Friday, January 27, 2012
NY Post: Yankees interested in Ibanez
The Yankees have interest in lefty hitting Raul Ibanez, according to sources. Ibanez’s average dropped to .245 last season with the Phillies, but he hit 20 home runs and drove in 84 runs. Ibanez, who will turn 40 in June, has drawn interest from a number of clubs.
Ibanez recently had a productive workout with hitting guru Rudy Jaramillo and believes he has corrected flaws in his swing. Over the past six seasons, he averaged 24 home runs and 100 RBIs.
The Yankees are not expected to pursue Cuban defector Yoennis Cespedes.
When the Yankees are “not expected” to do something, they usually end up doing it.
Thursday, January 26, 2012
NY Post: Yankees GM calls Montero ‘best player I’ve traded’
Yankees GM Brian Cashman has traded Alfonso Soriano, Nick Johnson, David Wells and Mike Lowell, but said believes Jesus Montero could be better than all of them.
“He may very well be the best player I’ve traded,” Cashman said of Montero, whom he sent to Seattle in a deal to get right-hander Michael Pineda that was finalized yesterday. “He’s that good. He’s a middle-of-the-lineup type bat.”
That means Cashman expects a lot out of Pineda, the 6-foot-7, 23-year-old who went 9-10 as a rookie last year. Cashman and Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik first discussed Pineda at the Winter Meetings last month.
Let’s hope not.
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
NY Post: Yankees GM hopes to trade ‘excess pitching’ for bat
And GM Brian Cashman reiterated that he likely isn’t done tinkering with the roster, since the Yankees have seven viable starting pitchers.
“I think we’re going to look at our excess pitching,” Cashman said when asked about acquiring a bat. Girardi is confident it will work out.
Let me see if I get this.
1) Trade your best hitting prospect for a pitcher
2) Talk about how you now have an excess of pitching and would like to trade it for a bat
Is that right?
Yankees.com: LIVE: Jorge Posada news conference
The link goes to MLB.com’s video broadcast of Posada’s press conference, currently in progress.
Monday, January 23, 2012
NYDN: Newest Yankee Pineda ready for Bronx stage
For Pineda, who is an imposing 6-7 and who can fire mid-90s heat, the change of address came as a shock (the deal will be officially finalized when the players pass their physicals and when visa paperwork is completed). But once the news sank in, Pineda started to envision the galaxy of stars that will play behind him.
“It’s a tremendous team, with good pitching. It’s very exciting for me — for the first time in my life, I’ll have the pleasure of playing with Alex Rodriguez, a huge star, and Derek Jeter, one of the most well-known players ever. And Mariano Rivera, (Robinson) Cano, (Mark) Teixeira, Rafael Soriano,” Pineda says in Spanish, his voice trailing off as he sifts through the Yankees’ roster. “I never thought in my life that I would be in this situation.”
I am still sad about losing Jesus Montero, but Pineda should be a lot of fun to watch.
Sunday, January 22, 2012
NJ.com: Bradley: Yankees hope to find A.J. Burnett a new home
A source with knowledge of the Yankee organization’s plan for the rest of the off-season said, “It’s a waiting game now to see if A.J. can be dealt. If he is, the Yankees will hope to get a bat in return, or save enough money to get a bat.”
It is tricky, of course, because the whole baseball world knows after the Yankees acquired (pending a clean physical) Michael Pineda from the Seattle Mariners and signed free agent Hiroki Kuroda that the next move Cashman would hope to make is to offload Burnett and a sizeable portion of the $33 million he is owed over the next two seasons.
Friday, January 20, 2012
MLB.com: Slimmer CC plans to watch diet more closely
Participating in Jeter’s annual celebrity golf tournament on a picturesque day at the Avila Golf and Country Club, Sabathia appeared to have slimmed down a bit and said he was already planning adjustments to his routine that will help him stay strong down the stretch. One of those things, he said, is constantly monitoring his diet.
Sabathia lost about 30 pounds last winter and entered Spring Training in excellent shape, but he appeared to have put that weight back on by the end of the year. After posting a 2.72 ERA and 1.160 WHIP the first half of the season, he went 6-4 with a 3.44 ERA and 1.331 WHIP the rest of the way.
A more conditioned CC is obviously a good thing. But I’m not really sold on the idea that weight gain had any significant influence on CC’s second half numbers.
Also, Gardner and Yankees agree to $2.8 million deal.
$2.8 million might cover the value of Gardner’s 2012 defense . . . through May.
Page 1 of 1 pages: