Daily Archives: November 15, 2008

The Boston Globe‘s “The Buzz” is proving to be a strong Hot Stove roundup, and a helpful one given the local tendency to see every free agent through pinstriped glasses. Here’s some of the latest they’ve collected, the top two of which were updated this afternoon:

A.J. Burnett:

According to a report in the Toronto Star, the Blue Jays have an offer ready for Burnett for $54 million for four years that they have been waiting to make to his agent . . . According to the Globe’s Nick Cafardo, the [Red] Sox don’t want to extend themselves that long contractually or money-wise for Burnett . . . The New York Post’s George King writes . . . “word is spreading that A.J. Burnett will shy away from The Bronx.”

Derek Lowe:

According to the Globe’s Tony Massarotti, Derek Lowe is among the most probable targets for the Red Sox . . . “a major league source has confirmed that the Sox have inquired with agent Scott Boras about Lowe, interest deemed sincere enough that Boras has equipped the Sox with one of his famed marketing portfolios, or ‘books,’ on the player’s value.” Massarotti writes that Lowe “has never has been shy about declaring his fondness for Boston and East Coast baseball . . . Lowe has made Boston his No. 1 preference according to the Globe’s Nick Cafardo. . . . Cafardo also reported that the Mets are going after him strong and have the resources to land him. The Mets also employ Lowe’s personal trainer, Chris Correnti, but Lowe, who wants to play for a winning organization in a place where he’s comfortable, may not see the Mets fitting his criteria. St. Louis, Atlanta, Milwaukee, and Detroit might be better fits, writes Cafardo.

These two pitchers are the Yankees’ top two targets after CC Sabathia (though Burnett shouldn’t be), but it just might be that neither wants to pitch for the Yankees, which could either pass those Yankee bucks on to the likes of Ryan Dempster and Oliver Perez, or, better yet (much better) into an increased offer to Mark Teixiera. Speaking of . . .

Mark Teixeira:

From the Globe’s Nick Cafardo: “The Sox also should be in the mix for Teixeira, in whom they have long had interest. The early chatter is a contract in the vicinity of 7-10 years at more than $20 million annually might whittle the field, though the Angels, Red Sox, and Yankees won’t likely feel their pockets burn no matter what they have to pay. . . . It would be a surprise if they don’t make a substantial offer, though it might not come on Day 1.” According to a report in the Washington Post, the Nationals may be making a run at Teixeira: “Against all odds and logic, the Nationals envision themselves as serious players in the Teixeira sweepstakes, according to team and league sources, and are believed to be preparing an offer they feel will be competitive with the others Teixeira is likely to receive. In other words, it would almost certainly be north of $100 million, if not $150 million.”

I don’t know about you, but the thought of a Boston infield with Kevin Youkilis at third, Jed Lowrie at short, Dustin Pedroia at second, and Mark Teixeira at first base is going to ruin my sleep until Teixeira (hopefully) signs elsewhere. I doubt Teixeira will quarantine himself on a losing team like the Nats, but he’s a Baltimore native, so it’s slightly less than ludicrous.

Meanwhile, heres something I stuck in comments earlier today that I’d be interested in getting your reaction to:

I don’t doubt the accuracy of the estimates of the Yankees offer to Sabathia, but I think a lot of the speculation about how much money the Yankees have to throw around beyond Sabathia is misguided and uninformed. Dealing in 2009 dollars only, I’ve heard estimates that the Yankees have as much as $80 million coming off the books, but my accounting shows something closer to $65, and that was before they spent roughly $9 million on Marte and Swisher for 2009. So $56 million minus $24M for CC . . . that’s $32M. That’s just a pair of $16M pitcher contracts before the payroll starts going up. That means no money for another hitter unless they’re willing to push the payroll past $230 million [or punt on one or both of those other pitchers, or if they don’t land CC]. With unsold suites, $11 million in unpaid taxes being collected by the city comptroller, and a federal investigation into their tax-exempt bonds for the new stadium, I’m not sure they have that much flexibility.

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My great aunt Anita passed away in the middle of the night. She was 95. I was at her apartment yesterday evening with cousins, aunts and uncles. Her family was with her and I can only assume that was a great comfort to her as the family matriarch.

Two of my cousins are due to give birth momentarily. So as we say goodbye to the end of an era in our family, we are ready welcome in a new one. That’s how it’s supposed to go, right?

The painting above is by one of my favorites–Richard Diebenkorn.

Moussa Akwari doesn’t mind working Saturdays.

“Everyone else wants it off,” he explained. “I volunteer and the boss loves me, but it’s really my favorite day.”

Akwari delivers party supplies – balloons, decorations, hats, horns, napkins, cups, plates and plastic forks – for a little shop on Broadway.

“It’s mostly boring office parties during the week,” he said, “but today there will be lots of birthdays.

“Last Saturday I delivered for a party on the Westside,” Akwari continued. “A boy was turning 10 years old and his mother ordered balloons and everything else we had for the Yankees. When I got there she had a blue and white cake with a picture of Derek Jeter and real Yankees hats and plastic bats and foam balls.

“They were going to eat cake and then play baseball in the apartment,” Akwari went on. “That must have been the best party ever.”

Akwari smiled and said:

“And it could only happen on a Saturday.”

That’s the James Bond from Ian Fleming’s novels.  

A few years ago, Allen Barra wrote a terrific overview of the Bonds books for Salon:

The Bond of the books was physically smaller than [Sean] Connery by about 2 inches and 20 pounds, and not quite so “cruelly handsome” (as many early reviewers described Connery). I had forgotten that James Bond wasn’t really a spy at all but a cross between the commandos Fleming had known during World War II and a highly trained assassin — obviously, or else why would he be licensed by his government to kill? The literary Bond chafed at the paperwork he was obliged to do plenty of, and unlike his movie counterpart — whose budget for sports cars, rocket-powered backpacks and speedboats, to say nothing of tuxedos, seemed to exceed the entire GNP of Great Britain — was always mildly resentful about his lack of funding.

In “You Only Live Twice,” he apologizes to Tiger Tanaka, the head of the Japanese secret service, for his meager expense account: “Under ten million pounds a year doesn’t go far when there is the whole world to cover.” In “From Russia With Love,” he ruefully compares his own arsenal with that of his Soviet rivals. “If only,” he laments, “his cigarette had been a trick one — magnesium flare, or something he could throw in the man’s face! If only his Service went in for those explosive toys!” And in “Thunderball” he envies the “CIA the excellence of their equipment, and he had no false pride about borrowing from them.”

Readers often come to, well, bond with Bond precisely because of his ordinariness. Unlike the Bond of the movies, the Bond on the pages doesn’t seem radically different from most of us. With the right background and training — and, of course, a willingness to kill in the line of duty — it’s easy to feel we could be the hero of those adventures. Chandler’s Philip Marlowe is somebody you’d like to have a drink with. Bond doesn’t interest us in that way; he’s more like someone you’d want to be if you had another life. Which seems to be precisely why Fleming wrote the books, to create a fantastic yet believable alternative existence.

The new Bond movie was released yesterday and Mr. Barra again looks at the differences Bond on the page and Bond on the screen (Wall Street Journal).

Today’s news (now with 37% more Nick Swisher in it!):

• The Mets have put their hat into the Sabathia ring, states the News.  This makes one unnamed Yankee exec happy:

A high-placed Yankee source Thursday reacted to the development by saying: “The Mets are in it? Great. Bring it on.”

• Add ESPN’s Buster Olney to the list of writers who think the country’s economic slowdown won’t impact the Yankees this off-season.  He estimates the Yanks opening offer to Sabathia at around $140 to $142 million over six years. Update: Olney states the offer became official Friday night, rumored to be 6 years and slightly over Santana’s $137.5 million contract.

Folks with other teams don’t know how Sabathia possibly can turn down the Yankees’ offer. But regardless of whether the Yankees sign him or not, their intention is to plow ahead and pursue other pitchers, as well. If they can sign Sabathia and A.J. Burnett, they will do so. If they can sign Sabathia and Derek Lowe, they will do it. If they can sign Burnett and Lowe, they will do it. If they can sign Sabathia and Burnett and Lowe, they will do it. If they can sign Sabathia, Burnett and Andy Pettitte, they will do that. They have the room to themselves, and their choices will largely dictate what leftovers will remain for others to choose from.

• Jayson Stark concurs with Olney …

If the Yankees, as expected, come roaring out of the free-agent blocks, offering CC Sabathia a six-year deal in the neighborhood of $140 million, how many teams can possibly even hang in there with them in the CC Derby? ….  So the honest answer is: There is probably no team that can shower money on Sabathia the way the Yankees can, especially in this economy. And it’s becoming increasingly clear they know it, too.

• ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick puts the Yankees under the microscope, and comes up with their probable plan for the off-season.  Most of the ideas you can guess already, but there is one quote I found interesting.

As Cashman points out, the Yankees weren’t exactly hoarding their resources last winter just because they passed on Torii Hunter, Carlos Silva et al. They spent $382 million on long-term deals for A-Rod, Rivera and Posada, signed Robinson Cano for four years and $30 million and shelled out $32 million more on Andy Pettitte and Bobby Abreu’s one-year option.

“Even if everything that we hope and dream for happens, we’ll spend less money this free-agent market than we did last free-agent market,” Cashman said.

• Here’s the Swisher portion of today’s news.  Newsday’s Ken Davidoff thinks the acquisition of Swisher shows that Cashman is still exerting some restraint in his team-building:

It means Cashman still values roster and payroll flexibility, a concept he put in doubt with his questionable three-year, $12-million commitment to setup man Damaso Marte on Wednesday.

It means that the Yankees appreciate the risk in giving a nine-figure contract to someone they don’t know firsthand — and that they’re certainly not going to give out two such deals in the same winter.

• Christina Kahrl of BP.com does her usual excellent job of analyzing transactions.  Here is a bit of her take on the Swisher trade:

The genius to the Swisher deal is that it’s a down-market solution for an up-market franchise.  … getting a player with experience at all three positions this early in the Hot Stove season engenders all sorts of follow-on possibilities. The Yankees can look at fixes at all three problem positions, but they can afford to be flexible and pick the best two fits instead of locking in on any one option. They can still pursue Mark Teixeira to play first for them, but they can also keep Bobby Abreu informed of where they’re at on that front, and that might help keep the latter’s price down if he’s determined to stay in pinstripes. It might even deke him into the kind of discounted, short-term deal that would really be in the Yankees’ best interest, whether Tex signs with the Yankees or not.

• Here is Baseball America’s take on the Swisher deal:

Swisher’s success in New York will be the key to the deal from New York’s standpoint; Texeira is redundant in a system full of similar fastball-slider relief pitchers, such as Anthony Claggett. The White Sox hope pitching coach Don Cooper and pitching coordinator Kirk Champion can work the same magic with Marquez that they have for the likes of Gavin Floyd and John Danks and pick up a potential power arm for the ’09 bullpen in Nunez.

• Even more opinion on the Swisher acquisition, this time from the Times‘ Tyler Kepner:

… Swisher is popular throughout the game, and he has some attributes the Yankees really like: he draws a ton of walks, he’s got a good glove at first, and he’s a switch-hitter with power who can also fill in at all three outfield spots.

• Meanwhile, the Post’s Joel Sherman believes that the Swisher deal means that Teixeira probably won’t become a Yankee:

The plan is to concentrate on starting pitching, namely Sabathia, and – at best – Teixeira is a backburner issue in case all the rotation avenues prove fruitless. Teixeira was pushed further to the backburner yesterday when the Yanks obtained Nick Swisher, who, as of now, projects to be the starting first baseman.

and …

Swisher’s acquisition from the White Sox helps Cashman avoid the Teixeira market. Swisher is not a Gold Glover like Teixeira, but is considered above average at first. He also can play any of the three outfield positions. But even if he ended up there (with a trade of Johnny Damon or Xavier Nady), the Yanks would likely still avoid Teixeira. They worry Posada, Rodriguez or Derek Jeter could end up needing to play first during the life of what would be a long-term deal for Teixeira.

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