Wednesday, January 22, 2014

Masahiro Tanaka Officially In Yankees Pinstripes


You wanted it, I made it happen on Twitter last night, and Hal Steinbrenner paid for it. Masahiro Tanaka in Yankees pinstripes! Today is a good day.

Yankees Unlikely To Add More Pricey Free Agents

According to Buster Olney on his Twitter account the New York Yankees are unlikely to add any more high priced free agents after the Masahiro Tanaka signing. Boooo! That means no Matt Garza, Ubaldo Jimenez, Stephen Drew, Grant Balfour, etc. I disagree with Olney here as Hal Steinbrenner himself has said we would either get under the cap, which seems impossible now, or we would go way over it. Currently we are less than $20 million over the cap and that is not "way over" in my book.

The Yankees have spent somewhere in the neighborhood of $450 million or more this offseason with the additions of Brian McCann, Jacoby Ellsbury, Carlos Beltran, and Masahiro Tanaka among others. It's not surprising that the Yankees are probably done even with the holes they still have in the infield and in the bullpen. Oh well, it was fun while it lasted.

Hal Steinbrenner Lays The Smack Down On Haters


Hal Steinbrenner was very vocal today when being interviewed about the Masahiro Tanaka signing. His brutal honesty reminds me a lot of his father, and I must say that I like it. You don't want to hear from me though you want to hear from the little boss so here are some quotes courtesy of the Associated Press:


“We’re going to do what we’ve got to do to win,” Yankees co-chairman Hank Steinbrenner told The Associated Press in a telephone interview. “Anybody that questioned our commitment to winning is going to have to question themselves.”

I guess this puts to bed the "coupon clipping" Hal Steinbrenner for a little while? Maybe?

“There has been criticism of myself and my brother the last couple years that, gee, if our dad was still in charge, we’d be spending this and spending that and doing whatever it takes to win,” Hank Steinbrenner said, referring to late Yankees owner George Steinbrenner.

I think I have probably been guilty of this as well... sorry Hal! I know Hal and Brian Cashman read my site so I send out my personal apologies.

“He didn’t have revenue sharing, at least for most of his time,” Hank Steinbrenner added. “That’s what these people in the sports media don’t seem to get. If it wasn’t for revenue sharing, we’d have a payroll of $300 million a year if we wanted to. So we’re doing this despite having to pay all that revenue sharing.”

So let's do the math real quick like. If it weren't for revenue sharing we would have a $300 million payroll. If the luxury tax is somewhere around $30 million does that mean we have $40-$50 million left to spend this winter? Bring on Balfour! Bring on Drew! Bring on Jimenez! Bring on the Canyon of Heroes.


Yankees Announce Tanaka Signing, DFA David Huff


Well that didn't take long, the New York Yankees have announced the signing of Masahiro Tanaka and have added him to the 40 man roster. David Huff has been designated for assignment to make room for Tanaka on the roster. Tanaka is signed with the Yankees through the 2020 season for $155 million, an AAV of 22.15 million, and has an opt out clause after the 2017 season. The only question left to answer is what number will Tanaka wear in 2014?

Masahiro Tanaka New York Yankee Contract Details


EDIT:

Tanaka will in fact receive a full no trade clause as expected. Tanaka will also receive a $35k moving allowance, a $100k annual housing allowance to be used in New York or near the team’s Spring Training complex in Tampa, and $85k to hire an interpreter. The Yankees are also giving him four first class round trip plane tickets from New York and Japan. 

Unless you have been living under a rock for the last 12 hours or so you probably already heard that Japanese star Masahiro Tanaka is the latest member of the New York Yankees, hallelujah to that. I just wanted to let you guys know, in case you missed it, some of the details that are surfacing about Tanaka’s monster deal he just signed. Tanaka signed a seven year deal worth $155 million for the 8th highest AAV in the league at $22.15 million annually. Also Tanaka has an opt out clause after four seasons in case he believes that Chicago really was a nice place to live after the 2017 season, I still claim their pizza sucks though.  I have not seen a mention either way on whether or not Tanaka has a no trade clause but I would be shocked if one were not included, not that it would be necessary. Either way Tanaka is a Yankee now and the world can go back to hating New York for our money and not because the Yankees give them a reason to.

Balfour Expected To Sign Within The Next Week


Here is one for a couple of our guys who hang around in our comment section of the site, Mr. Patrick Walsh and Mr. Ken Hans, Grant Balfour is expecting to sign a contract "in the next week, if not in the coming days" according to MLB Trade Rumors.

Whether the Yankees are interested or not really remains to be seen but the Washington Nationals look like favorites right now for the Aussie. With the wrist and knee concerns surrounding Balfour I would be a little weary, plus I have all the confidence in the world in David Robertson, but I am excited for this discussion to be coming to an end.

Masahiro Tanaka Signs w/ New York 7 Years $155 Million

Masahiro Tanaka has taken my advice, and constant twitter nagging, and signed with the New York Yankees. The deal is for a reported 7 years and $155 million. That is a huge commitment for a relative unknown but it completes the Yankees offseason in a big way. Everyone who follows me on twitter knows I am the reason Tanaka signed here so you are welcome.

Yankee Stadium Legacy: #69 Don Mattingly (Again)


Don Mattingly combined the art of hitting and fielding to a near perfection. The Yankees first basemen was awarded for his glove work with nine Gold Glove Awards in his career which is good for second most all time at his position. Mattingly also carried a .307 lifetime batting average through his final season in 1995 including an AL batting title in 1984 when he hit .343. In 1986 Mattingly had a personal best 238 base hits leading the Major Leagues.

69 days until Yankees Opening Day.

Bovada: Yankees, Mets Not Favorites To Win World Series


Bovada.com is not crazy about either of New York's baseball teams chances at winning the World Series in 2014, obviously before the Masahiro Tanaka decision for the Yankees. The Yankees currently sit at  14-1 odds to bring home World Series #28 while the Mets chances of bringing home their third World Series is sitting at 66-1. The Yankees have the sixth best chance at the World Series, tied with the Texas Rangers, even after spending in excess of $300 million this offseason.

The Los Angeles Dodgers have the best shot at the ring with 6-1 odds followed by the Detroit Tigers at 17-2 odds. The Washington Nationals are surprisingly third with their 10-1 chances followed by the Boston Red Sox and St. Louis Cardinals both at 12-1. In case you were wondering, and don't wanna be surprised, the Houston Astros are the biggest long shot to win the World Series at 200-1 odds. That is good for twice as bad as the second worst team in the Majors, the Miami Marlins at 100-1 odds.


MLB Parks To Have Metal Detectors By 2015


Major League Baseball has informed all 30 teams that they must implement security screenings by the 2015 season, including metal detectors. The league specifically asked for the metal detectors and did not specify whether it was the walk through or the hand held ones but either way the fans safety seems to be at the forefront of MLB's mind.

The screening was tested last year randomly at games, at the All Star Game, and in the World Series and seemed to go over without a hiccup. MLB just wants to prevent another Boston Marathon bombing if they can and who could blame them for at least trying?

This Day In New York Yankees History 1/22


On this day in 1913 the New York Giants agree to share the Polo Grounds with the New York Highlanders. The Highlanders, who played in the American League and will soon become known as the Yankees, had been playing their games at Hilltop Park ever since the franchise moved from Baltimore to New York.


On this day in 1982 Reggie Jackson signed a free agent deal with the California Angels ending his New York Yankees career after five seasons. Jackson signed a four year deal worth nearly $4 million after winning the 1977 and 1978 World Series with the Yankees and reaching the playoffs four times.