The Yankees world according to Hal

Hal Steinbrenner gave an interesting if not terribly insightful interview to the Daily News’ Mark Feinsand in which he discussed many topics of importance to fans of the New York Yankees. But a few of his comments are worth highlighting:

 

·         Steinbrenner talked about how important it is that Derek Jeter retire as a lifetime Yankee. Re-signing Jeter will be a major priority for the Yankees if he declines his $8 million option after this season, which I suspect he will if he has another strong year. The Yankees don’t have a good replacement for Jeter, unless you consider defensively challenged Eduardo Nunez to be a viable candidate. The last contract negotiations left Jeter bruised and angry and I doubt that he is going to be very eager to give the Yankees a hometown discount. But Steinbrenner said the Yankees are going to do what they tried to do during the last round of negotiations, which isn’t very promising considering the Yankees let the supposedly private talks become very public and nasty. Hal has insisted that Jeter’s agent started the fight, which is illogical when you take a close look at the timeline of comments and the fact that he was the first to speak publicly about the negotiations, not Casey Close. If Hal refuses to take responsibility for his role in that ugly situation, I don't see much hope of preventing a similarly nasty disagreement with the Yankees Captain down the road.

 

·         The Yankees managing general partner reiterated that the $189 million payroll target to get the Yankees out of those annoying luxury tax repayments remains the goal and firmly stated that he does not believe a team needs a $200 million payroll to win the World Series. Spoken like a true businessman, though his father George Steinbrenner is probably spinning in his grave. However, Hal said that the team will absolutely not sacrifice fielding a championship-caliber team to reach this $189 million target. He also thinks he can get below that figure even though he will need a lot of cash to re-sign Robinson Cano and Phil Hughes. Personally, I don’t understand how Hal thinks he can have it both ways. He seems to be banking on the Yankees young pitching talent – Ivan Nova, David Phelps and Michael Pineda – making an impact in the next few years at relatively cheap prices. But the Yankees haven’t historically had much success relying on young starters so it seems a stretch to think that they can fill the void for a contending team.

 

·         Steinbrenner hit back at criticisms that the price of attending Yankee games is way too expensive. He argued that half of the Stadium seats are $50 or less and that the Yankees took on a lot of debt to pay for the brand-new ballpark. I understand his argument, but he has to understand that these are still economically-challenging times for fans, despite the soaring stock markets. If faced with the choice of paying rent, food and other bills or going to a Yankees game, the vast majority of fans are going to make the right choice and forgo the game. I myself will likely attend the fewest number of games this year than I ever have in my years as a Yankee fan and most of that decision will be driven by the costs.

Who will replace Curtis Granderson?

For the record, I would be shocked if the New York Yankees took Johnny Damon up on his offer to cover for Curtis Granderson for the first month of the 2013 baseball season.

Nor do I believe we are primed for an Alfonso Soriano return to the Bronx, even if the Chicago Cubs decide to kick in some salary to move him. But the quest to replace Granderson is on, a mere two days after Grandy had the rotten luck of getting hit by a pitch and breaking his arm in his first spring training at-bat.

I expect the Yankees to turn to one of their internal candidates since his disabled list stint is only supposed to keep him out for the first five weeks of the regular season. None of the potential candidates – Juan Rivera, Melky Mesa or Matt Diaz – will put up Grandy-like numbers, but I’m sure one or a combination of them could hold down the fort for a month.  

The Yankees have been committed to reducing their payroll and adding another high-priced, aging player goes against that plan. But a recent report indicated that Hal Steinbrenner may be spooked by reaction to that plan and indifference toward the team shown by fans of late, as demonstrated by the empty seats in the ballpark in October. While I do believe he is willing to pay to keep Robinson Cano after this season, I don’t think this means Steinbrenner will open up his wallet to pursue another star outfielder to deal with what is essentially a short-term problem.

Bottom line, Yankees spring training games will be worth watching to see which outfielder can step up and replace Grandy, just for a little while.

Steinbrenner breaks silence on latest ARod drama

I was wondering when Hal Steinbrenner would finally come out of hiding to address the latest scandal linking Alex Rodriguez to performance-enhancing drugs.

Up until this point, Brian Cashman and ARod’s New York Yankees teammates have been left to do the heavy lifting in terms of feeding the hungry media beast with comments about ARod’s latest PED controversy. But since it was the Steinbrenners who re-signed ARod, it was their responsibility to answer some questions. Of course, Hal didn’t say much about the situation other than the team is cooperating with Major League Baseball, that the situation is concerning but out of the Yankees hands and that he doesn’t know much more about the situation than the rest of us (yeah, right).

But what Steinbrenner didn’t say was also noteworthy. He didn’t offer any show of support for his embattled third baseman, probably because the Yankees are working furiously behind the scenes to figure out a way to use this latest scandal to get rid of ARod once and for all. I can’t help but wonder if Steinbrenner’s apparent willingness to break tradition and sign Robinson Cano to an expensive, long-term deal this offseason is any indication that the Yankees think they can get out from under ARod’s onerous contract (probably wishful thinking on my part, but dare to dream).

There are a lot of people like Curt Schilling who believe ARod will never play another day with the New York Yankees, either because the team will void or settle his contract or because his injuries have diminished him to the point of retirement. I can’t see ARod just walking away from New York because his ego is too large to allow himself to be run out of town and the Yankees chances of getting out of that contract seem slim to none. Steinbrenner may simply have to adjust to the reality that he will be answering questions about ARod for a long time to come.   

Can the Yankees make a quick deal with Cano?

Hal Steinbrenner finally came out of his castle to address the latest Alex Rodriguez drama (more on that in another blog post), but far more interesting to me is his revelation that discussions have already started to make Robinson Cano a lifelong member of the New York Yankees.

I’ve been growing increasingly pessimistic about the Yankees chances to sign Cano to a long-term deal that works for both sides ever since the Yankees second baseman hired agent Scott Boras. A major reason for this pessimism has been the Yankees’ apparently firm commitment to get below that $189 million threshold. It’s going to be incredibly difficult for the Yankees to maintain that mindset if they want to sign Cano, one of the best young players in the game of baseball, given the dollar amount Boras is likely to demand. Unless the Yankees somehow free themselves from the grasp of ARod’s suffocating contract, I don’t see how they can sign Cano and still field a competitive team (sorry, Curtis Granderson).

But Steinbrenner seemed surprisingly optimistic about the ability to sign Cano, with the Yankees owner even revealing that the Yankees were willing to break their custom of waiting until their players hit free agency to agree to contract terms. The Yankees have stuck firm to this policy in recent years, even with their future Hall of Famers Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera. But I suspect Steinbrenner realizes that waiting while Cano has another big year in 2013 is going to drive the price even higher than it already is in Boras’ mind.

The two sides may still be very far apart in these negotiations and may not be able to reach a deal before Cano hits free agency. But the fact that they are talking gives me hope.

Yankees get their way with Pettitte out of WBC

The New York Yankees will never admit to this, but they obviously put some subtle pressure on their veteran lefty Andy Pettitte not to pitch in the World Baseball Classic.

Reports earlier this week said Pettitte would pitch for the USA in the tournament, but the lefty’s name was notably missing from the official list of players announced today. While there is still a chance he could be named to the team because one more slot remains open, his appearance on the roster would be a rather shocking development.

The denials will continue from here to eternity. But there’s no question that the Yankees were very concerned about the possibility that Pettitte, who they desperately need this year to solidify their starting rotation, could get hurt during a glorified exhibition, far away from the caring hands of the Yankee trainers. The Yankees could not forbid Pettitte from participating in the WBC, but they could easily have sent him a strong message that pitching for the US squad was not a good idea.

Derek Jeter, captain of the last US squad, is obviously unavailable to play this time around as he recuperates from his ankle injury, which is probably devastating to him because his former manager and second father Joe Torre is managing the team. But the Yankees will be well represented in the 2013 WBC. Mark Teixeira will play for the US, Robinson Cano will represent the Dominican Republic and Francisco Cervelli will play with Italy.

Notice there are no pitchers on that list. The Yankees were not taking a chance with any of their arms, especially the arm of an aging Andy Pettitte. They need him for when the games really count.

MVP voters miss the boat on Jeter’s value to Yankees

Derek Jeter came in seventh place in the voting for American League Most Valuable Player, three spots behind teammate Robinson Cano. The voters really missed the boat on that one. There’s no way Cano was more valuable to the New York Yankees this year than Jeter.

But Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News got it right. He placed Jeter third on his ballot, behind Triple Crown winner Miguel Cabrera first and Rookie of the Year Mike Trout second. Cabrera helped the eventual American League champion Detroit Tigers during some very rough patches this year and Trout saved the floundering Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (that name really annoys me, should just call them Anaheim Angels) and made them competitive again. As for the Yankees, they wouldn’t have survived a tough battle with the surprisingly scrappy Baltimore Orioles for division supremacy if it wasn’t for Derek Jeter. He carried the Yankees on his back this year, especially during times when the rest of the lineup, Cano included, disappeared.

Perhaps the voters rewarded Cano over Jeter because of his late-season surge or his sexier power numbers. But I think Feinsand got it right because he covers the team every day and could see how Jeter dragged his bruised and battered body out to shortstop every day. Cano, as great a player as he is, simply doesn’t have those leadership skills that make teammates want to follow him into battle. No one has ever questioned Jeter’s work ethic or his desire (except for George Steinbrenner, of course, who picked on everyone). Cano still regularly faces those questions despite years of putting up great numbers. Not really the definition of a most valuable player.

If you catch a Yankee player in an honest moment, I bet every single one of them would say that Jeter was more valuable than anyone on the team this year, including Cano. It’s too bad the MVP voters missed the boat on this one so badly. Not that Jeter needs to add to his Hall of Fame resume. It just would have been nice if most of the voters had gotten this one right.

Shocker! Trout, Harper Rookies of the Year

Congratulations to Mike Trout and Bryce Harper, two young players who brought a lot of excitement back to the game of baseball, for their Rookie of the Year victories.

I had the pleasure of watching Harper play in his hometown when I went to a game at the Nationals ballpark in Washington, DC during the last week of the regular season (more from that visit later). What was really cool was the way the crowd embraced their players, especially Harper. There was a noticeable jump in energy every time he stepped up to the plate, even though he didn’t have a great game.

The New York Yankees don’t have the equivalent of a Harper or Trout, that very young exciting baseball player that completely energizes the crowd. They haven’t had that since a young Derek Jeter came on to the scene to take over the shortstop gig in 1996, becoming a unanimous Rookie of the Year winner himself in the process. Jeter is now a legendary veteran and a future Hall of Famer and while his importance to the Yankees cannot be overstated, he naturally doesn’t generate the same surge of excitement as he did when he first came on the scene.

Robinson Cano is a great talent, but his manner of play doesn’t elicit tremendous enthusiasm from the Yankees faithful, some of whom view him as lazy or just too laid back. And it’s not even clear if the Yankees will be able to hold on to Cano when he becomes a free agent next year, given what we’re hearing about his agent Scott Boras’ demands and the Yankees hard line on payroll. Of course, this is all early posturing, but it does not bode well for the possibility of a contract deal both sides can live with.

Brian Cashman has said he will not de-age his roster just for the sake of doing so, meaning that older veterans will likely continue to be the norm for the Yankees (not that they have a lot of choice given the contracts they are locked into). That’s a shame because young blood like Trout and Harper can do a lot to energize an aging team and their fans.

Yankees set 2013 plan in motion

We don’t know all the details yet, of course, but the New York Yankees have finally put their plan for the 2013 baseball season in motion.

The first element of the plan was picking up the options on second baseman Robinson Cano and center fielder Curtis Granderson. Picking up Cano’s option was a no brainer, even though his agent Scott Boras had been clamoring for a multi-year extension, which the Yankees were unwilling to do right now. I’m slightly surprised they were so quick to pick up Granderson’s option, but the Yankees could have decided to give him another year to right himself, meaning to correct the bad tendencies that made him a swing-and-miss hitter, before they let him walk as a free agent. There is also speculation that Granderson could be traded, which would not surprise me in the least.

So what’s next? The next news out of Yankees land will likely be Rafael Soriano officially opting out of his deal to secure a rich, multi-year contract after his successful year closing games for the Yankees. But I don’t think the situation will be resolved anytime soon, not until Mariano Rivera commits to another year or retirement. And we’ll know soon enough if the Yankees, as expected, decline to retain Nick Swisher’s services, although this seems like a foregone conclusion given his constant struggles in the playoffs.

The Yankees will have to decide what to do with their other free agents or players just a year away from free agency such as Phil Hughes and Joba Chamberlain. There seems to be a movement to send these two out the door in exchange for cheaper talent. I’m frankly surprised at how eager people are to get rid of two young, but experienced pitchers. I know they are going to cost money when they hit free agency, but I doubt the Yankees are willing to bid adieu to either one just yet, especially Hughes, who at times this year pitched like the top-flight starter the Yankees projected him to be. The Yankees will likely give these two one more year to prove that they can consistently perform in the Bronx.

Given that the Yankees failed in their quest to win another World Series championship, I expect some major changes. It will be interesting to see who the Yankees show the door. 

Talk of Mariano Rivera return warms my heart

The mere possibility that Mariano Rivera could come back from his horrific knee injury this season has got my blood flowing.

After watching Mo writhe in pain on the Kansas City warning track (I’m really starting to develop a hatred for that stadium after Mo’s injury and the fans’ vicious treatment of Robinson Cano at the All-Star game), I had no expectation that we would see him on a mound again in the 2012 baseball season. I was resigned to the fact that the New York Yankees would have to try for another World Series championship without their killer closer. But not so fast, according to Mo, who would not rule out a return to the Yankees this year.

Mo is a man of unshakeable faith and a fierce competitor so it could be just his competitive fire talking. Brian Cashman firmly dismissed the possibility of a Rivera return this year and he is not going to let Mo take chances with his health, especially not with the Yankees running away with the American League East. But with Mo (and his doctor) confirming that his knee is healing faster than expected (no great surprise given that Mo is the very definition of good health even at his age) and Mo apparently past the scary blood clot situation that delayed his surgery, it seems very possible that Mo could come back sometime in September to get himself ready for a long playoff run. Perhaps as with Andy Pettitte’s injury, Mo’s freak accident could ultimately be seen as a blessing in disguise in that the two older, clutch Yankees could return to the mound incredibly fresh for October.

Like Mariano, I don’t want to get my hopes up that we will see him on a mound again this year, but just the talk of a possible return warms my heart. Can you imagine the boost he would give to the Yankees and their fan base if he defies all expectations and returns this year to help the Yankees win championship #28? It would just add to the legend that is Mariano Rivera and provide another storybook chapter in a Hall of Fame-bound career.  

As fantastic as Rafael Soriano has been in the two months since he took over the closer’s job, there is no one I trust in a big game situation more than Mariano Rivera to protect a Yankees lead. The Yankees have lived and died with him on the mound in critical games during their championship years. And that is the way it should be.  

Random baseball thoughts: All-Star edition

That was an embarrassing performance by the American League All-Stars, who got spanked by the National League 8-0 and lost home-field advantage for the third year in a row. Remember when the American League had that 13-game unbeaten streak in All-Star contests? That is now a thing of the past. What was most disappointing was that the early drubbing made the rest of the game a total snoozefest. I got so bored that I fell asleep and missed the last two innings of the game. I didn’t even know that Melky Cabrera won the Most Valuable Player award until this morning. Good for him.

I     * I can’t say I was thrilled to see Justin Verlander laughing it up on the sidelines after getting pounded for five runs in the first inning, putting the American League in a hole they didn’t have a chance of climbing out of, especially since “this time it counts” gave the National League home-field advantage in the World Series. I bet Verlander will rue his performance if he finds himself pitching Game 1 of the World Series for the Detroit Tigers in some National League ballpark.

       * Just when you thought Kansas City Royals fans couldn’t behave any more despicably, now comes word that Robinson Cano of the New York Yankees had to have extra security guard his family during the All-Star game because of the disgraceful behavior of Royals fans upset at Cano for supposedly snubbing their hometown hero Billy Butler in the Home Run Derby. I thought the merciless booing of Cano was extreme, but this just takes it to a whole new level. To be fair, Yankee fans have been guilty of similar boorish behavior as Cliff Lee’s wife reported getting spit at and beer thrown in her direction during the 2009 World Series. But that doesn’t make it right, either in New York or Kansas City.  



Bud Selig and Joe Torre both expressed remorse for Cano’s treatment at the hands of Kansas City fans. Hopefully, it will be enough to convince them that they are setting these players up for this kind of treatment by putting them in the position of having to choose the Derby participants. Major League Baseball should retake control of that responsibility. They can be assured that they would be safe from that type of vicious treatment since most fans couldn’t pick baseball officials not named Selig and Torre out of a lineup.  

* You have to admire R.A. Dickey, not only for the way he has dominated opposing baseball teams this year with that knuckleball, but for what he has survived in his life to get to this point of tremendous success. My admiration for him grew stronger this week as he expressed disappointment over not starting the All-Star game, a start that he earned, without criticizing National League manager Tony LaRussa for taking the start away from him. Dickey is a class act. I make it a point to turn on the Mets games when I know he is starting just to watch him pitch. I’m rooting for him to continue his fantastic run in the second half. 

Rude Royals fans rain on Robinson's parade

I didn’t think I’d see a worse display of sportsmanship and sour grapes than the St. Louis Post Dispatch putting an asterisk on its back page headline about Johan Santana’s no-hitter against the Cardinals. But the Kansas City Royals fans proved me wrong.

The non-stop abuse Royals fans heaped on Robinson Cano of the New York Yankees turned what should have been a positive, festive event into a nightmare for the Yankees second baseman that overshadowed what was truly a fun competition. I was astonished by the lack of class shown by the hometown fans.

I understand their disappointment over Billy Butler not making it on to the American League Home Run Derby team, but it’s not Cano’s fault that he was forced to choose his team before he knew who was going to be on the All-Star roster. If anything, their misplaced anger should have been directed at Major League Baseball. But there was no justification for the constant vitriol they directed at Cano. I was actually embarrassed for Royals fans, whose lack of hospitality proved them unworthy of hosting the All-Star game.

Cano claimed he wasn’t bothered by the sustained booing, attributing his poor performance in the Derby to a lack of sleep following Sunday night’s late marathon against the Red Sox. But it seemed that he was somewhat unnerved by the vicious treatment. He’s a member of the Yankees so booing comes with the territory. But I’m sure he didn’t expect that kind of treatment at an event that is supposed to celebrate the game and be a fun display for the fans. And he sure didn’t deserve it.

I’ve never been to St. Louis or Kansas City before and I’ve always wanted to go, especially to St. Louis, which is known to be a great baseball town. But after their behavior over the last few months, I think I’ll spend my travel dollars elsewhere. 

Congratulations to Yankee All-Stars

The New York Yankees will be well represented at this year’s All-Star game, even without Rafael Soriano.

Yankees Captain and shortstop Derek Jeter, second baseman Robinson Cano and centerfielder Curtis Granderson will all make the trek to Kansas City to participate in the Midsummer’s Classic. It’s a well deserved honor by all three, even though Granderson is the only one who’s been consistent throughout the year, with Jeter slumping badly over the last month and Cano having trouble driving runners in from scoring position before his recent hot stretch.

In previous years, the American League All-Star game was always top heavy with Yankee and Boston Red Sox players. But CC Sabathia was the only other Yankee to make the team and he will sit the game out due to his injury. It’s truly shocking how hard the Saux have fallen, with only David Ortiz slated to represent Boston in the game.

Befitting their status as the dominant team in the American League in recent years, Texas will have seven players on the All-Star roster, led by Josh Hamilton, who shattered the voting record with more than 11 million votes in support of his candidacy. Barack Obama and Mitt Romney can only wish they can match that type of enthusiastic support in November.

 

There will be no repeat of the controversy over Jeter skipping the All-Star game as the Yankee shortstop has promised to appear this year. Jeter may rather have the time off, but he no longer has a choice in the matter due to the Derek Jeter rule that all players  voted to the team must show up to play, barring some time of emergency or injury. And as image-conscious as Jeter is, he must realize that skipping the All-Star game again would cause major damage to his reputation.  

Still, it is nice to be recognized, something I’m sure all the Yankee players enjoy, especially Cano, the reigning Home Run Derby champ who will captain this year’s AL team. I don’t really care much about the derby, but will tune in to support my Yankees.  

Yankees can keep Granderson and Cano

This isn’t something we have to worry about right now, but the New York Yankees will find a way to keep both Robinson Cano and Curtis Granderson if they really want to.

Ever since Hal Steinbrenner firmly committed to getting down to the $189 million payroll mark in 2014 to avoid paying the luxury tax, speculation has run rampant that the Yankees will have to sacrifice Granderson to keep Cano. Although the Yankees would choose Cano over Granderson if they were forced to make a choice, I don’t think they will let Granderson go if he continues to put up numbers like he did last season.

The Yankees must pay more than $20 million each to Alex Rodriguez, CC Sabathia and Mark Teixeira and will likely have to pay $20 million or more per year to sign their superstar second baseman. That’s well above $80 million committed to four players so it will definitely be a challenge. But while I do believe Steinbrenner sincerely wants to get below that penalty threshold, I don’t think it’s going to force his hand in terms of letting Granderson walk. For one, the Yankees will be very creative when structuring the players’ contracts, using every available loophole to reach an agreement that both sides can live with. And from Granderson’s perspective, I doubt he is going to walk because no team is going to pay him more than the Yankees.

So barring an unforeseen decline or a horrific injury, I fully anticipate both Cano and Granderson to remain in pinstripes for many years. The Yankees have plenty of time to figure out how to keep them both. 

Who will the Yankees sacrifice for payroll cut?

This is more of a question for next winter, but who will the New York Yankees sacrifice in order to lower their payroll?

If you take Hal Steinbrenner at his word, which I do, the Yankees are going to do whatever it takes to get below that magic $189 million mark in payroll by 2014 to free themselves of paying millions of dollars in luxury taxes. As Brian Cashman notes, the Yankees still have the highest payroll in baseball and that is not going to change anytime soon. But the Yankees’ free-spending days are over.

Of course, the Yankees will have some money coming off their payroll naturally in time for 2014. Rafael Soriano’s three-year deal, which pays him more than $11 million annually, will expire by then. And Derek Jeter will have an option year that will pay him only $8 million barring a renegotiation (that’s if Jeter even decides to keep playing, not a certainty by any stretch).

But the Yankees will have to throw some money at their younger superstars Curtis Granderson and Robinson Cano, which will eat up the savings from expiring contracts. Cano is the one that worries me the most as his current deal expires after 2013 and his agent is Scott Boras, who is always looking for the biggest payday. Plus, Alex Rodriguez, CC Sabathia and Mark Teixeira all have several years left on their contracts, which combined amount to about $72 million in 2014, well over a third of the figure the Yankees want to get down to.

The Yankees are going to have to cut someone making decent money loose, even if they do not want to. Nick Swisher is the name that has been bandied about recently and it makes a lot of sense since his current deal expires after this season. That would not sit well with some Yankee fans, but Swisher’s expiring contract and postseason futility make him expendable. 

Granderson's 4th place MVP finish disappointing

OK, I definitely understand why Justin Verlander won the American League Most Valuable Player award. What I don’t understand is the fourth place finish for Curtis Granderson.

The ace of the Detroit Tigers received almost half of the first-place votes, ensuring his victory in a tight competition. Of course, one writer took it upon himself or herself to ignore the rules and left Verlander off the MVP ballot completely, likely due to a mistaken personal belief that pitchers should never win MVP awards, even though they are eligible. Not a surprise at all.

What was a surprise was the relatively poor showing for Curtis Granderson of the New York Yankees. Granderson finished fourth while his teammate Robinson Cano finished in sixth place. I was rooting for Granderson and thought that if he didn’t win, he would finish second to Verlander. How on earth could he finish behind both Jacoby Ellsbury of the Boston Red Sox and Jose Bautista of the Toronto Blue Jays? The Red Sox collapsed in September and even if Ellsbury wasn’t directly responsible for that epic failure, he was a key member of a team that blew a substantial lead in the wild-card race. And I don’t care how many home runs Bautista hit. The Blue Jays finished 16 games behind the Yankees in the AL East division so why did he get so many votes?

The Yankees were the best team in the American League in the regular season. How their two best players could finish no higher than fourth in the MVP vote is mind boggling. Perhaps Cano siphoned off some votes from Granderson. There is no doubt that Cano is the best player on the Yankees. But Granderson carried the team at a time when everyone else, including Cano, was struggling.

If the award is really about the player that is most valuable to his team, then guys on teams that fail to make the postseason should not receive MVP votes. The definition of MVP is left up to the interpretation of the writers, unfortunately, but the word valuable seems pretty clear to me, which is why Granderson’s fourth-place showing is so disappointing. Perhaps it’s time to institute an explicit definition of MVP so that players are not at the mercy and whim of the writers.

Yankees start to get busy in the offseason

The New York Yankees began what will be a typically busy offseason by exercising the contract options for Robinson Cano and Nick Swisher.

I have to admit to being a little surprised by the willingness to extend Swisher’s contract. I thought the Yankees would think twice about bringing him back considering his consistent failure in the postseason. Swisher has definitely brought a burst of positive energy into the Yankee clubhouse (which desperately needed it for many years) and has endeared himself to the Yankees faithful. He has also been a high on-base guy and a decent run producer in the regular season. But with the Yankees locked into long-term contracts at so many positions, I thought Swisher might be the major change the Yankees made as far as position players after a disappointingly quick end to their playoff run.

The quick extension on Cano’s option was not surprising. I don’t think Scott Boras was joking at all when he said he wanted to renegotiate those option years. It seems like Boras just changed his story when the heat got turned up too high. But Brian Cashman quashed that talk very quickly by exercising the option, making it clear to Boras the Yankees have no intention of giving up their favorable contract just because Boras was seeking a new deal for his new client. With Boras as his agent, that decision could definitely hurt the Yankees when it comes time to pursue a new deal with Cano. But at least for now the issue was quickly put to bed.

So less than 48 hours after the World Series ended, the Yankees got their first order of official player business out of the way. The most important, however, is still to come: a new deal for ace CC Sabathia.

Boras will make Cano talks difficult for Yankees

I just knew when Robinson Cano hired Scott Boras as his new agent that it was going to turn out to be a major problem for the New York Yankees.

In an offseason where CC Sabathia should be the only focus of a new contract among the current crop of Yankees stars, Boras is trying to inject Cano into the discussion. Once he gets Brian Cashman on the phone, Boras will likely ask Cashman to drop the two option years in Cano’s contract in favor of a long-term, guaranteed extension. No wonder Cashman is ignoring his phone calls.

This is a no-win situation for the Yankees. If they accede to Boras' demands for a new contract, they will be giving up options in Cano's contract that work in their favor and jacking up their already ridiculously high payroll. But if they don't, Boras will convince Cano that it is a sign of disrespect, which will drive the price even higher when Cano eventually does become a free agent, assuming he stays as healthy and productive as he is right now.

I really don’t know how Cashman works his way out of this one. Assuming the general manager signs a new deal as expected, he will be the one to deal with Cano’s free agency two years down the road. Cashman might decide to make a reasonable long-term offer to Boras now, which the agent will likely reject as he can get Cano a bigger contract later on. But at least Boras would have a harder time convincing Cano that the Yankees are disrespecting him.

Girardi steps to the plate for his hitters

Joe Girardi stepped up to the plate to defend his hitters by arguing that their lack of production in the American League Division Series had a lot to do with bad luck. Apparently, he didn’t see what the rest of us saw.

If he had, he would have noticed that Mark Teixeira and Nick Swisher failed in key situations in the playoffs for the third consecutive year, which is enough of a sample to indicate that they are simply not clutch postseason players. Girardi would have noticed that Alex Rodriguez, aside from his performance in 2009 (which he definitely deserves a lot of credit for), has reverted to bad form in the playoffs. He would have noticed that his #9 hitter Brett Gardner had as many runs batted in (5) as his 3-4-5 hitters.

“I guess I could have put Gardy fourth,” Girardi said sarcastically when questioned about why he kept running out the exact same lineup in the ALDS.

No, Joe. No one is suggesting that you bat Gardner in the cleanup spot for the New York Yankees. What people are suggesting is that the lineup needs to be shaken up, that ARod, Tex and Swish can’t be allowed to continue coming up short in the playoffs in key situations. The biggest shake-up would be for the Yankees to let Swisher walk away and give right field to one of their young hitting studs, likely Eduardo Nunez, or go shopping for a relatively inexpensive, but clutch veteran.

Moving Robinson Cano into the third spot in the lineup for the playoffs was a good start, a move that Girardi was obviously not afraid to make and should stick to, unless he decides to bat Cano cleanup. But Girardi is going to have to seriously rethink his lineup. Should ARod continue batting fourth? Not if he can’t protect Cano. Who replaces Jorge Posada at designated hitter and where should that person bat? If it’s Jesus Montero, do you put more pressure on the kid by batting him in the middle of the lineup or do you protect him by slotting him seventh, where Posada batted most of the year?

These are legitimate questions and Girardi has to seriously consider them all. Unfortunately for the Yankees, he has plenty of time to think these days.

Glow of 3,000 hits fades quickly for Jeter

Well that didn't last long.

The glow from Derek Jeter’s 3,000th hit lasted a mere 48 hours and has now been thoroughly replaced by negativity. It started with the widespread criticism of the New York Yankees shortstop all around baseball about his absence at the All-Star game. Now, amid intense speculation, Joe Girardi has bumped Jeter out of the leadoff spot in favor of Brett Gardner, a move that will thrill the talk-radio junkies.

Girardi was going to have to make the move sooner or later. Jeter was hitting in futility too often to stay at the top of the lineup. And with Alex Rodriguez on the shelf, the Yankees need all the offense they can get. But the real problem for Girardi happens when ARod returns from the disabled list and reclaims the clean-up spot. If Gardner stays in the leadoff spot and the two, three and five spots belong to Curtis Granderson, Mark Teixeira and Robinson Cano, where does Girardi pencil in Jeter? Can you imagine Jeter being dropped to sixth, or worse, in the bottom third of the lineup? That would be a major controversy that would make the All-Star smack-down look like a walk in the park.

The sooner Jeter is permanently dropped in the lineup, the sooner the talk will turn to how long he should be the Yankees every day shortstop, talk that will burn up the phone lines once Jose Reyes hits free agency. Jeter bristles at criticism, but he better prepare himself because he will hear a lot of it for the rest of his career.

The talk about Jeter isn’t all bad, as seen in this column outlining why Jeter could get 100% of the Hall of Fame vote when he becomes eligible. I doubt that would happen because there are way too many Jeter critics who think he is overrated because he plays in New York. But it’s a nice sentiment amid a flood of negativity about the Yankees Captain.

Yankees locked and loaded for second half

The New York Yankees will likely make a big move in the second half simply because they are the New York Yankees. But they really don't have to.

Not to sound cocky, but I think the Yankees are in great shape. The key, of course, is their pitching. CC Sabathia is just off-the charts good right now and he is usually even better in the second half of the year. The arm injury to Phil Hughes could turn into a blessing in disguise if he can bounce back in the last three months and dominate like he did in the first half of the 2010 season. Bartolo Colon and Freddy Garcia just need to keep doing exactly what they have been doing, keeping their team in games and even dominating at times. If AJ Burnett ever started pitching like the #2 guy that he is supposed to be, then the Yankees would be unstoppable. But I’m not counting on it.

My only concern in the bullpen is health, particularly the health of Mariano Rivera after he had the arm problem last week. As long as he and David Robertson are healthy, I think the Yankees won’t need bullpen help. But Brian Cashman is probably scavenging for another lefty arm just in case Boone Logan starts getting drilled by lefty batters again. Rafael Soriano is supposed to be back in 7-10 days, but I’m not counting on anything from him and I don’t think he should just be given the 8th inning job back without proving himself first.

Even without Alex Rodriguez, I think the Yankees lineup will be fine. Curtis Granderson had a monster first half and Robinson Cano may be the best pure hitter in baseball. Eduardo Nunez proved he can handle the bat subbing for Derek Jeter, who will have a much-better second half now that he is free of the pressure of 3,000 hits.

The Yankees are locked and loaded. The second half of the year should be a lot of fun.