Cashman Lacked Authority To Make Offers

Apparently someone was not paying attention to their father, Mr. George Steinbrenner, the last time Brian Cashman felt frustrated from a lack of power and flexibility. Brian Cashman told reporters today that he lacked the authority to make any offers to free agents this year at the Winter Meetings. Whether that meant he could not offer ANYONE a deal and the few offers we saw were all management driven or the more likely scenario that he had to get management approval first is something we may never know but either way I do not like it. Limiting your GM is not something unheard of or even really that uncommon if you ask around the league but Brian Cashman has been with the Yankees for what feels like 20 years now so I would have thought he would get more leash then most. I cannot say that I really like this new direction the Yankees brass are seemingly headed in.

Nothing Gained, Nothing Lost In Rule 5 Draft

The Yankees did not select or lose anybody in this years Rule 5 Draft which is sort of shocking, yet relieving, in my opinion. I am glad to hold on to guys like Nuno and Cedeno.

Yankees Make Offer To Kevin Youkilis

EDIT: According to Ken Rosenthal, Youkilis has two year offers from other teams in the $16-$18 million range. If Youk believes he'll still be a good player in 2014, then it would be smart of him to take the $12 million from the Yankees, since he'd likely make more than $4-$6 million the following season. That way he'd be making more money over those two years. Of course, if Kevin isn't sure about 2014, then taking the guaranteed year with a bit more money would be smart.

The Yankees have made an offer to free agent Kevin Youkilis according to Bryan Hoch on twitter worth $12 million on a one year deal. It is a pay cut from his $12.25 million he earned last year but after a lackluster season that offer is way higher then I could have imagined. If history is an indicator though the day we make a significant offer to a guy is the day he will sign with a team like the Atlanta Braves so I am not getting my hopes up.

The Rule 5 Draft & The Yankees

The Yankees head into this mornings Rule 5 Draft with a full 40 man roster so I do not expect to be selecting anyone but we have 6 guys that are unprotected this year. The Yankees could always just designate someone for assignment if a real option fell in their laps but I will not get my hopes up in that department. Here is a list of the Yankees players that are left unprotected for this mornings draft:

Abe Almonte
Luke Murton
Addison Maruszak
Vidal Nuno
David Herndon
Juan Cedeno

I fully expect Juan Cedeno to get pickef after great numbers in AAA and in Winter Ball this season. Add on top of that the fact that he is left handed adds to the possibility of him sticking somewhere.

David Herndon will probably get taken because of the fact that he can be hidden on the 60 day dl after his Tommy John surgery.

Vidal Nuno is another left handed starter that sat at the top of the AA Trenton Thunder rotation for most of last season and pitched extremely well. At almost a K/9 with 100 k's in 114 IP I think that SOMEONE will take the chance.

Abe Almonte may be hidden on someones 40 man roster because of his speed, versatility, and ability to play all three outfield positions well. Add 30 steals to his resume and he may be an attractive Dewayne Wise type signing.

Nate Schierholtz Comes Off The Board,Signs W/ Cubs

And yet another option comes off the Yankees board as we continue to do absolutely nothing this year at the Winter Meetings. Nate Schierholtz has agreed to a one year deal with the Chicago Cubs according to Jerry Crasnick on Twitter. I am going to officially start the #NowWhat tag for the Yankees this off season so remember you saw it here first. I would have loved to add him to the Wives & Girlfriends section...

Yankees Are The Front Runners For Nate Schierholtz

The Yankees are reportedly the front runners to sign left handed outfielder Nate Schierholtz according to many twitter sources. The splits against right handed pitchers and left handed pitchers is obviously going to be a concern of mine because he cannot hit a lefty a lick but against right handers he did hit .287/.360/.466 for an OPS of 826 last season so there is always that. He had almost identical numbers last year but those numbers are all about 20-40 points higher then his career numbers so there is that cause for concern but he is only 28 years old so we would essentially be getting him in his prime. I cannot say a platoon in right field would really excite me all that much but I guess we need to get used to signing like this, if it happens, since we are turning into the New York Royals and all...

Eric Chavez Signs With Arizona For 1 Year $3 Million

The Arizona Diamondbacks have signed uility man Eric Chavez to a one year deal worth reportedly $3 million. I am at a loss for words here and I feel left thinking "now what?"

Rivera To Announce 2014 Plans During Spring

It has kind of been a forgone conclusion that Mariano Rivera would pitch his final season in the majors in 2013 but that thought may be a bit premature. Mariano has announced while speaking at a charity event that he would announce his 2014 plans this spring training. We will not have to wait long to see if Mariano will have a Chipper Jones type farewell tour this season or next.

Jeff Keppinger Comes Off The Board

The Chicago White Sox have snagged Jeff Keppinger off the free agent market today with a three year deal worth $12 million. The Yankees were linked to Keppinger even before the Alex Rodriguez news broke but I could not see them going any more then two years for Keppinger. This is disappointing as yet another option comes off the board.

Yankees In Talks With AJ Pierzynski

Brian Cashman in his press conference confirmed that he has spoken to the agents of multiple players like Kevin Youkilis and Eric Chavez but the most intriguing name he mentioned was AJ Pierzynski. I know that he is coming off of a career year offensively and I know that he is no defensive wizard behind the dish and I know that we will have to pay premium money but as long as it is on a one year deal I do not care. I would feel much better at this point having AJ Pierzynski catch CC Sabathia on opening day then I would any of our current catching options. As long as it is a one year deal get it done Cash.