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A-Rod's Madam Speaks out. .

Posted by Steve S. at 8:54 pm 6 Responses »
Mar 232009

. . . and apparently she wasn’t the source of the Daily News piece.

Former madam Kristin Davis, who served three months in jail and is on five years’ probation after pleading guilty to promoting prostitution, spoke in generalities when reached by Newsday on Sunday.

“All I can say is, there is a connection,” Davis said when asked about Rodriguez, a former Mariner.

Davis declined to comment on the specific allegations, saying she does “not talk about my personal life or who I date.”

I speculated the other day in Moshe’s post about the Daily News article that Alex’s PR people might be behind the story for various reasons. Now Davis comes out today and says she doesn’t want to comment on the story. So if she’s not the source, that kind of narrows things down, no?

Alex is represented by William Morris LLC, and while they have a small stable of sports figures, most of their clients are Hollywood celebrities and musicians.  The same actors and musicians who wind up in the gossip columns every day with stories about who they’re sleeping with.

Just like Alex.

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Bruney and Giese Continue To Struggle, Tomko Strong

Posted by Moshe Mandel at 5:36 pm No Responses »
Mar 232009

Notable performances from the Yankees 8-3 defeat at the hands of the Phillies earlier today:

1) Brian Bruney continued his putrid spring, allowing 2 runs on 2 hits, on of which was a home run by Mat Stairs, in one inning. He also notched two strikeouts, and thankfully was able to avoid the base on balls. According to Pete Abe, Bruney’s job is not in danger, but Joe Girardi has mentioned that Brian really needs to get it going. Bruney may be assured of a roster spot, but I could see him losing his hold on the 8th inning if he does not string together some decent performances.

2) Nick Swisher was not thrilled with Girardi’s decision to go with Xavier Nady in right field, but he seems to have a good attitude about the whole thing:

“This is a great team and we have an opportunity to do some wonderful things this year. I want to be a part of that; I want to win. Coming over here, that was the biggest thing, I want to win. But I also want to be a part. I’ve played every day pretty much my whole career. I think there’s going to be a lot of at-bats out there for me. I’ve got to be ready when I’m told I’m ready to play.
“I don’t know how to put it. I don’t know how I’m feeling or whatever. I just know I want to be in there everyday. That’s it, that’s what I can say.”

As Nick rightly noted, I am sure that he will get in excess of 400 at bats, as the Yankees will need to use him liberally to account for age and injuries in their outfield.

3) John Rodriguez went 1-1 with an RBI, and is hitting .350/.480/.500 this spring in a pinch hitting role. He is unlikely to break camp with the club, but he may get a shot as a lefty bat off the bench at some point in 2009. He has a 110 OPS+ in 332 career MLB AB’s, making him a decent option to fill in for a few weeks in case of injury at a corner outfield spot.

4) Dan Giese pitched poorly again, allowing three runs, including a HR by immortal Miguel Cairo, in just one inning of work. In contrast, Brett Tomko supplied a shutout inning, dropping his spring ERA to 1.46. If the Yankees decide to take a long man north, it would be hard to justify taking anyone but Tomko, even if it will take some maneuvering of the roster.

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Yanks interested in Matthews?

Posted by Chris H. at 3:30 pm 4 Responses »
Mar 232009

From Peter Gammons (ESPN):

Angels manager Mike Scioscia says Matthews “isn’t comfortable” with his role as a fourth outfielder, but despite rumors that the Angels may try to work something out with the Yankees, the contract will be difficult to move.

If you ask me, Gary Matthews Jr. isn’t a very enticing CF option. He would offer more power than Gardner or Melky, however, that’s about it (he would be a better defensive player than Melky, but I’m not so sure that he would top Gardner). Gammons also notes that the Yankees — along with Boston and Houston — are interested in Mark Teahen.

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The Premium Position?

Posted by Tom Gaffney at 1:49 pm 8 Responses »
Mar 232009

In this inaugural year of the new Yankee Stadium, I can’t help but have my thoughts run in a more historical direction than usual.  With Jorge coming back strong from his injury, it made me analyze how important he is to what the Yankees do and, more abstractedly, how important catchers have been to the Yankees, historically.  Everyone knows that the most hallowed spot in all of baseball, perhaps all of sports, is the Centerfielder for the New York Yankees, but is it possible that the catcher has been even more important for the Yanks throughout their gloried past?

Look at all the great catchers the Yanks have been fortunate enough to have, and how they’ve reflected the overall success of the team.   If you begin with the ’27 Yankees dynasty, certainly the CF position dominates.  Earl Combs is a hall of famer who hit .356 in 1927 as a prototypical leadoff hitter.  Pat Collins was the catcher of that team and nothing to write home about.

Beginning in 1929, however, a young catcher by the name of Bill Dickey hit the scene and kicked off the Yankee tradition of great catching.   I knew that Dickey was considered a tremendous backstop, but was surprised, at perusing his stats, how good this guy actually was!  At one point, Bill Dickey (thanks Wikipedia and Baseball Reference) hit .300 or better for 10 out of 11 seasons  and hit 20+ hrs and 100+ rbi for 4 consecutive years… for a catcher!  His 1936 batting average of .362 is the highest single-season average ever recorded by a catcher!  He was also renowned for a great arm and tremendous ability to deal with pitchers.  If that’s not enough, the man was a competitor without equal.  He even “broke the jaw of an opposing player with one punch in a 1932 game after the man collided with him at home plate.” This fierce competitive streak is a trait passed down through Yankee backstops to the present day.

Continue reading »

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Igawa optioned

Posted by Chris H. at 1:46 pm No Responses »
Mar 232009

Props to RAB. For his sake (and for ours), just trade the man.

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Nady Winning Right Field Job

Posted by Moshe Mandel at 12:26 pm No Responses »
Mar 232009

From Pete Caldera:

Not a big revelation, but if the season started today, Joe Girardi said that Xavier Nady would be his starting right fielder. Nick Swisher’s versatility works against him somewhat, but Nady has more in the bank with Girardi based on last season. Today, Wang stays back to pitch a minor league game, with Jorge Posada catching and Matsui DHing. We are off to Clearwater.

Caldera references a point that I have brought up on various occasions this offseason. Although Swisher is likely the better player, Joe Girardi probably views Swisher’s versatility as being more valuable off the bench. Personally, I would prefer that the better player win the job, but I can see the team looking at last season’s numbers and waiting until Swisher shows that he has turned it around before handing him a starting job. I am sure that both players will see plenty of time in the everyday lineup, as Hideki Matsui and Johnny Damon both need to be treated gingerly to make sure they remain healthy.

Just as an aside, neither has done much in Spring Training to win the job:
Swisher – .265/.409/.324
Nady – .244/.262/.488

(h/t RAB, stats h/t commenter steve at RAB)

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Saba Becoming A Leader

Posted by admin at 11:37 am 3 Responses »
Mar 232009

Good stuff from Tyler Kepner of the NY Times on how CC Sabathia has embraced the role of leader and go-to guy within the Yankees clubhouse:

TAMPA, Fla. — C. C. Sabathia played the role of good teammate on Sunday and, as usual, it came naturally. Sabathia uses a slide step from the stretch, which helped Jorge Posada catch three potential base stealers in a minor league game against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

…

When General Manager Brian Cashman and his staff evaluated Sabathia, they found many examples of his value as a teammate. In Cleveland, Cashman was told, Sabathia’s mother would invite the Indians for barbecues.

“He’s not going to punch the clock at work and tag out and say, ‘See you all tomorrow,’ ” Cashman said. “He’s on call 24/7 as a teammate. He exemplifies the definition of teammate. It’s not just from when you show up at the ballpark until when you leave. Teammate means friend to him.”

The article also reiterates Saba’s tendency to flip the bill for Orlando Magic courtside seats and the infamous Toy Story ride he shared with Joba Chamberlain while at Disney World.

In some ways, the hefty lefty reminds me of David Cone, who many around the “Dynasty Yankees” referred to as the heart and soul of the championship teams. It wasn’t Derek Jeter or Paul O’Neil or Tino Martinez, but a starting pitcher who commanded the locker room with his voice and his performance.

And, like Coney, Mr. Sabathia is a [selfless] hired gun, here determined to win a championship.

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Yankees Farm System 4th Most Valuable In AL East

Posted by Moshe Mandel at 11:17 am No Responses »
Mar 232009

Beyond the Boxscore has been running an interesting feature in which they devised a system to put a dollar value on each farm system in baseball. The valuations are done based on top 100 prospects lists, as well as the grading system utilized by John Sickels. The Yankees come in at fourth in the division, but are bunched within a group of three at the bottom, with the Jays and Red Sox, that is separated by a mere 5 million dollars. Being that the Orioles and Rays have more top flight prospects than the other three clubs, they have a comfortable lead in a system that highly values star power over depth. Here is the blurb on the Yankees:

New York Yankees, $97.8M. Jesus Montero looks like a pretty terrific international signing. The 18 yr. old won the Sally League batting title in his full season debut and projects to be a major power threat in the big leagues. Austin Jackson has no standout tool, but looks like a solid all-around center fielder. Where the Yankees are particularly deep is the pitching department, but none of their pitchers are really awe-inspiring at the moment. Andrew Brackman, Dellin Betances and maybe Arodys Vizcaino are the only ones who strike me as having high upside. The Yanks have nine 23 year old + C grade pitchers, 12% of their systems’ value, so they should be able to fill out a bullpen rather cheaply for the next few seasons.

I like the upside of Heredia and De La Rosa as well, but the point is fair. The Yankees’ farm system is a bit weak at the top, with few players that look like decent bets to be major league stars. However, they should be able to fill the bullpen and back of the rotation fairly easily for the foreseeable future.

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Quick Bits: Recap, Jorge, CC, Stewart

Posted by Chris H. at 5:10 am 3 Responses »
Mar 232009

Here are a few quick notes before I pack it in.

1. David Price and the Rays worked the Yankees yesterday. Price pitched 4 innings against the team and struck out 4 while failing to allow a run (with 3 hits). Actually, Tampa’s pitching staff gave up no runs against NY, as the team beat a lineup that featured both Nick Swisher and Xavier Nady. Robinson Cano had noteworthy day, though, knocking 2 hits towards a gaudy .429 average (the shoulder seems fine).

2. While the Rays were beating the Yankees, two very important players — CC and Posada — were facing some low-level minor leaguers of the Pittsburg Pirates variety. Against the Bucs, CC threw 81 pitches over 5 innings, giving up only 1 run on 7 hits (3 K). Jorge Posada was actually catching the game and ended up throwing out 3 out of 4 would-be baserunners. This is good news for Posada and the team as he is not only regaining his physical form, prior to last year’s surgery, he’s also regaining the confidence needed to make quick throws, too.

3. Finally, the Yankees traded for Chris Stewart yesterday. Stewart was shipped back to New York from the White Sox for “future considerations.” I say “back to” because Stewart was with NY last year, playing for SWB and seeing some action (limited) in the Bronx (3 games). If my memory serves me correctly, Stewart caught Phil Hughes a bit in 2008 and looked terrible. At first, when I saw the article, I thought the Yankees had traded for Ian Stewart. Obviously, the excitement died down once I learned the truth.

Back with more later…

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