On the Yankees beat

I'm not so sure.

Wasn't he supposedly tired from getting overworked?

If he got tired from working a few innings, how will he be able to pitch an entire game?

And won't the bullpen now be even thinner?

I think they should go after Zito with some urgency especially now since they lost out on Matsuzaka and keep Proctor in the pen.

If Proctor is a starter then his preperation is significantly differant. Proctor would not be warming up every game or pitching 4-5 times a week; he would pitch once maybe twice a week, so I do not believe being tired should be an issue.

The question is does he have enough pitches to be effective? A fastball is not enough. He did turn a corner last year and he had a very good year. The Yankees also have Bruney, who pitched well and they just added Britton.

Proctor as a starter would not be my first choice but having him go to spring training as a possible option is not a big deal. He could always end up in the bullpen.

I doubt very much that Zito is even interested in the Bronx and I do not believe he is worth the asking price.

I believe this is a good move. Proctor's mentality in the relief situation was not solid. If, you give up a run or two while doing a relief pitching outing its an issue but with 4.50 ERA or better your a multi year million dollar starter. He displayed the physical tools with a plus fastball and breaking pitch. If, he can develope the splitter or changeup. He would be perfect. I always thought he could get it done or be given the chance. If, Jaime Walker can command 12 million over 3 yr. contract with a high 80's fastball than the free agent market is not worthy of dealing with. A trade would be my route except for Lilly (NY type).

Eric relief pitching is so taxing on your arm. Throwing to 4 or 5 batters every other day is not an easy task especially with the conditioning to only pitch this much. Why do you think Mariano throws 10 -15 pitches and is removed when posible. BC is making some great moves or non moves so far. He has done his homework and see's not much out there. I believe Ted Lilly would be a very good FA signing.

1. Wang
2. Mussina
3. Johnson (hopefully)
4. Lilly
5. Proctor

I would feel comfotable every game with this rotation.

proctor has pitched well in limited starts and his curveball has turned a corner. i say good move cash!

if proctors arm is healthy, i like the idea. i think we will beef up the bullpen with dotel or others. lets not get crazy and sign zito to a huge contract. cashman is taking the right approach. wait it out and find an answer from within -like hughes. maybe get pettitte back if he wants to return.

I find much agreement with Larry M. with the possible addition of Gil Meche. The Yankees should go on the premise that Philip Hughes will start the season at AAA and Proctor would be a fill in starter. With Britton, Bruney, and possibly Veras in the bullpen it gives them plus Proctor enough work along with Farnsworth, Myers, a yet to be determined other lefty and of course Mo. In 2007, the bullpen shouldn't feel overworked.

I feel cashman is playing the sane game like last year "i'm comfortable with crosby in midfield...", then of course signing damon. i'm affraid that when boston signs DM, the pressure will mount. i hope that no panic moves are made then. keep the same direction going - young arms, solid farm system. i'm all for a trade with florida, but not the obvious one, i.e. no wilis. they are so pitching rich in the minors i'm sure the yanks can shake somthing loose.

I like the move!
I've been saying it since the season ended that Proctor should be a starter. He learned a lot from Gator last season and did a great job as far as I'm concerned. He was just over-worked and ran out of gas. Larry's right: pitching in relief is taxing on the arm. As a starter, Proctor will be on a more disciplined routine; pitching every 5th day, throwing between starts, and using pitches that he probably wouldn't use in relief situations. Plus, he can bring it at 95+ which I like.

If they do make Proctor a starter, which to be honest, I'm not that high on just because they still would lack any kind of dominant strikeout pitcher, I think they should sign Justin Spieir and keep Dotel, who will be 18 mos. out of surgery and historically speaking, should be ready to go. Proctor was very valuable to the bullpen and will be hard to replace. I think it will place a big burden on Wang to carry the staff and I really don't like Moose in the number 2 spot anymore. Frankly, I'm disappointed, I wanted a big gun. I still think they will change their minds and make a trade for someone who can fill the number one spot.

The Yankees have had trouble the last few years, building a "bridge" to Rivera. With the starting staff usually only going 6+ innings it has been a "long" bridge. Proctor did a very good job in either the 7th or 8th innings, and showed he could effectively go more than 1 inning if needed. This is a very rare commodity, and was why several teams tried to get him at the July 31 trade deadline. Leave the guy in the bullpen. Proctor and Britton give us 2 very good "bridges" to MO. Leave this area of strength alone.

Jim,
The move is OK if they bolster the bullpen with Justin Speier and Chad Bradford, for example. Unless the 7th and 8th inning guys can't hold the lead, it doesn't matter who's starting. I would also take a look at Eric Gagne if he's healthy. I don't trust Farnsworth, and Dotel, a free agent, was a disaster.

I think it's smart for Cashman to say this. The idea/announcement of Proctor as a SP might be a bluff. Remember when he said he was ready and willing to let Bubba be his starting CF so that he didn’t overpay for Damon or get lured into a bidding war with Boston. Right now Cashman has his poker face on and he’s not going to get suckered into overpaying. If he keeps this disposition then he might end up getting what we need.

All the GMs are thinking that the FA market is too expensive and not impressive so they are taking notes and seeing which teams they match up with for trades. It's still early. Cashman's early trades have put him in a position to either trade for a more established player(s) or use the arms he acquired. The young guys are good enough that if he has to go that route we’d be fine. More importantly Agents will believe that if the Yankees aren’t going to go over the top then maybe the contract size has go down a little.

Plus Zito and the other FA SP aren’t looking to sign any deals this early. They are going to want to test the waters and see how desperate clubs get. They are going to hang back and see what develops. Especially Boras’s clients.

The free agents left are Kevin Millar, Dmitri Young, Pedro Feliz, Travis Lee,Doug Mientkiewicz. The other options will be Trade for Mark Texiera who will be free agent next season. The Yankees could package Sanchez, Clippard and lower prospect.

next Option is Shea Hillenbrand is also free agent.

One season of Mark Teixeira is not worth Sanchez, Clippard AND another prospect.

I don't think Texas will part with him. He's set a lot of club records and they would probably re-sign him and keep him. They haven't shied away from big money before. He's a huge run producer for them.

No way Teixeira moves for less than most or all of our best prospects and frankly, we don't need him. We need pitching. Mientkiewicz might be a nice fit because he is a gold glove and would be cheap.

Rich Aurilia - Born in Brooklyn New York

AVG .300 | HR 23 | RBI 70 | OBP .349 | SLG .518
He had 34 BB's and 51 strike outs

Shea Hillenbrand -

AVG .277 | HR 21 | RBI 68 | OBP .313 | SLG .451
He had 7 walk and 40 strikeouts

Kevin Millar -

AVG .272 | HR 15 | RBI 64 | OBP .374 | SLG .437 - He has the Highest Obp. other three

He had 59 BB and 74 K's

Phil Nevin

AVG .239 | HR 22 | RBI 68 | OBP .323 | SLG .438

He had 17 walk and 52 K's

They only need a part time right handed 1B to play about 100 games.

Before they sign Shea they should let him know that he will not play 150 games at 1B if they plan to rotate Melky in order to give him 3 starts a week (one at LF, RF, CF) and the regular flleder would start at DH that day while Giambi plays at 1B. On those days Shea will sit unless is is a tough lefty. In that case Giambi will sit.

Therefore Melky can get at least 72 games in the field for 300AB. Assuming a lefty pitches 25% of the time sit Giambi on those days Melky plays (18 games). Therefore Shea better understand that he will start at most 108 games at 1B. More then likely he will start about 92 games since Torre might want to sit him against the toughest righties another 16 games. Shea started only 90 games last year and she should expect no more and keep his atitude in check.

Shea Hillenbrand has been a clubhouse nightmare on every team he's been on. I don't think this team needs any more of that considering we just got rid of ours.
I don't think we need to get hung up on our backup or partime players right now. Let's focus on pitching and wait for the other stuff in February and March when some players might get released who could fill the void for a while. I don't think we lost too many games last year because of our first base defense, our pitching however...well, it sucked.

They don't need any part time first baseman or a full time one for that matter.

They've got Andy Phillips and he will give you those numbers that Casey posted above very easily.

Damn, you people are dense.

Over/ Under yankees 95+ wins next year

Over/Under - Yankees will missed or make the playoffs?

Over/Under - Yankees will win Al east ahead of Boston and Toronto?

Eric- Do you notice that you are the only one on this blog who feels they have to call people names and act like a child? I'd say you should either get off the blog or grow up and state an opinion, which you may want to back up with facts once in a while.

All: I forgot Mientkiewicz was lefthanded, my guess is the Yanks don't want him because they want a righty (who can hit which means not Andy Phillips).

Predictions - How many wins Proctor will get as a starting pitcher for 2007?

Does anyone think Proctor will be playing in Winter leagues or wait unter spring training starts?

Do you think that Yankees will be intimidated by Redsox and recent acquisition of Dmat? Four-headed dragon monsters lead by Schilling, Beckett, Matsuzaka,and Papelbon and they are hard throwers.

http://www.pritchettcartoons.com/dragons.htm

If our choices are down to Hildenbrand as our first baseman. For the sake of team harmony, I go with Andy Phillips. He's 29. He can hit .250+ without a problem. Give him 400 at bats. The production and on base percentages will improve. He 'll do whatever the team wants play or sit. How much better would Hildenbrand be for the Yanks. I won't even talk about the money difference. This kid can play and he can reach the seats. Give him the at bats and you'll have a steady, productive, happy and fine team player. Now, I know BC has turned the corner with the wild FA spending and looking within the organization for your help. Save it for pitching. One hit a week separates the .300 hitter and the .250 hitter who are full time players. Also, he plays a nice first base.

Ok, Eric. You have another supporter for Andy Phillips at first base.

Jim A, why don't you give it a rest?

Calling someone dense is hardly that big of a deal.

In case you don't know, people talk like that all the time.

Have you been in the stands in a ballpark?

If you are so sensitive, then maybe you should avoid this blog.

One more thing, my posts have as much facts as anyones', so get off my back.

Thanks Larry, I can see at least someone here knows what they're talking about.

My problem w/ Phillips is he's been talked about for quite a while and now he's 31 and still doesn't get it done. He had his chance for most of last year and simply couldn't get it done. His career OBP is .281 and his fielding percentage was .988 in 2006, compared to a career LOW for Giambi (.985). As I've said, I don't want Hillenbrand because of his attitude but his OBP w/ Toronto was .342 and his fielding percentage at first was .995.

We need starting pitching, not position players. Forget about getting Tex. from the Rangers, or signing free agents for 1B or any other offensive position. Focus on starting pitching. With the staff we currently have, we would be lucky to finish 2nd in our division next year. Other than Wang, everyone else is a big question mark, either due to age, injury, or inexperience.

AL -

Why should the Yankees be feared of the "4 monsters". 1. Schilling's best days are over and he has not been the same pitcher since 2004.2. D-Mat has never thrown a major league pitch. On paper his numbers look good but doesn't the Yanks look good on paper every year also? What has that translated into? 3. Beckett got rocked last year going 16-11 with a 5.01 era. He also gave up 36 homers. I guess it's that NL to AL thing. I don't see his numbers any different this year. So I would not fear a 5.01 era pitcher. 4. As for Papelbon was great until major leaguer hitters adjusted and then got rocked. He then was injured and out for the count. Remember now he is throwing more innings than a closer and he has more of a chance landing on the DL than if he was a closer.5. Wakefield is garbage and he only seems to pitch well against the Yanks.I would not count on him at all. So after all is said and done why should we be feared of a team that has no bullpen,no closer, and a questionable 5.

Eric and Larry,

I agree Andy Phillips should be playing first. I don't see the need to put a guy who hits 40 homers there. Andy plays good defense and gets a hit every now and then. We don't need another slugger who will hit 500 ft homers. Nomar is not a natural first baseman and we all saw what Sheff did over at first. As for Hillenbrand didn't we get rid of Sheff? I don't see the need to have another Sheff back. Again "Drawing 4 million fans is not the same formula to winning the W.S".

"Do you think that Yankees will be intimidated by Redsox and recent acquisition of Dmat? Four-headed dragon monsters lead by Schilling, Beckett, Matsuzaka,and Papelbon and they are hard throwers." -AL

NEVER! Considering Beckett gives up a ton of hits/HR and didn't make the adjustment into the AL and Schilling's ankle is tapped together and maybe has just one decent season left in him. If he stays health.

Beckett's last game against the Yankees went something like this:

5 2/3 IP, 7 Hits, 9 Runs, 9 ER, 9 BB, 2 K's, 1 HR, Yanks win 13-5.

Not very scary at all!

Sign Schmidt To A 3 Year Deal!, It's calculated Rish worth taking . Scmidt is only 33 years old. Remember Schilling was traded to the Redsox when he was 36 years old and they won the world series.

Seriously. I mean Jason Schmidt has had some injuries in the past . But was quite healthy last year. And has shown flashes #1 ACE- like brilliance. In the past, he blew away the Yankees in his only appearance(unintimidated) in Yankee stadium as well as 2 hit(shutout) the 2004 world champion Blosox.

Let's face it Zito( he was healthy) got torched by the Yanks in the 1st game of the year last year. He was imcompetent in the playoffs the last few years. And since his fastball is very mediocre. It only makes his curveball that much more predictable "WHEN" he get's it over. I really don't think he belongs in the AL east .

I know what your thinking... Schmidt, Another NL nightmare pitcher coming over. Well I believe Jason Schmidt(is younger than Randy Johnson) is much more respected than say the Javy Vaquez's,the Carl Pavono's and the Matt Clement's of the world. Once in awhile an NL pitcher can succeed(if for a short time). Though not the best example...Pedro,Schilling etc.

Anyway look at even Roger Clemens. When he was 34(Schmidt's age), the Red Sox believed he had nothing left. By looking at his last two mediore years in Boston. Toronto(ansd subsequent other teams-Yanks Houston) took a chance and the rest is history.

Now I'm NOT saying that Jason Schmidt is going to rack up a ton of Cy Youngs from now till eternity. But I truly "BELIEVE", He can make big impact for Yankees in a short 3 YEAR period. Also, He can influence the young and developing Philip Hughes(and Wang etc...). Don't forget Schmidt has like 4 pitches and he's not afraid to pitch inside as well.

It's just a nice calculated risk worth taking. Possibly throw in Meche too(based on potential/upside).

Pavano is not in Schmidt class. and Pavano has never shown flashes of dominance. Ever.

And the only reason why the Yanks got him(as well as dead weight Jaret) is the the market was desperately THIN!!!!!!

Any chance we can dump Giambi to the A's for a reunion? They are in the market for a DH.

I like Schmidt because he's a hard thrower who, like Ricky said, is not afraid to pitch inside or put someone on their back if he has to. I can't stand it when one of our guys gets drilled and Moose refuses to "let one get away", the Yanks need to get a more intimidating presence on the mound. RJ was supposed to be that but he's not the same RJ from 2001 to say the least.
AJ: What do the A's have that we want for Giambi? Why so down on Giambi, when healthy he's still an offensive force from the left side of the plate. We're all making too much of the defense at first base, like I said earlier, that is a decision that doesn't need to be made until spring training. We need to get the pitching staff straightened out. I saw an interview with Cash who said he came to the GM meetings hoping to find a RH hitting 1B, but was focused on pitching, pitching and more pitching. Let's hope that is the case.

And you're completely off base.

First, he is not 31. He won't be 30 until April of next year.

Second, yes you are right. He has been talked about because he is that good.

The problem is not because he couldn't get it done, it's because the damn, superstar-ogling Yankees of the recent past didn't give him the chance.

In no year besides last (which I will go into next) has he had more than 40 major league at bats.

Even a Barry Bonds would've never came about if the Pittsburgh Pirates stiffled him like that when he first came up.

As for last year, the Yankees would've never given him even that chance had it not for the injuries.

Now, as for why he didn't put up the "grand" numbers that would impress you.

Like Larry said, with that few at bats, the difference bet. .250 and .300 is an extra single every week.

Add to the fact that he DID hit and hit very well, with pop I might add, in May and June.

As I had mentioned many times before, he only struggled in July. He went 0-19 in one stretch and that can bring your average down quite precipitously if you only have a hundred at bats or so.

As we have seen many times, even the best hitters (yes, even our beloved Jeter did that too) can get into a bad slump.

It happens to the best of them, but because they are allowed to continue to bat, it doesn't hurt their numbers so much.

Not the case with Andy, he wasn't even give that chance because understandably, the Yankees were in a pennant chase at the time, so they brought in someone who they thought would be better, Wilson.

As we saw, he was no solution either, but they won anyway. So if they had stuck it out with Phillips, the results would have been the same.

I made that argument all summer but you guys disagreed.

Fine.

Then came playoff time, and I once again made an argument to NOT play Sheffield at first base and put in Phillips instead but you guys didn't want none of that.

You all argued in favor of Sheffield's "big bat."

Did his "big bat" help you any?

Now, everything's over and all I hear once again is how we need this washed up first baseman or that overpaid and washed up first baseman.

If that is not dense, tell me what is?

Anyway, as I've also explained before, he struggled in that July stretch because of the trading deadline and all the talk about the Yanks getting a firstbaseman.

He tried too hard to hit and naturally that lead to aggressiveness.

If you hand him the job and give him your confidence, he will shine, far better than any of those other players mentioned.

Kei Igawa has been posted

http://www.rotoworld.com/Content/playerpages/player_main.aspx?sport=MLB&id=4112

Left-hander Kei Igawa was posted by the Hanshin Tigers on Friday.

Because the MLB offices are closed for Thanksgiving, bids for Igawa won't be due in until Nov. 27. It looks like this is how the Tigers wanted it. The Padres, Diamondbacks, Dodgers, Yankees, Braves, Mets, Cubs and Indians are viewed as some of the potential bidders for Igawa. Reports have indicated that the Mariners and Red Sox won't be involved.

Okay, so if the guy goes 0-July because he's worried about the Yanks getting another first baseman, what's going to happen to him in October? You're right, I got his age wrong he will turn 30 on April 6th but good hitters don't just blossom when they're 30 (unless they head for BALCO). If anyone in MLB had any confidence in him the Yanks would have traded him a long time ago as they did with so many other younger, cheaper players. the fact is nobody is interested in him, Torre gave him a shot last year, and it was a good shot, and he didn't impress anyone. Cashman is openly saying he wants a RH 1B, why would he say this if he thought for a second Andy was the answer? I'm not as down on this guy as I seem but he's not really anything. At the most he's a mediocre player, who doesn't matter to this team. They need pitching and we're arguing the virtues of a bench player. I will agree with you just so we can move on to other things- ANDY IS DANDY!
Now, who's going to pitch for this team? How about a backup catcher, which I think is one of the most important backup roles given Posada's age and need to rest. We can't go through another season with an automatic out at the position such as Stinnett or Fasano. Also, I've wanted people's opinions on this subject for a while: What do you think will happen to the Yankees when George is gone? Will they operate the same way or are we in for a harsh dose of reality?

Jim A-

It is sad to say but when the boss is gone that is when the Yankees will win a series. I love George but I seen over recent years he just throws money at situations and expects it will fix everything. The way the Yanks are operating now is how I see the way they will operate from now on. They realize spending sprees don't by anything. The greatests Yankees teams were a bunch of gritty hardnose players. Not overpaid superstars. I miss those days and I hope they will soon return to the Bronx.

Pondering the meaning of the Red Sox's offer http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/6178880

The Boston Red Sox apparently will take a $100 million gamble on Japan's star pitcher, Daisuke Matsuzaka. The Boston Red Sox apparently will take a $100 million gamble on Japan's star pitcher, Daisuke Matsuzaka.

Assuming the Red Sox are indeed able to sign the 26-year-old right hander, they will receive some residual economic benefit by raising their profile in Asia, baseball experts agree. But the bottom line, as agent Barry Axelrod put it is this: "they're trying to get to the World Series. If they win it, then this will be viewed as a tremendous move."

If not, "even if everyone in Japan wears a Red Sox hat, how much money will they make?" The Red Sox won the bidding to negotiate with Matsuzaka by offering his Seibu Lions $51.1 million, besting the Yankees who bid just over $30 million, the Mets and the Texas Rangers.

The $51.1 million, which is almost four times the $13.125 million that the Seattle Mariners paid to bargain with Ichiro Suzuki in 2000, will be returned to the Red Sox if they can't reach a deal with Matsuzaka and his agent, Scott Boras.

The consensus among experts is that the Red Sox will sign the Japanese hurler to a four-year contract for about $48 million, or $12 million per year, bringing the total value of the deal to about $100 million.

AJ-
I agree to an extent. I see player development being more of a factor after George is gone but I can't say that they won't buy the "stud" free agent now and then. The money they make allows them to do it. Also, George hasn't been that bad, I mean they've won 6 WS and appeared in 9 of them under his ownership, what other team can say that?

You can't make the assumption that because he struggled in July that he would find October even tougher.

It doesn't work that way. A lot of it has to do with confidence.

Once you've become a regular, you are no longer worried about losing your job because you had a bad month.

In fact, players like Phillips would actually be more likely to come through in October than your superstar.

We certainly have seen enough of that.

As for no one else was impressed by or wanted him and not trading for him already.

You don't know that. You didn't answer the phone calls in Cashman's office.

You are just speculating.

I'm sure lost of people have asked for Phillips but the Yankees declined.

They feel he has potential but they also doesn't feel comfortable handing the job over to someone unproven.

Look on the field at who they've done that with.

No one.

Yes, Cano and Chien Ming Wang were given the chance but they were only given the chance because of injuries and pressing need.

Otherwise, even those two would still be in the minors or would have been traded.

Remember 2005, there were all types of talk of trading Cano and Wang early on.

The only thing that saved them was because they came through right away.

A slower starter would have been sent back or traded.

The numbers Andy posted in the minors is very impressive.

To think that no one wanted him is simply a baseless assumption.

Now, to answer your Steinbrenner question.

W/o him, things can go both ways. It depends on the guy that secedes him.

If that guy allows the right baseball people to hand the on the field matters such as Gene Michaels and Cashman, then the Yankees will continue to win.

If he lets the Tampa-based people run the team, then they going to flounder.

http://prospectinsider.wordpress.com/2006/11/11/scouting-report-kei-igawa-lhp/

He uses a four-seamer in the 88-91 mph range, with that 92+ capability on occasion, and an above-average change that I had in the 78-81 mph area. His breaking ball is a solid slider he’ll throw mostly to lefthanders, though he did use it to backdoor some right-handed bats.

“It looked like he was playing with a different heater in some starts, perhaps a two-seamer or a sinker of some sorts, but his command of that pitch was very ordinary. His overall control is above average and he’ll probably need to be aware of the base on balls in America.

“He gets most of his strikeouts on the change and the fastball up in the zone, and I suspect he’s going to continue that trend wherever he ends up. His ground ball tendencies aren’t heavy enough to think he can be considered even a mild version of a ground ball pitcher, and the best hitters in the world will get more lift on his pitches.”

What I saw of Igawa, mostly this year’s version, showed that he has no problem trying to bite off a righties’ toes with that slider, that sat in the 80-83 mph range. It also appears that he changes speeds - and planes - on it to give it more of a curve ball type appearance. The grades I have seen on the slider don’t match what I saw. I think his slider is a little bit better than he’s been given credit for, at least compared to what I have read and heard.

The scout is a 13-year veteran and has six years experience in Japan, Korea, China, some areas of Eastern Europe and has dabbled in the Latin Americas, too. His overall assessment of Igawa is very much along the the lines of what the Seattle Mariners need to be doing, and might very well be trying to execute.

“Kei is going to be a very good value to someone, and we have a lot of interest in him, too,” he said. “I know two other clubs in our division (NL Central) really think that way also, and the Dodgers, Mariners, Rangers and Angels have scouted him pretty extensively as well.

“He’s a fringe frontline guy, for me, somewhere between that innings eater at No. 4 and the occasional dominant start that good No. 3’s can display five or six times a year. Is he Mark Buehrle? He might be better, but that’s a decent comp. I liken him to guys like Wolf (Randy), Buehrle, or someone like Noah Lowry in style.

“I don’t expect his strikeout numbers to hold up, but I am going to recommend him as a legit No. 3/4, and I think if he’s paid that way it’s a solid get.”

Clubs vying for Igawa, as for Matsuzaka, do have to consider the posting fee when tabbing the talent’s value to their roster. For Seattle, is a $10 million posting fee and a three-year, $13 million contract a good investment on Kei Igawa? That’s three years and $23 million snaps, or nearly eight million smacks per season. That’s No. 2 starter money, and I was being fairly conservative on the above financials.

I say, if the Mariners, or any club can snag him for less than $10 mil posting and about $6 mil per season, it might be worth doing so. But that’s a big risk since he’s not the type of arm to lead your club to championships.

Looks like the Cubs, Orioles, Cardinals and Giants are all over him, too.

Okay, I loves me some Andy!
I wouldn't say my assumption about nobody asking about Andy is baseless as these things are usually in the paper. We've read countless accounts of teams asking about Cano, Wang and Melky but I've never read one word about anyone asking about Andy, it's just the truth and I listen to baseball radio, watch YES, read all the papers online etc. I do quite a bit of reading up on the Yanks and I've just never heard it. The same was true for Bubba Crosby, not many teams asked about him but the Reds just picked him up because he was totally free.
Regarding George:
My guess is Steve Swindal, George's son in law who will take over the team when George retires or is gone, likes Cash and will give Cash more power. You can bet the first thing Cash does is fire all those Tampa guys. Swindal has sided with Cash on Torre not getting fired and the acquisition of Abreu.

Jim A. I think we're in for a harsh dose of reality when George is gone. Maybe not right away but even this off-season is different for the Yankees and he's still "healthy". Don’t’ get me wrong; the Yankees needed to change strategy and reallocate their money and interests. I don't know if Swindle or who ever ends up calling the shots will have the same passion for winning and the team as George has, or the stomach to part with millions of dollars for the good of the team. It may not be a bad thing if teams, FA and agents can't use the Yankee Bottomless Well to line their pockets. And we get players that actually want to be here and not just cha$ing the highe$t bidder. But obviously you want the Yankees to be aggressive with players that could help the team. And you want the Yankees to appeal to players because they can win. With or without George I think the Yankees will remain a big market team but not twice-four times as big as the other clubs.

The change has already started in a way. There will be a cohesive plan for the organization as there was this year and the next 2 years Cashman is signed up for. No more George and Tampa vs. the New York office and Cashman. That already has made an impact on the off-season acquisitions and the team. If it’s for better or worse only time will tell.

First of all, you should know that what you hear or read represents a small portion of what's really going on.

Second, just because there isn't that much talk doesn't mean anything.

No one talked about David Ortiz when Minnesota let him go and when Boston picked him up.

On the other hand, there are players that you hear constantly but they never materialize.

Lesson?

Don't believe the hype and certainly don't let the hype mislead you into thinking whether a player is good or not.

The smart people are those that can see what most others don't.

I'm being 100% honest when I say that when Minnesota released Ortiz I wanted the Yanks to pick him up. They needed a LH DH/Bench bat at the time and I liked him when I watched Twins games and was very surprised that they just released him. Did I think he would be what he is today? Nope. I only hope Boston trades Manny so he doesn't have that protection in the lineup anymore.

Exactly.

And you weren't the only one that didn't see his potential.

Just like no one sees Andy's potential except for me.

I'm not kidding when I say he can give you .280-.310 BA, 20-30 HR and 80-100 RBI's for a good 5-6 years if not more.

Why would you not take that in a heartbeat?

Even if you sign some mega-superstar, they might not even give you that over that many years.

Need I remind you of our Giambino?

Let's switch topics. The scouting report on the Arizona and Hawaiian league is available on the Yankee website. There is some interesting talent there.

http://www.minorleaguebaseball.com/app/news/article.jsp?ymd=20061107&content_id=142758&vkey=news_milb&fext=.jsp

Anyone seen "Freaky Friday or Vice Versa"?

The Yankees Have Become The Red Sox and Vice Versa since Yankees acquired Arod and lost to the Redsox in game 7 of ALCS.

The Redsox bids excess $51 million and won the rights for Dmat. The Redsox ownership and Theo continued to improved their Team Acquiring high prize free agents. Meanwhile The yankees and Cashman are cutting payroll and getting younger . Cashman traded Sheff and Wright for young prospects. I believed John Henry and George Steinbrenner switched bodies. thoughts?

Anybody else excited to see Kevin Thompson and Melky and maybe Gardner patrolling the outfield in the next couple of years. I don't think the Yankees get enough credit about their farm system. I want to see more trades and get youth back in return.

I essentially agree with you on Andy Phillips, Eric.

This past summer in June and July I posted several times to that effect pointing out that Giambi and the defensive 1B du jour has blocked Andy from hitting the majors for many years.

No question Tino, John Olerud, and a few others were terrific players but they were all short term solutions, and one more example of filling a spot with a "name" player rather than a qualified rookie.

2006 was the rirst real sample of Andy Phillips playing and even that was limited and quahed by the failed Craig Wilson experiment.

Yet through it all Andy Phillips maintained a great attitude from what I could tell and would do whatever he could to help the team.

I toyed with the Nomar idea for 1B, but realize that is a mistake. Rich Aurulia sounds talented but his 1B play is a small sample.

Phillips impressed me at 1B. He got to many balls that others would have not. Some suggested Giambi had slightly more errors. Fine, but that stat tells you nothing.

Runners move at will on Giambi since he cannot throw. He does have a good soft glove and stretches well but moving off 1B after a ball is limited. Really he should not play 1B again. Never. Most of his injuries have occurred at 1B.

Short of landing Mark Teixeira to play 1B next year, I would like to see AP there.

AJ, I hope to see Kevin Thompson as the 5th outfielder next year. He has been terrific each time he was brought up despite enduring the ups and downs and Terrence Long.

Eric and the rest of you Andy Phillips lovers. What are you guys smoking? He is 30 years old, got a very respectable shot last year, and is what he is. He is not a bona fide major league 1B, much less a Mattingly or a Tino. Cashman knows this, that's why he wants a RH 1B. Why can't you guys see it?

"Quote"

http://www.yesnetwork.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20061113&content_id=1413099&oid=36019&vkey=6

2: NIGHTMARES OF POST-APOCALYPTIC DEVASTATION
Do you think Yankees will go after Pedro Feliz or Shea Hillenbrand to play first base? — Jason

Lord, I hope not, though today's papers suggest that Hillenbrand is a possibility. The Yankees like him because he's right-handed. While the impulse to add a right-handed hitter isn't a bad one, Hillenbrand is a poor choice. As a hitter, he lacks character. Now, everyone will talk about Hillenbrand's character because of the actions he took that led to his being dealt away from the Blue Jays. Forget about that stuff. All you need to know about Hillenbrand's character is demonstrated by his selfish approach to hitting.

Hillenbrand is a poor hitter. While he makes good contact, he has only middling power and refused to walk. Because he's slow and so often puts the ball in play, he hits into an obscene number of double plays. He also has a consistent habit of going cold in the second half of the season. Over the course of his career he's hit .299/.339/.468 before the break, .272/.307/.425 after. This year he played exactly half the season with the Jays and hit .301/.342/.480. As a Giant he batted an unacceptable .248/.275/.415.

Hillenbrand does hit lefties better than he does righties, but that's by virtue of the fact that he's right-handed, not because he has any special mastery over them. His career rates against southpaws is .299/.338/.464, while against righties it's .282/.320/.443.

Even Hillenbrand's "good" numbers, his hot first halves and his numbers against lefties, aren't too far removed from mediocre. Hillenbrand has hit Over the last three seasons, major league first baseman have hit .277/.357/.472. Hillenbrand has hit .293/.335/.455. He's lagging in all the areas that count, getting on base and hitting for power.

Feliz has a career on-base percentage of .288, and no more need be said about him. He's been about as helpful to the Giants as a sucking chest wound.

More on potential first basemen below.

Yankees After Dannys Baez

Danys Baez' agent, Greg Genske, said, "The Yankees have expressed interest in signing Danys" even though Baez wants to close.

----NY Post

Baez would be a nice pick up, especially if Proctor seriously starts (which I dont think he will but its possible)

Andy Phillips had 246 at bats last season.

Bobby Abreu has 209 AB and he only started August 1.

Bobby played in 58 games and Andy in 110.

He was essentially a 29 year old rookie, turns 30 next April.

Most healthy players have 550-600 AB in a season. He played 40-45% of a season last year.

So to extrapolate his numbers to a full 575 AB season, he would finish with
16 HR 68 RBI.

Robbie Cano sure improved after his rookie season. Melky was in his rookie season and was terrific. Is it fair to presume that Andy Phillips will not improve given a real shot from Day 1?

Why Are We Signing Aurilia?, that is stupid

thats an AWFUL move

Aurilia would be play 1st?

they are buying VERY high and giving up a first round draft pick...

Aurilia is a type A free agent.

what are they doing?

"He is 30 years old, got a very respectable shot last year, and is what he is." - Rick Keyes

At 30 years, he would still be significantly younger than 3/4ths the Yankees.

So what's the problem?

And no, he didn't get a respectable shot. As Paul showed with the stats, his at bats were spotty, mostly coming in the last few innings to play defense and getting an at bat or two that way.

You try to put up Ruthian numbers playing like that.

"He is not a bona fide major league 1B, much less a Mattingly or a Tino." - Rick Keyes

Why does he have to be a Mattingly or a Tino?

Is the next guy you want to bring in going to be one either?

"Cashman knows this, that's why he wants a RH 1B. Why can't you guys see it?" - Rick Keyes

Oh and as we all know, Cashman knows everything, right?

Well, all the rest of baseball should just pack in next year and beyond because Cashman knows everything.

Give me a break.

"Is it fair to presume that Andy Phillips will not improve given a real shot from Day 1?
" - Paul

No, it would not be fair to presume that. Every player is different, just like I'm different from you and you are different from the next guy.

Andy will improve and improve significantly.

There's just too much talent there to hit .240 and if you guys weren't so shortsighted and impatient, you'd all realize that too.

Agreed, Eric. I see Andy as a .275 or better hitter with 30 HR and 95 RBI each year. Plus he would play excellent defense and steal bases.

Don't be sarcastic.

He definitely has the potential.

I wouldn't be surprised but I can understand how you doubters would.

Anyway, even if he doesn't (and quite frankly, how many major league players can?) he is the type of player a team like the Yankees, which is loaded with big name veterans.

Who won the World Series MVP?

Pujols?

Edmonds?

Rolen?

No.

Eckstein.

How many of you would have replaced him with some flashy slugger?

And if you did, would the results have been the same for the Cardinals.

Folks, it's not all about the HR's and RBI's.

You need a balance of stars and regular workmen.

If you still don't see that by now, there's no hope for any of you.

Oops. Add the word "needs" to the end of "big name veterans" to above post.

Eric, were you referring to me as sarcastic? Are you mixing me up with someone else?

When I asked if it is fair to presume Andy would not improve it was obvious, I thought, that I think he will improve if given more opportunity.

What sarcasm? I actually think he will be a productive hitter.

Sorry, thought you did.

Andy Phillips is exactly what we need at first. Aurilla is not the answer and who cares if he is from Brooklyn. Does that make him a better first baseman? Shea Hillenbrand is another Sheff. So if that's the case why did we trade Sheff to bring in another cancer.
Mark Teixeira is another slugger something that we don't need. Why do people throw Andy under the bus when he does not have a fare shot yet some of you are the same people to defend A-Rod's failures. Why is that? It is because A-Rod hits 500 ft bombs and Andy doesn't? Give him one fare year at first. It seems like you gave A-Rod 3 and some of you are still convinced he is gonna become Mr.Clutch. I am all for Andy staying at first. Also please Yankee fans we gotta stop comparing ourselves to the Sox. Just because they signed an "unproven" majore leaguer everyone thinks we need to get back at them. I will leave you with this... The Yankees have brought all the top free agents in the market for the last 6 years,just throwing money everywhere. Brown,Sheff,Wright,Pavano,Giambi,Matsui,White,Herdia,Gordon ,etc. Now let me ask you this... Since 2001 we been doing this how many rings do we have? 0! And we brought every top-notch free agent. Again I keep saying this "drawing 4 million fans is not the same forumla to win a World Series".

We have spent way too much time discussing something that is not really a need for our team. We need pitching in the worst way and we've been discussing Andy Phillips for hours.
In that lineup all they would have needed was a glove at first base, even if that person couldn't hit but since the Sheff trade they feel they need a RH power bat so that's what they're going to do. It's clear they don't believe Andy is the answer and they view him as a late inning defensive replacement at best. They have openly admitted it. Joe Torre actually loves this guy, loves his attitude but for some reason they (Cash and Friends) just don't see him as the answer. I'm more worried about the pitching and I don't think this situation will be settled very quickly. I hate the idea of Proctor going in the rotation because as I recall he only has two pitches and that won't work.
I want a pitcher, not a belly itcher! :)

I'm amazed. The subject is still Andy Phillips. My last quote at 2:51PM was supported of Andy. You guys have been going at it for 6 hrs. You are truly Yankee fans. Unfortunately, BC does not read our comments to assit him with making the Yankees into a championship team. You know it will be fate that puts Andy at first base. If the Yanks can't acquire someone else then AP may get a shot at it. We'll never know what the Yankee brass is thinking. So, with any luck Jim will have some news about another developement to hash around.

We could put Stevie Wonder at firstbase and win the WS if we have Pitching. There is no greater need than pitching on this talented team. Amen!

Hello,

Did,nt the yankees last year had a former big leauger playing first in the minors carlos something? anyway Andy is not ready for the stage, if you want to go other routes , resign CRAIG WILSON who is 29 and is far a better player than Andy , he struggled because he was part time while he played full time in Pitt. you cannot have a weak hitter dividing two lefties batters so yes in retrospect a productive full time 1b is needed if the other outfielders need a rest for melky then they sit no way you play giabi at first anymore unless you HAVE TO , sign Craig wilson give him a full chance . i was angered he did not play in the playoff's he deserved the chance, his only flaw was that he struck out alot, but that can be pressure of a new team, and as for shea remember ted lilly had a fight with the same manager. as for trading the prospects ... no i would not do that at all develope them and your minor league system stack your chips. Hughes will be up later this year as he follows the same routine Pettete did in 95, the questions for the future is Posada if you retire him as a yankee perhaps you shift him to first being that he is an original infielder or he may be a future trading chip , in reality the yankees catching situation is a worry in two years as jorge get older. so maybe more prospect trading can happen, the outfield situtation can be a mess in the future as the deals for the current outside of abreau is crazy meaning that politically Melky has no chance of starting for the NY yankees and no better fiedling outfielder wants to come here due to the crazy deals present. Matsui is tied into some crazy japan / ny formula so even if he stinks it would be hard for the yanks to trade , perhaps if giambi stinks and is traded (doubt