On the Yankees beat

A-Rod far from reaching Jeter's exalted standing

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/chronicle/archive/2006/11/26/SPGBJMJ04G1.DTL

Derek Jeter lost the American League Most Valuable Player award last week to Justin Morneau, one year after Alex Rodriguez outpolled the most notorious Yankee-killer of the 21st century.

A-Rod, fall guy for Yankees fans, beats out David Ortiz of the hated Red Sox, but Jeter, Mr. October and November, comes up short against Morneau, a Minnesota Twin. How, exactly, do we who claim to understand the proper order of all things Yankee explain this breach of common baseball sense that anoints A-Rod, not Jeter, as an MVP?

Tuesday's decision for Morneau, hardly outrageous or even an egregious example of anti-New York bias by any objective examination of the numbers, speaks more to the ecological imbalance that has befallen the Yankees in the six years since their last World Series was won.

the guy above is an idiot, there are plenty of comparable 1st basement in the AL, some with better OPS numbers than morneau, yet nobody compares to Jeter's value over a replacement. Jeter deserved it, for excellence at his position

i was of course referring to the article author

Though Xavier seems to be very much the same idiot.

This subject has absolutely nothing to do with Jeter and the MVP.
Nice work Xavier. Good job keeping current

The xavier name is simply another name used by the bulk poster, whoever he or she is, who posts the same inane cut and paste articles on all the Yankee blogs using a host of different names.

One of them used the Paul name even a few posts ago but it was not me. He/she/it used the Paul name on this blog but then used the Joen name on Pete Abraham's blog.

I see that too Paul. "X" enjoys posting the same lame things w/ horrible grammar on every Yankee site on the web.

Did Craig Wilson burn some bridges? There's no mention of him whatsoever by Cashman or the Yankees about filling that void at 1B.

I just don't think Torre "likes" him for wahtever reason. He never really got the chance even though he had a fairly good track record in Pitt except for the K's. Maybe they feel like they have enough strikeout-prone hitters already?

I know all Yankee fans are irate that Jeter got shafted, but what we all want is a championship. Getting Mussina to stay in our rotation helps, but he is not an addition, merely maintaing the status quo at best. We need pitching and more pitching. Moving guys like Proctor around does not solve our problem. Getting Mussina back does not solve our problem. These kind of so called "moves" are merely "slight of hand" manuevers that do little to nothing to improve this team. If Cashman comes away from the Winter Meetings next week without adding pitching, we will be a 3rd place team in the AL East. Signing guys like Lilly and or Meche will not win us a championship or even get us into the playoffs. We need top young starting pitchers that will improve, and be with us for several years to come. Pitchers like Brandon McCarthy, or Ervin Santana is what Cashman needs to add to this ageing staff. Both these pitchers are available, if Cashman will part with A-ROD. It really is a simple choice. Keep A-ROD and not make a run at a championship, or trade him for a package including one of the above mentioned "young guns", and have a shot in "07" and for several years to come.

Wilson wasn't thrilled about being traded to the Yankees last season. He looked like he'd rather play for Tampa Bay in his interview after the trade. I think he just doesn't want to play here. Plus he wasn't that great with the bat, he struck out a lot. I think Cashman is looking for someone with a better bat.

Roy...but if they move Arod, suddenly Posada is the lone power bat on the rightside...Even if the Yanks get Santana AND McCarthy, they aren't going anywhere if they lose Arod's RH bat.
The problem is besides Arod "we" don't have the trade chips to get either of those guys. And MEche and Lilly etc don't seem to be an upgrade of any significance.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2677627

MLB official: Ramirez might be dealt by Saturday

The Red Sox are aggressively shopping outfielder Manny Ramirez now, according to major league sources, at a time when the slugger's trade value has peaked, and there is a sense among some executives that their trade talks are gaining momentum.

Thoughts? What do you think? Redsox trading Manny or acquiring pitching prospects to soldify The Redsox rotation?

I guess too many racist here like black guy got killed by 50 police officers. I'm offended and I'm want to sue jake and luke for prohibit me posting in this blog.

Don't worry Luke who is fraud and he's not a Yankees fan. He's tigers fan who from Michigan

Luke is a tigers fan. He's posing as Yankeees fan. he's fraud and bandwagon fan.. Ignore troll...

another bulk post.

Anm on this blog and amathea on Pete's blog. Just another cut and paste.

Does this bulk poster ever have an original thought?

He or she could get a job at the Metro newspaper chain which cuts and pastes stories into its newspaper, forgetting occasionally to remove the Yahoo links so they appear in the stories too.

Did I copy whole article idiot?

Paul and luke are gay lovers. They are holding and singing Kumbaya..

geez, now that xavier tool is cutting and pasting from its own posts.

Yes, no question calling a fake poster is racism, whatever race that is. Very logical.

Is it a full moon?

Paul don't forget to wear a lipstick. faggot

Last I checked there wasn't a Jake posting on this site clown.
And as far as a bandwagoner??? You can't be a bandwagoner if you favorite team hasn't won anything in 6 years...That's #1.
#2...People move. Let's try to comprehend that astonishing fact.
#3...who knew your race and why are you just throwing that out there?
#4...It was 50 BULLETS not officers. You really are a lame little clown aren't you?
You can't even read facts

Luke and Paul are racist and prohits like me who is black person posting in blog.

Do you want to fight Paul?

Get your Own blog paul. This is not your blog . Stupid Racist Nazi....

HAHAHA
This has gotten WAY out of control.

Luke and Paul areRacist... End The Racism Now..... I should called the cops and sue this faggots..

Well this site got pathetic fast. Why are trolls even here?

Attica! Attica!

X-
There's no place for this type of stuff on this blog. We're here to have good natured back and forth discussions about the Yankees. This site is for serious Yankee fans.
It's obvious by your posts that you should spend more time in school and less time on the internet.

I tell you what, I'm not a fan but given the $$ being thrown around, Phillips is looking like a much better option at 1B every day.

Wow! I think someone forgot to take his or her happy pill. I'm not sure how Paul or Luke or anyone for that matter would be able to know anyone’s race. Do they have special powers?

That's a pretty volatile thing to write especially because of the incident that happened in NY.

Hey Jim A, your defending this white racist like Paul and Luke.I'm shocked. Guess, Black people like myself will be always a slave. I'm an Adult and not a child... thanks.

Please stop this.

I'm sorry Jim B, But Idiots are teasing Me and talking how my grammar skills stinks. Guess Blackpeople myself can't write and should go back to africa where I belong. Maybe I should stop reading newsday and boycott Newspaper. There's too many racist in this world like Paul and Luke

Back to the Yanks: Jim B: Do you think this weekend and next week will bring a lot of transactions with the Arbitration deadline coming and the GM meetings next week?

For some reason I have a feeling that a blockbuster trade is coming. Everything was quiet on the western front before the Arod trade and Damon singing...just a hunch.

I definitely think once the Dec. 1 arbitration date passes there will be a flurry of activity, and that's right about when the winter meetings take place. This week, I'm not so sure about.

A few of us have felt that way for a while. We think Cash is up to something big. I'm hoping it involves Dontrelle Willis or some young, front of the rotation starter like that. The problem is that a lot of teams have the same needs and a few (Mets, Dodgers) have the money and prospects needed to acquire such a player. I just can't see the Yanks signing a Ted Lilly type pitcher and saying "okay, we're ready to go to Florida". This team is too old to sit around and wait for young pitchers to develop.

Good Bye! I will never post again in this blog. I guess White people are only allowed to post here and black people like myself are restricted and required registration. I guess I will find new blog where fellow black yankees fans myself talk about The Yankees and not about their grammar skills

I'm not sold on Willis, especially how much he would cost the Yanks prospect-wise.
He pitches in one of the best pitchers parks and still his numbers just ok last year.
I can see him being similar to Zito...a few dominant outings, a few blowouts, but really just a #3 AL pitcher

Jim B- Thanks for the response. I agree, this week will probably be pretty quiet as teams wait to see if certain FA's are offered arbitration. I think we'll see a flurry of FA signings over the weekend or early next week. The trades may take longer as the GM's meet. Are the GM meetings like the old days when it seemed like a trade took place every day? Those were some crazy times as the Yanks were usually involved in 60% of the transactions.

prediction: pure trades make a comeback at the GM meetings next week. the big free agents have been signed. watch for boston in a 3-way deal, trying to move manny while getting cordero in return from the nats. would love to see the yanks somehow get willis, as jim a. suggests.

We need pitching. Forget about not having enough right handed power bats if we trade A-ROD. Bats are always available either through trade or the free agent market. Pitching is what wins championships. We had plenty of power hitters last year and couldn't even get out of the 1st round. We need to get either McCarthy from the W\Sox, or Santana from the Angels. We don't need any NL pitchers including Willis, Pettitte, or Clemens. They are all gas cans with legs once they start pitching to AL lineups.

I do not want the Yankees to sign Dontrelle. I have no faith in an NL pitcher's ability to pitch in the AL, unless he is LIGHTS OUT! D-train is fun to watch, but he'll get clobbered in the AL like Beckett, Clement, Vazquez, RJ, etc.

I really do not see Dontrelle Willis as being able to help the Yankees. His National League pedigree scares me, as would any pitcher with more than a year or so of NL service.

Agree that there will be much more activity, as if there has not already been a lot happening, after Dec 1 which is the deadline for offering arbitration.

Dec. 7 is the deadline for players to accept arbitration. And then Dec. 12 is the deadline for tendering contracts to players unsigned but on the 40-man roster.

Considering it is still November, I think a surprising number of players have already changed teams.

I think we will be signing Lilly AND trading for another SP in the very near future. Just one fans opinion.

If A-Rod does get traded, we will probably get a RH 3B back along with a SP. I personally like the Angels Santana. And don't forget we will be signing a RH 1B sometime too ( Hillebrand? ). Clearly not my choice. And, there is Jeter too.

So, we will have some RH's in the lineup even without A-Rod. And, we don't neccesarily need POWER hitters. Remember when we won those 4 WS and didn't have anybody hit 30 HR?

I have to side with all bloggers who want pitching improved which is about every Yankee fan with a brain, Hello. Unfortunately, there is none available of real worth except Lilly and maybe Meche, he could be a sleeper.

Roy wants A-rods value to go for a trade of equal value in pitching and a third baseman. His thoughts are not without much merit. We won often from 96-00 with very good pitching staffs and timely hitting. So, there is a basis and a strong one for the the trade. On the other side of the coin our starting rotation was Wang, Mussina, Johnson, Wright and whoever Rasner, Lidle, Wilson, Small. We had two positional players out for most of the season and Cano out for 2 months. With all this adversity we won 97 games and the divison going away which was a negative for the chemistry of the team and some of JT's decisions. BC could be looking at the second half of the season and thinking nothing wild and crazy has to be done. We can work in our rookies in the five hole. We can play Phillips at 1ST base and win. This is what I believe BC is thinking. Also, if I (BC) wait long enough A-rod's value will go up if I choose to trade. The only dire position that must be filled is the backup catcher. This is how I see BC moves so far even if its more none moves. He wants a youth movement but at a slow and deliberate rate. This is why the trade of A-rod to me is not worth moving on. I would go with the girl that I brought to the dance with high expectations.
As far as Wilson, nice guy played a decent 1ST base but could only hit the fastball and the league new it.

I heard that cashman inquired about Nick Johnson of the Nats. Would a Carl Pavano/Eric Duncan package bring back "St Nick?" I know the yankees would prefer a righty but Nick would certainly look good back in pinstripes with those high socks and even higher OBP.

Hey Anne, Do you have a clue what race the cops were that shot the man in NYC? Get a clue. Automatically you think the worst because you are a racist!! Buy the way they were African-American. Maybe you can get your facts straight before you starting playing the race game.

Bring back Nick.

Bring back Lilly.

You people never ceases to amuse me.

These were insignificant pawns a few years ago.

There were bigger names that you all wanted at the time.

Trade the little guys to make room for the big ones.

The Giambis, the A-Rods, the Randy Johnsons, the Jeff Weavers, etc.

Yes, they will bring us the championship.

The youngsters don't have enough experience.

We need experience.

What can we get for Soriano?

Big boppers, 40 homers, 100+ RBI's we're going to blow away the rest of the league.

We're going to winning it all.

Yeah, okay...

right handed power is highly over-rated, since a) yankee stadium favors lefties, b) there are no strong lefty SP's in the AL except santana (and liriano, in 2008), esp. with zito most likely going to the NL (or the yankees), and let's not mention "pine-tar" rogers... i'm still rooting for a trade with florida. not for wilis but rather a young stud.
in addition, a-rod should not be judged on mere statistics, he has shown the inability to lift himself or the team. picture in your head paul oneil. now picture the exact opposite. there you go... there's a-rod...

Eric: Relax and think a minute. We are fans who have no control over "The Boss and BC with prior trades. Yes, there are many of us who liked Lilly and Nick Johnson as prior Yankees but things happen because of the thought processes of above individuals in control of the Yankees. Hopefully, those processes are changing and more rational thinking to improving the team is the norm. I liked Ledee and Juan Riveria (Angels) when they were younger players and upset with their trade. But to be annoyed at bloggers proposing their return is not open minded.

Bringing back Nick Johnson is not a smart move. Unless you enjoy seeing him on the DL. Nick is a solid first baseman who can never stay healthy. In that case why not save the money/players and have Phillips play first and have Cairo as the backup.I think pitching is the biggest concern. "Good pitching stops good hitting". I really don't see the need for the Yanks to go spend money on a slugger. The way the Yanks won in the past was good defense,solid pitching,great bullpen,clutch hits,and small ball. This team does not lack offense it is the pitching we lack. Since when was it proven that sluggers win rings for you? I don't seem to recall them calling the 96,98,99,and 2000 Yanks the "modern day murders row".

Larry M- I don't think Cashman thinks Andy Phillips is the answer at 1B. Usually he is very cagey about what types of players he is looking for but at least twice I've seen him say that he is looking for a RH 1B and he never mentions Phillips. I don't care what he does about first base, I just want him to get pitching.

I agree with those who said most NL pitchers are terrible when they come to the AL. I disagree however, when Dontrelle Willis is thrwon in that group. I just think he is special enough to succeed in either league. He can throw a variety of pitches and throws hard, unlike a lot of NL pitchers.
We have some dark days ahead of us if we do not acquire at least two good pitchers.

Somebody made a good comment about the RH hitting the Yanks are looking for. If you notice Boston's rotation and include Matsuzaka, it is entirely RH, so the Yanks might be able to wait until July to get a RH bat if it is a problem. Again, I say concentrate on pitching first, all other needs second or third.

ESPN.com is reporting that the Red Sox are "advancing in their efforts to trade Manny Ramirez and he could be dealt by Saturday".
The article also says they may not get major league talent back for him. If I were a Red Sox fan, I don't know that I'd be happy to remove 45 HR's and 140 RBI from my lineup without getting something back. I bet Ortiz is not happy about this. Even though Manny can be a pain in the rear, he does produce. I personally hope they do trade him to the NL so he stops murdering our pitchers.

Also in the news: ESPN.com is now reporting that Gregg Zaun is close to re-signing w/ the Jays. They're not sure if this is in addition to the Rod Barajas signing or in place of that one as it may have fallen apart.
I really need to get a life.

I blamed Cashman for moving slowly signing Zaun. What do you think Yankees next plan are? Bengie Molina or resigning Fasano?

After Redsox losing out on Gregg Zaun , They turn their attention to Bengie Molina to be backup for Varitek. Bengie's who still considered the best defensive catcher other Pudge are looking 2 year deal

source - prosportsdaily

I just want to say that of all you bloggers Larry M from Florida is the most rational and makes the most sense. I agree 100% with what he has been saying and based on appearances so does Cashman. I think we ought to get forum ground rules. Instead of having people repeat the same things over and over the groudrules should read:
1) No outside of Yankee posting
2) Yes Yankees need pitching
3) No A-rod isnt going anywhere, unless Cashman knows something we obviously dont
4) We know that Pavano has given us nothing
5) No we arent biased and yes Jeter should have won the mvp
Maybe people having to click Yes I agree with these terms before entering the boards would be good as well.

Jim A: You maybe right in your assumption that BC is being coy. I care more about the pitching than 1St base. Maybe BC is putting himself into a position of having to make the blockbuster trade. I've used maybe twice already. There is just so much going on behind the scenes.

The pitchinng FA's are getting down to the most expensive. If BC is not holding pat then I suspect a signing real soon. I'm all for integrating our AAA guys but we need at least 2 starters with RJ as a big question mark.

DG: Thank you for the comment. I know there is much repeating of info but there are a few bloggers who go the extra step with some research and make their points through the repetition.

Jim B: How about spell check? (Ha, Ha)

With Adam Eaton getting $24M over 3 years, the market for Lilly and Meche will be "Pavanoesque". Meaning pitchers that are largely considered mid level are going to get serious money, probably as much as our beloved Pavano is making. I don't know if the Yanks will go down that road again after being burned by the Pavano and Wright deals.
This also means Zito and Schmidt will get anything they want. Scott Boras is licking his chops over the potential Zito contract.

Gil L

Great analogy with O'Neill and A-Rod. One is a "warrior" and the the other is "stats". I will trade stats for warriors anyday!

In regards to Wilson, Torre Doesn't like him ? so for that reason he should not be given a full chance to play the position?? so i guess all the bums that got playing time torre "liked" see that is that **** wilson deserved to play the position regularly when they traded for him his numbers against righties was incredible of course those numbers go down when you are not playing everyday as he was in PITT and come here and has to watch a crip play first base, that is politics , i bet you if leland was the yankee manager he would've played wilson at first and dared giambi to challenge his decision. That is why Torre almost got canned after last year.

as for manny , he has stats and is CLUTCH!!!! even more than jeter at times , he is confident at the plate, Dumb move by the sox , JD drew is a Bust . AROD is more than stats (there go us stupid A** yankee fans bashing our own) move arod to the number three spot and leave him alone or if jeter is so good put him at three and arod at two , can one give me his numbers when he batted two for the yanks, was'nt he on a tear when in that slot??