Three and out

Tony's a class act. A "real" baseball guy. Hope he is back as coach...So, are the obligitory minority interviews over already? I heard Gary Sheffield is in Tampa.

Bryan, I will give you this "scoop". The Yankees will get flack for not interviewing an african american for manager. Run with it

you never know. there quite a collection of Spanish ballplayers becoming free agents soon. talent high, payroll lower. still win. you never know. business is business. ask joe torre.

mduncan, so what your sayin is, if Pena is manager, Yanks have better chance of signing Latino players? I don't think so. Most any player would love to be a Yankee and part of that organization. The opportunity in Ny to show your talent and make more money, is a strong attraction no matter who is manager.And remember,sure the Yankee brass has to play the money game, but money is really no object when it comes to getting the top players.

Fellas,

I didn't think I would say this....I want Pena, Donnie can sit next to him. Reach out to Paul O'Neill. I like the high energy...WS next year. Torre needs to work for the organization in some capacity..an advisor type role.

bpark
i know your pains about not watching yanks in the WS, and i understand why you say "pena" but when you feel better, you will say yeah girardi or donnie will outperform pena down the stretch.

and torre can never come back, in any capacity, any role.

bridges have been burned and the wounds are very fresh right now.

and lastly, ws next year, even the biggest yankee fan knows what to expect next year, pitching challenges, team in transition, young and semi-old, BTW that biggest fan is the boy who cuts everyone's checks, he said so himself that next year will be a "transition" year.

disgusting redsox are winning, so pathetically i could even watch a full inning, i just went to sleep.

i hate the redsox so much!!!

The Rockies have had an 8 day layoff. They might as well have been off for 8 months. You can't stay hot unless you keep playing. I don't want either team to win, but it would have been nice to see The Rocks at least show up to the game.

chazz
who is sentinel, still confused???

Go to the post with Mattingly's baseball card on it. And look at the posts by Sentinelofthegods.

Xao xerox xenophil X-man, xenotransplant xerotic xanthippe X-RAY: X-organization, x-torre, x-clemens, x-giambi, x-tra x-anthium xenoblast xenography xenolithic x-era, x-yankee xerox's x-paycheck, xanthis, x-team. X-man xanthe x-factor; X-closer(Mo), X-MVP; XROD X-tra-innings.

x-clemens = xxxx5k

x-skipper = XO XO-lineup

x-sheffield = XXX-talk

"x"-2008(batters/Pitchers) = X-men={Rowand,Jones,Lowell,Santana,fogg}= X-factor.

x=yankee 2007 (wild card spot)

wow i just read sentinels ****, wow

bryan why is he allowed to post here, he should be blocked or somehting?

chaz,

see my X-factor blog, difficult but x-mazing, x-traordinary, x-emplary,

i'm X-out!!

BPark, I'm leaning with you on the Pena move...I think he'd be a great fit. I have nothing against Girardi at all though...

c'mon guys pena had two losing seasons with a very disorganized team

plus NYY needs a name players and other teams can trust and smi-fear. no-one will take NYY serouisly next year with pena as headcoach

plus you pass out on baseball smarts girardi and amttingly

i think it should be girardi (Pamela is probably smiling cause i said that) but he will do a good job with this new team next year, maybe donnie will wait out a few more years then come in as a true saviour.

its very hard to say who will do what and with what team, but one thing is for sure that, a new manager will come in and try to influence his or her's opionion (imgine madonna or julia roberts was the manger) anyway the new coach will try to convince the yankeebraintrust to either keep/et go arod,mo,posada,petite,clemens,the list never ends

so ya see smart fellas and some chicks, and mad man stinkysent (sentinel), who ever comes in starts making decisions that can turn the tide or sink the ship.

pena will not have a big capacity role to influence the 3Bosses, but girardi will fight to keep or let go, mattingly will have the adavnatage by leverage to keep the arods, mo's to stay a bit longer

next year should be with good solid elders and young guns who need proper infulence by the best in the game,

jeter,damon,arod teaching over cano,melky,etc

mo,petitte, over joba,kenn,hughes

and the coaches will insttruc these pitchers just like AAA ball

then the headcoach guy like girardi can fight the yankee mafia-men to keep them away from the players.

this will be the best scenerio for 08

ask yourself if pena was to manage, would arod stay, all-year arod says that torre kept eating at his barbeque, and would not leave, only until the neighbors complained (lousy met fans,,,uggghhh)

my comments above come after a while, beacuse i am usually agreeing with the general blogs, and i find myself typing L-etter blogs instead, but when conversation is leading one way, i have to interupt.

Wow that dude is back, now I'm a ho, sweet, I work hard for that title.

And thanks for nothing Colorado, I guess that means two WS titles for the Sox in what, three, four years...nice.

hey sentinel,

why do you bother blogers?

what's your take on things?

why the profanity?

no-one will ever listen to you if you use such weak language.

also,

this will be my "First and Last time" to reach to you and address the concerns you may have.

i am a rookie here, but long time follower of NYY, these other folks here MATT, Jeterstar, Chazz, & others, are good people with varying opinions, they are allowed to go back n forth on an issue,,,beacuse news changes day by day, we are allowed to look at things differently day by day. isure learn from news sources each day. example i wanted santana to pitch here, but Chaz made it clear that he will be available as free agent in end of 2008, so dont trade wong for him just yet. stuff like that is key info.

some like donnie over joe, and some may even consider pena, who do you like?

also i write some L-etter blog, to try to keep the mood stable.

so please stop harassing and mocking other blogers. and voice your thoughts with a clean language, and maybe in a few weeks, we can agree on some of your thoughts.

best of luck to you sentinel, if your a NYY fan, your ok then.

And I'm glad that you think Girardi should be the manager Red Sox Loose, but I don't think Girardi would want to manage for two years or so knowing that Don would take over after a while, I don't think that would be something he'd be interested in, I'm just guessing. I don't I just love Girardi, I could listen to him talk baseball all day if I could.

And I totally left out an entire word out of my last sentence, on my last post, I meant to say, 'I don't KNOW I just love Girardi....
I should really start proof reading my stuff.

Well put redsoxlose in regards to sentinelofinsanity, but I'm afraid you just wasted your time with that sicko.

One other thing, it who was me who challenged you to do the L-etter with the letter "X", but that's o.k.

pamela,

it's weird, but i think some of us forgot to think about what the new manager does right away.

i (with others) have been thinkin donnie or girardi or Mr X, not worrying about what they have to do right away

new manager will have the most influence on:

MO (closer issue)

Posada (catching issue)

A"Choke"Rod (3B issue)

AROD (MVP #'s)

Petitte (vet pitcher needed)

FirstBase

Starting Pitching

moose

so these issues will be decided with the new manager in line.

God forbid we have Pena in

Mo leaves closer needed

Posada is offered more than us

AROD finally departs

huge power & 3B setback

a whole host of scenerios can pan out very quickly, with huge consequences

the mafia men better think very hard, on maany fronts, not going by what favorites are.

redsoxlose,

You're right to a point. I think regardles of who is manager whether it be Mattingly, Girardi, or Pena, Posada will stay with the Yanks as no one will be willing to pay a catcher his age the amount of money he wants. Rivera will most likely stay as well, he is one of the greatest relief pitchers of all time, if not the greatest, but again, I don't think anyone will want to pay a reliever his age the kind of money he wants. A lot of G.M.s feel that he is nearing the end of the line, and his skills are deteriorating, and they saw proof of that several times this season. A-Rod, and Pettitte are huge question marks, and first is a definite need, it would be a big mistake to start another platoon system at first for the second year in a row. I think starting pitching is set, and as for Moose, who cares, at best he is nothing more than a relief pitcher.

I see what your saying Red Sox Loose, there are alot of issues to deal with, I think Jorge is close to signing again, but I don't know about Rivera, Andy or Alex. I mean I don't know who would take over if Rivera leaves, other than Joba, the closer market doesn't look that good, and as far as Andy goes he said he would retire or be back with Yankees, I would love to see him back, and I have a feeling that Alex is gone, so I guess it is Betemit time if Alex leaves. I think JG can handle it and Don can also. I don't know that much about Pena, I never considered a strong canidate, but I'm trying to be open minded.

If Andy checks out, then wouldn't Moose, have to a starter, Matt?

sorry matt

i kept thinking it was you you asked for the X-letter blog, but anyway i treid my best though

also, i did mention to sentinel that this is my first & last time to talk sense....

matt & others

lowell will stay in boston, i dont see him coming here even if we offered him more money

secondly if arod leaves and joins vlad's crew, we are in for a long season with issues both on 1B & 3B, and will become a mediocre hitting lineup.

L-ettermans top 10 reasons why we should keep AROD

1. we really really need his bat

2. we really really need his defence

3. no-one else comes close,

4. he is prooving himself here, and fans don't boooooo as much

5. offensively we will be a very weak team (i guess that's #1)

5. young sluggers can learn a lot from him,

6. he is only 32, at least 5/6 more years with 45+ hr in him.

7. would hate to face him on opposing team

8. all winning teams would by far be the best in MLB, LAA, BOS, he would only go to a winning team, "chase the glory" or "man on a mission"

9. chaz is right (minimum two batters would take up his #'s)

10. he hit a home run in october.

jeterstar,

Most likely he will be a starter if Pettitte doesn't come back (God help us), but I cold also see the Yanks signing a free agent pitcher like Jason Jennings or a Kyle Lohse even though free agent starting pitchers are thin this season. They could also look at the minors, and use someone like a Steven White as another starter.

Jeterstar,

Moose ain't checking out. He'll come back for next year 'cause he thinks he has something to prove. I don't know whether that's bad or good, but he'll be back. I hope Andy comes back. I'm sure Jorge and Mo are in pinstripes in 08. I am positive that you are NOT a "ho".

I think that preserving our team for next year happens in the following steps:

1) Settle the manager situation.

2) Make offers to Jorge, Mo, and A-Rod (make that contract extension unbeatably lucrative. 5 years 200 million?)

3) Decide on what to do with Bobby Abreu.

4) After all THAT dust settles, assess the roster. Then, aggresively pursue the FA market to replace who leaves, acquire a full time first baseman, and FIX the DARN bullpen.

If any of the guys up for free agency leave for other teams, it will make it alot tougher to be successful (by Yankee standards) next season, but not impossible. The Yankees have the resources to have a "rebuilding year" and still have a chance at a ring. It's great to be part of the Yankee Universe.

Ian K. is going to be in rotation next season right? Or maybe the bullpen....I forgot about Steven White.

Did you get my email Chaz?

redsox,

You are right, like I said, there's no guarantee A-Rod goes to the Suks in which case the Suks will hang on to Lowell. Wow!! That would be a frightening thought to have bothe first, and third major problem areas, if that happens I don't see this team getting back to the playoffs at all. I looked at chaz's list of free agents at first, and third and there isn't a whole lot there. BEtemit at third? AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!

No one will get out of this whole situation buddies. If Girardi gets the job…Mattingly and Pena won’t want to coach under the guy who beat them out…and same goes for anyone else. Jealousy is a big factor of human nature, and no matter who it is, they’ll be jealous and not want to coach…at least I think. I sure hope the Yankees don’t have to search for new qualified coaches…
There will be a lot of rebuilding coming up, but I for one will be seriously disturbed if on opening day at Yankee stadium, the only familiar names would be Jeter, and Cano (obviously I’m exaggerating a little). What kind of Yankees fan would I be if I’d know, and be familiar with more players on the Mets than on the Yanks?

The first basemen issue- not resolved

The second basemen-Cano…(hopefully for a very long time)

The third basemen- Not resolved

Shortstop- DJ

Catcher- not yet resolved (high chance it will be soon)

Right field- Abreu…Not resovled

Center Field- what’s up with Damon? Everyone saying he shouldn’t come back but is that even an option? What’s the deal with his contract?

Left field- matsui- same problem as Damon—see above

Pitchers

To be resolved: mo, Pettite, Moose

Ideal starting rotation

Wang

Pettite

Joba

Hughes (depends on spring training really)

New guy with great sexy numbers

Bullpen:

Is anyone there even a definite return?

Well what are the Yanks supposed to do at third, if Alex leaves....David Wright(I Wish)....

Yes i did, Pamela.

Sent a reply too.

I think Kennedy will be part of the rotation, and Moose will be back, unfortunately for him it will be in the pen.

I think that if we can't get A-Rod back, we need to get DJ to 3B, and chase a young SS. I'll be right back with a candidate.

Well look who's playing G.M. again, the shitforbrains Matt *****, and his twin brother chaz the retard. You guys are so freakin' lame it's pathetic. You guys make me puke like that skank 'ho jeterstar. You get knocked up again jeterstar? I s h i t on all your heads, especially matt *****'s

I just replied back Mr.Bedlam.

No one expected Joba, phil or kennedy to come up last year...which young uns will there be this year..guesses?

Alexei Ramírez Rodríguez (born September 22, 1981 in Pinar del Río) is a second baseman and outfielder for the Cuban national baseball team and Pinar del Río of the Cuban National Series. Ramírez played center field for Cuba at the 2006 World Baseball Classic. In September, 2007 Ramirez left Cuba and intends to apply for citizenship in the Dominican Republic, and also apply to Major League Baseball to enter free agency, according to his agent, Jaime Torres.

- from Wiki

Evidently, Ramirez can play SS, and is supposed to be pretty good.

obsportsgirl,

I can see maybe Steven White or Allan Horne, and if he is healthy Humberto Sanchez who can either start or relieve for the Yanks.

matt

imagine arod@SS & lowell@3b and their batting order

would be

1. 12 hrs

2. 20 hrs

3. 46 hrs

4. 56 hrs

5. 38 hrs

6. 21 hrs

7. 8 hrs

Is Steven White in triple A? Or in double A? And I had know idea what a great player Dustin Pedroia(sp?) is, I know he is from Boston, but he is awesome for a little guy he has such a big swing, the Sox lucked out finding him.

At least I think I sent a reply back Chaz, I lost my connection when I hit send...did you get my second one....

Is Lowell a free agent, how old is he, I can't see the Sox letting him go after the year he has had.

jeterstar,

White started 15 games in AAA, and was 6-4 with a 3.34.

jeterstar,

He's 33 years old. If the Suks don't get A-Rod they will re-sign Lowell leaving the Yanks screwed in terms of a third baseman if A-Rod is gone.

Jeterstar,

Yes, I got it. Yes Lowell is a FA. Yes, Pedroia is a great "little" ballplayer. Just like me!

I like how those numbers look, the Yanks will probably give him a closer look at spring training, especailly if Andy leaves, at least I would.

STUPID SENTINEL, SEEKS SOME STD SAMPLES

stinky senty sneaky sad sobbing stupid SOB- source sampling seniors satisfys stupid sentinel. should smelly sentinel soak s h i t? sorry so strange sentiment scary selfless sell smile so ****** senty should **** sugar so senty smell savors some spice, smoothing such stupid smell senty sends.

Such shallow shameless story stinky sentinel shatters shaking & singing so stupid-ly, shame sets sobbing senty so south, should stay somewhere so sunshine shines stenky's sadness smelly stink sentinel ***** stupid sense, strongminded seniors shake STD-Senty so squarely sinking stupid-ly struggles senty's stamina.

hey stinky-senty, when you mock my friends here, you mock me. so the war has begun and now the best part, like the others have done to you, no-one knows you exist, so from here on out, I will not talk to you ever again!

so sad stinky smelly stupid sentinel shakes suddenly screaming SORRY. stupid SOB.***** my ____

Careful redsox, he will start coming after you next, then you won't be able to get rid of him. I should know I've been trying most of the season.

Matt you really think that the Sox would go after Alex? I would not be happy if that happened, if Alex leaves I would like him to go to a national league team.

What the Yankees need to do is make a trade for Johan Santana this offseason (I think this is the only thing I ever write about). Yes they seem to have great young pitching, but remember the Mets' were touting Pulshiper, Wilson and Isringhauser in the 90's and only Isringhauser became a decent closer. I say let's get Santana and have a rotation of Santana, Pettitte, Wang, Hughes and Igawa....just playing, probably Joba. I'm sure we'll have to give up Kennedy and some other young arms and talent(I hear we have a talented young outfielder), but I say it's worth it. Look at the Indians and how far an ace(or two) at the top can get you in the postseason. Look at the Red Sox with Beckett, he practically guarantees them two wins a series in the post season. If we don't sign Alex, no biggie, remember we won championships with Brosius at third. Check out
Brosius stats and how he stepped it up in the post season. Read "Last Night of the Yankee Dynasty" and you can read about how the Yankees almost let Bernie walk to sign Albert Belle, the highest paid and "most talented" player at that time. Having the best player doesn't make you the best team. We need Gene "Stick" Michaels back making some calls.

matt
i handle senty's for a living, i work in the securities business, for a # of years, only animals here just like senty

but thanks though,

holepuncher

santana will be a free agent next november, we can surely get him then, no need to trade young guns to get him and have that "backlash" spit our way,,,,been there too many times....

think longterm, think past 08, think of winning consistently. remember what Paul O Neil, use to say, about getting into the playoffs,

if alex was to go to boston, i would throw garbage at him and hope some would fall on rudy as well.

i was the biggest rudy supporter outthere and now i gotta listen to my peers asking me oh why rudy why, and i tell them he simply sold out'

life gets harder n harder, but remeber one thing folks, god forbin suchs win this year, they will be saying stuff like 2 titles in 4 years, what have you done for me lately.....tell them to check their books about 4 in five years, only 3peat done my any club. so friends, let them showcase their stuff, but remember we beat them this year, by more games.

get ready for some arguments from the filthy fenway folks forging fear found few fans favoring fenway figures forgetting foolishly fighting fire, fueling fans foretold forever.

jeterstar,

I do think the Suks would go after A-Rod as an upgrade over Lowell. A-Rod is a difference maker, Lowell isn't. He maybe the one thing that keeps the Suks ahead of the Yanks period.

It's funny because, as every "regular" on this blog knows, I defend Arod more than anyone. However, as a Yankee fan I could actually live with his leaving (as an Arod fan I'd hate to see him go). As holepunch brought up, the Yankees won with Scott Brosius as their third baseman (and holepunch, he really only stepped it up in one series, overall he was a mediocre postseason player).

Now I know what you're thinking jeterstar and matt. How could elfman think that? Well I could think that because if the Yankees ending putting together a stellar rotation and evening out the bullpen, you don't need 54 home runs from your third baseman. This has actually been my whole argument for Arod in the first place when people say he's the reason the Yanks have been bounced the last couple of years. Arod can hit like **** and make errors, as long as you have Wells, Clemens, Pettite, Cone, El Duque, Stanton, Nelson, Mo, etc. THAT'S why they won. It just looked like they had all these little offensive heroes because every run that was driven in put them on top.

So yes, I can live with Arod's departure if and only if the pitching gets better.

I agree with you elfman!! If Arod leaves that frees up ALOT of $$$ that could be used on multiple players instead of just one. I am interested to see what happens here. My god I hate watching that keg on stilts aka schilling!!

keg on stilts...

That might be one of the funniest things I've ever heard.

Now just to clarify something here, I still WANT Arod to be the Yankee third baseman...well, actually I want him to go back to short and move Jeter to third, but we all know how the, ahem, "captain" would feel about that.

I just want more pitching. I think having Arod along with solid pitching would be my absolute dream (duh). Can it happen...?

I know I am tired of watching them in the playoffs get pounded because of inadequate throwers. They won WS because of the pitching they had like you mentioned. It would be nice to have that again!! Oh **** ol one nut lowell just put them ahead!!

elfman,

If A-Rod leaves that would leave another majore hole in their roster to go along with first base. If A-Rod signs with another team other than Boston, then the Suks will likely re-sign Lowell. Who will the Yanks get to play third, and who will the Yanks get to play first? If you look at the list of free agents at both positions, the list is pretty weak. Still don't know what the Yanks will do about Abreu either. Like I said, it doesn't look like this team will reduce its payroll any time soon.

Yeah Matt,

There's no doubt about that. I would prefer to NOT have to 1.) solidy pitching, 2.) find a replacement for Arod, 3.) find a suitable first baseman...all in one offseason.

I mean that's a heck of a lot of positions to fill! If they successfully extend Arod's contract, that's one position down. I have no clue what to do about first base. As you said, payroll won't be an option, but if there's no one out there then it's tough.

You're also totally right about his "getting us back" problem. If he goes to another team then he is no longer playing for us while also playing against us. If he hits 54 home runs into Death Valley at Yankee Stadium, what's he going to do in Anaheim, or the Green Monster? Let's hope everything works out perfectly and the Yankees get Arod back, all of their young pitchers come through, and they do something about first base. Ahh, that would be nice. Too much to ask for?

Actually, I have the BEST idea. Check this out. The Yankees extend Arod's contract. Then they ALSO sign Lowell. They move Arod to short and move Jeter to first, or Arod to first. Who cares? That's a pretty sweet infield!

Also, on an unrelated note, I have a gripe.

All I hear about is how wonderful Pedroia and Youkilis are. Look, they really are good hitters, but come on. I think if I hit in front of Papi and Manny, I might get a few pitches to hit as well (granted I would never in a million years hit them, but that's another story).

elfman,

That is a sweet infield, but I think Lowell wants to stay in Boston so the Yanks will have a hard time prying him away from the Suks. A-Rod is the key to the offseason. What he does will definitely dictate what the Yanks will do in terms of acquisitions. Personally, I'm not all that worried about the starting pitchers, ust the bullpen. I don't think it will be all that costly in terms of getting long relief. I like Affeldt as one reliever, and maybe we can swing a deal for another reliever by giving up Igawa, and another mid-level prospect, it won't take a major prospect I don't think. The Yanks came close to dealing Igawa last season so why not go for it.

I wish the Yanks would have looked at MORE people. Joe, Donnie and Tony are good and capable, but what would be wrong with also going outside the box for a few interviews as well?

For example, Ken Macha has impeccable credentials. At least the Yanks could have asked for permission if necessary and talked to him. After all, all Macha did was average 92 wins a year for the A's from 2003-2006 and take them to the ALCS just last year.