There is a nice 6 minute radio interview with a one "Jorge Posada".
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/index?&lpos=globalnav&lid=gn_MLB_MLB
Highlight: "I know I can only catch 110-115 games".

[1] I said it earlier this offseason, and I'll say it again:
Yorvit Torrealba for backup catcher!. He's used to catching about 60 games a year. He's seeking $3 million a year for 2 years from Colorado, which is only a million a year (Mitre money!) more than the Yanks paid Molina last season.
Torrealba will be in NY this week for his hearing against the Mets. I hope his agent has scheduled a meeting with the Yankees.

Beckett makes $12M this year and is a FA in 2011. I wonder how giving Lackey $16m/yr effects their ability to keep Beckett for that money or less. Lackey is a year older, and they both have a career ERA+ of 117.

Who is considered the better pitcher?
What would Beckett be worth if he were a FA this year?

[3] Lackey would be a very good acquisition for Boston, but I think Beckett's the better pitcher, and he'd be commanding around 20 million for 5 years this winter. I'd be surprised if the Mets didn't agree to give Lackey more than Boston.

And if they sign Lackey, do they deal Buckholtz plus something for Halladay?

[4] I actually think Lackey is a better pitcher than Beckett, who happens to be one of the most overrated players in the game. If he is recovered from the arm woes of the past two seasons, I think this is a good signing for the Red Sox, partly because it should allow them to trade their prospects for a bat instead of Halladay.

Lackey would probably tilt the rotation toward Boston, but the Yankees would still hold a big edge in offense, especially if they fill the LF/DH slot with a productive player.

[5] If they decide to trade Buchholz, my guess would be Lackey allows them to focus on a bat.

[6] Beckett may be overrated due to the Boston hype machine, but I still think he has superior stuff compared to Lackey, who may be underrated. Doesn't matter which one is better. They're both more consistent than AJ, and therefore would definitely tilt the rotation comparison in Boston's favor.

If Boston signs Beltre, and one of the big LF they'll be in better shape than they've been in years.

Love the arms race (pardon the pun). As somebody who lives on the West Coast, it saddens me to see the local franchises (SF and OAK) on the sidelines for the premium players and scavenging for scraps, but they've made their respective beds. This seems a bit early to pencil Lackey in though. $16/yr seems a bit low to me. Hopefully more teams get in on the auction.

Ugh.

somehow that team finds a new way to get uglier every year.

I'd expect Beckett to be better than Lackey over the next five years. I'm sure that Theo expects the same. A

The Sox have been pretty thrifty this off-season. I bet they could still re-up Beckett, even with a Lackey contract in place. But then they'd have to forget about going after Mauer. Possibly Theo thinks Mauer is going to stick in Minnesota.

But five years, that's a long contract for Lackey. Risky.

Yeah, he's Dennis Johnson Fugly.

[12] 5 years is definitley risky for a pitcher, especially one who's had arm issues, but I think I'd do it in Lackey's case. His fastball isn't his number one pitch, it just sets up his other pitches. Even if his fastball dips below 90, he consistently delivers with great location. I could see Lackey being a solid top of the rotation guy (a la Mussina) at the end of this deal.

[12] Yeah, so much for their alleged policy of not giving a pitcher anything more than a 3-year contract. How many times did I hear rumors this year of Beckett's frustration that the Sox didn't want to talk with him about a long-term because they didn't do contracts for pitchers longer than 3 years - it was at least 5. And $16M/year? Wow.

I think this move means Boston is going all-in on the pitching and defense side of the ledger, because they see no worthwhile bats out there. That means no Bay in LF, and Beltre at 3B, with Lowell getting sent to the bench.

[7] I don't think they do a trade at all, for Halladay, or for Adrian Gonzalez (the only trade-worthy bat I'm aware of). Hoyer is going to ask for an awful lot from Theo for Gonzalez, because he knows how valuable he'd be to the Sox. Even if this move means Buchholz is gone, that alone will not satisfy Hoyer.

[8] I don't know if Beltre and Lackey makes the Sox as formidable as they've been in the mid-2000s. Even if they sigh Bay/Holliday, there offense is still far from strong.

[12] I am sure most people would, but in spite of all his "stuff", Beckett has rarely been better than Lackey.

I'm more distressed by a report on MLB Rumors that Matsui is going to the Angels for 6.5 for one year. At that price it really behooved us to go a million or even two more, if he's taking one year. It suggests Cashman is aiming for Damon, or prefers a Nick Johnson or some other scenario. But one year of Matsui at 7 million or so would have sounded awfully good to me.

Maybe the knees are really shot.

Matsui to Anaheim is gonna be tough to swallow

[5] No. With Beckett, Lester, Lackey, Dice-K (who showed up in Arizona last week in tremendous shape), and Buchholz, they have no need for Halladay and should they deal for him, they won't have the payroll flexibility to sign him.

With that rotation, they can easily survive with Hermida in left. Beltre, the best fielder at any position in all of baseball, according to Joe Maddon (who sees Evan Longoria daily), would be the final piece of the puzzle.

Hermida, by the way, is only 26, was a MLB regular at 23, but...that was his best year. They can do worse.

[17] Yeah, that is kind of bad. I've been on-board with bringing Matsui back all along, and that price is right.

The problem then becomes, if the Yanks are serious about dropping payroll, no Damon or anyone else for LF.

[17] Me too. One thing I was worried about with the Granderson trade is the possibility of the Yankees taking their foot off the gas. I still want 2 of {Matsui, Damon, Cameron}, and figure Matsui would be the cheapest. If there really is a budget, one would think securing Matsui would be wise. Right now, the lineup is weaker than last year.

Of course, my complaint is based on my belief that Matsui is the best DH-only guy out there, by a not-inconsiderable margin. Will any of those other guys (Thome, NJ, etc) slg >.500?

Patience is hard!

Buster Olney tweets:
Heard this: Hideki Matsui's one-year deal with the Angels is for about $6.5 million.

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2009/12/roy-halladay-rumors-monday-1.html

What's more, Salisbury writes of "indications that pitcher Cliff Lee could be traded." SI's Jon Heyman wrote today that Lee would take no discount to sign an extension. Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports write that "a three-team blockbuster that would send Halladay to the Phillies and Lee to another club is under discussion." They add that the Mariners have "contemplated dealing for Lee in recent days," but a straight Phillies-Jays trade is also possible. The writers say these complex talks involve the Phils receiving money to put toward Halladay's $15.75MM salary next year.

==============

Wow .... the mind spins at these possible transactions, and the thinking behind them

You have to figure that Matsui was not part of the master plan or Cashman would have made it happen. Sorry to see him go.

We all knew that Theo would make a move at some point. That will be some rotation on paper. Geez.

All in all, I'm tense.

Does Matsui to Angels give Damon more juice again? I hope not.

Maybe the Yanks should go after Vlad if Mats to Angels frees him up. Eh, I wish they wouldn't let Matsui go like that.

it makes no sense to let matsui go to a rival for that little money. is this all just so that we have some "flexibility" with the dh? what a fucking mistake. at $6.5 million, the guy could sit on the bench for most of the year and still be worth it.

I love Vlad, but he is so beat up. Plus his strike out rate won't bode well in Yankeeland.

The "rotating" or "flexible" DH has such a whiff of Doug Minky at 1B because we already have enough offense.

[28]
Mark DeRosa would therefore be the perfect DH, rotating in and out with multiple guys.

Jon Heyman tweets:
3-way trade agreed to with halladay going to phils, cliff lee to mariners. phils trying to lock up roy now.

[29] Why not Ramiro Pena then!

minchia

The Phillies are in agreement on a three-team trade with the Mariners and Blue Jays to acquire star pitcher Roy Halladay, SI.com has learned.

Sources say Halladay will agree to a contract extension to complete the deal.

The Mariners would wind up with Cliff Lee in the deal

Heyman also says Lackey to Boston agreed

[30] wow. that really doesn't make much sense to me. cliff lee is not roy halladay, but he's been pretty close lately, is slightly younger and a lefty, and i'd think he'll be a little cheaper. i guess it's worth the upgrade, especially since halladay has a much longer track record, but it seems a little weird to me. still, it works out almost perfectly for us. lee goes to the mariners, and the phillies only improve slightly.

Wow, major news today, isn't it? None of the other deals undermine my Yankeedom as much as Godzilla to L.A. though, as I said at [17]. The price is too reasonable, the one year too easy to swallow. All I can conclude, since In Cash I Trust is that he'd decided the knees really were too shot, because a year at DH was simply too obvious at 7 million.

I have some perplexity about Philly ... Halladay in, Lee out feels like a minor upgrade. Depending what Seattle surrenders, they are really, seriously out to challenge L.A. this year.

I think Lackey is very solid, and Boston are indeed going the master-moundsmen route with Beckett/Lackey/Lester (not necessarily in that order). I agree that they need two bats, and one of them is Beltre.

i guess it also assures that halladay doesn't wind up with the mets. but was that ever really a possibility?

"It suggests Cashman is aiming for Damon, or prefers a Nick Johnson or some other scenario."
-------------------------------------------
The 'some other scenario' is named Holliday.
I don't believe Cashman wants a DH only type, or Matsui would have been signed weeks ago.

The Angels have lost a lot of good players in the last 2 years. I'm hard pressed to think who's left. Unless they plan to punt this year, they need to got after the best bats around... no?

Re: Matsui
http://twitter.com/nyp_joelsherman/statuses/6671899317
hat tip to RAB.

[35] I think you mean Boston needs two gloves - Beltre and a LF, well that is if Hermida is below-average out there (does anyone know?). I can very much see them going pitching and defense, because there is no bat at 3B available as a free agent, and their defense was so bad last year.

As great as Lee was with Philly - don't overvalue his playoff performance!

Halladay is a big upgrade for the Phillies, because unlike Lee, he is a groundball machine, and that will play fantastically well in cozy Citizens Bank Park. Meanwhile, Lee's flyball tendencies will be mitigated to a great degree by spacious Safeco and the M's incredible OF defense. The Jays, I imagine, get some good prospects, and of course salary relief. Sounds like a win-win-win deal.

From ESPN:
"Cuban left-handed pitcher Aroldis Chapman has an offer on the table from the Boston Red Sox worth $15.5 million, several sources told ESPN The Magazine's Jorge Arangure Jr."

[37] I have to agree. Otherwise not signing Matsui for say $8mm/1 is simply retarded. And I HATE to use that word. No matter what, losing Matsui (and to the Angels...ugh) makes me sad. If we don't make a splash ala Holliday at this point then it will sting all the more.

I'm not convinced that Damon + Granderson in 2010 is >= Damon + Matsui in 2009. We need > Damon to net improve in 2010 IMO.

As for the Sawx, yeah not so worried for some reason. I feel like it hamstrings them more than it helps over the long haul. Lackey doesn't strike fear into my heart even if stats say he should.

The Mariners. Wow - Felix + Lee = scary 1-2.

[40] Lee's regular season was nothing to scoff at...

[39] Wow if true that's...interesting. I think someone should've counseled patience to grasshopper Matsui. I think he'd have gotten better from us. Could very well be wrong. I certainly would've paid him more, but I've been banging that drum for a while now.

Great news for the Ms.

It seems the Rangers and M's smell blood in the water coming from Anaheim.

BTW the part about the Halos giving Matsui a chance to play the OF, well, that might've tipped things in their favor, though I think it's an incredibly foolish move when the team from which he's departing, who knows his health quite well, would have no part of same.

Occurs to me giddily that the M's cannot likely sign both Felix and Lee to extensions. Ergo, one will be a Yankee in the not too distant future :D

[47]

Imagining Matsui, Vlad and Posada in a 100-meter race ... needing oxygen.

[48] I'd be willing they'd let Lee walk and collect the draft picks

Lackey to the Red Sox makes their rotation stronger and would conceivably allow them to deal someone like Bucholz in a deal for a bat, but screw it, my Yankees' loving baseball life is better when I loathe as many players as possible on the Red Sox.

And Oh! what a loathing the trio of Lackey, Paplebon and Youkilis inspire in me.

Halladay to the Phillies is just icing on the cake.

Matsui to the Angels kind sucks, but I was pretty certain he was going to be gone and at least I'll get to watch him a bunch on tv.

[50] Yup. Looks like they're going all in for a year while they can. They trade up while the Halos fade down. But no matter what, we know Lee is not likely to give the M's a discount on an extension when he wouldn't to the Phils. Unless of course his experience in Seattle is so entirely better than his experience in Philly. Having been to both cities, I can say that's at least a minor possibility :)

So much for a slow news day!

JD has a career OPS+ of 105, yet in the last 2 years, he posted a 118 and a 126 OPS+. In terms of AWAY production:
2008 Away :.293 .368 .459 .827
2009 Away: .284 .349 .446 .795

The guy seems to amazingly have found a second wind, but there is no doubt that YS has helped his slugging/HR production. He might have something left, but I can't believe he will match his last 2 years, especially playing elsewhere.

I think because of his fielding 'style' (kinda girlylike), he may look worse then he actually is, but I don't believe he is any better then average defensively. I don't trust URZ for any single year as an accurate meter. I wouldn't be surprised to see him join Bobby and Matsui in LA of A.

Some awful news for the Yanks ... A-Rod and Kate may have broken up!
http://www.transworldnews.com/NewsStory.aspx?id=148357&cat=2

54) Now THAT's upsetting.

LOL

Phillipe Aumont and Dominic Brown are supposedly the two headline prospects going to TOR ...

[53] Second wind? Johnny calls it a "contract year" and it partly explains why you won't get the same results next year if you give him a multi-year deal.

If the Phillies are getting money in the deal, I guess Halladay will be a 2010 free agent after all...Lee probably will be one too. If so, then I wonder if Theo has even a little bit of regret over the Lackey deal?

With Matsui, Lackey and Halladay gone, I think the Yankees only big move left is to get Holliday. Otherwise, the best strategy is to go after a Sheet and Cameron like pair and be comfortable with the fact that you'll still likely be the leading contender, even if a few teams have made themselves more dangerous.

Interesting how the two best pitchers available via free agency or trade, two pitchers linked to the Yankees to some extent, are suddenly snapped up literally within hours of each other. I was kinda thinkin' if Boston traded for Halladay, the Yanks could go after Lackey or vice-versa. Not any more. Who the hell is left? Ben Sheets? I'd say his stock just went up.

Getting Halladay out of the AL East, especially not to Boston is good for the Yankees, only have to worry about facing him in the WS (or do NY - Philly meet during the season?)

Mariners making a run for it and possibly knocking out the Angels is also good for Yankees postseason.

Sad to see Matsui go. It is the right decision, but still kind of sad.

[54] Well now that Tiger is "working on his marriage" there are a whole lot of women who need attention. . .

Happy Chanuka, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to one and all!

Oh, no. The LAST place I want to see Hideki (other than Boston, of course) is California. I do not like it, Sam I Am.

T-Kep tweeted that Matsui-> Angles is done. MOTHER SHITTER!

Also mlbTradeRumors sez Rosenthal sez Boston in 'serious talks' with Cameron. But I want my 2 of Cam/Mats/Damon! If Cameron goes off the market too are the yanks boxed into going after Holliday, if they don't like Damon's terms?

Anyone else gone from really loving this offseason to really not, really quickly?! (Though in my calmer moments I realize there's plenty of time).

[60] How a propos: Alex Rodriguez, Asquire Esquire: "A-Rod 4U"...

Let's see.... the Jays wanted Joba, Montero, mustard and relish for Halliday. And who exactly did they end up getting for Halliday? Any better then the Santana trade?

[62] No. If it comes down to getting Holliday, it's money and then you're right back to being happy again. I'm assuming people would be happy with Damon coming back for a year or two regardless. Even if that doesn't happen, that likely speeds up the timeline for Montero's bat, and you still have Miranda in the wings. They key is for Cash to not make a panic move a la Kevin Brown.

[62] Anyone else gone from really loving this offseason to really not, really quickly?!

Kinda, yeah. If the Yanks get Damon back, then I guess we're good to go, though I was kind of hoping that wouldn't work out and Matsui would return. I wonder if Matsui is getting a kickback from Damon???

I like the Yankees OF as is, but the DH spot needs to be resolved. I seriously hope they consider Guerrero as a Matsui replacement.

[62] Hey look... if ya had a ménage à trois with two beautiful women last night, ya shouldn't be complaining about anything that happen tonight!

We took a big haul last year, and rode it to the Series. So now, the other poor boys are having their day. No big deal. At least we still have Montero, and AJ still has two arms.

And if "the yanks boxed into going after Holliday"... well, wouldn't that be terrible. With Holliday in the fold, we are better this year then last... and Cashman will still have a few cards up his sleeve.

We can lower payroll next year.

also saw on espnews that roy halliday is willing to take a less than market rate deal but cliff lee was not

godzilla is supposed to eat the rally monkey - not hang with him

i don't think the yanks are boxed into anything, but i wouldn't be surprised if they started getting a little more aggressive. i wonder if they'll make a better offer to chapman.

sox also made a 2 year offer to cameron

[62] As far as I'm concerned, we got Andy back, which was my single greatest concern. The rest is gravy.

I am deeply sorry to see Hideki go, but we all saw it coming which takes some of the sting out of it, as does, of course, his October triumph. Way to go out, Hideki, thanks for years of service as a True Yankee (and especially for that double off of Pedro in 2003).

We will all miss you.

松井さん、お疲れ様です。有り難う御座います！！

Good-bye Matsui-san, well done. Thank you for everything!

:__(

Will somehow have to psych myself up for all the AL West games to be shown live on tv here next year..Angels-A's, whoop-dee-damn-doo...

Igawa to the rotation ASAP! Need my Yankees on tv!!

I don't think the news of the day is particularly bad for the Yankees. It would have been nice had the Red Sox decided to not make any moves, but getting Lackey doesn't exactly vault the Red Sox over the Yankees. Also, by spending $17mn on him, Boston may be less competitive on future free agents.

As for Halladay, I don't really get why the Phillies would make this deal. Not only are they rumored to have given up two big prospects in Taylor and Drabek, but they also subtracted Lee from the major league roster. While the Phillies do wind up locking up a better pitcher (and keeping him from competitors), does the upgrade really warrant the price? In the NL, Halladay over Lee might be overkill. Perhaps the biggest advantage is Halladay is likely more durable, which means he might be able to do what Lee couldn't this post season...pitch three games. Still, it seems like a high price to pay.

Without knowing what they gave up for Lee, it's hard to really assess the deal for Seattle, but they definitely are starting to emerge as a big time contender in the West.

As for the Jays, if Taylor and Drabek and D'Arnaud are involved, they did as well as any prior rumored deal.

Finally, losing Matsui is a blow, especially if Damon doesn't relent from his absurd demands and Sox really have a deal with Camerson. Still, one has to wonder what Matsui would be there in 2010. He held up for the entire 2009 season, but his knees really make his health a question mark. For that reason, I think the Yankees are better off looking elsewhere for a bat...and that place might very well be Matt Holliday.

And now Cameron is gone to Boston too! (mlbtr). 2 years 15.5 mil. Him and matsui on totally reasonable deals to rivals. I'm a verry bummed dude.

I have a bad feeling about Holliday.

Anyway the Mets need him more if they don't land Bay. God the Mets are screwed. No Halladay, no Lackey, no #2 pitcher. Makes me feel cozy, actually.

[74] Cameron is a nice player, but I wouldn't get bummed about it. He has really only been a shade above average as a hitter for quite some time and he is only getting older. I realize Camerson is still a good defender, but the offensive drop off from Bay will definitely be felt.

Boy oh boy, it sure is nice to come over here and breathe the good calm air that sanity produces. Have you guys been out in the blogosphere tonight: there's an ugly mix of panic and pitching envy that seems to have taken over. After reading a couple of comments over at Lohud one might think the Steinbrenners had turned into the Wilpons and Jeter suddenly couldn't get a date! It's a madhouse out there.

[77] Yep, the usual nonsense..Cameron a solid player but the Sox have gone from Manny to Bay to Cameron in their lineup, a huge drop. Big PooPoo continues to decline and their O will not be close to ours...

..and I still like CC, AJ, Andy, Philthy and Jobamania ahead of their top 5...close at least.

Look... Cashman is no dummy.
If he wanted Matsui, he would have wrapped him up before Pettitte. Yanks would have offered $7.5m, and Matsui would have jumped on it. We did NOT lose Matsui. He was never on the radar. Cashman doesn't really want JD. For 2/$18, he would have done it simply as payroll management. But again, JD was NOT a prime target.

It's not 100%, but usually when Cashman wants someone, he gets him. A few million extra is never an obstacle if a player 'fits'.

I hope all this is leading to my gut feeling, that Holliday is the target. He is Tex light, and the situation is identical. Fills a badly needed position, is young(ish), excellent bat and reasonable glove, hard worker. Obviously, he is not as good as Teix, but he IS as good a fit as Teix.

Again, with Holliday, we can skip a DH, have great flexibility, have gotten younger, and trade Melkdud (IF we want to save $3m)

In general, I don't like a rotating DH, but our situation fits it. Posada himself said he can start only 110-115 games. Between that, NL games, resting ARod, Tex and Jeter, Miranda and a late season Montero, we may be just fine. If not, Cashman will get a bat in July.

We spent a fortune last year and the Sox spent very little. No one should be surprised, or bummed, if the get more then us this year. I mean, they NEED a lot more then us to compete.

[73] Not necessarily so. With Ortiz, Lowell, and Lugo coming off the books after this season, Sox payroll will drop by $34 M. That said, they're going to be at around $153 M after Papelbon's arbitration/signing. Beltre will put them at $163 M. That's likely a 1 year bump.

They also have a ton of talent in the pipeline, though most 2-3 years away.