Monday, January 7, 2013

Vote For CC Sabathia For MLB The Show '13 Cover


A New York Yankees has never graced the cover of the popular Playstation exclusive baseball game MLB The Show. This year the Sony Entertainment Entertainment studios are letting you, the fans, vote for your favorite cover child and Yankees CC Sabathia is one of the seven finalists along with Matt Kemp, Andrew McCutchen (who is currently leading the voting), Bryce Harper, Buster Posey, Ryan Braun, and Mr. Triple Crown Miguel Cabrera. Head over HERE to vote for CC and remember to tweet with #MLB13CC to get the word out and get our boy on the cover of The Show '13.

Scott Hairston Choosing Between Yankees & Mets


Easily the best right handed outfield free agent on the market, Scott Hairstson, has told reporters that he is choosing between the Yankees and the Mets for where he will spend his 2013 season. The decision is likely to come in a matter of days according to agent Casey Close. Entering his age 32 season and following a season with the Mets where we saw Scott put up a triple slash of .286/.317/.550 against left handed pitching in 2012 he would have to settle for a platoon/fourth outfielder position to play with the Yankees. With the Mets Scott would likely garner an every day position in the outfield. The Yankees are more likely to make the playoffs where the Mets look like a cellar dweller in the National League East. The Mets would be more likely to offer him the multi-year deal that he covets where the Yankees are unlikely to go past one year so I do not feel confident that we will see Hairston in pinstripes next season but you never know.

Yankees Say No To Rafael Soriano


Scott Boras is starting to cave for Rafael Soriano which is very apparent after coming back to the Yankees last month and asking if the Yankees would be interested in signing him on a one year deal. The Yankees flatly said no to Soriano because they value the draft pick and the slotted draft pick money that would come with Soriano after he turned down a one year $13.3 million qualifying offer. The Yankees do not really need another bullpen arm on paper but I am kind of scratching my head on this one. Soriano to the Yankees for something ridiculously cheap makes a lot of sense with all of uncertainty behind Mariano Rivera in what is probably his last season. I think this is more of us sending a message to Scott Boras after an opt out and turning down the qualifying offer then it is about the on the field product.

Trading Chris Dickerson

It's not an exciting question, but it's something...

Are the Yankees going to trade Chris Dickerson?

As we reported, Dickerson was designated for assignment last Friday, giving the team about a week to trade him before Chris is eligible to become an unrestricted free agent. If you don't remember, Dickerson was DFA'd last spring, but cleared waivers so that he could be sent to AAA. This time, however, he'll be given the choice to become a free agent instead of accepting an assignment to AAA... which he'll surely take. And knowing what we know about Chris, and the fact that many teams are interested in adding an outfielder, he'll be signed to a MLB contract by somebody.

So instead of just letting him go, the Yankees can work out a trade instead. But don't expect a large haul, because the DFA thing is forcing the Yanks hand, so another team is not going to offer a whole lot. Not that the player the Yankees could get in return would be meaningless, because when the Yankees DFA'd Chase Wright  in 2009 they traded him for Eric Fryer, who they flipped for Eric Hinske at the trade deadline.

For news-starved fans such as myself this isn't huge, but it's something to look forward to.

Brian Cashman's Last 6 Years Of Trade History - 2012


The 2012 season is still fresh in all our minds and if you guys are anything like me it still has that bitter taste lingering in your mouth. The Yankees had another early exit in the playoffs and for the second straight season it was to the Detroit Tigers but Brian Cashman did everything he could with these trades. Let's take a look:

1-23-12

Yankees get Michael Pineda and Jose Campos
Mariners get Jesus Montero and Hector Noesi


Michael Pineda has more DUI's, 1, then he does innings pitched for the Yankees, which is zero. He has had a major shoulder surgery and will not be relied on at all for the 2013 season. Jose Campos also missed a lot of time in 2012 with various injuries to his arm. It is not like Noesi was a Cy Young pitcher or Jesus Montero did anything of note with the bat but we lost this trade big time.

2-19-12

Yankees get Diego Moreno and Exicardo Cayones
Pirates get AJ Burnett


The day that I cried and turned my back on Brian Cashman forever was the day that he traded my favorite pitcher AJ Burnett. There is just something about AJ's attitude, the pies after a walk off, and throwing a no hitter with nine walks that just does something for me. Anyway AJ turned into the top of the rotation starter that he was supposed to be in New York last season while playing for the Pirates and we got two guys that will probably never make it past AA Trenton and a bill for AJ's 2012 and 2013 season because we are still paying him. 

4-4-12

Yankees get Chris Stewart
Giants get George Kontos


I will start by saying that yes I do realize that once again relievers are a dime a dozen but we got a back up catcher with no bat for a guy that pitched to a 2.47 ERA with a 9+ K/9 ratio for the World Series San Francisco Giants. Chris Stewart may make up for some of this in 2013 as he looks to be the starting catcher for us on Opening Day and Kontos looks to be nothing more then a middle reliever who could fall off the face of the earth in 2013 so the jury is still out on this one.

7-23-12

Yankees get Ichiro Suzuki
Mariners get Danny Farquhar and DJ Mitchell


The Yankees got an awesome second half of 2012 out of Ichiro and the Mariners got nothing of note so this one is an easy call. The two year deal for a 39 year old Ichiro that will keep him here through 2014 is not the greatest idea Brian Cashman ever had but I guess that does not matter here. Ichiro had a 0.8 WAR and was one of the few guys that actually hit in the playoffs so I guess I cannot complain about losing two pieces we would have never used.

7-31-12

Yankees get Casey McGehee
Pirates get Chad Qualls


This is a classic your junk for my junk trade and that is exactly what both teams got, junk. Casey never did anything for the Yankees and was traded because he never did anything for the Pirates. The Yankees never got anything out of Chad Qualls and neither did Philadelphia before us or Pittsburgh after us.