad Penny to their rotation. Penny will join a rotation that includes Justin Verlander, Rick Porcello, Phil Coke and Max Scherzer, which might eliminate Armando Galarraga from it.

Since Penny was signed by Detroit, it’s been rumored that the Tigers could either demote Galarraga to the bullpen, trade or release him.

If the Tigers do decide to put Galarraga on the trading block or just release him, should the Yankees have some interest in the 29-year-old right-hander?

Galarraga has become infamous for his near-perfect game last year on June 2 against the Indians, but lost it on a blown call by umpire Jim Joyce.

Galarraga handled the situation perfectly by saying all the right things and not putting any blame on Joyce.

Galarraga did finish the 2011 season at 4-9 with a 4.49 ERA for the Tigers, but he did show a lot of signs of promise in his rookie season back in 2008 when he went 13-7 with a 3.73 ERA in 178.2 innings and finished fourth in the A.L. Rookie of the Year voting.

Now, it seems as if Galarraga, who has been bounced from the majors to the minors in Detroit, may be in fact out of Detroit or at least out of their rotation.

Right now, the Yankees are not looking for a long-term answer for 2011, mostly because they have a lot of young arms developing in the minor leagues. They are just looking for a short-term solution.

Galarraga could in fact be a short-term solution. If anything, he can be an innings-eater who can give a team like the Yankees some depth and durability.

Right now, the Yankees have Ivan Nova and Sergio Mitre penciled in for the fourth and fifth spots for the rotation. Nova would probably be best suited to be the fifth starter, while Mitre should be nothing more than a mop-up long reliever at best.

Getting a guy like Galarraga would be a definite upgrade over Mitre and that would move Nova to the fifth spot where he could develop without major pressure.

Now, the major question becomes: Do the Tigers even part ways with Galarraga? They don’t have to release or trade him and can in fact just keep him in their bullpen or send him back to the minors and call him up if a starter goes down with injury.

The other question that can be posed is: Do the Yankees have an interest and make an attempt to go after Galarraga?

I think with the names the Yankees have been linked to—Jeff Francis, Jeremy Bonderman, Duchscherer, guys recovering from major injuries—Galarraga could be the most reliable option considering he hasn’t sustained any major injury while still at a relatively young age.

Is there a better option out on the market for the Yankees than Galarraga? Maybe. If so, I even wonder what it is, along with a lot of other Yankee fans like myself have too this past winter. Especially since Cliff Lee took less money to return to the Phillies.

So now I post the question to you the community. Should the Yankees make an attempt to get Galarraga whether it be a trade or if he gets released and is on the market? Or should the Yankees pass and look elsewhere?

Now, whether or not you agree with the idea, like I said in the beginning of this, it was just an idea and couldn’t hurt.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com


Copyright © 1996-2010 Kuzul. All rights reserved.
iDream theme by Templates Next | Powered by WordPress