The Jorge Posada signing is finally official. He's going to be on a conference call later this afternoon, and I'll share some of his comments later. Here's the Yankees' release on the signing:
The New York Yankees announced today they have signed switch-hitting catcher Jorge Posada to a four-year contract.
Posada, 36, batted a career-high and team-high .338 (171-for-506) in 2007 with the Yankees, ranking fourth in the American League in batting average. He earned his fifth career All-Star team selection and his fifth career Silver Slugger Award after also establishing a career high in hits and doubles (team-high 42) to go along with 20 home runs and 90 RBI in 144 games played (125 starts at C, five at DH and one start at 1B).
Having never been placed on the disabled list in his career, Posada has started at least 120 games at catcher in each of the last eight seasons (2000-07), a feat matched only by Jason Kendall. Posada’s 177 HR and 686 RBI as a catcher are the most by any Major League catcher since 2000 and only Kendall (1,119) has started more games at catcher over the eight-year stretch than Posada (1,019).
Among the Yankees’ all-time leaders, Posada’s 218 career home runs rank ninth, while his 861 RBI rank 12th and his 304 doubles are tied with Paul O’Neill for 13th most in franchise history. Only Yogi Berra (306) owns more home runs as a Yankees catcher than Posada (210).
In 2007, Posada became the first Yankees catcher to finish a season in the top 10 in batting average since Thurman Munson in 1978 (.297, 10th) and according to the Elias Sports Bureau, became the only player in Major League history to hit at least .330 with 40 doubles, 20HR and 90 RBI in a year in which he caught in at least half of his games played.
His 61-point increase in batting average from 2006 (.277) was the largest increase in average by any Major Leaguer who qualified for the batting title in each of the last two seasons and according to the Elias Sports Bureau, it was the largest increase by a Yankee since Bobby Murcer in 1971 (.331, an 80 point increase from 1970).
Posada is one of only eight catchers in Major League history to record at least 20HR in seven or more seasons, joining Mike Piazza (11), Johnny Bench (11), Yogi Berra (10), Gary Carter (9), Carlton Fisk (8), Lance Parrish (7) and Roy Campanella (7). He and Ivan Rodriguez are the only two catchers in Major League history to record two seasons of 40 or more doubles.
Originally selected by the Yankees in the 24th round of the 1990 First-Year Player Draft, Posada owns a .277 career batting average (1,334-for-4,814) with 304 doubles, 218 HR and 861 RBI in 1,432 games played, all with the Yankees. He has thrown out 26.5 percent of attempted base stealers in his career (287-for-1,085). His 96 career postseason games played are fifth most all-time while his 19 postseason doubles rank third on baseball’s all-time list.
For his work with the Jorge Posada Foundation, Posada was selected as the Yankees’ recipient of the 2007 Roberto Clemente Award, which is given annually to the Major League Baseball player who combines outstanding skills on the baseball field with devoted work in the community. He was also honored this season with the 2007 Bart Giamatti Caring Award from MLB’s Baseball Assistance Team. Posada and his wife, Laura, have two children, Jorge Jr. (7) and Paulina (5).
Comments (47)
Good! I had assumed this was done but it's nice to know it's official.
Kat: Do you have any idea when the contract for A-Rod will be done? Is there still a chance it will hit a snag?
Thanks for all your hard work and information!
My concerns regarding the new A-OPT contract are 2 fold.
(1.) Does the new contract have any "opt-out" clause(s)?
(2) Since A-OPT left the Yanks, does his "time served" with the Yanks start over, and therefore affect his 5\10 status and the automatic "no trade" that goes with it.
BP-Yankees Top 11 Prospects
[quote]
http://baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=6957
Kevin Goldstein- Baseball Prospectus Future Shock
Yankees Top 11 Prospects
Five-Star Prospects
1. Joba Chamberlain, RHP
Four-Star Prospects
2. Ian Kennedy, RHP
3. Austin Jackson, OF
4. Jose Tabata, OF
5. Alan Horne, RHP
Three-Star Prospects
6. Dellin Betances, RHP
7. Jesus Montero, C
8. Andrew Brackman, RHP
9. Edwar Ramirez, RHP
10. Kelvin DeLeon, OF
Two-Star Prospects
11. Humberto Sanchez, RHP
Just Missing: Frank Cervelli, C; Jeff Marquez, RHP; Ross Ohlendorf, RHP; Brad Suttle, 3B
Why Dellin, Brackman, and Montero. have only 3 star is it because of their inexperience?
Goldstein ranks him as a two-star prospect mainly due to health concerns, and I don’t really blame him. He’s got some good stuff, but he’s never been able to stay healthy. If he can show that his stuff is there and his health is good, he’d probably be considered a three-star prospect. He’s definitely bound for the bullpen at this point anyway.
Why Melky is better than Coco?
Melky has out slugged CoCo the past two years and gotten on base better by a wide margin in 1 and slightly worse in the other. He's had a better OPS+ in each of those two years as well. On top of that he's younger and "hypothetically" has more room to develop. He's also still pre-arbitration.
CoCo is a better fielder and a better baserunner. Neither is a good hitter, but the past two years Melky has been the better of the two.
Melky can play all three outfield positions and has better arm than Coco.. Coco will free agent in 2009 while Melky will be cost less. Therefore Melky has better value than Crisp.
Plus Coco is what he is. He's not going to get any better. Melky still has upside.
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Well I look at the past two because I don't see much reason to go back 3 or 4 years to compare. You say he's been playing this way because of injury. Maybe. Or maybe this is what he is and those seasons were a fluke. And I think I did say that the reason I prefer Melky is the cost and age factors. I specifically said that neither is a very good hitter though Melky has been better the past two years. I also said that CoCo was a better baserunner.
I'm not sure what you want from me lol. I was totally objective there.
I can't help but.....and I swear to jesus christ I'm not being biased but I can't help but realize that a package of Lester, Coco, Bowden, Masterson < Kennedy, Melky, Tabata, Horne.....and I would even throw in Betemit because of their 3b needs.
Melky vs Coco [2007]
First their lines
Coco - [526AB].268/.330/.382 OPS+ 83
Melky - [545AB].273/.327/.391 OPS+ 89
Pretty much even, Melky gets the nod in BA and his SLG is higher while Coco barley edges him out in OBP. The power numbers are really close.
Coco - 28 2B, 7 3B, 6 HR
Melky - 24 2B, 8 3B, 8 HR
VORP tells us that Coco was slightly more vaulable than Melky [above a replacement player]..
Coco - 11.9
Melky - 9.8
Now where it gets interesting, the defense, I’ll probably lose some of you because you’ll be in disbelief at the numbers.
According to the Fielding Bible Coco was amongst the leaders in the plus and Melky was amongst the trailers in the negative.
Coco - +22 [third behind Beltran +25, AJ +24]
Melky - -22 [second to GMJR’s -26]
So it’s not that Coco has a bit more range than Melky, it’s that he has a buttload more.
I’ll only make this topic because it seems to me that people aren’t really aware of how much better Coco is in the field compared to Melky and how close they are when it comes to offense. Please, lets try to have serious discussion for once. Comments?
In my opinion Their both are pretty much even.
Melky in my opinion, is better offensively, while Coco is better Defensively.
And I don't think anyone was arguing that Coco had more range, if they were, they're stupid and I missed it.
But Defense isn't just about Range. Watching Melky play, so many runners thought twice before advancing a base, whereas it seemed to me, many people tried to take the extra base against Coco.
But again, you can put an argument to both sides that one is better than the other, so to me, I'll take either/or, at this point though, Melky simple because of age.If you're gonna bring up defense then you have to point out the fact that Crisp cannot throw to save his life.
According to nyyfans.com, the Sox have just traded for Santana!!!
Santana-Beckett-Dice-K-Schiling. Can you say dynasty???
Just seeing if I am being completely irrational about this. The D-Rays are trying to improve their pitching staff, maybe they need a vet and another prospect and maybe a vet outfielder. Sooo...Kennedy, Mussina, and Damon for Carl Crawford. Instantly improving our OF defense and adding a lot more speed on the base path. I believe he's only in his mid-20's and I am sure he is bored with losing by now. With Kaz and Garza they need that 4th or 5th starter that may be able to bring the youth along or help them get to Percival. Kennedy can be a future 2 or 3 and Damon gives them vet leadership in the field that they lack.
It seems The Sox have made the best offer for Santana , link below. If this is true offer let them have him.
http://www.twincities.com/ci_7584709?nclick_check=1
CHARLEY WALTERS: Red Sox take lead in race to obtain Twins pitcher Johan Santana
Pioneer Press
Article Last Updated: 11/29/2007 12:14:50 AM CST
SHOOTER CHARLEY WALTERS
A little birdie says the Boston Red Sox have become the favorite in the Johan Santana trade sweepstakes.
The Twins would receive four players for the Twins' two-time Cy Young Award winner, including center fielder Coco Crisp, 28.
Others would be shortstop prospect Jed Lowry, 23; left-handed pitcher Jon Lester, 23; and right-handed pitcher Justin Masterson, 22.
Before a deal could be made, the Red Sox would have to have time to negotiate a contract extension with Santana, 28, who can become a free agent after next season and could have a market value as high as $150 million over six years.
Lowry did not play in the major leagues this year but is considered ready and is a good-fielding shortstop who also can hit. Lowry had a slugging percentage of .500 at Class AA and Class AAA this year.
Lester made a comeback from non-Hodgkin's lymphoma a year ago and is said to be cancer-free.
Masterson, 6 feet 6, 245 pounds, had 59 strikeouts in 58 innings at Class AA Portland.
The New York Yankees don't have the prospects available who the Twins figure have a reasonable chance to play in the major leagues by the end of 2008.
The trade that brought Young over makes getting Crisp unnecessary. This "rumor" will be the 1 of many.
Every Yankee-TB game I saw this year, Young played RF. So I believe that Ellsbury, Crisp and Melky are still in the mix.
Cocoa Pebbles is only being mentioned by Redsux fans, in order to rid themselves of a mistake, and hoping to hit the lottery. Pebbles has no arm and Melky is an affordable "switch hitter" who sprays the ball around. Plus, Pebbles isn't significantly better defensively than Melky, just a little better range, which is offset by Melky's MUCH better arm.
C'mon Nation.
Stop emulating the team you obsess over...
our New York Yankees!!!
Keep your crispies to yourselves.
Okay I'm back, business done, and very disappointed to learn that Jim A. wasn't able to finalize the Santa deal.
That rumored Minny-Red Sox deal sounds pretty far-fetched. En route I think I heard Heyman on M&MD saying that as of last night Minny was holding out for a package that would include Ellsbury plus the other stuff if they dealt with RS, or one that would include Hughes and Melky if they deal with NYY. He sounded pretty sure that RS, NYY and LAD were the only ones actively in the hunt at this point, Mets out.
Why anyone would want Crisp is a mystery in the 1st place. Why the Twins gave up pitching for Young is another mystery, unless they trade him. I still contend the Yanks getting Santana is going to "hinge" on Cano. There has to be a "star" quality player going to Minn. in the Santana deal, not just prospects.
The other thing they were talking about with Heyman on M&MD was that it now appears at least 50-50 that Miguel Cabrera will be staying put, making the NYY re-acquisition of AR that much more valuable since they would probably have been stuck with a very much lesser replacement at 3B. I didn't catch what the factor was that was making Cabrera unlikely to move (didn't sound impossible, just unlikely, but I was actually DRIVING, something I seldom do in the City, and couldn't pay close attention).
Santana is Boston bound.
Yanks are dead.
realist that was reported earlier. no way that deal will fly. the rumor is that since the twins need a 3b the dodgers are in the best position to scoop up santana
young will play lf for the twins.the other player that came over in the trade pridie is the cf who had a great year in triple a
Norton,
I have no idea whether you're right but at this point LAD getting JS would almost be a relief. Half of Yankee Universe wants to go with the youth movement anyway, and if JS is on the other edge of the world pitching for a team we never play it would make that a much more palatable option for NYY.
Then if we're nervous about having such a huge infusion of rookies in the rotation at once, we could go after Haren or somebody that we could maybe get without trading one of the not-quite-holy trinity away, and let Hughes start the year in the minors working on that putative third pitch.
Anon:
How come you didn't compare Melky to Coco in OF assists? Are the about even there, or, um, does one of them get a "buttload" more assists?
You compared them on just about everything else. Why did you leave assists out? Also, I didn't see any analysis of how they each hit with RISP or when it's late and close.
Roy:
No Opt Out clauses
No it does not effect his 5/10 status. Nor does having become a FA effect Rivera's or Posada's
New York Yankees vice president Gene Michael said Wednesday he would consider trading Phil Hughes or Ian Kennedy in a trade for Johan Santana, but warned the Yankees have to factor in Santana's contract demands befoe making any deal.
During an interview on 1050 ESPN New York's Max Kellerman Show, Kellerman asked Michael if he would be philosphically against putting either Hughes or Kennedy in a deal.
"I would think about it," Michael said. "I would very seriously consider putting one of them in the deal."
With the Yankees making Joba Chamberlain off limits, Hughes or Kennedy are believed to be potential centerpieces for a trade for Santana.
"I like them both," said Michael, who owns a very influential voice in the Yankees organization. "I think both of them are going to be good pitchers. I can't tell how long or how well they are going to pitch, but I think they both are going to be good pitchers."
Michael added that Santana's contract demands will be a factor in if the Yankees make a deal.
"I would love to have him on our team next year, but is the contract going to be too much?" Michael said. "Is it too many years? Are the players you are going to put in there, are they too much? We don't know exactly what it is going to take."
Damn, why can't that cheap billionaire Twins owner keep Santana and pay the man what he wants?
If Boston gets Santana, we are doomed. Their rotation will be so much better than ours, and this is assuming Pettitte is back which is obviously not a given.
Man Without A Country, A Man Without A Team (that's our dear old Nudge.)
(Dedicated to Nudge's unwelcome return on the last thread)
Oh Nudge, Nudge, with a mind of sour fudge,
Why do you hold such a grouchy grudge
Against all things fair and right?
Is it because you're just not very bright?
No, surely your mind is working well,
You remind us repeatedly, that's how we can tell.
We couldn't do without you, we wouldn't know what to do.
We'd only have our false dreams, but don't - thanks to you.
Oh Nudge, nihilist Nudge, have you come out of some primordial sludge
With a chip on your shoulder that nothing could budge?
And just to think you're a man without a team.
Can it mean that you don't even have a dream?
No one to stick your neck out for,
No need to feel any shame.
That is how Nudge, a man with a brain of molten fudge is, quite simply, made -
Existing only to rain on everyone else's parade.
Guys, I'm happy to see how well you have stood up to this guy's ridiculous remarks. Bravo, one and all! Only, why bother? He's only here to annoy and doesn't even have the guts to declare an allegiance, if he has one of course. Some people are just made like that. You know, they love to try to annoy other people, like the guy that gets in the left lane, slows down to block traffic and won't move. That's how they get their jollies. I defer on a definition of Nudge's warped personality to the resident shrink.
Cheers
diane.... just repeating what the experts said.the yankees do not have a 3b to deal and neither does boston .the dodgers do and also have the pitching prospects to get the job done
also for all those comparing melky and coco don't forget that he wasn't a cf with the indians and playing in fenway is a lot easier than yankee stadium to play in both at the plate and in the field.coco hit 256 on the road and has a habit of making routine plays look tough plus he has no arm
How about something like this:
Twins get Ian Kennedy, Melky, Scott Rolen
Cards get Matsui, Ty Clippard
Yankees get Santana - send some cash to the Twins to offset Rolen's salary and then sign Andruw to play CF since Jackson is likely not ready and Damon should not go there.
Twins get the CF they need, the 3B they need (and wanted but couldn't afford)
Cards get a Lefty bat to compliment Pujols and rid themselves of the Rolen/La Russa headaches
Yankees get Santana - moving Matsui frees up the cash that they will essentially be giving to the Twins to compensate them for Rolen and they don't have to give up Hughes, Cano or the boatload of prospects.
Wow ... crazy developments all around. If Sox get Santana I have to say that the Yanks will really be facing an uphill battle the next few years. Add to the mix that the Rays are coming into their own and the Blue Jays are always competitive. The AL East is about to become a MONSTER division ... that makes it all that much harder to grab a wildcard spot.
as for Twins, they still need a CF so that's why Crisp (and melky from the Yanks perspective) are in play. Young plays RF, not CF. It doesn't seem to me that Red Sox are offering a better package than the Yanks so hopefully this is not a "fake out" by the Sox to get the Yanks to overpay. If Yanks offer Kennedy, Melky and another lower level bullpen pitching prospect (Cox? Melancon?) then I think that's a good deal. Twins also seem to need a SS so why not toss Alberto Gonzalez in there as well? If that package isn't enough to get it done than guess what .... these kids of ours BETTER GO OFF next year or we will be home watching TV come October.
Forget Rolen, the Twins wouldn't want him he is always hurt and besides the Cards wanted one of the top three for him. The kid they got from the Rays [Harris is really a 3B] so lets offer Alberto Gonzalez as part of a package he's a better SS than what the Sox are offering or if they want a 3B include Betemit in the deal. He would be a better fit than Coco and he has some pop.
Yankee Bri,
May sound like an acceptable package to us but we're not the ones who have to like it. If Heyman is correct the Twins want Hughes and Melky (plus other lesser parts) or no deal with the Yankees.
Twins do have other teams interested and someone is likely to give them what they want, so I don't think there's much sense in our noodling around talking about stuff they don't want.
This was posted in regard to the Garza for Delmon Young swap on ESPN.com but validates my point about why you do not trade Robinson Cano for Santana:
All else being roughly equal, when talking about a young hitter versus a young pitcher, the hitter's expected value is higher because of the lower risk of a serious injury that would cause either player lost playing time or lost effectiveness.
Chip,
Doesn't 'validate' anything unless it comes with a source and the source is somebody we have reason to believe.
Otherwise it's a 're-statement', not a 'validation', of your point.
one last time the twins do not need a cf they got jason pridie in the garza trade to play cf
diane....the twins demands have changed with the garza trade they no longer need a cf they want a 3b and an elite pitcher.
think the dodgers with andy laroche and chad billingsley or the angels with nick arden and brandon wood
Diane - the source is Keith Law. As I said he made the statement while evaluating the Garza/Young swap. Here is Law's bio per ESPN:
Keith Law joined ESPN.com in June of 2006 as the lead baseball analyst for Scouts, Inc, covering the majors, minors and amateurs. He appears regularly on television on the The Hot List and on ESPNRadio's All Night with Jason Smith, GameNight, and the John Kincade Show. He also occasionally co-hosts the Mike Felger Show on 890 ESPN in Boston.
Before joining ESPN, Law spent 4½ years with the Toronto Blue Jays as a Special Assistant to the General Manager, and was previously a writer for Baseball Prospectus. He graduated from Harvard College and holds an MBA from the Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon.
Diane, it's been stated that Twins want either Kennedy or Hughes. Also, Pridie is still a year away from playing in the majors so Twins would still be open to a CF (plus melky can easily play a corner OF position if this kid Pridie turns out to be something). I still think Gonzalez, Melky, Kennedy and Melancon or Cox (to replace the eventual departure of Nathan) gets a deal done.
I think this headline on ESPN.com about Santana being close to going to Boston is all just a bunch of bluster. This is exactly what the Twins would want which is for the Yanks to see that and panic and agree to Hughes and Kennedy being in a deal. The deal ESPN outlined would not get it done. Coco Crisp could hardly be traded for Gerald Laird, much less Santana.
The Twins can now put up their feet and watch the panic roll in and the offers going up.
http://yankees.lhblogs.com/2007/11/29/posada-go-get-santana/
Posada's take on Santana and Petitte,,,,,
===============================================
Posada: Go get Santana
Jorge Posada did a conference call (audio coming shortly) and discussed his new contract. He said about what you would expect. He wanted to stay a Yankee, he could DH down the road, he likes Joe Girardi, he was sorry to see Joe Torre go.
Where it got interesting was when he said the Yankees should trade for Johan Santana because they need a No. 1. Posada also said he has been calling Andy Pettitte once a week.
He said Pettitte is leaning to retirement but he hopes that will change given the direction of the team.
IF the Twins are also looking for a 3rd baseman, the Yankees could include Betemit in the package. I see where all of these "non athletic" types are stealing my trade package but they know, as well as I do, where the idea originated from.
Hughes/Melky/Gonzalez(SS) - since Twinkies have been heard mentioning a need at short, Betemit at 3rd- since all of you think they need a 3rd baseman, and "2" 2nd Tier starters/long relievers:DeSalvo/Clippard/Karstens/Wright, or Rasner in case any of their 5 starters get hurt.
Count 'em - 6 players for Santana, all of which can contribute at the MAJOR LEAGUE LEVEL THIS SEASON!!! All we would get is a 15-13 lefty starter with 900 innings of mileage on him over the past 4 years. Plus, we would still have to pay the guy 20.1mil per for 6 years. I think the Twinkies will come to their senses in a short time.
I gotta start copyrighting some of these posts. Scavengers!
Jim,
I kind of feel the same as you regarding that rumor. I had that feeling when I first saw it and posted it , btw norton I didn't see it posted on here earlier? Thats why I said let them have him;-)
RED ALERT- AM I INSANE?
Does anyone know if the Yankees are allowed to talk contract numbers with Santana before a deal has been put in place?
It seems kinda illegal right?
Lets say it is...Would it be that difficult an obstacle to covertly maneuver?
All this negotiation talk got me thinking about Scott Boras and though he is a soul-less snake of a man he's also a ruthless and brilliant negotiator and I'm wondering what he would think about all of this if he were in Cashman's position...(Trust me that was just as weird to type as it is read hah.... ;-)
Knowing what we know about Santana's ability to kill any potential trades shouldn't we be dealing with Santana and not the Twins?
Santana holds the cards and in effort to take a page out of the King Scumbags-(Boras) book...If I were Cashman and I can't sleep thinking about the prospect of loosing these precious pitchers that I've worked almost 3 years to cultivate than what would keep me from exhausting any and all efforts to put Santana on my side of this war?
Sure it may be sleazy...unethical...maybe even illegal and considered a high crime in M.L.B. but this is still the U.S.A. and last I checked we have rights about speech and stuff.
Is it not possible to speak with Santana under cover of darkness and explain to him that a certain team that ryhmes with Wankees is willing to offer him 5 yrs $2oo,ooo,ooo.oo YES THAT MUCH and all he has to do is tell the Twins it's the Yankees or else. At the very least that would put us back into Kennedy/Melky/Horne territory and I believe it's the only way we can "win" Kennedy and Hughes for Santana is robbing Peter to Paul and I'd much rather rob the Twins nomsayin?
Crazy?
LOL...Well it's better than putting the severed head of horse in his bed or taking his pets hostage...My back plan :)
Lets think the unthinkable, the Red Sox get Santana. From some of my respected bloggers, the sky will wall. The Yankees will not make the playoffs because Toronto and the Devil Rays are improving. I guess the game is played on the kitchen table and we now fix the players batting tendencies to a spinner and away we go. That's how the kids played fantasy baseball in my day. It was pretty interesting but Mickey Mantle's HR zone was large.
If we get Santana from all indications. We will loss Hughes/Kennedy and Melky plus a couple of high level prospects. Getting Santana made not put us over the top if we trade away our CF and 1/5 of our rotation and maybe 1/5 of the rotation, Pettitte retires. So, now we have Damon in CF, Santana, Wang, Chamberlin, Kennedy ( I don't believe the Twins take kennedy in the deal) and Mussina. Its still better than last year with 36 starts from rookie pitchers and we still have Farnsworth as our bridge to Mo. Maybe this is the wrong time for us to get Santana.
I have read so many possibilities about this trade that I have wondered if its even worth the loss of the young guys. Yes, they are not proven but us Yankee fans do not get to see this type of pitching prove itself. Maybe its the right time for Hughes, Kennedy and Joba to stay in the Bronx wearing the pinstripes just as Jorge,Jeter, Bernie and Mo. I just hope the Yankees can walk away from the table if necessary.
A little tongue in cheek with my last post (sorry for the length) of course but I'm actually curious...
Why can't we find a way to get Santana to WANT to be on our side of this negotiation?
Believe me I'm not looking to totally screw the Twins.
I just don't want to screw ourselves while trying to screw the Redsox (ie getting Santana)
Michael PTRS,
I see your point and would love if just that could transpire...though it is unethical in major leauge baseball....damn ethics!
You had me rolling with that last post regarding screwing the sox....reminded me of George Constanza complaining that the others (Jerry , Kramer and Elaine) were screwing him while he was trying to screw them ;-)
Dear friends, I am so "Santana'd out" that I can no longer be rational, so am signing out to immerse myself in Off-Screen-Life! Hope those who are not brain-dead will resolve the whole thing meantime... see you when I revive... :-)
To be honest with you guys, I'm starting to lean towards the Yanks going after Joe Nathan and use him as the bridge to Mo. I'd like to see Cashman do something to beef up the pen.
The other issue will be if Pettitte packs it in. The Yanks have never won a title without a lefty in the rotation.
I don't think Santana will have any trouble coming to contract terms with the team that trades for him, but it would be great if he just didn't want to play for anyone but the Yanks and he used his no-trade clause to make it happen. Hell, Randy Johnson did, quite openly too.
Mike from Jersey ---Another BS Artist Exposed
The first mention of Gonzalez was made by Anon Yankee fan on another thread at 12:07 today--You came on the same thread at 14:29 and after stating it's good to be back started the I told you so BS about Santana saying that Hughes,Melky and 2nd teir pitching would get the job done then you also included Gonzalez in the trade.
Checking back on this thread Anon Yankee also made mention of Betemit as trade bait at 16:27. It appears that you never mentioned Gonzalez or Betemit until their names were posted by Anon Yankee.