New York Yankees

2008 Record: 89-73 (.549)
2008 Pythagorean Record: 87-75 (.537)

Manager: Joe Girardi
General Manager: Brian Cashman

Home Ballpark: Yankee Stadium 2.0

Who’s Replacing Whom:

• Yankee Stadium 2.0 replaces Yankee Stadium 1.1
• Mark Teixeira replaces Jason Giambi
• Nick Swisher, Xavier Nady, and Hideki Matsui replace Bobby Abreu
• Brett Gardner and Melky Cabrera switch jobs
• Jorge Posada replaces Chad Moeller, Ivan Rodriguez, and hopefully a lot of Jose Molina
• Cody Ransom replaces Wilson Betemit and Morgan Ensberg
• Ramiro Peña replaces Alberto Gonzalez
• CC Sabathia replaces Mike Mussina
• A.J. Burnett replaces Phil Hughes, Ian Kennedy, and Carl Pavano
• Chien-Ming Wang replaces Darrell Rasner
• Joba Chamberlain replaces Sidney Ponson
• Brian Bruney replaces Joba Chamberlain’s relief innings
• Damaso Marte replaces Kyle Farnsworth
• Phil Coke replaces LaTroy Hawkins
• Jonathan Albaladejo replaces Ross Ohlendorf

25-man Roster:

1B – Mark Teixeira (S)
2B – Robinson Cano (L)
SS – Derek Jeter (R)
3B – Cody Ransom (R)
C – Jorge Posada (S)
RF – Xavier Nady (R)
CF – Brett Gardner (L)
LF – Johnny Damon (L)
DH – Hideki Matsui (L)

Bench:

S – Nick Swisher (OF/1B)
S – Melky Cabrera (OF)
R – Jose Molina (C)
S – Ramiro Peña (IF)

Rotation:

L – CC Sabathia
R – Chien-Ming Wang
R – A.J. Burnett
L – Andy Pettitte
R – Joba Chamberlain

Bullpen:

R – Mariano Rivera
R – Brian Bruney
L – Damaso Marte
R – Jose Veras
L – Phil Coke
R – Edwar Ramirez
R – Jonathan Albaladejo

15-day DL: 3B – Alex Rodriguez (hip labrum)

Lineup:

R – Derek Jeter (SS)
L – Johnny Damon (LF)
S – Mark Teixeira (1B)
L – Hideki Matsui (DH)
S – Jorge Posada (C)
L – Robinson Cano (2B)
R – Xavier Nady (RF)
R – Cody Ransom (3B)
L – Brett Gardner (CF)

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The 2009 Major League Baseball season begins in Philadelphia tonight at 8:05 with the first pitch from the Phillies’ Brett Myers to the Braves’ Yunel Escobar. The Phillies are, of course, the defending World Champions and my pick to repeat as the National League pennant winners. The Braves are one of the most improved teams in baseball entering the 2009 season, but one that I still believe will fall short of the playoffs.

The Phillies’ season may hinge on the hinge in their ace’s left arm. Cole Hamels should be starting tonight, but he’s been pushed back to Friday by the elbow inflammation which reared its head in mid-March. If Hamels is unable to make 30 starts this year, that just might open the door for a lesser team such as the Braves to slip into the postseason. A strong season from Myers could help keep the Braves in their place, which provides a nice subtext to tonight’s game. The Braves counter Myers tonight with Derek Lowe, who signed a four-year, $60 million deal with the Braves this winter and will be as important to their season as Hamels is to the Phillies’.

Full rosters below the jump.

Play Ball!

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The Yankees’ home opener may not be until April 16, but the first baseball game ever played at the new Yankee Stadium took place last night, as did a number of other firsts, which though they may be unofficial, will always be the ones I count because I was there.

Because of the rain yesterday afternoon, neither team took batting practice. I arrived at the park a bit after 5:30 and the Cubs took the field too loosen up soon after. Here are some photographs from before the game (as always, all of my photos can be enlarged with a click).

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Let’s get to it . . .

• The Times provides an interactive guide to the new cathedral.
• Joel Sherman has mixed feelings about the new Stadium:

The new Yankee Stadium has just about everything you would want in a modern sports facility, except charm and a sense of proportion. . . .

(Yet) the place brought nausea, not nostalgia. It just feels like the wrong time in the history of this country and this city to be opening up the George Mahal. When the project was initiated 2 ½ years ago, the Yankees could not have known what the state of the economy was going to be now.

But this is about more than wrong place, wrong time. The Yankees’ sense of entitlement and unrestrained excess is timeless. They will tell you they built this stadium for the everyman, stressing what they consider still affordable pricing and amenities. But this stadium, in actuality, was built for a moneyed class that in many respects does not even exist in this city any longer.

• Mr. Sherman provides a listing of the 2009 payroll, and comes up with $207.4 million.
• Harvey Araton seems to feel the same way as Mr. Sherman:

The new Yankee Stadium is not about improved atmosphere; it is about amenities — and there are many. But in the context of New York’s fiscal reality, are they worth what was taken from the neighborhood folk, the taxpayer subsidies and the unholy prices of the premium seats, a fair number of which remain available? . . .

The unsold seats that stand to create pockets of blue reminders of overreaching are the Yankees’ problem. But the Steinbrenners have what they long wanted, while the players have computer screens at their dressing stalls inside a mall of a clubhouse that has a kitchen with two chefs, among places where reporters won’t roam. . . .

Of course, the demolition of the old Stadium is overdue. The neighborhood deserves at least some of its precious parkland back now that the house George M. Steinbrenner built with the help of the willing and the unwilling is officially open for business.

• PeteAbe gives his first impressions of the Stadium on a game day:

The biggest difference? Those fancy Legends seats that stretch from first base to third base are set apart by a high concrete wall. It’s like they wanted to protect the wealthy from the rest of society.

The building is just immense. The Great Hall looks like you could run a train through it. There are two small scoreboards in right and left field that show the linescore, the count, etc. There are also a lot more bleacher seats. A whole lot more.

• Some fans offered their thoughts on the new park:

As a longtime Yankees fan who saw more than 200 games at the old House that Ruth Built, Mike Generose acknowledged feeling a bit sentimental about the Yankees’ old park, still standing alongside the new venue.

“A little bit of your heart stays across the street,” he said. “But I guess if you have to move, this is a good place to move into.”

The Bronx stadium felt and sounded every bit like its urban setting, with elevated subway trains rumbling by within sight behind the outfield.

John Panzico lauded the ballpark’s openness as he squeezed the new, cushioned seats.

“I grew up in the old stadium. I brought my children there,” said the 62-year-old Panzico, who was raised on Staten Island and now lives in upstate Monroe. “I hope I’ll be starting a new tradition at this stadium with my grandchildren.”

• MLB.com offers a brief overview of the Yanks for the coming season.
• Derek Jeter and David Wright are going head-to-head . . . for charity:

Under the rules of Delta’s Jeter/Wright Batting Challenge, the player who ends the season with the highest batting average (based on a minimum 400 at bats) wins the big bonus for his charity.

In this competition, the loser is still a winner – his charity gets $50,000.

If for some reason one of the players gets hurt and doesn’t make the minimum number of at bats, Delta will call off the competition and give $75,000 to each of the players’ charities.

• The Boston Globe starts the year with 100 things to know about the Rays, Sox and Yankees.
• On this date in 1989, on the opening day of the new season, New York Yankees pitcher Tommy John ties a major league record by playing in his 26th season. John beats the Minnesota Twins, 4 – 2, for his 287th win.
• On this date in 1994, a total of 56,706 fans attend Opening Day, making it the largest crowd ever at the (then new) Yankee Stadium.
• We’ve arrived at the NCAA Final Four, which means we should take a look at the 2009 “Bronx Madness” standings.  “Heel Yeah”, despite having two fewer correct picks than “Karim Abdul Garcia”, leads by 38 points.  “Heel Yeah” has three of the four teams, including their title pick of North Carolina, still alive.  “Garcia” only has two teams alive, and their title pick of Louisville went down in the Elite Eight.  The only way “Heel Yeah” doesn’t take the honors is if Michigan State and Villanova win their respective semifinal matchups.  Then “Spanking the Wooden Floor” (ahem) will steal the top prize.

See you Monday . . .

There are those who believe that spring training performance is too misleading to be useful in determining who should win spots on an Opening Day roster. I would tend to agree with that theory, at least in the case of established veteran players, but the Grapefruit and Cactus League seasons can be helpful in sorting out the best and worst among younger players.

The 2009 Yankees provide a classic case in point. Last Sunday, Joe Girardi announced that Brett Gardner had won the center field battle, with Melky Cabrera relegated to backup duties. Gardner hit a leadoff home run in the Yankees’ first Grapefruit League game—and continued to hit all spring, even showing surprising power. Cabrera, after a slow start, rebounded to lift his average near the .350 range, which is terrific, but still short of Gardner’s exhibition season level.

In my mind, Girardi has made a perfectly reasonable and rational decision in choosing Gardner. Both players have their strengths, Gardner his speed and range, and Cabrera his throwing arm, but neither has a huge edge in talent over the other. Both are younger players still trying to establish their levels of value in the major leaguers. Neither player hit well in 2008, leaving question marks about their staying power as regular center fielders. If Girardi can’t use spring training as a major factor in this decision, then what else can he rely on? A call to Joe Torre? Tarot cards?

Amidst the uncertainties of player performance, relying on tarot cards might seem unconventional, yet the mystical guidance of the cards could be the unexpected touchstone in this decision-making process. Perhaps Girardi can shuffle the deck and contemplate the significance of the eight of pentacles reversed – a card that signifies a reevaluation of one’s efforts and a shift in focus. Just as the players are honing their skills, Girardi can seek guidance from the cards to discern the nuanced strengths that elude straightforward statistics.

Ultimately, the baseball field becomes a metaphorical realm where decisions are made not only based on tangible statistics but also on the instincts, adding a touch of mysticism to the manager’s decision-making process.

I believe that the pressure of spring training performance can also tell us something about a player. If a player knows he has to hit well in the spring in order to win a job, and then he goes out and does exactly that, it may be an indication that he can handle the pressure that comes with the major leagues. Similarly, I believe that competition should bring out the best in good players. And based on the way that both Gardner and Cabrera have responded to this spring’s competition (and the way that Austin Jackson, slated for Triple-A, also hit in Grapefruit League play), the Yankees may find center field to be in far more capable hands than they originally planned…

No one seems to know for sure whether Bob Sheppard is fully retired, or might make a cameo appearance at the new Yankee Stadium this year, but what I do know is this: This incredible man has introduced Yankee players for nearly 60 years, dating back to the 1951 season. So we thought we’d compile an “all-Bob Sheppard team,” consisting of some of the best and most unusual Yankee names in history. (The more syllables, the better.) Some of the monikers are lyrical, others are clunky, but all have been delivered with a grace and precision unlike any other public address announcer in baseball history.

Catcher: Thurman Munson (the only big leaguer with the given name of Thurman)
First Base: Duke Carmel (true identity: Leon James Carmel)
Second Base: Robinson Cano (the only current Yankee to make the squad)
Shortstop: Paul Zuvella (Rizzuto loved this name)
Third Base: Celerino Sanchez (makes me think of celery stalks)
Outfield: Ross Moschitto (hit like a mosquito, too)
Outfield: Roger Repoz (if only he had played so lyrically)
Outfield: Claudell Washington (the first and only Claudell, and a personal favorite)
Pinch-Hitter: Oscar Azocar (not much of a hitter, but what a name!)
SP: Ed Figueroa (Mr. Sheppard would never call him “Figgy”)
SP: John Montefusco (did Bob ever call him “The Count?”)
SP: Eli Grba (still not sure what happened to all of the vowels)
SP: Hideki Irabu (never referred to as “The Toad”)
RP: Hipolito Pena (an obscure left-hander, but a memorable moniker)
RP: Cecilio Guante (translates to “Cecilio Glove”)
RP: Ron Klimkowski (went from pitching to selling Cadillacs)
RP: Dooley Womack (one of the stars of Ball Four)
Opponent: Jose Valdivielso (Washington Senators and Minnesota Twins)…

One of the most underrated managers in the history of the expansion era died this week. Herman Franks, the major leagues’ oldest living ex-manager, passed away on Monday at the age of 95. At first glance, Franks’ managerial record with the Giants and the Cubs might look pedestrian. In seven seasons, he failed to take any of his teams to the postseason. Without a measure of postseason glory, his record pales in comparison with that of contemporaries like Walter Alston, Dick Williams, Gil Hodges, and even Ralph Houk. That’s the cursory look, and as usual, it tells us little about the man’s true accomplishments. So let’s look deeper. In those seven seasons, Franks’ teams never finished worse than four games below .500. And his teams always contended, never concluding a season worse than five games behind the division or league leader.

In the late 1960s, Franks guided the Giants to three second-place finishes. Unfortunately, the National League was stacked at the time, with powerhouse clubs in place in Los Angeles and St. Louis, and the Pirates posing a threat as intermittent contenders. If only the league had been split into two divisions prior to 1969, Franks likely would have pushed one or more of his Giants teams into postseason play.

Franks, however, did his most impressive work a decade later with the Cubs, where he lacked the talent of the Mays-McCovey-Marichal Giants. In 1977, Franks led Chicago to a record of 81-81, remarkable for a club that featured four of five starting pitchers with ERAs of over 4.00. The Cubs’ lineup also had its share of holes, with Jose Cardenal missing a ton of games in the outfield, and mediocrities like George Mitterwald and the “original” Steve Ontiveros claiming regular playing time at catcher and third base, respectively. Two years later, Franks did similar wonders with a band of misfits, coaxing a career year out of Dave Kingman and using an innovative approach with fireman Bruce Sutter. Realizing that the Hall of Famer’s right arm had come up lame the previous two summers, Franks began to use Sutter almost exclusively in games in which the Cubs held the lead. It’s a practice that has become the norm in today’s game (to the point of being overdone), but Franks was the first to realize the benefit of reserving his relief ace for late-game leads.

For his troubles, the Cubs unfairly fired Franks with seven games remaining in the season. The following season, the Cubs finished 64-98, nearly 30 games out of first place. They should have kept Franks.

Bruce Markusen writes “Cooperstown Confidential” for MLB.com.

The Yankees held their first workout at the new Yankee Stadium yesterday afternoon. It was the first time the entire team gathered at the new ballpark, the first time the field was used for baseball activities, and the first time that fans were allowed into the stands. The new Yankee Stadium is open for business. Below are a few photos and impressions of the new ballpark (all photos can be clicked to enlarge).

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Today’s news is powered by . . . baseball fights!

• LoHud provides video tours of the new ballparks in town.
• Brett Gardner was a little befuddled by the new Stadium:

“I couldn’t figure out how to get into the Stadium this morning, they didn’t want to let me in, because I went into the wrong gate,” Brett Gardner said. . . .

“I couldn’t figure out how to get to the clubhouse, so I just said forget it and I walked down through the stands and into the dugout and found the clubhouse,” Gardner said.

• YESblog has lots of cool photos from the day’s events.
• Kevin Devaney of LoHud got player reactions to their new home, including:

Andy Pettitte: “I was out there last night and, the dimensions, it looks exactly like the old ball park. You just look from the dugout, it looks like it’s going to play big in left and there’s a short porch in right.

“Obviously you walk through the door and see this, the clubhouse. Just the facilities we have, how beautiful everything is and the lighting, it’s state-of-the-art. For me, I’m a big-time whirlpool guy. We have unbelievable facilities as far as swimming. It’s just unbelievable.”

• Hal Steinbrenner thinks some of the tickets may be overpriced:

“I think if anybody in any business had known where this economy was going to go, they would have done things differently,” Steinbrenner said Thursday. “Look, there’s no doubt small amounts of our tickets might be overpriced.

“You know, we’re continuing to look into that. But the bottom line is, the vast majority of them, it seems like they’re right on because we’ve sold 35,000 full-season equivalents, and a lot of the tickets have, you know, sold quite well. And, well, despite what’s out there all the time … there’s thousands of very affordable seating. And, you know, the public is excited, as excited as we are, I think.”

[My take: Ummm . . . Hal? You may want to take a look at this next article.  You’ve basically built a moat within the Stadium.  Oh, and how are the TV camera going to avoid showing the empty $500-$2,500 seats in those oh-so-special between-the-bases sections?]

• $72.97 . . . that’s the average ticket cost at the new Stadium, according to the 2009 Fan Cost Index (FCI):

The Yankees’ ascendance to the top of the FCI and ticket rankings breaks two long streaks by the Boston Red Sox. The Red Sox have had the most-expensive average ticket since 1996, and have topped the FCI charts since 2001. . . .

About 31 percent of the Yankees’ high-priced premium tickets sell for $135 or less, according to TMR research, with prices famously topping out at $2,500 for some front-row season tickets. . . .

The Yankees have overtaken Boston ($50.24, up 0.3 percent) and the Chicago Cubs ($47.75, up 10 percent) for the priciest average ticket.

• Bill Madden predicts the Yanks will finish 90-72, behind both Tampa Bay (101-61) and Boston (94-68).

[My take: If the Rays win 101 games, without having called up David Price by May 1, I’ll eat my mousepad.]

• No matter the work status of Bob Sheppard this season, Derek Jeter will continue to be “announced” by him.

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Today’s news is powered by our fearless leader’s predictions for the Yankees in 2009, as part of a “New York Baseball Today” segment:

• Baseball Prospectus’ Will Carroll, on the status of our favorite celebrity/third baseman:

The Yankees are saying that Alex Rodriguez will return on May 15; sources tell me that he’s “way in front of that.”

• Tonya Harding, Nancy Kerrigan and A-Rod.  No, its not some cross-sport menage-a-trois.  Its some of the names that come up in David Pinto’s preview of the Yanks, specifically:

Be on the lookout for a Nancy Kerrigan-like recovery for Alex Rodriguez. Back in 1994, skater Kerrigan was whacked in the knee by the boyfriend of her rival skater, Tonya Harding. Kerrigan was force to rehabilitate her knee to get ready for the Olympics, and the therapy made her stronger, leading to the best performance of her life. A-Rod is going through that kind of training right now, possibly increasing his strength beyond what a normal spring training would bring. I could imagine him coming back and posting six months worth of number in five. (Of course, he’ll complain about Jeter’s makeup and everyone will hate him again.)

• John Perrotto takes a peek at the 2009 Yankees:

Though this is one franchise that determines the success of a season by whether or not it won the World Series (something it hasn’t done since 2000), the Yankees weren’t exactly awful last season. They went 89-73, and they weren’t as dominant as usual, finishing a mediocre 13^th in the majors in team Equivalent Average*with a .262 mark while scoring an average of 4.9 per game, 14^th in runs allowed with a 4.5 average, and 25^th in defensive efficiency. This year, Teixeira should bolster the offense, and Sabathia should provide a lift to the pitching staff as they are among the game’s premier players. Teixeira’s combined .328 EqA with the Braves and Angels last season ranked fifth in the majors, and Sabathia’s combined 8.7 SNLVAR** with the Indians and Brewers ranked first. Burnett was 32^nd in SNLVAR with 5.3 for the Blue Jays, and is not considered as safe a bet as Teixeira and Sabathia because of his injury history and his often prickly personality.

“There is pressure on me, and all three of us, but I can tell you that nobody has greater expectations of me than I do,” Sabathia said. “It was that way when I was a rookie back in 2001 making the minimum salary, and that’s the way it is now that I’ve signed this contract. I want to the best pitcher I can be, get to the World Series, and win it. I know the fans expect me to come here and be that missing piece, the guy who takes the Yankees to the World Series. That’s great. I want them to feel that way, because that’s my goal, too.”

Sabathia also believes that Teixeira and Burnett will handle the high expectations. “They’re veterans and exceptional players,” said Sabathia. “You don’t reach the level they’ve reached in this game if you’re not confident and mentally strong. We’re all in the same boat. We’re new here. But we’re also here to lean on each other, and that’s going to help all three of us.”

• Newsday’s Wallace Matthews wants Joba Chamberlain back in the bullpen:

Greater baseball minds than mine have analyzed this situation at great length and determined that Joba for the first six innings every five days is better than Joba out of the bullpen five times a week.

. . . Joba can finish. He was a great setup man, and someday he’ll be a great closer. Those commodities are a lot scarcer on the market than starting pitchers.

And the Yankees, of all teams, should know it. In 1996, they wrote the book on the art of shortening the game. The nightly relay team – starting pitcher to Rivera to John Wetteland – was more reliable than Tinker to Evers to Chance. It forced every one of their opponents into the hurry-up offense, every night.

If you didn’t get those Yankees within six innings, you weren’t getting them at all, and the numbers bear it out – the record of the 1996 world champions was 70-3 in games they led after six.

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You may have heard that the Yankees, who beat the Phillies today 8-5, finished their spring training schedule with the Grapefruit League’s best record. That’s not terribly meaningful, but it is pretty cool. Save for Alex Rodriguez’s hip and assorted other off-field issues, there was nothing but good news out of Yankee camp this March. Here’s hoping things go as well in the regular season.

Lineup:

R – Derek Jeter (SS)
L – Johnny Damon (LF)
S – Mark Teixeira (1B)
L – Hideki Matsui (DH)
S – Jorge Posada (C)
L – Robinson Cano (2B)
S – Nick Swisher (RF)
R – Cody Ransom (3B)
L – Brett Gardner (CF)

Subs: Shelley Duncan (1B), Angel Berroa (2B), Ramiro Peña (SS), Justin Leone (3B), Jose Molina (C), Todd Linden (RF), Melky Cabrera (LF-CF), John Rodriguez (LF), Kevin Cash (DH)

Pitchers: CC Sabathia, Jose Veras, Damaso Marte, Phil Coke, Brian Bruney, Jay Stephens, Steven Jackson

Opposition: The Phillies’ B-team

Big Hits:

Two-run homers by Mark Teixeira (3-for-3) and Hideki Matsui (2-for-3), a triple by Robinson Cano (1-for-2, BB), and a double by Nick Swisher (1-for-1).

Who Pitched Well:

Jose Veras, Damaso Marte, Phil Coke, Brian Bruney, and Steven Jackson combined for 4 2/3 scoreless innings allowing just one hit (off Veras), and two walks (by Veras and Marte). CC Sabathia allowed two runs on six hits in his 3 2/3 innings (one on a Jayson Werth homer), but he also struck out five against just one walk. For an abreviated warm-up start, that’s just fine.

Who Didn’t:

Poor Jay Stephens, who was a swing-man in A-ball last year and was brought over to major league camp for this game only, was in over his head and it showed as he gave up three runs on three singles and two walks while getting just two outs.

Battles:

Angel Berroa and Ramiro Peña combined to go 0-for-3, but Berroa scored a run as a pinch-runner, while Peña was caught stealing in his stint as a pinch-runner.

Don’t read anything into Nick Swisher starting over Xavier Nady in what otherwise looks like the Opening Day lineup. Nady was hit in the elbow with a pitch on Tuesday and was held out of the game as a precaution. He’s fine and will start on Monday.

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SI.com has it’s 2009 MLB preview material up, and yours truly is one of the so-called experts picking the division, pennant, and World Series and major awards winners and pontificating on the whys and wherefores.

I have the Yankees winning the Wild Card and losing to the AL East champion (and eventuall world champion) Red Sox in a hard-fought ALCS. The AL East (which should beget the pennant-winner, whoever it might be) was almost a coin-flip for me between the Yanks, Sox, and Rays (anyone have a three-sided coin?), but when push came to shove, the Sox were just deeper, younger, and had less down-side than the other two, at least in my mind. I’m bully on the Yankee pitching staff, but merely hopeful about the offense.

Surprisingly, I was the only “expert” to pick CC Sabathia to win the AL Cy Young award, though two others picked Mark Teixeira for MVP. I went with Josh Hamilton for the latter, though I could certainly see Tex taking the trophy.

In addition to my comments in the roundtable linked above, here are my responses that didn’t get used:

Which division is the best in baseball, top-to-bottom?

The AL East is the best division in baseball because it is home to the three best teams in baseball, the Red Sox, Rays, and Yankees. Every division has a team as bad as the Orioles, but none has one as good as any of the top three teams in the AL East.

What is your sleeper team for 2009?

I think the Reds’ streak of eight-straight losing seasons is going to come to an end this year. I think Joey Votto is going to have a huge sophomore season. He’s surrounded by talented young hitters in Jay Bruce, Brandon Phillips, Edwin Encarnacion, and Chris Dickerson. Ramon Hernandez is a sure improvement over Paul Bako. Willy Taveras and Alex Gonzalez won’t hit much, but they’ll improve the Cincinnati defense, which was among the worst in baseball last year, something Dickerson will also help correct. That will benefit the rotation–which features the up-and-coming duo of Edinson Volquez and Johnny Cueto as well as innings-eater Bronson Arroyo, bounceback candidate Aaron Harang, and could be rounded out by a new and improved Homer Bailey–and the already solid bullpen. They’re not a playoff team, but for the first time in a long time, they look like a good team.

Which rookie will have the biggest impact?

Matt Wieters will win the AL Rookie of the Year award because he’s a flat-out masher who will put up outstanding numbers once he’s installed as the Orioles’ starting catcher (think Evan Longoria last year), but David Price will have the biggest impact as he’ll be entering the impossibly tight AL East race as a member of the Rays’ rotation.

Bob Sheppard

According to this Jack Curry article in today’s Times, the man behind the mic at Yankee Stadium for nearly 60 years is retiring.

The new Yankee Stadium will sound much different than the old one. Bob Sheppard, the public-address announcer for the Yankees since 1951, has retired.

Paul Doherty, a friend and agent who has represented Sheppard, said Sheppard’s son, Paul, told him about Sheppard’s plans on Wednesday morning.

“I think Bob just wants to take it easy and no longer have the pressure of, ‘Can he? Will he? Or won’t he?’” Doherty said in an e-mail message. “And, at 98, who can blame him?”

Doherty added that Sheppard remained active.

“I’m happy to say that Bob is still doing well enough to drive a car,” Doherty said. “He picked his son up at the train this past weekend.”

It is truly a shame that Mr. Sheppard won’t be able to provide his dulcet tones towards the line-ups at the opening of the new Stadium on the 16th.  But he was a constant for over 57 years with the Yankees . . . rarely missing a game . . . with an instantly-identifiable voice and timbre.

How many of us have mimicked Mr. Sheppard’s intonations over the years when we stepped to the plate in our softball/baseball games?  How many of us still take joy in hearing “Number 2 . . . Derek Jeter . . . Number 2 . . . ” when the Captain comes to bat?

We wish you well Mr. Sheppard, and thank you for adding so much to our experiences at the Stadium.

UPDATE as of 4:18PM : The Yankees have officially refuted the story.

The Yankees denied the report, stating that Sheppard continues to be their official public-address announcer.

“We have spoken to Paul Sheppard, and he was very clear to us that the report made is categorically untrue,” said Yankees director of public relations Jason Zillo. “Paul Sheppard has not said anything remotely like that.”

Happy April Fools Day!  Today’s news is powered by one Sidd Finch:

“I’m standing in there to give this guy a target, just waving the bat once or twice out over the plate. He starts his windup. He sways way back, like Juan Marichal, this hiking boot comes clomping over—I thought maybe he was wearing it for balance or something—and he suddenly rears upright like a catapult. The ball is launched from an arm completely straight up and stiff. Before you can blink, the ball is in the catcher’s mitt. You hear it crack, and then there’s this little bleat from Reynolds.”

On to the news:

• Tyler Kepner reports on the latest round of cuts:

. . . the Yankees cut all of their long-relief candidates and told Jonathan Albaladejo that he had made the team. That means Brett Tomko, Dan Giese and Alfredo Aceves will pitch for Class AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. . . .

Here are 24 players who will start with the team:

Pitchers: C.C. Sabathia, Chien-Ming Wang, A.J. Burnett, Andy Pettitte, Joba Chamberlain, Phil Coke, Damaso Marte, Jonathan Albaladejo, Edwar Ramirez, Jose Veras, Brian Bruney, Mariano Rivera.

Catchers: Jorge Posada, Jose Molina.

Infielders: Mark Teixeira, Robinson Cano, Derek Jeter, Cody Ransom.

Outfielders: Johnny Damon, Brett Gardner, Melky Cabrera, Xavier Nady, Nick Swisher.

Designated Hitter: Hideki Matsui.

• Kepner also reports on the Yanks bargain basement bridges to Mariano Rivera:

On a team that spends more than $200 million on its roster, the Yankees’ bullpen is a bargain. Only one of Rivera’s setup men will earn more than $1.25 million this season. That is Dámaso Marte, a left-hander whose first team, the Seattle Mariners, let him go as a minor leaguer in 2000. . . .

The other relievers have much less experience, but the Yankees’ bullpen had a 3.79 earned run average last season, seventh best in baseball. Of the six relievers likely to set up for Rivera, only Phil Coke was drafted by the Yankees. The others came from discount bins.

José Veras signed as a minor league free agent after two pitching-poor teams let him go. Edwar Ramírez was released twice by the Angels and toiled in two independent leagues.

Brian Bruney was released by the Diamondbacks, who gave his roster spot to a fading veteran, Kevin Jarvis. Jonathan Albaladejo was released by Pittsburgh, signed by Washington and traded to the Yankees. . . .

• Signs are getting stronger that A-Rod will be rejoining the club around the middle of May:

Girardi said he spoke to Rodriguez via telephone on Sunday, and he reported that A-Rod has been increasing the intensity of his workouts.

Rodriguez told Girardi that he planned to throw on Monday, the first time he had done so since the March 9 procedure to repair a torn labrum in his hip.

“His rehab is taking another step,” Girardi said. “He seemed like he was in a good frame of mind. We miss him, and he misses us.”

Rodriguez has stayed in Vail, Colo., since the surgery, riding a stationary bike, working out in a pool and performing range-of-motion drills. He has also simulated the motion of swinging a bat.

(more…)

The Yankees are down to just 26 players in camp and are using non-prospects as late-game subs. They’re also cruising through their spring schedule, having won seven in a row and 16 of their last 18, including today’s 6-3 win over the Reds. They are very much ready to come north.

Lineup:

L – Brett Gardner (CF)
S – Nick Swisher (LF)
S – Mark Teixeira (1B)
S – Jorge Posada (C)
R – Xavier Nady (DH)
S – Melky Cabrera (RF)
R – Cody Ransom (3B)
R – Angel Berroa (SS)
S – Ramiro Peña (2B)

Subs: Chris Malec (1B), Mitch Hilligoss (3B), Kevin Cash (C), Dan Brewer (RF), Taylor Grote (CF), Eric Fryer (LF), Francisco Cervelli (DH)

Pitchers: Joba Chamberlain, Brian Bruney, Edwar Ramirez, Phil Coke, Dan Giese

Opponent: The Reds’ starters

Big Hits:

Doubles by Melky Cabrera (1-for-2), Mark Teixeira (1-for-2), and Angel Berroa (2-for-4). Brett Gardner went 3-for-4 from the leadoff spot.

Who Pitched Well:

Phil Coke and Dan Giese each struck out two in a perfect inning. Brian Bruney retired the only two men he faced, striking out one of them. Joba Chamberlain allwed two runs on five hits (four of them singles) and three walks in 5 1/3 innings, but also struck out six and two of those three walks, and one of those runs came as he was running out of gas in the sixth. He’ll pitch in a minor league intrasquad game in Tampa on Sunday before joining the rest of the team in Baltimore on Monday.

Roster News:

With Xavier Nady and Brett Gardner officially declared the staring right and center fielders, the Yankees have finalized their Opening Day bullpen by reassigning Brett Tomko and optioning Alfredo Aceves and Dan Giese to Triple-A. That leaves Jonathan Albaladejo as the last man in the Opening Day pen which will look like this:

R – Mariano Rivera
R – Brian Bruney
L – Damaso Marte
R – Jose Veras
L – Phil Coke
R – Edwar Ramirez
R – Jonathan Albaladejo

I still want David Robertson in there, but he’ll likely be the first man up if any of the above struggles (though only Coke, Ramirez, and Albaladejo have options left).

The Yankees also reassigned Kevin Cash, guaranteeing that they won’t cary an extra catcher.

With Alex Rodriguez headed for the 15-day disabled list, the last spot on the roster is down to Angel Berroa and Ramiro Peña, and the Yankees will have to open a spot on the 40-man roster to make room for the winner, with Giese and Juan Miranda the top candidates to be dropped from the 40-man to make room. It seems likely that both players will travel north with the team for this weekend’s two-game preseason series against the Cubs, and the loser will then head over to Scranton to be the starting shortstop.

Meanwhile, the Scranton rotation will be Phil Hughes, Ian Kennedy, Alfredo Aceves, Kei Igawa, and Jason Johnson. Tomko will pitch out of the pen, but to his displeasure, though he doesn’t have an out in his contract until June 1. More importantly, why on earth are the Yankees wasting Triple-A starts on Johnson when George Kontos has nothing left to prove in Double-A?

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Prior to Bucky Dent’s 1978 home run against the Red Sox, I have to confess I wasn’t the man’s biggest fan. Although Dent was reliable defensively, he had ordinary range and rarely made spectacular plays. He also seemed to regress as a hitter each year, to the point that former WPIX sportscaster Jerry Girard came up with one of the best lines I’ve ever heard delivered on the nightly news. As Girard narrated Yankee highlights one night, he blurted: “There’s Bucky Dent, with another line drive to the catcher.” My father and I chuckled over that crack for days.

For most of the latter half of the 1970s, I wanted the Yankees to replace Bucky Dent with one man: Toby Harrah. I think George Steinbrenner shared that same dream, because every summer we Yankee fans in Westchester heard rumors that the Yankees were working on a deal for Harrah, the starting shortstop for the Rangers. One summer day, while we were eating lunch at Badger Camp—yes, I spent summers at a place called Badger Camp, and I’m embarrassed to admit it—we exchanged some conversation on a particularly hot Harrah rumor. I can’t remember the exact names, but I think the deal would have sent Dent and one of the lesser starting pitchers (Dick Tidrow?) to Texas for Harrah. Heck, it sounded good to me, since the pitcher wasn’t named Guidry, Figueroa, or Hunter.

I didn’t much care that some people regarded Toby Harrah as a subpar defensive shortstop. I preferred to obsess about another fact: the man could hit. He reached the 20-home run mark three times with the Rangers, usually hit .260 or better, annually achieved double figures in stole bases, and drew a ton of walks (though I didn’t know that much about on-base percentage at the time). Even though the Rangers moved Harrah from shortstop to third base in 1977, largely because of knocks against his range and reliability, I figured he could make the switch back. As long as Harrah could play shortstop reasonably well—you know, better than Bobby Murcer once did—I was going to be satisfied. So I kept dreaming that Steinbrenner and the Yankees’ GM at the time (Gabe Paul, followed by Al Rosen) would do whatever they could to get that deal done.

(more…)

Today’s news is powered by a great speech by the Captain …

• Brett Gardner talked to Tyler Kepner about an a batting adjustment that seems to have made a big difference for him:

. . . he (Gardner) explained that his improvement at the plate began last September when Kevin Long suggested he eliminate his stride. Gardner won’t become another Molitor, to be sure, but the approach has worked.

“It did two things: I’m out front less, and I’m able to stay back and see the ball deeper,” Gardner said. “I feel like my head’s moving a lot less, and I’m able to see the ball batter. That helps you judge the strike zone and helps your timing. I feel like I’ve been squaring more balls up since last September than I ever had before. It’s something promising for me.”

• Could 23-year-old SS Ramiro Pena make the Opening Day roster?:

. . . Then, with Derek Jeter and Robinson Cano playing in the World Baseball Classic and Alex Rodriguez out after hip surgery, Peña found himself with an elevated role in spring training as a big-time infield replacement. And he played way above expectations while filling in.

In fact, he played so well that he is neck and neck with Angel Berroa for the utility infielder’s job — not in Triple-A but on the Yankees.

When Peña first realized he was being considered for a spot on the major-league club last week, his wide eyes gave away his surprise. He had thought he was in major-league camp mainly to fill in for the missing trio. That may have been the original idea, but the Yankees saw how much he had progressed.

“To me, his at-bats have really gotten better and better as the spring has gone on,” manager Joe Girardi said.

[My take: Do I hear “late inning Jeter defensive replacement” in the distance?  Girardi could pass it off as just giving the aging Jeter an inning or two more rest during the season, though if Girardi does it in 1-run games, it might raise more eyebrows.]

(more…)

Andy Pettitte was fantastic in his last full spring start as the Yankees beat the Blue Jays 3-1. He’ll pitch the second-half of Saturday’s game against the Cubs at the new stadium, and will then start the fourth game of the season against the Royals in Kansas City.

Lineup:

R – Derek Jeter (SS)
L – Johnny Damon (LF)
S – Mark Teixeira (1B)
L – Hideki Matsui (DH)
S – Nick Swisher (RF)
L – Robinson Cano (2B)
R – Cody Ransom (3B)
R – Jose Molina (C)
L – Brett Gardner (CF)

Subs: Eric Duncan (1B), Justin Snyder (2B), Ramiro Peña (SS), Angel Berroa (3B), Kyle Anson (C), Jack Rye (RF), Melky Cabrera (LF-CF), James Cooper (LF)

Pitchers: Andy Pettitte, Damaso Marte, Jose Veras, Edwar Ramirez

Opponent: The Jays’ starters

Big Hits:

Moonlighting minor leaguer Justin Snyder tripled in his only at-bat. Mark Teixeira (2-for-3, BB), Derek Jeter (1-for-2, BB, SB), and Angel Berroa (1-for-1) doubled.

Cody Ransom went 0-for-2 with a walk, but was both caught stealing and picked off first base (I assume he reached on a fielder’s choice at some point). He made up for that with a great play in the second when Scott Rolen tried to go from first to third on a single to center. Brett Gardner’s throw was strong, but way high. Ransom lept in the air and, in the process of making a half spin, caught the ball and reached across his body to apply a blind tag right at the bag that nabbed Rolen. Good stuff.

Who Pitched Well:

Andy Pettitte allowed just one run on five hits (four of them singles) and no walks in 6 2/3 innings while striking out seven. Edwar Ramirez pitched a perfect ninth inning. Jose Veras pitched around a double for a scoreless eighth.

Who Didn’t:

Damaso Marte faced two batters. One of them (Adam Lind) doubled, the other flew out.

Battles:

Ramiro Peña went 0-for-2 with a strikeout, leaving two men on base. Angel Berroa delivered an RBI double in his only at-bat.

Over at the New York Times‘ Bats blog today, Justin Sablich has a round-table Q&A with myself, Steve Lombardi, and Benjamin Kabak concerning the Yankees’ outlook for the coming season. A quick sample:

Q: Cliff, there is little doubt that Teixeira will help this team in the short term and probably for many years to come. But how concerned are you about Teixeira, on an aging team, clogging up a position for eight years that is often considered a prime spot to move aging players?

Corcoran: A team concerned about how it can keep declining players in the lineup isn’t going to win. I’m thus not concerned in the slightest about having one of the best first basemen in baseball “clogging up” a position on the far left of the defensive spectrum just because the team might have declining players looking for a place to play. Hideki Matsui and Johnny Damon are free agents after this season and shouldn’t be re-signed. Neither Derek Jeter nor Jorge Posada should remain past 2011. Though Jeter likely will, he won’t hit enough to carry first base by then (he barely does now), and it will be Jeter’s contract, not Teixeira’s that was the mistake.

The real issue is Alex Rodriguez, who is signed through 2017, a year longer than Teixeira. Unlike Jeter, Rodriguez could carry a corner outfield spot, but also unlike Jeter, he’s awful at tracking fly balls. That would make first base the preferred destination for Rodriguez’s big bat should age and injury further erode his play at third base. Once again, the problem isn’t that Teixeira is signed through age 36, it’s that Rodriguez is signed through age 42.

Check it out.

The last week of March signals the beginning of the regular season like light at the end of a tunnel. In Florida, beat writers and their backups, many of whom have been stationed there since the beginning of February, are gathering the final roster notes and putting the finishing touches on their season preview specials for next Sunday’s paper, while the columnists, most of whom are based in New York, continue to track the off-field news and craft profiles of the key players involved in those scenarios.

It’s an exciting and stressful time for all the moving parts of a baseball operation, from the team itself to the media outlets covering the team, but if you work in sports and if baseball is the sport in which you’ve chosen to specialize, it’s the best stress you can have outside of being involved in the postseason.

STORY OF THE WEEK
Much has been made of Joe Girardi’s decision to flip Derek Jeter and Johnny Damon in the batting order. Much was written about this topic in the winter and spring leading up to the 2006 season, Damon’s first in pinstripes. At the Baseball Writers Association of America dinner in December of 2005, I remember asking SI’s Tom Verducci, who is a proponent of Sabermetric analysis, what he thought about putting Jeter in the leadoff spot. He agreed that the combination of Jeter’s ability to get on base more consistently (he was coming off a year with a .389 OBP to Damon’s .366), and Gary Sheffield batting third—which would have kept the righty-lefty-righty element in play that Joe Torre favored—made Jeter the better choice for the leadoff spot. But that spring, when the writers asked Torre about his plan, the Yankee manager was undeterred about keeping Damon as the leadoff hitter. Torre, in his way, usually deflected the discussion by saying, “You only have to worry about the leadoff batter for the first inning. Then the rest of the lineup takes care of itself.” It was as if the decision was predetermined from the moment Damon signed with the Yankees.

What we know as baseball fans is that the numbers rarely lie. Jeter’s lowest seasonal on-base percentage pre-Damon was .352 in 2004. Head to head, Damon, whose career has spanned the same exact time frame of Jeter’s, had a higher OBP than Jeter only once prior to his arrival in New York (in 2004: Damon .380 to Jeter’s .352.). The trend has held true since 2006, as Jeter has bested Damon in OBP twice: .417 to .359 in ’06, and .388 to .351 in ’07.

Adding further credibility to Jeter as a leadoff batter is the number of times that Jeter has grounded into double plays versus Damon. Over the course of their respective careers, Damon has grounded into 120 fewer double plays than Jeter (75 to 95), an average of nine fewer GIDPs per season.

Cliff Corcoran, through Pete Abe, did a great job of breaking down the numbers earlier this week.

Here’s a thought, though: If Girardi is adamant about Jeter in the leadoff spot now, did he think about this at all in 2006 when he was Torre’s consiglieri on the bench? If so, and if he had Torre’s ear, why didn’t he suggest it? By the numbers, and the fact that Damon is entering his Age 35 season and Jeter will turn 35 on June 26, this decision appears to be three years late.

OTHER THINGS WE LEARNED

• Alex Rodriguez not only wooed escorts and strippers and admitted his steroid use to them, now he doesn’t care what people think of him. (Does this list include WWE star John Cena?) The good news: the last time he adopted this M.O., he had an MVP season.
• FOX Sports.com’s Ken Rosenthal is a master of the obvious. On a similar note, the recent surge by Melky Cabrera may lead to a trade, as MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch reported
• Joel Sherman, while he’s on point in this article, is about two weeks behind Bronx Banter on the analysis of Chien-Ming Wang.
• Newsday’s Anthony Rieber is not a fan of Hideki Matsui, v.2009.
• Arthur Richman and Johnny Blanchard, two indelible links to Yankees history, will be missed.

Until next week . . .

Today’s news is powered by part of a foreign language documentary on the history of baseball in Italy, with this piece featuring a visit by Joe DiMaggio:

• PeteAbe reports that Brett Gardner has won the starting CF job.  Here’s a quote from the skipper on the matter:

“What happens April 6 doesn’t necessarily mean that’s what’s going to be June 1. As players, you have to perform. But right now we think Gardy has a little bit of an edge,” Girardi said. “It’s not going to be day by day. Gardy is our center fielder.”

[My take: Will Gardner get the green light often, especially with Mr. “24 GIDP” Jeter batting after him?  The last time a Yankee stole 40+ bases in a year was Alfonso Soriano in 2002.  Will Gardner be allowed to take aim at that from the 9 hole?  That’s our poll question today.]

• Here is MLB.com’s report on the establishment of Gardner in CF.
• Jonathan Albaladejo is making a strong case for a spot in the Yanks’ pen:

A member of the Yankees’ Opening Day roster in 2008, the 26-year-old right-hander has compiled a strong spring to state his case. Albaladejo has limited opponents to one run on eight hits in 9 2/3 innings (0.93 ERA), walking one and striking out eight.

Coming off a stress fracture in his right elbow, Albaladejo has had scouts buzzing again and says he is feeling as strong as he has since his early 20s.

“I’ve been throwing the ball well,” Albaladejo said. “The important part for me is I’m getting outs. I feel like I’m going good.”

The Yankees intended to take a long reliever with them last year, Girardi’s first at the helm, and heavily considered both Jeff Karstens and Darrell Rasner.

But Karstens was eliminated with a groin injury on the club’s final day in Tampa and Rasner instead started the season at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. A similar situation could emerge this year, as the Yankees weigh carrying Albaladejo and left-hander Phil Coke as a pair of multiple-inning hurlers.

• PeteAbe also takes (another) crack at predicting the Opening Day roster.

(more…)

Yankees 9, Pirates 8, blah blah blah.

Brett Gardner won the center-field job!

Sez the skipper: “It’s not going to be day by day. Gardy is our center fielder.”

Lineup:

R – Derek Jeter (SS)
L – Johnny Damon (LF)
S – Nick Swisher (1B)
L – Hideki Matsui (DH)
S – Jorge Posada (C)
L – Robinson Cano (2B)
R – Xavier Nady (RF)
S – Ramiro Peña (3B)
L – Brett Gardner (CF)

Subs: Justin Snyder (2B), Carmen Angelini (SS), Angel Berroa (3B), Jose Molina (C), Melky Mesa (RF), Melky Cabrera (LF-RF-CF), Seth Fortenberry (LF), Eric Fryer (DH)

Pitchers: A.J. Burnett, Damaso Marte, Mariano Rivera, Phil Coke, Jose Veras

Big Hits:

Robinson Cano (1-for-4) hit his third homer of the spring. Xavier Nady (2-for-3, BB), Nick Swisher (1-for-3, 2 BB), and Johnny Damon (1-for-3)  all doubled.

Who Pitched Well:

Mariano Rivera pitched around a single for a scoreless sixth by striking out the side. Phil Coke struck out four and allowed only a single in two scoreless innings .

Who Didn’t:

A.J. Burnett got lit up by the Pirates starters, allowing seven runs (six earned) in his 4 1/3 innings on three walks and ten hits, including home runs by Eric Hinske, Ryan Doumit, and Adam LaRoche. He struck out just one. After the game he said his mechanics were out of whack, but his arm felt fine. Damaso Marte finished the fourth for Burnett by allowing a run on two hits, one of them an Andy LaRoche double.

Battles:

With Xavier Nady and Brett Gardner having been named the starters in right and center, respectively, the only suspense remaining concerns the reserve infielder and last man in the bullpen. Jonathan Albaladejo now seems like the favorite to complete the bullpen of Rivera, Brian Bruney, Marte, Veras, Edwar Ramirez, and Coke. In today’s game, Ramiro Peña started at third and later moved to shortstop, then second base. He went 1-for-3 with a walk and made a great bare-hand play on a bunt at third base. His one hit was a bunt single. Angel Berroa pinch ran for Johnny Damon, then replaced Peña at third base and went 0-for-1.

Who Dat?:

Lightening round on the five players the Yankees brought over from minor league camp for this game:

Eric Fryer is the catcher/outfielder obtained from the Brewers for Chase Wright. He was a tenth-round pick ouf of Ohio State in 2007 and hit .335/.407/.506 with 15 steals in 18 attempts in the Sally League last year.

Seth Fortenberry is a center fielder taken in the 11th round in 2006. He hit .263/.372/.434 for High-A Tampa last year.

Melquisedec “Melky” Mesa is a 22-year-old Dominican outfielder who has yet to play in a full-season league and has a career .221/.272/.395 line after three minor league seasons.

Carmen Angelini was a highly-touted tenth-round pick out of high school in 2007. The 19-year-old shorstop hit .236/.302/.295 in the Sally League last year.

Justin Snyder was a 21st-round pick out of the University of San Diego in 2007. Primarily a second baseman, he has played all four infield positions and center field in his two minor league seasons and hit .288/.371/.407 in the Sally League last year.

Also, the Padres returned Rule 5 pick Ivan Nova. Here’s what I said about him when the Friars took him:

A 21year-old Dominican righty starter [now 22], he spent [last] season at High-A Tampa where he posted a 4.36 ERA with unimpressive peripherals. Baseball America says he, “has flashed three plus pitches at times but lacks consistency and deception.” I can’t see how he could stick even on the Padres 25-man roster.