Master Index of Archived Threads


MFY Off-Season/Pre-Season Circus

Frayed Knot Oct 23 2012 06:29 PM Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Oct 24 2012 06:54 AM

Not to obsess on this team too much, but we track them during the season and this winter looks to be a fascinating, or at least an active and interesting, off-season for them. First the stalwarts: ARod - 38 in mid-2013 Yeah they’d love to deal him but that’s not going to happen no matter how many rumors get floated. Jeter - 39 in mid-2013 One year remaining on his deal plus a player option for 2014 at a reduced rate [$8mil down from $17]. If Jetes has another good season does he dare take the buyout $3mil and try to strike a new deal, or will Cashman’s tough stance in the last negotiation win out in the long run for a then 39 y/o coming off an injury? These are all questions for next off-season but I thought I’d throw it in there anyway. Teixeira - 33 opening week of 2013 Under contract thru 2016 and full N-T protection. IOW, like ARod, he's not going anywhere Sabathia - 33 in mid-2013 Under contract rhru 2016 plus an option for ‘17 and full N-T protection. This one has the added drama of a visit to Dr. James Andrews pending. Supposedly it’s just bone chips/spurs but it’s always that right up to the point where it’s something else (read: worse) The Free Agents (or potential ones) Cano - 30 y/o as of this week. Has a $15mil option for 2013 which I’m sure the club will invoke. The main question surrounding him is whether to L-T deal him or not and, if so, how much/long as the seemingly standard 10-year super-star deal will take him to age (doing the math ....) 40 !! And was the club spooked by his horrid playoff performance(s)? Ichiro - Just turned 39 Hit 60 and slugged 100 points higher in his half-season with NYY compared with what he was doing in Seattle. Yanx fans are going to want him back because they think their team needs to get more slappy/bunty/runny. But does mgmt get suckered into believing the short-term and possibly stadium/re-birth inspired improvement over the longer-term downward trend? Cashman et al may be arrogant & annoying at times but I don’t think they’re stupid. They like to try and get guys like this to sign for a role-players low-ball deal but Ichiro may feel like he’s above that and has earned better. Mariano - 43 during the off-season Ah yes, his latest contract ran out while he was rehabbing. He said, virtually as they were carrying him off the field, that any thoughts of retirement went out the window with the injury because he didn’t want to go out on that note. But will also be 43 and is coming off both major surgery and a season in which he threw just 8 innings. which brings us to Raphael Soriano - 33 this winter The guy Cashman didn’t want in the first place sucked at setting-up in 2011 and then thrived at closing in 2012. Got paid closer’s money in both cases, but now has a player’s opt-out where he can take one million bucks and run away to strike his own deal or take $14mil to stay and almost certainly sit behind Rivera in a role he neither liked nor was good at (whether you believe it was cause/effect or not). He probably won’t get $14/per anywhere else, but he will almost certainly get more than one year and the role he wants by playing the market. Nick Swisher - 32 in a few weeks Fan favorite turned fan target. Had not just a lousy post-season but has had lousy stretches in every October recently and if anyone sees that as cause-and-effect it’s Yanqui fans. Made $10.5mil in 2012, the thought is that they’ll let him walk, but the interesting part comes in whether or not they offer him arbitration. The rules for that stuff changed with the last CBA to where, in order to get a draft pick for losing a FA, a player must be offered a contract that would get him into the top 125 in baseball, a figure thought to be around $13.5mil this winter. If they offer and he accepts they could probably live with it for one year unless they have some replacement in mind. If he doesn’t they at least get something in return (although the compensation isn’t as good as it used to be so that incentive is lessened as well). Curtis Granderson - Turns 32 during ST Has a $13mil option for ‘13 which would represent about a 30% increase over what he got in 2012 salary for striking out 180+ times. Of course he also hit 43 HRs but seems to be becoming a much more feast/famine type of player whose speed game suddenly disappeared as well. Still can play CF well enough and those players are tough to replace despite Yanx fans hopes that Brett Gardner can simply step right in. Hiroki Kuroda - 38 during ST Signed just a one-year deal ($10 mil) to come to NY in his first go-round of FAgency American Style but might want more this time coming off a good year and really all good years since coming to the US. Russell Martin - Turns 30 in ST His BA has been falling for five straight seasons but he walks a lot, has re-found his power at YSIII, and is a good-enough defensive catcher. I suspect the Yanx will want to re-sign him but the question becomes how long and for how much and if there’ll be other suitors to bump that price up. Seems to me that he takes a beating back there even more than most other backstops so maybe that enters into the thinking. Andy Pettitte - 41 in mid-2013 Retired once, sat out a year, came back and had a good run with almost no lead-in time, then broke his leg, then was pretty good again upon his return. But are they going to bet on that holding up over a longer haul at his age? Seems both tempting and tempting fate. As part of the 'Core Four' he's MFY royalty but that didn't stop them from waving goodbye once already. Raul Ibanez - 41 in mid-2013 Another 40+ y/o albeit one with a perfect swing for that stadium. Had a better first half than second but then became a playoff hero three seperate times. So how high do they bet on that repeating? He signed a low-base contract but one heavily laden with PA incentives which made it good both both sides. Should be strictly a DH these days (can’t throw at all) but he can’t be one full time when Jeter & ARod filled that role a combined 61 times this past year and now both are a year older and/or coming off broken ankles. Minor Cogs Derrick Lowe Turns 40 in mid-2013 I could see them re-upping him for a bullpen role and I don’t think he’ll have a lot of other options. Pedro Feliciano - Turns 37 towards the end of next season So you think they’ll want to pick up his $4.5mil option after paying him $4mil over each of the last two seasons to do nothing? Yeah, me either. Freddie Garcia - 36 The kicker with a guy like him is not just that they had him but that they had to depend on him for large chunks of the season. I would have guessed he was 56 Andruw Jones - 36 as next season starts Decent (meaning: high-power/low-BA) first half then ran out of steam. Doubt he’ll be back or matter much if he is. Eric Chavez - 35 this off-season Similar to Andruw but swings from the left side and serves as ARod insurance. Or maybe gets replaced by Nunez.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Oct 23 2012 06:33 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Whatever happens, we should totally sign Feliciano.

seawolf17 Oct 24 2012 05:11 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: Whatever happens, we should totally sign Feliciano. Totally agree. He's destined to ONLY be a Met.

Edgy MD Oct 24 2012 06:04 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

But walk away with serious cash from multiple other organizations he hasn't played for.

Ceetar Oct 24 2012 06:52 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

I'm looking forward to the frequent Brett Favreian updates about whether or not Pettitte is playing or retiring.

Frayed Knot Oct 24 2012 06:58 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Ceetar wrote: I'm looking forward to the frequent Brett Favreian updates about whether or not Pettitte is playing or retiring. Maybe Suzyn Waldman can play the role of ESPN's Rachael Nichols and camp out with a YES camera crew on Andy's front lawn waiting for a decision. "There's white smoke coming from Andy's chimney! Of all the dramatic .... "

Ceetar Oct 24 2012 07:09 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Frayed Knot wrote: Ceetar wrote: I'm looking forward to the frequent Brett Favreian updates about whether or not Pettitte is playing or retiring. Maybe Suzyn Waldman can play the role of ESPN's Rachael Nichols and camp out with a YES camera crew on Andy's front lawn waiting for a decision. "There's white smoke coming from Andy's chimney! Of all the dramatic .... " I wouldn't put it past YES.

Frayed Knot Oct 26 2012 07:21 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Sabathia has surgery to remove a bone spur in his throwing arm but nothing more serious than that But suddenly Mariano Rivera isn't so sure about coming back next season despite his initial claims to "write in down in big letters".

Ceetar Oct 26 2012 07:27 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Frayed Knot wrote: Sabathia has surgery to remove a bone spur in his throwing arm but nothing more serious than that But suddenly Mariano Rivera isn't so sure about coming back next season despite his initial claims to "write in down in big letters". He had to repair something at the end of.. last season? or the one before in his knee. warning signs perhaps. I saw Cashman's comments on Rivera's comments spun both ways. Likely coming back, likely not.

G-Fafif Oct 26 2012 07:30 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

A-Rod, he whose feelings needed to be spared. New York Yankees manager Joe Girardi had the team's public address announcer leave out Alex Rodriguez's name when Eric Chavez pinch-hit for the struggling slugger during the playoffs, according to a report by CBSSports.com. Announcements usually include both the pinch hitter and the player he is replacing in the lineup. But in this case, Rodriguez's name was not heard in the stadium. The move was made in the eighth inning of Game 1 of the American League Championship Series against the Detroit Tigers. Rodriguez was 0 for 3 with a strikeout when Girardi sent Chavez up to hit for him. According to CBSSports.com, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman confirmed that Girardi made the call to shield Rodriguez from further embarrassment. Despite being pinch-hit for, and even benched throughout the playoffs, Rodriguez spoke positively of his manager, saying Girardi had "built up a lot of equity with him." Rodriguez was a mere 3 for 25 in the postseason, which ended with the Yankees being swept by the Tigers in the ALCS. He especially struggled against right-handers, going hitless in 18 at-bats with 12 strikeouts.

Edgy MD Oct 27 2012 05:41 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Seems like a lot of extra effort to be taken in the name of feelings when you're in the heat of the battle, no? It suggests Girardi was either acting in premeditation or not really focusing on the game.

Frayed Knot Oct 31 2012 01:34 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Raphael Soriano opts out of the $14mil option he had for the 2013 season with the Yanx, freeing him up to negotiate elsewhere (including with the Yanx). A somewhat risky move for him in that it'll be tough to match that $14/year even if it does open up the possibility of a multi-year deal coming off his excellent 2012. You wonder if he's doing this because he believes Mariano [u:3uwljedv]Won't[/u:3uwljedv] come back -- thus giving him some pretty big leverage in negotiations in the Bronx and, in turn, elsewhere as well ... or if he's doing this because he believes that Mariano Will come back -- knowing that he'd be demoted back to set-up man even though a ridiculously highly-paid one?

Ceetar Oct 31 2012 02:02 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

either way it's one less 'lock' roster spot for the Yankees and given the volatile nature of relievers, one more chance for them to wind up with a bad one.

Edgy MD Oct 31 2012 02:12 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Oh, I think a set-up man leaving $14 million on the table is a break for the Yankees. Is the difference between him and, say, Bobby Parnell that vast?

Frayed Knot Oct 31 2012 02:38 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Edgy DC wrote: Is the difference between him and, say, Bobby Parnell that vast? No, but the Yanquis don't operate on the same sort of logic as the rest of the league. Remember this is the crew that signed Soriano to a 3/35 deal in the first place (over the objections of their GM) strictly for the purpose of being a set-up man and insurance against Mariano getting old before his contract ended. As it turns out they didn't lose a step at the end of games this season after MR screwed up his knee in early May and may have lost the division without him or would have been forced to make a more desperate in-season move. As it stands now they'll make some kind of move to replace him and if Rivera doesn't come back they're suddenly looking at David Robertson as the closer rather than as the 7th inning man. I think they believed he was the closer of the future two years ago but some of the shine came off him in 2012.

Ceetar Oct 31 2012 02:40 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Frayed Knot wrote: Edgy DC wrote: Is the difference between him and, say, Bobby Parnell that vast? No, but the Yanquis don't operate on the same sort of logic as the rest of the league. Remember this is the crew that signed Soriano to a 3/35 deal in the first place (over the objections of their GM) strictly for the purpose of being a set-up man and insurance against Mariano getting old before his contract ended. As it turns out they didn't lose a step at the end of games this season after MR screwed up his knee in early May and may have lost the division without him or would have been forced to make a more desperate in-season move. As it stands now they'll make some kind of move to replace him and if Rivera doesn't come back they're suddenly looking at David Robertson as the closer rather than as the 7th inning man. I think they believed he was the closer of the future two years ago but some of the shine came off him in 2012. Jose Valverde is a free agent. On the team that beat them.

Frayed Knot Nov 01 2012 06:47 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Yeah, that would be the team that beat them in spite of Valverde, not because of him. Soriano landing in Valverde's spot on the roster is a lot more likely than the other way around. Soriano's agent btw, one S. Boras, is reportedly telling the Yanx that he can get 4yrs/$60 for his client. Now we all know that young Scotty has shown a knack for extracting money from teams often at rates beyond what common sense would dictate. We also know that he's been known to throw some wild numbers in the air at times so his claim remains to be seen (I'm betting the under). What will shirley happen is that the rejection by Soriano of his $14mil option allows the Yanx to put in the $13.3mil qualifying offer which would put Soriano into the category of FAs that would require a compensation pick to sign, something that would figure to reduce his attractiveness on the open market particularly as that pool of players will be much smaller this year as compared to the recent past.

Ceetar Nov 01 2012 06:52 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Frayed Knot wrote: Yeah, that would be the team that beat them in spite of Valverde, not because of him. Soriano landing in Valverde's spot on the roster is a lot more likely than the other way around. . well yeah. I'm not sure If I want to hope the Yankees overpay for a decent reliever and are serious about the luxury tax cap thingy, or if hoping they lose out by picking someone that implodes. You just know they're going to sign Ramon Ramirez for his bounce back year.

Edgy MD Nov 01 2012 06:55 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Ah, don't indulge Yankee fatalism. It's not that guys in decline suddenly get good when the Yankees sign them (cough! Pedro Feliciano, cough!), but rather that they have the resources to quickly bury folks when they don't.

Ceetar Nov 01 2012 07:09 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Edgy DC wrote: Ah, don't indulge Yankee fatalism. It's not that guys in decline suddenly get good when the Yankees sign them (cough! Pedro Feliciano, cough!), but rather that they have the resources to quickly bury folks when they don't. they sign enough hay to get the needles they need. wonder if they can still afford to do that.

Frayed Knot Nov 01 2012 07:11 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Edgy DC wrote: Ah, don't indulge Yankee fatalism. It's not that guys in decline suddenly get good when the Yankees sign them Well sure they do, because the ones that don't are ... wait for it ... not true yanquis!!!!

Edgy MD Nov 01 2012 07:17 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Yeah, well, all I care about is that they all collect true Yankee paychecks.

Frayed Knot Nov 03 2012 06:46 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Yanx make FA-qualifying offers ($13.3 mil) to Rafael Soriano, and Swisher, or Kuroda. Swisher and Soriano are expected to decline and seek long-term deal while the soon to be 38 y/o Kuroda might accept the one-year contract. By offering the deals the Yanx can receive compensation if any of those players sign as a FA elsewhere.

Frayed Knot Nov 03 2012 03:27 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

After first hinting that 2012 would be his final year, then reversing himself as he was being carried off the field to say that it would not, then recently hinting at a reversal of that reversal to say that he was unsure, Mariano Rivera now informs the Yanx that they should ignore all the reversals and that he intends to play in 2013. Of course he first has to get a contract to do so and it'll be interesting to see if the club just automatically reinstates him to the salary perch where he had been sitting or if they decide that a 43 y/o who hasn't pitched in a year, is coming off major surgery, and has made it plain that he intends to talk to no other teams means some Jeter-like hardball negotiations and less guaranteed cash are in order.

Frayed Knot Nov 21 2012 02:23 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Kuroda re-ups with the Yanx on a one-year deal. They'll still need to add some pitching, but this reduces their panic a bit although they'll be counting on him to repeat his good season as he turns age 38 during ST

Ceetar Nov 21 2012 03:48 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Frayed Knot wrote: Kuroda re-ups with the Yanx on a one-year deal. They'll still need to add some pitching, but this reduces their panic a bit although they'll be counting on him to repeat his good season as he turns age 38 during ST Wonder if this plays in for Dickey at all, being of the same age and all. anyway, I read today that if/when Stub Hub and MLB renew their agreement, the Yankees are probably going to opt out, in favor of something of their own making. I'm not sure what it means, but it feels extremely short sighted and head in the sandish.

Frayed Knot Nov 21 2012 06:49 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

The main difference between Kuroda & Dickey is that RA isn't a FA giving the Mets no immediate competition and several other options, including: - extending him - trading him - hanging on to him for now with an eye towards a mid-2013 trade if condition dictate - hang onto to him for all 2013 and risking that an open market deal a year from now will be easier in the long run Cutting ties w/Stub Hub for something of their own making is simply a way to keep a piece of the second-hand ticket market. The Cubs set one of these up years ago that was somehow ruled legal by [corrupt and/or incompetent] Illinois courts. Essentially the club simply "sells" a chunk of the tickets to the ticket arm of their operation (i.e. transfers it to themselves) which turns around and sells them at above-face prices.

Ceetar Nov 21 2012 07:00 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Frayed Knot wrote: The main difference between Kuroda & Dickey is that RA isn't a FA giving the Mets no immediate competition and several other options, including: - extending him - trading him - hanging on to him for now with an eye towards a mid-2013 trade if condition dictate - hang onto to him for all 2013 and risking that an open market deal a year from now will be easier in the long run Cutting ties w/Stub Hub for something of their own making is simply a way to keep a piece of the second-hand ticket market. The Cubs set one of these up years ago that was somehow ruled legal by [corrupt and/or incompetent] Illinois courts. Essentially the club simply "sells" a chunk of the tickets to the ticket arm of their operation (i.e. transfers it to themselves) which turns around and sells them at above-face prices. i.e. what everyone accuses MLB teams of doing with Stub Hub, they'd actually be able to do. Does it work in Chicago? I could easily see that backfiring due to Stub Hub anyway. Yankees are bleeding attendance though, probably because of scalpers backing out. maybe the see a window to take over the scalping of those tickets, maybe they're full of hubris. What I meant with Dickey is what his presumed value might be a year from now, if he didn't extend and wanted to play out the market.

Fman99 Nov 21 2012 07:15 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Frayed Knot wrote: The main difference between Kuroda & Dickey is that RA isn't a FA giving the Mets no immediate competition and several other options, including: - extending him - trading him - hanging on to him for now with an eye towards a mid-2013 trade if condition dictate - hang onto to him for all 2013 and risking that an open market deal a year from now will be easier in the long run Cutting ties w/Stub Hub for something of their own making is simply a way to keep a piece of the second-hand ticket market. The Cubs set one of these up years ago that was somehow ruled legal by [corrupt and/or incompetent] Illinois courts. Essentially the club simply "sells" a chunk of the tickets to the ticket arm of their operation (i.e. transfers it to themselves) which turns around and sells them at above-face prices. Because Cubs fans aren't getting fucked enough just watching Cubs games.

Edgy MD Nov 21 2012 08:00 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Has anybubs talked with A-Rod this winter?

MFS62 Nov 23 2012 08:45 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

According to the Daily News (early print edition, full page article. Must have been a slow sports news day), Robinson Cano became a US Citizen. Later

Frayed Knot Nov 23 2012 08:50 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

MFS62 wrote: According to the Daily News (early print edition, full page article. Must have been a slow sports news day), Robinson Cano became a US Citizen. That'll allow him to jog for political office one day.

Frayed Knot Nov 28 2012 02:08 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Pettitte deal with the Yanx said to be done. The team of course has yet to say anything but, until after the ink is dried and physicals are taken, the Yanx tend to deny that they've even heard of the player that everyone on the planet knows they're in the process of signing or, as in this case, re-signing. Terms said to be for $12mil+, a significant jump over the $2.5 plus incentives he made last year although between his late start and his broken ankle they only wound up getting 12 starts out of him in 2012. He'll turn 41 during next season.

Swan Swan H Nov 28 2012 02:21 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Frayed Knot wrote: Pettitte deal with the Yanx said to be done. The team of course has yet to say anything but, until after the ink is dried and physicals are taken, the Yanx tend to deny that they've even heard of the player that everyone on the planet knows they're in the process of signing or, as in this case, re-signing. Terms said to be for $12mil+, a significant jump over the $2.5 plus incentives he made last year although between his late start and his broken ankle they only wound up getting 12 starts out of him in 2012. He'll turn 41 during next season. And to make room they DFA'ed catcher Eli Whiteside, who they claimed on waivers three weeks ago. Francisco Cervelli, upon hearing the news, pumped his fist and accidentally knocked out his daughter's first-grade teacher.

metsguyinmichigan Nov 29 2012 08:58 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

And Russell Martin signs with the Pirates before the MFYs even make him an offer, supposedly.

bmfc1 Nov 30 2012 06:31 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

How great is this? http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/yankees/ ... eKPH0sR53H

Frayed Knot Nov 30 2012 06:42 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

metsguyinmichigan wrote: And Russell Martin signs with the Pirates before the MFYs even make him an offer, supposedly. I suspect that if the Yanx didn't make him an offer by this point then they weren't really interested in doing so. Martin was their one unsigned guy where I didn't know where they were going. On the one hand his barely .200 BA all year (.211 at the end) and high Ks (95 in 422 ABs) were bad signs, but he still got his walks (.311 OBA) and, as with most of his crew, was a HR savant: 21 HRs (and 38 XBHs) in just 89 hits. Plus the guy's still not yet 30 (February), is reasonably durable for a catcher, and is pretty good defensively. They supposedly have some catchers in their system but I'm not sure any of them are ready for prime time. Not sure where they go from here.

Ceetar Nov 30 2012 06:47 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

How great is this? http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/yankees/ ... eKPH0sR53H Jeter has also been seen at the team’s minor league complex in Tampa a couple times this offseason, but not on a regular basis. It’s unknown if he has been there for treatment, workouts or something else. Picking up baseballs to sign for his gift baskets probably.

Frayed Knot Nov 30 2012 07:05 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Not that I don't enjoy a good yarn that dishes dirt on Yanquis, but this sort of building a entire story based on one photo which, depending on the angle, posture, etc., may or may not show what they're claiming it shows reminds me of the 'baby-bump' "scoops" involving celebrity women. An actress gets snapped walking around in some outfit where it suddenly doesn't look like she's got a 19-inch waist causing all the tabloids go nuts and it's really tiresome. So I hope you've all learned your lesson for day and that there's only one conclusion to draw from this. And that's that Derek Jeter is clearly pregnant.

Edgy MD Nov 30 2012 07:34 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

HEY! There's TWO photos.

Ceetar Nov 30 2012 07:35 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Edgy MD wrote: HEY! There's TWO photos. twins!

Edgy MD Nov 30 2012 07:40 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

I'm more moved by the slender forearm.

metirish Nov 30 2012 07:51 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

How great is this? http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/yankees/ ... eKPH0sR53H Jeter has also been seen at the team’s minor league complex in Tampa a couple times this offseason, but not on a regular basis. It’s unknown if he has been there for treatment, workouts or something else. Picking up baseballs to sign for his gift baskets probably. Ha!

Edgy MD Nov 30 2012 07:56 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

I have to say, Derek would have a hard time taking a less flattering photo. I mean, I can do it, because I'm routinely a disaster on camera.

Ceetar Nov 30 2012 07:59 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Edgy MD wrote: I have to say, Derek would have a hard time taking a less flattering photo. I mean, I can do it, because I'm routinely a disaster on camera. I dunno, sneaking out the back door of a club with a drunk girl on his arm? I'm not sure why there aren't pictures of this actually. I guess papparazzi don't stalk sports celebrities the same way as hollywood ones.

Frayed Knot Nov 30 2012 10:06 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Ceetar wrote: Edgy MD wrote: I have to say, Derek would have a hard time taking a less flattering photo. I mean, I can do it, because I'm routinely a disaster on camera. I dunno, sneaking out the back door of a club with a drunk girl on his arm? I'm not sure why there aren't pictures of this actually. I guess papparazzi don't stalk sports celebrities the same way as hollywood ones. Oh yeah they do. Jeter's greatest accomplishment of his career may just be that he's managed to keep himself out of the tabloids for the most part despite all the Hollywood tail he's been linked with over the years.

Ceetar Nov 30 2012 10:09 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Frayed Knot wrote: Ceetar wrote: Edgy MD wrote: I have to say, Derek would have a hard time taking a less flattering photo. I mean, I can do it, because I'm routinely a disaster on camera. I dunno, sneaking out the back door of a club with a drunk girl on his arm? I'm not sure why there aren't pictures of this actually. I guess papparazzi don't stalk sports celebrities the same way as hollywood ones. Oh yeah they do. Jeter's greatest accomplishment of his career may just be that he's managed to keep himself out of the tabloids for the most part despite all the Hollywood tail he's been linked with over the years. I dunno, couldn't Jeter's gift-basket exploits been blown up to Tiger level proportions? or is it only the infidelity? It certainly seemed like the media enjoyed getting statements from those women, and it seems like the type of woman to go after a star like that is also one that would give a statement to the post to get talked about.

Edgy MD Nov 30 2012 10:37 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

New York tabloids --- particularly the News --- have a professional interest in keeping his halo shiny., What makes it great for him is just about that time in his career when "Derek is our savior" was becoming an old story, and they might have thrown him overboard during the absence of post-2000 championships, along came A-Rod, to play out as bad boy to Derek's good boy, like Anglina Jolie and Jennifer Aniston. Us Magazine got seven years or more of sales out of that story, and the NY tabloids get similar legs out of the Derek and Alex opera.

Frayed Knot Nov 30 2012 10:57 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

The point remains that if the tabs got a hold of film-clips, cell-videos, snapshots, pictures, descriptions, or accounts of Jeter's dates they'd run the hell out of them. They may play it up nicely once they did but they still wouldn't be shy about running them. The reason they haven't - or why there have been so few examples - is that he goes to great lengths to make sure he stays out of range as has been detailed in various stories over the years. Some of those tactics may border on douchebaggery (you can't enter Derek's VIP room here without prior approval) but staying out of the press is not an easy thing to do in this city, with his profile, in this era, and I kind of admire the fact that he's been able to pull it off so well for so long.

Ceetar Nov 30 2012 11:47 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Frayed Knot wrote: The point remains that if the tabs got a hold of film-clips, cell-videos, snapshots, pictures, descriptions, or accounts of Jeter's dates they'd run the hell out of them. They may play it up nicely once they did but they still wouldn't be shy about running them. The reason they haven't - or why there have been so few examples - is that he goes to great lengths to make sure he stays out of range as has been detailed in various stories over the years. Some of those tactics may border on douchebaggery (you can't enter Derek's VIP room here without prior approval) but staying out of the press is not an easy thing to do in this city, with his profile, in this era, and I kind of admire the fact that he's been able to pull it off so well for so long. those gift baskets problem have non-disclosure agreements.

seawolf17 Dec 01 2012 06:34 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Hi-frickin-larious. http://www.buzzfeed.com/jpmoore/fat-derek-jeter-meme

A Boy Named Seo Dec 01 2012 07:12 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Ceetar wrote: Ceetar wrote: Edgy MD wrote: I have to say, Derek would have a hard time taking a less flattering photo. I mean, I can do it, because I'm routinely a disaster on camera. I dunno, sneaking out the back door of a club with a drunk girl on his arm? I'm not sure why there aren't pictures of this actually. I guess papparazzi don't stalk sports celebrities the same way as hollywood ones. Oh yeah they do. Jeter's greatest accomplishment of his career may just be that he's managed to keep himself out of the tabloids for the most part despite all the Hollywood tail he's been linked with over the years. I dunno, couldn't Jeter's gift-basket exploits been blown up to Tiger level proportions? or is it only the infidelity? It certainly seemed like the media enjoyed getting statements from those women, and it seems like the type of woman to go after a star like that is also one that would give a statement to the post to get talked about. No way Tiger. C'mon, dude. The swag-basket is super fucking lame & makes Jetes look like an out-of-touch, self-important prick, but he's not screwing around on his wife and the mother of his kiddos. Say what you will about the 'Limo-ride-of-shame' parting gifts, but he's just a single dude bedding, what sounds like, a parade of women. No foul there. #unlikelydefenderofjeter #aboynamedjetes

Ceetar Dec 01 2012 07:33 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

I have no problem with Jeter in that regard, beyond the fun to make fun of angle but.. it's not like the media was portraying Tiger as a scoundrel husband, they were practically salivating at the sex-addict let's find out more about the babes stuff. They took the one point and went full-throttle character assassination. What, they don't think people would want to hear from the Jeter girls because it doesn't fit their pre-defined narrative? Of course, at least from where I stand, it seems like they totally gave up on harassing Tiger about it once he got divorced, unless it's just because he's sorta not dominating anymore? regardless, I messed with the Jeter image to try to make him appear even fatter. just because.

A Boy Named Seo Dec 01 2012 07:52 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Tiger assassinated his own character, no one else. And the media stopped 'harassing' him because he's no longer fucking a bus-load of women behind his wife's back and giving tearful, toothy 'it's not my fault, i'm a sex-addict' pressers. The media wants blood that bleeds, bro. That shit dried up. And do you want to hear from Jeter's girls? Do you think other people do? Maybe they do. Shit, I don't care. At all.

Frayed Knot Dec 01 2012 07:56 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Back to on-field news: with Mariano back in the fold (at a wage cut) but not Russell Martin, apparently now Ichiro is getting itchy. He said ahead of time that he wanted to stay in the Bronx (it was his childhood dream you know) but that he's hearing a lot more from other teams lately than he has from the Yanx which sounds a lot like what Martin said on his way outta town.

Ceetar Dec 01 2012 10:11 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

A Boy Named Seo wrote: Tiger assassinated his own character, no one else. And the media stopped 'harassing' him because he's no longer fucking a bus-load of women behind his wife's back and giving tearful, toothy 'it's not my fault, i'm a sex-addict' pressers. The media wants blood that bleeds, bro. That shit dried up. And do you want to hear from Jeter's girls? Do you think other people do? Maybe they do. Shit, I don't care. At all. I didn't care about Tiger either. none of my business. Page 6? E! all that stuff? yeah, I'm sure a ton of people want to hear about Jeter's girls. Maybe there just isn't enough there. Beyond the sneaking the girls out the back door and sending them home with gift baskets, maybe that's all there is. But we certainly seem to hear about every girl A-Rod dates.

Ceetar Dec 01 2012 10:11 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Frayed Knot wrote: Back to on-field news: with Mariano back in the fold (at a wage cut) but not Russell Martin, apparently now Ichiro is getting itchy. He said ahead of time that he wanted to stay in the Bronx (it was his childhood dream you know) but that he's hearing a lot more from other teams lately than he has from the Yanx which sounds a lot like what Martin said on his way outta town. Yankees are getting older and doing roughly nothing so far to get better. But sure, re-sign Ichiro.

Frayed Knot Dec 02 2012 09:20 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Resigning Ichiro may or may not turn out to be a good move. They certainly got post-trade use out of him far beyond what they c/should have expected [Sea 2012 = .261/.288/.353 vs MFY 2012 = .322/.340/.454]. They started off by telling him he was only acquired to bat 9th, hit just against RHPs, and for late inning defense because that's kind of what his profile suggested he was good at at this point in his career. But within a month in NYC he was playing every day and hitting leadoff again. Some of that difference can be explained by park factors, part to small sample size, and maybe part to 2012 simply being a good year to trade for Suzukis*, but with Swisher almost certainly gone they need somebody out there even with Brett Gardner coming back. I bring up Ichiro here only because it seems like the Yanx are taking his desire to be back in NY for granted to the point where his agent feels the need to flaunt that there's been interest from, I believe he used the word "numerous", other clubs in an apparent effort to light a fire under Cashman's butt. Both Ichiro (through his agent) and Martin have either stated or implied that they heard virtually nothing from the club whilst others came-a-courtin'. MFY mgmt, it seems, are so focused on their pitching that they've yet to even talk to their position players except to reassure Alex that they still love and care for him even if all the other kids in the class pick on him and call him names. * Kurt Suzuki's 2012 saw an OPS of 536 with Oakland then a post-trade 725 in Washington. Ichiro = 641 w/Seattle vs 794 w/Yanx Pre-trade the Suzukis hit 5 HRs in 680 ABs [4 for Ichiro, 1 for Kurt]. Post-trade they hit 10 in just 404 [5 + 5]

Ceetar Dec 03 2012 08:14 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

more hip surgery for A-Rod. re-tear. likely missing the beginning of the season.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Dec 03 2012 08:24 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

LOL. Meantime the Snooze today ran a picture of Jeter, the caption remarking how "fit" he looked.

Ceetar Dec 03 2012 08:33 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Ceetar wrote: more hip surgery for A-Rod. re-tear. likely missing the beginning of the season. A-Rod so much pain he spent the entire playoffs on pain meds, a night in the emergency room. This probably explains his benching and why he didn't take offense to it at all. What it doesn't explain is how that all went two months without being known. Are the beat guys with the Yankees reporters, or lackeys?

themetfairy Dec 03 2012 08:44 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

I think the unfocused expression is what really makes the picture. He doesn't merely have a gut - he has a gut and looks totally moronic as well.

MFS62 Dec 03 2012 09:04 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Ceetar wrote: more hip surgery for A-Rod. re-tear. likely missing the beginning of the season. Hearing this news, and looking at the picture of Jeter, it looks like between them this year, ... there will be a lot of ground ball singles. Later

Frayed Knot Dec 03 2012 10:46 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

This problem is apparently with the other hip and not the one he had worked on previously. Surgery is being recommended and the team is expecting that he'll be out until June or July. They're going to have dueling walkers over on that side of the infield. Eric Chavez's price just went up.

metsmarathon Dec 03 2012 11:44 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

not that he needs a short porch, but i imagine putting mark reynolds in pinstripes would cause more than a few balls to leave the yard.

Frayed Knot Dec 06 2012 09:25 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

So the response to the ARod injury is apparently to throw a big-bucks ($12mil) one-year offer at Kevin Youkilis. Youkilis supposedly has an offer from the Indians (and Francona) and has had discussions with others as well.

Swan Swan H Dec 07 2012 09:43 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

My guess - they're going to trade Granderson for a serviceable 3B and sign Josh Hamilton.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Dec 07 2012 09:58 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

I'll take Granderson for Lutz AND Satin.

Ceetar Dec 07 2012 10:05 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: I'll take Granderson for Lutz AND Satin. For that, sure, but I'd just as soon trade for Corey Hart.

Swan Swan H Dec 11 2012 06:57 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Youk is a Yank. One year, $12M.

seawolf17 Dec 11 2012 07:22 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Awesomely, the Yankees replaced Alex Rodriguez with the only third baseman in all of organized baseball who they hate more than Alex Rodriguez. LIVING THIRD BASEMEN, in order of preference by Yankees fans: 1. Graig Nettles 2. Mike Pagliarulo 3. Aaron Bleeping Boone ... ... ... 8612. Some guy who hit .130 in the Mexican League 8613. A 57-year-old beer league softball player who strikes out every time up 8614. Alex Rodriguez 8615. Kevin Youkilis

metsguyinmichigan Dec 11 2012 07:50 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

seawolf17 wrote: Awesomely, the Yankees replaced Alex Rodriguez with the only third baseman in all of organized baseball who they hate more than Alex Rodriguez. LIVING THIRD BASEMEN, in order of preference by Yankees fans: 1. Graig Nettles 2. Mike Pagliarulo 3. Aaron Bleeping Boone ... ... ... 8612. Some guy who hit .130 in the Mexican League 8613. A 57-year-old beer league softball player who strikes out every time up 8614. Alex Rodriguez 8615. Kevin Youkilis If we still had bullets of cool, this would be a winner!

Edgy MD Dec 12 2012 07:10 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

It's also a cool R.E.D. I'd be curious to follow that list down --- see where Charlie Hayes, JIm Leyritz, and Robin Ventura rank. Rodriguez, amazingly, is second all-time in games played at third for the Yankees. Yet somehow, he's still trying to culturally establish himself there. It's like one of those TV shows you watch and it doesn't really make sense, you shrug, and assume it won't last long. Yet year after year, you switch through the dial and it's still there. Alex Rodriguez = The Facts of Life, Alf, and Small Wonder rolled into one.

sharpie Dec 12 2012 07:15 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

I think Scott Brosius makes that list of 3b that MFY fans have fond feelings for.

metsmarathon Dec 12 2012 07:23 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Edgy MD wrote: It's also a cool R.E.D. I'd be curious to follow that list down --- see where Charlie Hayes, JIm Leyritz, and Robin Ventura rank. Rodriguez, amazingly, is second all-time in games played at third for the Yankees. Yet somehow, he's still trying to culturally establish himself there. It's like one of those TV shows you watch and it doesn't really make sense, you shrug, and assume it won't last long. Yet year after year, you switch through the dial and it's still there. Alex Rodriguez = The Facts of Life, Alf, and Small Wonder rolled into one. i'm thinking more along hte lines of life according to jim and my wife and kids, that thing with damon wayans that lasted five seasons.

Mets – Willets Point Dec 12 2012 07:27 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Edgy MD wrote: Rodriguez, amazingly, is second all-time in games played at third for the Yankees. Yet somehow, he's still trying to culturally establish himself there. He's the Ronnie Wood of the Yankees.

MFS62 Dec 12 2012 08:11 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

WFAN reporting that Ichiro re-signs with the MFYs. They're not sure if for one year or two. Pretty sure he'll be ranked above Hector "What a Pair of Hands" Lopez on their all-time list of living left fielders. Later

Frayed Knot Dec 23 2012 04:23 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

So with Swisher skipping off to Cleveland for the next few years, the Yanx have now lost 94 of their record-setting 245 HRs from last year's squad (38%) 2012 Yanx taking their act elsewhere for 2013 include: Russell Martin (going to Pitt - 21 HRs in 2012), Raul Ibanez (Sea - 19), Nick Swisher (Cleve - 24), Eric Chavez (Ariz - 16), Andruw Jones (Japan - 14) with only Kevin Youkilis plus some odd parts yet to be determined to take their place. And although they got "only" 18 HRs out of ARod, with his latest injury keeping him out until mid-season (if things go well) they certainly can't expect a bounce-back to his higher numbers of years ago either and may even get fewer there too. Oddly (although perhaps not) this sounds like what many Yanqui fans spent last year claiming they wanted: less reliance on the HRs and more "small ball", although they should probably be reminded of the saying about being careful what you wish for.

Edgy MD Dec 23 2012 06:55 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

The big secret of homeruns --- they're a cathartic thing in general when they happen, but they generally make baseball more boring.

Lefty Specialist Dec 24 2012 09:51 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Edgy MD wrote: The big secret of homeruns --- they're a cathartic thing in general when they happen, but they generally make baseball more boring. I wouldn't know about home runs. I'm a Mets fan.

Ceetar Jan 06 2013 10:10 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

the Yankees are apparently franchising the steakhouse they have at the ballpark and opening one in Midtown.

Frayed Knot Feb 02 2013 05:57 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Travis Hafner signing completed, will DH vs RHPs at least. Was briefly a monster hitter--led MLB in OPS in 2006 and OPS+ in '04 & '06--but has been oft-injured since, not getting as many as 400 ABs since 2007. Had just 219 ABs last year; still takes his walks, has a bit of punch when he does hit (40% of hits in 2012 for XBx), and then there's the whole LHB in YSIII thing where he can't help but mis-hit a handful out of the stadium. Is a .186 hitter in 43 post-season ABs so I'm sure some MFY fans will see that as a fatal flaw before he ever suits up. Turns 36 in June so maybe they're looking get younger after all.

Edgy MD Feb 02 2013 07:39 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Travis Hafner can hit homeruns with one arm at Yankee Stadium III.

dinosaur jesus Feb 02 2013 03:30 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Lefty Specialist wrote: Edgy MD wrote: The big secret of homeruns --- they're a cathartic thing in general when they happen, but they generally make baseball more boring. I wouldn't know about home runs. I'm a Mets fan. A woman I used to know who'd been a Mets fan in the sixties and seventies said that the "Knocking those home runs over the wall" line in "Meet the Mets" used to make her cry. And I remember having ethical qualms in the early eighties about the heavy hitters the Mets had acquired--meaning Kingman, Ellis Valentine, and George Foster. There seemed something disreputable about winning games with those boughten sluggers. Fortunately, my worries were unfounded. I was never meant to be a Yankees fan.

Ceetar Feb 07 2013 02:48 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

[url]http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/08/sports/baseball/jeter-fans-line-up-shut-up-and-wait.html?smid=tw-share Makes Jeter look like a primadonna. (well, he is) but that won't tarnish his image or anything.

Frayed Knot Feb 07 2013 02:57 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Feb 07 2013 03:00 PM

I have a tough time whipping up much sympathy for (adult) autograph hounds because their ten hour wait for a 35th autograph by the same guy proves fruitless. And speaking of disappointed Yanqui fans, Felix Hernandez is on the verge of signing a seven-year contract extension. So many of those poor YLDBs simply assumed he would be theirs by now either via trade (lop-sided in their favor of course - just a coupla prospects) or upon first blush of free-agency. Competition really sucks sometimes.

Ceetar Feb 07 2013 03:00 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Frayed Knot wrote: I have a tough time whipping up much sympathy for (adult) autograph hounds because their ten hour wait for a 35th autograph by the same guy proves fruitless. you could argue that these hounds are part of the reason guys don't sign as much too. Harder to blame a guy for not signing when more often than not it's these guys he's not signing for.

vtmet Feb 07 2013 03:33 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Ceetar wrote: [url]http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/08/sports/baseball/jeter-fans-line-up-shut-up-and-wait.html?smid=tw-share Makes Jeter look like a primadonna. (well, he is) but that won't tarnish his image or anything. those are some messed up people...camping out at 3am so that they can be in line to maybe get an autograph from a guy that doesn't know/care that they exist...and some of them are "professional" people with jobs that require them to be alert, not zombies from not sleeping for days waiting for Jeter to bless their paper... “I guess I’ll have to come back again tomorrow if he doesn’t sign today,” said Melissa Davis, a patient-support technician at a hospital in Clearwater, whose prize for showing up at 4 a.m. was the sixth spot in line, a prime piece of real estate. She had not slept in two days, she said. Or was it three? She was, by her own admission, bordering on delirium. “I’m basically on a mission at this point,” said Davis, who kept herself occupied by reading “Fifty Shades of Grey” on her Kindle. “I want his autograph. You can’t really talk to him because he’s not going to sit and talk to you. So I want his autograph. That’s all I want.” that Johnson guy definitely sounds like a dick...

Ashie62 Feb 07 2013 04:59 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

A few years ago the Yankees were at Detroit and Jeter accepted an award for his foundation from the Mayor of Detroit at home plate. As quickly as Jeter shook the Mayors hand, a Mayor's flunkie jammed a ball and pen in Jeters face. Caught Jeter off guard but he signed it on reflex..

metsguyinmichigan Feb 07 2013 05:31 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

This is horrible, and seems like he doesn't appreciate the people who pay that salary: “Single file! No chitchat! He doesn’t want to hear about your personal life, so don’t ask him about his!” Cal Ripken was legendary for going above and beyond in his treatment of fans. I know it becomes a grind for these guys, especially when they have to deal with the professionals who are there not because they are fans, but because they want to sell them immediately. But I wasn't surprised to read that about Granderson, who was very, very classy in my experiences with him. He was in Grand Rapids for a couple rehab games with the Whitecaps -- the Tigers' Midwest-A team here -- and had the team call the city schools and say that he was available to do things with students in the down time. He came out to a middle school and gave a great assembly speech about staying in school and answered all kinds of questions.

Edgy MD Feb 07 2013 08:23 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

I can't imagine I'd put up with the endless signing if I was a ballplayer.

metirish Feb 24 2013 01:26 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Curtis Granderson out 10 weeks with a fractured arm.....

John Cougar Lunchbucket Feb 24 2013 01:38 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

1st pitch of the spring off his arm, ouch. Toronto means business. Shame it was JA Happ and not RA Dickey.

Fman99 Feb 24 2013 06:54 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

metirish wrote: Curtis Granderson out 10 weeks with a fractured arm..... Oh, the Grandy Man CAN'T!

Edgy MD Feb 24 2013 07:00 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

That ends the Yankees' years of handwringing about using their best centerfielder in centerfield.

Frayed Knot Feb 24 2013 07:02 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

So has Hank-en-steinbrenner called for a ban on spring training games yet? Or sanctions against whatever team/pitcher did that to him? Or did he cut right to the chase and once again demand that the Yanx be given a pass directly into the post-season each year so as to not have to endure such wrenches thrown into their carefully drawn-out plans?

Edgy MD Feb 28 2013 09:18 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Sabathia looks like he's out.

Frayed Knot Feb 28 2013 06:52 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Cashman sez that the Yanx have made "a considerable offer" to Robinson Cano. Suddenly that "policy" of not negotiating prior to a contract being up seems to have disappeared.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Mar 04 2013 10:13 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Brian Cashman destroys ankle skydiving.

Ceetar Mar 04 2013 10:14 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Shouldn't we create/move this to MFY In-Season Circus? preseason circus?

Edgy MD Mar 04 2013 10:35 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Or merely "Circus"?

metsmarathon Mar 04 2013 11:54 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

he just wanted to be like jeter.

metirish Mar 04 2013 12:00 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

metsmarathon wrote: he just wanted to be like jeter. that's funny right there.

Edgy MD Mar 04 2013 08:01 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

No, I don't know who Dog and Pony Show are, but HOLY CRAP!

metirish Mar 04 2013 08:17 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Edgy MD wrote: No, I don't know who Dog and Pony Show are, but HOLY CRAP! please let it be so ......

Edgy MD Mar 04 2013 08:38 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Bigger outlets not picking it up yet, so I'm going to have to predict a likely bullshit story.

MFS62 Mar 05 2013 08:11 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: Brian Cashman destroys ankle skydiving. As we said in the Army about the Airborne guys, only two things fall out of the sky - birdshit and idiots. Later

Edgy MD Mar 05 2013 03:12 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

40 years ago today, the circus got real.

Ashie62 Mar 05 2013 03:57 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

And they even traded their kids..

themetfairy Mar 05 2013 04:39 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

And a dog!

Benjamin Grimm Mar 05 2013 06:32 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

That was great. They oughta do something like that again!

Fman99 Mar 05 2013 08:30 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Edgy MD wrote: 40 years ago today, the circus got real. Not going to lie to you. This is the greatest baseball story ever told. Fuck Fred Merkle and Babe calling his shot and "The Natural." This is it, right here.

Fman99 Mar 06 2013 04:37 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

And the hits just keep on coming! Mark Teixeira shut down for two weeks after hearing a "pop" in his wrist, team very concerned, back to NY for tests.

Frayed Knot Mar 06 2013 06:21 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Fman99 wrote: And the hits just keep on coming! Mark Teixeira shut down for two weeks after hearing a "pop" in his wrist, team very concerned, back to NY for tests. And the WBC takes down yet another player!

Frayed Knot Mar 06 2013 05:06 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Mar 07 2013 06:04 AM

Fman99 wrote: And the hits just keep on coming! Mark Teixeira shut down for two weeks after hearing a "pop" in his wrist, team very concerned, back to NY for tests. And when they say two weeks they mean eight to ten. Between the injuries and the FA losses, the Yanx OPening Day lineup will be missing 179* HRs from last year's squad ... although, based on what I've been hearing from Yanx fans much of the winter, this will be a positive thing since it'll allow them to fill the order with bunters and stealers which will shirley net them more runs. * Most teams don't even hit 179 HRs in a season much less lose that amount from their final game one year to OD the following. R Martin = 21, Teixeira = 24; ARod = 18; Ibanez = 19; Granderson = 43; Swisher = 24; Eric Chavez = 16; Andruw Jones = 14 ... and that's assuming that Jeter and his 15 HRs make it back by April 1 On the other hand, at least some of these guys are getting a chunk of their DL time out of the way during the winter & exhibition season so much of the DL lengths don't really add up to as much as they sound.

The Second Spitter Mar 07 2013 04:13 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Frayed Knot wrote: Fman99 wrote: And the hits just keep on coming! Mark Teixeira shut down for two weeks after hearing a "pop" in his wrist, team very concerned, back to NY for tests. And when they say two weeks they mean eight to ten.. Judging by Forrest Gump's historical standards, he should start hitting above the Mendoza line sometime around late-August.

batmagadanleadoff Mar 08 2013 08:35 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

The End of the Yankees' Evil Empire The Bronx Bombers are in danger of falling below .500 for the first time in 20 years By Rany Jazayerli on March 7, 2013 Last month, a franchise synonymous with winning scored another victory. The New York Yankees won a court ruling against a company that had attempted to register the phrase "Baseballs Evil Empire." The Yankees may not have appreciated it when Red Sox president Larry Lucchino first used the term to describe them in 2002, but if anyone was going to make money off the phrase, damn it, it was going to be them. Even if it means, as written in the judges' decision, "The record shows that there is only one Evil Empire in baseball and it is the New York Yankees." Defending your brand is Business 101, but in this case, I'm not sure the Yankees should be so quick to embrace the trademark. It's not simply that the Evil Empire was, you know, evil; I think the Yankees made their peace with that a long time ago. Maybe the Steinbrenner family made the mistake of watching the Star Wars saga in numerical order, and gave up after Episode III — and let's be honest, most of us would have done the same thing — but if they did, they would have missed the fact that (spoiler alert) the Evil Empire lost in the end. Today's Yankees aren't used to losing, but there was a time when the New York Yankees weren't The Most Successful Team In American Sports. Once upon a time, the team wasn't even in New York. The franchise began in 1901 as the Baltimore Orioles; it took two years for management to rip through all five seasons of The Wire and realize they needed to hightail it to New York. There, they were known as the Highlanders, but after a middling decade and two 100-loss seasons, they finally tired of trying to behead their opponents and rechristened themselves the Yankees in 1913. The first eight seasons as the Yankees were no more memorable than the previous 12. After the 1920 season the Yankees still had never won a pennant, let alone a World Series that might ease the ribbing from teams like the Red Sox (five world championships) and Cubs (two). Then New York began a stretch of 29 AL pennants in 44 years. After losing its first two World Series in 1921 and 1922, it won 16 of the next 18 it played in. From 1926 to 1964 the Yankees had 39 consecutive winning seasons. To put that in perspective, the Pittsburgh Pirates just set the major league record for consecutive losing seasons — at 20. When you win as many championships as every other team combined during a 40-year stretch, as the Yankees did from 1923 to 1962, you'll convince a lot of people that winning is your birthright. But it's not. The Yankees didn't win anything from 1901 to 1920, and they didn't win anything from 1965 to 1975, and they didn't win anything during the dysfunctional Steinbrenner years from 1982 to 1993. From 1989 to 1992, the Yankees finished below .500 for four glorious years in a row, the first time they had done so since World War I. In 1990 they finished dead last in the AL, were granted the no. 1 overall pick as an eternal monument to their shame, and then blew the pick on Brien Taylor. It was a good time to be a fan of any other team in baseball. Yankeefreude was at its peak. Today, that era seems as long ago as the Highlander years. When George Steinbrenner was suspended from baseball for hiring gambler Howie Spira to dig up dirt on Dave Winfield, it finally gave the front office the breathing room it needed to build a long-neglected farm system. The 1994-95 strike exacerbated the gap between the haves and have-nots, and the Yankees had more of everything than anyone else. The Yankees are working on a new streak of 20 consecutive winning seasons. They've won at least 87 games for 17 straight years, a major league record. They reached the postseason 13 straight years from 1995 to 2007, and they've been playoff-bound in 17 of the last 18 years, both streaks unmatched in baseball history.1 Given that Yankees fans graduating high school this year have missed just one October in their lifetime, it's easy to assume that the way it has always been is the way it will always be. But the Yankees have fallen off their perch before, and they may be about to fall off their perch again. The Yankees are old. This is not a new development; they've been old throughout their entire stretch of dominance. When they began their run in 1995, the average age of the offense was 31, and the offense has averaged more than 30 years of age for 18 years straight. Their pitching staff was relatively young in the early years, back when Andy Pettitte and Mariano Rivera were in their mid-20s, but since 1998 the average age of the pitchers has been more than 30 every year but one. There's no mystery as to why the Yankees are old. While not all good players are old, good free agents tend to be old. This is why, on the whole, free agents are overpaid; you're buying into a declining market when you're signing players in their late 20s and early 30s. But these are the Yankees, and they have enough money to worry about talent first and cost second. The Yankees' blueprint for success isn't particularly complicated. They developed talent from within, used their money to keep their best homegrown players for life, and used even more money to fill the roster holes with the best available talent. So Derek Jeter, Bernie Williams, Jorge Posada, Rivera, and Pettitte all have or will retire as Yankees, with only Pettitte escaping for a few years in Houston. And around them, they've brought in expensive, aging, but nonetheless outstanding players to keep the machine humming. Sometimes they ponied up for premier free agents (Mike Mussina, Jason Giambi, Mark Teixeira, CC Sabathia), and sometimes they paid for second-line free agents to fill a need (David Wells, Johnny Damon, A.J. Burnett). Sometimes they used their money and their prestige to lure the best international talent (Hideki Matsui, Orlando Hernandez, Hideki Irabu, Jose Contreras, Alfonso Soriano, Chien-Ming Wang). More often, they took advantage of their capacity to absorb huge contracts to trade for superstars close to free agency, and then extend them at market value (David Cone, Roger Clemens, Alex Rodriguez, Randy Johnson, Curtis Granderson, even Chuck Knoblauch and Nick Swisher). Hell, they traded for Javier Vazquez twice. Not every acquisition worked out, but most of them did — at least at first — and the Yankees had the money to flush the mistakes away and keep winning. Sure, they were old, but they were old with different players every season, bringing in new crops of past-prime stars whenever it was time to put the last crop out to pasture. When you're able to feast on the free-agent market every winter, it's not that hard to build a perennial winner. What made the Yankees a dynasty is that they developed five Hall of Fame or near–Hall of Fame talents of their own in a short time. Williams debuted in 1991, and in 1995 the Yankees had perhaps the greatest rookie quartet by a single team in major league history: The Core Four (Jeter, Rivera, Pettitte, and Posada) all debuted that year.2 Take a franchise capable of fielding payrolls two or three times the league average, mix in the greatest rookie crop ever, and 17 playoff berths and five world championships in 18 seasons seems like a foregone conclusion. Take away both ingredients, and suddenly 18 playoff berths in 19 seasons seems like a long shot. The storm the Yankees are about to sail through has been cloaked by their remarkable consistency in recent years — in six of the last eight seasons, they won between 94 and 97 games. After they fell short in 2008, the Yankees signed three of the five best free agents available: Sabathia, Burnett, and Teixeira. In 2009, they won 103 games and another world championship. That consistency masks the fact that one of their two greatest weapons — their payroll — has gone stagnant. In 2005, the Yankees' payroll exceeded $209 million, having more than doubled since 2000. No other team had a payroll higher than $126 million; the median payroll was barely $65 million. The difference between the Yankees' payroll and the second-place Red Sox would itself have been the 11th-highest payroll in the game. Seven years later, revenues and payrolls throughout baseball have jumped, but the Yankees have stayed in place. The combined payroll of all 30 teams rose 37 percent, from $2.201 billion to $3.021 billion, from 2005 to 2012. The Yankees' payroll, meanwhile, inched up to $211 million, a 1 percent increase over seven years. This year's payroll is more of the same — currently a shade more than $208 million. The Yankees have kept winning because the gap between them and everyone else didn't close completely. It only narrowed. But this year, for the first time since 1998, the Yankees don't have the highest payroll in baseball. This is because: 1. The new owners of the Los Angeles Dodgers are throwing their money around like drunken sailors. 2. The luxury tax, which has long been just an annoyance to the Yankees, has suddenly taken on a great deal more importance. The luxury tax, which was first instituted in the collective bargaining agreement after the 2002 season, would be more accurately called The Yankee Tax. The Yankees have exceeded the threshold every year since its creation, and the franchise has paid anywhere from $12 million to $34 million a year for the privilege of lapping the field in payroll. The Red Sox are the only other team that has paid meaningful taxes.3 They have gone over the threshold six times, but they never paid much more than $6 million in penalties. For years, the Yankees have acted as if the luxury tax was just the cost of doing business. But George Steinbrenner died in 2010, and his maniacal focus on winning seems to have gone with him. His sons, Hank and Hal, like winning just fine, but they would prefer to win and make piles of money. So, although they've been willing to maintain the team's payroll well above the current luxury-tax threshold of $178 million, they haven't increased payroll in eight years. The Steinbrenners' unwillingness to raise payroll has made it more difficult for the Yankees to bring in fresh veterans to replace the worn-out ones. As a result, the team has stuck with its old guys even as they turned into really old guys — last year, the offense averaged 32.7 years old, the oldest in franchise history and the third-oldest in baseball history. The newest CBA, agreed to after the 2011 season, included two key changes [PDF] to the luxury tax. The first is that the highest tax rate (which, of course, applies to the Yankees) was increased from 40 to 50 percent. The second change is that, should a team avoid the luxury tax even once, its tax rate will drop back to the lowest level (17.5 percent) the next time it exceeds the threshold, and rise incrementally from there. In other words, if the Yankees can get below the tax threshold just once, they won't just save millions of dollars that year, they'll also save millions for the three subsequent years even if they jack up their payroll again. The Yankees aren't shy in disclosing that this is their strategy — they've been talking about it publicly for more than a year. The threshold increases to $189 million in 2014, and the franchise plans to get its payroll below that mark next year. Which would be its lowest payroll in a decade. It would be almost impossible to drop $30 million worth of salaries in one offseason, particularly with so many long-term contracts (which tend to escalate over time) on the books. To get payroll under control for 2014, the cost-cutting had to start this year. A franchise that had essentially never lost a free agent it wanted chose to let three of them get away this winter. Rafael Soriano, who took over the closer's role and saved 42 games after Rivera tore his ACL in April of 2012, signed a two-year contract with the Washington Nationals. Nick Swisher, who provided eerily consistent production as the Yankees' right fielder the last four years — between 23 and 29 homers and an OPS+ between 120 and 129 each year — was lost to the Indians, who signed him to a four-year contract. Swisher was replaced by Ichiro Suzuki, who doesn't have Swisher's stick at this point in his career, but brings experience and gravitas to the position — plus a much cheaper two-year, $13 million contract. Rivera's return should help paper over Soriano's absence. But the third free agent to depart, Russell Martin, is the most humiliating loss and the most irreplaceable. It's not that Martin is a star. He hit just .224/.317/.405 with solid defense in his two seasons as the Yankees' starting catcher. His departure is humiliating because the Yankees lost him to the Pittsburgh Pirates. What's disturbing is that the Yankees let him go even though they don't have anyone to replace him. Right now the catching duties are to be split between Chris Stewart and Francisco Cervelli, and even as I type those words I can't believe THE NEW YORK YANKEES are going into a season with Chris Stewart and Francisco Cervelli behind the plate. The Yankees don't have anyone better because of the deterioration of their other great weapon: In the 18 years since the Core Four debuted, the Yankees haven't developed anyone to replace them, with one exception. Robinson Cano came up in 2005, and to the surprise of just about everyone, he developed into the best second baseman in baseball. But aside from Cano … bubkes. A look at the team's top prospect as ranked by Baseball America every year is instructive. After Jeter topped the list in 1994, their top prospects include Ruben Rivera (three times),4 Eric Milton, Nick Johnson (three times), Drew Henson, Jose Contreras, Dioner Navarro, Eric Duncan, Phil Hughes (twice), Joba Chamberlain, Austin Jackson, and Jesus Montero (three times). Hughes is the only player on that list who was neither a bust nor traded for established veterans early in his career. And at some point, the players who debuted in the majors the year ESPN launched its website are going to decline. Granted, aside from the retired Posada they haven't yet, which is insane. But Derek Jeter turns 39 in June. Andy Pettitte will be 41, and he already retired once. Mariano Rivera is 43 and coming off knee surgery. Add it all together — the Yanks' sudden penurious streak, the lack of player development, the $28 million paid to Alex Rodriguez — and here's what the Yankees' lineup looks like: RF Ichiro Suzuki: If the Yankees are getting the rejuvenated Ichiro who hit .322 after joining the Yankees last July, they won't miss a beat in right field. But over the last two years, Ichiro hit .277/.308/.361. He's 39. Even his defense is starting to slip. SS Derek Jeter: He's still Derek Jeter, and he did hit .316/.362/.429 last year, just a tick off his career average. But he was just average at the plate in 2010 and 2011, his defensive range can be measured with a micrometer at this point, and last season ended with the Captain fracturing his left ankle while fielding a ground ball. 2B Robinson Cano: A stud. No criticisms here. 3B Kevin Youkilis: Signed to replace A-Rod, who will miss half the season with hip surgery, Youkilis hit .235/.336/.409 last season. He turns 34 later this month. He was an excellent player as recently as 2011 and he may regain his old form, but guys who fit his profile — right-handed hitters with little athleticism in their mid-30s — tend to fall off the cliff fast. DH Travis Hafner: It wasn't that long ago that Hafner was arguably the most feared hitter in the AL. Oh, wait — 2006 was a long time ago. Hafner is a solid platoon DH when healthy, but he has spent time on the DL for five years running, and he's almost 36. CF Brett Gardner: Gardner was one of the most underrated players in baseball three years ago, combining a high OBP with terrific speed and elite defense in left field. But he missed almost all of last season with an elbow injury and he'll be asked to transition to center field this year. Catcher du jour: Chris Stewart is 31, he's batted fewer than 400 times in the majors, and he has a career line of .217/.281/.302. He's the starter. The backup is Francisco Cervelli, who is younger and has hit .271/.339/.353 in his brief career, but Cervelli spent almost all of last year in Triple-A (and batted poorly) because he couldn't beat out Stewart for the backup job. The Yankees haven't punted on a position like this in 20 years. In left field, the Yankees have Curtis Granderson, who is the only hitter other than Cano who doesn't come with question marks about injuries or age-related decline. Well, they had Granderson, whose right forearm was broken by a pitch last week — he's out until at least mid-May. In his place, Yankees fans will be treated to the likes of Juan Rivera (.244/.286/.375 last year, 34 years old) and Matt Diaz (.222/.280/.333 last year, 35 years old). The bad news continues to accumulate. On Tuesday, first baseman Mark Teixeira was pulled from the World Baseball Classic after straining his wrist on a practice swing. This isn't simply bad luck; old players get hurt more than young players, and Teixeira is 32 years old and his OPS has declined for five straight seasons. Like Granderson, Teixeira probably won't be back until mid-May, meaning that of the eight players who hit 16 or more homers for the Yankees last year, just one (Cano) will be in their Opening Day lineup. Teixeira's likely replacement, Dan Johnson, is a fantastic hitter — on the last day of the season. The rest of the year, he's terrible. It's not necessarily a bad lineup, or at least it won't be once Granderson and Teixeira return, and assuming no one else gets hurt. But there's no there there, and if the old guys start playing like old guys, the downside risk is enormous. The pitching staff looks somewhat better, thanks to Sabathia, a bona fide ace still in his prime. Hiroki Kuroda, who is 38 years old but is staking his claim as the best starting pitcher ever from Japan, follows him. After those two come the quadragenarian Pettitte; Hughes, who has been healthy enough to make 15 starts just twice in six seasons; and Ivan Nova, whose ERA was greater than 5 last season. At some point the Yankees hope to get Michael Pineda back, but coming off labrum surgery, it's anyone's guess how effective he'll be. In the bullpen, so long as Rivera is Rivera, they'll be fine. For the first time in 20 years, the Yankees are not a good team, and that won't cut it in an AL East that figures to be as competitive as ever. The Red Sox have their own issues but still possess the talent to be dangerous. The Rays have reloaded their offense and feature a freakishly good 1-2-3 in their rotation. The Blue Jays are probably the most improved team in the majors, and the Orioles — well, I suppose it's possible they'll go 29-9 in one-run games again.5 If everything goes right, the Yankees can win 90 games again and contend for an AL East title. But for the first time since before the strike, the Yankees need everything to go right. And it never does. Things are already going wrong, with a third of the projected lineup on the DL. They don't have the depth to replace Granderson and Teixeira; other players will get hurt, and they won't have the depth to replace them. Players will underperform, and they don't have anyone in the minors who can step up. (The Yankees have a pretty good farm system, but their top five prospects — Mason Williams, Slade Heathcott, Gary Sanchez, Tyler Austin, and Jose Campos — have combined for two games in Double-A.) So long as the Yankees stick to their guns and aim to get their payroll under the threshold next year, they won't be able to purchase help from outside the organization. The team's streak of 87 or more wins is in mortal danger, and so is its streak of 20 winning seasons in a row. If the old guys show their age all at once and another key player goes down — particularly Sabathia — they could collapse like last year's Red Sox. And 2014 will be worse. The Yankees only have four players under contract for next year, but they owe those players — Rodriguez, Sabathia, Teixeira, and Ichiro — more than $78 million. Cano will be a free agent, and with the Dodgers trying their best to out-Yankee the Yankees, it's no guarantee he'll re-sign in the Bronx. Cano is just the tip of the iceberg. Other free agents next winter include Granderson, Kuroda, Youkilis, Pettitte, Hughes, Hafner, Joba Chamberlain, and Boone Logan. (Jeter has a player option.) As much as 40 percent of this year's roster will be available to the highest bidder next winter, just as the Yankees will be cutting payroll. The news that Rivera plans to retire at the end of this season is a further blow to the Yankees' chances. Rivera is not only the best reliever in major league history, he might be the most consistent — since moving to the bullpen in 1996, he has never had an ERA higher than 3.15. For the last 15 years, the Yankees haven't had to worry about the ninth inning. Next year, they will. Assembling a complete roster with no immediate help from the minor leagues and precious few pre-arbitration major leaguers will be an immense challenge. It's no wonder that GM Brian Cashman has been skydiving recently — he probably wants to get intimately familiar with the sensation of free-falling. But as he found out, falling isn't the hard part; landing is. For anyone who has watched baseball over the last two decades, it's nearly impossible to imagine the Yankees as a toothless franchise. But when you build around old, expensive players, the reckoning coming up in your side mirror is — like the dinosaur in Jurassic Park — closer than it appears. (Just ask the Phillies.) So it's time to proclaim the truth that everyone has danced around so far this year: The Evil Emperor has no clothes. Even the Yankees are capable of down cycles. This looks like the start of one. http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/902 ... es-to-fall

Benjamin Grimm Mar 08 2013 09:50 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

batmagadanleadoff wrote: The Bronx Bombers are in danger of falling below .500 for the first time in 20 years And it's about time!

Edgy MD Mar 08 2013 10:11 AM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

That piece has a high pop culture reference-to-paragraph ratio.

Lefty Specialist Mar 08 2013 12:01 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

I'm guessing that the Yankees will win 95 games and the division just to annoy me (and the writer).

metirish Mar 08 2013 12:02 PM Re: MFY Off-Season Circus

Benjamin Grimm wrote: batmagadanleadoff wrote: The Bronx Bombers are in danger of falling below .500 for the first time in 20 years And it's about time! Christ, we just want a team to compete....

Edgy MD Mar 14 2013 12:28 PM Re: MFY Off-Season/Pre-Season Circus

Blue Jays 15 Yankees 1 Waiting for the third inning to start.

Mets – Willets Point Mar 14 2013 01:22 PM Re: MFY Off-Season/Pre-Season Circus

Edgy MD wrote: Blue Jays 15 Yankees 1 Waiting for the third inning to start. This is just a terrible score Edward. Terrible because it's a meaningless spring training game and not regular season or postseason. I guess if it prompts the Yankees FO to make a desperation move that blows up in their faces that would be good.

Edgy MD Mar 14 2013 01:25 PM Re: MFY Off-Season/Pre-Season Circus

Bottom of the fifth and it's 17-4. I love the happy hometown spin MLB webpages give everything. Yankees.com reports, "Pair of doubles gives Yankees a third-inning boost." Great! Sucker.

Valadius Mar 14 2013 08:05 PM Re: MFY Off-Season/Pre-Season Circus

Derrek Lee rebuffs the MFYs, opts to stay retired rather than jump on board a sinking ship.

Frayed Knot Mar 14 2013 09:11 PM Re: MFY Off-Season/Pre-Season Circus

The Yanx seem almost overly concerned with defense in recent years even at corner positions. Derrek Lee was a terrific 1Bman but has been retired for a year and a half. Meanwhile Carlos Lee played last year and they're not considering him nor do they want to let Travis Hafner break out his glove even for a short time and even though he's already on their roster.

metsguyinmichigan Mar 17 2013 06:02 PM Re: MFY Off-Season/Pre-Season Circus

MLB network reporting that Teixireiaxa or however the heck he spells it could be out for the season.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Mar 17 2013 06:37 PM Re: MFY Off-Season/Pre-Season Circus

lolololol

Frayed Knot Mar 17 2013 06:52 PM Re: MFY Off-Season/Pre-Season Circus

metsguyinmichigan wrote: MLB network reporting that Teixireiaxa or however the heck he spells it could be out for the season. Yaneberknow with those wrist tendon injuries. Clean breaks like the one Granderson got are easier to predict and recover from in most cases.

Edgy MD Mar 17 2013 07:21 PM Re: MFY Off-Season/Pre-Season Circus

This is going to be one strange opening day in New York. Both teams are at home and the highest-profile healthy dude will be... C.C. Sabathia? He's starting late, too, though. I guess it's Cano. But he still has to get through spring training without getting suspended. Plus he has to survive the deadly World Baseball Classic.

Frayed Knot Mar 24 2013 03:39 PM Re: MFY Off-Season/Pre-Season Circus

-- The Angels and Yankees are closing in on a deal that would send Vernon Wells to the Bronx, sources confirmed to MLB.com on Sunday. Wells seems like one of those aging vets (aging?, hell, he brings the team average down several notches) and on his last legs guys (although he's still only 34) who suddenly hit like one home-run every six ABs in a part-time role once he hits the Bronx (see GlenAllen Hill, Andruw Jones, Raul Ibanez, others) even though he's pretty much just warmed-over goo coming in: (2011-12 stats = .222/.258/.409 with 26 HRs over 748 ABs) They of course need to work out the money involved (owed $42 mil over the next two seasons) and what if anything goes back the other way (the more of one the less of the other). Wells had tumbled to fifth on the OF depth chart in Anaheim. Think about how much the Angels have paid over a virtually continuous stretch of seasons, first to Gary Mathews Jr. and then to Vernon Wells, and how little they've gotten from either.

Edgy MD Mar 24 2013 04:31 PM Re: MFY Off-Season/Pre-Season Circus

They've gotten value out Torii Hunter. Third time's a charm. And Trout has taught them that growing a centerfielder of your own is much more gratifying.

Ashie62 Mar 24 2013 04:33 PM Re: MFY Off-Season/Pre-Season Circus

I wouldn't be surprised if Jeter missed a couple of months and finishes his career as a DH as a Yankee.

Frayed Knot Mar 24 2013 05:21 PM Re: MFY Off-Season/Pre-Season Circus

Ashie62 wrote: I wouldn't be surprised if Jeter missed a couple of months and finishes his career as a DH as a Yankee. Jeter already DH'd nearly one game in six that he played in last season - and that was before the broken ankle. Add that to the idea that there's no reason to think that ARod (who DH'd in 1/3 of his games in 2012) is going to be able to play his position any better when he gets back (assuming he even does) so he'll need to be parked there on a regular basis ... and then there's Travis Hafner who they see as nothing but a DH as they're apparently not even considering him as one of the options to replace Teixeira while he's out during the early (and maybe longer) part of the season. Being able to fall back on the DH is a great option for AL teams but not when they need it for multiple players concurrently.

Ashie62 Mar 24 2013 05:38 PM Re: MFY Off-Season/Pre-Season Circus

What do you do with an icon at the ass end of his career with an injury that could end such career? Got me..

Frayed Knot Mar 24 2013 05:51 PM Re: MFY Off-Season/Pre-Season Circus

Well, they're going to have to deal with it somehow and he's likely to miss a chunk or several chunks of time this year. All I'm saying is that the rest of that roster makes the option of 'ahh, let's just stick him at DH' easier to say than to implement.

metirish Mar 24 2013 06:20 PM Re: MFY Off-Season/Pre-Season Circus

Apparently the MFY's will pay $13 million if the $42 owed Wells......great deal Angels GM, that he got any of it picked up is surely a good thing....Cashman is desperate......

bmfc1 Mar 24 2013 07:15 PM Re: MFY Off-Season/Pre-Season Circus

Despite all of this goodness, Will Leitch still picks the MFYs to win the AL East: http://nymag.com/news/sports/games/yankees-2013-4/

Edgy MD Mar 26 2013 09:19 PM Re: MFY Off-Season/Pre-Season Circus

Hours after his being cut loose by the Red Sox, the Yankees sign Lol Overbay. He may be as good a bet as Teixiera.

G-Fafif Mar 27 2013 09:03 AM Re: MFY Off-Season/Pre-Season Circus

Via Bronx Banter, classic MFY Circus/DB action: Tony Kornheiser on the Boss in full flower -- very much an a-hole then as later. George Steinbrenner is charming, generous, philanthropic, well-connected, wealthy, energetic and a delight to be with. He is also imperious, tyrannical, impatient, tough, nasty and almost impossible to work for. If he has to pick a label to hang his psyche on, he picks none of the above. He picks misunderstood. “No one has been able to capture the real me, how I feel,” he says. “But I guess it’s tough. It’s hard for me to convey what I really feel. It’s not something I can easily say.” He lists among his friends such people as Senator Edward Kennedy; Thomas P. O’Neill, better known as Tip, the Speaker of the House of Representatives; Cary Grant, the legend, and Barbara Walters, a close personal friend of Anwar el-Sadat. He lists among his prominent positions, spots on the boards of trustees at the University of Tampa. the Culver Educational Foundation, the University of South Florida Foundation. He is the Florida state chairman of the American Cancer Society. He lists among his accomplishments, assistant varsity football coach at both Northwestern and Purdue, chairman of the Democratic Party fund raising effort in 1969 and 1970, all sorts of charitable work for poverty foundations and sports-for-youth federations and co-producer of such award-winning Broadway shows as “Seesaw” and “Applause.” Oh, and he brought the Yankees back from comatose to champions in five years. Yet what people remember him for most are his felony conviction for election-campaign fraud in the time of Watergate, and the weekly reports of his threats to fire Billy Martin, the manager of the Yankees, a 49-year-old Fonzie who has been described by John Schulian of The Chicago Sun-Times as “a mouse studying to be a rat.” George Steinbrenner, who very much would like to be a man of the people, a working-class hero, hasn’t a shot. He takes his satisfactions privately; he gets his beatings publicly. “I’m the heavy,” he says. “I don’t like it, but I don’t know how to change it.” “TWO THINGS ARE important to George,” says a close friend who believes he needs anonymity on this one to stay close. “Two things—winning and power.” Steinbrenner does not dispute the former; he pleads guilty, with an explanation, to the latter. “Only if I can use it for good, to help those less fortunate than me,” he says. He is sitting in the restaurant in his Tampa hotel, the Bay Harbor Inn. He puts his elbows on the table and leans forward: This one is coming from the heart. “I’ll tell you when I really bristle,” he says. “I’ll be sitting at some board meeting, and I’ll hear some big shot say—’Look at those people.’ And you’ll know exactly which people he’s talking about. ‘All they want is their unemployment checks.’ Well, let me tell you something. I’ve been to the South Bronx; how many of those big shots have been to the South Bronx? You gonna tell me that’s all that guy wants in life? No way. . . . If he had the opportunity that I had, God knows he might be a better man than all of us. “Now look, I’m no crusader, I don’t want it to sound like that. I’m no Robin Hood. I just like to help people, that’s my bag. They call me a flaming liberal; guess I am.” The little guy, Steinbrenner claims kinship with the little guy. The cabby who has to fight the traffic every day, the bartender, the hotel worker, that’s his cast of characters; he talks about them so often you’d think he did his senior thesis at Williams College on Damon Runyon instead of on the heroines in Thomas Hardy’s novels. His favorite little guy is the one who stops him on the street and thanks him for bringing the Yankees back. He makes it seem there are a legion of little guys out there on the streets of New York, patrolling every comer just waiting to spot him and shake his hand. “Class,” he says. “What class they have.” He shrugs. “I wish I had class like that,” he says. “I wish I had the class to go up to a stranger and thank him for something. I don’t.” Now it may be a bit hard to swallow that, to fully swallow how a man who likes the feel of a chauffeured limousine can claim this spiritual tie to the little guy. Especially since he’s so hard with his own little people, his secretaries and his office personnel. Especially since he stays at the Hotel Carlyle and wears $40 shirts and sits fifth-row center at the theater, house seats. But down deep, even if he knows it isn’t readily visible, George Steinbrenner feels like one of the guys. Down deep, he’s at a fraternity party. All his life, through military school and through board meetings, he acted one way and coveted another, and down deep, he wants to be one of the common people, if only for a handshake. Of course his hero is the cabby. The common denominator in New York City is the traffic; Steinbrenner sees it even through the window of his chauffeured limo, he feels it, he sits in it. When you’re stuck on 37th Street, it doesn’t matter if you’re stuck in a cab, or a bus or a limo. You’re all alike. For maybe the only time in his life, he’s down with the people. “I’ve always kept my emotions inside me,” he says. “They tell me I don’t let myself go, and that’s true. It’s a mark of strength among Germans, you know. . . . it isn’t that frequent that I really enjoy myself. It’s hard to explain, but the feeling I got after winning a World Series wasn’t what I thought it’d be. I remember saying to myself—I wonder why I’m not more excited? But then I saw the happiness I got was seeing happiness in others, and when that cabby comes up to me and says, ‘Thanks for bringing the Yankees back,’ even if it’s just ‘Thanks for spending your money,’ it’s unreal. I feel so good about winning one for New York. This is the greatest city in the world and its people are the greatest people in the world. And I just hope they like me.”

bmfc1 Mar 28 2013 03:35 PM Re: MFY Off-Season/Pre-Season Circus

http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2013/ ... drop-dead/

Frayed Knot Mar 30 2013 08:22 AM Re: MFY Off-Season/Pre-Season Circus

Almost time to wrap up this off-season thread, so I'll do it by noting that, of the 42 staffers at Baseball Prospectus, only 11 picked the Yanx to make the playoffs at all, and as many picked them to finish last in their division as to finish first (5 each). Gotta go back to the early '90s to find those kind of predictions. The fascinating part of the whole thing isn't just how they finish this season but also how this year sets them up for next year and beyond. Only five of their current players are currently signed beyond this season - and those five aren't necessarily the players or prices that you'd want. Only Teixeira (still good assuming he recovers but expensive and declining), ARod (like Teixeira only expensive-r and declining-er), Sabathia (he's avoided the injury bug ... so far), and now both Ichiro and Vernon Wells of all people are under contract for 2014. Jeter is on the final year of his multi-year deal (although he has an option) as are Cano & Granderson, while Mariano, Pettitte, Kuroda, Joba, Hafner, Hughes & Youkilis are all on one-year contracts this season with enough time to qualify as FAs (or for Social Security). Some of the younger players (Gardener, Robertson, Nunez, Cervelli, Nova, Pineda) will still be under team control beyond 2013 but aren't yet signed and those are hardly their key guys. Now if you plan things right, having a bunch of players on one-year deals can be a good thing. In this case though, they'll have a payroll cap to get under (or so they say) while still having most of their expensive guys AND have to do all that while finding someone to man 2B, SS, DH, CF, Catcher, Closer, and at least two rotation spots in an age when other teams are locking up their prize FAs more often than not, making 2009-like mega-signing insta-make-overs (Sabathia, Burnett & Teixeira all at once) much tougher to do.

Ceetar Mar 30 2013 08:42 AM Re: MFY Off-Season/Pre-Season Circus

What do you think, 4:1 odds they sign Santana?

Edgy MD Mar 30 2013 09:54 AM Re: MFY Off-Season/Pre-Season Circus

I still wonder if potential suspensions for A-Rod and Cano loom.

MFS62 Mar 30 2013 07:59 PM Re: MFY Off-Season/Pre-Season Circus

Ceetar wrote: What do you think, 4:1 odds they sign Santana? Sure. He can take Feliciano's spot on the DL. Later