Hello 2008!! Happy New Year!

Those of you who know me know that New Year's isn't one of my favorite holidays, but nonetheless, I wish a very Happy New Year to you and your families. Enjoy the night, but most importantly, be smart and be safe, nobody wants to see 2008 without you.

The Cold Stove

Not too much going on in the rumor mill as the holidays are around. It seems that even the GMs are allowed to turn off their cell phones and put away their PDAs for a couple weeks. But here's a few things going on:

- Yankees.com has a feature on Don Mattingly being on the Hall of Fame Ballot again this year. It's quite possible that nobody loves this guy more than I do (even though I wanted Girardi to manage), and I'd love to see him in the Hall. I know his numbers come up a little short, but he was an icon in his era and the only bright spot for the Yankees in the 80s. I'm wondering... with the steroid cloud looming over MLB -- should voters look at Mattinglyl's career differently?. (Just to throw some salt on the Mitchell wound) How many players have prolonged their careers due to their use of performance enhancers? Who is more deserving? A guy like Don Mattingly, who played through pain and was adored by his fans (possibly as much as any NY athlete ever); or a bloated needle smuggler like Mark McGwire whose credibility is in question, but his stats are HOF worthy?

- Jim Leyritz got hammered while celebrating his 44th birthday and was dumb enough to get behind the wheel. He struck another car and the passenger in the other car was killed. Good luck dude. Sad situation for both parties.

PS. "You're fucked" - The Management

- The Yanks have ordered Robinson Cano to stop playing in the Dominican Winter League. A no-brainer here as Cano is reportedly recovering from a calf injury that plagued him all year. Some speculate that he was asked to stop playing because he's involved in trade talks. That is just plain stupid. They are not trading Cano, period. Not to mention the timing is retarded, the best rumors on the hot stove involve Darin Erstad signing with the Astros and the Mets being interested in John Lieber. Hard to believe that Cashman is talking Cano with anyone unless the deal includes Kofax, Drysdale, Jackie Robinson, and Duke Snyder.

- Clemens is doing his own probe into the Mitchell Report. If I have to read one more article about this I'm going to shit myself. This is old news and I don't really think anyone cares anymore.

- The LaTroy Hawkins signing is now official. Any idea when Hawkins T-shirts will be available?? I can hang it in my closet in between my Kei Igawa and Kevin Brown shirts.

-There have also been some conflicting reports on whether we'll see Joba in the rotation or the bullpen. If the Santana deal does not get done (which it won't), Joba and Hughes are the only options the Yanks have as shut down power arms for the rotation. Unless Moose has been working out with the Rocket this offseason, I don't see any reason why the rotation should not be the Wang, Pettitte, and the Big Three.

Prior Warning

I have to admit that when Mark Prior was non-tendered by the Cubs and became a free agent, I was all over it. I figured this would be a great opportunity for the Yanks to steal a potentially dominating pitcher. After having thought about Prior over the last week, I've changed my mind.

When Prior is healthy (see 2002, 2003, & 2005), the guy is downright filthy (10.5 Ks per 9). Unfortunately, over the past two years, he has only thrown 30 more innings than our favorite son, Carl Pavano. The Cubs did not tender Prior due to uncertainties regarding his health and their unwillingness to give him a multi-year deal.

There are said to be a dozen teams interested in the right hander who is recovering from shoulder surgery and is expected to pitch some time in May. Prior is reportedly looking prove he is healthy and sign a one-year deal, only to try to cash in as a free agent next year.

Signing Prior would be a bad move for the Yanks (think back to the Octavio Dotel signing). There are no guarantees that Prior will be fully recovered from his injury and signing Prior will cost the Yanks another spot on their 40-man roster. I think they'd be better off allowing him to sign elsewhere, preferably with an NL team and monitor him throughout the year. If he regains his form and seems to be worth the investment, he will be available next year via free agency.

Another key reason is the Big Three, the Trinity -- the Future. This year's rotation projects to include Wang, Pettitte, Moose (ehh), Joba, Hughes, and Misterrrrrrrrrrr Kennedy. For the '09 season, Wang, Joba, Hughes, and Kennedy will all be under contract and Pettitte is always a possibility to return. If the Yanks do sign Prior, and he pitches like most guys do when they come back from injury (mediocre for the first year) he will clearly take innings from the Big Three and impede their development. While no Yankee fan likes to hear it, this year is a 'rebuilding' year when it comes to the pitching staff. The young guys in the rotation and the pen need the opportunity to get their feet wet in order to see if the Yanks can build their 'new dynasty' from within.

Prior is a one year deal. If he's dominant, he will try to go after the most money possible (he did the same thing when drafted). If he stinks, well, then we're looking at the latest of Yankees pitching failures -- who will eat up too many valuable innings and be kicked to the curb afterwards.

The best option is to let Prior sign elsewhere and scout him. He will be an available free agent at the end of the year along with (possibly) Santana and Sabathia. The Yanks will have a year to see how Joba, Phil, and Ian do as starters. It is then conceivable that they can sign two of the three: Prior, Santana, or CC and move Joba to the pen to be Mo's successor.

The Pitching Staff - Part II - The Rotation

First off, my apologies to Jonathan Albaladejo - who I left off the bullpen probables. (My brother, however, was happy with my omission as he thinks this kid will be the next Brian Boehringer - ouch.) Either way, the Yanks picked him up from the Nationals for Tyler Clippard. While I've never seen him pitch, Albaladejo is a power arm that throws strikes (they all do that until they come to NY).

The Yankees rotation is usually a hot topic in December as we usually toast the arrival of a new savior each year. The names are seemingly endless: Jeff Weaver, Hideki Irabu (haha), Kevin Brown, Javy Vazquez, Carl Pavano, Jaret Wright, Randy Johnson, etc. -- the high expectations usually flatten out like a Kei Igawa fastball and the Yanks are generally looking for more pitching by the trade deadline. Since he has taken over organizational control, Brian Cashman has been working diligently to revamp the farm system and develop in-house options to bolster the staff.

Despite the enormous speculation and hot stove activity, the Yankees have not landed the "true ace" that many believe they need.

Chien-Ming Wang's struggles this postseason have cast doubts as to whether he is a #1 starter. Wang's sinker is the best in the game (sorry Brandon Webb). He shows outstanding poise in pressure situations, and rarely gets flustered. When he is on, his velocity is anywhere from 94-96 mph with insane movement -- hitting his sinker on these nights is like trying to drive a bowling ball with a 7-iron (meaning that you're shit out of luck). He has won more games over the last two years (38) than anyone in baseball. Wang throws strikes, works deep into games, and always gives his team a chance to win. Isn't that what an ace is supposed to do??

Wang's strengths, ironically, are also his weaknesses. He relies almost exclusively on his sinker; and while it's a very good pitch, a big league hitter can hit anything when he knows it's coming. Wang also pitches to contact, and despite the effectiveness of his sinker, anything can happen when the ball is put in play. For Wang to be a true #1 "shut-down" Josh Beckett-like starter, many believe he will have to develop his secondary pitches and strike more batters out. Reports indicate that he is refining his slider (once his best pitch) and change in order to rely less heavily on his sinker.

I think this is the year that Wang wins 20 games if he can stay healthy. He missed nearly a month last season and still won 19.

Andy Pettitte, along with Mike Mussina, is the veteran leader on the staff. Pettitte had a good year with Bombers after his return from the Houston Astros. He had some hard luck losses early in the year, but finished strong and pitched well in the post season. Andy's stuff is still there and we all know that he has "balls as big as grapefruits." I'm not at all worried about the HGH debacle, as Andy seems to have put the issue behind him.

Moose is a question mark for me. His arm strength was clearly down last year. Were his struggles last year an indicator that his age has caught up to him? or is it a result of the hamstring injury he suffered early in the year as a result of Marty Mitchell's "training program?" Personally, I think it's a little of both. Moose is clearly a back of the rotation guy, especially in the AL East, who is capable of winning 12 or 13 games. He can still baffle a line up with finesse when he's on, but the lack of velocity will certainly hurt his consistency.

Now comes the fun part. The kids (who I will blog about more later) -- Joba Chamberlain, Phil Hughes, and Ian Kennedy are considered the future of the Yankees. The three righthanders are the crown jewels of the Yankees' system and all three look to be big contributors to the '08 rotation. How will Joe Girardi handle the innings limitations on the three youngsters? Can Joba become the shut down starter the Yanks need? Which Phil Hughes will we see? The Phil Hughes who absolutely dominated the Rangers in his near no-hitter? or the Phil Hughes who fell victim to high pitch counts and hittable two strike pitches? Will Ian Kennedy be as good as he was in September? or will he lose out on a rotation spot to the aging Mike Mussina?

The rotation depends heavily on these youngsters, and how it will turn out is anyone's guess. The questions are there every year for the Yanks: "How long before Jaret Wright's arm falls off?" "How is "Big Bird's" back? " "Who is Carl Pavano?" "How do you pronounce Irabu?" "Where does Jeff Weaver score his weed? " "Did Jose Contreras really take a raft here?" "Why is Kei Igawa wearing sunglasses?" This year, however, the questions will be asked about home-grown 21-year old phenoms who are hungry to make their mark and create a new dynasty. I'll take those questions any day.

The Pitching Staff - Part I - The Pen

As things appear to be quiet on the Yankees Hot Stove, I figured it'd be a good time to take a look at the pitching outlook for the '08 season. The Yankees have yet to reel in the big fish they are after, and really have not done much to bolster the bullpen. Here's a look at the bullpen.

The Yankees pen begins and ends in one place: Mariano Rivera - he is the shoulders on which the Dynasty was built. After some posturing, the Sandman signed a 3-year, $45 million deal which will almost certainly allow him to end his career in pinstripes. Despite a slow start, there really are no signs indicating that Mo is slowing down. He is the rock in the bullpen, and really the only one to depend on.

With Joba heading to the rotation, the Yanks are hoping Kyle Farnsworth can minimize the damage long enough to allow Bob Sheppard and the rest of the crew to warm up the PA and blast some of James Hetfield's best work. Skipper Joe Girardi has faith that Farnsworth can regain the success he had in Chicago and become a dominant late inning presence. While Farnsworth did not reach triple digits on the radar gun as frequently as we're used to, he showed some promise late in the year by gaining confidence in his slider. It's no mystery that he was not a fan of Torre; hopefully, a new manager can lead to some consistency.

Innings eater, Luis Vizcaino who declined arbitration and signed with Colorado, is being replaced by LaTroy Hawkins, who interestingly enough left Colorado for a one-year pact with the Yanks. I don't really see Hawkins being any sort of an upgrade here. While he enjoyed his best year in a long time last year, remember that he was pitching in the NL West, where the baseballs sit in a humidor and the bats are made of paper mache. The AL East is not a friendly place for a pitcher who's career WHIP is about 1.50. The best thing that can be said about Hawkins is that he was signed to a one-year deal.

The Yanks are interested in acquiring another left handed reliever such as Ron Mahay, Damaso Marte, or Jonathan Sanchez; however, there is nothing indicating that they are close with any of them. As it stands, it looks like Sean Henn is the only left hander in the pen.

The rest of the bullpen spots will most likely be filled with in house options:

Edwar Ramirez showed some flashes last year with a devastating change up that helped him rack up 31Ks in only 21 IP. He needs to pick up a little more velocity to consistently get big league hitters out.

Ross Ohlendorf, the big right hander from Princeton University acquired in the "Big Bird" trade, came up for a cup of coffee in September and impressed the Yankees brass. So much that he made the playoff roster and proceeded to get his tits ripped against Cleveland. He features a hard and heavy Wang-like sinker (94-96 mph), and a good slider. He also developed a split finger in the AFL which many predict will become his strike out pitch.

You can fill in the blanks from there. Jose Veras needs to stay healthy to be effective, but his stuff makes him a viable option to be a power arm out of the pen. The Yanks haven't given up on Brian Bruney and his electric fastball, but I expect him to start the year in AAA to try to refine his mechanics. Kei Igawa may be considered a left handed option, or as a long man with Jeff Karstens.

Three big names to remember: Humberto Sanchez, Mark Melancon, and J.B. Cox. All three right hander will report to spring training coming off of arm injuries, but each is expected to get to the Bronx this year. Sanchez's stuff is Joba-like, Melancon is rumored to be the closer of the future, he features a fastball that can reach the mid-90s and a filthy hammer. Cox, the former Longhorns closer, has a nasty slider and a big set of brass balls to go along with it.

The Yankee pen, like the rotation, will depend heavily on its young arms -- and the system has a ton of them. The Yanks also consider starters Alan Horne, Jeff Marquez, and Chase Wright as viable options in the pen if someone falters.

"Roger That...Good Buddy!"

T plus 4 days since the Rocket was launched into the controversy of the MLB steroid scandal and the media can't get enough of it. After his best buddy and protege Andy Pettitte addressed the media yesterday, many are viewing Rocket's silence as a sign of guilt.

In the Court of Public Opinion you are guilty until proven innocent; and as we have seen so far when it comes to allegations regarding PED's, there is very little that can be done to sway public perception.

Roger's massage therapist and workout partner, Rohan Baichu is attempting to smear McNamee's name; citing that the former personal trainer is a troubled alcoholic who is jealous of Roger's 2004 Cy Young Award that he won in Houston after parting ways with the trainer. Baichu has worked very close with Clemens since his days in Houston and claims he has never noticed any behavior that would indicate steroid use.

Wonderful, a lovely case of he said/she said. Just last year McNamee told reporters that Andy Pettitte and Roger Clemens had never asked him for performance enhancing drugs; only to flip flop when Mitchell and the Feds came calling. One of these trainers isn't telling the truth -- and at this stage in the game it's impossible to tell which one.

Interestingly enough, the head henchman of the Steroid Era, Jose Canseco, recently defended Roger Clemens in an interview with Dan Patrick. Canseco states that he had never seen or heard of the Rocket doing any kind of PEDs.

There is only one way for Roger Clemens to clear his name. While Andy Pettitte appears to have put the issue behind him after releasing a 'semi-apologetic' confession to the limited use of HGH, Roger faces a much larger hurdle, and as Canseco says, the only way for Roger to regain credibilty is to take legal action. While I generally try to disagree with anything Canseco has to say -- he put it best when asked what it would mean if Roger doesn't sue MLB, "Then he's guilty."

If this goes to Civil Court, and no new evidence turns up, there's a good chance Roger can win. But even after that case is closed, the file will always remain open in the Court of Public Opinion; and there's nothing Rocket can do about it.

BACK FROM THE DEADline

Just as it seemed that Brian Cashman had once again seized control of baseball operations in New York, "Jabbering" Hank is at it again...

In an interview with the Star Ledger's Ed Price, Steinbrenner indicated that the Yankees have not completely shut the door on Johan Santana. "We haven't ruled it out completely. We're still considering it. I haven't closed the door completely on Santana."

Speculation is that the Yankees will look to move Hideki Matsui or Mike Mussina before they actively pursue a trade for the left-handed ace. It is unclear if there are any takers for either player. The SF Giants reportedly showed interest in Matsui; however, their signing of free agent center fielder Aaron Rowand may have eliminated the possibility of a deal. Reports also indicated that the Phillies have shown interest in Mike Mussina, who has a full no trade clause.

I think the Yanks will be looking to unload Matsui rather than Moose. With Phil Hughes as the likely center piece in any deal, I'd be hard pressed to see the Yanks give up two (or more if Kennedy is included in the deal) pitchers off of their roster, as they generally try to secure as much depth as possible.

It is highly unlikely that Bedard or Kazmir will be traded anywhere in the AL East. Dontrelle Willis and Dan Haren have already been traded. The free agent class of pitching is so thin that the non-tendered Mark Prior, who will not be available to throw a MLB pitch until mid-season, has a dozen teams interested. The only viable option to bolster the '08 rotation is Johan Santana - and you can bet your bottom dollar that the Haren trade will only increase Minnesota's trade demands.

This also brings us back to the question of whether the Yanks want to include Hughes in this, or any deal. The Yanks have made some terrible deals for pitching, both in free agent deals or in trades. Seriously though, what have Nick Johnson, Brad Halsey, Yhency Brazoban, and Ruben Rivera done since they were traded? Did Nick Johnson even play last year? List the prospects the Yanks have traded who have come back to bite them in the ass...

Bottom line is simple. The Yanks need to decide what they'd regret more. They trade Hughes (this is about Hughes, not money or other prospects) and he becomes the equivalent of Santana; and Santana disappoints in NY -- OR -- they don't make the deal, Santana gets traded or signs elsewhere after this season and continues his dominance, while Hughes becomes the #3 or #4 pitcher some project him to be.

If they don't pull the trigger, they are putting a huge amount of faith in the 21 year-old phenom. In the aftermath of the Mitchell report, there are question marks surrounding Andy Pettitte's future and it appears that Hankenstein is ready to eat his words again in Tampa.

THE MITCHELL REPORT

The long awaited Mitchell Report was finally released on Thursday. This is the report that was supposed to "rock the baseball world" and add closure to the scandalous Steroid Era which has lasted at least two decades. For Bud Selig, it was the engine to help vindicate him from forever being branded as the leader of a tarnished Era.

MLB's revenues are at an all-time high with countless fans appearing in droves at the ballpark, the game appears to be thriving despite the black cloud that hovers above. Daily, there are images of Barry Bonds accompanied by subtitles containing the words "steroids", "BALCO", and "asterisk" among many others serving to cast a black eye on his legacy and the game itself. It is no mystery to this baseball fan, (and hopefully any others with a pulse) that this controversy ranges far further than Barry Bonds and the 80+ names listed in the Mitchell Report. To assume that this report offers any sort of closure and that the names stop here is about as wise as drafting Carl Pavano in your fantasy drafts next year.

While the initial purpose of the Mitchell Report can certainly be commended, Mitchell's inability to subpoena and/or persuade players and officials to testify made it impossible to achieve the initial goals of the report. This 400 + page document transformed an investigation of the scope and range of the steroid pandemic into an all-out witch hunt with the testimony of two disgraced drug lords serving as its "Malleus Maleficarum." In what was seemingly a last minute decision, the inclusion of names appears only to serve as justification for the immense cost of this otherwise shallow report.

Among the names listed in the report, 22 of them had worn Yankee pinstripes at one time or another. To many Yankee fans, the two most sacred names on the list were that of Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte -- perhaps Pettitte stings the most, as he is a "true Yankee" (whatever that means anymore), a home-grown product with seemingly immeasurable integrity and character. While the only "evidence" linking these two to performance enhancers is the questionable testimony of former trainer Brian McNamee, it is hard for this fan to believe allegations are truly false.

The book on Clemens is quite detailed, earmarking separate cycles including Winstrol and HGH on separate occasions. This report paints the picture of Clemens as a habitual steroid user who took advantage of the drug's recuperative effects during the latter part of the season in the late stages of his career. All that remains for Clemens, is the Hall of Fame. After he blew that final fastball past Victor Martinez in Game 3 of the ALDS, it seemed that Roger walked off the mound for the last time. The next five years will center around debate and counter debate on whether Roger is Hall worthy. To me, it will go hand in hand with the fate of Barry Bonds, who once seemed to be Roger's foil. In this fan's opinion, Roger and Barry were HOF's long before anyone can link them to PED's, and therefore, belong in the Hall. While so many have branded them as cheaters, do not forget that they played on a field with an immense number of players who were also using performance enhancers -- and they were still, by far, the best.

Andy's inclusion in the report is isolated to a 10-day visit from McNamee in which Pettitte apparently used HGH to help return from elbow tendinitis. I don't know about you, and maybe I'm just a stubborn "Yankee Mark", but I do not view this as performance enhancing. The guy used the stuff to heal (similar to the other players mentioned as HGH users, see Matt Williams and Gagne). I only wish Carl Pavano had tried the stuff, maybe I'd actually remember what the guy looked like in a baseball uniform. Anyone who read Mitchell's report -- and I'm talking the whole report, not just pages 200 on (where players are mentioned), would have seen the research he did on the drugs mentioned in the report.

Pages 57-58: "
A number of studies have shown that use of human growth hormone does not increase muscle strength in healthy subjects or well-trained athletes.31 Athletes who have tried human growth hormone as a training aid have reached the same conclusion. The author of one book targeted at steroid abusers observed that “[t]he most curious aspect of the whole situation is that I’ve never encountered any athlete using HGH to benefit from it, and all the athletes who admit to having used it will usually agree: it didn’t/doesn’t work for them.”32

HGH is an illegal substance; however, was not banned for use by MLB. This passage suggests it is NOT performance enhancing -- so why be branded as a cheater? How is this different than someone smoking a joint before a game because it helps them "harness their Zen??" (yes, it does happen, I've played with guys who do).

Pettitte's inclusion in this report does make one wonder if it all stopped here. To me, this is an acceptable question -- of course, with no answer as of yet.

In summation, I think the report was useless. The recommendations made could have been made by anyone. Hell, this could have been accomplished at the Opryland Hotel in Nashville at the winter meetings while Brian Cashman and Theo Epstein were downing Irish Carbombs. The blame is not on Mitchell, the report is as comprehensive as possible given the resources available. Several people believe Mitchell is biased due to his Red Sox ties; I do not think this is a fair assumption. The reason for the overwhelming exclusion of Boston sports stars and inclusion of so many NY players is simple -- the "sources" were either from BALCO (hence the Oakland and Baltimore players named), or directly related to Radomski and McNamee (both worked in the NY markets).

If an excess of 80 players were named solely on 3 sources of information spanning two sports markets -- perhaps the number of players involved is even larger than we imagined. More will be named, some will fess up, others will fight back. This thing isn't over -- not by a long shot

-27

A Lifelong Yankee Fan - Introduction

I am as I say I am - a Yankee fan. I am not a journalist or beat writer like some of the other bloggers I come across during my daily Yankee searches - I am just a fan. I do not have inside sources for the latest rumors and clubhouse reports - I am just a fan. You won't find merchandise or gimmicks, after all - I am just a fan.

What you will find is opinion on a number of issues surrounding the Yankees, MLB, and Baseball in general. I like to think of myself as an "educated" baseball fan in that I've enjoyed success as a player and coach at the scholastic and collegiate level (Sorry folks, I didn't have the chops to cut it in the pros - oh well), and try to keep up to date on the latest in news, highlights, and player developments.

Please feel free to comment on any posts as you see fit, but please do it in a respectful manner. Looking forward to blogging with you.

-27